Two-year extension for Jaylen Warren

Their secondary was a mash unit last season. They had to fire two starters. And they still have no good answer at ILB. Those two things make it tough to be a top defense.

 

I agree. They have no ILBs or a capable NT that can absorb double teams. Their secondary was average last season. We will see what their FA additions in the secondary do this coming season. I don't have high hopes though. I can't see their lackluster, new DC doing much, but maybe a new face will spark them.

 

I agree, I was just trying to stir the pot.

 

Yet you supported an offense-heavy draft that failed to address these issues until the seventh round. Why?

 

Interesting how and when some folks lose their sense of humor.

 

Yep. Tired of investing in defense and getting little return. Time for something new.

 

This is a new coaching staff, so things should look different on offense and defense.

The issue isn't investing on defense. It is making poor choices. The only way to fix the defense's problems is to replace those poor choices.

 

Changing coaching staff is a good start.

 

It also means that the offensive line was holding their own against those fronts and giving him some opportunities to make plays.

The addition of weapons is certainly going to have an impact on how defenses play against the offense, as long as the offense is able to make defenses pay with enough plays in the passing game.

A quarterback having a little more time to throw, and a quarterback that is able to move in the pocket to avoid the rush, buy more time, and occasionally use their legs for a first down will also help things. We just don't know who that quarterback will be at the moment.

 

I see people keep looking for excuses for his limited production before the Detroit game.

They love the decision so much that they just spent more money to bring in a better back to handle what will likely be the larger part of the load on first and second down.

In other words, they got exactly what I said they need to pair with Warren, another back who can at least split the work on first and second down and allow Warren to remain in the third-down role where he thrives.

 

Since we seem to be mostly running back the same D, I think it will be interesting for us to see the impact of different coaching / changes in play calling / changes in nomenclature at the line.

For years, we've heard about how we're the easiest D to prepare for because we do the same things all the time. Hopefully, a change in the regime helps us get better results with the same guys.

I do worry about our secondary still. Hopefully the improvement at CB2 will help make opposing QBs hold it a little longer. But I think our secondary is probably still too slow. Time will tell.

Ultimately, I think we had too many issues to fix everything in one draft. I don't mind the picks we made. But I agree with you that S and ILB are things I would have liked to see improved. We have starters there, but they aren't world beating. And I don't mind using mid-round picks to solve problems we know are coming after the upcoming season.

 

Speaking of blind men making the right choice, anyone see Malik Willis throw that pitch at the baseball game the other day??? LoL
How the f**k is it possible for a Qb to throw that freaking bad?

 

Were there any posters here who argued that the Steelers shouldn't keep Warren? I don't remember anybody making that argument. Why counter an argument nobody made?

I guess I need to clarify this yet again. I argued two things. One was that the coaches clearly thought Harris was the better back when they had both him and Warren. The evidence makes that very clear. They started Harris in every game. They gave Harris more snaps and more touches. Giving the lesser player more snaps and touches would be gross incompetence and I don't think they were incompetent.

The second argument was that they should have exercised Harris's fifth-year option. I also wrote that they should let him leave after that because I didn't expect more than one more good season out of him. Some folks here think it is a mic drop because he suffered a freak injury almost two years after they chose not to exercise the option. It is not.

One argument I have heard was that he was a ticking time bomb. The funny thing is, I was the one who brought up wear and tear as a reason why the Steelers would move on from Harris. I was told that wasn't a factor, that the Steelers simply felt Warren was better. Then, once Harris got hurt, suddenly Harris's critics wanted to talk about the wear and tear on his body.

There was also conflicting evidence presented regarding whether an Achilles tear like the one Harris suffered could be a freak thing or if it had to be due to stresses over time. I spoke to a surgeon with experience treating athletes about this. He had seen the play. He was certain that it could have just been an awkward step by a player who had been healthy. In response, I believe you said you spoke to someone who said otherwise. At best, that is inconclusive.

Letting Harris go cost them resources, specifically the third-round pick they spent on Kaleb Johnson. Some pretty good players went between that selection and the Steelers' next pick in the fourth round. Xavier Watts would have looked pretty damn good in black and gold last year. A year later, the Steelers ended up getting exactly what I said they needed, a guy who is going to at least split the workload with Warren, if not take the starting job from him outright. They gave Dowdle more money than they are paying Warren to do that job.

If I am misrepresenting anything you or anyone else said about all this, by all means, correct me. Regarding my own previously-stated points, they are reflected accurately in this post.

 

A couple of people still think we should have given Harris the 5th

You can’t fix stupid