What Defines 'Typical' Steeler RB?

I read alot of posts that seem to indicate that redman is a typical Steelr RB and Mendy is not. I am wondering what defines typical Steeler RB. I am thinking that mostly it is Bettis and alot of fans seem to only recall this type of back. I think for the most part we should only go back to the era post merger and basically start at the Noll Steelers (most here would not recall the likes of Johnson).

Franco Harris was the premier back of the glory years in the 70's. He was kind of big for the time, but his running style was nothing like Bettis' and I think many here would say his style is not a typical Steeler RB style, even though he was the defining great back of those great teams. Franco ran with finese, he avoided unnecessary hits (and took alot of criticism for it). Many people say that RBs take a beating and it shortens their careers, thus Franco believed he should step out of bounds vice take a big hit for an extra yard. Franco dances way more than Mendy and seemed to never really get going but got 4 yards dancing around looking for a hole and relying on his linemen.

I would think that Franco would sort of define a Steeler RB, but he ran nothing like Bettis. I think we all know how Bettis ran and I think most use this style to define a Steeler RB. Unfortunately, a Bettis comes around about once in a generation.

Other backs that we have had over the years, I am not sure how they are catagorized. I guess Bam Morris was more a Bettis style, as was Foster, and Worley was too at the beginning. Abercrombie certainly was not. Willie parker certainly was not. I am trying to recall some of the others who were here for any length of time. Of course there was Rocky Blier who you had to love. Frank Pollard, Meril Hoge, Preston Pearson, Fuamata-Ma'afala (Bettis-like), Frenchy Fuqua, Tim Lester, Mewelde Moore, Vernon Hayes, Amos Zereoue, Davenport... (I tried to list guys who played for several season as best I could).

 

I think there is some confusion on this topic also. Seems to me that what people are remembering is a typical Steeler power running game, not necessarily the back. Bettis, Morris, Foster, Fu were all big bruising backs, but there was a lot of success with more finesse backs as well. The difference that I see is in the ability of the O-line to blow a D-line off the line of scrimmage and block down field. The Steelers have not always had a punishing back, but they typically have been a more punishing offense.

 

Redman is a typical Steelers RB. Slow, powerful, tough to bring down, quick on his feet for a guy his size. He's a great one.

Mendy is not typical for the Steelers. He's too fast, and would rather run around a defender than run through him.

The thing is, I don't think the way I described Mendy is a bad thing, but most Steeler fans do. They forget that all running backs would rather go around a guy than go through him (including Redman, whose best runs are the ones where he follows good blocking and goes untouched). They only want a guy like Redman, and consider anything less to be soft. Another point I often try to make is that Mendenhall is still a tough runner who is hard to bring down, just not as much as Redman. Redman might be the toughest guy to get on the ground in the whole league. So if we have another RB on the roster, Steeler fans will consider him soft by comparison, and then just drop the "by comparison" and call him soft. I doubt many of the guys Mendenhall has run over would agree.

While I'm ranting, has anyone noticed how many spin moves Isaac Redman does? Sometimes he does two or three on the same play!! I don't mind them at all, but I point it out because if Mendenhall does one spin move over the course of a game, there will be a thread about it on here with 15 people saying how stupid he looks and how careless it is. When Redman does it, nothing. When Redman breaks a 20 yarder, there are immediately threads about how he should be the starter. When Mendenhall breaks a 50 yarder, nothing. When Mendenhall "dances" for a one yard loss, this place explodes. When Redman does the same exact thing, silence. The double standards are all over the place. Redman has a higher career fumbling rate (1 every 63 touches) than Mendenhall (1 every 147 touches). PWP, I love ya, and I give you full credit for "calling" Redman back before he made the team, but you defended both his fumbles Sunday, which were both indefensible. The exchange with Ben had nothing to do with the first one. After he got the ball he took like 4 steps and had the ball tucked normally. The second one is a perfect example of why it's not a good idea to try to stay up when you have 4 guys on you and a first down already. Because they will be going for the ball. At some point going down is a good thing. It may have been a "noble" fumble, but it was still his fault and could have cost us the game.

I hate always coming off as a Redman hater. I love the guy. But the constant "Mendenhall is soft" talk is too ridiculous for words. If he was on the Texans he'd put up 1,600 yards a year. And if he was on any other team they'd be thrilled to have him. Why do we have to run a guy out of town for being not a "typical" Steelers player? Mike Wallace is the exact opposite of a typical Steelers wide receiver, but we love him. And for good reason.

We have two fantastic running backs. Why is this a problem at all? Keep them both, and use them both wisely. That means actually trying to get Mendenhall the ball into the open field along with traditional running plays, and actually putting Redman in the game when we're inside the two yard line. Furthermore, we all know the OL plays a big role in this. Right now it's still not a good one, but it's getting better. Mendenhall is better at running, Redman is better at dragging. With a poor OL, Redman's dragging skills come in handy more than Mendy's running skills. Of course, that's only good for a yard or two per play, whereas Mendenhall's can result in major chunks that Redman couldn't get... Our OL is getting better. Colon returns next year, Gilbert will be even better, and we will likely have a young stud rookie. With a better OL, Mendenhall will improve more than Redman.

 

The thing is, I don't think the way I described Mendy is a bad thing, but most Steeler fans do. They forget that all running backs would rather go around a guy than go through him (including Redman, whose best runs are the ones where he follows good blocking and goes untouched). They only want a guy like Redman, and consider anything less to be soft. Another point I often try to make is that Mendenhall is still a tough runner who is hard to bring down, just not as much as Redman. Redman might be the toughest guy to get on the ground in the whole league. So if we have another RB on the roster, Steeler fans will consider him soft by comparison, and then just drop the "by comparison" and call him soft. I doubt many of the guys Mendenhall has run over would agree.

While I'm ranting, has anyone noticed how many spin moves Isaac Redman does? Sometimes he does two or three on the same play!! I don't mind them at all, but I point it out because if Mendenhall does one spin move over the course of a game, there will be a thread about it on here with 15 people saying how stupid he looks and how careless it is. When Redman does it, nothing. When Redman breaks a 20 yarder, there are immediately threads about how he should be the starter. When Mendenhall breaks a 50 yarder, nothing. When Mendenhall "dances" for a one yard loss, this place explodes. When Redman does the same exact thing, silence. The double standards are all over the place. Redman has a higher career fumbling rate (1 every 63 touches) than Mendenhall (1 every 147 touches). PWP, I love ya, and I give you full credit for "calling" Redman back before he made the team, but you defended both his fumbles Sunday, which were both indefensible. The exchange with Ben had nothing to do with the first one. After he got the ball he took like 4 steps and had the ball tucked normally. The second one is a perfect example of why it's not a good idea to try to stay up when you have 4 guys on you and a first down already. Because they will be going for the ball. At some point going down is a good thing. It may have been a "noble" fumble, but it was still his fault and could have cost us the game.

I hate always coming off as a Redman hater. I love the guy. But the constant "Mendenhall is soft" talk is too ridiculous for words. If he was on the Texans he'd put up 1,600 yards a year. And if he was on any other team they'd be thrilled to have him. Why do we have to run a guy out of town for being not a "typical" Steelers player? Mike Wallace is the exact opposite of a typical Steelers wide receiver, but we love him. And for good reason.

We have two fantastic running backs. Why is this a problem at all? Keep them both, and use them both wisely. That means actually trying to get Mendenhall the ball into the open field along with traditional running plays, and actually putting Redman in the game when we're inside the two yard line. Furthermore, we all know the OL plays a big role in this. Right now it's still not a good one, but it's getting better. Mendenhall is better at running, Redman is better at dragging. With a poor OL, Redman's dragging skills come in handy more than Mendy's running skills. Of course, that's only good for a yard or two per play, whereas Mendenhall's can result in major chunks that Redman couldn't get... Our OL is getting better. Colon returns next year, Gilbert will be even better, and we will likely have a young stud rookie. With a better OL, Mendenhall will improve more than Redman.[/quote]


i remember alot of people saying franco was soft when he used to run out of bounds too. sometimes it's just the smart thing to do. did that extra inch give us anything when red was fighting for it and fumbled? absolutely not. he will learn that sometimes going down is the smartest thing to do. i think we have a great diverse group of RBs. we should feel quite lucky.

 

Neither did the extra inch Mendy was going for when he blew out his knee.

 

i think there is no more a tipical steelers running back but i would like someone like ray rice o mjd short big bullet
of course we would need a guard that is fast to reach the second level

 

i agree and in noway was attacking you on the subject. i threw franco in there as an inbetween the two styles type guy. sometimes it's just smart to take what they give you. at that point in time in that game it just wasen't needed. that's all i'm saying. to me , sometimes red tries to prove something that he doesn't always have to.

 

I think of yards after contact when I think of a Steeler RB.

 

When I think of a "typical" Steelers RB, I think of one who's got a good offensive line.

 

We haven't had a threat at running back since pre-knee injury Willie Parker.

Typical Steelers fans like big bruising backs who run people over for a nice 2 yard gain, but this style of running is gone and isn't coming back.

 

It all starts with who is blocking, The Steelers have a very capable rb tandem in Redman
and Mendy. They are both good. I define a typical Steeler Rb is one that runs hard on every play
called and limits his fumbles!