Numbers Crunch

http://www.steelersdepot.com/2014/12/steelers-vs-falcons-numbers-crunch/

Thought I would pass this along look down at the middle of the page the Steelers have gave up 8 130 yard receivers in 2 seasons. Before that span they gave up 8 in 7 seasons.The Defense also gave up 33 big plays in 2 seasons compared to 29 in 6 years .

Gay is our best CB and we manned him up on the Falcons 3rd. WR and he got torched all but 1 play , which he did make a great 1 . The Falcons didn't have a true #1 or #2 WR or a pass catching TE to put on the field against us , they also don't have a great running game so we could blitz, or play cover deep whatever we wanted.

The point is simple Gay should be our #4 CB #3 at the most, how many years has it took him to get to this level ? We can't wait that long for our next guys to develop. We don't have the scouting department to find late round Gems. The more I watch this Team the more I am convinced we need at least 3 DB'S in the first 4 rounds.

DL are not the reason WR'S are going off . DL are not the reason we are big play door mats , The truth is we are old we are slow and we are under talented on the back end . FS, SS, and 2 CB'S are needed to turn this D around....

 

it all goes hand in hand with pressure up front too PWP. you can't just dismiss that part of the defense. any NFL QB worth a darn will carve up a defense if they have all day to look around.

we need some better safety play, on that I agree. blake and McCain along with gay are getting better in coverage. if we had better and more consistent pressure up front, I think we could make this work with this group.

we are missing a guy to shut down half the field, but it all works hand in hand. the more pressure the more plays even these guys would make. maybe our next move should be replacing john Mitchell to coach our DL to get off of blocks. I don't know, but just throwing different bodies at the same problem won't make it go away. Mitchell, troy and will allen are not the answer. no pass rush and constant zone defense won't make it any better either.

 

this is why we need DL help in the draft, preferably in the top 3 rounds

 

OK lets break this down further . Are the DL responsible for WR'S running past them ? Are DL responsible for making tackles 20 or 30 yards from the LOS . The answer to both those are a no .

Now lets break down the 3-4 zone blitz scheme a bit more. Don't let the Zone part get you confused .The object of it is to bring 1 more man than the Offense can block . Where does this guy come from ? What positions do these put the most pressure on ? Hint those Big Plays , meaning the outside CB'S and the FS are getting exposed.

If our OLB'S are dropping more in coverage than they ever had in the past then why is that ? Coverage ability !!!

I am not forgetting the guys up front I am trying to show you guys we have some guys who can play up front if they are allowed to . We can't keep having 1 group cover for the next group . If we guess wrong or the QB checks to the other play we get gashed.

I have seen enough skill upfront to believe these guys could play if they had talent behind them .Gay is not the #1 or #2 CB answer neither is Mitchell or Troy at the Safety spots...

Pressure is created by coverage , if a Team can play tight coverage this allows time for the pass rush to get home. The key is to get the QB to go through at least 2 reads and before he can make his 3rd. someone needs to be in his face . The problem with the Steelers is the QB gets his read before the snap most times . He uses a little motion and finds the man coverage and simply plays pitch and catch. Again to stop that the QB needs to be reluctant to just pick that WR and fire the ball, make him pull it down ,make him make another read and then you will have that pressure. That is the difference in this Defense Ike can't cover anymore Mcfadden is gone Clark is gone Troy is a shell of his former self . Gay is being asked to play guys who are simply better than him . A GM worth a salt would fix these problems and give the front 7 a chance.

As to the why Seattle has drafted DL high in the draft is because they could. They had the back end on lock down so of course you can then draft for pressure and run stopping ability . Key difference is they found DB talent late and we can't find it late. Again the pressure up front in the Superbowl came because they had every Receiver locked up no initial read and the Pass rush got home . I have game rewind I can get some times for you on that pressure if you like ? But I can tell you already Manning didn't have his first 2 reads wide open ever in that game . As stated they are open all day almost every game against the Steelers esp. against a Team with a running game....

 

our defense is overall mediocre at best we need help everywhere

 

Seattle didn't reach because they had targeted players that fit their system. The Coach had inside info on the types of guys he wanted to play on the back end . He also knew he had hit on his CB'S , but needed a FS to put it all together . He pulled the trigger and Bam the Legion of Boom was born . If I had faith in Colbert and our staff to do the same thing I would be all for it .

I also understand your math on the front 4 and giving more guys to cover, we agree on that , but again another problem we run a 3-4 not a 4-3 . One more solid point is a Team can scheme around a pass rush . A good OC can double a pass rusher, run screens to his side, run play action at him , Boot the QB away from the rush, or throw quick routes, or WR screens .

Notice those last 2 quick routes or WR screens you need guys who can cover and tackle in space .

On the flip side if you have CB'S and a FS who can cover and tackle what does a good OC do to negate there play ? The only true answer I know is run the Football and use PA . This is where your SS comes in . If he is a true force as a run stopper then it's going to be hard to move the ball on that Team ... Troy used to be that force , not anymore. So again my math is we are minus a #1 and #2 CB . Do you disagree ? And our FS spot needs to be a ball hawk we are minus at that spot as well . Do you disagree ? Finally the SS weak .Do you disagree ?

IMO we are just so weak on the back it calls for a more aggressive approach . So on if we did draft heavy and hit on the back end how much better would our rush be when we could send 6 or 7 at the QB ? How much better would our run D be with 6 or 7 committed into the box ? This helps your pass coverage by more than any other way because the OC would start keeping TE'S and RB'S in to block . You don't do that very often against a 4 man rush . So the answer is coverage so you can dictate to Teams what they are going to do instead of getting dictated to . 1 pass rusher will not do that ,neither would 2 , nor would 3 , without better talent to cover the first read.

 

seattles pass rush created the legion of boom. it makes the qb's go to his 2nd and 3rd reads. peyton and Denver run many short quick routes. the pass rush was getting there quick enough that the bigger corners could play the bump which held up receivers long enough for that pass rush to create problems taking away those short routes. they were never able to complete the short stuff to open up the longer game. it was because of the pass rush.

carroll built that pass rush and added corners to play bump coverage which is set up by that pass rush. it's not just the front 4 either. wagner's quickness rushing up the middle creates a lot of problems.

as I said in another thread the perception of the pocket closing in is just as helpful as getting the sack. I'm not sure john Mitchell teaches that all that well or just doesn't have the horses to do it. cam Thomas creates nothing up the middle to help in the face pressure or a collapsing pocket and qb's have room to move, set their feet and make reads and step into throws. if the pass has to come out quicker, smaller quicker corners can cover in the short area. it all works hand in hand.

 

Even though I don't agree that the rush gave Seattle the ability to play press. I think it was vice versa the ability of the CB'S gave them the ability to rush . Either way we don't have the smaller quicker CB'S needed either . I don't like patching a little here and a little there . Not sure Ben has the years for us to develop a great pass rush by talent only up front . It took a bunch of top picks for Detroit to do it .

We have some solid players up front , but none are suited to do it all. Like Mcclendon plays well against zone scheme and Big Dan plays well against man . The 4 main starters on D are the 2 outside CB'S and the 2 Safety spots . Those guys play 100% of the snaps if they stay healthy. So It makes sense to draft the main positions first and find some sub package guys later . I think we have some sub package guys on the roster now,

Guys I like in a long distance situation would be Timmons,Heyward,Moats,Spence,Tuitt,Shazier, and Jones . I would have no problem with a nascar package so to speak and just let these guys walk around and pick some gaps . If we could cover for a few seconds 1 of these guys could get home IMO.

I know we still need more DL help for the future , but I am thinking about getting as good as we can as fast as we can . If we are going the slow route we might as well trade Ben and Wheaton and Archer and go full rebuild. I guess the question we all must ask is it the front 7 more responsible for the big plays or is is the back end ? My vote says the back end . Stop the big plays should be our draft approach followed by create the big plays in the next draft . That's just how I see it . The back will keep you from getting burned and the front will give you the ability to create turnovers . We are firmly in stage 1 of that process IMO...

 

too bad al woods signed for tennesee and we took that garbage of thomas

 

No doubt about that . Thomas was for sure a waste of money . I think you are 1 of the few who really understand my approach . If we only get 1 on the back and 1 on the front we still don't have a solid group on either end . What's that saying ..

You don't fight a Junk Yard Dog with ASPCA rules . What you do is take the leash off your own Bigger Meaner Dog.

On the back end we are unleashing Tea Cup Poodles and Shih Tzu's against Rottweiler's and Pittbull's . Anyone who expects that to work is just plain insane.

We may have a Couple of German Shepherds or Doberman's up front so they can at least make a fight of it .The toy dogs have no place in the fight....

 

Simple answer. We need so much help back there I would pass on the OLB we still have J.J. in the pipeline and trade back . It is not a act of congress to trade after the top 10 . Always Teams on the phone wanting to move up or down. So I would target a position with a draft grade and if I was forced to take another position then I would . Meaning a CB, FS, SS, or another CB was not there worthy of my Big Board .

Chances are great 1 of those will be there if not odds are I could move back and gain more picks as well as still get the position that is needed the most IMO....

So the answer is not blindly , but with eyes wide open approach....

 

You should be sad . I am trying to win it all I thought that was the Goal ? Oh well maybe not . Just keep patching holes to the road falls apart , I guess that's your approach ? Glad you want be drafting for us either ? After we give up 50 to the Pats or the Broncos I am sure Colbert won't be drafting either nor should he be.........The stats about the big plays are a direct result of BPA all over the map approach, time for a change BPA at the positions of most need . You can't dispute that the 4 DB'S I have mentioned play the most snaps to continue to ignore that is just wrong .

So you like toy dogs in a junk yard fight I however do not , but by no means does that make my approach is wrong or incorrect . We have spent a lot of top picks lately up front yet the proof is in the pudding . We are Big Play chumps , that's the main place to look. I see the main cause and I am willing to address it.....Sounds like leadership to me .....

 

ideally : we need one olb a safety one cb one nt ... STARTERS

 

That tub of lard best be gone after this season. What a waste.

 

I am actually kool with 2 on the back and 2 on the front , I just don't like the odds of hitting both in either area. Then we are right back to half good here and half good there.

If someone would present an argument for 4 guys up front then I would be more than willing to listen , because we may hit 2 hopefully 3 . Which is exactly why I say target 1 end. Hit all you can and then scheme around it . Hard if not Impossible to scheme against weaknesses in both areas .

We still have Shazier and J.J. on the front as well as promise from Tuitt, Big Dan , Spence , Moats, you get my point. Who is it that we need to see play or have hopes they will get better on the back end ? To me that pantry is empty and we better find a way to fill it and fill it quick.

At minimum we need 1 CB and a FS ,I also think Troy is gone so throw in SS . Now do you think Gay is better than most the # 2 WR'S in the NFL ? M,y answer is a strong no so right back where I started need another #2 CB....

 

if you put one good safety and a top 1 cb you can play with mitchell gay and mc cain on the back ..on the front we need a top olb that can rush the passer , a young harrison

 

Yes we can play I would agree with that . Is why I said at the very least . So yes that's the least we can do to upgrade ... I would just like to do more and I will leave it at that .

 

If you don't think Roddy White is a legitimate #2 or 3, please don't burn your lips on the crackpipe.

 

O.K I give I will give him a #3 ....Oh wait I said no #1 or #2 WR . Nevermind....

 

This is a case where Al Woods AND the Steelers would have both been better off!