Washington

So it’s Monday and I am up to my ears in AB stuff. So I decided to focus on the guys we still have. Washington is an unknown, but I truly believe he looked like he was starting to blossom towards the end of season and will be a playmaker for us this season. The Pats game was a big step for him.
Go Steelers!!

 

I'd to see him change that #13, it feels unlucky. I think of Dri Archer too much.

Any way he seemed to come along better that last 4 weeks of the season. Hard to get tons of looks when you have guys like AB and JuJu getting throws, a TE like McDonald who gets looks, and steelers like to throw it to running backs a lot.

Year #2 is going to be big for him. He seems to have knack to get open, but often it seemed like him and Ben were on separate planets when it came to communication of what route to run etc. I think exceptions of a rookie were high, especially when Juju blew the door down his rookie year. But, it's pretty uncommon to have a rookie WR do as well as Juju did year 1.

I think Washington will bounce back and have a larger role no doubt.

 

I expect 50 catches next season.

 

Add a good vet WR and a capable mid round RB and I'm fine with the offense. They screwed up on Munch big time though.

The back 7 on D is terrible and the HC and DC suck at their jobs. I don't have much faith in Colbert any more either. Fine. The whole group gets one more chance from me. If they foul this up again we are looking to whatever life will be after Ben and with a new coaching staff. Complete unknown.

 

Agree. Washington should go with Plax's old number.... 80.

 

My only possible disagreement with you is Colbert. Can you imagine trying to do the job he has to do with Tomlin creating the toxic environment below him and Rooney acting nothing is wrong above him? I would be surprised to he leaving soon to get out of the dumpster fire.

 

I really liked Washington coming out of college, so I have faith he will have a much better year 2. I think the slack Ben got for calling him out will hopefully motivate Ben to get him involved more (ie more passes thrown his way).

 

More targets and higher percentage routes. Less all or nothing balls and use the intermediate routes to set up the deep ball. I don't think he can win consistently going vertical in this league. Too many guys can run with him unlike in college. The key is to set it up properly ...l

 

I liked what I saw from him and I see no reason he he won't improve. I just hate to rely on any skill player in the NFL till about year three. A running back with vision and quickness can be great right out of the gate, a WR takes a little more fine tuning.

 

yes and deep passes aren't high percentage so you're playing that balancing act with his confidence as a young WR

 

Fair enough. I've called Art a coward numerous times for letting this happen. He's more in love with 3-coaches-in-50-years than he is anything else. I don't blame Colbert on the 3/5 picks because AB is a moron. I haven't liked our first round picks though - we have one good player from the last 6 first rounders. Shaz was a tough loss and we'll see about Edmunds, okay, but I still didn't like the picks. We've been in salary cap hell for years, too. He screwed up major dicking around with Bell this last season when it was obvious what would happen. I just don't see that KC has done anything great.

 

Valid. But you have to give him credit for Pouncy, Heyward, and DeCastro as well as T.J. right?

And, maybe, just maybe, his choices are being heavily influenced by the Dip**** Duo of Tomlin and Rooney in the last few years?

 

Yeah, sure, no one knows how that mess all ties together. Maybe the players are better than we think and teaching and schemes suck even more than it appears. Or the opposite. It's been bad for a while though and Art has ignored it.

 

I'm pretty sure if someone told Art his hair was on fire he would ignore it!

 

The odd thing about Washington is he's built like Ward but is better known for catching lob bombs more like Bryant than Ward's sweet spot in tight coverage over the middle or sideline outs. I think we're all waiting anxiously to see where his (hopeful) success comes. Any healthy combination of Wallace, Sanders, Holmes, Bryant, Brown or Ward will do just fine. Hope we can soon replace his highlight reel from OSU with Steeler achievements.

 

This.


JuJu did not light the world on fire within his first couple of weeks either. Against the Lions though, that is when he showed us glimpses of what he could become.



Very seldom do rookie Wide Receiver tear the league asunder. Those that do usually are top 10 to top 5 picks in any draft.

 

Rumor has Washington been working this off season with Aliquippa's ex Steeler receiver coach Mann this off season. He is the coach that helped AB, JuJu, Ward, Randle Ell. That's a good thing.

 

Kid's gonna be fine. We get WRs right.

 

Steelers must think Washington can play outside too. They haven’t brought in another vet WR to this point and let Williams go to Oakland. I smell a WR in round 2 again.