JuJu needs to step up

I think having or designating a Receiver #1 is a thing of the past.

Spreading the ball around, check downs, are the cool things now.

Amari Cooper, AB, Julio Jones, Megatron, are a dying breed.

I guess kinda like the Fullback.

 

I don't know because I don't have time to review every offensive play. They've run a lot of different formations including the bunch, crossing routes, and pick plays this season. Apparently WR's are getting open by NFL standards. The QB's are not making the right reads or pulling the trigger enough to have a more successful offense.

At the end of the day if the QB is having issues than the offense is generally going to have issues scoring. The offense hasn't been good enough on 3rd down. As a result they can't sustain drives and are losing the battle for at least equal time of possession. That's had an impact on the entire team.

You know the QB/offense is having issues when the team is +7 in turnovers and can't make the opposition pay by scoring TDs. The team is fighting hard to win games. I am optimistic that Mason can improve with more experience and playing time.

 

I agree the more time and opportunities Mason gets, the more he will grow as a QB. They need to help this growth by putting guys in the best position to execute to the best of their ability. They have shown flashes of changing what they were but they need to embrace what they are now. They can not continue to think Juju is Brown plain and simple. Embrace these young guys and the change that has been thrust upon them and just have fun playing ball.

 

I don't think they think Juju is Brown. Juju can be close to or as productive as Brown.

Overall they have a young group of WRs. Let's see well they can grow and eventually compliment each other. Everything will depend on how well and quickly Mason can develop.

I think they will also need to address the RB position in the draft. I think they have nice players right now at RB. I don't think they have the player at RB to take pressure off of a young QB.

 

Main problem is we don't have a #1 offensive coordinator.

 

Who exactly is relevant on offense? Connor for about a half?

 

Not this year. Give him time with Ben again or a QB that will throw his way & he is a legit #1. Not a elite #1 (could be proven wrong) but a good #1. (Comparable to AJ Green, A. Cooper type)

 

Then why are teams using double coverage on him sometimes.

 

My friends, you do know that we are starting a 2nd year QB
that had really no real game experience till 4 weeks ago. You do know that are starting wr's
have all under three years experience. You do know that one of our starting WR is a
rookie. You do know that our OL has NOT been able to open up running lanes to take pressure off of the passing game. Maybe you might not know that JuJu is the most talented football player on the roster. Minka maybe a close second with Watt and Bush rounding out the talent pool.

 

This.

Last year the Steelers had more pass attempts than any other team in the league and it wasn't really even close. 689 attempts and second in the league(Colts) made 644 attempts.

This year they're 26th in the league in attempts/game.

 

There has been a lot......did I say a lot of talk in the off season how the loss of AB was gonna affect this team. With that said we really can’t answer that right now because of the injuries at the QB position. I feel it isn’t fair to juju to say he is or isn’t a number 1 without Ben. I am not saying he would or wouldn’t be a number 1 but he needs to be given a fair shake no?

We seen just what juju can do as a number 2 I would have to think that could translate into something. The skull don’t go away but saying he isn’t a number one while having the # 2 or 3 QB out there is a little hard imo.

For the record I was one in the off season who said the loss of AB was gonna hurt. I felt like the Steelers did some good stuff to bring in guys to help but that hasn’t panned out. Who would of thought the would let Washington go MIA to start the season or that moncrief would forget how to catch a ball? Don’t really matter without the starting QB things will drop off. Jmo

 

Yeah that is the trend. I think Mason does not have the confidence to throw deep yet. If we had another TE who was really clutch, it would help a lot in the short term.

 

JuJu is a good down the field WR but our playbook has been where that isn't an option very much.

 

It isn't complicated. It's an oversimplification.

Maybe Rudolph really is checking down too much. Maybe the coaches aren't letting him go deep. Or maybe the receivers, including Smith-Schuster, just aren't getting open. I believe the truth is a combination of those three factors.

There is nobody currently on the Steelers who comes close to Brown's ability to create separation. One thing Smith-Schuster does well that Rudolph and Hodges aren't utilizing enough is catch the ball in traffic. Roethlisberger was willing to throw to him even with a defender right there and trust Smith-Schuster to make a play.

It's just far too easy for defenses to focus on Smith-Schuster now. That's not a knock on him. He's still a very young guy who is going to get better. It is an understanding that his numbers outpaced his development because he had Brown out there with him and because he had Roethlisberger throwing him the ball. To say his decrease in production is only due to the loss of Roethlisberger is overly simple and inaccurate.

 

Let me also add that while this might not be what some what to hear but I believe on the field there wasn't a better combo than AB to Ben in say the last 5 years. Forget about all the off field stuff for both guys and just focus on the on field production. The one thing that made this combo so good was when pressure came in the pocket AB knew it and went "playground mode" and it worked. In the limited time Ben was here this season he didn't have that, if he stayed healthy he might have got it but we don't know that. What we do know is when the play broke down Ben found AB and AB found Ben.......bottom line. It is a shame what happened but you just can't replace the connection these 2 guys had on the field in a couple games. JMO

 

AB didn't want to play for the Steelers

AB wanted to prove he is not a product of Ben (lol)

AB forgot to honor his well endowed contract with Pittsburgh

Give JuJu 9 years with a hof QB & everyone forgets about AB.

 

Coaching and GM totally ignored the last game of last year. We got a free look at this team with no AB and offensively looks exactly the same right now. Teams stacking the box and doubling Juju. No where for Conner and Juju to go. This is exactly why I wanted us to trade up the few spots and get the WR this offense really needed in Metcalf. We desperately need a deep threat to take the top off the defense and demand a double. Moncrief I could already tell he wouldn't get enough separation for Ben's liking and come to find out he can't catch. Washington has been a non factor for two years now except in pre-season games. He's better at making combat catches over the middle in like a Juju role instead of down the sidelines. He gets no separation. DJ might be good in a few years but not the WR we needed right now.

 

Omg you hit the nail on the head, I agree 100%. Sure wish none of this happen cause they had a great thing going here, not a good thing a great thing!

 

Ju ju doesn't have the elite capability to create separation as #1 imo.

I hope he proves me wrong

 

True. Let's expand on that, shall we?

It is/was/will be unfair to compare JuJu to AB. Look at their skill set and style. Their style is vastly different and makes their utilization vastly different as well. AB's route running and ability to get in and out of breaks makes him extremely hard to defend without being doubled. But he can be slowed with a double team. That leaves JuJu with man coverage where his speed, strength, and size gives him the edge over most db's. Or he is very capable of finding a soft spot in a zone to sit down in. Last year, both receivers benefitted from the other's skill set and utilization.

This year JuJu is being utilized basically the same way as last year. It doesn't matter who is in at qb. Defenses don't have to dedicate resources to neutralize AB and don't fear any other receiver. They can cheat and put more emphasis into stopping the run and underneath passing. The OL isn't bulldozing like last year and we've become very one dimensional. Again, I don't believe Ben would be lighting it up if healthy. It isn't the qb situation that is handcuffing us as much as many would like to believe.

 

Agreed. I guess a good analogy would be that JuJu isn't Jerry Rice; he is John Taylor.

 

If he was the best receiver in the NFL, he would be producing more right now.

For at least three years, Brown was the best receiver in the NFL and he was capable of getting open even when there weren't good receivers out there with him. Smith-Schuster still has to prove he can do that.