Colbert Confirms Rebuild...

Yes I would. I say everyone that made the playoffs competed 4 a SB.
Everyone that didn't. Well they didnt.

 

At the beginning of the season I felt good. But you gotta admit once they claimed that wildcard spot nobody thought that team was going anywhere. But somehow they pulled it off. Granted Brady being out that year helped matters. But still this is not the same situation at all. Aging QB (not named Brady) vs an up and comer (Young Ben).

 

I hear you, but what I'm trying 2 get across is....If you make the playoffs you are competing for a SB, and you have a chance. That's all we had that year.

 

I think the Steelers were fundamentally a good team last year but by the end with all the injuries on defence and Ben falling away they were a shell of themselves by the playoffs.

They probably were the worst team in the playoffs given where they were at at that point in the season. I thought they’d get past Cleveland but we all know what happened. The window is slammed shut now.

To win the Super Bowl you need to be healthy and rolling in January, like Tampa were.

 

We have the right nucleus in place already...I still maintain that a well placed draft can make this more of a reload than a rebuild...

 

I could agree, except the point of a plug and play guy or two from the draft has (I believe) passed. There is a nucleus for sure, and perhaps the line can be fixed by resigning Banner and drafting/signing a C or combination. I do think key losses in FA are as much depth and specialty spots and I just do not think you replace that much loss in one draft.

Look at this team the last 4-5 years (19 kind of an outlier) and you have many wins and losses by just a fg or less than a TD, it does happen a lot in the NFL, but it also highlights the often scant difference between a 7 win and 11 win team, but depth is what propels you to that next level.

 

We're missing a franchise QB that can put the team on his back when needed. Ben is an immobile Alex Smith now.

OL is in tatters, key defensive players are aging, key defensive depth is about to leave, RB room a joke, no depth at all.

They're not "reloading" unless they hit on like 5 or 6 impact rookie starters.

 

i don't think the RB room is a joke. we have two very good WRs and a solid 3rd. we have a decent pass catching TE. 3 decent o-linemen. a couple of decent backup qbs. (well at least one). the defense is in pretty good shape except for ILB. slot corner. depth is a concern on defense. you are right about 5-6 rookie impact players though. we will also rely on some guys that have some time on our PS from last year to make the next step this year.

 

This draft is more than deep enough for that to be a very good possibility

 

They will win 4 games next year one by forfeit

 

How far do you want to take this, in total truth every team in the NFL is competing for the SB until they are eliminated. The PO's are just and extension of that, except it is now single game elimination. The absolute truth is only the last 2 remaining teams in each conference are actually competing for a shot at the SB. Its a process of elimination, the PO contenders have certainly advanced, but were no more or less competing for the SB than other teams still vying a week earlier, and the losers in each round of the PO's are in the same boat as those who did not get in. It is semantics, but those in the PO"s are not competing for the SB, they are competing for the right to advance to the next round toward the SB.

 

They need 3-4 rookies to be impact players.

 

And they need a season where they are not wiped out with injuries. Last season was a bit of a disaster in the end, and they will have even less depth this year unfortunately.

 

How far can you take it.
You can't compete for a SB without making the Playoffs.

 

5 or 6...Impact? Man you're being VERY optimistic!

 

Last year we had about as good as a draft as you can hope for...Got THREE impact players... Claypool, Highsmith, Dotson!

 

Was just about to say the same. Considering the capital they had with no first or third round picks that was a really good draft. They need another draft like that this year. Tall order to do it two years in a row though.

Saints got 5-6 impact players in 2017 in what was probably the best draft of the last decade. Their draft class sucked the following year though