Ant is back

Not wanting to necro post so I just post this that says a lot of things similar to what I was saying .. I will add he needed time and to simply learn his craft and grow up , I am of the opinion he has done so .. Now he needs the Football Gods to bless him with health and durability..

If he can remain healthy I still think his role will get bigger and bigger ...Keep in mind he was on the field on a 4th and short the first game , in my mind this shows the trust the staff has in him , it also shows the trust his QB had in him as he went to him .. It was a poorly thrown ball , but he made the play had it been a better ball the play result could have been better with his open field ability..

Anyway here it is ..https://steelersdepot.com/2023/10/h...nthony-mcfarland-jr-contributing-upon-return/

 

While it might not be charitable of me, I will say that including McFarland in any shape or form in a game plan is just about as bad of a decision as including plays for Gunner. They can't call plays that get the ball to proven playmaker with out changing the play at the line and having the OC pout about it while dodging questions all week about that play but yet want to come up with a few wrinkles for a player who can't stay on the field and another who has pretty much cost them wins. How about we line them up on the sideline and just rotate them in on QB sneaks and handoffs to Harris that way they can be ignored for the right reasons instead of stupid ones.

 

I am not sure why you say including him is a mistake ?Kick returns are a part of the game and as such he showed very well.. The KR game directly translates to open field plays on Offense ..As to your next point our Offense is at the bottom in almost every area so how have those supposed much better players translated into success ?

Ant can run and he can catch he is by far the best on our roster with that combo of skills .. Yes his stats to date don't support that , what you need to see is he was a young cocky kid that probably never learned how to follow his blocks he probably never learned how to run routes , he for sure never was a KR...Ok lets look at what we know he torched them in camp as a pass catcher he had one of the highest averages ever as a KR in the history of the NFL .. He broke off multiple outside runs in the pre season he also showed vision and power..

The 1 game he played he had 2 targets he caught them both as stated above he was way above average as a KR so again why is he such a scrub in your mind ?

He runs a legit 4.4 and he seems to have very good hands he also looks very elusive in space so seriously why the hate ? Because he has been hurt most of his NFL career..

 

Pwp with all due respect including McFarland in anything after missing 4 weeks is a mistake. This offense is slogging through snow and it needs to be a formula 1 car, they don't need to waste precious practice time on finding him snaps. Let him play special teams unless he is dumber than Gunner suddenly. Maybe let him run a play if Warren or Harris need a quick breather but don't waste time figuring out what plays of the 7 he is good at to include against a pretty solid defensive front.

They have DJ(hopefully)Pickens, Austin and Robinson with Muth coming back and Washington as well as Heyward if he can remember what his play responsibilities are, to create passing routes. Warren has shown he can take a pass and make positive results and Harris could get going but yes let's waste time and opportunities figuring out plays to get McFarland the ball so he can show his stuff.

It's a bad idea and would be a mistake to put in a specific package for a fringe player. It would rank up there with Ben being passive aggressive about QB sneaks so he gets to do them more then fails to get a 1st down on the 1st attempt and gets hurt to boot. Bad bad bad, no good can come from it.

Edit: Also I'm not hating on the guy I just have zero patience for wasted time and practice reps for guys who aren't contributing currently when the team has major issues elsewhere. The line is getting zero push but let's practice plays for the 3rd string back because he runs fast in shorts and is just back from injury. No practice your bread and butter plays and work on attacking the Rams. If they were 11 and 1 sure then waste time on gadgets but they arent.

 

I for one, do not want to see ANT returning any kickoffs unless it's opening or start of the 2nd half.
DAMN SURE SHOULD KNOW WHY!!!!

 

It's not hate. It is a realistic understanding of his limitations, especially in comparison to the players ahead of him. He can't stay healthy, which he has already demonstrated again this season. Even you acknowledge that his statistics don't support your claims. Outside of a few videos from training camp and a couple of plays in preseason, the eye test doesn't support it, either. He really isn't that elusive. He bounces the ball outside fairly well. That's it. That is all he has shown. It doesn't warrant taking snaps from Harris and Warren, who are both better backs. The offense can't get the two of them enough touches as it is.

Maybe he could have helped in the slot the last few games while Johnson was out, but he got hurt again. Now that Johnson is back, there are four receivers who deserve playing time over McFarland.

 

Exactly. Even in preseason, he has been consistently terrible in that regard.

 

To be fair, he has had some plays and he just never pans out in them. The main image I have for Mic is trying to cut before he arrives at a tackler and falling down on his own accord, similar to "Spin and Fall." Maybe my memory is unfair and incomplete, but that's what I recall of most his touches. He just doesn't "produce."

 

And the Def. knows that when Ant gets on field the ball will go to him, then he leaves after his "play". Rinse and repeat. lol someone posted a video.

 

What’s an ANT

 

DAMMIT JEH
i was just going back to the other thread with OFF
to let you know what DEF is

 

PWP typed Ant
My reply with ANT was a typo negative
apologies

 

McF was my other choice.

 

McFarland activated. Let the Hater's Hate.

Funny, I was just reading a couple hours ago that McFarland was not going to be activated and would remain on IR for the rest of the year. Thanks for the insight, Noah,
Pittsburgh Steelers Will Likely Shut Down Anthony McFarland - Sports Illustrated Pittsburgh Steelers News, Analysis and More

He should immediately return to the #1 man in the kickoff return game. Now let's see what Canada can do with a back that has a little Zip out of the backfield.

 

Tiny little insect you can fry with a magnifying glass in the summer.

 

Perhaps that would have been his fate if they hadn't lost Holcomb, which cleared the roster spot for him.

 

this is great. we don't need to add the4th inside linebacker i guess to replace holcomb.

 

I don't think they intended to shut him down .. He has been full at all the practices since they started the 21 day window.. IMO they where just giving him all the time to heal that they could ...

 

I'm scared of Fire Ants.

 

The journalist writes “I have a feeling…” and you take it as fact?

 

They’re harmless

 

Careful doing that. I just watched a nature show where the ants and termites had a vicious battle. One ant was still fighting hard after two limbs were ripped off. I have a new found respect for the brotherhood of the Ants.

 

As soon as you se Noah Strackbein just quit reading

He’s a troll working out of his moms basement

Noah Strackbein is not a journalist

He’s a clickbait

 

Regardless the point remains