Khan making his mark

Since Khan has taken over:

Claypole traded
Dotson traded
Greene traded
Okorafor not retained
Pickett traded
Rudolph not retained
Trubiscky not retained
Johnson traded
Cole not retained
Harvin not retained
Najee 5th yr option not picked up

* Steelers trying to trade for a high pedigree WR - what does this say about Pickens future?

Thats alot of turnover. Some of the changes were because of going from Power to Zone/Gap blocking so it made sense to move Dotson.

When you look at this from a big picture perspective the Najee 5th yr option not being picked up could be more about lack of scheme fit and his attitude. Same could be said for them looking at getting a high pedigree WR in here from another team. Meaning that guy may not be coming in to run with George Pickens but to replace George Pickens either outright or GP plays his contract out and isn’t retained.

I think Khan is changing over this whole teamed getting rid of any attitude problems or players who aren’t a scheme fit moving forward.

 

As Tomlin stated, "we want volunteers, not hostages."


I'd imagine Khan is merely enacting this but on a much greater scale. However, mere attitude alone wouldn't explain why the turnover has been as aggressive as it has been since 2022. The biggest reason such turnover occurred is due to the massive misses of 2018-2022. I initially had left off 2022 but outside of Pickens, Connor Heyward and maybe CA III, the rest of the class has been supbar. 2018 to 2021 has been nothing short of a disaster though; 2019 and 2021 being some of the worst drafting years the Steelers have ever done. 2020 at least gave us Highmsith and Dotson (even if he didn't work out).


2023 was the foundation draft for Omar Kahn and Andy Weidl to get back to Steelers Football. 2024 represents reinforcement. The hope is that 2025 will be the completion of the reclamation. Howeverm much of that hope is going to bank on either Wilson or Fields panning out well. Ideally speaking, Fields should be the one fans should be rooting for as he still has talent for the position to be something. How much so remains to be seen but Wilson isn't getting any younger and who knows how much longer he has before he hits the proverbial wall?! Regardless, this draft will accomplish one of three aspects;



1.) See if Fields still has talent that can be molded into Franchise Caliber QB Quality


2.) See if Wilson still has enough talent remaining to setup the next QB in Pittsburgh


OR


3.) Set up the next young Rookie Signal Caller in 2025 in a far greater advantageous position than the Steelers did Kenny Picket circa 2022 when he starts.




Any one of these is bound to happen. I specifically mention the third option for I believe the Steelers will end up starting a Rookie QB out of the gate due to the emphasis the team has placed on building a wall in front of him along with a strong rushing attack; two aspects that every Rookie QB love to have. Even if the prospect is raw, should his talent exceed his inexperience as a whole of the position, he will simply have to perform just enough to win games. Allow the Rookie QB to grow into the game so that his talents can take over both naturally and organically.. at least from the Roster the Steelers have.

 

Can you imagine the tantrum George Pickens will
have with possibly being targeted 6-7 times a game?
This could get interesting with new OC supposedly offensive history
What will coach T do with this pain in the ass?

 

I am going to cry foul if we trade away Najee for a CB. That would mean we traded away our 2 best players on Offense Last Year for Defensive help.

 

It will not happen...Harris will be with us for 2024

 

Pickens was targeted 106 times last year, or 6.2 times per game. Only 6 of the top 40 receivers (by receiving yds) had fewer. He ranked 50th in receptions. And 1st in yds/reception.

 

You feel he will be targeted as much this year as last?

 

With the current group at this position for the steelers,this is possible

 

New WR Coach Zach Azzanni is someone George should be concerned about. Dude doesn't take laziness from no one. In addition, he has no qualms about instructing some tough love if needed.


Mind you this is the same Zach that did instruct one Antonio Brown. While I doubt Pickens will be that, to say that Pickens still has star potential isn't out of the question. The right teacher is what Pickens needs. Remember that was also the Broncos WR Coach from 2018 to 2022; Cortland Sutton, Tim Patrick and Jerry Jeudy to a lesser extent.

 

I still think tv h DJ trade was a bad deal. Fight me!!!! Not a reel Fight. Just a bunch of name calling and imposing threats to meet offline!!!!!

 

The jury remain out for me.
I don't grade drafts until year two and then again at 2nd contract.
They did address needs this year; it remains to be seen what the actual picks do.

It's really not so much as to getting back to Steelers football, unless by that we mean winning.
Omar and his team have to find ways to provide talent to Tomlin and his staff and Tomlin and his staff need to find innovative ways to utilize this talent.
They also cannot make the mistake that allowed Matt Canada fester here.

Right now, QB and WR are in the yellow for me.
That could change.

 

The team has been in a clear rebuild the last few years. There were a tremendous amount of holes to fill. The previous five years to Kahn taking over were a mashup of poor drafts and bad free agent signings. With all of that being said I still think they have one more offseason before you can say the team is completely rebuilt in Khans image. Best case scenario one of these QB’s work out and we go into next offseason needing to upgrade the Defensive line, CB and WR rooms. Should be doable between the draft and free agency based on the amount of cap space we will have. If neither of these QB’s work out then I can see us trading up in the draft to get a rookie. Then seeking to fill our Line, CB and WR needs in free agency next year.

I see Khan as a “See problem fix problem” kind of guy. Look at his approach to ILB and OL line rooms. You can only do so much in one offseason with all the holes we had.

 

Basically, same opinion.
I see it as such and 2 years down the road we can figure out if our GM is doing ok.
Of course, there will always be some misses but hopefully those are limited.

 

IF Pickens throws tantrums, he will get his ASS booted by the trade deadline

Kid better grow up FAST

 

clearly cannot fully grade a draft until 2 years out, even not till yr 3. in this case, draft + LOTS of FA moves.

 

He won't be going anywhere this season. But if his attitude goes south he will be on his way out in 2025.

 

yes - I was being a fit facetious, but if his attitude is a bad one, Khan won't take any crap. We will see if Pickens is paying attention and if he is coach-able, very soon

caveat is that if we stink AND his attitude is bad, they may choose to deal him by early NOV. This is Omar Khan we are talking about!

 

The problem solver could have gotten Tyler Boyd for a reasonable $5 million for one year. Oops.

 

We h

We have a ton of #3 receivers. Why would we need another one?

 

Tyler Boyd is a slot receiver first and slow and old to boot. Just because the guy has some what of a name doesn’t mean he is a good fit our offense or what wee are trying to do. I feel like you use that same logic with the whole Najee thing. Najee came in as a high pedigree guy from Alabama and a first round draft pick. Najee has done oK but the times he didn’t perform you offer up excuses .... it was injury, it was the blocking, it was the offense, etc. Yet Warren ran behind that same offensive line and on a per carry basis outperformed Najee. Then you point to one game where Warren didn’t play well and you use that as your example why Warren is not as good as Najee. You seem to be caught up on the names more than production and Khan is at fault for make bold and strategic decisions.

 

Boyd was a No. 3 receiver because he was behind two elite ones in Chase and Higgins. He is far better than what the team currently has after Pickens. Maybe Austin will figure some things out in year three, but he didn't do much with his opportunity last year. Maybe Wilson is ready to step up and put up big numbers as a rookie, but that's a lot to ask of a third-round pick. They needed a steady option and Khan when shopping in the bargain bin for scrubs like Jefferson and Watkins rather than sign a solid veteran. What are they now? The Pirates?

 

Boyd is a physical receiver who can block as well as catch, which is supposedly the type of receiver the Steelers' new offensive coordinator favors. Perhaps you should try to understand the player and the situation before you post next time.

That you stubbornly refuse to understand the difference between the carries a lead back gets and those a backup/third-down back gets does not mean those differences do not exist. This isn't about names. This is about me understanding the position better than you do. It is also about me remembering that season finale in Baltimore, when Warren couldn't handle bad weather and Harris played like a beast in it.

 

Gettin a bit emotional. You obviously don’t understand Smiths offense or football very well. Sure Boyd can block and last I checked most receivers can catch. Just because he can do that doesn’t mean he is a fit for the offense. They want an outside perimeter receiver who can run go routes, stretch the field, keep the coverage honest to benefit Pickens and in addition to that be able to block and of course catch. Boyd is not going to stretch field or be a perimeter threat at all. But because he had a name you were familiar with he must be a fit for the Steelers and Khan blew it again. Regarding Najee as I have said all along I can argue it both ways and I would have agreed with you more but the way you debate makes me want to go against your view points for the mere sake of just not wanting to agree with you. You love to put people down and demean like as if your opinion is the be all end all. I will say again you prop Najee up for the season finale and yet provide excuses for why he didn’t;t play well the first half of the season. You can’t have it both ways. Warren was in that same offense at the beginning of the year and he produced better than Najee.

 

No Khan is shopping for Aiyuk, Samuel, Sutton and Metcalf. He has been rebuked so far. Perhaps after June 1st we can get a shot at trading for Metcalf. There weren’t alot of quality Receivers in Free Agency that fit our needs.

 

I would rather have a younger and faster Roman Wilson over Boyd as the slot WR.