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mendy

Discussion in 'Steelers Talk' started by mac daddyo, Jan 17, 2012.

  1. mac daddyo

    mac daddyo Well-Known Member

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    can he cut, can he out run guys once he breaks away, can he get the edge and turn it up field? these are the questions they want to know about mendenhall. we have power backs. redman,dwyer,clay they are all power backs. so is mendy. batch may be the only non power guy if memo doesn't come back. i'll bet you mendy wouldn't have gotten caught from behind like redman did twice in denver once he broke free. that's what he brought to the table. not one person bitched when he took it the distance in overtime last year on the first play. as far as willie leading the league in rushing that year, that's fine, but willies trouble was finding the endzone. yards mean nothing. scores win games. willie with all his yards had 2 TD's that year and the year before that. mendy has rushed for 29 in less than 3 years. big difference. why fight about who it is? we have one of the best young stables of RB's in the league, you all are trying to make that into a bad thing. be happy we do. :cool:
     
  2. HawkeyeJames

    HawkeyeJames Well-Known Member

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    I like Mendy but think Arians needs to use more of a two back set, meaning they should split carries. Mendy and Redman are two different backs but both have value on our team. My deal with Mendy is that he seems under-utilized right now by the play calling and the OL and I don't want a ton of money sunk into him since we have so many other needs to address.
     
  3. SteelYourPoints

    SteelYourPoints Well-Known Member

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    I think the sensible thing to do is to use whoever has been more effective. As of now that's Redman, but who knows? That may change by the start of next season.

    Mendenhall's last five games:

    VS CIN: 16 carries for 60 yards

    VS CLE: 18 carries for 76 yards

    VS SF: 15 carries for 64 yards

    VS STL: 18 carries for 116 yards

    VS CLE: 8 carries for 38 yards (prior to injury)

    None of these are anything to be excited about and the one standout game he had was against the Rams.
     
  4. SteelMojo

    SteelMojo Well-Known Member

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    your 1st 3 (these Jim Brown, Earl Campbell, Jerome Bettis) are the only all time true great big power backs to EVER play the game imo Larry Csonka, John Riggins were full backs Christiam Okoye was good didnt get to find out how great he could be Mike Alstot was ok and a FB my point being great big backs are a once in a lifetime rare hard to find thing! the HOF is FULL of backs like Mendy (not saying he is a HOF or even close) backs like him give you a better chance to win with there speed! IMO
     
  5. HugeSnack

    HugeSnack Well-Known Member

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    I probably wouldn't sign him until after checking out his knee, either. The Redman/Mendenhall debate has been beaten to death, but without saying anything about either back in this thread other than I am a big supporter of both guys, it's plain as day to me that Steeler fans value some things above winning, including toughness. Redman is a tougher runner then Mendenhall (and almost everyone else in the league) so the debate ends there for most Steeler folk. It's short-sighted, to say the least.
     
  6. TheWanderer

    TheWanderer Well-Known Member

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    you feel like people jump on redman's bandwagon because he runs hard? haha! yeah, people are weird when they get all excited seeing a running back running through d-linemen and dragging linebackers an extra five yards. his dragging ratbird defenders into the end zone in baltimore is a HUGE reason as to why we were in the super bowl last season. mendenhall's fumble is the BIGGEST reason why we lost that same super bowl.

    rashard mendenhall is an AVERAGE running back. AVERAGE. maybe, above average. MAYBE. willie parker had better numbers as the starting running back than mendenhall did. what does that say? i think mendenhall is a weird dude. i think he's kind of aloof (poetry, dance classes, tweeting about oral sex and conspiracy theories, sodomizing our qb to celebrate a playoff win) and not really woven into the fabric of this team and its other members. he reminds me of kordell. i don't think he hangs out with anyone else on this team. he has just never fit as a 'steeler' for me. all of my personal opinions aside, i'll reiterate that willie parker put up better numbers during his short stint as a starter and add that mendenhall is coming off an acl, heading into the final year of his contract, and is going to be expecting a huge payday. i just don't see it happening. i think next year will be his last as a steeler. i also believe we can spread his huge contract out amongst three capable backs (redman, dwyer, batch) and invest the savings in the o-line. we can only give so many skills players huge contracts (ben, heath - overpaid, hines -probably restructing, and wallace this offseason).
     
  7. SpeedyMikeWallace

    SpeedyMikeWallace Well-Known Member

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    75 carries for 354 yards is 4.72 YPC.
     
  8. TheWanderer

    TheWanderer Well-Known Member

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    good thing he got to include that st louis game in that small sample size. 6.4ypc against the vaunted rams' run d and some mop-up yards in a blowout loss to the niners didn't hurt. go mendy!
     
  9. TheSteelHurtin2188

    TheSteelHurtin2188 Well-Known Member

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    Mendy is the biggest reason we lost the super bowl? If they would have gave him the ball ten more times we win that game. Ben threw two picks missed a wide open wallace in the end zone the defense wa not even on the field lets get back to ben though final drive of the game wallace on more then one occasion had no clue what the play was yet ben through him the ball and we ended the game with a timeout in our pocket. Yeah i guess it is all mendys fault
     
  10. rukus4ever

    rukus4ever Well-Known Member

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    This is not true.
     
  11. SpeedyMikeWallace

    SpeedyMikeWallace Well-Known Member

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    Yards are yards, but even without the Rams game he was still averaging 4.2 YPC.
     
  12. PWP

    PWP Well-Known Member

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    In response to me saying Redman was Faster,,,,I never said that I said his spin Move is tighter and faster and thats a fact....Mendy uses the bid twirl and moves 2 to 3 yards east or west when he turns.....Reds spin moves are quick and he stays on the same running line he moves about a half a yard East or West....Thus his spin move is tighter and faster.....

    And as far as break away speed it does no good if you dance in the backfield .....The speed advantage is Negated when you don't hit the whole.....Redman is slower ,but because he hits the hole he is actually faster getting in and out of the hole than Mendy....

    In the last 2 games there where at least 5 runs in each game where the last defender made the tackle on Redman....Would he get run down on some of those of course,,,but the Defender will still have his work cut out for him to get him on the Ground.....

    And to the point that Redman would be easy to stop if game planned for......It won't be easy at all......Teams will have to bring another guy into the box to help get him on the ground......This opens up the rest of the O ,,,something that doesn't happen if you dance behind the line......Redman is the best fit and had we used him more and used PA more we would still be playing.....

    We have a Bombs Away mentality when passsing so the best pass blocker is the best option....Also if your going to use Speed at WR then a Big Running back is the perfect fit,,because he can draw a double Team and force single coverage if the PA pass is used......This is and has always been the problem ...We are built to play a diffeent way yet we refuse to do it...
     
  13. SpeedyMikeWallace

    SpeedyMikeWallace Well-Known Member

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    Who cares about the spin move? This isn't Madden. A lot of RBs don't even use a spin, they use cut backs and stutter-steps.

    Mendenhall dances mostly because there's never anywhere to go. Redman doesn't dance, he just gets tackled. Give Mendenhall an Oline that consistently gives room, and he would be a Top 10 RB.

    That happens all the time. That's not anything special, really.

    Yes, he would. If you can't bounce it out to the edge all teams have to do is concentrate on the middle. Redman isn't Bettis. He's not the size of a lineman.

    Our offense is complete trash. There's no reason why we should be 21st in scoring. That's terrible. As far as a power running game being perfect for passing game filled with fast WRs, I don't get it. You can compliment a back that can do practically everything, like Mendenhall, with a power back in spells, but you don't dump the every-down back for the short yardage back full time.

    Why do you punctuate like that?
     
  14. PWP

    PWP Well-Known Member

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    I punctuate the power RB because the same SS'S and FS'S that are being forced to tackle the big runner are the same guys who have coverage.....So if you beat them up and make them think run 1st. this creates a huge advantage and gives your WR'S more room to work...

    I played CB in College and I loved playing against a RB that looks for holes....I will also add all the Defenders who played with me Loved it as well.....The reason is plain and simple you can look coverage 1st. then when you see the RB with the ball dancing it gives you a extra 2 or 3 seconds to close up the running lanes.....Coaches don't preach get North and South for nothing it all works together .......On the flip side I have been torched as a lot of people do when you get caught peaking into the backfield.....

    No need to Peak if the RB is still back there Dancing ,,,I have plenty of time......And this is exactly how Teams approach us so this Negates the speed of the WR'S as now they play pass 1st. couple that with our poor use of the PA pass and that shows there is really nothing mystical about why we can't score the ball..........

    LOL.....I used the Puntuate to extend my point....
     
  15. SpeedyMikeWallace

    SpeedyMikeWallace Well-Known Member

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    You're assuming the RB is getting to the 3rd level enough to wear down safeties. This is rarely the case. A solid running game opens up the play-action. You don't necessarily need a power running game for it to work.

    Mendenhall dances, most of the time, because the lane that's supposed to be there isn't, or he's met by a defender before he can even get to the line. Mendenhall has proven that when the hole is there, he make things happen.

    One . and one , will do, usually.
     
  16. PWP

    PWP Well-Known Member

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    I agree with the point we don't have to have a power running game to open up PA.......But my point is we don't have the skill on the OL to open up the Zone holes......We don't have the skill at OC to use the passing game to force coverage where we intend to run......We also are to predictable which adds more pressure to the other 2....

    So yes with all things combined the power running back is by far our best option at the current time with the current players and scheme...
     
  17. HugeSnack

    HugeSnack Well-Known Member

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    You DO know that's how averages work, right? You take the good games, the bad games, the medium games, and... what's the word... middlefy them out, to get the middlest number.

    Also, he played well against the SF #1 run defense throughout the game. If you'll remember correctly, we were trying to win that game by passing with Ben all the way to the very end. Mendenhall had a lot of good games this year, especially in the second half. The biggest difference between his good games and Redman's good games is the number of threads started on this board. Redman gets 1 thread per good run. Mendenhall gets squat no matter what. In fact, the SF game is an absolutely perfect example of Mendenhall running very well and hard, and getting absolutely no credit for it from any Steeler fans. He dances once, they scream. He has 75 strong runs over 5 games, they ignore, ignore, ignore, because it doesn't suit their "dancing" complaints they love to make. Get over yourselves!
     
  18. PWP

    PWP Well-Known Member

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    Oh and to the rarely is the case .....If you watch the last 2 games you will see it was the Safety spot making most the stops on Red.......So yes Red can break most the 1st. tackles by the LB'S and force the Safety spots to clean up the play.....This is not speculation it's on Tape.....So just like I stated Red had at least 5 totes each game that the Safety spot had to make the tackle so just looking at the # of runs Red had .....About 30% of the time from that view alone they had to tackle him.....Thus he should have had more and we should have used PA a Lot more...
     
  19. PWP

    PWP Well-Known Member

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    I like Mendenhall it's just his style is not the most effective with our scheme.....I really do thin Red is the better RB overall,,,,he needs a starting spot and if he puts up a few 1k yard years then maybe we can agree....I truley believe Red is a North and South runner with wiggle who will do more the more snaps he gets....That's what the tape shows and I am standing by that until I see different......

    Only games where Mendy looks good is when he hits the hole and that's not his style looking at his tape......I am not saying a bad RB just in a bad system for him....Is why I wanted a 2 RB system to open up some lanes for him.....But a last we are BA ball forever it seems...
     
  20. DSteelerCT

    DSteelerCT Well-Known Member

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    I'm in the release him camp. This is now a QB league
     
  21. Da Stellars

    Da Stellars Well-Known Member

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    Yes, thats why I think one sole starting running back is stupid.

    A. RB's get hurt after so much pounding. Split the carries up with Redman equally.

    B. If you have a 3-headed RB monster you can justify not paying one of them too much money. Steelers need to spend money elsewhere.
     
  22. SpeedyMikeWallace

    SpeedyMikeWallace Well-Known Member

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    And somehow playing Redman over Mendenhall is going to fix these issues? What we need is better blocking and an OC that knows what he's doing.
     
  23. TheWanderer

    TheWanderer Well-Known Member

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    yes, i understand how averages work. so let's look at a full season of work and not five games against the rams and two against cleveland. note my mention of the term 'small sample size.'

    no, i don't remember the sf game. i was there. there was a blackout. i had an 11pm flight to catch and had to miss most of the remainder of the game. what i don't remember was mendy running all over the niners defense. we were down 13-3 when i had to leave the game.

    again, let's not put five games under the microscope. let's look at the full body of work. willie parker had better numbers than mendenhall. parker was an undrafted free agent. mendenhall was a first-round pick. he's merely average, hasn't lived up to first-round expectations, is coming off an acl, and will undoubtedly want elite money when his contract is up next season. good riddance, mendy. i look forward to reading tweets about how we shouldn't judge hitler because we never heard him speak as he represents a different fanbase.
     
  24. TheWanderer

    TheWanderer Well-Known Member

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    exactly. which is why i'd like to see mendenhall go so that we can take the elite money he'll expect/demand at the end of his contract next season and invest it in the o-line while we use two or three cheaper backs and have little-to-no dropoff in production.
     
  25. TheWanderer

    TheWanderer Well-Known Member

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    yeah, obviously one play doesn't cost a team the game. however . . . when you're driving down the field to take the lead as we move towards the latter part of the fourth quarter and your rb fumbles allowing the other team to put the game away, well . . . we can all stop blaming scott norwood and jackie smith, too.
     

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