my mid term grades

overview:
half the season is in the books, and we stand at 5-3.. we've had some ups and downs so far, but mostly ups.. it's time to look at where we are right now... offensively, we have the #1 wr in the league, and if not for DeMarco murray's sick start, everyone would be talking about leveon bell
defensively, it's been a little bit more of a struggle, but some good things are starting to show itself...
now on to the indivual.

offense:
qb:
ben Roethlisberger: 2300 yds, 16 td's only 3 int's and nearly 70% comp. pct..... I'll take it A

rb:
leveon bell: the best feet in the league outside of that guy in philly who shall remain nameless.. a threat running and receiving.. having a break out 2nd season A
legarrett blount: the perfect compliment to bell... displaying pretty good feet in his own right, and when he puts his shoulder pads down, defenders feel it... it's been a long time since I've felt this good about our running game A-
dri archer: this is on the coaches again... just as with chris rainey before him, we simply refuse to use him to his strengths.. one of these days, we'll get him out in space, but until then, this pick was wasted. inc.
will Johnson: just because munchak got his Johnson cut off doesn't mean that hailey's Johnson doesn't work.. for the most part, will has produced when called on.. a good lead blocker, and can make a team pay in the passing game if ignored B

wr:
Antonio brown: i'm totally running out of adjectives for brown... through 8 games, all brown has done is catch 60 passes for 852yds and 7 td's... he's completed 2 passes (one for a td).. he's one of the more dangerous punt returners in the game.... and then there's the streak A+
markus wheaton: started out strong, and hit a bit of a wall... benching in wk. 7 might have been a good wake up call for him C+
lance moore: rough start, but starting to find his way on the field after an injury slowed him.. starting to develop a rapport with ben B-
martavus Bryant: starting to show why we drafted him... tough start, with a lot of mental lapses in preseason, but really starting to pick it up now that he's being used... A-
Darrius heyward bey: first rd. draft pick, that's become the perfect #5 receiver... B-
Justin brown: gets tough yds., but will never be the type of receiver with a lot of y.a.c..... a pretty good blocker in the running game, which is what really keeps him on the field C

te:
heath miller: all he does is get open.. remains an above ave. blocker B+
matt spaeth: injured most of the yr.... doesn't have a single catch INC
Michael palmer: does his job when called on...has one td, but for the most part, doesn't see much time...... heath is the man here C

o-line:
kelvin beachum: serviceable, but i'd rather see him in his former capacity as a jack of all trades utility man... we can't go into the future with him exclusively at Lt C+
ramon foster: I haven't liked what I've seen from foster most of the yr... he seems slow and has had far too many mental lapses in protection... I've always liked him, and feel that he has a place on the team, but it should not be as a starter C-
maurkice pouncey: simple and plain, is returning to elite status A
dave decastro: overall, he's looking elite... a major hiccup against the Texans, but still a lot to be happy with B-
marcus gilbert: extremely rough start, but rebounded nicely and started to earn that paycheckbefore his injury B
mike adams: my whipping boy during the pre-season.... definitely not a Lt, but on the right side, is actually looking better than gilbert.... some tough descisions are gonna have to be made if adams continues to produce A


defense:
de:
cam heyward: getting into the backfield on a regular basis... he's getting to the qb, and just simply plays mean A
cam Thomas: useless on the line... all the athletic ability in the world, but can't put it together on the field... I don't see him in black and gold next yr... D
steve McClendon: rough start, but from wk. 3 until his injury, starting to control the middle and command double teams.. starting to show me what I've been expecting from him all along B
brett keisel: age be damned, this guy has been our best d-lineman... i'm not sure if I've ever seen him play better A
stephon tuitt: well on his way to a starting gig B
dan McCullers: as well as McClendon has been playing, I have to say that I believe the future of the nt position is right here.. B+

olb:
Jason worilds: finally getting some life out of him, but no where near 9.5 mil. dollars worth of life C
Arthur moats: gets pressure, and plays with a high motor... no, he's not the long term answer at the position, but does make a perfect back up B
james Harrison: obviously not what he used to be, but still more than effective enough... has a lot left in the tank B
Jarvis jones: was on his way to a break out season before getting hurt... through the first 2.5 games he had 2 sacks and a forced fumble, and was playing fast..... should be back in time for the stretch run INC

ilb:
Lawrence Timmons: leads the team in tackles, and is playing some inspired football lately, and appears to be everywhere B
ryan shazier: while on the field, his speed has erased what would be some big gains otherwise.. as he learns the defense, I expect this guy to be special B
sean spence: more than just the feel good story of the season.... he's played solid, if not spectacular... think foote 2.0
vince Williams: getting more field time, and that's a good thing... still not a pass defender, but against the run, is more than above ave. B
terrance garvin: mostly special teams, and has had his mental lapses.... not sure where he fits in this stacked rotation INC

cb:
ike taylor: obviously not the same shut down corner he used to be, and i'm convinced this is his last season... still a competitor though.. hopefully he can return from the injury, and go out with a bang INC
willie gay: solid, but still better off as a nickel B-
brice McCain: another that I would rather see as a nickel, but still a better option than the next guy on this list B-
cortez allen: the worst corner in the game... whenever he's on the field, it's a foregone conclusion that the ball is coming his way, and now we're stuck with a bad contract F
Antwon blake: our best special teamer, and about to leapfrog allen on the depth chart.. C+

S:
mike Mitchell: the time missed during pre-season clearly showed, but he's starting to find his way.. still goes for the big hit rather than wrapping up his man, but that can be coached. C
troy polamalu: no where near the player he used to be, and is far too often out of position.... the end of an era is coming C
shamarko Thomas: troy's future replacement.... his injury has hurt his development some, but he'll be fine once he's healthy INC
Robert golden: playing exclusively special teams, and that hasn't been a good thing.. one of the more penalized special teamers we have and he may be better off as depth in the safety rotation. D

special teams:
brad wing: inconsistent, but that will change with more reps... C
shaun suisham: still money, and his kickoffs have been consistently deep. B

 

Ross Ventrone?

 

Lance Moore and DHB grade out ahead of Wheaton?
I quit reading after that.

 

to be fair, the expectations for Wheaton were higher. But, yeah, I'd give those guys a C- and D respectively

 

Has been with us all of 2 weeks....

 

I don't let my like or dislike of a certain player cloud my judgement of them.... I'm not wearing black and gold colored glasses, and i'm fair and honest with all

 

Nice evaluation. There's a few i'm not agreeing on but I can get with most of those grades. You forgot to give Spence a grade though.

I have to agree that i don't see DHB and Moore grading out any better than Wheaton. Not saying Wheaton has been looking great but I still think he's played better than those two.

I also think Golden deserves a better grade. He's made some plays on ST's despite his penalties. At least a C- imo. And although Blount has played well enough I don't give him an A-, especially since you gave Timmons a B, who I think is playing better than Blount.

 

..

 

Cool. Thanks for the reply. I understand why you graded those guys out the way you did now.

 

Has Spaeth actually been out on the field at all? I hardly ever seem to see him...