Roster set - thoughts

When McFarland is on the field we know he is not staying into pass protect. Either he is getting the ball on a run, or we are planning a quick throw. He's a situational player only.

 

It's a good thing you know more than the coaches who coached him every day for 3 years! Thank God you are here to set them straight!

 

Yes, Harrison was a late bloomer, yes it happens. Does it happen all that much to RBs who have already spent 3 years in the NFL? Not a lot. I will have to admit that. The closest RB that comes to my mind is Derrick Henry, who took into his 3rd year (not after 3) to gain over 1,000 yards at 4.9 ypc. After that he went onto gain 6,000 yards in the next 4 years. Who here is expecting that out of McFarland?

 

I think as long as Washington and Connor will pick up their share, and then between Freiermuth, and having Boykin and Olszewsky to play free in the flat, the receiver situation will be just fine. Not rich in wide receivers per se, but rich in receivers.

 

Hello again Formerscribe. Sure didn't mean to start a brouhaha with my choice of words. Whether historically prone is right, or it's more right to just say it happened, I sure don't want it happening anymore.

 

Yeah yeah I thought the same thing when I saw that happen - This guy doesn't know how to fall down without smacking his head on the ground. They need to teach him that. When I was about 9 my parents sent me down to the Y in Oakland for judo lessons and they taught me how to do that.

 

Puts me in mind of something I said about Plaxico in another post. He used to run out of bounds or otherwise avoid taking or putting out the hit. So they put them in weight training and boxing and he developed more mass and good techniques, and he started really hitting people and even enjoying it. So I got to assume they've taught Kenny how to roll instead of flopping down by now.

 

https://www.steelers.com/news/from-the-press-room-steelers-at-bucs I enthusiastically embrace the opportunity to find a Tomlin quote that reflects that, at least the way I see it. Here it is. After the Bucs game he says with regard to both McFarland and CA3 "They were young guys who I thought stood out.. but there is a lot of teaching and learning that needs to happen..."

 

Now before any of you guys guys go to all the trouble of tripping me up on that quote, since admittedly it might have been about Keeanu Benton or Nick Herbig and not about McFarland at all, I have to say I stand by it in context. Look at yourself like you're an NFL head coach having to cut down from 90-some guys to 50-some. Right away there's 30 some guys you say heck I got a lot of money and time wrapped up in these guys, these are my guys, dammit I'm keeping them and they're going to work out. Then you got a dozen or more guys you say heck I got time and money tied up and I got stuff I need them to do, and for all the more I can get for them I'm keeping them. Then you got like half a dozen guys left out of 40 or so that you say I think this guy's got the stuff. I think he's real worth rolling the dice, giving him the teaching and the learning, hoping he'll pan out. And that's how I see McFarland and that's how I see CA3. And isn't that the Steelers way? Steelers don't go around buying the red hot taters at the deli counter. They pick'em up green right off the tater truck and bring 'em up to suit 'em. Isn't that how we got any Benny Snell and Jalen Warren? Isn't that how we got Theo Bell? Now there's a blast from the past

 

T.S. Eliot once said, "Good writers borrow. Great writers steal." Many years later, Aaron Sorkin used a version of that line in an episode of The West Wing without giving Eliot credit.

Hell, even what I wrote is a version of Luke Skywalker's short speech in Star Wars: The Last Jedi.

 

Snell only got 22 touches all of last season. Most of those came with Warren out of the lineup, which is comparable to how I think McFarland should be used. Hell, give him some garbage time if you can to he would be ready if they need him.

I have faith in him as a guy who might be decent if injuries force them to play him. That isn't no faith. I hope that doesn't happen because I'd much rather see Austin, Robinson, and/or Heyward in the slot and I'd much rather see Harris and Warren in the backfield. In the latter case, I'm also hopeful he stays on the sideline because I'd rather not see him get Pickett hurt.

There is nothing extreme about my position. I think coaches should give out playing time based on what gives the team the best opportunity to win. You are taking more of a trophies for everyone approach, wanting to give out playing time as a reward for hard work.

 

Well I don't know how that happened. It put my reply right in the middle of your message. So now I have to say it again on account of it was such a gem. In the Hagakure the samurai says, when your friend gets drunk over and over and tells you the same stupid story every time, smile, listen as if you're interested, and 100th time he tells it to you it might finally get through to your dumb ass what he's been trying to tell you all along. Well that's not exactly how he said it. But I like it cuz it's about humility and acceptance.

 

You can delete the other one

 

That's because Disney did the last jedi.. Terrible writers

 

No, I don't think Tomlin is giving out participation trophy snaps. I think that what is implied by your approach, which is to give playing time based on rewarding players rather than focusing on giving the team the best opportunity to win every week.

McFarland has shown promise in training camp and preseason games before only to do nothing with his opportunities when the games matter. A few pretty plays in practice and a handful of impressive runs against backups in the preseason does not warrant taking snaps away from Warren, Austin, Robinson, or Heyward.

I do understand how earning playing time works. Players earn it by demonstrating that giving them that playing time will help the team win.

 

There weren't many great lines in those movies even before Disney got a hold of the franchise. George Lucas is great at world-building. He knows how to create engaging visuals and sound. Dialogue was never his forte. The best line in the original trilogy might be Han Solo's response when Leia tells him she loves him, "I know," and that was improvised by Harrison Ford.

That said, I thought Luke's two monologues were among the better parts of that movie.

 

I can't believe I missed this. Very entertaining.

 

I thought Episode 3 was damn good, but sequel trilogy (7,8,9)...was better than prequel trilogy because episode 1 & 2 were so awful.

 

I'd rank Star Wars episodes in this order from best to worst: V, IV, III, VI, IX, VIII, VII, II, I.