Putting things into perspective !

This team is exactly who i thought it was. I was expecting that to happen yesterday and I am ok with it. What does anyone expect when you have your transcending receiver out of the game? Every team has a couple players that are difference makers that they can’t be with out. We can’t be without Pickens on offense or Watt on defense.

You take Houston. They aren’t the same without Collins. The Eagles would not be the same without AJ Brown. We would do the same thing to them that they did to us meaning we would load the box and double team their number two wr if AJ Brown were out. Gaurunteed it would be a much different game if they don’t have Brown in and we have Pickens in.

With that being said there are only three teams in this league that can still do well without transcending talent around their Qb and that is KC, Buffalo and Baltimore. All three of their QB’s are superstars thats why.

The Steelers are actually where I was hoping they would be this year. They are Tier 2 and close to be tiering 1.

Tier 1 Teams - Philly, KC, Baltimore, Buffalo and Detroit

Tier 2 - Steelers, Green Bay, Houston and Washington

I think we are a couple players shy of talent when you compare us to the Tier 1 teams. Buffalo, KC and Baltimore have perennial MVP type Qb’s so they don’t need as much talent. Philly and Detroit are probably the tow most balanced and talented teams in the NFL all around.

We can’t build like KC, Buffalo or Baltimore because we don’t have their QB’s. So we have to build like Philly and Detroit.

We literally have the Wiedl who is mimicking alot of what Philly is doing. I think we need the following to complete this rebuild and be a tier 1 team:

1. High end # 2 receiver. A guy that is fast and built like a running back that can get alot of YAC.
2. Legit # 2 press man Cb.
3. Young big DT to replace Ogunkobi and be groomed by Cam. Guy would add depth behind Benton in year one.
4. Legit RB with vision to see the cutback lanes and get the tough yards. Najee aint it.

Why do I have hope for this team? Because the front office gets it. They have done a fantastic job of acquiring talent the last two drafts and through free agency. Colbert put this team back his last four years here. They stress the importance of building through the trenches.

They didn’t resign Najee. That speaks volumes. It means they aren’t accepting status quo and they are seeking to always get better. Albert would have absolutely committed to resigning Najee. They recognize we can do alot better at that position.

* I am not saying Najee was the issue yesterday although that fumble hurt us. Not having Pickens made us easy to defend and they just stacked the box against us.

Some areas I have perplexing questions on from yesterdays game and this season in general:

1. I don’t understand Arthur Smiths continued reluctance to use Jaylen Warren more? Why does he not use the hot hand? Why does he keep going back to Najee? Why does he feel the need to use Patttterson? With that being said why does he not use Williams more over Van Jefferson at this point? Why does he even have Heyward on the field at all? I am ok with his play calling, I just don’t understand his usage of personnel at times.

2. Will we ever get a legit DC? I don’t see a more talented defensive unit in the league other than Philly. I see teams like KC, Buffalo, Denver doing more with much less. I believe there is so much more meat on the bone with this defense and we aren’t getting the most out of it. I would love to get some talent in here in the offseason on the defensive coaching side to interject some new ideas to make this a more disruptive defense.

* I get sick of hearing the excuses of communication issues all the time. Lebeau’s defenses were much more complex and we didn’t have communication issues all the time.

 

The last point about Austin and the defense stands out most to me. But Austin gets most of the blame, but Tomlin has been doing the same thing on defense for years.

That 4 man rush / bend don't break BS is maddening. Watching QBs just stand around waiting for WRs to get open makes me want to break my TV.

 

Two things


This team is rebuilding. It’s doing that without falling apart at the seams. So instead of going 3-14 etc and picking in the top 5 we are picking in the middle of the pack or worse. To paraphrase Richard Sherman our coaches are making gourmet meals with table scraps and yinzers are whining.

secondly if you listened to the broadcast yesterday Brady was talking about how he preferred up tempo because it didn’t allow the coordinators time to call the perfect play. It forced the defense to rely on communication. That isn’t a huge problem when you’ve got a veteran laden defense that’s been playing together for years on end. However, it is a problem when you’re missing multiple starters. Yes. It did happen under Lebeau

 

To be honest, this is a pretty good post. Lots of good analysis IMO. We are definitely a Tier 2 team. We can win it all if we get hot, but we are definite underdogs to the Philly, Detroit, Buffalo, and KC's of the world. We are in the same tier as Baltimore, GB, Houston, and Minnesota.

1. Yeah this is huge. The guy you're describing is probably Deebo Samuel (and there is a non-zero chance that SF is willing to ship him in the offseason). IDC where we get this player, but we NEED a competent, chain-moving #2 WR.
2. I don't think we play enough man to warrant a press-man #2. I think we are probably set rolling Porter/Jackson/Sutton/Bishop/Trice. We can draft another project guy or sign someone to fill the #2 if we don't like Jackson. I'd probably prefer a short term solution and kick the can another year or two before going back to CB in the first round
3. I agree with this. I really like Kenneth Grant from Michigan in the first this year (though WR is definitely an option too). I'd see Grant moving Benton to Larry O's spot and taking the DT role. Benton would take interior snaps and Larry could fill in as a rotational DE for Heyward and Benton. It would be a nice line.
4. Yeah, I think Najee is really holding us back. Every year he plays 2-3 games that really make you think he's going to turn the corner... then he just turns into a pumpkin again. He's far too limited to be a lead back in today's NFL and really we've overused him hoping he'd turn into Derrick Henry eventually. Time to try again at RB

- I trust Khan and Weidl so far. They've done a nice job with trades and have found some good players in the draft. We really need to draft well the next few years because Heyward and Watt are heading into their last 2-3 years of being All Pros and Minkah isn't young either. We will have to do an overhaul to the defense and it will need to involve making great choices on draft day. Or we could get the QB position right and just score more points than the opposition. That works too haha

- Yeah, it was a no brainer. Someone is going to want to pay Najee 7+ million a year. He's worth a fraction of it. I'm glad we have the right mindset on this.

1. Its really a head scratcher. Najee hasn't really warranted the touches he's gotten over the years and I really think Warren deserves more of a shot at making it a true split backfield. He got increased usage mid way through the year last year, and took advantage with some big games. Not sure why we haven't gone back there. I get his injury to start the year probably stopped that in the tracks, but he's healthy now and I would certainly love to see him get more run. Our offense can do so much more with him on the field instead of 22.

2. No. I know its been speculated before, but I really think this is Tomlin's defense, he just has a figurehead calling the games that he wants. A high end DC would be a lot more difficult to influence, so a guy like Austin would be easy to steamroll. Austin really had a good defense in 2015 in Detroit, but has coached nothing but bad defenses since then before Pittsburgh. We've had 2 middling defenses prior to this season, and it seems like we really wasted an opportunity to have a really good defense. I think we've underperformed our talent level on that side of the ball since Austin has been here. I'd prefer us to go another direction, but I don't think we will. Get used to Teryl while Tomlin is around. I think we're happy with the status quo here.

LeBeau teams had communication issues from time to time too. The only difference with LeBeau is that when we had top end talent, we had a top 3 defense. Simple as that. We got a lot out of our talent level, and it seems like we underperform our talent level with Austin.

 

Yep. We're two years into a three year rebuild but still mostly winning along the way. Most positions are trending in the right direction. Khan and Andy have done a very good job of completely turning over a bad roster. Colbert was awful toward the end and left a big mess.

Going forward, we desperately need CB, WR, DL in those first three picks and/or FA along with the usual hole filling and depth. You could argue CB was the right 1st round pick this year, fine, but we'd just be replacing CB with OL in those big three 2025 needs. There were just too many holes to fill in the '23 and '24 off seasons. One more good FA/draft period, so long as Russ and Cam can hang on a couple more years, should open up a nice window.

I would absolutely welcome a new DC, too, but it will never happen.

 

I always took pride the Steelers never went into funks like other teams do for long periods of time. Our worse years we would manage 6 wins. I think we never went below that since 1970????????

 

I hear you. It is so frustrating.

 

You have to go back to the 80’s for a record below 6 wins iirc

 

We will be perpetually REBUILDING under Tomlin, because he and Colbert set us back a decade. As soon as we get some pieces in place here, Russ will be retired, or unable to perform.

Tomlin and Russ need to play another 2 seasons together and then LEAVE TOGETHER.

Some of you here and Rooney just don't get it.

Khan DID HIS BEST to LOAD up this defense. and.....they are just good - not great, which is what they needed to be, for us to make noise. that is not going to happen this year. and next year, they will be another year older with more turnover. and more rebuild.

enjoy the non losing seasons.

I would like to win again in the playoff, and maybe SNIFF another Super Bowl someday.....

 

1988. 5-11.

 

You make a good point on that second point. However Hurts is no Brady. It was pretty simple. He had two plays and if we stacked the box he had an audible to a short pass. It made zero sense to have Dante Jackson covering AJ Brown. That isn’t even fair to Dante. Porter should have been matched up on Brown the whole game. There issues yesterday looked more like our Cb’s just plain getting beat. I saw Jason alone get torched on two man coverage plays on Brown.

 

I would put Baltimore up there in Tier 1 but were splitting hairs.

Regarding WR type. Yes a Deebo or a Malik Neighbors type would be fantastic. They aren’t easy to find. I don’t think you can get one in free agency because you will already be spending alot on Pickens to extend him. The problem is I don’t think you can fill the spot of WR #2, DT, Cb #2 and RB ll in one draft. SO were gonna need to get at least one of those in free agency. I don’t think we are gong to spend on a RB or DT in free agency so that really leaves CB which means more than likely we probably just extend Jackson. Not ideal in my mind but if thats are only weakness next year then we will be pretty darn good going into next season.

On your point two the reason we don’t play alot of man is because Jackson isn’t good at man. We play man on JPJ’s side but not Jacksons side. The problem is when he plays back so far in zone in really negates our blitz because the opposing QB throws a quick slant every time to Jackson’s wr. press man coverage really works well with blitzes, its risky but if you have good press man corners it works great.

Yes on your point # 3. I want a big thick 330 to 340 lb DT that can push the pocket and command double teams. Benton isn’t really a 0 or 1 tech to me. He is too small. I would rather see him replace Ogunjobi and cut Ogunjobi and save money if we can or keep him as depth.

Good thing on your point # 4 is this draft is RB heavy and you can usually get those guys in the middle rounds. I really would like to see us feature Warren more. He has better vision and sees the cut back better. Najee sometimes runs right to the pile when the cut back is right there.

To me we win a playoff game this year and then build off that in the offseason and really enter next year as one of the top teams. Don’t forget it be like getting two extra draft picks next year with Roman Wilson and Troy Fautanu. I think we can definitely fulfill our needs in the first three rounds and one free agent pickup next year to get a DT, RB, WR and CB.

 

Yeah I really wanted Mitchell or Dejean this year at Cb. I couldn’t believe Philly got both of them. As soon as they drafted them that was confirmation to me that they were good players because Philly knows how to draft. To me I think Philly is the gold standard of how to build a team especially in todays NFL when you don’t have a premier franchise QB you just build up around him. Make the team so darn good around him its hard to fail. Honestly I think it is easier to that than to find a true premier QB like a Josh Allen etc.

I m confident we can get two more years out of Cam, Watt, Minkah and Russ.

 

I didn’t say he was Brady. However, he was getting rid of the ball quickly. When they slowed down our defense was effective. When they went up tempo and hurts got rid of the ball the defense wasn’t as effective.

 

I don’t agree with this assessment. If they did their best to build up this defense then why did they draft Fautanu and not Quinyon Mitchell or Cooper Dejean in the 1st round? They are building this team the same way How Roseman has done it in Philly... from the trenches out. Our offensive line is very young and our first round pick didn’t even play this year. They are gond to grow and develop. Broderick Jones is finally settling down it took over half the season. It takes these guys some time.

Our offensive playmakers are either entering their prime or are young and we will be adding at least wo playmakers next year in a RB and WR. Imagine getting a RB with some explosiveness and vision back there and having a legitimate number 2 wr. that won’t allow teams to stack the box against the run or double team Pickens. Imagine what that will do for Friermuth on seam routes or underneath or for Roman Wilson or Calvin Austin underneath?

On Defense you still have Cam and Watt playing at All Pro Levels. Minkah isn’t being used right but he still has it. You have a young in his prime Queen and a promising rookie in Payton Wilson. You have a developing number 1 CB in JPJ on the outside. You have an in his prime SS in Elliot. The only thing we need on defense is another CB and a young DT to groom. Benton is solid but we need another one and a bigger one in my mind.

All of that can be gotten in one more offseason. We will probably have to do one more high end free agent signing and then draft for the other three positions of need. After that it is just building depth and maintaining it at that point. IF they don’t produce a Super Bowl after that then you need to make changes on the coaching staff.

No way is Siarani and his coaching stafff better than the Steelers. Hurts isn’t better than Wilson either. They both happen to be very fortunate to have the best front office in the NFL and the team is loaded with talent. I was in fact shocked yesterday when two of their lineman went out with injuries and the guys that came into to replace them were just as friggin massive. You look at their defense and they have studs at every level. How the heck can you not play well if your Justin Hurtz on this team. Hey I bet Kenny Picket would look pretty good on that team as well.

 

You call it up tempo I just call it a short passing game. Guess what a short passing game works great against? Zone defense. Just run to the open spot. Run short slants or a short and out in the flat when Donte Jackson is playing ten yards back. It is pretty easy and it neutralizes our rush. Thats why I want press man cover corners to completely disrupt that. You don’t have to communicate at all when your in man. You disrupt their timing and you give the defense a little more time to get to the QB. This is why I keep saying Donte Jackson is not the right fit for this defense. We aren’t taking advantage of our rush when we play off and give them a free release. It drives me nuts to watch it.

Its the style of defense we play. Death by a thousand cuts. Its how Dallas and the Colts and the Browns all beat us. We play off and prevent and tackle the catch. I absolutely hate it. It is fear based football. That style of defense has Tomlin written all over it. KC never ever plays like that and we have way more talent on our defense than those guys do. We didn’t play like that against Baltimore but for some reason we went back to it against Philly. I don’t get it.

The problem is Tomlin knows how to position the guys and coach press man coverage because we have done it before with success, he just choose not to use it much. I get it with Hurts he takes off and runs but you gotta put that on your ILB’s and safeties to stop. They didn’t really have to worry about RB’s or TE’s catching the ball yesterday other than the first play. With the athletes we have at ILB we should match up really well at being able to neutralize a running QB.

Its just the philosophy that frustrates me. Its like we don’t really trust our guys at CB sometimes. Then when we do go man we have Donte Jackson covering AJ Brown one on one on multiple occasions on one he gave up the TD. That just isn’t practical when you have JPJ on the other side of the filed literally covering no one.

 

We appeared to have no specific game plan to address AJ Brown. We just treated him like any other receiver, which is insane. Especially considering the circumstances going into that game where it was obvious to anyone who'd been paying the least bit of attention that they were going to focus on getting him the ball at all costs. To be fair, they do have Smith who is a #1 receiver on most teams, so I understand they couldn't focus sole attention on Brown. It would have been nice if we contained one of them though. they both had over 100 yards and 8 + receptions.

 

Up tempo does not mean short passes. It simply means you’re getting lined up and ready to go. You’re not allowing defenses time to substitute and it doesn’t allow coordinators time to see the offense’s personnel grouping and call a play to combat that grouping. It has absolutely nothing to do with the distance of the pass. You can type as many paragraphs of bs as you want it doesn’t change those facts.

it’s funny you bring up tackling the catch after bringing up Lebeau in a failed attempt to bolster your argument earlier. Why? Because that’s exactly what Lebeau used to do. Stop the run, tackle the catch, and get off the field on third down

 

Those were my thoughts, we needed a QB better than what we had, got lucky with Russ for a cheap year and possibly he will be the guy for another year or two. What we have seen in this re-build is the need for playmakers on O. The last 2 years we traded a 5th round pick for aging WR coming off injuries, I'm not arguing those choices, nor will I scour the drafts and said we could have had this or that. Point is we need to focus more money on the O. Have no idea if Rowan Wilson will be anything, he may, but you cannot fill your roster with journeymen junk and try and make them starters. Injuries happen, but we really have zilch w/o Pickens. I am not talking about star quality guys like Cincy or Miami has either, but get someone who is actually a quality player.

 

Agreed. We have a big talent shortage at WR. No doubt. That and CB are my biggest two needs. I like Roman Wilson but he got hurt. Hopefully he comes back and they add a playmaker.

 

We need another guard, a cb, a wr, a te or two, and a defensive linemen. That’s not in any particular order. Oh yeah and probably a rb. Some of those will be addressed in free agency, but realistically we need two more good if not great drafts

 

I agree with this but I think the windows to win are far different when a team has a premier QB vs a premier team. Very hard to keep an entire team together with all the pieces that are needed. Have to somewhat be lucky, or be excellent drafting to restock. Philly also has had a bunch of high picks, making it a little easier to restock. A premier QB can keep a team competitive for a decade or more.

 

Excellent point. I agree but I’m not sure a decade is feasible because once they hit that second contract it’s hard to keep other good players simply because of the salary cap and most of that money going to the QB.

I guess you could say our QB money right now is going to Watt and Minkah. That’s partly why I get so ticked when we go into this passive defense mode of allowing teams to dunk and dunk on us all game.

We need to take advantage if Watt and Minkah in thier prime. That means get another press man cb and play aggressive friggin defense. Off zone coverage doesn’t fit a good pass rush in my mind. We are wasting their talents.

 

First of all no need to be hostile. We’re rooting for the same team.

I know what up tempo means. But you referenced it and the short passing game together in your earlier response. I should have clarified myself and just focused on my frustration for how we defend the short passing game.

You are correct Lebeau did play a lot of zone and tackled the catch. The difference was he had way more blitz packages and exotic blitzes.

Tomlin doesn’t blitz that much. He prefers to rely on the four man rush more and when you play press man that really helps the pass rush because it takes away the short passing game or at least the timing of it.

I used to hate when Lebeau would play that zone defense against Brady. He would pick us apart every time.

A good way to not worry up communications when defending an up temp passing game is to play man coverage. You don’t have to worry about communication as much in man coverage.

obviously we don’t have cb’s to play man coverage outside of JPJ but for this defense to go to the next level we need to get a second one.

 

Actually you brought up the short passing game. You’re sorely mistaken on the communication thing. Playing man and blitzing is how you get decimated by a mobile qb.