Accept it my friends. Steelers are like a box of chocolates...

...Never know what you're gonna get.

That is not all bad. While every game is scary, we don't need to ever see a game as unwinnable. The fact that there is zero correlation between who we play and success is both frustrating AND exciting.

If (no guarantee) we make the playoffs, this team COULD go on a run.

(Are you happy Northern_Blitz I finally showed up. )

 

They're made with milk chocolate with cherries in the middle?

 

I prefer the Noll days of consistency and predictability over the Tomlin box of chocolates syndrome. Never count them out but never confident that they’ll take care of business.

 

Well let's be fat, dumb and happy all this week eating the chocolate of the win over Indy until we play the Chargers.

I have very low expectations for this away game. Would be ecstatic if we won somehow. We would go from just stating we are alive (from Indy win) to we are a force to be dealt with.

 

Welcome Captain Lemming.

A real treasure for this board.

 

Different times. If players had the freedoms of free agency back then, the likes of Joe Greene and Bradshaw would have jumped ship and that “consistency” would have never happened my friend. Noll was a great coach but has no rings without EVERY ONE of TEN hall of famers (plus LC who belonged.) Before gathering ALL of them he had none. After the first one retired he has none. That would be impossible under salary cap restraints today.

 

Awe thanks Chuck.

 

True. Team struggles playing on the west coast even when playing trash teams. I would feel real good with a win.

 

Yeah I think we all prefer when You could actually build a team that stayed with you for their whole career, and no free agency, but those times are long gone. He was a awesome HC, but we know not how He would have done in modern free agency, he didn't have to go through that, and since he didn't, guessing what he would have done is just that, guessing.

 

If I had read this before I replied, I wouldn't have had to.

 

true about FA, but lets not forget that Noll inherited the worst team in the league and built it into a dynasty with Dan Rooney’s support. He developed those HOFers. They were talented but he got the most out of them. He also had to deal with disgruntled players like Bradshaw and Lambert, not like FA today but he still had to handle those situations with some tact and professionalism.

after the first one retired? They pretty much all started aging and getting hurt within a 2-3 year window. The 80’s consisted of has beens and average players, with few exceptions. Noll still got a 2-4 playoff record out of those teams. One playoff win less that Tomlin during these last 14 years.

 

My only question is - are they the variety with alcohol?

 

Some would say National Treasure, but I can get behind the concept that this team is Jekyll and Hyde.

 

who did we lose to FA (not injury or trading away mind you) between 2011 and 2018 that would've made a big difference? Bell? Maybe?

 

Could you elaborate on the disgruntled part

I don’t remember either being disgruntled and I was paying attention back then

Terry had issues sort of

Lambert nada

 

They both asked for trades through their agents (i think Bradshaw’s de facto agent was Al Davis)

 

That's not the point I was trying to make, and we have lost many guys that if we had been able to keep, we could have drafted elsewhere. Also you aren't counting guy we would have kept if we didn't have to over pay to keep them.
The point I was making is we don't have a clue what the great Noll could have done with free agency tearing his teams apart, or forcing him to have to overpay for one player. I'm not in anyway saying He couldn't have done it, but I'm not in anyway say he could have done it either. It's all guessing since he didn't have to.

 

but that is the important point, who did we lose through FA? Ben stuck around, the O line was kept together until they started aging, the D was still maintained as top 10 in spite of injury to Shazier. I can only think of Bell

i think your overstating the FA effect on the Steelers the last 14 some odd years.

 

Mike Wallace
Leveon Bell
Emanuel Sanders
Javon Hargrave
Bud Dupree
Juju
James Conner

During that same time, we lost Tuitt and Shazier to an early end of their career.

In fairness, I recognize we would have benefited from the addition of FA acquisitions.

 

They played the Bungles like a bunch of Raisinettes and then Indy like chocolate malt balls. I prefer the latter. (No gay comments please).

 

No you are still not thinking of the guys you have to draft to fill the guys that were gone. How about Dupree, how about Sanantio Holmes, How about Mike Wallace, How about AB, How about Woodley, How about Ryan Clark, How about Keene Lewis, How about Bell, I can do this all day. Most of those players we would have kept if we didn't have to overpay to keep them because of free agency. That's just off the top of my head, and that's not counting backups that you lose, and have to fill their spots also.

 

forgot about Hargrave, that one hurt. The others, meh. AB and later MB more than made up for the loss of Wallace and Sanders. I dont think they move the needle.

 

they got rid of Holmes. Woodley was done. Like i said in another post AB and MB more than made up for the loss of Sanders and Wallace. Dupree was second fiddle to Watt. Its more than FA though, Noll’s coaching style was different too, attention to detail, mastering the routine plays. The 70’s players stuck around and resigned because they knew they would win with Noll.

all this being said, i hope we win in LA and Tomlin gets us on a streak. If we can keep winning by forcing or benefitting from TO’s that fine with me.

 

No Woodley was done at that price, and they wouldn't have had to draft others to fill any of those holes made by free agency, they could have used it elsewhere. That's the part you aren't getting about before, and after free agency. You could stockpile guys, you can't do that now. I Love Noll, but He would never been able to keep Bradshaw, Holmes, Greene, Stallworth , Swann, Ham, Harris, Mel Blount, and many I didn't name together today. It's a different business now, and believe me I'm not trying to sully his name.

 

Instead of raisinettes i was thinking Goobers that melted and fell out the box in big clump of sh!t