The Steelers have a serious safety problem

These guys get paid millions of dollars.

 

Doesn’t make them smarter

 

They be

 

Doesn’t that just eat your shorts

 

That’s not what I’m saying at all.

I’d like to see the Steelers win every game in a totally dominant blowout. But I realize that isn’t based in reality.

I yell at my television and complain every time they make a mistake or do something I disagree with.

The NFL is played at warp speed by flawed humans with no margin for error error.

Looking at similar “mistakes” made across the league helps me develop fan expectations based on real world outcomes.

Your mileage may vary.

 

Other teams fire coaches when they struggle to get it done for an extended period of time, but nobody thinks the Steelers should do that even though "everyone else does it", and then they get rid of the coach that keeps having that stuff happening on the field over and over again.

Many people make up whatever arguments they need to protect the coach or the organization, but they use the excuse that the roster sucks and either the players aren't very good or they're too dumb to complete the genius assignments on every play.

Some never want to admit that if players consistently blow assignments, those players shouldn't be on the field. That is the coach's responsibility. When Tomlin doesn't put Roman Wilson on the field because he's "dumb" or not very good, they say Tomlin is doing the right thing. When players get on the field even though they keep screwing up..... they say it's on the player. It doesn't work both ways.

Accountability needs to be assigned for deficiencies in coaching as well. We can't pretend that the coaches aren't responsible for how well players know their assignments and how they carry out those assignments.

This isn't me screaming fire Mike Tomlin. It is me just saying that people need to acknowledge that coaches make mistakes in judgement. Coaches should be evaluated on those mistakes and held accountable just like the players are called out. Everyone needs to make fair judgements on players and coaches. It's not about picking sides.

 

I think this was aimed at me. That’s cool.

If so, it really misses my entire point.

I think the understanding of the types and amounts of similar mistakes that happen to every team every week across the league is instrumental to defining performance evaluation metrics for players and coaches that are grounded in comparable situations backed by empirical data. Kinda of using a somewhat dispassionate “scientific method” point of view.

I further think that most folks commenting on internet message boards and forums are taking a passionate fan point of view to determine their performance benchmarks. That’s the part I push back against.

Since I’ve been on the internet (mid 1990s) the Steelers internet has railed against Lbers on WRs. Many argue it is specifically a Steelers issue. I lost count at 4 TDs across wildcard weekend where it was a LBer in primary coverage of a WR. That’s the type of thing I’m talking about.

Bolt that together with the idea that good process can still provide undesired results. In other words, you can do everything correctly and still not get the hoped for outcome. I believe that if you respond solely to the results, you can dig the hole deeper instead of climbing out.

You are one of the only people I’ve ever seen layout specific constructive critique that is based on facts and grounded. That’s incredible and leads to good conversation.

Most just want everyone to coach more gooder so winning. That’s unrealistic and not interesting. I can turn Cowherd or Firt Take on for that nonsense.

 

I understand your frustration. You are correct, many people just want a lynching without truly identifying and evaluating the why and the how. I try not to do that, and I thank you for noticing.

The sad part about this is that I'm not advocating for Tomlin's firing here. I'm questioning your position that Sirianni isn't a good coach. There is simply no evidence to show that he isn't a good coach as long as he keeps winning at a ridiculous rate and going to Super Bowls.

You keep listing that bad stuff happens on every team, and I agree. Where you lose me in particular is that when that stuff happens over and over again everywhere else, coaches lose their jobs. That's the part you simply aren't seeing. We will see what Sirianni does when things go sideways....maybe. He hasn't had a 19-year career so you are only seeing the winning and are questioning why he is getting so much credit.

I guess the other question becomes if the Eagles with the best front office and GM in football by your position....and they fire Sirianni....will the Eagles be right for doing it because Sirianni was not going to more Super Bowls? Or will they be wrong for not showing the patience the Steelers have shown with Mike Tomlin?

These decisions aren't easy.

 

And often when those coaches lose their jobs the situation does not improve.

Further making mistakes is not the issue. Eliminating mistakes is an unattainable goal.

Here’s the thing, over the course of a season I don’t think the Steelers make any more mistakes than the other NFL teams. Even the ones winning more games. I honestly don’t.

 

haha. Not a Tomlin forte is it?

 

You seem to have missed the point by a considerable margin.

 

Players must be getting dumber because I don't recall LeBeau's defense with repeated gaffes like we see this season.

 

I do. Obviously somewhat less because they were better. But it isn’t like they never blew a coverage.

Also dudes usually had to site 1-3 years before they even saw the field. Numerous former players have spoken about how it was a hard defense to learn.

Also possible probable that it’s all gotten worse. People have in every other aspect of life.

 

The third round sounds about right.

 

Spending too much time on their cellphones instead of looking at the chalkboard...or whatever they call them nowadays.

 

I read this like a line out of Dr. Seuss

 

Could they? Would they? ...sack Stroud in the dirt?

Could they? Would they? ...make him hurt?

 

Yeah. And I was attempting to move the conversation past that simple platitude. No one was questioning or debating that the truth of that statement. At least I do not think anyone was - I certainly was not.
They are coaching cliches for a reason. It works.

But, for me (and it may ONLY be me) what I find far more rewarding to discuss is why we see so many supposed "fundamental" mistakes and breakdowns each and every NFL game. Even by highly regarded successful teams.

For instance, I wonder about how passing routes were taught in 1975 versus 2025. 5 decades. I gotta assume it is not the same. It might look the same on our TV screen...but I really wonder if it is? Did they teach that this step is "the rocker one" then that step is this and then you sink your hips and then you move this way and then you hit this landmark and then you turn and then you raise your hands and etc in 1975? Or was it more rough and ready? Older players seem to talk about it being a bit more "run 10 yards, break out, and look for the dang ball". But I am not certain. From my couch, 2025 passing offense looks far more complex and nuanced than things from decades ago. If that is true, my assumption is that there are far more things to teach and practice for increasingly complex offenses.

I have read things that make me think defense is the same way. The pre-snap movements and overall disguise has been talked about as being more precise and involved over time. I also have heard that playbooks on both sides of the ball have grown exponentially.

It may be possible that teaching the "little" things is increasingly difficult as there are far more "little" things than ever before. If it takes players all week to learn 2 dozen little things and there are 3 dozen in each week's gameplan...one can see how things get missed.

I have no idea of how much of any of this is true...but based on things I have read and heard discussed by former coaches and players I think it is part of it...

 

I don't think you can separate them.

Johnson likely doesn't know what he should do in that situation because there is so little time to spend on it due to the other things we have discussed soaking up all the limited practice time.

I think you and I assume that he should just know that. What I have read from several former players (and I tried to highlight in my original posting) is that majority of NFL players have to be reminded of those type of things over and over and over again each and every week.

I believe we see what fans understand as shocking fundamental breakdowns each game because the NFL game has reached a point where many of its players can not mentally keep enough in their head.

 

I will bet You money, I can find a similar play by every team that played this week in the playoffs. So every team that is in the playoffs this year has a coaching problem, or was it just a break down on a few plays out of over 50 plays a game??

 

No it's called comparing . Tell me how you would know if a team is good, or bad at something if You don't have something to compare it to???