Football IQ

This is an honest question. Do you consider us a team with a high football iq? It seems like every game we just do things that are so phenomenally stupid that they are almost beyond belief. Whether it is Blake holding the ball away from him like it has the plague. Whether it is Archer bringing it out of the endzone when he should clearly not. Whether it is clock mgmt. Whether it is throws in to double or triple coverage. Whether it is dumb personal fouls like screaming in a dude's face or taking your helmet off. There are just really stupid things that we do consistently and they seem to never be addressed because we consistently do stupid stuff. So am I missing something or do we seem to have a really horrible iq?

 

Despite most of the stupidity, we could have and should have won.

This team finds ways to lose games.

 

To be fair, I think you see it most games with most teams.

We've actually done pretty well with penalties this season, which has been refreshing.

We are still bad situationally. The fake spike, meh, it either works or it doesn't. If the QB sees it isn't going to work, then it's already too late to call the play off. But a few times this season the players and coaches all seem to have struggled to read and react to the time situation.

 

The thing about that fake spike though is that it didn't fool the bungles. It was our whole offense that was standing still but the db didn't bite. Our db's would have probably gotten smoked on a play like that. I'm sure it was based on a hand signal but it still needs to be properly executed though.

 

Yep. It was actually a bad fake - when they've done it in the past, Ben has sold it much better. As I recall, he actually looked like he was dropping back to throw, which gave the Bengals time to react (if they hadn't covered Bryant already).

 

He did. It actually wasn't a fake spike because he never faked a spike. I think he just was gonna try a quick out when they thought he was gonna try a spike.

 

Exactly. We could have won but if not for REALLY stupid mistakes in just fundamental football we would have.

 

It starts at the top. A team will take on the identity of its coach. We have a dumb man as our head coach, and as a result, we have dumb players. It's been this way since Tomlin was hired. This isn't a new problem. What's embarassing is that it hasn't been fixed yet.

Hate him all you want, but who thinks Belichek would allow this kind of stupidity on his team?

 

I don't. I'm not saying that I want to fire Tomlin but I do think that he has some areas where he seriously needs to get it together.

 

NE does stupid things too, they just tend not to repeat their mistakes, because Belichek will literally cut his own mother if she repeatedly makes mistakes. So many RB's come and go for NE because if they fumble a few times, he benches or even cuts them, no matter how much they produce.

Tomlin has to hold people accountable, including himself and including Ben. Ben can't be allowed to throw into double coverage like that without getting reamed out. I'm tired of seeing the same mistakes all the time

 

I can understand mistakes. I really can. I mean I honestly EXPECT them. These guys are human regardless of level of play or salary. The thing is though that this stuff has happened for YEARS. Our loss record to teams with crappy records is really bad. Today we didn't play a crappy team and our d gave them all they could handle but even our d made some big mistakes as well. Our offense can't be "all eggs in one basket" all the time. Even if Bell is not in there you have to know how to use your timeouts, get set in formation, keep the ball in play, and things like that.

 

Hard to say, BFT. I used to think we were the only fans that had to deal with knucklehead plays and bonehead decisions, but lately I've been visiting other teams' boards after we've played them. What I've learned is these feelings are pretty much universal to all fanbases. For example, the bengals board today was actually filled with comments about how the refs were on the Steelers side and trying to screw the Bengals. Hard to believe anyone with eyes could see it that way but there you go.

 

This is something I've pondered for years under the Tomlin era. Perhaps it's coincidence or me paying more attention to aspects of the game, but this team seems to have made a lot of mental mistakes dating back to the 'young money' WR days. Around that time we saw the passing game become truly lethal, with Ben having Wallace, Brown, and Sanders in addition to Miller and a close-to-retirement Ward. The defense also remained a threat back then, though not as dominant as it had been in years past. The primary weak point appeared to be the offensive line.

But it was with that relatively well-stocked roster that I noticed a lack of discipline leading to stupid penalites and/or mistakes with increasing frequency. I remember the loss against the Cowboys a few years back when we carried a double digit lead into the 4th quarter and Antonio Brown seemed determined to single-handedly hand the game over, making three boneheaded mistakes in close proximity coming down the home stretch of the. One was getting stripped from behind as he was breaking a reception away from the pack, another was running out of bounds with under five minutes left and the lead, and the third escapes me right now. Brown has obviously developed into one of the best receivers in the game - and due credit to the FO for extending him over Wallace at the time - but this was an example of the team seeming to become over-reliant on raw talent to win games, while easing back on focus and smart play.

Again, this is not an indictment of Tomlin; it's a polarizing topic, and I"m not trying to stoke the fire. But it's my personal opinion that the team has been less disciplined on the field under his watch. Would we have been significantly better without him? Not necessarily. He is who he is. I mean, eight years in and I still can't figure out what he's thinking when it comes to the timeclock. Similarly, he admits to calling things by however his gut is feeling at the time. This can lead to a roller coaster of emotions a fan, as you never really know what to expect in certain situations; you think you've got a beat on his thinking and suddenly he goes another way. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Naturally, we want 'em all to work.

But neither do I think the topic solely rests upon Tomlin's shoulders. Colbert is the GM, and the Rooneys preside over all, so each plays their part. I'm still trying to figure out why we felt the need to trade two picks away this offseason for a CB that never sees the field despite a shaky, injury-riddled secondary and an aging K who had been showing concerns with accuracy. That, imo, is on Colbert. Did Tomlin want to bring Vick in? Maybe. But again, Colbert has a say there as well.

After the game today, I flipped over to the Duel in the Dome with the score 49-49 with under 30 seconds left to play. The Giants failed a 3rd down conversion in their own territory and punted away with under 20 seconds to go. The Saints returner found a crease and got past midfield, then fumbled, where it was recovered by another Saint at the Giants 47. But a flag was thrown for a facemask on the return that moved the ball to the Giants 32 with about 5 seconds left. The Saints trotted their K out for a 50 yard try and he nailed it for the win. I chuckled and thought it a typical blunder for the Giants the past several years. The same team that's hoisted a couple of Lombardi's, but seems to also have a propensity for boneheadedness.

This is the kind of thing I wonder about when it comes to the Steelers over roughly the same span. We can be very good, but we can also be very bad. The Tomlin incident on the kickoff return against the Ravens a few years ago? The Vick signing? These are the type of things that stick out as much as the ballsy move to go for the TD against the Chargers a few weeks ago. If I were a non-Steeler fan right now, I think I'd view the team as one with talent, and who can play a good game on any given Sunday, but doesn't have the focus/discipline/football IQ to be a considerable threat come the end of the season.

 

VERY VERY VERY poor in situational football. Tomlin will say style points don't matter, but a few more IQ points might go a long way to giving yourselves additional chances to win a game. I agree that other teams do stupid things too (anybody see that Colts 4th down last week?), but that doesn't mean you like to see it on the team WE root for. The term I've used before is 'randumbness.' We're not ALWAYS stupid but all of sudden we'll run a play that makes everyone go, 'what the hell was THAT?' You're moving the ball at will against a team, and then for no reason breakout out the WR pass. 3rd and 1 and throw a low percentage bomb into coverage, score a TD to go up 2 and then go for 2 with your 3rd string QB -- THAT sort of thing.

It's the same with Tomlin. If you look at the entire body of his work, you could conclude he's not OVERALL a bad coach, but he's VERY consistently bad at things he's bad at (game management, instilling discipline, etc), and after many years as head coach, HE'S NOT LEARNING!!!! There's no excuse for these bad game decisions, but it's what we'll have as long as he's coach. Sometimes the good can outweigh that bad, as evidenced by our 4-4 record (and sometimes we get lucky as we did in San Diego since if Bell is stopped short, none of those nimrods would have called our last timeout because they were too busy being spectators instead of game managerws), but this 'bad' is a disease for which we have no cure as long as Tomlin remains coach....

 

We just have this Jekyll and Hyde syndrome sometimes where we will be marching down the field with Ben lighting it up and then just go away from it. We did it against NE in week one. Williams was running all over them and then we call a trick play to AB and stall the drive. It was just dumb. We don't always do that though. Last year against Cincy we ran that pulling play and DeCastro and Heath owned that d line and Bell made fools out of them and we ran it over and over. The thing about NE is they will go with what works until it doesn't. It's like they plan for the OPPONENT'S weakness and we plan for OUR strengths. Regardless if it is an opponent's weakness or not. Maybe it's just a philosophical difference or something.

 

It would definitely be tempting to say we 'outsmart' ourselves sometimes, but that has 'smart' as the root word which by definition wouldn't be appropriate. It's really hard to understand....much like the continued cushions to wide receivers when they've just thrown quick outs to them twice in a row....or the playing off the receiver on the TD pass as though we need to be concerned that the receiver will 'get behind us' as though you get MORE points for scoring a TD farther into the end zone so you have to defend the DEEP part of the end zone (although Blake intercepted one so they probably felt they needed to do something different).

The sobering thought, given how poor we are at game management at the END of games, is that perhaps we have no strategy beyond the next play in other parts of the game. That's why things seem so ran-dumb at times. Well, the magic 8-ball said it's time for a flea-flicker. But, we're on the opposing team's 2 yard line....oh well, don't question the magic 8-ball!

 

Yeah the cushion is incredibly annoying. I think it's a result more of having slow corners and being afraid to get burned deep. We just use it in certain situations that make no sense and the red zone comes to mind.

 

Yeah and even Pats fans complain. My buddy is a Packers fan and complains about Rodgers a lot too and also they really are VERY glad that McCarthy gave up the playcalling duties too. The thing about us though is we have traced these issues back years literally. I don't know how many other teams have been plagued with these very fixable issues for as long as we have. I just don't think the "identity" of a Tomlin team is to play "smart". I really think he wants our identity to be that we do just enough to win and wants it to be more of a "game of attrition" and crap like that. There are other teams that have issues too. Look how many times the bengals have made it to the playoffs only to choke. The Bills also find ways to lose in the playoffs as well. The difference is though our problems are things that we can absolutely control ourselves and it just seems like we don't.

 

Team IQ has become my favorite thing to look at. Physical talent at skill positions is a must, but I think Football IQ is a close second, and our team is way below average.

BEN: I know Ben got a bad rap for not studying film, and I have no way of knowing if that is true. I DO know what I see on the field, and his confidence/I-can-make-something-happen attitude often results in what look like dumb plays (e.g., throwing into double coverage, not throwing it away, taking sacks that put them out of field goal distance). Maybe they are dumb plays.

Penalties: many penalties are often charged to lack of discipline, but they could easily be labeled "dumb".

Showboating: that seems dumb to me.

Coaching: lots of questions here - play-calling, game planning, time management - all seem to raise questions about football iQ. Looking unprepared for weak opponents - that is due to poor preparation during the week. Is that akin to studying? Maybe the studying does not work, because the IQ is low.

Drafts, trades: some of these are head-scratchers. Boykin? Archer? I know we don't know the behind the scenes stories, but from a fan's perspective - dumb.

So it goes the across the organization - players, coaches, staff. Just hasn't seemed smart, for years.

Of course, we are probably not having this discussion if there weren't a couple of key injuries - physical talent can make up for a lot. But IQ can surely help when things go awry or are close, and there we seem to struggle.

 

Take a look at football on Saturday's. Football IQ has been thrown out the window. You have teams scoring 70 points and only winning by two touchdowns... That is CRAZY and not good football! You have coaches who act like spoiled babies running up and down the sideline like someone set their house on fire. You have a generation of kids in high school and college who have no idea what respect is and what it means to be a coachable athlete and understand the role of criticism in making you better. I do think at times coaches get caught up in over-thinking it. If a team can't stop something I am from the old school. Keep running it until they stop it. I also think there is a lot of individualism in pro sports these days. What has always impressed me about the Pats is how they seem to play as a team. The Steelers used to be about that and maybe they still are but seeing guys complaining about stats drives me nuts. The goal is to win, no matter how that happens.

For me the whole fantasy football revolution isn't good for the product being put on the field. You have money being tied to an individuals performance in a team sport. I am not saying guys are tanking on purpose but you are seeing more and more about the individual and less about the overall team. Guys celebrating making a stop on 3rd down, celebrating a TD down 24 points etc. The list can go on and on. I love my Steelers but it is getting tougher and tougher to watch the NFL due to several issues that in my opinion are hurting the game. Roger is numero uno!!!!

 

This about sums it up for me also, It starts at the top. MT will lose at the very least
2 games for us per year. All things being equal we will consistently lose in the coaching
category. And this has been going on for some time now. Ben and Haley are just as DUMB.

 

I agree that Tomlin doesn't improve his or his team's weaknesses well.

Discipline is still an issue with the 15 yard no helmet penalty to Debo and Mitchell acting like he won the game with the INT on 3 and long that came with a penalty was the equivalent of faircatching a 45 yard punt- nothing to celebrate about. Reminded me of Lebeau reaming out A Smith for showboating.

Discipline is inconsistent: Bell gets arrested for DUI? No penalty. Blount gets arrested for DUI? No penalty. Blount throws a tantrum? Off the team. Rainey has a fight with his GF? Off the team. Mendenhall has an "attitude"? Off the team. Martavis Bryant substance abuse? Take some time off. Santonio Holmes substance abuse? Off the team.

That is all speculative though and we obviously lack insight. From an outsiders perspective though discipline appears preferential.

Special teams has been ranked near the bottom of the league for Tomlin's entire tenure. The offensive line has been a problem for Tomlin's entire tenure. This is the best the OL has been and it is MAYBE top 10. Ben had arguably the best OL in football when he came in the league. Marvell Smith, Jeff Hartings, Kendall Simmons and Alan Faneca all made at least one Pro bowl and the Steelers were at the top of the league in rushing. Tomlin commented in 2008 draft they would "Protect Ben with weapons": that hasn't worked at all.

Will Tomlin be able to rebuild the secondary? Shazier was chosen over Clinton-Dix. Jarvis Jones was chosen over Eric Reid and Xavier Rhodes and Johnathon Banks. I know a lot of people wanted Kam Chancellor in the 5th and I wanted Reshad Jones in the 5th in 2010 or 11. Tomlin has a huge input in drafting: Bell has been his guy since day 1 and Colbert moved up to get him. If Tomlin had not inherited Taylor, Clark and Polamalu what would the secondary have looked like? Why isn't Boykin playing? Did Boykin insult Tomlin's god damned cushion we all hate?

Tomlin also has a willingness to be a pass first team. 45 pass plays to 21 run plays yesterday for example. Stylistically I think this pisses a lot of Steelers fans off I know it does me. At the start of the season Roethlisberger was 43-19 when attempting 30-39 passes and just 10-27 when attempting 40+... is Tomlin aware of that stat?

I know Tomlin isn't going anywhere but it's hard to cheer for him. I laughed that the Bengals couldn't seal the game after Ben's late pick. Marvin Lewis actually called a timeout with 3 minutes left! I immediately thought "Wow this guy must be the only coach that Tomlin can outsmart"... but then he didn't.