Who did what?

Anybody that watched the game who were the standout players and who were the duds?

 

The good Walton, Eli, Chick.
The bad no one really.Actually the play calling.
The ugly a bunch on defense let's say half the starting defense

 

Winners and losers huh?..


*Whew...


86WardsWay... you will have to give me some time here. Need some rest. Will return though for mine. I promise.

 

From what I saw winners were AB, Conner, Watson, Rogers, Sutton, Tuitt.

Losers were Big Al, Hamilton, Coates, Touissant, Davis, Watt and Dupree, Cockrell, Burns.

 

Artie Burns looked really really bad tonight. And cockrell played poorly again tonight.

 

Alright... I am back with my winners and losers 86WardsWay. Before I go on with the good, better to start off with the bad. So, onto the losers from top to bottom. One thing as you are or should be aware of, I am not going to list the G.I.D. (Getting It Done) players like Ben or Brown because I expected as much from them.


Losers:


Ross Cockrell:


*Cues Up "For Whom The Bell Tolls" by Metallica*


Given the fact that the team was more than likely still playing its vanilla defense, I did give that aspect the benefit of the doubt. I cannot, however, do the same for the players who do not execute their assignments properly or falter by not utilizing the basics of fundementals. Ross Cockrell has unfourtunatley, made this a theme for two games now. What was supposed to be glimpses of the fruits of his labor as he trained for the switch to more man coverage has been antipodean thus far. His lack of play strength in addition to his inability to track the ball while in the air are just some of the issues Ross has been dealing with since the second preseason game. The lack of physcial presence, coupled with the lack of ball tracking ability, yielded big yardage for opposing receviers in back to back weeks. Ross' position may still in fact be safe but with Mike Tomlin substituing Coty Sensabaugh with the ones last night, Ross can hear the "bells" a bit louder than before.



Artie Burns:


Unlike Ross Cockrell, Artie Burns' ability to play the ball in the air does not worry me as much. His continued inefficency in run support does. Yes, he has had made a better effort in his second season but he must remain phsycial upon engagment with a receiver. This also translates into his continued lapses in tackling fundementals eariler in the game via a catch by Donte Moncrief. Yes, Robert Golden should have made that tackle but Artie should have ended the play when he got his hands on Donte. In a season where one gains the most experience of their NFL careers, let us hope this bump in the road does not impede the hopeful "Sophomore Surge" Artie needs to have.


Robert Golden:


His lack of athleticism is really showing this preseason. Unable to break quick enough towards receivers in the middle is now becoming more and more of a selling point for opposing coordinators to target for. Add in his lapses in tackle discipline along with his athletic limitations and you have the biggest problem of all; an area of the field that is severly exposed and only the best of pass rush teams can mitigate. Mike Mitchell's return cannot come soon enough.



Knile Davis:


*sigh


I understand he is being given every oppurtunity to showcase that he belongs. At some point though, one has to realize that a player has reached their limit. Knile Davis is at that limit. Nevermind his ugly 3 yards a carry. I have not seen him do much of anything on special teams. To compound this issue, Terrell Watson has showcased much more in his limited oppurtunities could spell the end for Knile Davis as a Steeler


Bud Dupree:


Against a no name offensive tackle, one would expect Bud Dupree to have a great game right? Well think again. While it does seem a bit unfair to call out one player as T.J. Watt did not obtain pressure either, T.J. receives a pass due to his continued learning. For Bud, no excuses. He did obtain some pressures and a very questionable roughing the passer hit but outside of that, not much else. What is most concerning from what I saw is that he still seems to lack a counter move after his initial attack. More than likely saving this for the regular season but even so, a concern of mine for sure. While he is bringing the heat, I was expecting some of that "heat" to be reflected on the stat sheet. Furthermore, for a player expected to be "the next one" of Pittsburgh's proud tradition of exceptional linebacking play, Bud has to step it up and fast.


Sammie Coates/Justin Hunter:


I understand this is the lackadasical approach to listing but given the fact I heard the same level of noise from both, might as well lump them togehter. What nosie you may ask?


*Klang! Klang! Klang!


That is all I heard from the palms of both Sammie and Justin. I am more disappointed though with Sammie as I was pulling for him almost as much as Jerald Hawkins to improve. He has not done that and, as a result, is running out of time; doubly so with Justin Hunter. Both will be playing for their football careers with Pittsburgh more than likely come Thursday. Should there be no meaningful progress from either.. both will likely be gone, leaving room for others like Brian Allen or even Matt Feiler to earn a spot.



Jesse James:


Have not heard his name much up until tonight. Only one catch though. Should have been two... and the second one is my biggest concern. Tight ends have to make those contested catches. To do so, making the catch is one thing but securing it as quickly as possible is another. Jesee has the ability to make these catches but has to showcase the ability to actually quickly put them away.


Colin Holba:



I really did not want to put him on here but a bad snap lands you here "Colby". Just cannot do that in those situations and nevermind you are the incumbent starter on special teams. Reason he is lower on the list though is because of the fact that any form of mistake he makes now is much better than doing so in November/December and nevermind January.



Alejandro Villanueva:


Some will blame his performance based on his new contract (something I will always call ridiculous unless there are extreme circumstances in play like a players attitude). Others, like myself can use his uneasiness based on the fact that Ramon Foster's absence did leave him shaky as continuity is key on any offensive line. I however, use this for his poor showcasing; fundementals. An inability to seal up your adversary is one thing but to not properly kickslide and leave your franchise quarterback wide open for a direct hit? Unacceptable.



Out with the bad and onto the good now. My winners.



Winners:



Terrell Watson:


If anyone has made the most of their oppurtunities this preseason not named Mike Hilton, Terrell Watson is the odds on favorite for me. He may be a "North/South" runner but given the fact that he has the power and momentum to take others with him after contact is something else. Given the fact that Knile Daivs has not shown much and we currenlty do not know the extent of Fitz's injury, keeping him on the final 53 seems more and more likley to me.



Brian Allen:


He may be raw but his potential is bigger than others are giving him credit for. If anything, he is my "L.T. Walton" of this draft class; a diamond in the rough. Not only was he targeted very little, when he was, such as the screen instance in the fourth quarter, he was able to not just diagnose it quickly but also turn it into a negative play. If anything, his development has me more excited than any other Steelers rookie not named T.J. Watt.



Cameron Sutton:


His time on the field was brief but his flashes of exceptional play were very bright. Not only was he able to showcase some of those ball skills, he was also able to showcase some phsyciality in run support. It may be too little, too late for him to crack the starting lineup but the glimpses he gave us all was very promising for a secondary in dire need of showcasing any form of positive throughout the preseason.



James Conner:


Much like Terrell Watson albeit a bit less so. I expected James to have a better outing and he did. He did, however, showcase some improvement in his lateral agility via his jump cuts and also delieverd the boom on some Colts defenders. Wanted to see him catch a pass or two but that will have to wait hopefully on Thursday.



Xaiver Grimble:


Sans that ugly lead block for Terrell Watson, I really thought the X man had a good game. He has shown considerable improvement in his blocking from a season ago and can still flash as a pass catcher. Not only that, he looks a lot faster and more explosive too. I hope to see his lead blocking improve but outside of that, I did like what I saw.



Matt Feiler:


If his play strength is something else, how about his ability to reach the second level? This is a good problem for Pittsburgh to have at the moment currently. Now, Pittsburgh has two great depth interior players; B.J. Finney being the other. While it is a shame that Feiler is out of Practice Squad eligibility, a good showcasing on Thursday will boost his chances of making the final 53 for sure.



JuJu Smith Schuster:


For me, this is a double take. To start out, thankfully that injury was not what I feared it to be based on the angle of the replay of the hit (ACL Tear was my guess). Second though, he made some good catches; his catch on the sideline made me smile with much elation. Such catches are needed for him to demonstarte his ability to not just move the chains or contest catches but also showcases situational awareness.






That is it for me 86WardsWay. My winners and losers.


I am going to be honest here; Thursday's game has me more fired up than the opener against the Cleveland Browns due to the fact that players like Mike Hilton and Terrell Watson will be making all the stops to state their case.

 

Appreciate the write ups! I'm just going to agree with ya on Watson and keep it simple. I will not be mad at all if we carry bell, Conner, and Watson as our 3 rb's on the 53

 

Was not done. Keyboard issues by me pressing the wrong button.



Official one though is now posted.

 

This is a good example of why I find myself coming here more and more for Steeler news and visit the more traditional sites less and less. Thanks, AQL, for the analysis.

 

Good write up, I think we could end up seeing #20 and #40 getting snaps in the Steelers nickel this season.

 

Winners:
Landry Jones - locked down the backup job
Terrell Watson - Made strong case for the 53 man roster
Eli Rogers - locked down the #3 WR job
DHB - Close to locking down 53 for S/T
Matt Feiler - Made strong case for 53 man roster
JuJu - Survived injuries, beginning to make case for #4 WR spot
James Conner - Showed he's ready to be a #2


Losers:
Sean Davis - Showed why the Steelers wanted to convert him to man/slot corner. No brain for the game
Ross Cockrell - does everything well, until the ball arrives
Artie Burns - tackling issues should not carry into 2nd season
Daniel McCullers - no effort, buh bye
Fitz Toussaint - lost his roster spot
Justin Hunter - losing his roster spot
Sammie Coates - losing his roster spot
Knile Davis - losing his roster spot

 

I think we all held our breath when Ben got blindsided due to Big Al's missed block.

 

No problem!


Glad you liked them. Will be doing my third final 53 after missing my second. Long work hours saw to me not updating from the first.

 

I personally held my breath when Villy's fundementals went to "La La Land" on that play.

 

Good insight AQL. I only watched the first half and thought Landry Jones was decent enough to hold the back up position. I'll watch the rest later his week.

 

I agree totally about Big Dan. The dude has absolutely no push whatsoever. It's unreal to me that a guy that big can be made to look so weak. He was noticeably stood straight up last night. I know that he was ultimately more of a project player than anything else but I think it's pretty obvious it's just not meant to be for him. I also was saying during the game thread if they let Fitz or Davis go to keep Watson I'd be totally fine with it. He's actually the guy that's my sorta "Cinderella Story" this year or whatever. He runs with passion. So does Conner for that matter. What about Tre Williams though? I've not seen him mentioned I don't think. IF he could actually be a return guy and contribute on ST I wouldn't mind having him either. Good grief Knile Davis can't even make a simple decision whether to take a knee or run it out. Still doubt Williams makes the team but he still might have shown enough to get a call from somebody else.