Did anyone notice?
by tfetterman on May 1, 2008 11:57 PM EDT
19 comments
Is it me, or has anyone else noticed that the Offensive Line really has not been addressed? It is the most crucial restructuring that Pittsburgh has to do, and they really haven't done anything. Ben can't connect to Limas Sweed if he's on his back, and no running back is going very far without a good line. They haven't even addressed the glaring Full Back issue. I'm sorry, but I am finding Tomlin's inexperience to be quite apparent here. With the schedule that he has in front of him, the O'line was paramount and Tomlin blew it. Why would you draft another running back or QB just because he's there when there are so many pressing needs. The only pick that really makes sense is Limas Sweed. Granted, they are great players, but this is a team sport. I love this team, but I just don't get it. Yeah, they got an OT in the fourth round, but he's not playing for a couple years. Max Starks signed, but they made him a transition player for a reason. They question his ability! All of this with losing Faneca! I am so disappointed. I hope they can prove me to be wrong here, and I would love that to be the case. However, I'm just not convinced.
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we have
talked about this over and over again. just look at our past explanation in pretty much any fanblog or any of bliz’s posts.
* till next time wave those towels proud
by LiveinDCbutsteelerfanbyheart on May 2, 2008 12:12 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
well
Legitimate concerns.
We can discuss this until the cows come home and all agree to disagree and that’d be fine. Let me just say a couple things that might make you feel a bit better.
One, I don’t know if you’ve seen the Saints play much, but their offensive line isn’t THAT good. It’s only marginally better than ours (though it should improve even more now that Jamal Brown and Jahri Evans get more experienced). Yet, Brees hardly EVER gets sacked. It’s not as if their passing game is compromised by Brees’ ability to get rid of the ball quickly. And hell, they led the league in passing attempts last year and even set an NFL record.
I really truly think that Big Ben will improve in this area and we’ll see that sack total drop substantially, even if our personnel is basically the same on paper. It would certainly help if Arians got better too, so defenses aren’t just able to to tee off on us on 3rd down after two runs.
It’s not just the line. And finally, you said yourself that offensive linemen typically need a few years before they hit their stride. Well, Starks is 26 and could be there and Colon is entering his 3rd year. We might see him take a couple giant steps forward this year.
by Blitzburgh on May 2, 2008 12:14 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Thing about Brees
This past year he was a “dink n dunk” QB. He had a 67 comp% on 652 attempts. And a terrible 6.8 YPA. If you complete 67% of your passes you should never below a 7.5 YPA. IT is very easy to get the ball off quick when your dumping it off to Reggie Bush Ten times a game. But I prefer big passing plays.
His yards per completion was 10. Which is very bad. It ranked 31st in the NFL. This past year he threw the ball over 100 times more then in 2006 and had almost the same exact yardage total. I personally prefer the big plays over the small plays, even if it results in more sacks.
by jason97673 on May 2, 2008 3:14 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Sounds like
that became the Saints’ running game. Kind of like the 49ers in the early 80s.
by WolfpackSteelersFan on May 2, 2008 3:43 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
and one last thing
Marvel Smith gave up 5 sacks one game (vs Jax) when his back went out. That’s not normal.
by Blitzburgh on May 2, 2008 12:16 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Thanks for all your input
I did this backward. I read all your articles after I posted my comments. I know that’s not so smart, but I was tired and frustrated. However, it’s still a problem.
To follow up though, I don’t think anyone is going to get the ball out of Ben’s hands faster. That’s who he is. That’s how he creates plays. It’s up to the coaches and managment to get the line up to par. And quite frankly, the extent of the issues they had last year isn’t about getting better in every case. I agree, some will get better. (There really is no where to go but up!) But in most cases, they don’t have the proper personnel to provide the right talent. Tom Brady can stand behind his line until the cows come home. That is why they win. When Ben can do that, expect several more championships, but until then it will be a struggle. Not saying they can’t do it, but it will be much harder.
by tfetterman on May 2, 2008 2:14 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
agree with lots of what you're saying BUT
You say ‘it’s who Ben is’. I can’t agree with that. I hear what you’re saying – that’s what makes Ben Ben, his ability to make tacklers miss, get outside the pocket and throw accurately on the move. But, as he gets older and takes more hits, he’s going to HAVE to learn to get the ball out quicker.
As fans, we hear over and over again that that’s the hardest thing for young QBs to master. And Ben, by all accounts, is still a young QB.
Finally, I’ll say that I think Ben can still be great as more of a pure pocket passer. I don’t think his game will be compromised too much by him getting rid of it quicker and sacrificing the occasional big play down field or QB sneak.
by Blitzburgh on May 2, 2008 2:24 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Losing Russ Grimm didn't help much either
Enough said
by tfetterman on May 2, 2008 2:16 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
My only question is
Which offensive lineman available to the Steelers in the draft was going to be starting this year?
by BallsofSteel on May 2, 2008 3:38 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
good pt
Hills is going to be good. He fell because of the injuries. It doesnt take much at all to slide down a team’s board. NFL executives and scouting departments are so f’n chicken shit lots of the time. Any semblance of risk, all upside gets dismissed in early rounds.
In investing, the money to be made is in commodities or companies that everyone’s counted out and ran away from. That’s where value is. Shit, .3 seconds on your 40 yard dash can cause you to fall 2 rounds. Think about that. Whoops, too slow, .3 seconds is up. That’s NO time at all yet the end of the world in the eyes of way too many in the league.
in my opinion, the Steelers assumed the perfect amount of risk vs. reward in this draft. No reaches at all and they also didn’t roll the dice on any super high risk guys, besides perhaps Dixon, but even so, I’d argue they didn’t and especially not for a 5th rounder.
In the case of Hills, I think he got dinged bigtime by scouts and execs because of the broken leg bone, whcih someone pointed out is not at all a tough injury to recover from entirely. Other than that, he’s got all the right tools. Let’s just hope we have the coaches in place to help him get better and ready to play at this level.
by Blitzburgh on May 2, 2008 3:48 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
allow me to bring up Jerod Mayo again
Perfect example of how draftniks, scouts, and ‘experts’ pay waaaaay too much attention to measurables. Mayo, from Tennessee, leads the SEC in tackles, is voted by his teamates as the most competitive guy on the team two years in a row, and is an incredibly engaging personality that projects nothing but ‘winner’.
Yet, teams bump him into Round 2 and experts say he ‘might go late in Round 1’. All this due to not the best test results at combine and other silly measurable metrics. Well, in swoop the Patriots and nab him at #10. The guy can play.
My point is that just because uber-conservative, totally un-willing to gamble teams passed on Hills, doesn’t mean we didn’t get ourselves a talent and didn’t address our needs at OL. We did. we just didn’t hear much about Hills because the narrative doesn’t typically shift to injured seniors in college. Too risky for pundits and ‘experts’ to talk about them due to their attached risk.
my two cents.
by Blitzburgh on May 2, 2008 3:54 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
tfetterman
Ok you’re the Steelers brass and you’re sitting at 23. The top 7 OL are gone. Who are you taking? Do the exact same thing each round and let’s see what you come up with. I think they got really good value with Hills in the 4th, but outside of trading half thier picks to move up in the first the Steelers did a good job of taking BPA.
Oh, and I need some explanation on the glaring need at FB. Bruce Arians prefers not to have one most of the time. If he does have a FB in the line-up, he wants a versatile one, which he has in Davis. He’d much rather run two TE and single back so I’m not surprised on bit that they didn’t draft one.
by cgolden on May 2, 2008 11:14 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
FB Followup
Name one great running back that didn’t have a fullback in front of him? LT was great because of Lorenzo Neal. He’s going to struggle this year. The BUS always had a lead blocker and he was built like a tank. Emmit Smith….Moose Johnson I could be missing someone, but I really see a trend here.
by tfetterman on May 3, 2008 2:46 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Follow up to what I would do in the draft
At the point in time that you are asking me to react, it is too late. They did what they had to do becuase they had no other choice. But here is a new concept for the Steelers…
TRADE!!!!!
You don’t let yourself get to pick 23 for a rookie knowing no one will be left or trade for a veteran. Not one of the players the Steelers drafted will make a significant impact this year. Granted, they will eventually have 2 or 3 great players, but the core of a championship team is beginning to disappear through age and free agency. The time to act is now, so they can make a run with the great veterans they have.
by tfetterman on May 3, 2008 2:54 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
WHAT?
Which OL could the Steelers have realistically traded up for would have contributed immediately? Albert? I don’t think any OT other than Long would have started from Day 1. Find a value chart and see what it would have taken to move up from 23 to 15 in order to take Albert. Then decide if you’re willing to trade next year’s first rounder AND a second round pick. You don’t always get the exact guy that you want in a draft. I’d much rather have Mendenhall at 23 instead of Cherilus at 17 or Sam Baker at 21.
Bottom line some teams see a run on talent and panic and trade up. Other teams sit back and take the presents that fall in their lap. Besides who’s front office/scouting department do you trust more Detriot (Cherilus), Atlanta (Baker) or Pittsburgh. I think I’ll take the fellas in the ‘Burgh.
by cgolden on May 5, 2008 3:38 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I don’t understand
Trade? Trade up? You mean get rid of draft picks we needed to fill depth at other positions in order to move up and grab one O-line man that may or may not start? Did you mean to trade down which the FO said they were actively trying to do unless 1 of 15 players were there at 23. Which one was, only the number 2 rated running back in the draft. Trade for another teams’ veteran? What we needed was depth and youth at basically all positions.
This is how the draft works. Other than your 1st round pick everyone else is for 2 to 3 years down the road. They learn, add much need depth and rest for the veterans, and if you are lucky one may turn into a starter early. If you need to draft a handful of players to win right now, you have a bad team. Look at KC. They has a great draft on paper, but they are not making the playoffs. The reason the Steelers basically have a winning record, are in the playoffs, and contending to reach the Super Bowl every year, is because we reload not rebuild. We play to win now, but we also have our eye out for the future.by SteelBuckeye on May 3, 2008 12:57 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Doh!
Didn’t mean to do that gray box thing.
This is how the draft works. Other than your 1st round pick everyone else is for 2 to 3 years down the road. They learn, add much need depth and rest for the veterans, and if you are lucky one may turn into a starter early. If you need to draft a handful of players to win right now, you have a bad team. Look at KC. They has a great draft on paper, but they are not making the playoffs. The reason the Steelers basically have a winning record, are in the playoffs, and contending to reach the Super Bowl every year, is because we reload not rebuild. We play to win now, but we also have our eye out for the future.
by SteelBuckeye on May 3, 2008 2:29 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Agree
If Willis fell to the Steelers, he would of not played anymore then Timmons did. But he lead the league in tackles because he was basically there entire Defense is bad.
Some wanted us to draft Poslusny(sp?). He started because he was on a bad Buffalo team. If he was on our team, he wouldn’t of done much more then Timmons either.
by jason97673 on May 3, 2008 8:05 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
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