Steelers Vs. Jets: NFL Week 15 Previews

Are going to be Mendenhall, Redman, Moore, and Miller versus their dinged up Safeties. Also I’d like to see Cromartie on Wallace a few times. Cromartie loves to bite on pump fakes which Ben excels at. It’s what gets Cromartie a lot of INTs but also gets him burnt from time to time. If he’s reading the QB too much and not paying attention to The Flash, he’ll get burnt.

Also haven’t had a good place to post this so I suppose I’ll put it here…

A play that I think would work tremendously well in the Steelers offense for a huge gain:
Set up what looks like it’s one of our traditional bubble screens to the wide receivers:
Hines motions from left to right
-Mike Wallace turns and looks at Ben at the snap
-Heath Miller runs wide as if he’s about to find someone to block
-Sanders gets down field heading directly for either the safety or CB who ever is directly in front of him.
-Ben pump fakes to Wallace
-Sanders redirects and heads up field on a GO route.
-Ben lobs it up for Sanders.

Why I think this play would work:
-We run that bubble screen at least 3 times a game so it is right there on tape.
-Teams have seen that and are crashing in on the receiver almost immediately
-Ben has a great pump fake that can make the safety take the first step downhill on Wallace.
-Sanders has good speed but isn’t Mike Wallace who teams will have convinced themselves they won’t let him burn them deep. So Sanders shouldn’t draw much attention as he looks like he’s in primarily to block.

However this is a one-time use kind of play. After that it’s on film and teams will account for it. But I give it to you Bruce Arians. Please run it at some critical point in the future.

  This is the main part of the upcoming game that worries me. Will the offense and Arians be able to put their heads together and give Ben enough time or the plan he needs to succeed.

If they clean that up, then this offense can put some points on the board. It’s frustrating to see J. Scott get his behind kicked at LT EVERY weekend. And we all know that Chris K. and Flozell can’t handle speed. With all of that being said, I still think this OL right now is better than the one that played in the Super Bowl in 08.

Biggest reasons for hope with this offense is the Young Money Crew — Wallace, A. Brown & E. Sanders. This trio is the wildcard every week with the Steelers. And sooner or later, teams are going to have to punt and kickoff to A. Brown and he’s going to make a housecall.

My prediction for the Steelers 2011 NFL Draft:

1. J.J. Watt, DE, Wisconsin
2. G/C Mike Pouncey, Florida
3. CB Rashard Carmichael, Virginia Tech
4. K Alex Henery, Nebraska,
5. NT Kenrick Ellis, Hampton
6. FB Owen Marecic, Stanford
7. OT Derek Newton, Arkansas State

 better it would be;
 With LT/OG Benjamin Ijalana or Cannon in the 2nd round
 and OT Chris Hairston in the 4th.

It doesn’t seem to me that we’ve truly committed to the run for the bulk of any game since week 4. Since Ben and our banged up O line keep getting pummeled, I can think of no better time than this week to pound the rock over and over and over again. We shouldn’t need a bunch of points to beat the Jets, and you always hear that O linemen prefer the run game (especially when they keep getting spanked with sacks). It certainly plays more into the strengths of our line at least. Of course, the added benefit is that play action passes actually begin to work when teams are forced to play the run. Oh, and Mendy has been looking really good out there – fighting hard for every inch.

Just a thought.

This is not a great draft for OL. It is so weak that the kid from USC who has declared Tryon Smith, could go top 10 and they are projecting him as a LT because he hasn’t ever played the position. He is 6’6’’, 285 lbs. now and people are projecting him to fill out and grow into a really good, athletic left tackle. A guy that the Steelers might consider at the end of the first round is Gabe Carimi from Wisconsin. He is 6’7’’, 325 lbs and plays left tackle for Wisconsin. In all reality, a lot of scouts don’t believe he has the feet for LT in the pros and is strictly a right tackle. However, we all know the Steelers have a mind of their own when it comes to how prospects will fit with this team.

After watching Mike Pouncey play in 3 games this year, I just don’t see where he is a first round pick. He is strictly a guard and can’t shotgun snap the ball consistently if there was a gun to his head. Mike Pouncey is not Maurkice, as least he hasn’t shown it thus far.

BTW, I’ve seen Watts play in a couple of games this year and he is the closest thing to a young Brett Keisel that I’ve seen in awhile. I actually think Watts could come in and be in the team’s DL rotation next year. I still haven’t seen the next Aaron Smith yet in the draft, though. Those do not come along that often. Do keep in mind that the Steelers like their first round picks to be young (they don’t mind taking a junior or a redshirt junior), with a lot of ability who can come in and learn how to play the Steelers way before they get on the field. A lot of people in the 2010 class have been the exception (Pouncey, Worilds, Sylvester, A. Brown, E. Sanders).

And as far as our OL, I think that the decision to cut 4th round pick LB Thaddeus Gibson versus LT Tony Hills tells me that our new OL coach thinks Hill (and also rookie OL Chris Scott) have something for him to potentially work with and bring out.

Thanks for the update on Colon, great to hear he is progressing so quickly. Hopefully I’m not reading too deeply into that but it leads me to believe he is also healing well, meaning this was not a career ending injury. It might slow him down enough to require him being moved to RG, which is fine IMO, but obviously leaves a hole at RT.

I think Chris Scott has the potential to be a quality if not franchise T, at either side, obviously if he can’t handle LT he should be able to fill the RT spot. That’s next year at best though. I’d like to see Hills get the start in the Cleveland game if we have the #2 seed locked down.

Mike really wanted to be a first round pick, but as close as he is to his brother I think reuniting might now be more important. I doubt he is tanking his senior year to lower to draft stock, but I wouldn’t be shocked if the desire to play with Maurkice again isn’t clouding his focus. Even if we have to move up to get him I think we should. IDM to us if he has the ability to ever play one down as a center, we need a solid RG and he has shown he can play there at a high level. As close as they are they are also just as competitive with each other, and I would love to see them anchor our line for the next 10-15 years.

Butler got a hat last week and he is someone to watch for the rest of the season. I’m hoping the coaching staff sees enough improvement in him that they think he could push to break the lineup, even as a nickel back, for the postseason. A change or two in the secondary would be a new wrinkle other teams would have to adjust to, which is in our favor defensively.

Sounds like the Steelers type of player for interior a guard and is listed by Pro Football Weekly as the no. 1 G prospect if he declares in the draft.

I think the Steelers will also look at Orlando Franklin, T/G, 6’7’’, 325 pounds from the University of Miami. He played LT this year and RT with the Canes the year before. PFW has him rated as the no. 4 rated OT on the board. So, if the Steelers go with Watt in the first round, they could be picking from Glenn, Franklin and Pouncey in the 2nd round. Sounds like Glenn is a lot better football player at G than Pouncey. Plus, you gotta like 6’5’’, 335 lbs. Below is a link for PFW’s top 5 OTs and Gs. Also, Tryon Smith has declared from USC so that probably pushes everyone else down a notch or two as well, which is good news for the Steelers and other teams needing OL help.

http://www.profootballweekly.com/2010/12/17/georgia-has-top-two-og-prospects

3. Marcus Cannon, TCU
6-5 3/8, 363, 5.36

A lightning rod for debate in the scouting community, Cannon can be criticized for his inability to sort out protection and raw positional instincts. Evaluators say he pitches too many no-hitters and will require significant development in the pros. Nonetheless, he has rare size, ridiculous weight-room strength and is very athletic for as big as he is. His size may be ripe for a move inside, but whether inside or outside, he must show that he can do a better job of sinking his hips and playing with more consistent knee bend. Late in the season, he began to show more aggression in his play, but there are times it appears the light bulb is flickering. It may take a year or two for him to feel comfortable in the pros, but coaches and scouts will salivate when he finishes testing. He does possess first-round physical talent.

Sounds like a VERY good project if we could get him in the 3rd round or later – but I am sure that someone will snatch him up before then. Big strong Linemen are what teams are looking for whether he is ready for instant play or not. Example Jared Gaithers from the Ravens.