Tomlin knows what the Steelers need

[Jopa-n]

How bout a 3rd round pick WR gaining steam each week in becoming a viable weapon for an already star heavy offense? Look what was in front of Mike Wallace when the season started as far as star power:
Hines Ward- future hall a famer and SB MVP-
Santonio Holmes- 1st rd draft pick and SB MVP-
Heath Miller- 1st round draft pick and arguably the best all around and most intelligent TE in the game today-
Limas Sweed- 2nd round draft choice out of Texas with Plaxico Burress size and speed-
Shaun McDonald- good, experienced FA pick up with sure hands.
All the (incorrectly) unhearlded rookie Wallace did was vault past Sweed and McDonald from the get go, become a reliable playmaking rec. amongst a super talented group of polished NFL pass catchers, and become more of an option for Ben to look for by the week. Combine that with knowing That the more he contributes, the more attention he'll get, the more potent he makes the stars around him, and there is nothing but greater success for the passing and running game.

[Bill in Cranberry]

Jopa-n wrote:

How bout a 3rd round pick WR gaining steam each week in becoming a viable weapon for an already star heavy offense? Look what was in front of Mike Wallace when the season started as far as star power:
Hines Ward- future hall a famer and SB MVP-
Santonio Holmes- 1st rd draft pick and SB MVP-
Heath Miller- 1st round draft pick and arguably the best all around and most intelligent TE in the game today-
Limas Sweed- 2nd round draft choice out of Texas with Plaxico Burress size and speed-
Shaun McDonald- good, experienced FA pick up with sure hands.
All the (incorrectly) unhearlded rookie Wallace did was vault past Sweed and McDonald from the get go, become a reliable playmaking rec. amongst a super talented group of polished NFL pass catchers, and become more of an option for Ben to look for by the week. Combine that with knowing That the more he contributes, the more attention he'll get, the more potent he makes the stars around him, and there is nothing but greater success for the passing and running game.

Amen to that Jopa, however, I'm not counting out Mr. Sweed. When that light clicks on he will be a star...maybe even a super star. Wdhen he plays and I see which I'm sure all of us has seen the separtion he gets....Wooooo! Wallace has not gotten that type of separation yet although I believe its on the way. TBS, we have the potential of another Swann and Stallworth in the receiving corps. C'mon 7!

STEELERS ROCK !!!

[Jopa-n]

Bill in Cranberry wrote:

<quoted text>
Amen to that Jopa, however, I'm not counting out Mr. Sweed. When that light clicks on he will be a star...maybe even a super star. Wdhen he plays and I see which I'm sure all of us has seen the separtion he gets....Wooooo! Wallace has not gotten that type of separation yet although I believe its on the way. TBS, we have the potential of another Swann and Stallworth in the receiving corps. C'mon 7!
STEELERS ROCK !!!

Bill, I hope your right about Limas. Right now his route tree consists of Go route and deep slant. He seems kinda gawky when he has to do a curl route or go low for the ball. I think he was spoiled a little at Texas because he did not need to have an arsenal of moves. It's like the difference between Hines Ward and Limas- Hines is a football player that plays rec. Limas is currently an exceptional athlete who wants to be a pro football player. Remember Renaldo Nehamiah (sp)? Great athlete who wanted to be a football player. Let's pray that's not what Limas is.

[Jopa-n]

This game coming up is so much like the Minnesota and SB contests. Cincy like Minn. and the Cards are a talented team. They are the hot team, the flavor of the month for those that beckon change over the norm.
The Steelers, just like the other two games, have the more overall talented team. IMO, if they play smart, agressive football for the ENTIRE 60 minutes they will win. If they play not- to -lose rather than win, like the first meeting, they will lose. Be agressive and relentless on defense, be smart and innovative on offense for a solid 60. Play to win 40-00, not 17-13. Play to dominate and destroy. Not hold back and prevail. Maybe they won't dominate and desroy in the end, but they will achieve the most they could and that's all anyone can ask.

[Bill in Cranberry]

Jopa-n wrote:

<quoted text>Bill, I hope your right about Limas. Right now his route tree consists of Go route and deep slant. He seems kinda gawky when he has to do a curl route or go low for the ball. I think he was spoiled a little at Texas because he did not need to have an arsenal of moves. It's like the difference between Hines Ward and Limas- Hines is a football player that plays rec. Limas is currently an exceptional athlete who wants to be a pro football
. Remember Renaldo Nehamiah (sp)? Great athlete who wanted to be a football player. Let's pray that's not what Limas is.

IIRC Limas made some difficult low catches to the outside and across the middle. The sure catch tds were the one's he blew. The amount of separation he had was obvious to even Stevie Wonder. The easy ones...the sure things...are sometimes the most difficult.
I base my argument on a great deal of experience on the field...in business...and life in general. Wallace and Sweed could be Swann and Stallworth. A thought nice thought to have. C'mon 7!

STEELERS ROCK !!!

[Jopa-n]

Bill in Cranberry wrote:

<quoted text>
IIRC Limas made some difficult low catches to the outside and across the middle. The sure catch tds were the one's he blew. The amount of separation he had was obvious to even Stevie Wonder. The easy ones...the sure things...are sometimes the most difficult.
I base my argument on a great deal of experience on the field...in business...and life in general. Wallace and Sweed could be Swann and Stallworth. A thought nice thought to have. C'mon 7!
STEELERS ROCK !!!

I thought Limas was gonna be the closest thing to Plax you could get. He still could be successful and I hope he turns the corner.
As I watched Wallace, he did remind me of one of the dynamic duo. Stallworth in his rookie year. Not in style or anything, but in how he's suppose to be the 'other guy' and he is just going out game after game, making catches and making plays. He lines up, runs the route, gets open and makes the catch. No fuss no muss.
Goes back to the huddle and gets ready to make another play.
He is the key to taking this group from very good to off the charts. If he continues to contribute more and more per game, the plays being made by Ward, Holmes, and Miller will be even more explosive as Wallace will help to get more man coverage for the others.

[Jopa-n]

I'd like to see, now that they have so many options for Ben to throw too, the rec.s start pressing defenses more. I watched a play out of a 4 wide set on Monday night, where they should all 4 rec.s simply run bacicly the same route: ten yards up and out, ten yards up and in, ten yards up and stop. With the speed they have on the corners plus the savy of Ward and Miller in the middle, every 3-4 rec. route combo should consist of skinny post, slant, cross, and dig route etc. Press the defense to defend deep and then burn them with a hard cross underneath. Push the deep saftey up the field and then run a slant behind it. Use the X route where they come from both sides into the middle then cross with the 2nd rec. breaking it off underneath. The Pats kill with that play. With the attention Ward, Holmes, and Wallace will be getting, Miller should feast underneath.

[Jopa-n]

I murdered that one sentence. Should read: showed all 4 rec.s simply run basicly the same route.

[LZ-Steel]

No one should deny the fact that Sweed has breakaway speed and has no problem separating from NFL quality cornerbacks. His problem is solely rested on mentality and focus.

Its tough to come into the NFL for a good team, play poorly, and have the fan-base pretty much hate you for dropping passes. We need to give him time. If we don't...we risk the problem of him going to a different team, getting his head right, and make us regret releasing him (ala Braylon Edwards w/ the Jets).

But you're right. We have the weapons. We have the QB. Its our time than it ever has been.

Here we go Steelers, here we go!!

[Jopa-n]

Chick Ludwig of the Cincinnati Inquirer is sqawking about how the Steelers play dirty. They are to respected but not admired he says. He uses the recent poll by SI saying Hines is the dirtiest player in the league and he seconds that.
Well Chick, I'm sorry you are so upset. Maybe they should try to play nicer on sunday. Like ask politely before they gently wrap their arms around players and beg for them to give up!
Is this guy serious? Right before the big game he's crying in his cranberry juice about how the Steelers play?
Figures- for a 'Chick'.

[Jopa-n]

Got to give it to the Bengals- they are for real. The defense especially is solid as a rock. They played hard and agressive all game and really get tight inside the 20. They have some really good man defenders which makes the front 7 all the more tough. They made the Steelers line play bad.
The Steelers in turn, have to refine their routes when playing pass defenses that can go man. When the vertical and sitdown routes are not opening up, they have to use more drag routes and shallow crosses, combined with some hard comeback routes to get and keep seperation IMO. That, plus running the ball more out of an unbalanced line just because the big pass plays are not there.

[Jopa-n]

There is a lot Steeler nation uncomfortable with this game, as they should be. The sporadic and uneven way the offense performed against an agressive defensive scheme combined with pathetic kickoff coverage (again), and the ify situation with the Steelers most dynamic defensive weapon in Troy, is reason to feel concerned.
There were some truths devulged in this game:
The Steelers may need to run the ball more if the passing scheme is going to consist of mostly Long bombs and zone sit down routes-
When they run against better teams, they can't just line up and push ahead. It must be a combination of counters and quick hitters-
Asking Ben to just run around til somebody gets open will not work against the better defenses. No matter how talented your rec. corp. is, using the entire route tree with different players will be needed at some point-
There is no rule that says if your successful at something, you can only use it once or twice in a game. I'm referring specificly to the likes of quick outs, bubble screens, halfback screens and such against stacked agressive defenses-
When an opposing defense demands it, 7 or even 8 man protection with a tight pocket may be the way to go if your base protection is having problems-
Special teams is not called 'special' because they are active in charity acts towards the other team.

[Jopa-n]

Just saw higlights of the Colts- Pats 35-34 SHOOTOUT. Both Brady and Manning EACH throw for over THREE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY-FIVE yards and 7 TD's total. Both cement their claim as 2 of the best in football history.
One thing really sets me off when I see these two perform this well against the defenses they played against: With the collective talent that the Steelers have on offense in comparison to each of the other two teams, Ben and company should be pretty close to these type of performances. No way should the Pats offense or Colts offense be that much better than this Steeler squad. The Pats and Colts simply take every inch of talent on offense and squeeze out everything they can get in every possible way. Hopefully, the Steelers will learn how to maximze their offensive talent as well some day.

[Rex J Steelman]

Jopa-n wrote:

Got to give it to the Bengals- they are for real. The defense especially is solid as a rock. They played hard and agressive all game and really get tight inside the 20. They have some really good man defenders which makes the front 7 all the more tough. They made the Steelers line play bad.
The Steelers in turn, have to refine their routes when playing pass defenses that can go man. When the vertical and sitdown routes are not opening up, they have to use more drag routes and shallow crosses, combined with some hard comeback routes to get and keep seperation IMO. That, plus running the ball more out of an unbalanced line just because the big pass plays are not there.

Especially since those young CBs are really fast, and Ben didn't seem capable of tossing the bomb more than 25 yds. The only good news is that Pitts win over Notre Dame on Saturday makes Pittsburgh football teams something like 12-0 over fat, ex-Patriot coordinators. That and Jiggling Bill losing to the Colts on another arrogant fourth-down conversion attempt (the same way he lost the Super Bowl!).

[Jopa-n]

Rex J Steelman wrote:

<quoted text>
Especially since those young CBs are really fast, and Ben didn't seem capable of tossing the bomb more than 25 yds. The only good news is that Pitts win over Notre Dame on Saturday makes Pittsburgh football teams something like 12-0 over fat, ex-Patriot coordinators. That and Jiggling Bill losing to the Colts on another arrogant fourth-down conversion attempt (the same way he lost the Super Bowl!).

Belichicks call is all the talk on sports radio today. Former Pats player Teddy Bruschi is livid and said he thinks it shows a lack of confidence in the defense. Trent Dilfer says it was a stupid call by the smartest coach.
It was like 4th and 2. If I've got Brady and my defense just gave up 14 pts in the last 10 minutes or so, I can't say I would not go for it. He always plays it by the gut and I think that is the way coaches should play it. IMO, Charts don't win games, people do. I just get sick over watching the Patriots and Colts march up and down the field on offense and rack up TD's. The Steelers have the talent to do that and hopefully they will become a high powered offense.

[Rex J Steelman]

Jopa-n wrote:

<quoted text>Belichicks call is all the talk on sports radio today. Former Pats player Teddy Bruschi is livid and said he thinks it shows a lack of confidence in the defense. Trent Dilfer says it was a stupid call by the smartest coach.
It was like 4th and 2. If I've got Brady and my defense just gave up 14 pts in the last 10 minutes or so, I can't say I would not go for it. He always plays it by the gut and I think that is the way coaches should play it. IMO, Charts don't win games, people do. I just get sick over watching the Patriots and Colts march up and down the field on offense and rack up TD's. The Steelers have the talent to do that and hopefully they will become a high powered offense.

What a weirdly ineffective showing yesterday by our O. All afternoon, they looked like they'd just gotten off the plane in an exotic foreign country. They just seemed dazed and disoriented. They never seemed to have a plan, never ever got to the point where they were making the Bengals worry about THEM--they just played reactive football. I would say it was the worst football game I've seen all year, but I saw Pitt's bowl-game performance in January, and I caught pieces of the Bills-Browns game a few weeks back. This was definitely the 3rd-worst, though.

[Rex J Steelman]

Jopa-n wrote:

Chick Ludwig of the Cincinnati Inquirer is sqawking about how the Steelers play dirty. They are to respected but not admired he says. He uses the recent poll by SI saying Hines is the dirtiest player in the league and he seconds that.
Well Chick, I'm sorry you are so upset. Maybe they should try to play nicer on sunday. Like ask politely before they gently wrap their arms around players and beg for them to give up!
Is this guy serious? Right before the big game he's crying in his cranberry juice about how the Steelers play?
Figures- for a 'Chick'.

He never seems to have any concrete examples, just a general sense of whining entitlement and cosmic injustice. In other words, he behaves much like the Steeler-hating trolls we exterminate on a daily basis. Maybe we should invite the fuzzy little baby bird onto Topix.

[Jopa-n]

Rex J Steelman wrote:

<quoted text>
What a weirdly ineffective showing yesterday by our O. All afternoon, they looked like they'd just gotten off the plane in an exotic foreign country. They just seemed dazed and disoriented. They never seemed to have a plan, never ever got to the point where they were making the Bengals worry about THEM--they just played reactive football. I would say it was the worst football game I've seen all year, but I saw Pitt's bowl-game performance in January, and I caught pieces of the Bills-Browns game a few weeks back. This was definitely the 3rd-worst, though.

The Bengals played like they had nothing to lose, which is always dangerous, while the Steelers seemed like they kept waiting for 1 of 2 things to happen: The Bengals to make a stupid and deadly mistake or for Ben to suddenly start to click.
The problem with the part on Ben is that too much might be put on him to simply overcome poor pass protection and extend plays, rather than use plays that will burn a defense.

[Rex J Steelman]

Jopa-n wrote:

<quoted text>The Bengals played like they had nothing to lose, which is always dangerous, while the Steelers seemed like they kept waiting for 1 of 2 things to happen: The Bengals to make a stupid and deadly mistake or for Ben to suddenly start to click.
The problem with the part on Ben is that too much might be put on him to simply overcome poor pass protection and extend plays, rather than use plays that will burn a defense.

The pass protection did indeed suck, but when Ben had time, he didn't fare much better than he did under pressure. Overthrown balls, underthrown balls, balls behind the receiver. I think it was the worst outing since those games where he was still getting used to having a steel plate in his head. Kind of looked like Kent Graham out there. I agree with you that Arians never seemed to try to exploit what they were giving him. Am I right that they never used the no-huddle once? I actually don't blame BA, since Ben didn't look capable of running it yesterday.

[Rex J Steelman]

Jopa-n wrote:

<quoted text>Belichicks call is all the talk on sports radio today. Former Pats player Teddy Bruschi is livid and said he thinks it shows a lack of confidence in the defense. Trent Dilfer says it was a stupid call by the smartest coach.
It was like 4th and 2. If I've got Brady and my defense just gave up 14 pts in the last 10 minutes or so, I can't say I would not go for it. He always plays it by the gut and I think that is the way coaches should play it. IMO, Charts don't win games, people do. I just get sick over watching the Patriots and Colts march up and down the field on offense and rack up TD's. The Steelers have the talent to do that and hopefully they will become a high powered offense.

There WAS a rationale this time for the call, I agree, but that won't stop me from enjoying seeing it blow up in his face. The 4th and 13 in the SB was just pure arrogant stupidity, and I hope every blown 4th-down play for the rest of his life reminds him of that bitter defeat.(In case you can't tell, I don't like Belichick much.)