NFL - Random Opinions

With Roethlisberger’s contract/dead money there’s no way we could afford the contract he has with philly.

 

With Roethlisberger’s contract/dead money there’s no way we could afford the contract he has with philly.

With good coaching Wentz could be good again. The Steelers don’t have time to work with him at his salary.

 

With good coaching, Wentz could become just what the Steelers need. . . . an adequate backup.

 

Well, thanks for the input guys. Guess I'll keep hoping for Minshew

 

Two peas from the same pod.

 

I'm of the mindset that Wentz either needs to reunite with Frank Reich or go to a basement team that can immediately install him as the starter.

I'd suggest the Jets but they're probably priming themselves to ruin Trevor Lawrence's career.

I don't think he's mentally tough enough to work with Darth Hoodie.

He'd have to compete with Minshew in Jacksonville, and I'm not sure he wins that competition.

He's in a shitty spot to quickly land on his feet.

Personally, I think the best case scenario (outside of Indy) would be for Carson to go to Tampa and spend a year behind Brady while learning to shut the fuck up and get strong between the ears.

 

I've never seen the fascination with Carson Wentz. I have him comped somewhere between Andy Dalton and Brandon Weeden.

So far, his only claim to fame was getting injured (again) and opening the door for Saint Nick to win a Super Bowl.

 

His pre-draft score put him in the same area as Mitchell Trubisky.

I see a guy that flashes NFL ability mixed in with some issues that may not be correctable either by physical limitations or lack of growth at the collegiate level, which ultimately gives him a ceiling that can't be broke through.

 

ie: Andy Dalton and/or Brandon Weeden.

 

I can see your point of view, however I see it a bit different.

I think he has a lot more natural talent than either Dalton or Weeden, but I also don't think Andy gets enough credit for what he was able to do.

Weeden was never going to be an NFL quarterback unless they changed the rules so that all a passer had to do was stand in one spot and throw darts at stationary targets.

Dalton was more of a Tony Romo type but he didn't have as high level of an arm. He needed the offense to be on time and in rhythm to make things happen like Tony, and he could make good decisions and effectively manage the game plan, but Romo could come through with some elite throws that Andy couldn't make.

Weeden was like a poor man's Zach Mettenberger, but you could make a Christian Hackenberg comparison based on potential hype versus the reality of the player.

 

I've often thought of Dalton as a fully automated CNC lathe. IF the tools were sharp, and the raw material fed into the CNC was in spec - he, he would (could) produce flawless parts. However, if either of those two conditions didn't exist he would produce scrap all day long.

 

Watching Haason Redick find some success is a reminder of how much the landing spot of each pick matters to their immediate growth.

It's easy to point at players and think that you were wrong in your assessments because of a lack of statistics, but it's infinitely more difficult to understand the underlying reasons why a player may struggle (or overachieve compared to projections) based on the situation they were drafted in.

 

The problem i see with wentz is that any time he goes out it seems the team rallies around whoever is inserted more than they do wentz. It always looks like they play harder and crisper under any qb but wentz. I know he has had a few guys come out in support of him but he seems to be lacking something if the team always looks better with the other guy. Thats just my opinion though.

 

I think that's a solid observation and it could have to do with the schism that went on whenever Frank Reich left the locker room.

There was scuttlebutt to the effect that Reich was not only revered by the players, but he actually was the buffer between the team and Doug Pederson, a coach that some on the roster had/have problems connecting with.

Pederson and Wentz don't appear to have near the level of camaraderie that Carson had with Frank.

If you have a quarterback that doesn't see eye to eye with the play caller, and a coach that is trying to work his game plan instead of calling the type of game needed for his starting quarterback then you get the kind of situation where the back up comes in and looks way more compatible because the coach is actually scheming it up for the player instead of himself.

The question now - Is Jalen Hurts instant level of success a bigger indictment of Wentz (same players, different results) or a bigger indictment of Pederson for pigeonholing Carson?

 

I believe the Steelers situation is worse than what is currently being discussed.

The injuries on defense have exposed the deficiencies on offense while the quarterback that needed a simple season to mend while playing has suddenly been called upon to carry the team, and he is no longer up to the task.

A quick warning for an unpopular opinion - Ben Roethlisberger needs to be short leashed against Indianapolis and if he looks to be drowning at the end of one quarter against the Colts, Mason Rudolph needs to replace him. Furthermore, if Mason plays well enough to spark the offense and keep the Steelers in the game regardless of outcome, Ben should not return as the starter for the rest of 2020 and Pittsburgh should resign themselves to the fact that he is finished as the Steelers' starter.

By admitting Ben is done as a franchise quarterback, the Steelers can recoup $19mil on the books in 2021 and begin redesigning the offense around Rudolph. This gives them a full season to evaluate Mason and decide whether or not he is the quarterback of the future while freeing up cap space to shore up holes on the roster and stay competitive in an AFC North that is going to outpace them if they can't course correct.

Pittsburgh has the pieces on defense necessary to not only compete, but to excel. They have enough offensive weapons to run with the rest of the division. The big question right now is at passer and once Joe Burrows returns next season it will be the Steelers that will either be starting a dinosaur or falling in with the youth movement of the division.

Now, add into this mix the idea that neither the offensive or defensive coordinator has been able to come up with the kind of plan that helps bandage the wounds on their respective side of the ball and the long term downtrend for the Steelers has the sudden feel of a runaway locomotive just rounding the bend on the edge of a mountain with a thousand foot drop looming.

 

This stood out to me. The combination of Ben's struggles and the lack of adaption and a proper scheme at the moment is killing things. The Coordinators, if they insist on running Ben out there must have a better scheme around him to support him. Another factor that may be possibly involved is the offensive line play. I read they are not doing well in pass protection play. I dont have the stats in front of me, but I do remember it not being good. They (offensive line) list in the bottom 5 of the League in Pass win rate blocking and run win rate... that cant be helping.

 

Throw the head coach in there too hes the one who can decide not to run him out there.

 

How am I doing so far?

 

This is spot on to me. There is a big difference between the Big Ben that beat the Browns earlier this year and the one that barely beat the Ravens in Pittsburgh. These last three games have shown me that his arm and maybe his mental toughness is gone. I'd love the 2014 version of Ben with the D the Steelers have now but it's not to be. He threw 38 times last night and had a 4.5yd per attempt mark. That is very telling. He needs to call it after this year and move on.

I think if the Steelers can put their efforts in FA and the draft towards a RB that can stay on the field and move the chains then they can win with Mason for the time being. A younger o line and maybe keep Dupree if surgery looks good.