I had a chance talk to Steelers president Art Rooney II today for 20 minutes at the team's practice facility.
While he trotted out the company line of not talking about contract negotiations, Rooney II made it pretty clear that the Steelers will sign coach Mike Tomlin to a new deal at some point during the offseason.
He also said the bringing back Pro Bowl nose tackle Casey Hampton is the Steelers' top priority when it comes to their own players that are free agents.
What follows is an excerpt from the exclusive Q&A with Rooney II.
Did you push for Mike Tomlin to make changes to his coaching staff and to cut ties with offensive coordinator Bruce Arians?
“Certainly we do sit down after every season and try and identify whether there are things we can do better and areas that we can improve on and talking about the coaching staff is always part of that conversation. Mike came in and said he thought we should make some changes and I certainly agreed with him. I never went to Mike and asked him to consider firing B.A., and that wasn’t on his agenda so that’s something that never came up, was never discussed. We are making some changes and there are things we certainly need to improve on so we’ve talked about all those kinds of things but we did not discuss firing B.A.”
What are your thoughts on the running game?
“We need to be better at running the football. We were not consistently good at running the football this year, and I think that was a problem, and it’s certainly something that traditionally has been one of the foundations of the team and we need to get back to that. We need to be able to run the ball to be successful. Some of or troubles in the red zone this year, I think, can be traced to that and some of our troubles holding leads this year can be traced to that. It’s an area of our offense our game that we need to be better at and more consistent at than we were this year.”
Where else does the team need to improve?
“Obviously, we have to reduce the number of sacks. Fifty sacks is not an acceptable number. It’s not good for Ben (Roethlisberger) to get hit that many times and it’s too many negative plays for the offense. On the other side of the ball, defensively, we gave up too many fourth-quarter leads. Those are things we’ve got to look at and get better at.”
Can the team get Ben to do a better job of avoiding sacks given the way he plays the game?
“Ben I think is a player who has very high aspirations for himself and for his career and for the team, so I’m sure he recognizes that 50 sacks is not an acceptable number, that he’s got to do his part in reducing them. But that’s been said during the course of the season. The offensive line’s got to do its part, receivers have to recognize the blitz, Ben’s go to get them the ball. All of those pieces have to fit together. Ben as the leader of the offense has to be able to help pull all of those pieces together and I’m sure he will. He’s someone I know wants to continue to improve and wants to get better and be considered one of the top quarterbacks in the league. I expect he’ll be working hard to get better like everyone else.”
If no CBA is reached between the players and owners before the beginning of March and the salary cap goes away will that put the Steelers at a competitive disadvantage?
“Let’s put it this way. In the long-term, I expect us to have a salary cap and this year will kind of be a one-year situation that we’ll get through. Without getting into details, I think overall we have to have a system that works for the National Football League and for all of the teams in the league. What we’ve had over the last decade or more in our collective bargaining agreement and our revenue sharing system I think has all worked well. We’ve got to find the right system and the right adjustments going forward to continue being successful.”
What is the focus of the Steelers right now?
“At this point, certainly the priority is putting the staff together and finding the best people we can find for our coaching staff, and I think we’re well under way in that regard. Once we get that sort of concluded we’ll turn our attention to getting ready for the draft and getting ready to deal with the various contract situations. It’s a jigsaw puzzle and you kind of have to put all of the pieces in place. Hopefully by the time you’ve hit May and completed the draft you’re happy that you have most of the pieces in place and you start working on grooming the team for the season.”
January 16th, 2010 - 10:54 am
Mr Rooney's answers to your questions were thoughtful and measured. The only point I would question is his faith in Ben Roethlisberger to have the maturity to develop as a more complete team oriented quarterback. I have to doubt Ben's maturity level when he continially puts his stats ahead of the team's goals (refusing to take incompletion and losing huge chunks of yardage on sacks, running every play like a sasndlot pick-up game waiting for receivers who have long ago run their route to "get open." Coverage sack, they call them. Right.) Manning, Brees, Rivers, etc don't run around like a chicken with its head cut off waiting for someone to "get open", they simply throw the ball to the proper read on the executed route. Ben is a very good quarterback but he won't be a great quarterback until he realizes this. He oozes sarcasm and arrogance - not very good for locker room cohesion.
As for the defense "losing leads." Every team in the NFL is taking advantage of the new rules which benefit the offense. Ben is a 4000 yard passer along with many, many other 4000 yard passers. Points scored and victories are the only thing that matter and the Steelers OFFENSE is unable to keep up the pace of scoring throughout a game. We may have good passing stats but the Steelers are 13th in the league in points scored per game. 13th as in OUT OF THE PLAYOFFS. A 3 or 7 point "lead" with no ability to continue scoring or moving the chains on 3rd down is not exactly helpful to your defense. So I'm not buying the defense blowing leads excuses- we simply don't keep pace with gametime scoring. We take too many field goals and we fail to convert 3rd down too often. How many times have we groaned as the Steelers go 3 and out with under a minute or two to go in the game with a measly field goal as our buffer. 3 and out late in games means a loss. Period
January 16th, 2010 - 11:10 am
I still think that Arians is a big problem on offense. he kisses ben's---- and Ben boosts him cause he wants to throw the bomb most of the time. Tomlin says to many things he doesn't do. He emphasises them by saying "really". Its time for Tomlin to get busy doing some of the things he says. Whoever coined the the phrase the "Steel Circle" had it correct. No corners. Someone sure over estimated Gay's ability. We saw back when Cower was coaching that "Stone Hands" plays very inconsistent. Anyway, getting back to Bruce, I thinl he needs to change a lot of things on offense. Doesn't he know that defenses can read his calls like an open book. He needs to stay away from the empty backfield. That is what causes a lot of sacks. It cost the Steelers the Cleveland game. They just blasted off from the corners when he went empty backfield. Arians is such a meathead that he can't see what is going on and adjust. Tomlin has on rose colored glasses and I think he fears Ben some.
January 16th, 2010 - 11:15 am
P.S. Bet you don't hear Arians or anyone else saying that THIS ISN'T THE OLD STEELERS TEAM. I thimk Rooney put a stop to that.
January 16th, 2010 - 11:23 am
I for one will be glad if Clark leaves. He developed into "BURNT TOAST" and blamed the media and fans and then went out the next game and got toasted tsomething terrible. The Steelers have neglected the corners spot to long in the first round. It is the second most skilled position on the team next to quaterback.
January 16th, 2010 - 6:15 pm
I agree with Sarah pertaining to her comments on Ben holding the ball too long in his scrambling and going for the long passes on 2nd and 3rd downs with only 1 or 2 yards required to retain possession;
thinking that you have to throw into the endzone under the same circumstances inside the 20 yard line, resulting in interceptions, sacks, or settling for 3 points. Great Quarterbacks, Offensive Coordinaters and winners are not established by usless statistics. They don't expect their Defense to protect a meager 1, 2 or 3 point lead in the fourth quarter when the opportunity to have a larger lead has bee squandered by egoism.
January 16th, 2010 - 7:09 pm
Well for one, I'm sick and tired of #7 commenting on how this is a different version of the Steelers. To be honest with you, he is definitely part of the problem along with Bruce Arians. Third and one, they drop back and pass? C'mon man! The O/Line is just as much to blame as well; that Center is weak! He has got to go; I hope they draft a true and natural Center if one is available. The secondary? Man, I sure would like to know who made the decision to keep William Gay over Bryant McFadden. Now don't get wrong, I don't think Bryant McFadden was worth the money his agent was asking for, but I sure do hope no one in the F/O down to the coaching staff thought Gay was a replacement for McFadden. Kudos to Mr. Rooney; Tomlin needed to be counseled, hopefully they rectify the problems this off-season.
January 16th, 2010 - 10:10 pm
I think some of the our fans forget that Ben Roethlisberger last year won a Super Bowl on the last drive. Arguable the finest drive in NFL history in the context of what was at stake. Ben Roethlisberger drove the Steelers 89 yards in less than 2 minutes to win a Super Bowl. Ben Roethlisberger name should be mentioned in the same breath as Montana. His drive in Super Bowl 43 was the best I ever have seen. Come on everyone take a step back, yea I think Ben needs to learn to get rid of the ball quicker and check it down instead of playing every play like it’s the last play of his life. There is a time and place for that but I will take Ben Roethlisberger over any QB we have had in the last 20 years. Ben will get better but it’s hard to complain when he has brought Pittsburgh 2 Lombardi’s in 6 years. The Steelers will be in the playoffs next year and the Steelers will be challenging for our 7th Lombardi...Lets be patient and support his great organization in the NFL.
January 17th, 2010 - 3:50 am
If you remember some years back Cowher tried the pass happy offence with Tommy Gun and where did it get him, sitting at home watching the supper bowl. Give Rooney some credit he realizes that to win in the NFL you have to run the ball. I do believe Rooney when he says he did not discuss firing Bruce Arians but he probably said to Tomlin we tried a pass happy offence with Cowher and it did not work and it does not work so change it or just maybe next year there will be some changes if you catch my drift. In another article I read it sounds like to me Ronney wants better players drafted who can play sooner not later. Drafting a player and sitting him on the bench or not dressing him to play for two to three years is not going to cut it anymore.
Next year I look for a more aggressive running attack, less sacks, players not cutting it on the field replaced earlier and a better draft class then just two players out of seven contributing to a winning season.
January 17th, 2010 - 3:58 am
I have to disagree about Ryan Clark. He is a great compliment when Troy is on the field and without Troy, I think some weakness at corner coverage showed up that hadn't before. Pound for pound, he (Clark) is one of the hardest hitters in the game and has frequently held off plays on third down or on the goal-line where some players would normally give a few yards making the tackle. I don't think he is done being a positive play-maker for our team. If anything, I worry that he might take himself out with an injury the way he commits to an impact. As for his comments, yes it would have been better for him to stay quiet but he was just being honest about the way people seem to jump on and off the bandwagon with every win and loss. He was expressing frustration. At least he wasn't being divisive the way certain players are frequently on other teams. He was sticking up for his teammates. Some changes need to be made but I definitely wouldn't single him out until other areas have been improved.
January 17th, 2010 - 6:33 am
I'm another who thinks Arians is the wrong guy for the OC job. 100,000 Steeler fans can't be wrong. Areans seems to have the same "game plan" for every game and never is able to make any half-time adjustments. As far as the sacks go Areans doesn't have any plays designed to get Ben out of the pocket, and with the line we have, he needs to get out of the pocket. Roll him out once in a while, create plays with a rolling pocket, maybe a few gimmic plays here and there. The guy has no imagination and is waaaaayyyy too predictable. He may be a nice guy and I know Ben loves him - probably because he lets Ben do whatever he wants to do, but as long as BA is OC we will continue to lose games to teams like Cleveland and KC.
January 17th, 2010 - 6:48 am
I think there is a lot more right with the Steelers than wrong. That being said, both lines need infusion of young talent to dominate the line of scrimmage. DB is a high priority as well.
January 17th, 2010 - 7:45 am
The secondary is the biggest problem on the team. Trade Polomalu for a 1st round pick and get Eric Berry from Tennesee. I'm sure he will play more than 4 games per year. Then take your other 1st round pick and choose Taylor Mays of USC or Earl Thomas of Texas. Ike Taylor will be fine. Look for a FA to replace Gay who couldn't cover a good high scool player.
January 17th, 2010 - 8:14 am
Sarah, a few good points - mainly 3rd down. However, let's keep a few things in perspective. The Steelers didn't lose any games by more than 7 points, and how many kickoff returns along with punt returns were given up.
To say # 7 isn't good for the locker room because he is trying to make plays - That's just laughable ignorance on your part !!!!!
Tony, a few good points, especially the empty backfield, but do you not realize Clark is a safety, not a corner !!!Clark was fine when 43 was there with him.
Anyway - y'ins have a good one
January 17th, 2010 - 10:47 am
I really like what Art Rooney II had to say and it should give all Steeler fans confidence in the Leadership of the organization...
He sent several key messages:
1) The Team needs to regain its "Smash Mouth" Identity...
2) Recent Draft picks need to "Step Up" and Contribute...
3) The upcoming Draft is vital for the Steelers...
4) There is no "Panic"...Just a well thought out approach to the future
Finally, this past season may have been a great learning for Mike Tomlin...
January 17th, 2010 - 11:16 am
Hey Bruce lets hear you say, "This isn't your fathers team," now. If you don't come up with a running game and quit being the king of the field goal its, bye bye.
January 17th, 2010 - 11:44 am
i have ready the majority of the blogs in here, and i hate to say it, but i will i have said for the past 3 months that are run game is not good, and that it needs an overhaul, mr rooney only solidified my sentiments. replace the oft fumbling mendenhal, and give wilie the job back, i don't believe a player should lose thier job to injury anyway, ben wouldn't!
January 17th, 2010 - 12:05 pm
Why do people in Pittsburgh make it a habit to despise your quarterback? Seriously, go back and think of even one that Steeler fans loved. You chased Bradshaw out of town to the point that he wanted NOTHING to do with the city of Pittsburgh and it's fans!
Now some people claim that Ben is arrogant and a bad locker room presence...that's garbage! From what I've heard ge gas grown since his rookie year to be a leader and his teammates realize this, after all. They did vote him MVP.
I'm tired of the rumors of how some guy's brother's cousin's mailman ran into Ben at Giant Eagle and Ben was a jerk to them because he wouldn't sign an autograph.
Ben's the reason the team wasn't 4-12...
And for those that suggest the Steelers trade future Hall of Famer Troy Polamalu for some unknown college prospect should not be banned from making posts! Some of you are embarrasing to the Steeler Nation...you sound like a bunch of Browns fans!
January 17th, 2010 - 12:07 pm
That's should be banned, you should be banned from making posts suggesting Polamalu should be traded...
January 17th, 2010 - 12:16 pm
I an surprised at some of the Ben bashing going on in here. There is no other qb in the league that takes last years team to a super bowl victory with that offensive line and running game. He does take a few too many sacks but how many times have we seen defenders come in unblocked (especially the Browns game this year)? Way too often. As a fan I don't know if Ben's not shifting the line properly, the coaches call is incorrect, or the lineman are missing their assignment. Regardless, it has to stop. His game is to be mobile & avoid the rush, get outside the pocket & he is one of the best at that, ever. You can't change that part of his game.
Offense does need to re-focus on the run. It's been too many years that we can't make 3rd (or 4th) & short to keep a drive going.
We need an upgrade a d-back badly. Having Troy out all year wasn't good, but seeing Willie Gay continually get burned & Clark missing tackles was getting frustrating.
I was really hoping that Bobby April was coming back to coach special teams.
They still have a lot of young talent & will be competive for a while. I am really pulling for the Vikings today.
January 17th, 2010 - 12:42 pm
I hope Tomlin takes to heart Mr Rooney's "recommendations". WE need to be a more smash mouth team. Having said that, I believe with a strong running attack and the talent of our receivers and Big Ben, we will be a very potent offense. As far as the defense, I think Mr Rooney is also right about developing draft picks. Such as Keenen Lewis, Joe Burtnett etc. Ziggy Hood took major steps to being an every down player and Mike Wallace exceeded all expectations. The age of our defense is catching up to us and these young players must be developed to contribute sooner rather than later. That's where the coaching comes in. If we don't have the coaches to do that, then we need to find some that can. I also think Tomlin learned alot from this year and he will benefit from the situtions that occurred and hopefully become a better coach.
Lets all remember, Cowher wasn't a super bowl winning coach at first either. But on the same hand, Tomlin inherited a Super Bowl champion and he did add some of his touches, but its now time to see what kind of head coach material is really is.
January 17th, 2010 - 12:47 pm
Another note to my previous comment. BA needs to develop some new plays on offense to keep defenses guessing. If I heard it once, I've heard it a 100 times, we are too PREDICTABLE. I suggest he start watching some of the teams that are currently in playoffs and see what they do on offense. With Big Ben, the receivers, and Mendenhall, I hope he can devise a new offense. Such as Dick LeBeau does. He diagrams defensive plays on napkins. Also the entire coaching staff needs to learn to make in game adjustments.
January 17th, 2010 - 1:02 pm
may I say something positive about BA?
I think he designs a hell of a passing attack. It works. consistently. When Ben goes to the no-huddle we kick butt. So why doesn't it work as well when we're NOT in the NH? I think it's because BA is a less than stellar play-caller. It exasperates me.
I have no trouble with passing 60-40, but there are two exceptions: when it's 2nd or 3rd and 1 and he goes to an empty set! What is the sense of paying lip service to "setting up play action" when on 3rd and 1 Ben is in a shotgun w/ no running back? The last I could recall, a QB could still throw after takng the snap from under center.
Secondly, we can't run WHEN WE HAVE TO. The pitiful performances in the red zone and in the 4 minute drill testify to that. (I used to poo-poo that 11-1-1 stat of the Cowher yrs. about winning after having an 11 pt. lead after 3 quarters, but now I can really see the difference. Some of those "blown leads" the D is faulted for would never have happened if the O had taken some air out fo the ball. That play-off loss to Jax in '07 still sticks in my crawl. Jax never wins that game if we pick up 1 ist down. Anyway...
January 17th, 2010 - 1:18 pm
BillB:
Don't dismisss the criticism of Ben. As it turns out, the O line isn't that bad. Ben makes then look that way w/ his sacks. Consider this: when guys come in untouched it's usually because they've send more than we can block (LeBeau does the same thing.) Every D does it. But look at the differences between some of the QB/s and Ben. Brees and Manning LOVE to be blitzed becuz they hit the open man. Manning was sacked 17x last season. Ben was sacked 17x in 3 games! In the GB or Miami game a CB came up the middle untouched. A Manning or Marino, etc. throws the ball. What did Ben do? He dropped the ball to the area around his waist and tried to STIFF-ARM the blitzer!!! Is THAT the way to beat the blitz? With a STIFF-ARM? Watch replays of games (I'm so disgusted w/ the Pirates I tape the Steeler games and watch them the whole summer.) You won't believe the number of times Ben takes his eyes off the receivers and drops the ball out of throwing position. Also, some of the better analyses I've heard say Ben doesn't go through his progressions properly. As far as Ben making playground plays- yeah, he will come up with some great plays. So did Brett F. He has also been accused of making great pays and doing some stupid things. Lots of stats, not so many SB's. Just a point.
January 17th, 2010 - 1:24 pm
an observation: For those who lamented the loss of Bryan McFadden: Did you see him against the Saints? That was his tackle that Bush broke @ the line of scrimmage on the TD run, and he was beaten all day in coverage, including for TD's.
January 17th, 2010 - 1:46 pm
Sorry for all these posts. It's become addictive.
To Scott: Don't be too high on Taylor Mays. He can't cover a sleeping child with a horse blanket. He's the classic "in-the-box" safety. IMHO, those types of safeties (like Roy Williams, late of Dallas and CIncy, Tyrone Carter, Lee Flowers, etc.) are anachronisms. They've gone the way of the old fullback, the "Mr. Inside" who could get the tough 1 or 2 yds. I think (for what that's worth) the secondary needs 4 CB's, two of whom have a little better size (to match up w/ TE's and the bigger slot receivers) and all of whom who can tackle. While not excusing Gay (who had a terrible year) not enough focus has been on Carter, who was absolutely abyssmal. Our secondaries in the 90's and currently (not '09) had something in common- good cover CB's who support the run (Woodson/Taylor) and run supporting safties who were GREAT at covering and ball-hawking (Carnell Lake/Troy.)
In every draft there's some college CB about whom it will be written something like, "Great size, good ball hawk, great cover skills, very smart. JUST NOT FAST ENOUGH." Last year it was Sean Smith out of Utah. Almost 6'4', but ran 4.6. Buffalo drafted him, made him a S, and last I heard he had 8 INT's. I think we should look for someone like that, and we wouldn't have to use a 1st or 2nd pick, either.
January 17th, 2010 - 3:54 pm
No offense to any posters-but from reading most of them, it's clear why none of us run a football franchise. Being a manager myself, I can truly say knee-jerk reactions are bad, bad, bad, bad.
You have to look at the context of this team over the past several years to make a sound judgement on where to go next.
Offensively, we are not that far away from being a Top 5-7 offense in terms of points scored and yardage. If we were 50% better in the redzone this year in terms of scoring touchdowns we would probably have been 14-2 and been in the top 3 in scoring.
It's the little things, folks. As such, very few teams year-to-year can do the little things right consistently and when needed most. Not long ago(2008), that Steelers team was able to do just that and it landed us a Lombardi.
If it were up to me, I wouldn't change a thing that hasn't already been addressed. Absolutely nothing! Mark the words, with a good off-season and no injuries, this offense will be one of the best.
Defensively, well, get Troy back for one, get youthful on the D-line with some guys that can maintain the standard and we will be fine.
On the defensive side of the ball it comes down to making plays this past year. We didn't make them-as opposed to last year when we made a lot of them. 2008 could have very well be a lot worse than this year if not for the defense.
In a bizzare point of view, the offense carried this team much of the season-look at the following games: Packers, Ravens, Dolphins, Raiders(d holds on, we win), Chargers. Look at how those games unfolded and which component was the catalyst to victory.
Bottom line, don't panic, stay the course!
See you 2010!
January 17th, 2010 - 9:43 pm
well now the playoffs are almost over, i pick minnesota and the jets, minnesota 38 jets 13
January 17th, 2010 - 9:50 pm
when terry bradshaw and franco harris come back from thier injuries the steelers will be fine, i just hope we can get through the next 3 weeks without them, we have colts, saints, and minnesota all in a row that is a combined 39-9 record, if we survive with at least a 2-1 coming into the final 4 games we should finish 11-5, what the steelers don't want is a 1-2 going into this cause the houston oilers are on our heels at 6-6, should be a good finish tho, bum phillips is a good coach but chuck knoll always outcoaches this guy. can you guess the year
January 17th, 2010 - 11:19 pm
I don't like to see change just for change sake. I do think it is a little strange to mess with a offense that did score so many points and then to (seemingly) ignore a Defense that couldn't stop the like to the bottom 3 teams of the NFL. I think out LB the Great 51 is lousing speed and we need to address the corners desperately. Also have Troy will help but not having him was not the whole problem. I totally have faith in the organization and I know we will have 7 next year.....Go Steelers! Black and Gold From Utah.
January 18th, 2010 - 1:47 am
CBA agreement issues... I'm concerned that the players will be stupid enough to allow the rookie slaries to continue to skyrocket. This is unacceptable. Those salaries need to be controlled with a strick cap, automatic slots, and set contracts. The says of negotiating crazy rookie contracts where they're paid more than star veterans have GOT TO GO. PLEASE. Pay the vets, not the rooks!
January 18th, 2010 - 1:48 am
All I have to say is look at the Jets...They are the new Smash Mouth Football Team....We need better and younger players at cornerback, offensive line, and defensive line.....Arians does need to go...He is not hard to defend.....Ben needs to get rid of the ball earlier or at least run it more like he did his first year.
January 18th, 2010 - 3:11 am
Mike
I think Art II is on track. Big Ben is still growing as a Quarter Back. Lets take a trip down memory lane and we would have K. Stewart and T. Maddox as our starting QB. We also have no Super Bowl either. We had a great defense. Why no Super champ? No Big Ben. If Ben is a little cocky it goes with the job. If he has to much humility he'll start excepting being less than great and that does not win Super Bowls. Now lets address the problem with not being successful this season. Last season our defense was number #1 in pretty much every statistic. This season we allowed teams to score more than just 2 touchdowns which was the avg last season. What happen? Troy happen. He got hurt and never recovered. We were already hurting in the DB position and now now no Troy. I have heard everyone say this or that about certain players but I do not here anyone critique Ryan Clark. Troy is the best but even when he is on the field Ryan does not get the interceptions he should. Ike Taylor has the Mr. Sweed problem, no hands. However, he is a great cover personnel and hits as well. We need another corner to step up. Art is correct we need coaches to get these young players ready and maybe that is setting some goals each year with these guys. I just we like to know if we think Rashard can be that every down back because I would like to see Willie return. I would like to pick up a good Free Safety in the draft. Kevin Colbert is good at this stuff so whatever he says. I would also like to see us start addressing the MLB position. Farrior is great but he is thinking about retirement to. Well I will be watching and waiting.
January 18th, 2010 - 3:47 am
Born in Pittsburgh, I lived out west in the 70's. Couldn't believe it when I came back to the 'burgh in the early 80's to hear a chorus of "Get Stoudt in there!" every time Bradshaw threw an interception. Nobody in black & gold, except maybe #86, plays the game harder than Ben. Cut him some slack and give him some time, and you'll see a few more Lombardis coming this way.
January 18th, 2010 - 10:35 am
Mike,
Hey I just read Charles comment and I agree with you but you have to look at the position he holds on a whole. You are right that he is a hard hitter and tackles well. My problem with him is that he does that when he sholud be looking to intercept or bat the ball down. At the free safety position one of his jobs is to watch the QB eyes and go to the are where he thinks the ball is going to be unless there is an extra receiver. His last interception against Miami is what he should be doing more often than those hard hits.The interception ed reed had and it was called back on Cory ivy. That happened because Cory didn't trust Ed to be where he is suppose to be. Ryan does not do that at all. He allows that catch and takes a big hit. Even if he is in a position to intercept the ball or bat it down he takes the hit. I think we need more of a ball hawk at that position than a big hitter. I think even you some areas where Rayn could improve.
January 18th, 2010 - 10:42 am
Sarah-
I have to ask you one question. How many super bowl wins does Manning,Brees, and Rivers have combined? THats right 1!!! Personally I would rather have a QB that runs around like he has his head cut off then have a QB that can't win the big game in Feb.
January 18th, 2010 - 11:17 am
I agree with the other 100,000 Steelers fans that Arians is a problem.....yes we have a 4000 yd passer, 2 1000 yd receivers, and a 1000 yd running back, but we also got to watch the playoffs this year with no STEELERS! Why the heck do we go empty on 3rd and 1 almost everytime? Run the DANG ball! Arians is good for stats and blah blah blah, but stats dont get us in the playoffs. He is the worst situational O.C. in the league. We had the most success running the ball the Chargers game(from what I remember) and I recall a lot of counters/misdirection plays and pulling guards...what happened to that? If youre gonna run an offense without a fullback, you cant keep running dive plays and expect success. And somebody please teach Mendenhall to hit a whole hard and run somebody over or at least lower his shoulder bc that spin move and holding the ball out so it can get stripped is getting old. Also, run a freakin screen every once in awhile, that might help limit the sacks Ben takes. Play action on first down more ofter would also be awesome, Bens completion percentage on play action passes is something ridiculous, so why not do it more?
Defensively, we definetly need to draft a shut down corner, Ike is gonna be ok, but Gay would be better in the nickel, probably to replace townsend who is old...we also need a strong ILB to replace Farrior in the future, drafting Brandon Spikes would be ideal IMO. Clark and Polamalu are a great safety tandem. Hampton probably has another year or two in him, but we need to address that need too, for when he does decide to call it quits. I think Ziggy showed some promise at d-end this year at times, but its always good to be deep on the dline.
On special teams, we just need people to do their jobs, stay in your lanes and shed a block every once in awhile. I thought Logan had his ups and downs but I wouldnt mind seeing him back next year....unless we can somehow get Cribbs
lol Reed is a solid kicker, resign him
Overall, I think the Steelers will definetly bounce back next year and compete for ring #7 as long as Bruce Arians gets his situational play calling under control...GO STEELERS!
January 18th, 2010 - 1:40 pm
Manning, Brees, Rivers, etc don't run around like a chicken with its head cut off waiting for someone to "get open", they simply throw the ball to the proper read on the executed route..
How many Super Bowls do they have...combined.
Even if one of the 3 gets on this year....still only as many as Ben- COMBINED.
Get off Ben in Pittsburgh....get a new thing to complain about locals. Its old...been old....
This ain't the Bradshaw/Kordell days.
You want to complain about something...DB's is fair game!
January 18th, 2010 - 1:52 pm
The old Steelers lost in the AFC Championship games. Passing the ball won us Two Super Bowls recently, one just last year. Let's not kill BA & Ben for our troubles this year, it was due to a lack of Cornerback play and Troy being out, not due to the Offense, the problem this year was Defense. Running the ball wins games, Passing wins Super Bowls. Who have been the MVP's our six Super Bowls?
You can not run the ball without a good O Line, and Kevin Colbert has not drafted any stars there.
January 18th, 2010 - 5:20 pm
Ben is fine, you live by the sword, you die by the sword. The main problem this year on offense has been the lack of misdirection plays. How do you think the NYJ beat Cincy, misdirection!! What ever happened to the fake and pitch, the naked bootleg, anything?? I actually do remember one misdirection, bootleg, and guess what, it was the first play of the game against GB or maybe Balt, (a few too many $7.00 beers)anyway, td to Mike Wallace.
The defense struggled just like the last time we won a sb, 2006, and we essentially lost Aaron Smith and Troy, no upfront middle pressure and the qb steps up in the pocket, avoids our outside linebackers and throws into a Polomaluless secondary. No wonder we couldn't hold a lead.
Get healthy, find a way to improve the run and put some misdirection back into the playbook = SB #7.
January 18th, 2010 - 6:43 pm
get rid of tomlin....he wins in spite of himself...and he wins because there is talent on the roster.....remember the onside kick?.....what a bone head......he just stands there!......
January 18th, 2010 - 6:59 pm
Without Ben this team would have been 8-8 the last three years at best. We would not have made the playoffs in 08 let alone win the Super Bowl. Arians is the problem, not Ben.
January 18th, 2010 - 9:22 pm
Michelle
Among the many issues that have been addressed over and over, we need to convert on third down better than we this past year. How 'bout this: draft a big defensive player and convert him into a running back. We need someone to run over people, drag them up the field, wear down the defense and eat up the clock. This has been important to this team through the years. When we had Bettis we usually converted on third and short. This was huge. I recall a game several years ago where I saw Jerome drag at least four NY Giants up the field for about five or six yards. Amazing. Defenses hated to see him coming. They probably had to psych them selves up really well before facing him. Feedback please.
January 19th, 2010 - 4:24 am
When did Jerry Jones or Daniel Snyder come to Pittsburgh? Art Rooney II needs to quit talking with the media about the football team, and let the people he has hired to do their jobs like his father and grandfather before him! Everyone will end up blaming Tomlin or Bruce Arians, but the true problem is Rooney II! He seems of late to want to be seen as the leader of the franchise and the one who makes all of the decisions. The Chief and Dan didn't need to do that. They turned a $3300 investment into a billion dollar organization and were leaders in building the NFL into the best in Pro Sports! He is going to destroy the thing that his Grandfather and Father worked so hard to build and mold with patience and understanding.... a franchise that is considered the best in pro sports!
January 19th, 2010 - 8:29 am
I am getting to really hate some of you Steeler fans. Complain about Ben are you kidding. Maybe Ben will tell Rooney that he is one of the best QBs in the league and demand a trade. Big Ben won us two Super Bowls that's 2 folks. How soon some of you forget
January 19th, 2010 - 8:33 pm
things are so attached to the ever elusive #7 like an omen for one for the thumb mantra, we all know how long it took to get that one, 26 years later i count, stop rushing number 7 we might go detroit belly up and not win ever again, we need to appreciate what sits in front of us, not what really isn't but still a mere hope, we can hope but hope don't get much. hang loose steelers fans, i have a feeling we are alot farther away from #7 then we think,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
January 25th, 2010 - 8:44 pm
play off update, in which case i was close but still wat off. jets had thier chances, kicker missed two field goals and put his team in a bind in the end, those missed field goals became huge, as for the saints vikings game, i was thinking the vikes would win and they could have but the very reason they got as far as they did was the same reason they lost thanks to #4. retire bret, retire,,,, you were great this year, leave on a good season. i respect a man when he knows its time to go, and actually does!