View topic - Well, Willie finally says something about it....

[SnatchSacker Profile]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08345/934197-100.stm

Seems unrest is setting in. Maybe it's Arians' first foot out out the door..... send HIM out on a good note, call a run and provide him a lead blocker so he doesn't miss the hole, or doorway!!!

What was SO WRONG WITH BEING A RUN FIRST/BALL HOGGING/TOP LEADING/HERE IT COMES, YOU STOP US/ TEAM? YOU KNOW,...... BEING THE FUCKING PITTSBURG STEELERS!!!!! YOU REMEMBER THAT TEAM??????????

[Lake37 Profile]

Amen Willie!!! I don't think that we have to necessarily play Steelers Football all the time but I do believe that there is something to be said for being able to "impose on your opponent". Our running approach on the goalline clearly hasn't worked and for whatever reason no adjustments have been made.

[Jeemie Profile]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08345/934197-100.stm

Seems unrest is setting in. Maybe it's Arians' first foot out out the door..... send HIM out on a good note, call a run and provide him a lead blocker so he doesn't miss the hole, or doorway!!!

What was SO WRONG WITH BEING A RUN FIRST/BALL HOGGING/TOP LEADING/HERE IT COMES, YOU STOP US/ TEAM? YOU KNOW,...... BEING THE FUCKING PITTSBURG STEELERS!!!!! YOU REMEMBER THAT TEAM??????????

How many titles did the Steelers win with Neanderthal offense again?

I'm trying to remember...hmm...

Everyone always thinks in binary, and I cannot figure out why.

It's not just a choice between Arians' dreck and Neanderthal offense, you know.

[toomuchmerrilhoge Profile]

I'd feel better about this article if I thought Arians would listen. But he won't. His lack of commitment to the run is detrimental to Ben (getting slammed to the turf more than 40 times already this season) and has demoralized what used to be a premier NFL running back. This sucks. I hate to see a positive guy like FWP resort to bitching to the media b/c his own coaching staff can't read the fucking memo. If I had to choose between FWP and Arians, Arians is going to the curb. If it weren't for the fact the we have, hands down, the most bad-ass defense in the NFL, as well as a QB who has made a few real clutch plays this year, we'd easily be 5-5 instead of 10-3. The fact that we have 10 wins under our belt is a testament to the players playing their asses off, rather than the coaches (on the offensive side) coming up with decent gameplans. The no huddle seems to work when Ben is calling the plays. He has a better feel for the game and I think he needs to rip the headset out of his helmet and take it from here on in.

[Steel Keeper Profile]

What was SO WRONG WITH BEING A RUN FIRST/BALL HOGGING/TOP LEADING/HERE IT COMES, YOU STOP US/ TEAM? YOU KNOW,...... BEING THE FUCKING PITTSBURG STEELERS!!!!! YOU REMEMBER THAT TEAM??????????

There is nothing wrong with it. We just don't have the horses to be that team. It's tough to play that game when your All-Pro Center retires and you let your All-Pro LG walk because his contract demands would severely hurt the team's roster flexibility and ability to retain and pick up new free agents. Oh and your LT is injured and the coaches foolishly play Willie Colon over Starks when Marvel was healthy.

And don't blame Colbert for his early round draft picks. He's as good as it gets. Don't downplay the difficulty of never missing in the first. He has just concentrated (whether this was conscious, or he just saw the best players) on skill positions since '03 to great success. So we are really light on the o-line.

The problem has been finding guys late in the draft. My problem with Colbert is that he claims that he doesn't project players draft positions after the first round b/c it is too random and difficult. I'm not sure if Tom Donahue did that, but he was freakishly successful in the late rounds. But I prefer Colbert b/c Donahue SUCKED in the first round.

Look at Colbert's first two rounds since he got here in 2000:
2008
1 Mendenhall
2 Sweed
I really wanted to go after O-linemen but these two guys were way too good of value to ignore. Mendenhall was supposed to be a top 10 or 15 pick and Sweed had first round value. WRs take a while to come around and Mendenhall's injury is usually only seen in car wrecks. Can't blame Colbert here at all.
2007
1 Timmons
2 Woodley
Woodley was just an awesome pick. There were doubts about his ability to play the 3-4, huge kudos to Colbert. Timmons is his most questionable pick and it was questionable at the time. He's only in his second year and has ridiculous athletics ability. Look at the rest of the first round and early second. O-linemen are questionable (tell me about Joe Staley, heard good things when he came out but little since) and a lot of the players haven't proven much, especially in our positions of need, LB and O-line. Although Jon Beason and Posluszny have proven more to this date, I am going to reserve judgment do to age and playing time.
2006
1 Holmes
2 Traded pick 64 for two 3rd rounders. Willie Reid & Anthony Smith
Holmes was a great pick, despite his sub-par season. Was a pick of need and one of supreme value. The trade and picks weren't very good. Not gonna lie. Colbert blew this one. Not too huge. Someone more knowledgeable than me and look at the 2006 3rd and 4th round and tell me who could help us today.
2005
1 Miller
2 McFadden
There were some really good options here, Logan Mankins, Lofa Tatupu (who was considered a huge reach at 2.45), Michael Roos, Khalif Barnes??, Frank Gore but you can't complain too much about this draft. Remember, people were screaming for a new TE in the '05 draft and Miller hasn't disappointed
2004
1 Roethlisberger
2 Colclough
Talk about two ends of the spectrum. He even traded up for Colclough and passed on Bob Sanders, yikes!
2003
1 Polamalu
2 Jackson
Cowher was the one who pushed for Alonzo Jackson. That isn't on Colbert
2002
1 Simmons
2 Randle El
Finally an O-lineman. Unfortunately we passed on Gurode to take Simmons. Hated it then, hate is even more now. El wasn't the greatest, but I'm not complaining
2001
1 Hampton
2 Bell
Great picks. Bell gets a bad rap b/c of his injuries. Can't fault talent evaluation when he hadn't shown any problems w/ that in college
2000
1 Burress
2 Marvel Smith
Marvel's had a very strong career here. Plaxico was a good player, should have taken Urlacher. But definitely not a bad pick

[El Nino Profile]

I don't know, I'm on the fence with this. Let's just start off by saying I don't support Arians and would like to see him go.

On the other hand, does losing Kreider make that much of a difference? I highly doubt a FB will make a weak rushing offense like ours #1 or even top 5 again. For our running game, we can look at the fact our O-line isn't as dominant as it was in 2005, and we don't have Jerome Bettis.

I personally think willie has his answer. We aren't playing steeler football because we can't even convert on 3rd/4th and 1. I wouldn't be surprised if we were the worst team in the league when it comes to getting 1 yard when it matters. We're doing the passing game because our running is ineffective. How much times do we have to ram willie up the middle for no gain before we are abandoning the run too soon? 20? 30? There comes a point where you gotta realize that the run is being ineffective and you need to move the ball somehow

[KingCool Profile]

Of course a good fullback would make a difference. Don't you remember all those times Kreider absolutely crushed Ray Lewis? Look what happened this year... Mendenhall got his shoulder crushed instead.

Just further evidence of how much of an asshat Bruce Arians really is.... he came on the scene and decided to change things that had been working for 15 years *just to change them*.... now the running game has faltered... the offense isn't balanced... and the franchise QB has been sacked a gazillion times over the last two years. And yet, he refuses to adjust. This doesn't even take into account that the play calling is putrid and the offense under prepared on a weekly basis.

I'm glad Willie is speaking up.... I'm not a huge Parker fan but he raises some good points. Hopefully, Tomlin is listening and Arians is out the door as soon as the Steelers are eliminated... which, based on Arians play calling in last years playoffs, will be fairly early in the tournament.

[Teegre Profile]

On the other hand, does losing Kreider make that much of a difference? I highly doubt a FB will make a weak rushing offense like ours #1 or even top 5 again. For our running game, we can look at the fact our O-line isn't as dominant as it was in 2005, and we don't have Jerome Bettis.

Yes...and no.

Ask LaDainian Tomlinson about losing your lead blocker (Lorenzo Neal).
But, more importantly, ask Shawn Alexander about losing your LG (Steve Hutchinson).

In other words, a FB can indeed make that much difference.
But, as you said, the O-line is the bigger problem.

[Jeemie Profile]

Someone ought to ask Willie if it was the lack of a FB that caused him to miss a nice crease to the end zone created on the left side, and instead he crashed right into a wall of tacklers.

[isfry Profile]

Fullback? yes. OL? yes. Better vision from FWP? yes. We need all those things. Maybe the coaches aren't listening, but I don't remember "Steelers Football" being about whining to the media about your touches, either. On another note, Merrill Hoge notes, " If it weren't for the fact the we have, hands down, the most bad-ass defense in the NFL, as well as a QB who has made a few real clutch plays this year, we'd easily be 5-5 instead of 10-3. " I'm just curious where the other three games would have gone...

[Leo Profile]

Also can't discount Ben's influence here. Obviously am not blaming him for the poor play calling, but you just know he's been pushing to open up the offense and increase the pass to run ratio. Got it that a good running game is a QB's best friend, but Ben wants the stats and pro bowls to go along with the Ws.

Don't misinterpret me though -- I love Ben, he is a winner, etc.

Arians must go!

[Coke Oven Profile]

"For our running game, we can look at the fact our O-line isn't as dominant as it was in 2005, and we don't have Jerome Bettis. "

I never believe that it's any excuse at all for the coaches to say that we just don't have the players that we used to have. I think the coaches, Ariens specifically, are directly responsible for the fact that we don't have a Bettis type back or a quality OL. If they had pressed Colbert he would have found replacements. I don't know what the word is for that kind of reasoning, didactic I think. It's kind of like corporate management blaming the budget for their shortcomings when it was they who wrote same.

[darthsteel Profile]

does willy realize everytime they run the ball its either 1 yd or negative 3 yds?

[indysteel Profile]

Oh for crying out loud.

Sit down, shut up, and don't touch anything Wille.

Your talking about a guy who limps off the field everytime his twat gets a 'twang.

The guy IS NOT running with authority, has obviously slowed down (why is not important), has absolutely NO VISION, and know -- at the end stretch of the season with the title on the line --is bitching and moaning and creating what could be viewed as a team distraction.

I frankly think the ENTIRE OFFENSE SUCKS and lacks a overall high level of talent. That said, they are (somehow) 10-3. I'm not going to complain. If they throw it 80 times a game, so be it.

As Al Davis would say "Just win, baby."

[deltadweller Profile]

Oh for crying out loud.

Sit down, shut up, and don't touch anything Wille.

Your talking about a guy who limps off the field everytime his twat gets a 'twang.

The guy IS NOT running with authority, has obviously slowed down (why is not important), has absolutely NO VISION, and know -- at the end stretch of the season with the title on the line --is bitching and moaning and creating what could be viewed as a team distraction.

I frankly think the ENTIRE OFFENSE SUCKS and lacks a overall high level of talent. That said, they are (somehow) 10-3. I'm not going to complain. If they throw it 80 times a game, so be it.

As Al Davis would say "Just win, baby."

I think this pretty much says it. When healthy Parker is a threat to take it the distance if he has a huge hole because of his speed, but he has very little vision. Watch Moore run. He's not a great back but he can find the hole at least. The fact that everyone knew our line was going to be a problem means for this year at least we do whatever it takes to score. I love power football, but I love to win more. No line, no vision, and no imagination in play calling equals a very mediocre offense. Win the friggin Super Bowl this year anyway and fix all of the issues next year.