View topic - Roethlisberger and Coaches should be practicing right now

[steelhitter Profile]

Half or more of the sacks Thursday and this year are on Ben. He should have been in the practice facility Friday and not come out to until next Saturday, practicing how to drop back with the ball at his ear ready to throw the ball, away or to a hot receiver. Have a few of his receivers there practicing with him and Tomlin there throwing blocking pads at him, like so many ferocious Cleveland Brown's defenders and Arians there blowing an air horn into BR's ear after two-three seconds (because BA blows) indicating when to get rid of the ball.

From all the reports and tv footage of Steelers practices I have seen, I have never heard or seen that Ben and the Steelers have ever emphasized practicing these QB skills. Very hard to believe considering 1) the number of sacks over the past 5 years of BR and 2) BR's history of injuries, especially head injuries. BR played under PTSD the 2006 season, clearly gun shy. He looked a bit that way against Cleveland Thursday night.

The coaches are to blame as much as Ben's complacency. Arians letting Ben have too much control over the offense--but Arians is pass happy, too. Tomlin, mainly, who when he came on in 2007 promised to be "blue collar" and win by attrition. But the Steelers started losing that identity that season. They cannot run the ball when they need to. Their big offensive lineman go backwards to pass protect instead of forward. They got rid of two back sets and the FB for the most part. Mostly they got rid of the mindset that we will smash you through attrition. Maybe in favor of accomodating a QB who wants to throw more.

If he wants to throw more, then he needs to practice the skills that Manning, Brady, Brees, Rivers demonstrate on a regular basis. Maybe Tomlin lost pursuing the identity of the Pittsburgh Steelers the day he met BR for dinner and was told boldly by BR that he would have to earn the respect of the players. Tomlin now has to turn that demand around on BR and tell him that if you want to be a good QB and pass more then you better start working harder on your skills.

[No l Gravity l Profile]

No they weren't. Quit playing the Ben is responsible for all the sacks card.

Everyone who watched that game could see that our OL could not handle overload blitzes and our receivers could not beat man-to-man coverage. We need a Welker on our team desperately. As much as I loved him in the past, it's time to go Hines, time to go.

[steelandblood Profile]

Who's the humorously misguided fellow who thinks Phillip Rivers is awesome?

[Sun and Steel Profile]

I agree that part of the problem is Ben is not a disciplined QB. Refuses to throw the ball away even when it means taking a sack and being knocked out of FG range. The coaching staff (hopefully minus Bruce Areola,) needs to take the bull by the horns and make the franchise QB accountable for more than his stats. We would be in a world of hurt w/o BR7 for sure but he has hurt this team on several occasions with stupid decisions regarding ball management. The plays he kept alive with his legs last year are the ones that are ruining drives for the Steelers this year.

And by the way,who's the woefully misguided "fan" that thinks Hines needs to go? Played decently for a guy who is banged up in Cleve and if you didn't notice he's the team leader in receptions and yardage this year last I checked and most likely first downs. He is our Wes Welker and I'll take Hines over him for this year because Wes can't kick anyone's ass on a downfield block. Welker is a nice player and all but come on......

[steelhitter Profile]

The offensive line couldn't handle overload blitzes AND Ben held the ball too long and refused to throw it away. My point is that if there is one player on the offensive who can do something about all the sacks in the shortest amount of time, it is Roethlisberger. High number of sacks is a chronic problem and I don't see any improvement or intention to slide in the pocket and/or throw it away. The fans (and the coaches and Ben) get enamored with his shucking off tacklers and making a big play and it's great when he does; but that's working less and less this year. And he continues to take a beating.

I wouldn't trade Ben for any of those other QB's, but they seem to have worked on those skills more that he has. Just saying he and the coaches need to correct the problem. Offensive line needs some work, yes, but the Steelers aren't going to change all of them out any time soon.

I'm with Sun and Steel, I wouldn't trade Hines for Welker any day. His toughness is invaluable.