View topic - New Article: Loose Slag from The Still Mill

[Guinness Profile]

http://www.stillers.com/articles/2305.aspx has been posted by Still Mill at Stillers.com.

LeBeau's defenses for his 5 seasons as Defensive Coordinator of the Pittsburgh Steelers are:

Season Ranking
2008/2009 1
2007/2008 1
2006/2007 9
2005/2006 7
2004/2005 1

It is easy to nitpick -I'd like to see more of Lawrence Timmons. Maybe some other coordinator could have come in and done better than 3 out of 5 years as the number 1 ranked defense and 5/5 years as a top 10 ranked defense but I really doubt it.

I believe that LeBeau gets a lot of production out of the defensive personnel that he has to work with. Of the group we have right now, arguably there are two legitmate pro-bowl players (Polamalu and Harrison) along with some very solid players (top 10 at their position - Aaron Smith, LaMarr Woodley, Ike Taylor??, maybe one or two others if you have a strong Steeler bias) along with some steady but unexceptional guys. He doesn't have a bunch of studs to work with but still puts together one of the top defensive units every year. Last year he lost his very best lineman (Aaron Smith) and his best overall player for most of the season (Polamalu) was hobbled by injuries and they still finished as the top ranked defense. I can not buy into the notion that this defense performs to this level year after year in spite of LeBeau as opposed to because of the system and teaching of LeBeau. For me to believe that, I would have to see a roster of Pro-Bowl players on that defense and they don't have that type of roster. This guy's record has shown that he knows how to teach and coach and will get the most out of the guys he has to work with.

[Homer J Profile]

[quote="acewhiplash"]
And this Ricky Horton bullcrap: he's still starting, isn't he? the Skins still have a winning record? You take the good with the bad with rookies, and you allow them to grow and make plays and also make mistakes, with the hope that they will mature on the field and become better players. But if you make things too difficult, then yank the rookie when he makes a mistake, you shake their confidence and you can ruin them...or then you keep them on the bench and they rot. that doesn't mean play all rookies, but Horton looks like he could be a solid safety for years to come.

Horton bit on an out-fake in the red zone and got beaten inside for a touchdown against the Rams. The Skins lost that game by a field goal. He's made many more such mistakes, on a fairly conservative defense that is not as gambling as LeBeau's.

The Steelers aren't winning a lot of blowouts, as you might have noticed. They're not in a position where they can risk putting in players who aren't quite ready on defense. Nor are they in a position where injuries dictate that they have no choice.