Mike Tomlin said on Tuesday that he expects Ryan Shazier to do some running today after successfully doing to Monday in a pool. Shazier could practice in some fashion this week, but I don't look for him to play when the Steelers travel to Cleveland.
Tomlin was a little more upbeat about safety Shamarko Thomas' possibilities. Thomas suffered a hamstring injury at Jacksonville, but Tomlin said it wasn't as bad as originally thought.
Thomas could be held out early and get back to practice later in the week.
@ When asked about the decision to throw the ball to Antonio Brown at the end of Sunday's game to extend his 5 and 50 streak, Tomlin said he wanted to help a respected player extend a "significant" streak.
I don't know exactly about the whole significant part of that statement, but I also don't have a problem with the Steelers running a safe play at that point, either.
And actually, wouldn't that have been a good play for the Steelers to run on third-and-five the previous week against Tampa Bay at the end of the game?
As for critics of the play, Tomlin simply said he doesn't care what they think.
@ Tomlin said in retrospect, he wishes the Steelers would have run the ball more inside the Jacksonville 10.
On six plays run inside the 10, the Steelers threw on all six.
@ Tomlin expects the Browns to try to run their fast-paced hurry-up early in the game to test the Steelers and see if they have fixed their issues with that.
The Steelers feel like they have.
@ Tomlin said Lance Moore's penalty for delay of game in the third quarter Sunday came out of frustration.
It appeared to me that Moore was spiking the ball at the Steelers' sideline. If he was frustrated, it might be that he's still running behind Justin Brown, even though he's been healthy the past three weeks.
I understand that frustration on Moore's part. But he also has to know better than to draw that penalty.
From my perspective it looked like Moore was pumped up he was finally playing and showing what he could do to contribute to the team - convert a big 3rd down deep in our territory.
ReplyDeleteThat was a big play and I'd honestly have no problem with him celebrating a bit except that reducing penalties is point of emphasis. He shouldn't have spiked it but I don't think he's a villain. The Steelers need players like him to produce.
"@ Tomlin said Lance Moore's penalty for delay of game in the third quarter Sunday came out of frustration."
ReplyDeleteI don't understand why the FO decided not to re-sign Cotchery. Surely they could have devoted the money used to sign Moore (and also Cam Thomas) to bring back the legitimate red zone target and one of Roethlisberger's best friends.
Cotchery was scored 10 TDs last year and was clutch when it counted. Surely we could have used him this year. I can't understand the FO's personnel decisions sometimes.
They made an offer to Cotchery. He decided to take Carolina's offer and return to where he played his college ball. His wife is also from the Charlotte area.
ReplyDeleteIt was not the Steelers' decision.
The fact that the Steelers chased that retarded record shows something about where their focus is.
ReplyDeleteMoore gets that dumb penalty and then is playing again the next snap. Way to come down on a dumb penalty Tomlin. How can players take his threats seriously now? Even a scrub like Moore can just walk all over Tomlin.
Your name tag reads 'Idiot'. No need to respond to the inane arguments you are making, just own your title as jagoff and we'll all move on.
Deletehayden and skrine (browns CB's) have been getting torched. I hope the steelers take notice and take their shots downfield. will also help stretch the defense for the run game.
ReplyDeletehoyer has shown the ability to find the open receivers when given time, though he is not terribly accurate. the steelers must blitz him often and press the WR's at the line.
Thanks for the clarification re: Cotchery, Mr. Lolley. It's a shame that they couldn't reach an agreement, but I can understand wanting to be near family.
ReplyDeleteLance Moore was not in on the next snap.
ReplyDeleteIt's funny they were so concerned with not giving Cotchery and Al Woods an extra $1 million but had no problems overpaying Gilbert and Allen
ReplyDeleteWoodley's money wasn't burning a hole in their pockets yet. Didn't get that dough until June. Still, I don't know why Colbert let it reach that point with Cotchery. They wanted him back. Why let the market set his worth when you have nearly 3 months to exclusively negotiate and get something done with Cotchery? Then he signs with Carolina for close to the same cap hit per year average as Moore signed for. How far apart could they have been? Was it really worth it?
DeleteMoore was wrong to spike the ball, but he's right to be upset. I like Justin Brown just fine, and I've read tons of positive reports from the way he practices - but he has not put that on the game field. His drop/fumble to touch ratio is ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteHe has made a few positive plays, and it was good to see him rebound this week, but he hasn't done a single thing Lance Moore can't do - and if I've got one pass to make, I trust Lance more than I do Brown.
Due to Moore's injury, I can see how the #3 spot would be up in the air at first. But the way Brown played, I don't know why Moore hasn't replaced him. Of the few times he has seen the field, he's come through for us, just like he always did in New Orleans. He should be out there more.
Who holds the "record" for consecutive 6 reception & 60 yard games?
ReplyDeleteHow about the "record" for 4 reception & 37 yard games?
Personally, I'm going to call Antonio Brown's record 4 for 48 instead. It's just as meaningful as a stat, but has more of a ring to it. FO-FO FO-TEE-8. His jersey number is even embedded in reverse - 48 / 84.
ReplyDeleteYou could turn it into a chant or pop hit (eventually replacing "Renegade" at Heinz). Put it on t-shirts. Jameis Winston could scream an obscene version in the cafeteria. Would even look great on a Broadway poster.
(By comparison, 5-50 is just, like, maybe a street address, or the time I usually get up for work, except on Wednesdays, when I have to go the shrink for my Prozac.)
Decent news about Shazier and Shamarko. I know it was only preseason but I liked the way Thomas hit. I wish there were a way to get him on the field, just for a look-see.
Looks like Cleveland has some injury issues. Although you almost want Haden to play - not only because you want to beat them at their best, but because 84 always torches him.
I think Cotchery wanted to be more in Carolina than Pittsburgh due to family situation, Carolina's perceived expected success and to a lesser extent, the money. Can't blame the guy.
ReplyDeleteBrown's stat is kind of dumb. Don't really get it. Just win the game and get on with it. Its not even a record of significance.
I know this sounds like Steelers fanboy-ism but can they just pound the ball against the Browns and not turn the ball over? I think that would result in a win.
Also, Dale, how often do they practice close or press coverage? I'd assume not often, but would appreciate your insight.
This team has lost it's physicality. The Steelers won their last 2 super bowls by being mentally and physically tougher than the other teams. I believe this is a result of Tomlin not preaching physical play and not pushing the front office for those type of players. That style of play has also been legislated against in the last several years. Not running the ball inside the 10 on 6 plays is inexcusable. I too have become somewhat indifferent to this team and the game in general because both are so different from what I fell in love with years ago.
ReplyDeletethe game is changing for several reasons.
ReplyDeletebig money means protecting big money investments. owners hate seeing their biggest investment (QB usually) getting hurt.
lawsuits are driving the nfl to try and protect itself. I'm not choosing sides here, just pointing out that the nfl has implemented these "player safety" rules to minimize future potential lawsuits.
the peyton manning influence. I honestly believe the popularity and style of play by manning led the nfl to enact/enforce offensive friendly rules. after the colts WR's got manhandled by the patriots we saw the "5 yard rule". after broncos got manhandled by seahawks we have "the re-enforcement of the 5 yard rule". the nfl sees that style of play as a ratings grabber and wants to promote it as much as possible, imo.
the problem, is that these rules create a vicious cycle because, imo, they were not well thought out. new situatioins keep coming up and then people say, well if you call it on that play, why not call it on this one, or something along those lines. what the should have done is just say that the refs have the latitude to make judgement calls when they feel there is malicious intent. hitting someone "above the shoulder" when he is falling down while catching the ball and you are tackling SHOULD NOT BE A PENALTY.
Points well made, but asking officials to judge intent is a very tricky and slippery slope. Defense is designed to slow an opponent's progress, not punish it. This has turned into a takeaway game and the Steelers have added players over the last few years that seem better enabled to contribute to this new standard. The folks that are frustrated by the lack of "steel curtain" level defense are just in for disappointment every weekend by every team.
Deletemike,
ReplyDeleteI agree, it is a tough call for the refs. but, for the most part, that's how it used to be and that was just fine, imo. did they miss some once in a while, sure, but it was much more bearable than this crap.
also, I do think a defense is out there to punish, not just slow down, the offense. it's a game of attrition. however, you are correct in that it is also about takeaways and hopefully the steelers can get back to that.
BTW, the great ProFootballFocus has the Steelers offensive line ranked fourth in the NFL through five weeks. Says Marcus Gilbert has been their best offensive player this season not named Ben Roethlisberger.
ReplyDeleteGilbert has played well the past few weeks, but does anybody truly want to tell me those guys know what they're talking about with the grades any longer?
Mike Tomlin in retrospect, wishes they had run the ball more in the red zone? He's saying he had no input in the play calling in the red zone? Or is he saying he regrets calling every red zone play a pass play? Either way it's inexcusable on his part. Is he afraid to say something to Haley? An empty backfield set inside the 5 yard line? Mike / Todd, what were you thinking? It's a no brainer. line up Stephon Tuitt as a fullback in front of either Bell or Blount and dare the other team to stop you from running it in four times in a row. That's Steelers football!
ReplyDeleteqwikdoc: Or not even Tuitt.
ReplyDeleteAdams had snaps last year at TE, put him in and have him act like the lead fullback.
Tuitt is young, strong, athletic and hungry to get on the field. Let him blast a hole for Blount to score. Yeah I'll take Adams on the line next to Gilbert too.
ReplyDeleteNone of those things translate into allowing a player that doesn't practice blocking to become a hole opener. If he could do it that easily he would be playing oline
ReplyDeleteNick C you didn't play football did you? Asking a lineman to run full speed through a specific gap and run over anybody in that gap without grabbing them, does not require reps at practice. Other teams do it all the time. Ever watch Cincinnati inside the five?
ReplyDeleteWell since you're the one bringing up PFF Dale... Yeah I absolutely believe that they know what they're doing. The time where a player had a bad play or two and is critiqued based on those alone and not the other say 60 snaps is over with. You really shouldn't hate on something for no reason. You don't like them because you think that they've advertised on this blog in the past. When that really wasn't the case at all. I know because my posts were the ones being accused of it and i'm just a follower. I used to brig up PFF a lot because it's a great website. You hated that so I stopped. You gotta be smart when reading that website you can't just jump to conclusions. You saying in the past that they thought William Gay was one of the best corners in the league shows how ignorant you are towards them.
ReplyDeleteAlso each position is graded on different scales so comparing Gilbert to Bell's grade for example just doesn't work. If you wanna reference PFF right for a change then you would note how Le'Veon Bell is the 4th ranked running back and Marcus Gilbert is their 9th ranked tackle.
ReplyDeleteAnd yeah Ben has been sacked a lot but he's barely been hit and hasn't been hurried all that much. Compare hits and hurries, which lead to incompletions and interceptions which can be just as bad or worse than a sack to other teams and it's nothing compared to them. Should really look around the league. The Steelers have the 6th best pass blocking efficiency for a reason.
ReplyDeleteI read and comment on this blog multiple times a week and I agree that PFF is another good/fun football resource. I'm not saying they're 100% perfect but their previews and breakdowns of games are always interesting.
ReplyDeleteBen has BARELY been hit? Compared to which other quarterbacks? C'mon I don't buy that...So you are really going to believe that Marcus Gilbert is a top 10 overall tackle in the league? So I guess Baltimore has some top 10 pass rushers in the league after the way they abused Gilbert in that game.
ReplyDeleteYou don't have to buy it, it's a fact. There are 31 other teams and most of them have some serious o-line issues. No man Gilbert is playing lights out aside from the sacks he's given up. But no he's prob not a top 10 tackle but if he's playing like it then accept it and move on. You guys are whining about a few bad plays out of hundreds. Yes Baltimore has a seriously good pass rush. Welcome to 2014, things change.
ReplyDeleteYou're talking about 2 sacks on 40+ pass blocking attempts so 1-20 he had an obviously bad play and you say he was abused. Like I said earlier lineman being judged on just a couple plays is bs. You don't say a QB who has 4 tds and throws for 400 yards but 2 ints was abused, no of course not. Keep the double standard going people it's worked for decades anyways.
ReplyDelete