Dupree killed it. He had 10QB pressures. 10! I couldn't believe it. He also batted 2 balls, and had a strip sack fumble. He did get burned on the TD run, and over ran the QB a few times. On 2 of the over runs, one he comes back to make a tackle 9 yards down field, great play for not giving up. The other he loops back for a pressure and forces an incompletion. Easily his best game to date, and looked pedestrian if you fixated on the negatives or compared him with Watt. With that many pressures, he is destined for double digit sacks this year.
Offensive play calling is much improved. Other than OT, the Steelers were doing a great job of changing personnel groupings. In OT they went to a spread and **** the bed. The RPOs were a great new wrinkle and will kill teams on good weather days. The only thing slowing down this O from hitting 40 is weather (and turnovers of course...)
Offensively, Fichner did a great job of working with Ben to read and react to the coverages. 2 deep safeties, we were running, and gashing them. 1 safety, slants, drags, and seams for big hitters. Loved seeing it.
As undiciplined as our team was at presnap fouls for game 1, there was one instance that impressed me. Myles Garret flinched into neutral zone, and Villa and Foster stand straight up. Not flinching to block, or reacting to the jump. They stood straight up and pointed. This is what NE teams do every time a neutral zone happens, because it gets a call. The only presnap positive I could find in the coaching.
The Defense was faster, diagnosed the plays quicker, and lined up and disguised blitzes properly. Heyward, Tuitt, Dupree, Watt, Hilton, and Haden played like all pros. Burns, Bostic, Williams, Edmunds, and Sutton were very solid. It looked like last year, when Shazier was playing, that our defense was finally reset to becoming a strength. After watching this game twice, I know they are the only reason why we didn't lose that game. They are going to win us games this year.
Also Hilton had 4 PDs and 2 QB Pressures. Heyward and Tuitt had 5 pressures each.
Watt was also a monster. But all of his sacks were relatively early, before he started dropping into coverage. He is the best 2 way LB on the team.
Chukes killed it as the extra TE in heavy blocking schemes. He did as good if not better than Hubbard did last season, and he's a freakin rookie! Looks like it wasn't lip service from the coaches going with him as the swing tackle. He had a legit great day!
I also thought the coaches went conservative in this game, but upon a rewatch, that was not the case. They were killing the browns with the backside trap left. It's why Connor ripped up 2 20yd runs in a row including the TD. At that point they had a 14 point lead. They got the ball back and did a clock killing drive for 6min into the 4th and pinned the browns on a short punt. On a good weather game, I always kick the FG, but the punt made sense, and the steelers got the ball right back after a 3 and out. Steelers have a conservative run run pass, but punted. The Browns then treated this as the end of the game and went for it on 4th down and failed.
7:55 left in the game, it is essentially over. Running the ball is the right call to eat clock, but that's where Garrett made a play and forced a fumble. The Steelers were not conservative their next drive, went pass happy and Ben got hit on the second play with a sack fumble. Same thing in OT, the offense went to more of a pass attack, and the steelers' offense ended the game with another INT giving CLE a chance to win deep.
So for those of you lamenting turtle ball or Marty/Cowher ball, this was not the case. The Steelers threw too much, when they didn't have to, and that gave CLE extra possesions with a chance to win. You want to gripe on coaching? The legit gripe is why the hell did we pass so much down the stretch??
Offensive play calling is much improved. Other than OT, the Steelers were doing a great job of changing personnel groupings. In OT they went to a spread and **** the bed. The RPOs were a great new wrinkle and will kill teams on good weather days. The only thing slowing down this O from hitting 40 is weather (and turnovers of course...)
Offensively, Fichner did a great job of working with Ben to read and react to the coverages. 2 deep safeties, we were running, and gashing them. 1 safety, slants, drags, and seams for big hitters. Loved seeing it.
As undiciplined as our team was at presnap fouls for game 1, there was one instance that impressed me. Myles Garret flinched into neutral zone, and Villa and Foster stand straight up. Not flinching to block, or reacting to the jump. They stood straight up and pointed. This is what NE teams do every time a neutral zone happens, because it gets a call. The only presnap positive I could find in the coaching.
The Defense was faster, diagnosed the plays quicker, and lined up and disguised blitzes properly. Heyward, Tuitt, Dupree, Watt, Hilton, and Haden played like all pros. Burns, Bostic, Williams, Edmunds, and Sutton were very solid. It looked like last year, when Shazier was playing, that our defense was finally reset to becoming a strength. After watching this game twice, I know they are the only reason why we didn't lose that game. They are going to win us games this year.
Also Hilton had 4 PDs and 2 QB Pressures. Heyward and Tuitt had 5 pressures each.
Watt was also a monster. But all of his sacks were relatively early, before he started dropping into coverage. He is the best 2 way LB on the team.
Chukes killed it as the extra TE in heavy blocking schemes. He did as good if not better than Hubbard did last season, and he's a freakin rookie! Looks like it wasn't lip service from the coaches going with him as the swing tackle. He had a legit great day!
I also thought the coaches went conservative in this game, but upon a rewatch, that was not the case. They were killing the browns with the backside trap left. It's why Connor ripped up 2 20yd runs in a row including the TD. At that point they had a 14 point lead. They got the ball back and did a clock killing drive for 6min into the 4th and pinned the browns on a short punt. On a good weather game, I always kick the FG, but the punt made sense, and the steelers got the ball right back after a 3 and out. Steelers have a conservative run run pass, but punted. The Browns then treated this as the end of the game and went for it on 4th down and failed.
7:55 left in the game, it is essentially over. Running the ball is the right call to eat clock, but that's where Garrett made a play and forced a fumble. The Steelers were not conservative their next drive, went pass happy and Ben got hit on the second play with a sack fumble. Same thing in OT, the offense went to more of a pass attack, and the steelers' offense ended the game with another INT giving CLE a chance to win deep.
So for those of you lamenting turtle ball or Marty/Cowher ball, this was not the case. The Steelers threw too much, when they didn't have to, and that gave CLE extra possesions with a chance to win. You want to gripe on coaching? The legit gripe is why the hell did we pass so much down the stretch??
