Even at 11-0, this team has issues

[Sarge]

What we saw tonight was eye opening. This offense, in spite of the team being 11-0, is just not that good.

1). They can't run the ball. I am undecided on whether it is scheme or execution exclusively, but I am leaning toward scheme. This team run blocks for ****. This is nothing new. Been this way all season with two or three exceptions. This team is so unimaginative when it comes to running the ball, it makes your head spin. The vast majority of the plays are runs to the outside from the shotgun or jet sweeps, and the results are awful. Where is the pulling or trapping or I formation? THE ONE damn play they pulled the guard, it went for 12 yards. Next play was a two yard run out of the shotgun that went for two. To me, the running game is the biggest problem this team has. I see guys like coach rip on Conner, but this isn't a Conner problem. It's a poorly designed run game. It is so ineffective it has become an afterthought to Ben throwing 40-some times per game. And that would be great, except....

2) 90% of those passes are 3-5 yards in the air, and the Ravens were sitting on that **** because they knew it was coming. There is no threat of a real, robust run game, so why worry about it? Even with one starting DL and one starting LB, the Ravens had that **** on lockdown. And it isn't just the Ravens that have it figured out. To his credit, Ben threw some terrific passes to wide open guys anywhere between 10-20 yards downfield, but......

3) Receivers keep dropping the ball. This problem isn't new to this game. Johnson and Ebron are good for dropping at least one pass a game. Tonight they were in rare form. Claypool dropped two by my count, and he has had a few drops throughout this season, but the guy is a rookie and NFL defense is better than what he has ever seen in college so he kinda gets a break.

4) This team was prepared for a cakewalk. Tuitt's post on instagram, to me, was a window into the mindset of this team. Easy win, pad your stats. Except he forgot you have to actually play the game. This team bullshitted through a game they could have and should have dominated. The defense did well, given what the offense left them with, the TD pass by McSorely notwithstanding. They pulled it out, thankfully. Part of me is not sure how. A win is a win, but......

5) There are issues to address. And they are on offense. It boggles my mind that as ineffective as the run game has been, they have changed nothing. Same plays. Same blocking schemes. Same impotence. Regardless how this season turns out, and I feel like in spite of the 11-0 start, it is going to be an enormous let down, the offensive coaching staff needs to be let go. There is too much talent to struggle like this, for at least a half, every damn week. This team should be better than this, right? Teams that struggle like this are not usually 11-0, so it tells me the talent is there. It is either the scheme or execution. Either way, that is on coaching. The players on this offense are not being put in the best position to succeed. If the scheme is bad, change it. If the players aren't executing, sit them. At least for a while. Send a message.

I know I should be happy that my favorite team is 11-0. But I just feel like they are bullshitting. They are getting lucky, at least to a degree. And I know sometimes ou have to be lucky, but this team, right now on offense, is more lucky than good. They owe this season to the defense. This defense is stellar, especially with the rules so slanted to favor the offense. And in spite of those rules, our offense struggles. Mightily at times.

Anyway, flame away. 11-0 will mask a lot of problems. And with this offense at least, it has.

 

[BLITZ]

agree 100% we are a weak 11-0 but we are 11-0

 

[wig]

I keep holding out hope that they are purposefully running some **** blocking schemes so when the Chefs come along they'll have no tape on what the Steelers WANT to do on the ground.

Ya... That's realistic. Sure.

 

[slashsteel]

Was an odd week and some players weren't available. Tuitt and Pouncey will be back and are solid. Conner will be back....some things to clean up but enough time left to clean them up.

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[SteelerInLebanon]

Was an odd week and some players weren't available. Tuitt and Pouncey will be back and are solid. Conner will be back.some things to clean up but enough time left to clean them up.

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Hopefully we will finish the season and be saying it was a win but their still room to fix a lot of things. That would mean good things.

 

[Sarge]

Was an odd week and some players weren't available. Tuitt and Pouncey will be back and are solid. Conner will be back....some things to clean up but enough time left to clean them up.

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Come on. They've had 11 weeks to clean up the running game. You confident they are gonna take care of that the last 5 weeks? Tuitt and Pouncey being out are immaterial to the issues with the running game.

 

[Sith Lord]

Great post Sarge I agree. The only thing I can think of regarding the running game is that they might not be showing all of their cards at this point of the season, with the record that they have.

My concern are the drops and slow starts specifically by Claypool, who has had many an opportunity to make significant plays early in games to that can lead to points only to drop catches he is supposed to make (and he fumbled once).

 

[Stryker]

Tomlin would agree, but at least they're learning by winning. Ben also said this win felt like a loss.

They have a lot to fix, but the running game did get the tough yardage at the end of the game which is a positive.

 

[Sarge]

Great post Sarge I agree. The only thing I can think of regarding the running game is that they might not be showing all of their cards at this point of the season, with the record that they have.

Never in my life have I ever heard of a team willingly sucking in any phase of football in an effort to "keep secrets" so they can pull a stunner on someone later on down the road. It's akin to a team saying "Hey, we have a really good team, so lets pretend we're ****** at running the football so when we make the playoffs, no one will expect us to run the ball very well and we'll start pulling and trapping and take their soul." Come on. They suck at running the football. At this point, that much should be obvious.

 

[slashsteel]

Come on. They've had 11 weeks to clean up the running game. You confident they are gonna take care of that the last 5 weeks? Tuitt and Pouncey being out are immaterial to the issues with the running game.

They had moments where they could run. I have confidence that they can at least not hold the team back. But in the moments they aren't good enough I have confidence the Steelers have the WRs to keep the ball moving.

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[bermudasteel]

You don't have to be perfect to be in our situation. Hell, we expect perfection in every phase but look at the season in its entirety...

1. No preseason games or real OTA's or training camp.

2. Ben returns from a season ending elbow injury.

3. The defense loses Bush (and now Bud) for the season.

4. COVID-19

This team continues to win. No excuses...

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[slashsteel]

You don't have to be perfect to be in our situation. Hell, we expect perfection in every phase but look at the season in its entirety...

1. No preseason games or real OTA's or training camp.

2. Ben returns from a season ending elbow injury.

3. The defense loses Bush (and now Bud) for the season.

4. COVID-19

This team continues to win. No excuses...

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There is enough pass rushing capable on this team to collectively get to the QB. It is a loss but Highsmith I think is capable at least not being a liability.

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[SteelerInLebanon]

Never in my life have I ever heard of a team willingly sucking in any phase of football in an effort to "keep secrets" so they can pull a stunner on someone later on down the road. It's akin to a team saying "Hey, we have a really good team, so lets pretend we're ****** at running the football so when we make the playoffs, no one will expect us to run the ball very well and we'll start pulling and trapping and take their soul." Come on. They suck at running the football. At this point, that much should be obvious.

This isn't Rocky fighting with the wrong hand to switch later in the fight.

 

[GMC]

This offense has had the same problem for years, Randy Fichtner.

 

[Sarge]

They had moments where they could run. I have confidence that they can at least not hold the team back. But in the moments they aren't good enough I have confidence the Steelers have the WRs to keep the ball moving.

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They rushed 20 times for 68 yards. Against a team sporting one starter on the DL and one starter at LB. it’s ok to love your team and admit they suck in the run game. I said it before and I’ll say it again. This team’s inability to run the ball consistently will be what sends them home.

 

[SteelBuckeye]

They rushed 20 times for 68 yards. Against a team sporting one starter on the DL and one starter at LB. it’s ok to love your team and admit they suck in the run game. I said it before and I’ll say it again. This team’s inability to run the ball consistently will be what sends them home.

On the bright side, we actually saw DeCastro execute a pull today. Maybe he's healing up and that will help.
(Interesting, I started writing the above sarcastically .... ended it prayerfully... smh)

 

[mdk2]

What we saw tonight was eye opening. This offense, in spite of the team being 11-0, is just not that good.

1). They can't run the ball. I am undecided on whether it is scheme or execution exclusively, but I am leaning toward scheme. This team run blocks for ****. This is nothing new. Been this way all season with two or three exceptions. This team is so unimaginative when it comes to running the ball, it makes your head spin. The vast majority of the plays are runs to the outside from the shotgun or jet sweeps, and the results are awful. Where is the pulling or trapping or I formation? THE ONE damn play they pulled the guard, it went for 12 yards. Next play was a two yard run out of the shotgun that went for two. To me, the running game is the biggest problem this team has. I see guys like coach rip on Conner, but this isn't a Conner problem. It's a poorly designed run game. It is so ineffective it has become an afterthought to Ben throwing 40-some times per game. And that would be great, except....

2) 90% of those passes are 3-5 yards in the air, and the Ravens were sitting on that **** because they knew it was coming. There is no threat of a real, robust run game, so why worry about it? Even with one starting DL and one starting LB, the Ravens had that **** on lockdown. And it isn't just the Ravens that have it figured out. To his credit, Ben threw some terrific passes to wide open guys anywhere between 10-20 yards downfield, but......

3) Receivers keep dropping the ball. This problem isn't new to this game. Johnson and Ebron are good for dropping at least one pass a game. Tonight they were in rare form. Claypool dropped two by my count, and he has had a few drops throughout this season, but the guy is a rookie and NFL defense is better than what he has ever seen in college so he kinda gets a break.

4) This team was prepared for a cakewalk. Tuitt's post on instagram, to me, was a window into the mindset of this team. Easy win, pad your stats. Except he forgot you have to actually play the game. This team bullshitted through a game they could have and should have dominated. The defense did well, given what the offense left them with, the TD pass by McSorely notwithstanding. They pulled it out, thankfully. Part of me is not sure how. A win is a win, but......

5) There are issues to address. And they are on offense. It boggles my mind that as ineffective as the run game has been, they have changed nothing. Same plays. Same blocking schemes. Same impotence. Regardless how this season turns out, and I feel like in spite of the 11-0 start, it is going to be an enormous let down, the offensive coaching staff needs to be let go. There is too much talent to struggle like this, for at least a half, every damn week. This team should be better than this, right? Teams that struggle like this are not usually 11-0, so it tells me the talent is there. It is either the scheme or execution. Either way, that is on coaching. The players on this offense are not being put in the best position to succeed. If the scheme is bad, change it. If the players aren't executing, sit them. At least for a while. Send a message.

I know I should be happy that my favorite team is 11-0. But I just feel like they are bullshitting. They are getting lucky, at least to a degree. And I know sometimes ou have to be lucky, but this team, right now on offense, is more lucky than good. They owe this season to the defense. This defense is stellar, especially with the rules so slanted to favor the offense. And in spite of those rules, our offense struggles. Mightily at times.

Anyway, flame away. 11-0 will mask a lot of problems. And with this offense at least, it has.

I couldn't disagree more. Was I dreaming when I watched this defense get absolutely run over for multiple weeks and some ****** offense had to cover for them to win the game. This defense is good, it is not stellar. This offense would have looked a hell of a lot better today if our WRs just caught half of their drops. Just cause we haven't run the ball effectively lately doesn't mean this offense struggles. I see Ben go up and down the field on defenses every week, I must not be seeing the same thing as you. What exactly is lucky about the offense anyway? Are they lucky TDs Ben is throwing? Lucky catches? I don't get it. It sure as hell didn't struggle the previous 2 weeks.

 

[6Lombardis]

They rushed 20 times for 68 yards. Against a team sporting one starter on the DL and one starter at LB. it’s ok to love your team and admit they suck in the run game. I said it before and I’ll say it again. This team’s inability to run the ball consistently will be what sends them home.

I agree. Let me add however that continuing to try to run keeps teams honest. With Ben calling plays, why would we ever run as long as the small passes are working. We could have put this away with 4:00 left with a decent run game when needed. We will need that again.

 

[mdk2]

I agree. Let me add however that continuing to try to run keeps teams honest. With Ben calling plays, why would we ever run as long as the small passes are working. We could have put this away with 4:00 left with a decent run game when needed. We will need that again.

Or if Ebron and DJ don't drop easy 3rd down conversions, we run the clock out easily.. that would work too.

 

[6Lombardis]

I couldn't disagree more. Was I dreaming when I watched this defense get absolutely run over for multiple weeks and some ****** offense had to cover for them to win the game. This defense is good, it is not stellar. This offense would have looked a hell of a lot better today if our WRs just caught half of their drops. Just cause we haven't run the ball effectively lately doesn't mean this offense struggles. I see Ben go up and down the field on defenses every week, I must not be seeing the same thing as you. It sure as hell didn't struggle the previous 2 weeks.

Agree. Without the muffed punt, we are a couple of drops from having this thing totally lopsided in the first quarter. Still, something needs to happen to help the run game materialize. For one thing, my three year old can tell when the run is coming presnap.

 

[WarEagle]

What we saw tonight was eye opening. This offense, in spite of the team being 11-0, is just not that good.

1). They can't run the ball. I am undecided on whether it is scheme or execution exclusively, but I am leaning toward scheme. This team run blocks for ****. This is nothing new. Been this way all season with two or three exceptions. This team is so unimaginative when it comes to running the ball, it makes your head spin. The vast majority of the plays are runs to the outside from the shotgun or jet sweeps, and the results are awful. Where is the pulling or trapping or I formation? THE ONE damn play they pulled the guard, it went for 12 yards. Next play was a two yard run out of the shotgun that went for two. To me, the running game is the biggest problem this team has. I see guys like coach rip on Conner, but this isn't a Conner problem. It's a poorly designed run game. It is so ineffective it has become an afterthought to Ben throwing 40-some times per game. And that would be great, except....

2) 90% of those passes are 3-5 yards in the air, and the Ravens were sitting on that **** because they knew it was coming. There is no threat of a real, robust run game, so why worry about it? Even with one starting DL and one starting LB, the Ravens had that **** on lockdown. And it isn't just the Ravens that have it figured out. To his credit, Ben threw some terrific passes to wide open guys anywhere between 10-20 yards downfield, but......

3) Receivers keep dropping the ball. This problem isn't new to this game. Johnson and Ebron are good for dropping at least one pass a game. Tonight they were in rare form. Claypool dropped two by my count, and he has had a few drops throughout this season, but the guy is a rookie and NFL defense is better than what he has ever seen in college so he kinda gets a break.

4) This team was prepared for a cakewalk. Tuitt's post on instagram, to me, was a window into the mindset of this team. Easy win, pad your stats. Except he forgot you have to actually play the game. This team bullshitted through a game they could have and should have dominated. The defense did well, given what the offense left them with, the TD pass by McSorely notwithstanding. They pulled it out, thankfully. Part of me is not sure how. A win is a win, but......

5) There are issues to address. And they are on offense. It boggles my mind that as ineffective as the run game has been, they have changed nothing. Same plays. Same blocking schemes. Same impotence. Regardless how this season turns out, and I feel like in spite of the 11-0 start, it is going to be an enormous let down, the offensive coaching staff needs to be let go. There is too much talent to struggle like this, for at least a half, every damn week. This team should be better than this, right? Teams that struggle like this are not usually 11-0, so it tells me the talent is there. It is either the scheme or execution. Either way, that is on coaching. The players on this offense are not being put in the best position to succeed. If the scheme is bad, change it. If the players aren't executing, sit them. At least for a while. Send a message.

I know I should be happy that my favorite team is 11-0. But I just feel like they are bullshitting. They are getting lucky, at least to a degree. And I know sometimes ou have to be lucky, but this team, right now on offense, is more lucky than good. They owe this season to the defense. This defense is stellar, especially with the rules so slanted to favor the offense. And in spite of those rules, our offense struggles. Mightily at times.

Anyway, flame away. 11-0 will mask a lot of problems. And with this offense at least, it has.

Mark my words here, keep this post.
This team does what it has to, to win and they will the rest of the year. We may lose one or two but when crunch time comes they will be ready!!!

 

[Sith Lord]

Never in my life have I ever heard of a team willingly sucking in any phase of football in an effort to "keep secrets" so they can pull a stunner on someone later on down the road. It's akin to a team saying "Hey, we have a really good team, so lets pretend we're ****** at running the football so when we make the playoffs, no one will expect us to run the ball very well and we'll start pulling and trapping and take their soul." Come on. They suck at running the football. At this point, that much should be obvious.

I’m not saying that they are pretending to suck, lol. I am saying that maybe they just haven’t started to empty the playbook as of yet. Just a thought. I agree with you about the running game. It definitely needs improvement. But putting my rose colored glasses on the runs by Snell late in the game were pretty good. Hopefully they can build on those.

 

[Cras108er]

What we saw tonight was eye opening. This offense, in spite of the team being 11-0, is just not that good.

1). They can't run the ball. I am undecided on whether it is scheme or execution exclusively, but I am leaning toward scheme. This team run blocks for ****. This is nothing new. Been this way all season with two or three exceptions. This team is so unimaginative when it comes to running the ball, it makes your head spin. The vast majority of the plays are runs to the outside from the shotgun or jet sweeps, and the results are awful. Where is the pulling or trapping or I formation? THE ONE damn play they pulled the guard, it went for 12 yards. Next play was a two yard run out of the shotgun that went for two. To me, the running game is the biggest problem this team has. I see guys like coach rip on Conner, but this isn't a Conner problem. It's a poorly designed run game. It is so ineffective it has become an afterthought to Ben throwing 40-some times per game. And that would be great, except....

2) 90% of those passes are 3-5 yards in the air, and the Ravens were sitting on that **** because they knew it was coming. There is no threat of a real, robust run game, so why worry about it? Even with one starting DL and one starting LB, the Ravens had that **** on lockdown. And it isn't just the Ravens that have it figured out. To his credit, Ben threw some terrific passes to wide open guys anywhere between 10-20 yards downfield, but......

3) Receivers keep dropping the ball. This problem isn't new to this game. Johnson and Ebron are good for dropping at least one pass a game. Tonight they were in rare form. Claypool dropped two by my count, and he has had a few drops throughout this season, but the guy is a rookie and NFL defense is better than what he has ever seen in college so he kinda gets a break.

4) This team was prepared for a cakewalk. Tuitt's post on instagram, to me, was a window into the mindset of this team. Easy win, pad your stats. Except he forgot you have to actually play the game. This team bullshitted through a game they could have and should have dominated. The defense did well, given what the offense left them with, the TD pass by McSorely notwithstanding. They pulled it out, thankfully. Part of me is not sure how. A win is a win, but......

5) There are issues to address. And they are on offense. It boggles my mind that as ineffective as the run game has been, they have changed nothing. Same plays. Same blocking schemes. Same impotence. Regardless how this season turns out, and I feel like in spite of the 11-0 start, it is going to be an enormous let down, the offensive coaching staff needs to be let go. There is too much talent to struggle like this, for at least a half, every damn week. This team should be better than this, right? Teams that struggle like this are not usually 11-0, so it tells me the talent is there. It is either the scheme or execution. Either way, that is on coaching. The players on this offense are not being put in the best position to succeed. If the scheme is bad, change it. If the players aren't executing, sit them. At least for a while. Send a message.

I know I should be happy that my favorite team is 11-0. But I just feel like they are bullshitting. They are getting lucky, at least to a degree. And I know sometimes ou have to be lucky, but this team, right now on offense, is more lucky than good. They owe this season to the defense. This defense is stellar, especially with the rules so slanted to favor the offense. And in spite of those rules, our offense struggles. Mightily at times.

Anyway, flame away. 11-0 will mask a lot of problems. And with this offense at least, it has.

I haven’t read all the comments, so forgive me if someone has said this already. Did you really just say “11-0 will mask a lot of problems?” Tell me how many 11-0 teams NFL there have been in the last 10 years. I’ll wait

I cannot believe the arrogance of Steeler fans sometimes. It’s like we can never be satisfied with what we have. Are we perfect? No! Do we have off games? Absolutely. Just like any other team.

Sure, we have our flaws , but in spite of those flaws, we have won eleven f’ing games in a row. That is no small feat. In spite of all the things that went wrong today, this should have been a rout. The game was no where near as close as the score seemed.

If you want to sit around and whine because the team isn’t perfect, than have at it. I’m going to enjoy the journey. There is no guarantee for anyone to win the SB. Teams have done it with undefeated records and some have done it with barely .500 records. It’s not about who is “the best team.” It’s about who is decent and gets hot/lucky at the right times. At 11-0, we have as good a chance as anyone else.


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[SteelerFan448]

What is remarkable about this team is they once again outdid themselves by scheming out the ground game. They've made themselves one dimensional yet again. You look at what some of these offensive minds are doing around the league and then what the Steelers are doing...it definitely doesn't look the same. They're at their best when they get away from the game plan and let Ben call things on the fly. If that's how your offense is at its best you need to get a better coordinator. With a running back like Conner, 4 deep at receiver, and a solid receiving tight end, the Steelers should be able to outscheme their opponents more often than not. Instead, they played right into the opponent's strength tonight and didn't even try to run against a depleted defensive front.

 

[stuntmanmike]

We have incredible talent... best gm in football probably and his son who’s scouted guys like Spillane and johnson not far behind him... the coaching sucks we all no that.. fukntner and bumbler should have been fired as coordinators long ago we all no that any weakness this team has it’s in coaching. we could go undefeated win Super Bowl and of course not plz all the steeler fans but it’s a given if we did do all those things how many head coaching jobs offers you think these clowns are going to get? The short throws at the expense of a good running game will kill down the road. Throwing for a first down on 4th and one and not getting it. That’s fukntoner ball. Not being able to stop the run and receivers getting lost in our secondary is bumbtler ball. Pray that the talent and Ben hold up cuz It’s a war of attrition from here on out goooo steeeellerrrsss!!!