My takeaways from the Philly preseason game

[Stryker]

I went to the game, and even though we didn't put up a point, I had the opportunity of watching specific players during the night and there are some positives.

Jessie James is getting a ton of snaps. He looks good coming out of his breaks, and though he's not as explosive off the line as a young Heath Miller, he will be able to use his body and catch radius to make plays for us.

I liked watching the first team D this week better than last week. Timmons can still cover. Shazier was doing great in the holes. The D line is SOLID. We started both backup OLBs and still did very well

Eli Rogers will be a legit receiver in this league. He has the confidence and hands, but he also has something else. He may just be the second best route runner on our team. He looks like AB Jr the way he feigns his breaks and gets DBs to take a false step and he creates space. If it wasn't for a shoestring tackle, he had a chance to break his 5yd in pattern for a HUGE gain. He is also looking very good in return duties. He's decisive and explosive, which is good to see from a returner.

Berry will be our Punter week 1. Monday is learning that the NFL is not college. His punts are low and very returnable. He would be a liability for any team this year if he were their punter. Perhaps with a year to strengthen his leg, he may become an NFL punter, but I just don't see the talent that anyone would be excited about from his play in college. Besides, Berry is KILLING the football. It nearly leaves the stadium when he punts. Plus he has control. This guy may turn into a pro bowler if he keeps his kicks consistent this year.

Toussant looks like our 3rd string RB. He's a better receiver and route runner than Richardson, though I do like Richardson with the ball in his hands as a runner. Richardson will make the team if Bell is suspended, and when Bell returns, Richardson should be leaving the team.

 

[bermudasteel]

Great assessment...I find no fault in it.

 

[Drink IRON City]

Great write up Cope, thank you. I did get to see some TV view of this game. I seen a lot of what you are saying. Berry is our punter and that can be a good thing for long term, instead of yearly battles. Without question, our QB back up situation is bad. One can only HOPE the FO brings in a hidden talent. Jones is NOT the answer they were looking for. Simple as that.




Salute the nation

 

[SteelChip]

Without question, our QB back up situation is bad. One can only HOPE the FO brings in a hidden talent. Jones is NOT the answer they were looking for. Simple as that.
Salute the nation

While I won't argue with your back-up QB assessment. I still think that Jones is not all that bad...not a superstar either, but still capable. Out of the four interceptions last nite, only the first one could really be hung on him and him alone. bad luck is bad luck.

 

[ZonaBurgh]

While I won't argue with your back-up QB assessment. I still think that Jones is not all that bad...not a superstar either, but still capable. Out of the four interceptions last nite, only the first one could really be hung on him and him alone. bad luck is bad luck.

Don't know, Chip, I've always believed there's no such thing as luck. You make your own, and Jones doesn't seem to have it.

 

[SteelChip]

Don't know, Chip, I've always believed there's no such thing as luck. You make your own, and Jones doesn't seem to have it.

That could be too Zona but I still think he'll be OK till we can get our hands on Ben's replacement. I know Jones has his haters and some of that comes from his lack of vision and a tendency to lock onto a receiver but we have also seen ( rarely, I'll admit ) him play with efficiency. I'm still not ready to jump off a building yet.

 

[black and gold apex]

Still hard to watch the secondary , the body language on the field says we are lost and have no idea where we are to be. It could hurt us .

 

[ark steel]

While looking at his receivers the whole way, for the most part, Jones put the ball where the WR could make the play. Several were not caught. Th move to get away from pressure to hit Coates on the sideline was a play I didn't think he could make. The review showed it as a catch. Not sure they do that every time, though.

The deflection into was bad luck. Also, not sure why it wasn't PI. Defender was all up in his grill and I couldn't see his head turned.

Coates could have prevented the one Int, but it shouldn't be up to him to do so.

In any event, for the most part, Jones looked the part of a back up QB. Apparently, the Eagles were willing to guarantee $12m to a backup. Not sure I'd want to do that. I guess if I had Bradford as my starter, I would.

Jones ain't the long term answer for #2, but I don't see how trading a pick to another team for someone else that is also not an answer will fix it. Other teams watch thesee game. They, really, only going to take a 7th? I guess, I wouldn't if I were them.

As far as FT vs Richardson, FT seemed to have the edge, but Richardson didn't seem to get as good blocking.

 

[deljzc]

I don't try to read too much into results on preseason but after watching the game here are some of my thoughts.

1. Landry Jones isn't as bad as his stat line shows. We moved the ball effectively between the 20's. And on some of the interceptions, he actually made the correct read and threw into single coverage. I agree however that he is not ready for NFL extended snaps. He does not show the feel or instincts at the position and is probably still thinking too much. He locks on to the play call and doesn't have the nuance to look defenses off the play and doesn't have the accuracy to make the plays when the defense knows it's coming. His accuracy on the fades to the end zone and the down the sideline throws (anything with air under them) was not good. Please oh please I hope this team doesn't panic at this position and re-sign Michael Vick....

2. I'm very worried about Tight End, but I've been saying that since draft day around here. Everyone got excited about Ledarius Green but I was always in a wait-and-see mode and so far nothing. James is not a starter even if I like him a bunch. We are going to really miss all the little things Heath Miller does in this offense that makes the run game and pass game function a tick better that it would otherwise. There were a number of run plays I thought failed because of bad tight end play. And I think those will continue even when we have Roethlisberger, Brown and Bell on the field. I think the front office got a little complacent with the idea of Green/James/Spaeth in March but now it's a lot more problematic a position. I still think we are strongly looking at a waiver wire pick up at this position sometime during camp or right before the season.

3. Eli Rogers is making a strong push to be the returner on this team and make the roster as WR #5. That would likely mean our draft pick Ayers is out, but it's close right now and practice film and position coach evaluation is going to mean a lot for both players.

4. Coates is still very raw and is likely making way too many mental errors to be a big contributor to this team. As much as you love his athletic talent and upside, coaches (Tomlin included) just don't like inconsistency. Would not shock me at all if Darius Heyward-Bay is our #3 WR and gets 30-40 snaps a game early in the season (maybe even up to our bye week). Coates is likely going to have to put in another hard year of practice to prove to the coaches he's ready to be relied upon on game days. Any injury ahead of him will change this (and he could find opportunities) but I do not get the feel the coaches think he's ready and there seems to be a strong trust factor with DHB in this offense.

5. I think the defense is pretty much the same as last year. I still see a lot of holes in the secondary. I still see a general lack of pass rush from the OLB's. It's a middle-of-the-pack defense right now and I just don't see enough to think otherwise. When that happens, a lot of games are going to be coin flips on what we get. Some games the coin will come up good: turnovers, key plays, red zone stops. Others will come up bad: no turnovers, bad 3rd down defense, red zone failures. It's all a bit hit/miss on those things right now.

6. Overall, the team is again good, not great. I don't like our depth and think Colbert/Tomlin could be doing a better job on the back end of the roster, but I've thought that for a decade. This team was geared up to be really, really good on offense but I think losing Bryant, Bell for 4 games, and Heath will effect us more than some realize. I expect very similar numbers to last season, not better like some are predicting.

We'll see how the 2016 season book writes itself this year. Chapter 1 is off-season. Chapter 2 is pre-season. Chapter 3 is game 1. We're still very early in the novel.

 

[Coach]

Offense:

We have no backup QBs. If Ben goes down, we are .500 in those games at best. The time to trade is now. Get the insurance now. Landry Jones is a bad combination of bad luck and poor play.

Our TE's are hurting. James is just all right as a receiver and bad as a blocker.

I like Coates, but can you trust him on ball security, running precise routes, and when needed fighting off DB's to prevent interceptions?

Rodgers looks more than just a reliable player. He's got some quickness ad burst in his game, He runs excellent routes. Hard to believe he's a first-year player. His punt return ability looks good as well.

The starting OL unit looked better. AV had a solid outing.


Defense:

The DL didn't get much pass rush. Moats had the only sack of the game.
With Dupree still hurt, James Harrison age 38 is the best we have. I watched Hargrave a bit. He was shut out.

ILB Fort looks like a solid backup. Williams hasn't impressed in the two pre-season games. Matakevich was active looked much better in pre-season game #2.

Grant and Shabazz made nice plays. I'm not sure who our 3rd safety is. Thomas still makes mistakes. Davis was very quiet. While Davis did get a solo tackle, 10 other players had more than 1 solo tackle.

 

[SteelerInLebanon]

Offense:

We have no backup QBs. If Ben goes down, we are .500 in those games at best. The time to trade is now. Get the insurance now. Landry Jones is a bad combination of bad luck and poor play.
Trade for what with what?

Our TE's are hurting. James is just all right as a receiver and bad as a blocker.
I disagree on James as a blocker inconsistent at this point but made some nice run blocks at times. does need to keep improving.

I like Coates, but can you trust him on ball security, running precise routes, and when needed fighting off DB's to prevent interceptions?
I will give him the benefit of the doubt on that having been one bad game. looked better last night holding the ball.


Rodgers looks more than just a reliable player. He's got some quickness ad burst in his game, He runs excellent routes. Hard to believe he's a first-year player. His punt return ability looks good as well.

I like his receiving I would put Ayers ahead of him on returns. I think both will make the team.

The starting OL unit looked better. AV had a solid outing.


Defense:

The DL didn't get much pass rush. Moats had the only sack of the game.
With Dupree still hurt, James Harrison age 38 is the best we have. I watched Hargrave a bit. He was shut out.
The DL looked good to me and was getting some push. Hargrave was getting a double every tie and still fighting. We want our NG/DT to pull that double every time to free up others.
ILB Fort looks like a solid backup. Williams hasn't impressed in the two pre-season games. Matakevich was active looked much better in pre-season game #2.
We know what we get with Williams. Hard hitter steady dependable nothing flashy.
Grant and Shabazz made nice plays. I'm not sure who our 3rd safety is. Thomas still makes mistakes. Davis was very quiet. While Davis did get a solo tackle, 10 other players had more than 1 solo tackle.

Overall I think things would jump out better if we schemed to free people up but I think the coaches are more worried about seeing people do their basic responsibilities with out gimmicks at this point.

 

[ark steel]

we are .500 in those games at best

How many other teams are different with regard to their starting QB out? The *'s that cheat? Maybe the Eagles, but they may not be much more than a .500 team WITH their starter.

Who will you get in a trade that changes this unless you are willing to give up a 4th or higher?

"Make a change" isn't an answer. The change has to produce results or have a reasonable chance of doing so. Trading a pick for a guy who can't beat out Geno Smith doesn't seem to be that answer.

 

[antdrewjosh]

Overall I think things would jump out better if we schemed to free people up but I think the coaches are more worried about seeing people do their basic responsibilities with out gimmicks at this point.

We don't gameplan. QB coach Fichtner on Landry and the lack of game planning in exhibition games

"He might," Fichtner said. "But again, we're not going to game plan. We're not going to necessarily put in things that will help him. We've still got to evaluate everyone. It isn't per se a game plan we would use in the regular season. Next week will be more of an in-season game where you're getting work with reps that are going to be exactly how we're going to run a particular play. These are plays we've been running since spring and we still need to see who can execute. (Cobi Hamilton)'s new, other receivers need to get their work, tight ends need work. It isn't like we're game-planning to see if 26 can get on their linebacker where we know we've got a win.
"There'll be some good plays and there'll be some plays that probably aren't so good. It's about learning, for the players AND the coaches. Sometimes we learn the most about our quarterbacks when we've got a bad play, a play we might not even like. But, man, what we learn from that rep is going to keep us from making that mistake in-season.
"But, yeah, his confidence is much better. He's throwing the ball very well."

 

[ark steel]

So, if you do game plan knowing you are starting Landry, do you not make those throws that were INT's? I think the pick 6 was all on Jones. What about the others? the deflection might have happened regardless. the one where he was hit while throwing might also have happened. That is still 3.

I'm not sure what Petty has done over what Vaughn has shown. Which is nothing on both counts. I guess he threw 1 TD last pre-season?

 

[antdrewjosh]

Things maybe different if they are game planning and the other guys are in there too. For instance like he said Bell against a linebacker. That throw maybe way easier then throwing to some one else. The same for Brown vs anyone.

 

[Steelers1356]

Some quick observations:

James - Made some nice catches in traffic. Needs to work on getting more yards after the catch but he has the athletic ability to improve there. Will be a nice big target for Ben.

Coates - Nice bounce back game, ready to step up and be a big contributor. Tomlin was happy with his performance and that catch is as good as they get. Needs to polish up on a few things but that will come with experience.

Landry Jones - Forcing too many passes into traffic resulting in pics. Better get to work or he'll eventually be replaced.

1st team defense - Solid.

The Score- 17 - 0. Yes, a disappointment, but keep in mind that the opposing teams are keeping their starters in much longer when the Steelers are sticking with thier script of rotating in the backups much sooner. Bradford played pretty much the entire first half against our backup QB. I have no problem with this, give the first team a taste of playing time then rotate the backups in. Why risk injury to starters? Even if it means going 0-4 in the preseason, stick with the script. If those perennial losing teams are so desperate to show pre-season wins that they risk the health of their starters then so be it. Put Ben, AB, Pouncey, Bell in for the first half and we're up by 21 at halftime. That being said it would be nice if we could start getting some decent UFA bodies into our training camps that can at least keep the games competitive in the 2nd half when the scrubs are in.

 

[SteelerInLebanon]

Game planning comment was aimed at the defensive side. We were not putting people to get easy plays we were making them base up and beat there man. I realize we don't just saying it would look different if we did.

 

[mightyguru]

Rogers looks great as a returner and #3/slot WR.

Jesse James looks decent...not great but he is improved. Saw some decent blocks at times and overall, he's a positive.

Coates improved...has a lot of room for improvement but the kid is going to contribute.

Dirty Red!!! Loved what I saw in garbage time from him. Looks like Zack Thomas, lol.

 

[strat68]

"Defender was all up in his grill and I couldn't see his head turned."

Head position does not matter. As long as there is no contact it's not PI.

 

[Hobbster]

How many other teams are different with regard to their starting QB out? The *'s that cheat? Maybe the Eagles, but they may not be much more than a .500 team WITH their starter.

Who will you get in a trade that changes this unless you are willing to give up a 4th or higher?

"Make a change" isn't an answer. The change has to produce results or have a reasonable chance of doing so. Trading a pick for a guy who can't beat out Geno Smith doesn't seem to be that answer.

In addition to this point, Any team that is down to their 2nd string QB, both starting WRs out (esp if one is considered one of the best in football), both 1st (thought of as one of the best) and 2nd string RBs will be in poor shape. I think more is being made of the job last night than needs to be. Every year we have to say the same thing, there are 3 things to know about these games:

1.) It is Preseason!
2.) It is only PRESEASON! and
3,) Seriously, It is only PRESEASON!!!

 

[ark steel]

"Defender was all up in his grill and I couldn't see his head turned."

Head position does not matter. As long as there is no contact it's not PI.

It did used to matter as they would call face guarding or some crap. I don't think that is a rule anymore. However, in this instance, I meant "up in his grill" as in their his body was in contact with the WR. it might have been because the WR was trying to move back to the ball, though. I thought it was allowed for the defender to use body position to keep the WR from the ball, but only if he was making a play on the ball. He, clearly, was not, IMO.

 

[Skott]

Before I get too down on Coates, I'd like to see him in game action with Ben chucking the ball. I think he's more confident when when is the QB.

 

[bmoritz]

What I see from Landry is he does not have a strong enough arm, and he has trouble hitting receivers in stride. Any of his passes over 10 yards are underthrown and behind the receivers. Many times the WR had the DB beat, but had to slow down or even stop for the ball.

 

[POP]

While I won't argue with your back-up QB assessment. I still think that Jones is not all that bad...not a superstar either, but still capable. Out of the four interceptions last nite, only the first one could really be hung on him and him alone. bad luck is bad luck.

How on freakin' earth did you come up with this assessment???????????? Jones sucks. I have been watching other pre-season games, and every single #2 I have watched for other teams is superior to Jones. They tried to make him work out and it just didn't. MOVE ON FROM A KNOWN MISTAKE. The one thing this team does that angers me is NOT ADMITTING A MISTAKE and then reacting to correct the mistake. Our back up QB situation is FUBAR. How can anyone deny it? FOUR ******* INTS IN ONE HALF?????????????????????????????? And you claim he is "capable?" Yea, capable of losing games entirely by himself. That is what he is "capable" of. Sorry, Steel Chip, not meant to be a rip on you, but I am flabbergasted that anyone concludes Jones is anything but terrible. Even his energy (or lack of) just sucks. He has no "fire in the belly." He is a wet towel. NO ONE seems to give **** when he is in the game. It's an awful situation.

 

[POP]

Before I get too down on Coates, I'd like to see him in game action with Ben chucking the ball. I think he's more confident when when is the QB.

Why would be be more confident with a pro bowl, future hall of fame QB in the game over a total scrub who shouldn't be in the NFL on any team's roster whatsoever?