The more things stay the same the less they change

[jonzr]

But the more they suck.  The team is stagnant.  But I expect the status quo and thus we're likely to see a continued decline as Ben ages.  That's right folks, he is now injured more than he's healthy and that ain't changing.  If the coaching staff and offensive philosophy remain the same, this team's run is over.  Draft picks will not fix this mess.

Things needed:

• Fire Bruce Arians
• Tomlin must improve game-day coaching

It's a short list.  Until these things are fixed, nothing else matters, they're only distractions.

[Big Virgil]

Was just havign the morning office football discussion.  A couple of people said "the Bronco's kept runing the same plays, why didn't the Steelers change up what they were doing?"  And, "every 1st down for the Bronco's, the Steelers brought everyone up towards the line.  I can't believe they didn't throw it deep more often on 1st down"  That's what happened on the first/last play of overtime.

In other words any regular fan can see the obvious which escapes the Steelers.  The perplexing part is this is no different than when Cowher was coaching.  Horrible game planning, no adjustment to the game when they are getting killed, etc etc.

[jonzr]

They were over playing the run, for sure.  But Dick LeBeau is the 3rd rail of Steeler football.  Yet it was the defense more than the offense that blew this game.  23 pts should have been more than enough.  Yeah, they were down players.  So were the Broncos.  So were all the other teams that shut down the Broncos. 

Statistically the Steelers had the #1 defense.  But I think everyone on this board knows the reality of the 2011 defense, it's the worse one we've seen in the last decade.  To steal a Tomlinism, fooseball is not played with statistics.

[jonzr]

COACHING:  F

The season ended the same way it began -- with a disjointed performance by the defense in which they were outexecuted, outperformed and outschemed by an 8-8 team. The offense didn't come to life until it was almost too late. Maybe the number of injuries to key players finally caught up to the Steelers. But the mistakes against the Broncos were made by the key players who remained, and that has not been their standard.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/12009/1202356-66-2.stm#ixzz1iyTb3LCv

[jonzr]

Grabbing the third rail:  if Tomlin had half the sense of self-preservation of Cowher, he'd fire both coordinators today.

[msdmnr2002]

if Tomlin had half the sense of self-preservation of Cowher, he'd fire both coordinators today.

Do be fair, we've done nothing but heap praise on LeBeau for years (and rightly so).  He's human - would give him a pass.
Arians doesn't have that luxury. 

I don't think Tomlin can pull that trigger.  Not exactly "Steeler way" either.

Tomlin is still a young coach.  Hell, they talk about Sweeney at Clemson being young and learning; he's had the job 3 1/2 years, and Tomlin still isn't the age where Sweeney started.  The Ben playing situation was a direct result of that youth IMO.

I would like to see some definite growth soon, however.

[jonzr]

That funny feeling in your head is called cognitive dissonance.  It's a bitch.

[LambertsFrontTeeth]

Jeez, can everyone just take a step back from the ledge!

Call me a Pollyanna, but everyone is over-reacting. I'm hardly a "glass-half-full" kind of guy, but this team is not that terrible.
In fact, one might argue that this team is over achieving for a team arguably already deep in the rebuilding phase.

Take note:

1) Our star receiver Hines Ward barely played down the stretch, since our THREE very capable young receivers have come into their own. Jerricho Cotchery is a fourth WR on this team!

2) We finished the game without ANY of our veteran defensive lineman playing. Indeed, the team already appears to have a solid replacement for A. Smith. Quite possibly Heyward will be solid as well. We finished the game without either of our NT's (Hamp and Hoke). McClendon is not a natural fit at NT, but appears to have great potential on DL as well.

3) We appear to already have a replacement for an aging Silverback. Worilds has played pretty well in spots.

4) Jury is still out on some of our younger DB's. Perhaps Lewis will develop into a starter.  Cortez Allen was playing great on ST's and seemed to be "getting it" before his injury last week.

5) We lost our number 1 RB last week -- but his undrafted FA backup appears to be a diamond in the rough. Had we won this game, everyone would be stoked by Redman's performance. It's possible that a player like Barron Batch will be able to help out next year, after getting a full season to rehab.

6) We have a potential perennial All-Pro at center (if he can stay healthy, that is).

7) We have a QB who managed to keep us in a game on the road in a hostile environment with only one leg. He's still a mere 29 years old.

  Our HC has already coached 2 SB's and won one. He's not yet 40 years old.


We had too many injuries this year down the stretch to be competitive. We didn't have any of our first team starters on D line:

Add to that the fact that the defense is only half-way rebuilt : We still need an ILB and NT, likely help at S/DB.
And if the FO gets hot and finds talent at O line (for once), we have enough talent at the skill positions to be competitive for several years.   We did not reach for need at O line the last few drafts.  It's very possible that some lucky player at OL will fall to us in the top rounds this coming year.

I don't see this team as a stagnant collection of talent. I see this team as having tremendous potential whilst still having capable veterans that will allow this team to contend next year and the year after. Yeah, Arians leaves much to be desired, but Lebeau has been ingenious for years. We will miss Dick when he leaves. I'm not eager to see if Butler is able to keep the system together.

Just trying to put some things in perspective -- I hope for but do not expect a Super Bowl every year.  

[jonzr]

I hear ya.  But Monday is Burn It Down day for me.  24 hour rule.  Forecasts point to increasing sanity by weeks end.  However I predict that by then your optimism > mine.  I might be talked off the LeBeau ledge but if Arians remains on the staff then next season and the remainder of Tomlin's years in the 'Burgh are a wash, it's just a matter of waiting it out.  And final years of Ben's career will be wasted.

[Manimal]

There's plenty of blame to go around, but it seems to me the coaching staff was set on trying to shut down Denver's running game and create 3rd-and-longs. And I don't think that was dumb thinking. If we'd played a soft zone to prevent the deep pass all night, the Broncos could well have piled up 250 yards rushing and we'd be screaming about that all over this board. Tebow completed four huge throws -- if one or two of them had been off or the reciever not made the catch, I believe we'd have seen a different result. We've put Ike on an island for years now, and most of the time it works. It didn't last night. That's life in the NFL, though.

We lost because we had no pass rush, because our offensive line couldn't protect Ben in the two-minute offense, and because our receiving corps couldn't make plays.

Fact is, Tebow made great throws and his receivers made great catches, too. Ben made a few nice throws but he failed to hit his receivers in stride downfield, and our receivers didn't perform well, with dropped passes and poor running after the catch.

In the offseason, I would add to our needs a big receiving target who can command respect in the middle of the field -- someone who can take Ward's role, essentially. We have Miller, but he's the only one, and he's got to block occassionally. A big wideout who can do some damage would be nice.