OT: The Pittsburgher Thread: 2022 Handball season has arrived!

[JTG]

If he didn’t play at Pitt, Steelers don’t draft him in the 1st. I 100% believe that.

It would be hard to say because I always felt like the Steelers would take a guy like PIckett - older, seasoned, albeit maybe a bit less talented. That's all because Ben wouldn't play nice with a younger QB so he basically forced the teams hand to wait until he retired to draft his replacement.

Using hindsight, Ben was right. Every QB we ever took was a wasted pick and we should have just used those picks to build depth in the team while he was here.

I agree, but I also think it's fair to criticize him when he doesn't make the appropriate decisions. You hope he learns from these mistakes and adjusts his gameplay going forward, but the decisions still deserve criticism.

He needed to take the points and trust his defense on the 2nd INT, and he absolutely needed to just take the yards and get out of bounds on the 3rd INT. Instead, he tried to play hero both times.

I think Kenny is going to be a fine QB, but this offense isn't working for him either. Switch Canada and McDaniel and I think Pickett is in talks of ROTY. I keep coming back to that SF coaching tree with the players we have. I just think their offensive scheme fits this team so perfectly.

I'm not going to get upset with Pickett trying to make something happen. Even with the interceptions, he's still one of the only glimmers of hope here right now.

This is the other worrying aspect of Kenny next to his hometown connections and whether he'd be properly judged by the team because of the yet to be proven worthy hype around him, he's not young. He's only one year younger than Burrow and Lamar.

He likely doesn't have much more room to grow talent wise.

I think his talent is fine. He needs to grow to adjust to the speed of the game, and I really think this offense is a poor fit for him.

Final thought:

Get the f***ing ball to Pickens!

Can you imagine a player like him being so rarely involved on any other team?

If Pickens is covered, he's open. Pickett just needs to start throwing it up to him. Bradshaw always said that about his receivers - just get the ball up there and let them go after it.

Great he drove us down the field twice at the end, not so great he threw very bad pics.

He did the same thing at Pitt. You have to take the good with the bad.

If the team keeps losing and they are faced with the potential of picking Stroud, that is not a war room I would want to be in.

Isn't it miraculous how Juju is suddenly a deep threat again?

That guy knew what he was doing for his career.

Andy Reid, another guy who just fills his team with quality posession receivers mixed with multiple burners.

Again, our OC doesn't know how to use the rookie they aren't playing and the rookie that is playing barely gets targets despite being rock solid all year.

I am a huge JuJu fan. I actually have always preferred him to Johnson, and I was in the minority. JuJu wasn't a #1, but I believe he is a good outside possession WR. JuJu with Pickens would be unbelievable.

It’ll change to “last year was his only losing season” followed by reasons why.

So it’ll still be beaten to death, at least next season.

If 8-8 isn't a losing season, it isn't a winning one either.

 

[Night Shift]

Mike(Never Had a Losing Record)Tomlin amirite

That's why Claypool is still here because he needs all hands on deck.

 

[xlm34]

I think this is team is going to be fine in the long run and could be back to competing for a playoff spot as soon as next year.

Canada needs to go and Pickett needs to work through some of his decision making issues, but I’ve been encouraged in some other areas.

They’ll have a decently high pick and a lot of cap space to fill some of their needs in the offseason.

 

[Mr Jiggyfly]

It would be hard to say because I always felt like the Steelers would take a guy like PIckett - older, seasoned, albeit maybe a bit less talented. That's all because Ben wouldn't play nice with a younger QB so he basically forced the teams hand to wait until he retired to draft his replacement.

Using hindsight, Ben was right. Every QB we ever took was a wasted pick and we should have just used those picks to build depth in the team while he was here.




I think Kenny is going to be a fine QB, but this offense isn't working for him either. Switch Canada and McDaniel and I think Pickett is in talks of ROTY. I keep coming back to that SF coaching tree with the players we have. I just think their offensive scheme fits this team so perfectly.

I'm not going to get upset with Pickett trying to make something happen. Even with the interceptions, he's still one of the only glimmers of hope here right now.



I think his talent is fine. He needs to grow to adjust to the speed of the game, and I really think this offense is a poor fit for him.



If Pickens is covered, he's open. Pickett just needs to start throwing it up to him. Bradshaw always said that about his receivers - just get the ball up there and let them go after it.



He did the same thing at Pitt. You have to take the good with the bad.

If the team keeps losing and they are faced with the potential of picking Stroud, that is not a war room I would want to be in.



I am a huge JuJu fan. I actually have always preferred him to Johnson, and I was in the minority. JuJu wasn't a #1, but I believe he is a good outside possession WR. JuJu with Pickens would be unbelievable.


If 8-8 isn't a losing season, it isn't a winning one either.

KP isn’t having issues tossing the ball around or going through his progressions.

They were throwing a lot at him last night and the last couple of drives he moved them right down the field.

I have little doubt he will be a guy that can toss the ball all around the field as he settles into being a pro.

I touched on this in the summer, but the issue with him won’t be if he can read defenses and work through his progressions, it will be if he makes critical mistakes in big moments - like last night.

Yinzer nation is turning on him already though, which was quite predictable.

If you are not emotional about it, it’s really a small matter right now.

- The first pick definitely wasn’t his fault.

- The second pick was really boneheaded, and you hope he learns from it, but again many guys just never do.

- The game ending pick was bad and I get why he didn’t run for the first, however. I also highly suspect DJ turned the wrong way, but it’s a scramble drill at that point and those plays require a lot of trust between QB and receiver.

Ultimately KP made a bad decision there and let’s be honest, he and his receivers had no chance to work together in training camp, so that lack of chemistry shows up at critical times like last night.

 

[Pens x]

I think this is team is going to be fine in the long run and could be back to competing for a playoff spot as soon as next year.

Canada needs to go and Pickett needs to work through some of his decision making issues, but I’ve been encouraged in some other areas.

They’ll have a decently high pick and a lot of cap space to fill some of their needs in the offseason.

Good, we can give even more money to Derek Watt and Gunner next season.

 

[Goalie_Bob]

I'm all in on Kenny playing the rest of the season because they need to find out what they have in him.

But I struggle analyzing him when it is obvious Canada doesn't know how to scheme and call a game. And the running game is crap, which is 25% offensive line and 75% Najee. I really like Kenny but his play has been extremely disappointing. As someone said earlier, he is playing ok but there are hardly any splash plays, or plays down the field. Also, it just seems like every throw is a struggle to make. Almost no YAC yards.

But again, it comes back to Canada. There are plenty of teams using a similar offense and they are successful. Just look at last night.

I don't know, I figured they wouldn't be good this year and they aren't, so the only thing to do is figure out if Kenny is the guy and get some of the other young players playing time.

 

[Colonel Mustard]

I'm all in on Kenny playing the rest of the season because they need to find out what they have in him.

But I struggle analyzing him when it is obvious Canada doesn't know how to scheme and call a game. And the running game is crap, which is 25% offensive line and 75% Najee. I really like Kenny but his play has been extremely disappointing. As someone said earlier, he is playing ok but there are hardly any splash plays, or plays down the field. Also, it just seems like every throw is a struggle to make. Almost no YAC yards.

But again, it comes back to Canada. There are plenty of teams using a similar offense and they are successful. Just look at last night.

I don't know, I figured they wouldn't be good this year and they aren't, so the only thing to do is figure out if Kenny is the guy and get some of the other young players playing time.

That is something we saw with mitch and even ben last year, all these short throws, no yac, barely any splash. Leads one to believe its a scheme and oc issue.

 

[Josey Wales]

I think this is team is going to be fine in the long run and could be back to competing for a playoff spot as soon as next year.

Canada needs to go and Pickett needs to work through some of his decision making issues, but I’ve been encouraged in some other areas.

They’ll have a decently high pick and a lot of cap space to fill some of their needs in the offseason.

You people say Canada needs to go, WTF Hired Him ????

 

[Night Shift]

You people say Canada needs to go, WTF Hired Him ????

Ooo I know....the circus.

And he fits right in.

 

[Mr Jiggyfly]

You people say Canada needs to go, WTF Hired Him ????

We all know Tomlin will never be fired so why even talk about it?

A real, legit NFL OC would make this less painful.

However, Steeler fans need to live in reality and understand this is how the process goes breaking in a rookie QB.

Roth was a massive exception and he was surrounded by greatness all around.

At least KP is seeing big time adversity early on and I think it’s a good thing.

If he can’t overcome it, probably time to worry, but it could take a couple of seasons to really find out.

Steeler fans get so emotional and it’s kind of comical to see them turning on him already.

 

[Double-Shift Lasse]

Last night I was 80% sure I was going to give KP a pass on the interceptions because he was trying to make a play and he's a rookie QB (I know he's 24 years old, that's why I said 'rookie' and not 'young'). I am up to 95 % this morning.

Would it be nice if he walked in and was good-to-great from jump street? Sure. But that was only ever a hope and shouldn't have been an expectation.

Was it disappointing in that the game was there to be won and he was moving the ball and then blew it? Also sure. I've said I can never, in the moment, root for them to lose. But I can see the case that losing might be a good thing for beyond this season.

Lastly, I was trying to make this post solely about KP and not the rest of the offense or, worse, about Canada. But it's hard knowing how much of any evaluation of the offense can be made without considering the coordinator. He is bad.

 

[xlm34]

You people say Canada needs to go, WTF Hired Him ????

He was a bad hire. Tomlin deserves blame for it and needs to fix it.

I’m not gonna sit here and say Tomlin is perfect but I’m also not gonna sit here and throw a hissy fit over him 50 times a day.

 

[Night Shift]

He was a bad hire. Tomlin deserves blame for it and needs to fix it.

I’m not gonna sit here and say Tomlin is perfect but I’m also not gonna sit here and throw a hissy fit over him 50 times a day.

No one ever said he (or anyone else) has to be perfect. He just isn't and never was the guy. He's in over his head and in the wrong line of work.

 

[Josey Wales]

He was a bad hire. Tomlin deserves blame for it and needs to fix it.

I’m not gonna sit here and say Tomlin is perfect but I’m also not gonna sit here and throw a hissy fit over him 50 times a day.

Who Hired Fichtner, Who ran off LeBeau & Arians ? & "Hired" Butler as DC when he ran the Defense & still does

 

[OnMyOwn]

I’m still a KP fan and think he can be a more than serviceable starter for a long time. I’m just also firmly on the side of possibly replacing him if we are picking top 5 and a generational type of talent is available.

From reports I’ve seen, this class is underperforming so I don't know if a guy like that truly exists, but you have to consider it, if so.

Yea we could get more o-line help with the pick or defensive help, but if we’re talking about potentially having a Maholmes or Allen for the next 15 years, that’s gotta at least be discussed.

 

[Jaded-Fan]

We all know Tomlin will never be fired so why even talk about it?

A real, legit NFL OC would make this less painful.

However, Steeler fans need to live in reality and understand this is how the process goes breaking in a rookie QB.

Roth was a massive exception and he was surrounded by greatness all around.

At least KP is seeing big time adversity early on and I think it’s a good thing.

If he can’t overcome it, probably time to worry, but it could take a couple of seasons to really find out.

Steeler fans get so emotional and it’s kind of comical to see them turning on him already.

And even if Tomlin were let go Rooney ain't going anywhere and he has been arguably as much of an issue with how the team has changed since his father was in charge.

As for KP, I was one of the first who spoke about how much I liked him. I have described in detail what I liked about him and how quarterbacks are being evaluated wrongly as they put way more emphasis on the wrong things.

And yet he is very very unlikely to be a generational game changer.

If you think that you are picking in the top five and in the position to grab what you believe to be one of those you do it and don't look back.

 

[JTG]

KP isn’t having issues tossing the ball around or going through his progressions.

They were throwing a lot at him last night and the last couple of drives he moved them right down the field.

I have little doubt he will be a guy that can toss the ball all around the field as he settles into being a pro.

I touched on this in the summer, but the issue with him won’t be if he can read defenses and work through his progressions, it will be if he makes critical mistakes in big moments - like last night.

Yinzer nation is turning on him already though, which was quite predictable.

If you are not emotional about it, it’s really a small matter right now.

- The first pick definitely wasn’t his fault.

- The second pick was really boneheaded, and you hope he learns from it, but again many guys just never do.

- The game ending pick was bad and I get why he didn’t run for the first, however. I also highly suspect DJ turned the wrong way, but it’s a scramble drill at that point and those plays require a lot of trust between QB and receiver.

Ultimately KP made a bad decision there and let’s be honest, he and his receivers had no chance to work together in training camp, so that lack of chemistry shows up at critical times like last night.

I haven't personally taken much exception to any interception he has thrown. I think with time, a lot of them will go away because of comfort and familiarity. The other interceptions have smacked his WRs off the hands and ended up in the arms of the opponent. I haven't found anything Kenny has done to be anything more than young guy learning the position. I find him far less offensive than Trubisky ignoring the middle of the field or just having poor feel in general for the position. I think Kenny will be a solid QB. With where this team is though, I think we could potentially be bad enough to have a top, upper echelon college QB fall to us a time or two before this is turned around. Is this front office riding with Kenny? Or say we lose from here on out and Stroud is sitting there, do they consider him?

I have touched on this before, but the thing I appreciate most about Kenny is how he handles himself in front of the media. He brings up his mistakes, tells us why they happened, and how he's going to rectify them and get better. His media training is perfection, in my opinion. He's good for the team and the city. I just don't know how much leash you give him if this team really sucks and we can start bringing in uber talented QBs.

 

[pistolpete11]

Barring a career ending/altering injury, there's almost no chance I'd draft a QB in the first round again.

1. There's no such thing as a can't miss QB. You might get the next Burrow, Mahomes, Allen, but you might get the next Mayfield, Tua, Jones, Darnold, etc. Even Lawrence, the best QB prospect since Luck, has been terrible. I'm not saying it's all his fault, but it just goes to show you that you can't draft a QB, even at 1OV, and expect it to fix everything.

2. This team has ignored O-line and D-line for far too long. Football has changed a lot, but it's still won and lost in the trenches. So instead of hoping a different QB can put lipstick on this pig, build a good team around Kenny and see what he can do. If he still falters, then QB is back on the table and (hopefully) you would be bringing a new QB into a much better situation than Kenny has been brought into....and yes I include the OC in that.

 

[JTG]

It is still way too early, but early glimpses of Kenny, I think he will be completely capable to backstop a winning franchise. That could obviously change very quickly, but if we get a good line and find a way to establish a running game, I think he can manage the game well enough to lead the team to victory more often than not.

 

[DanielPlainview]

Pickett has show flashes of being a really good QB. I say that as someone who was critical of taking a QB this past draft. Unfortunately I don’t think the Steelers are the place for him to get there. Being stuck in a bad offensive scheme kills promising careers

 

[JTG]

Just read a pretty damning stat - Canada has coordinated 25 games for the Steelers and his offense has only broken 20 points 5 times.

 

[xlm34]

Matt Ryan is getting benched. We’ve been really fortunate to see a decade plus of amazing QB play around the league.

You’re seeing it this year, but there’s going to be a lot of ugly a football outside of a few teams.

 

[xlm34]

A22 look at the last pick. Still a throw you can’t make but probably one he doesn’t once he gets more of a connection with Johnson.

It looks like there is a play to be made if he holds off on his throw another second or two.

 

[ChaosAgent]

Matt Ryan is getting benched. We’ve been really fortunate to see a decade plus of amazing QB play around the league.

You’re seeing it this year, but there’s going to be a lot of ugly a football outside of a few teams.

Ryan has been overrated for years. The Falcons record with him was terrible 4 straight years.

The immobile pocket passer is a dinosaur in today's game, with Brady as the only exception (and he's cooked this year, but the 2-3 years before this). The Colts will now surely realize it after their failed runs with Rivers and now Ryan.

 

[Buddy Bizarre]

Another silver lining.

The Steelers would have to win six of the remaining nine games to hit .500.

We never need to hear that stupid stat again.

And I win my avatar bet with Big Daddy