Judge Smails
Footballguy
Impressive grit by the Steelers to finish the way they did. Props to Tomlin. Still has to fire Canada. They have to shore up the O-Line as always but they have pieces to be a way better offense going forward.
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2023 Pittsburgh Steelers. Banged up team loses to Buffalo. Looking ahead to 2024 now (11 Viewers)
- Thread starter Godsbrother
- Start date
And to add to this:
Some fan bases are clamoring for Sean Payton and some team might give up a #1. He's had I think 5 losing seasons and worst of all when the going got tough he quit.
Sean McVay is about to do the same thing. Going is tough, talent cupboard is bare, losing seasons so he's just going to quit.
We got a coach who does not have losing seasons. Who does not quit and run when things get rough.
I don't know if this was his best coaching job or not, it might be, but I know I've never respected or been more appreciative he's the coach of the Steelers as I am right now.
Personally I think you are both right. He showed some good things down the stretch but Drunken Cowboy spoke no lies. The sailing of the balls seems like a major issue.
Also the 2 concussions seem to be glossed over to some extent but Tua had 3 and people are acting like he's mulling retirement.
And speaking of his concussions I sure hope he can find a cooler looking helmet set up. I'm not joking. I get player safety and need to wear that helmet but examine something with a different facemask, face shield, something. That's the lamest look in the league for a QB, it actually bothers me.
But back to PIckett. My guess is he's serviceable. Will fall somewhere in the young Dalton, Cousins type of range over next few years. That's not bad on a rookie deal and a bit of a waste of time talking about years down the road but for a chunk of this year my main worry with him is that he'd get a fat extension in a few years and we'll be looking at average for maybe next decade plus. It's a bit depressing to think about it.
belljr
Footballguy
I wouldn't say classless but definitely definitely didn't think it through. Obj cpr a ball, Tyreek hill was given fake cpr. It's in the freaking Madden game. All this obviously do e prior to the events that occured Monday
I don't think this was done in a mocking way but definitely poor judgement
I don't think this was done in a mocking way but definitely poor judgement
Agree and not going to rush to judgment and would guess it was one of two things:
1. Had zero to do with Hamlin and he just was not thinking it through, just caught up in moment and never put two and two together.
2. I think it's 1 but if it's not my guess is it's a really misguided way to honor Hamlin's recovery, docs, etc,etc.
Again, my guess is it's 1.1 and Hamlin was not remotely on his mind.
Steelers4Life
Footballguy
Say what you want about this year, but he's still a coach who has 3 playoff wins in 12 years since the core of talent he inherited started moving on. Those 3 wins were all against backup QBs, and his teams gave up 40+ in both of his last two home playoff game losses.
They finished well this year, but also lost at home to the Jets, Patriots, and Ravens without Jackson, and sloppy play cost them a possible win in Miami. You take the good with the bad, but his teams consistently lack discipline and he has next to no coaching tree after all this time.
He's not going anywhere anytime soon, but he'd have been fired years ago in almost any other organization based on the last decade because his "standard" has become a solid to good regular season team that will get overmatched if they manage to make it to the playoffs.
Godsbrother
Footballguy
I thought he looked pretty good down the stretch.
Godsbrother
Footballguy
Yeah Steelers should fire the bum and replace him with…. (Please fill in the blank)
Leeroy Jenkins
Footballguy
So what pick do we get? Amazing we have #32 for Claypool.
fred_1_15301
Footballguy
Isn’t it 33?
Someone forfeited a pick right?
5-ish Finkle
Footballguy
Meh.
Joe had a single good game vs. a pretty middling Cleveland defense in week 2 sandwiched between two high-yardage totals in weeks 1 and 3, vs. the Ravens and Bengals respectively, where the Jets let him put the ball up over 50 times each game (his YPA was particularly disgusting in those two, and he had 3 interceptions to a single TD). The Jets also got spanked in both those contests.
He wasn't beating the Dolphins (or anyone, most likely) this week.
fred_1_15301
Footballguy
He can improve on accuracy IMO. He showed some intangibles by coming up clutch when needed. I feel it’s still hard to evaluate him because the play calling was so horrendous.
Ghost Rider
Footballguy
I still chuckle at the idea that lack of a coaching tree is a mark against Tomlin (or any other coach). How many of Belichick's assistant coaches have went on to become successful NFL head coaches...?
Tomlin is one of the top NFL coaches. Yes, his lack of playoff success is glaring, but his record speaks for itself at this point. Getting this team to 9-8 feels like a minor miracle.
Tomlin is one of the top NFL coaches. Yes, his lack of playoff success is glaring, but his record speaks for itself at this point. Getting this team to 9-8 feels like a minor miracle.
Steelers4Life
Footballguy
Yeah, I get it. That's always the response. Who'd be better? That's not my job to figure out.
But, I (and a LOT of others) look at the success Tomlin has had and feel that a lot of coaches could've walked into that situation and had a lot of immediate success with an inherited core of talent followed by almost none in the past 12 years.
I'd rather they try to find a better option and fail than accept thst what he's given us in the past decade plus is good enough to meet the standard he preaches about.
Steelers4Life
Footballguy
Its just another piece of the puzzle, not a huge one.
Sorry, but if you only look at his past 12 years, he wouldn't likely be employed by any organization OTHER than the Steelers, regular season success or not. He built up his repuation early, and hes been coasting as a solid regular season and awful playoff coach for way too long now. The Steelers have now missed the playoffs 3 of the past 6 years and haven't won a playoff game since 2016. Hey, at least he gives good quotes.
crushedspirit
Footballguy
And some will be excited with the 7-2 down the stretch, and claim Tomlin is God once again. This is the issue, and why this team will never leave mediocrity with this current staff.
Team went from a bottom feeder before the bye that couldn't beat anyone, to a mid tier after the break that showed they can hang with other mediocrity. Now guess what, they went 1-2 vs playoff teams down the stretch, (both in their division), and could only beat a Huntley-led Raven team once.
Wake me up when they can go toe-to-toe with any top tier team outside their division. In the meantime, let's celebrate another mediocre finish, and extend Tomlin for more of the same.
Team went from a bottom feeder before the bye that couldn't beat anyone, to a mid tier after the break that showed they can hang with other mediocrity. Now guess what, they went 1-2 vs playoff teams down the stretch, (both in their division), and could only beat a Huntley-led Raven team once.
Wake me up when they can go toe-to-toe with any top tier team outside their division. In the meantime, let's celebrate another mediocre finish, and extend Tomlin for more of the same.
Godsbrother
Footballguy
I didn't realize the expectations for the Steelers were so high coming into the season.
So what would a good HC have done with this team? A playoff victory against the Bengals, Bills or Chiefs?
So what would a good HC have done with this team? A playoff victory against the Bengals, Bills or Chiefs?
TampaMike19
Footballguy
It's almost as if it takes 3-5 years to rebuild once your franchise QB that you've spent crazy cap space on as well as other team contracts are out the door
fred_1_15301
Footballguy
Cowher was also winning with scrubs at QB for much of his time here.
crushedspirit
Footballguy
Highest paid defense in the NFL.
I don't expect much personally because I know better, but celebrating mediocrity is not my thing, especially since it's been the norm in Pittsburgh for 5 years running, even when there was a HOF QB in place. Unless some meaningful changes occur on the coaching staff, I also expect mediocrity next year, which might include a one-and-done playoff repeat.
I don't expect much personally because I know better, but celebrating mediocrity is not my thing, especially since it's been the norm in Pittsburgh for 5 years running, even when there was a HOF QB in place. Unless some meaningful changes occur on the coaching staff, I also expect mediocrity next year, which might include a one-and-done playoff repeat.
steelers1080
Footballguy
The Steelers were projected to win 7.5 games this year and won 9, they definitely over achieved for the talent they currently have. If not for stupid mistakes and using the wrong personnel the Steelers could have had 3-4 more wins which seems crazy with all the "holes" we have. Tomlin did a great job being able to get to 9-8 after the way the team started, Vegas was predicting 5.5 wins or less at one point, but he's also partially to blame for the slow start.
He has issues with in-game coaching including time management, challenges, and being too conservative. I.E., punting when down by 2 scores very late in a game, kicking field goals when down by a TD when Boswell hasn't been kicking well, etc. In the Browns game he missed an opportunity to challenge and get a TD early when Najee wasn't down. They rushed to the line to try and get the TD and fumbled 2 plays later. With a team that usually scores in the teens, a missed TD is huge. Glad it didn't end up biting us in the ***.
As for personnel, going with Pickett over Mitch those first few games might not have turned into more wins, but it sure feels like it. Also, it's obvious that Najee was hurt the first half of the season. using him when he was playing poorly over a healthy Warren was not the right move. Najee at 60% just wasn't good enough, he should probably have been on short term IR so he could get fully healthy quicker. Hindsight is 20/20, but it was obvious to almost anyone that Najee looked real slow during those first 8 games.
I was hopeful before the season that Mitch having sat for a year in Buffalo could be as good as a washed up Big Ben, but I knew I was wrong almost immediately. So, before the season I was hoping for the playoffs, but after weeks 2-3 it didn't look likely. For how the first half of the season went, the 2nd half was a success and at least let us know we don't need to draft a QB in this draft.
Pickett did airmail a few balls this game, like 5+ ft over the head of the receivers. That happened 3-4 times, but he also hit WR/TEs in the hands a few times for drops. Every QB has off-target throws in a game unless they're on fire, even Mahomes, Allen, Prime Brady. Big Ben used to love throwing it into the dirt at people's feet, it just happens. What you have to hope for is that when it comes to 3rd down or the 2 min drill, they can turn it on and be clutch. Over and over yesterday, Pickett was able to convert on 3rd down by putting the ball where his receivers/Heyward could make plays. It wasn't always perfect (though sometimes it was) but the catch could be made without risking an INT.
Is Pickett the answer for the next 10+ years, no clue. But he showed enough to be given another chance.
He has issues with in-game coaching including time management, challenges, and being too conservative. I.E., punting when down by 2 scores very late in a game, kicking field goals when down by a TD when Boswell hasn't been kicking well, etc. In the Browns game he missed an opportunity to challenge and get a TD early when Najee wasn't down. They rushed to the line to try and get the TD and fumbled 2 plays later. With a team that usually scores in the teens, a missed TD is huge. Glad it didn't end up biting us in the ***.
As for personnel, going with Pickett over Mitch those first few games might not have turned into more wins, but it sure feels like it. Also, it's obvious that Najee was hurt the first half of the season. using him when he was playing poorly over a healthy Warren was not the right move. Najee at 60% just wasn't good enough, he should probably have been on short term IR so he could get fully healthy quicker. Hindsight is 20/20, but it was obvious to almost anyone that Najee looked real slow during those first 8 games.
I was hopeful before the season that Mitch having sat for a year in Buffalo could be as good as a washed up Big Ben, but I knew I was wrong almost immediately. So, before the season I was hoping for the playoffs, but after weeks 2-3 it didn't look likely. For how the first half of the season went, the 2nd half was a success and at least let us know we don't need to draft a QB in this draft.
Pickett did airmail a few balls this game, like 5+ ft over the head of the receivers. That happened 3-4 times, but he also hit WR/TEs in the hands a few times for drops. Every QB has off-target throws in a game unless they're on fire, even Mahomes, Allen, Prime Brady. Big Ben used to love throwing it into the dirt at people's feet, it just happens. What you have to hope for is that when it comes to 3rd down or the 2 min drill, they can turn it on and be clutch. Over and over yesterday, Pickett was able to convert on 3rd down by putting the ball where his receivers/Heyward could make plays. It wasn't always perfect (though sometimes it was) but the catch could be made without risking an INT.
Is Pickett the answer for the next 10+ years, no clue. But he showed enough to be given another chance.
Godsbrother
Footballguy
I don't think recognizing a job well done this season is celebrating mediocrity. The Steelers came in with low expectations: uncertainty at the QB position, horrible offensive line, injured lead running back and then quickly lost their best player for the bulk of the season.
To be relevant in week 17 after a 2-6 start was in large part due to a good coaching.
some here disagree and that's fine.
To be relevant in week 17 after a 2-6 start was in large part due to a good coaching.
some here disagree and that's fine.
steelers1080
Footballguy
In the draft we have the Bears 2nd round pick which is pick 32 this year because Miami lost their 1st due to tampering.
So we have picks 17, 32, and either 48/49 idk which. We have the same record as the Lions so sometimes you switch back and forth in later rounds.
So we have picks 17, 32, and either 48/49 idk which. We have the same record as the Lions so sometimes you switch back and forth in later rounds.
crushedspirit
Footballguy
Nobody denies Tomlin is a good regular season coach, which is what he is known for. He did a good job this year to bring the team from bottom tier before the bye, back to the mid tier where they belong. People forget that's the highest paid D in the NFL, and where most of the late season wins vs mediocrity came from. Watt returning played a huge part in it, as was the line finally getting back to last year's level of run blocking. The play calling is still neanderthal in nature, but that's what Tomlin wants and believes will get them far. I don't believe that gets you far in the AFC, let alone any closer to a SB.
I for one believe this is the peak for him, with maybe a one-and-done playoff appearance thrown in again starting next season. That is where I agree to disagree with Tomlin fans, and that's fine.
I for one believe this is the peak for him, with maybe a one-and-done playoff appearance thrown in again starting next season. That is where I agree to disagree with Tomlin fans, and that's fine.
Steelers4Life
Footballguy
The turnaround from 2-6 had a LOT to do with Watt coming back the defense playing up to expectations. Having Watt, Heyward, and Minkah all healthy was fun to see.
If people want to focus on a turnaround this year and commend Tomlin for it, that's fine. He didn't lose the team whenn they were down and the team relied on a very highly paid and impactful defense to win some games against a lot of teams this year that were equally mediocre or worse. They fared poorly this year against good competition aside from the win against the Bengals in week 1.
But it's not just about this year. And it's not just because they started Pickett and Trubisky. He had Ben every year of his tenure with the Steelers until this year, and that hasn't prevented the Steelers from being mostly an afterthought for over a decade.
Every year people come up with reasons to give Tomlin a pass... never any pressure, never a hot seat, never any indication that his act is wearing thin and there needs to be more than a "non-losing" season to meet expectations. When is the bar going to be raised again?
Zero playoff wins since 2016, three since 2011. His non-losing season steak is fun and all, but it's meaningless when it never leads to anything in the playoffs. His reputation is way bigger than it should be pased on his track record.
If people want to focus on a turnaround this year and commend Tomlin for it, that's fine. He didn't lose the team whenn they were down and the team relied on a very highly paid and impactful defense to win some games against a lot of teams this year that were equally mediocre or worse. They fared poorly this year against good competition aside from the win against the Bengals in week 1.
But it's not just about this year. And it's not just because they started Pickett and Trubisky. He had Ben every year of his tenure with the Steelers until this year, and that hasn't prevented the Steelers from being mostly an afterthought for over a decade.
Every year people come up with reasons to give Tomlin a pass... never any pressure, never a hot seat, never any indication that his act is wearing thin and there needs to be more than a "non-losing" season to meet expectations. When is the bar going to be raised again?
Zero playoff wins since 2016, three since 2011. His non-losing season steak is fun and all, but it's meaningless when it never leads to anything in the playoffs. His reputation is way bigger than it should be pased on his track record.
Steelers4Life
Footballguy
Bingo.
I'd rather the Steelers at least TRY to find a more imaginative coach, or one with a priority to hire better assistants to bring the team forward. Even if they miss, Tomlin isn't that guy and he's proven what he is. He's consistent, and a perfectly average NFL coach, and that's exactly what the Steelers have become on his watch, too.
He had tons of early success by walking into a dream situation. He took over a team that was 2 years removed from a SB and 3 years removed from a 15-1 season, and only went 8-8 because of Ben's motorcycle accident. How many other coaches would've been just as good for those first 5 years? And how would he be thought of without those first 5 years?
steelers1080
Footballguy
Offseason Predictions:
- Steelers keep Matt Canada.
- I hate this and think he should be let go, but at every turn players and Tomlin have stuck up for him. I think he's too predictable and that he can't manage a red zone offense at all. 20, 14, 17, 20, 3, 20, 10, 13, 20, 30 (garbage time), 24, 19, 14, 24, 13, 16, 28. We only scored 30 pts once and it was in garbage time, and we scored less than 21 points 13 times. The Bears scored above 30 points 3 times. The offensive players have made mistakes, and there were plays where players were wide open and Mitch/Kenny didn't see them, but our offense is not good enough and the OC bears blame for that. There are a handful of interesting options available that I think would be an instant upgrade.
- Steelers cut Mitch Trubisky, Gunner Olszewski, William Jackson, and Akhello Witherspoon
- Cap savings of $8 mil, $2 mil, $12.75 mil, $4 mil. $26.75 mil total.
- The William Jackson contract is disputed between different sources, but the most common thing I see is if he's cut before his $2.75 roster bonus in March, then we owe him nothing. I would not be shocked if he was cut and re-signed or just signed to a new contract due to the Bromance between him and Tomlin. Also, he's good in man coverage but horrendous in zone, and we play a lot of zone, so imo this would not be a good scheme fit.
- Salary cap anticipated to be $220+ mil. These cap savings would have us at $183.25 mil, or ~$37 mil available (including for rookie contracts).
- Steelers will try to re-sign Mason Rudolph, Benny Snell, Miles Boykin, Steven Sims Jr, Zach Gentry, Robert Spillane, Cam Sutton, Terrell Edmunds, Damontae Kazee.
- I think in the end Mason will try to leave but not sure if he gets more $$ or opportunity elsewhere. I think Snell and Boykin are brought back for special teams & depth. Sims is a dart throw since he could be backup returner to Calvin Austin, but we also need to round out the WR corps and he should be cheaper than Gunner and supplanted his return duties. Gentry should be a no brainer cheap signing. Spillane will probably be brought back to rotate in at ILB, but they could move on if the plan is to draft ILB to pair with Jack and Robinson.
- Cam Sutton might be priced out of what we can/should afford. Regret not signing him to a longer term deal now.
- I think that one of Edmunds/Kazee is re-signed, but would really like both to be re-signed at relatively cheap contracts. Edmunds is still often out of position on passing downs when he's covering WRs, he's better at TEs, but he has continued to show improvement over the last 2 years. Kazee has been that 3rd safety we've needed for a long time. He's made a few mistakes down the stretch, but he missed the first half of the season due to injury. Having a 3 safety rotation would be excellent.
- These signings would probably use most of our available cap space, ~$27 mil at least.
- Steelers draft CB / OL / WR with our first 3 picks, not necessarily that order. I think ILB and DL could definitely be in play but that we go WR over them. Dotson and Moore did improve somewhat over the final handful of games, but they were still consistently beaten. During the first 1/3 of the season Dotson looked like the weaker link, but in the 2nd half of the season he has looked better than Moore. We need to upgrade the left side of our line, but G or OT is probably going to come down to BPA. Wallace and Sutton have been decent, but 3rd CB is a liability and Sutton could be gone.
- WR is the dark horse early pick since we lack depth behind Diontae and Pickens and just traded away Claypool. There's also decent talent at WR in this draft. Would be mildly surprised, but not shocked if Steelers went WR in the 1st. Teams with mediocre O-lines have still found success with excellent WR corps.
- CB is a big need and I'm half expecting Porter Jr. to be announced as our 1st round pick.
crushedspirit
Footballguy
Have to respect those detailed posts @steelers1080
Well thought out, and I agree on many of those changes for 2023. CB is a bigger need that's been neglected somewhat over the years, as has been the OL. Hope they finally hit on those spots in the draft.
Well thought out, and I agree on many of those changes for 2023. CB is a bigger need that's been neglected somewhat over the years, as has been the OL. Hope they finally hit on those spots in the draft.
crushedspirit
Footballguy
Heck, I would be all over a new offensive coaching hire with some ingenuity and QB friendly, but I know it won't happen.
This is the offense Tomlin wants, and Matt Canada is running it the way coach MT wants it run.
steelers1080
Footballguy
I think part of the cause has been poor injury luck for Tomlin's Steelers (not all, but part of the reason). I don't think we ever got to see Ben, Bell, and Brown together in the playoffs for a run. The OT dagger by Tebow still hurts, and the whooping that the Jags put on us is seared into my memory.
I think it's a 3 part problem that could be fixed with Tomlin as head coach:
- I think part of the problem is that Tomlin needs more checks and balances to be the best coach he can be, and I'm not sure Omar has the authority to do that. He needs an assistant specifically to provide input for clock management, challenges, and in-game analytics. His challenge record is horrible and he needs someone on key plays to keep an eye on the monitor and tell him when to throw the flag. His clock management is not good when we're down in the 4th quarter. If we're down 2 scores with less than 10 min left, the team should be operating with some kind of urgency, not bleeding the clock with 2 yard runs. Lastly, he often makes decisions that are too conservative to win games, like punting late when down by 2 scores, kicking FGs when TDs are needed, not going for it on 4th down, etc. He needs someone to at least have the authority to say, you really should do X here based on the analytics, to fight his conservative gut calls.
- Omar picks an OC replacement that has almost full control of the offense. Tomlin has chosen poorly at least the last 2 times, we need the decision to be taken out of his hands. There's good, young, innovative coaches available, let's go get one. Run-Run-Pass-Punt or Sweep-Run-Pass-Punt is getting old.
- Get Tomlin a true NT. This might sound odd, but when the Steelers had a true run-stuffing NT, Tomlin's teams were at their best. Alualu was playing at a dominant level before his injury and helped propel the Steelers on their ridiculous undefeated streak. Hargrave was a beast inside with Tuitt and Heyward and kept opponent's run games on lock down. Casey Hampton locked the middle down and helped the Steelers reach 2 Super Bowls under Tomlin. I think that to run Tomlin's type of team we need to be able to shut down the opponent's run game in clutch situations when they're trying to run out the clock in the 4th quarter. A team relying on defense is going to be in a lot of 1 score games and needs to be able to have that last possession. As @Drunken Cowboy said, Ika might be one of our picks this draft, he's the top rated NT.
HellToupee
Footballguy
I have much more optimism heading into 2023 than into 2022
steelers1080
Footballguy
Rumors that Cam Heyward could be let go because of his cap hit. That would be a huge, huge mistake. It would save ~$10 mil against the cap, $12 mil dead cap hit. If anything he's still improving year over year. I'm not sure how long he plans on playing, he's 33 now and we have him signed for 2 more years. At this point I would be much more interested in extending him 2 more years and smoothing out that cap hit with potential outs after 2 years. He's the heart of this team and cutting or trading him would be worse than spending a 1st round pick on a running back. This isn't the same as when Polamalu was retired by the Steelers at 33. His play had been declining and we had to move on.
Heyward graded out as one of our best players, and one of the league's best defensive players. Cutting him to get $10 mil to sign a worse player is dumb. Our team is very young overall and we need some legacy players, especially if they're top 5 at their position...
Heyward graded out as one of our best players, and one of the league's best defensive players. Cutting him to get $10 mil to sign a worse player is dumb. Our team is very young overall and we need some legacy players, especially if they're top 5 at their position...
crushedspirit
Footballguy
Your first two points are bang on, but we all know Tomlin will not relinquish the control he has unless Rooney steps in. This offense has his imprints all over it. I guarantee he couldn't wait for Ben to leave so that he could garner more control, and build the offense to be more ball control like we saw down the stretch.
steelers1080
Footballguy
It would help if the Steelers weren't bottom 3rd the last 2 years in rush yards per attempt. You can't have a ball control offense AND a bad running game.
Godsbrother
Footballguy
True but there was a marked improvement over the second half. There is still work to do on that offensive line, especially on the left side, but there is hope they could have a decent running game next season.
Ministry of Pain
Footballguy
Where is the fan base with Kenny Pickett?
Is this a guy you want to go deep into Years 2 and 3?
Would you fault the Steelers if they drafted another QB in perhaps another Rd after the 1st? It's a deep QB draft and there will be gifts that fall down the board.
Curious NFL fan
Lot of good information posted by several of you, fills in a lot of blanks.
Is this a guy you want to go deep into Years 2 and 3?
Would you fault the Steelers if they drafted another QB in perhaps another Rd after the 1st? It's a deep QB draft and there will be gifts that fall down the board.
Curious NFL fan
Lot of good information posted by several of you, fills in a lot of blanks.
Sunday Gravy
Footballguy
Was in Pittsburgh a couple of weeks ago visiting my wife's family and almost all the yinzers I spoke to were very much behind him. Lots of confidence. And from what I recall the confidence in Big Ben after his rookie season wasn't as high.
I think the Pitt connection has a lot to do with it. He's "their guy".
efactor
Footballguy
No shiot
The first pick of the 2nd round is a big thing. Everyone gets to reevaluate after the first round and Steelers will probably get some nice offers for the pick.
steelers1080
Footballguy
We're going to cut Mitch and Mason probably doesn't want to be a Steeler anymore after having 0 shot to compete. Therefore we have to sign or draft a QB to be the backup. Would not be surprised if the Steelers drafted one to save $$ against signing a backup.
Kenny could be the long term answer, I think some people are already 100% on board, and others are 100% convinced he sucks. He's been ok, and he has shown signs of improvement. If he continues to grow he could develop into a top 10 QB (possibly) but I don't think he can be a top 5 guy. If he's able to dial in the deep ball and improve his consistency, then he could approach top 5, but I'm not sure he can.
I think more likely is that he's top 15 and when his rookie contract ends there are some tough decisions to be made.
fred_1_15301
Footballguy
I'm pretty sure expectations were through the roof for Big Ben after what we saw from his play.
They were, his recall on that one was a bit off.
steelers1080
Footballguy
He went undefeated in starts during the regular season his rookie year. He made the AFC Championship. Great team around him but expectations were sky high.
People just remember prime Ben and try to apply that to Kenny.
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