Iron City South
12-08-2009, 09:26 PM
My fellow Americas ... Steeler fans around the world,
People see things differently on the field and it's clear that we have a varying array of opinions on what needs to happen to fix this team. Here are a few of my thoughts and basic observations over the course of the past 6 weeks:
1) William Gay does not have the cover skills to be a starter in this league. He's a nickle back ... at best. Ray Horton should be fired for allowing anyone to think Gay was ready to be a starter and that the impact of cutting McFadden and Anthony Smith wouldn't be felt.
2) James Farrior, as much as I love what he brought to this team over the years, is now a liability in pass coverage. This position needs upgraded. Fox is an stopgap upgrade at this point, but long-term .... it needs an upgrade.
3) Spaeth is a worthless POS and should not be on this roster. He's not good at run blocking and he's worthless and ineffective at pass catching.
4) Essex is the weakest link on the O-line. I would like to see Legursky and Foster developed at this point and I would also like to see the Steelers consider drafting a high round Center as an upgrade to Hartwig. I have no big issues with Hartwig, but let's be honest, he's not even close to the franchise greats that that Steelers organization is known for such as Webby and Dirt ...
5) Tyrone Carter is a backup FS and has shown to be a pretty damn good one. However, Clark has no business playing Safety .... not even emergency duty.
6) Ike Taylor is playing lazy and unmotivated. Too much Swaggin. Steeler fans have a tendency to talk Ike up more than what his cover skills have shown. He has zero ball awareness and his hands are an embarassment. Bottom line, our best CB is "Average" at best. That's not saying much for our depth at position.
7) Ryan Clark is much better with Troy Pola on the field. Clark is a true renegade player. He does what he does ... Yes, he tries far too hard to set-up a knock-out blow and turn people's lights out, but I like Clark. You just have to accept him for who he is.
9) Deshea Townsend may be a smart player, but at his age .... smart is no substitute for speed. Townsend is now too slow to be considered any type of playmaker. Our secondary is in desperate need of "playmakers" Once again, Deshea even making the roster is very telling to how bad our depth at position is.
10) Ben Roeth may be hailed for being the best "sand lot" baller in the game, but Ben does not play smart. Courageous Yes. Smart no.
Note to Arians: That crafty little play called the 4 second handoff isn't very crafty or effective. You know the one ... wher Ben snaps the ball, holds it away form his body for about 4 seconds waiting for his RB to come around to take it. The play itself feels like it takes about 30 seconds to unfold. As far as Ben's development is concerned, I personally think Ben needs someone (QB Coach) to bust his balls and challenge him. Sure, Ken Anderson may be a nice guy, but I see Anderson as Ben's yes man ... someone to comfort and coddle his every wish. Sorry, that's bullshit! Ben needs a whip to jump on his ass and work him. Whipple filled that role nicely because he didn't give a shit if Ben got pissed at him at times. I think Ben reponds better to this style of coach.
11). Arians play formations suck ass - Putting 3 WR's on the field and then keeping 2 of them close to the LOS is stupid. Little bodies trying to block big bohemoth bodies is a recipe for disaster. It's a matchup we consistently lose.
12) Bob Ligashesky must be fired and the entire ST's philosophy must be changed. Blow it up .. .and start anew.
I'll close by saying Tomlin is very much to blame for many of the things that just didn't go right with the team this year. I'm not saying he should shoulder all of the blame, nor am I implying he should be fired or punished in any way. He's young and on a learning cuve himself. But it's very evident this is a team that has not be coached well in many areas of the game this year and it's his job is to identify that ... and correct it .. QUICKLY. He didn't ... so now heads must roll so that he can regain control and command clear respect from his players. :2cents:
That is all. God Bless the Steelers, and God Bless the United States of America .. :tt02:
As you were ...
People see things differently on the field and it's clear that we have a varying array of opinions on what needs to happen to fix this team. Here are a few of my thoughts and basic observations over the course of the past 6 weeks:
1) William Gay does not have the cover skills to be a starter in this league. He's a nickle back ... at best. Ray Horton should be fired for allowing anyone to think Gay was ready to be a starter and that the impact of cutting McFadden and Anthony Smith wouldn't be felt.
2) James Farrior, as much as I love what he brought to this team over the years, is now a liability in pass coverage. This position needs upgraded. Fox is an stopgap upgrade at this point, but long-term .... it needs an upgrade.
3) Spaeth is a worthless POS and should not be on this roster. He's not good at run blocking and he's worthless and ineffective at pass catching.
4) Essex is the weakest link on the O-line. I would like to see Legursky and Foster developed at this point and I would also like to see the Steelers consider drafting a high round Center as an upgrade to Hartwig. I have no big issues with Hartwig, but let's be honest, he's not even close to the franchise greats that that Steelers organization is known for such as Webby and Dirt ...
5) Tyrone Carter is a backup FS and has shown to be a pretty damn good one. However, Clark has no business playing Safety .... not even emergency duty.
6) Ike Taylor is playing lazy and unmotivated. Too much Swaggin. Steeler fans have a tendency to talk Ike up more than what his cover skills have shown. He has zero ball awareness and his hands are an embarassment. Bottom line, our best CB is "Average" at best. That's not saying much for our depth at position.
7) Ryan Clark is much better with Troy Pola on the field. Clark is a true renegade player. He does what he does ... Yes, he tries far too hard to set-up a knock-out blow and turn people's lights out, but I like Clark. You just have to accept him for who he is.
9) Deshea Townsend may be a smart player, but at his age .... smart is no substitute for speed. Townsend is now too slow to be considered any type of playmaker. Our secondary is in desperate need of "playmakers" Once again, Deshea even making the roster is very telling to how bad our depth at position is.
10) Ben Roeth may be hailed for being the best "sand lot" baller in the game, but Ben does not play smart. Courageous Yes. Smart no.
Note to Arians: That crafty little play called the 4 second handoff isn't very crafty or effective. You know the one ... wher Ben snaps the ball, holds it away form his body for about 4 seconds waiting for his RB to come around to take it. The play itself feels like it takes about 30 seconds to unfold. As far as Ben's development is concerned, I personally think Ben needs someone (QB Coach) to bust his balls and challenge him. Sure, Ken Anderson may be a nice guy, but I see Anderson as Ben's yes man ... someone to comfort and coddle his every wish. Sorry, that's bullshit! Ben needs a whip to jump on his ass and work him. Whipple filled that role nicely because he didn't give a shit if Ben got pissed at him at times. I think Ben reponds better to this style of coach.
11). Arians play formations suck ass - Putting 3 WR's on the field and then keeping 2 of them close to the LOS is stupid. Little bodies trying to block big bohemoth bodies is a recipe for disaster. It's a matchup we consistently lose.
12) Bob Ligashesky must be fired and the entire ST's philosophy must be changed. Blow it up .. .and start anew.
I'll close by saying Tomlin is very much to blame for many of the things that just didn't go right with the team this year. I'm not saying he should shoulder all of the blame, nor am I implying he should be fired or punished in any way. He's young and on a learning cuve himself. But it's very evident this is a team that has not be coached well in many areas of the game this year and it's his job is to identify that ... and correct it .. QUICKLY. He didn't ... so now heads must roll so that he can regain control and command clear respect from his players. :2cents:
That is all. God Bless the Steelers, and God Bless the United States of America .. :tt02:
As you were ...