Chattin’ Thread for the Week of August 20

Posted on August 19, 2012 by ryan

Alright nerds, training camp is over and we’re nearly halfway through the preseason. (I’m posting this on Sunday afternoon to also serve as the Colts-Steelers game thread. Dear Lord, please don’t let there be any injuries. Thanks in advance.) Feel free to share your thoughts on the Sunday night get-together, who played well, who didn’t, how the roster is shaping up and the guys on the bubble…

Related posts:

  1. Chattin’ Thread for the Week of August 13
  2. Chattin’ Thread for the Week of August 6
  3. Chattin’ Thread for the Week of Oct. 3
  4. Chattin’ Thread for the Week of July 30
  5. Chattin’ Thread for the Week of Aug. 15
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  • Eric

    So much for no injuries… the game hasn’t even started and Sylvester is out a month:

    http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/sports/steelers/steelers-sylvester-out-with-torn-knee-ligament-649647/

    • http://www.facebook.com/randy.steele.583 Randy Steele

      I wonder what James Farrior is doing… seriously.

      • Eric

        Not a bad idea.

        I saw today that the Bills are cutting Merriman and actually thought… “Maybe they should work him out?”

  • Intropy

    What a terrible opening drive. Rainey nearly got decapitated then Roethlisberger threw one right to Larry Brown.

  • Intropy

    Nice double block by Batch on that TD.

  • Intropy

    Stone hands with the grab! Pressure helped that one along despite some holding on the online.

    • Intropy

      Oh and Keisel all the way down field as an escort. I thought Luck was going to force Keisel to block him for a moment.

  • David

    Ike…caught…the…ball…OMG!

    • Eric

      He shouldn’t have wasted his one catch/year allowance in the preseason!

  • Intropy

    Luck makes a funny rookie mistake and slides short of the goal line on 4th down.

  • Intropy

    This sucks. I think the Colts’ starters are a bit better than the Steelers’ backups.

  • Cols714

    I love that the Steelers best play was a WR screen. Fire Arians1!!!

  • http://www.facebook.com/randy.steele.583 Randy Steele

    My most vivid impression of this game was the stadium, or I should say, the seats, which were shockingly empty. I know it’s pre-season, but hey, this is Pittsburgh!

  • Cols714

    Sounds like Wallace is back. If I was an NFL player this is exactly what I would do. Miss all of the off season workouts and training camp, but stay in shape and then come back with just enough time to be ready for the season.

    Nice play Mike. Now hopefully they can get a longer deal done sometime.

    • http://www.steelerslounge.com/ ryan

      Yep, I have no problem with this. It’s basically what the Chargers did with Tomlinson every year except he was in camp. I was originally concerned that Wallace might be behind in Todd Haley’s new scheme but since the Steelers are primarily running the ball and throwing screens he’ll be fine.

  • http://www.facebook.com/randy.steele.583 Randy Steele

    If you haven’t already seen this, see it (Black and Yellow version). It’s a hoot-and-a-half.
    http://www.youtube.com/user/EASPORTS

  • EasyLikeSundayMorning

    The PPG reported that our QBs have been sacked 10 times in 53 drop backs so far. This is more than two times the rate Ben has been sacked in recent years, and he “leads” the league in this (according to the stats NBC showed in the Colts game). This is especially bad since we’ve only completed one deep ball and the Ds tend to be more vanilla in preseason.

    Adams and Beachum have each been beaten one-on-one several times against non-elite rushers. So the ideas that Adams ready to start or that Beachum is good enough to beat out Foster for a roster spot seem like wishful thinking at this point.

  • Cols714

    I’m totally down with Rainey making the team instead of a 5th WR as you guys suggested in the podcast. I like Batch and he seems ideally suited for the 3rd down role until Mendenhall gets healthy. I think we need Dwyer because Redman is injured. We don’t need one of these scrub WR to make the team. They can easily go to the practice squad. If we cut Rainey or Batch, they are probably gone.

    Not that it really matters I guess. Whenever we obsess over players we cut they don’t end up doing anything. Remember Thad Gibson? Or that CB from last year (I don’t even remember his name).

    So
    QB (3)- Ben, Leftwich, Batch
    RB (5) Redman, Mendenhall, Batch, Dwyer, Rainey
    WR (4) Wallace, Sanders, Brown, Cotchery
    OL (9) Starks, Colon, Pouncey, DeCastro, Gilbert, Legursky, Adams, Foster, Essex
    TE (4) Miller, McCoy, Saunders
    CB (4) Taylor, Lewis, Allen, Brown
    S (5) Polamalu, Clark, Mundy, Allen, Goldon
    LB (9) Harrison, Timmons, Foote, Woodley, Spence, Carter, Worilds, Sylvestor, Robinson

    DL (7) Hood, McClendon, Keisel, Hampton, Heyward, Taamu, Woods
    ST (3) Rookie kicker, Kapinos, Greg Warren

    I know the new kicker probably won’t make the team, but I really am sick of watching Suisham.

    I need one more guy, does Pope make the team and McCoy is strictly a fullback?

    • Eric

      Will Johnson as the fullback

      • Cols714

        So no McCoy, but Johnson as FB and Pope as 3rd TE? That would work.

        • http://www.facebook.com/randy.steele.583 Randy Steele

          I’m very curious about Worilds’ status. There have not been any reports that I have found that note he’s making progress.

          His injury is said to prohibit his left wrist from “hinging.” I’m not quite sure what that means, but it’s not difficult to imagine.

          How does he work out? How is he staying in condition? He’s not practicing, so what sort of condition can he be in? Even if he’s in good shape, that doesn’t mean he’s in “game shape.” And time is running out.
          Really, can anyone reasonably expect him to be ready to play in three weeks? And when he does play, I’ve read that he will need to wear some sort of brace around his wrist. So how effective can he be?

          • Rob D

            I think the answer is…not very effective. Shaq had the same problem with his shooting wrist for FT’s..couldn’t make the proper finish and apply backspin to the ball.
            I would think that injury would be a huge impediment to a pass rusher…no? Hands are kinda important.

          • Cols714

            I think Worilds is a lock. He looked pretty good last year, had 3 sacks. He’s really athletic, I’d keep him for this year and then he has to earn his way on next year. But with Harrison looking like he’s not going to be James Harrison for much longer it’s worth keeping Worilds.

            That being said, next year’s 1st rounder might just be his replacement.

          • Rob D

            Yep. I’m already there with that idea. Harrison’s replacement will probably have to come from the draft.Unless you think Carter (who I like more than Worilds) or Worilds is the answer which I don’t.
            We really could use a relatively healthy James Harrison THIS year ..I’d go as far as to say it’s the single most important variable keeping us in title contention. Unless we find another pass rusher somewhere or somehow I guess.

    • Intropy

      QB (3) Roehtlisberger, Leftwich, Johnson
      RB (5) Mendenhall, Redman, Dwyer, Rainey, Batch
      WR (5) Wallace, Brown, Sanders, Cotchery, Gilreath
      OL (8) Starks, Colon, Pouncey, DeCastro, Gilbert, Legursky, Adams, Foster
      TE (4) Miller, Johnson, Saunders, Pope
      CB (4) Taylor, Lewis, Allen, Brown
      S (5) Polamalu, Clark, Mundy, Allen, Golden
      LB (9) Harrison, Timmons, Foote, Woodley, Spence, Carter, Worilds, Sylvester, Robinson
      DL (7) Hood, McClendon, Keisel, Hampton, Heyward, Ta’amu, Woods
      ST (3) Suisham, Butler, Warren

      Frederick and Golden are close. Golden has shown more, but I think a 5th CB is more needed than a 5th safety, even considering the opener altitude.

  • bengt

    Is Todd Haley really that dumb:
    ‘“If we can win every game running it 35-40 times, that would be great,”
    Haley said. “Statistically, if you hand the ball off 30-plus times in a
    game, you’ve got a 90-plus percent chance of winning.”’
    or is this the kind of stuff he only says to enemy press?
    http://bostonherald.com/sports/football/other_nfl/view/20220822steelers_rb_dwyer_providing_stability_in_backfield

    • http://www.steelerslounge.com/ ryan

      There’s no way Haley believes that. At least I hope he understands how causality works. Whatever, based on that Cards’ offense with Warner, I’m inclined to believe that the 2012 offense won’t look much different in terms of run-pass ratio than previous versions. Plus: more screen passes!

      • Eric

        I am actually really excited about the possibility of screen passes.

  • http://www.steelerslounge.com/ ryan

    Well, this is weird as hell: Steelers can Al Everest. No idea what happened but I can only hope Skippy Reed gets the job.

    • Rob D

      Very strange…un Steeler-like in fact. Have to believe its something personal between him and the employer and not just ST’s play/lack of progress/ almost blocked FG’s…lol

      • http://www.steelerslounge.com/ ryan

        Right, this. Strictly speculating but by all accounts, Everest’s teams were much better than Ligashesky’s so he almost certainly wasn’t canned for his job performance two weeks before the start of the season.

    • David

      Kaboly on the Trib-Review speculates that it’s a “philosophical” difference. Yeah, right. It’s got to be some sort of violation or transgression. No team fires their coach once camp ends, right?

  • Cols714

    So DeCastro is done for the year?

    • David

      Looks like it. Bleacher Report is saying its both an ACL and MCL injury. Damn.

  • David

    Now Shefter is reporting torn MCL, dislocated kneecap, but ACL OK.

    http://espn.go.com/nfl/trainingcamp12/story/_/id/8304333/sources-pittsburgh-steelers-guard-david-decastro-torn-mcl-acl-intact

    Another site said torn MCL means 1/2 season missed minimum (while ACL means entire season). Damn-damn.

    • Eric

      Sigh. I was really looking forward to an actual NFL offensive line.