Official Steelers thread

[longtimefan]

This for Oct 3rd game

 

[PackAttack12]

You never want to overlook opponents, but we're about to enter what I would classify as sort of a 'light' part of the schedule:

Steelers
@Bengals
@Bears
WFT
@Cardinals

That's about as pedestrian a stretch as you could really ask for. Need to win 4 of 5 at least before we get to the meat of the schedule.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

You never want to overlook opponents, but we're about to enter what I would classify as sort of a 'light' part of the schedule:

Steelers
@Bengals
@Bears
WFT
@Cardinals

That's about as pedestrian a stretch as you could really ask for. Need to win 4 of 5 at least before we get to the meat of the schedule.

The Cardinals and Bengals have played pretty well so far though.

 

[tynimiller]

Cardinals scare the crap out of me, Bears will always play us tough on the road and who knows when Pittsburgh actually wakes up...easiest game in the bunch is WFT in my opinion and even they put up points.

 

[Favre>Rodgers259]

I agree none of these games are easy. The Bears are probably the only "Easy" matchup depending on who's playing QB that game.

 

[Curly Calhoun]

I wonder if TJ Watt will be available against Green Bay....I hope he has another week in the tub.

 

[Dantés]

The Steelers' offense is fundamentally broken. Like the 49ers, they virtually never throw down the field. However, unlike the 49ers, their offense doesn't have the design or personnel to thrive on yards after the catch.

By my count so far, Roethlisberger is...

At or behind LOS: 31/38 (82%), 1 TD, 1 INT

1-5 yards: 25/37 (68%), 1 TD, 1 INT

6-10 yards: 10/17 (59%)

11-15 yards: 8/14 (57%), 1 TD

16-20 yards: 6/11 (55%)

20+ yards: 3/13 (23%), 1 INT

A few things jump out to me here:

1) Like the 49ers, a whopping 28% of the Steelers' pass attempts have been behind the LOS; 58% within 5 yards!!!

2) Roethlisberger's completion percentage drops to 49% if he's targeting beyond 5 yards.

This is just insane ineptitude.

And they can't rely on the running game either-- they're running for 3.2 YPC as a team.

The Packers should crush this team at home.

 

[Dantés]

The Steelers' offense has scored 4 touchdowns in three games.

 

[gbgary]

Ben's hung around two years too long.

 

[Favre>Rodgers259]

Let's trade Jordan for JuJu....I like it.

 

[PackAttack12]

Not insinuating these are 'easy' games, but they are games that, if the Packers play their best ball, you should absolutely expect to win 4 of 5 minimum.

 

[Schultz]

Hopefully the Pittsburgh game is not as easy as the Saints game was on the Monday before kick off.

 

[El Guapo]

These five games looked arguably different when the schedule was released. The Steelers are usually tough, but so far are playing terribly. The Bengals appeared to be a doormat but could be tough on the road. The Bears are a mess at QB, which I did not expect. Dalton seemed to add stability while they slowly worked in Fields. That plan has collapsed into a complete mess with injuries and the terrible play of their OL. Washington also appeared tougher after their 2020 season, at least on the defensive side. The Cardinals....are who we thought they were - a rising team with a legit QB who knocked it out of the park in free agency. I could see losses on the road to Cincinnati and Arizona, but am with PackAttack12 that we should pull out of this stretch with 3-4 wins. I am hoping for five of course.

 

[El Guapo]

On a side note, the CFO of the firm that I do work for is a huge Steelers fan. He lives in Pittsburgh, we regularly talk football and hockey, and we were looking forward to this matchup. The conversation stopped after their loss this weekend. I can't step on a guy's neck while he is down...unless it is deserved.

The Steelers injuries, especially on the defensive side, have really hamstrung that team. Then there is the offense.

 

[Sanguine camper]

Roethlisberger has had monster games against the Packers defense in the past. The special teams and defense usually have enough lapses to make even the most pedestrian offenses look good. Anybody who thinks Pittsburg will be easy hasn't watched the Packers defense and or special teams over the past decade. No lead is ever safe. That said, I expect Rodgers to rise to the occasion and lead the offense to score enough times to eke out a win.

 

[Dantés]

Roethlisberger has had monster games against the Packers defense in the past. The special teams and defense usually have enough lapses to make even the most pedestrian offenses look good. Anybody who thinks Pittsburg will be easy hasn't watched the Packers defense and or special teams over the past decade. No lead is ever safe. That said, I expect Rodgers to rise to the occasion and lead the offense to score enough times to eke out a win.

Have you watched the Steelers' offense recently?

I'm not sure you're understanding just how badly things have fallen apart.

 

[OldSchool101]

We just went up against a playoff caliber team at their house and beat them. I don’t think the score depicted the overall feel of that game. It should’ve been a 2 score W on the road. GB just put up 30 points against a good Defense. We also stalled at the 1 yard line on another drive.

We tend to play at a higher level at home (like many other teams) If we continue our ascension a few more weeks we’ll get Bak and Z back and I say we can compete with anyone.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

Roethlisberger has had monster games against the Packers defense in the past. The special teams and defense usually have enough lapses to make even the most pedestrian offenses look good. Anybody who thinks Pittsburg will be easy hasn't watched the Packers defense and or special teams over the past decade. No lead is ever safe. That said, I expect Rodgers to rise to the occasion and lead the offense to score enough times to eke out a win.

The defense actually played pretty well against the Niners though. In addition the Steelers offense has been absolutely terrible so far this season.

 

[Krabs]

I wonder if TJ Watt will be available against Green Bay....I hope he has another week in the tub.

Yes, Watt is playing against the Packers. What I wonder is if Jenkins will be available to help contain him.

 

[Krabs]

The defense actually played pretty well against the Niners though. In addition the Steelers offense has been absolutely terrible so far this season.

Nothing that a little Packers defense can't fix.

 

[Curly Calhoun]

Yes, Watt is playing against the Packers. What I wonder is if Jenkins will be available to help contain him.

Watt is a beast...ditto Jenkins.

 

[red4tribe]

This will be Rodgers' first time playing Pittsburgh since the Super Bowl. He missed the 2013 and 2017 games with his collarbone injuries. Hard to believe that the Super Bowl eleven years ago now.

 

[El Guapo]

Yes, Watt is playing against the Packers. What I wonder is if Jenkins will be available to help contain him.

All that I have seen (from yesterday) is that Watt and Schuster are "scheduled to practice" this week. My guess is that both will be decided on Saturday.

 

[PackAttack12]

The Steelers will play desperate. They need a win in the worst way to keep their season alive due to them being in far from a weak division. Cleveland and Baltimore will both be double digit win teams, so the Steelers cannot afford to drop to 1-3.

I do think though that Roethlisberger being a stationary QB with almost no mobility will greatly work to the benefit of the Packers. I see them pressuring quite a bit, and the backend will make a lot of big plays. I think the Packers will win the turnover margin by at least 2.

Though I expect a lot of fight in the Steelers, I just think they're going to be a little overmatched in this one. The Packers have sort of caught their stride and if they don't get overconfident (which I can't see happening given that they still remember getting pantsed in week 1), I could see a pretty convincing win.

I'll be interested to see the Steelers injury report later on today. They have been super banged up on defense.

 

[Krabs]

All that I have seen (from yesterday) is that Watt and Schuster are "scheduled to practice" this week. My guess is that both will be decided on Saturday.

Yes, that is true. I was listening to a local guy interview a Steelers beat reporter and he was saying that Watt was most likely ready to go. So, I am assuming in this case. Maybe something goes wrong and he tweaks it again. I'm wagering he is a go.