Well, the sun did come out today. This despite the Steelers 2009 season going down the toilet in a serious hurry. Thursday the team takes on the awful Cleveland Browns, but of course with the way the team is playing (or not playing), who really knows what to expect?
For now, there’s a lot of blame game being given around the Burgh these days, and here’s some people that should be on your list for being at fault for the recent letdowns:
1. Mike Tomlin – This is by far the most adversity that Tomlin has had to face in his short time as Steelers coach. He has been unable to get his team to finish games, and it’s been their downfall all season. Last week he talked about ‘unleashing hell’ in December, and it worked backwards in it was a motivator for the Raiders to pull the upset. Has he lost the team? Did he read too many of his own press clippings? It will be interesting to see if his latest promise of making lineup changes work at all.
2. Dick LeBeau – When the offense doesn’t step up, everyone wants to fire Bruce Arians. Now though, it’s the defense that has faltered and let the team down, yet I hear no one talking about wanting LeBeau out. Many feel that LeBeau belongs in the Hall of Fame for what he’s done as a coordinator, and I don’t disagree with that. Right now though, his defense looks like Swiss cheese.
3. William Gay and Ike Taylor – Both these guys have simply not stepped up at the corner spot this year, and each have had ample shots to make game-changing plays that could have sealed wins. Taylor is coming off his best year in 08 and looks like he can’t cover anyone. Louis Murphy made him look like a practice squad player Sunday. As for Gay, he’s been a terrible cover corner all year, and it’s time to get a look at another player at that spot.
4. Bruce Arians – Yeah, I know, the offense is basically doing their job. But enough of you have expressed displeasure in what Arians has done to the offense to deserve a spot on this list. Should the combo of Rashard Mendenhall and Willie Parker have more carries? Would that help the defense late in games? I can’t really say to much about the offense, as they scored 24 points against both the Chiefs and Raiders, and lost both, to me, that’s on the defense.
So give me your feedback, what is the reason for the second straight post Super Bowl letdown? Is it too late? If this team finds a way to win the last four, has Tomlin redeemed himself? To me, it’s a direct result of Tomlin, the injury to Troy Polamalu, and the lack of attention to detail like they had last December. Of course, there’s four games left to get it turned around. Or to finish the complete collapse of 2009.
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Spacemonkey
December 8, 2009 at 1:21 pm
We can’t sit on a lead because we’re throwing interceptoons in the end zone, and failing to chew up the clock. That’s Offensive Coordinator 101 type stuff that simply cannot be ignored, or YOU LOSE.
I feel like I’m trapped in the backseat of a car having a collision, and I’m forced in “groundhog day” fashion to re-enact the scene every weekend, over and over.
It’s great to be up by two scores – but you gotta chew up the clock and end the game! You can’t do that with the passing game, and you have two very, very, very good running backs that can take care of business watching the entire season (and another year of their lives) go down the toilet.
I’m not saying Steelers Ball(TM) must be the predictable three yards and a cloud of dust, but for crying out loud Bruce, when you’re first and goal on the 8 you RUN THE FREAKING BALL.
Bill
December 8, 2009 at 3:03 pm
Everything points to a lack of leadership on the defensve. On and/or off the field:
1) Loss of Foote, hailed as the leadership of the defense last year but let go in free agency. The mistake was looking only at Timmons from replacing his play, but what about his leadership> This plus losing McFadden is why Polamalu being out is hurting so much.
2) LeBeau and Tomlin are at odds. Just a hunch, but the team is acting like a group with no clear message from the top. My unsupported speculation is that Lebeau and Arians are at odds, and Tomlin is supporting Arians. Wouldn’t be surprised to see LeBeau go at the end of this year (though I hope its Arians instead!).
JJ
December 8, 2009 at 4:17 pm
o The STEELERS have had 231 points scored against them in 12 games in 2009. Of these, 28 points resulted from K/O runbacks and 28 from runbacks of interceptions. Meanwhile, the DEFENSE has SCORED 21 points. This leaves a “net” allowed by the DEFENSE of 154 points in 12 games, for an average of 12.8 PPG. Using the same analysis, during the 16 game 2008 season, that number was 13.1 PPG, virtually identical, despite the loss this year of Polamalu for a significant number of games. The defensive calls, for the most part, have been correct. Execution & lack of key players has been the problem. (Granted, the secondary needs work!)
What REALLY needs work, though, is the Special Teams, which is the worst in the AFC measured by the average yards per K/O runback (25.5 yds per runback). Even worse, these yards are being added on to what is usually a woefully short kickoff by Reed. Not to mention the unwilingness of the OC to use a “hurry-up” several times per game, despite Ben’s skill with that strategy! Don’t start blaming LeBeau!
In fact, get behind his Hall of Fame Election!! VISIT http://WWW.COACH2CANTON.COM to show your support!
chris
December 8, 2009 at 10:31 pm
JJ, Great statistical breakdown. I like it. Great support for your position, but it is not the average points per game that the defense is giving up that I am concerned with. Rather,it is more about the timing of the points given up. Too many times this season we have seen 4th quarter meltdowns. It is not just about the average of total points surrendered in a game. It is about coming up with the big time stop when you need it most. As for the special teams, absolutely inexcusable. No one can tell me that every other teams special teams players are that much better than our players. To me, it comes down to how much time is actually spent during the week dedicated to that other 1/3 of the team. It is more than just running 40 yards with a reckless abandon looking for the ball carrier. As for Lebeau, I agree. He was a genius last year, but now he is to blame? Not buying it. Its not like the league figured it out over the course of this off season. Look how long it has been around. When executed well, the zone blitz is a nightmare for opposing coaches.
DrGeorge
December 10, 2009 at 11:35 am
Statistics can be misleading. See Ed Bouchette’s article (Pittsburghpost-gazette.com today: 12/10/09) on how impressive statistics on both offense and defense have failed to offset sub-par (his word) performance this year. Note especially H. Ward’s insightful comments on breakdowns at crucial times and in key situations. It’s worth a look.
mark
December 8, 2009 at 5:31 pm
I think injuries and the fact that Gay is horrible and Taylor is a bit over-rated are the real culprits. Injuries are a part of the game and thats why depth is so important. In my opinion, a guy like Gay is just that.. depth. He is NOT a starter. When was the last time a CB for the Steelers actually had an INT? Its usually a SS or FS and sometimes a LB in coverage. Hell, Willie Williams,of course Rod Woodson,Chris Oldham,Dewayne Washington and Chad Scott at least had picks. A 3-4, zone blitz team and the CB have NO picks! Pathetic. As far as the offens and Arians, we would all like to see a grind it out running game like the one that closed out the Broncos, but this is a pass first team and the Steelers do pass well. Running would probably help the defense close out games but I dont care if its Franco Harris or Jerome Bettis or Rashard Mendenhall you cannot let a team like the Raiders drive 85 yards in under 2 minutes with the game on the line and score a winning TD!AT home no less! NO WAY! The defense needs changes and the secondary is first on the list. Troy makes a mediocre secondary better, but thats not good enough. Not with Harrison, Woodley,Timmons Farrior, Kiesel and Hampton in front of them.
DrGeorge
December 8, 2009 at 7:00 pm
Once again, I agree with everyone. One of the joys of this site is that the quality of analysis far exceeds the rant and invective on the others. I don’t like assigning blame, but my thoughts on this question parallel those of Bill and JJ above.
Teams don’t unravel like this one if there is firm direction from the top. I suspect that Tomlin, a defensive guy, was reluctant to interfere with the Arians-Roethlisberger love fest, especially after last year’s success. But when the team began losing and started to run the ball more (as we all hoped) a few games back, I saw Tomlin’s influence behind it. Arians disdains the run. He and Zeirlein built the line for pass blocking to protect Ben; team losses and O-line injuries have forced Arians to shift gears and start running with an O-line that lacks foot speed and insufficient reps at run blocking. Despite the improved production, the blocking schemes still need work and the execution is erratic at best. Arians unimaginative (predictable) play calling does not help either. The offensive strategy is flawed. Or to put it another way, on offense, Arians is the problem.
No so on defense. As JJ notes, the problems on defense can be solved with better talent. Aging and injuries have taken their toll, and Wm Gay did not deliver. Early on, LeBeau tried to skew his defensive schemes to cover the deficiencies of his CBs. (Could Taylor or Gay start anywhere else?) With the loss of Troy (coverage help) and Aaron Smith (lost QB pressure), the hidden deficiencies in short coverage became very visible. Unlike Arians, LeBeau knows what to do; he just doesn’t have the talent to do it. When the legendary combination of Gradkowski to Murphy can pick apart your defense, you know what the trouble is — and changing the coach won’t make the defensive talent better. Unfortunately, we’re going to lose a lot of defensive veterans after this season: Smith, Hampton, Townsend, Kirshke, with Farrior and Polamolu not far behind due to age and injury. One draft can’t fill all these holes, and the Steelers are historically reluctant to spend in free agency.
Tomlin and Kevin Colbert do not have an enviable task ahead of them. No matter who’s to blame or who gets fired, there is no quick fix in sight. But of our three units, the fix on defense must come first. As inconsistent as the offense is, it does score enough points to win and hand the defense the lead. Special teams coverage has improved lately, with the use of first string talent. With key changes on defense, the team can be competitive again, even this year. But it will probably take two years, maybe three, until we attain Super Bowl quality again.
chris
December 8, 2009 at 10:52 pm
Dr George, with all due respect, we ARE talking about the same personnel that went through an extremely difficult schedule last year with a strength of schedule that topped out as one of the highest in recent years only to come out as Super Bowl Champions. Now, you state that this same team has no quick fix in sight and we are now 2-3 years away from competing for a championship? OK, I get it. Some players are really underachieving. It happens. Poor execution. Bad play calling. Injuires. I don’t have the answers. We still have a franchise QB, our recent drafts have produced starters, if not pro bowlers in Miller, Mendenhall, Holmes, Wallace, Woodley, Timmons. We knew that this team, even as defending champs, still has flaws. The OL still needs time to gel and improve overall performance. We have an aging DL that also lost a key starter. Was anyone really that convinced that our secondary was not going to suffer without a stud like Troy? I know it is hard to believe right now but we are better off than most teams. I know we are all frustrated and we want to lay blame on someone, but please we are NOT 2 or 3 years away from competing with the likes of the Chargers, Bengals, Broncos and even the Colts for that matter. Are these teams 2-3 year projected trend that much higher than ours? I can’t agree despite what I am seeing this year.
Mike
December 8, 2009 at 11:06 pm
Winning and losing in the NFL is such a fine line. Our losses this year are because we have not made a play when needed. Last year, we made plays when we had to on offense and defense. Last years games against the Cowboys, Jaguars, Chargers and both Ravens games, hell all three Ravens games, and the Super Bowl, came down to us making a play on either side of the ball. This year, it has not worked out that way.
Our special teams play this year seems to be the biggest culprit the more I think about it. We lost to the Cheifs and Bengals because of kick returns.
I am still not writing this team off until they are officially eliminated. They might be wishful thinking but this team still has a lot of talent and experience. If they get into the tournament, how many teams would actually want to play the Steelers? If they start making plays, i feel like they will be tough to beat.
chris
December 9, 2009 at 6:41 am
Amen, Mike. I couldn’t have said it any better. This team rattles of 4 straight wins (I am aware it seems completely impossible to do at this point) and we are singing a different tune. I still won’t put that past this team with all they acomplished with this personnel and coaching staff.