Troy Polamalu won’t be around to make the big hits on Thursday night, but don’t just assume that it will once again be Ryan Mundy out there looking to take his spot.
Mundy may be the best option after Polamalu, but his tendency to lay down helmet to helmet hits has started to catch up with him and the team.
Sunday vs Philly he had a 15-yard penalty for a helmet-to-helmet just two plays before the Eagles first score which made it 10-7, and then he was beat by Eagles tight end Brent Celek for a touchdown that gave Philly a 14-13 lead.
The decision to sit Mundy could mean more playing time for veteran Will Allen, and Mike Tomlin indicated Monday that could be the direction the team goes.
Mundy has been bad in pass coverage, and that could lead to him taking a seat and Allen getting playing time – despite the fact he’s played in just two snaps the whole season.
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Black&gold4life
October 8, 2012 at 9:12 pm
Mundy is a big hitter but terrible in space..May the best man win! SMH that’s not saying much though
Steelerjig
October 8, 2012 at 9:48 pm
This could really work with play time
DrGeorge
October 9, 2012 at 4:35 pm
My colleagues above have it right.
Mundy has struggled in coverage since he arrived, and long term, he is not the answer at Safety. Will Allen is not Troy P. reincarnated, but he is 6-1 and 200 and fast enough. He’s earned his shot. With a little experience, he might prove up to the task, and the Titans don’t have the weapons to exploit his inexperience. Allen will do all right.
I had hopes for Cromartie-Smith when he first arrived; he is fast and has good instincts. But he has failed to develop coverage skills as quickly as I had hoped. With Troy’s career coming to an end, we can anticipate that Colbert will try to find a successor to him in free agency or the draft next year; someone who is taller and heavier than Allen, in order to do battle with the league’s taller receivers, especially in the red zone. Or Ike Taylor could be moved to Safety to extend his career if there is a shut-down corner available to replace him. I’m sure Colbert is already working on the solution.
Black&gold4life
October 9, 2012 at 8:17 pm
I agree 100% on everything the Dr said..My hope is they get a vet. I’m not big on drafting high round picks and letting them sit for 2years at key positions hoping they develope on time. I like the idea of Ike moving to safety, but who’s gona replace him? Lol I’m really not feelin no one left on that roster to be a #1 CB or a #2 for that matter. Let’s just hope Troy can finish out his contract healthy after he returns! What are those odds??
George H
October 10, 2012 at 11:50 am
Been busy with school so I havent been able to post this week yet, but….
Doc, you say Allen has earned his shot to start. Usually I agree with you, but I dont think Allen has earned his shot; I believe its Mundy’s inability to perform that allows Allen his chance to start. We have to keep in mind that Allen really isnt anything more than a special team player and thats for a good reason. Hopefully Im wrong and Allen has a great game against Tennessee, but I do have some concerns.
I dont mind the idea of Taylor switching to safety next season if a replacement CB can be found. I suspect/pray that the steelers address their off-season the way they addressed the o-line last year. Taylor is making too many mental mistakes at CB and cant really cover the deep ball, Lewis and Allen both are having big trouble defending the intermediate routes and will consistently get beat on an out route or a comeback route. The one positive is that they can always get better. We saw it last year when we were all calling for William Gay’s release, myself included, but he got better as the year progressed and formed into a decent CB.
There is absolutely no doubt that the FO has to address the secondary this off-season though. The first 2 rounds of the draft should be CB and Safety. Our safeties are getting old and Troy cant stay on the field. I’d like to see the Steelers maybe sign a safety in the FA to a mid-level type contract and use the 1st pick on a CB and the second on either a replacement for Harrison or Wallace, depending on their situations.
After watching the game Sunday I took away a few points:
1. Its great having Mendy back and Redman is a great compliment back, probably not an everyday back though. I still would like to see more of Dwyer and would definitely like to see Rainey lined up in the slot or maybe a bubble screen to him. One theory I have about Rainey… perhaps were still not using him as much because were “hiding” him to unleash some new looks against Baltimore… just a thought.
2. Cant stay healthy… to me it is absolutely ridiculous that our best defenders constantly get hurt. I understand that football is a physical game and injuries happen to everybody, but its crazy how often it happens to our team with key players. Its a trend that continues to happen. I’m thinking it might be the preparation during the week that are causing these calf and hamstring injuries. Tomlin needs to take a look into that in my opinion and hopefully alter his teams conditioning
3. Preparation and discipline!!! When a team comes off a bye week their first few drives should never look as sloppy as they did. Our offense should of looked like a well-oiled machine right out of the gate. Also it is ludicrous that this team is getting flagged so frequently. Again, thats just not on the players, the coaching has to have their guys prepared and ready. Colon had a bunch of huge penalties that negated a lot of positives. I would of pulled him after that 4th flag and chew him out. This is not just from an angry fan either. Who here doesnt think Cowher wouldnt of been standing on the sideline, chin out, pointing his finger for Colon to come to him and get a spit shower? The proper measures need to be made!
4. Linebackers: Timmons was a monster, great game. Great having Harrison back, it doesnt take a genius to tell that hes still a force. It sucks seeing Woodley hurt again but Worrilds came in and played well. A freind and I were discussing a possible scenario if Harrison is to leave. Perhaps start Woodley in Harrison’s spot and let Worilds take over Woodleys. He looked like a much better player from the right side rather than the left.
All in all a big win despite blowing another 4th quarter lead. Minus a few big drops by the WRs, the game went as expected for me. Lets hope we go out there on Thursday night and take care of business.
DrGeorge
October 10, 2012 at 1:48 pm
Welcome back, George H. Always good to hear from you. But school comes first. Hope all is going well for you.
I would only add this thought to your insightful comment: our secondary would look better if our front seven could get to the QB faster. Of our recent draft picks on the D-line, only Heyward is working out. McLendon and Hampton are both getting blown out of the middle, often by just one blocker. Hood remains at best a journeyman. Keisel has been a great player, but he now suffers the nagging injuries that come with age. We need more disruptive players on the D-line, and more sacks. I expect Colbert to draft speed rather than size at DE and at LB next year to address the problem. As I’ve written before, it will take more than one year to rebuild this D, and our personnel decisions must be adapted to the new demands of the pass-happy NFL rules.
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