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JuJu Smith-Schuster: A True #1 WR

wig said:
Can't argue that JuJu hasn't been getting a lot of catches/yards. But just wondering... how many targets did he get today? (hint... 2)

How many times did he draw coverage so Claypool or Washington was open? (hint, more than 2.) He's still contributing. Or would you rather he just left the team with no replacement. heck, let's just put Claypool out there with 9 linemen and Ben. Right?
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Ju Ju 4 targets 2 catches.
Claypool 4 targets 4 catches
Washington 7 targets 4 catches.

If the Steelers need to trade a player, Ju Ju might be the best fit, he's as good as gone in free agency,
 
Love JuJu, but where is he of late and his targets?
 
You guys are fixating on stats. 14 completions today for Ben to 7 different receivers, and you're butthurt JuJu didn't have 10 catches for 100 yards?

You are missing out on the single greatest year of Ben's career. He's getting the ball to everyone, he's not forcing the ball to anyone (aside from his terrible RPO decisions today), and he is efficient as hell.

14/22 163yds 1TD This looks like the line for a losing QB, not one that won by 30pts. Ben is back and better than ever, and guess what??? He had a QB sneak for a 1st down!!!

Real football isn't fantasy football. It isn't about stats, it's about wins. And right now, this team knows how to win in multiple ways.
 
Cope said:
You guys are fixating on stats. 14 completions today for Ben to 7 different receivers, and you're butthurt JuJu didn't have 10 catches for 100 yards?

You are missing out on the single greatest year of Ben's career. He's getting the ball to everyone, he's not forcing the ball to anyone (aside from his terrible RPO decisions today), and he is efficient as hell.

14/22 163yds 1TD This looks like the line for a losing QB, not one that won by 30pts. Ben is back and better than ever, and guess what??? He had a QB sneak for a 1st down!!!

Real football isn't fantasy football. It isn't about stats, it's about wins. And right now, this team knows how to win in multiple ways.
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31 pts... but otherwise spot on comment!
 
Cope said:
You guys are fixating on stats. 14 completions today for Ben to 7 different receivers, and you're butthurt JuJu didn't have 10 catches for 100 yards?

You are missing out on the single greatest year of Ben's career. He's getting the ball to everyone, he's not forcing the ball to anyone (aside from his terrible RPO decisions today), and he is efficient as hell.

14/22 163yds 1TD This looks like the line for a losing QB, not one that won by 30pts. Ben is back and better than ever, and guess what??? He had a QB sneak for a 1st down!!!

Real football isn't fantasy football. It isn't about stats, it's about wins. And right now, this team knows how to win in multiple ways.
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While you are correcting what you said, winning football games from the receiver position has to do a lot with big plays, yards accumulated and touchdowns scored, relative to the targets. Ju-Ju's star has been in decline since last year, though some of that could do with the QB play. I was sort of upset, not targeting him more when the game was out of hand yesterday.

At this point both Washington and Ebron are pretty reliable. Ju-ju's still at good #2 WR, but his days of being a clear #1 I think are over on the Steelers.
 
I dont think its a knock to call juju a complimentary piece. Teams aren’t built on all superstars... juju is productive in his role, but his role isn’t to be the main threat in the passing game... its to exploit mismatches when they arise... the steelers use him in the slot role a ton In his career. Often his size playing that role creates problems since the coverages for most defensive schemes don't often adjust for a larger Physical guys who aren’t TEs running those routes... we’ve exploited the physical wr against slot cover types probably more than anyone since ward was here...

Juju won’t always draw the top coverage guy or get safety help on his routes. He wont always be the top target in critical scenarios and he won’t even be the guy best suited to gameplan getting the ball to against every coverage schemes

But there will be games he is the best option, there will be schemes his traits Make him the logical go to guy, and there will be teams rolling coverage his way to open things up elsewhere

He is just a Very good part of a very good wr ensemble... He doesn’t need to be anything more...
 
Coach said:
Ju-ju isn't a featured #1 by himself. He needs someone really good on the other side for the defense to worry about to shine.

I do think he is a very good player though. It will be interesting to see how he does as Claypool continues to develop and Ebron gets a better understanding of hiss new team.

By now it should be obvious to everyone Claypool's size, deep speed and side line ability for 50/50 type of throws are greater than anyone's on the team. Though he's not played long enough to classified as a breakout star, he's got the tools to do it, and isn't too far from the label.
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Fairly obvious too that the Steelers can easily replace JJ's production in the draft. No need to pay big money for a #2 guy when there are plenty more where that came from.
 
Juju is a solid WR.. whether he is a 1 or 2, it doesn't really matter. That being said, this will be Juju's last year in Pittsburgh. I'm thinking we will see in an LA Rams uni next season.
 
mdk2 said:
Juju is a solid WR.. whether he is a 1 or 2, it doesn't really matter. That being said, this will be Juju's last year in Pittsburgh. I'm thinking we will see in an LA Rams uni next season.
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That totally depends on what Ben wants... if ben wants him here, they will find a way to make it happen...
 
I would love to see the Steelers get JuJu's juju back...

Make no mistake...they would also..
 
Cope said:
To be clear for everyone confused of what a #1 receiver is. It is largely created by media as a player that gets the most stats from a team. Could be an X, could be a Z, could be a Y (slot). On the Steelers the #1 is normally the X. Ward, Holmes, Stallworth, AB are all Xs and are perceived as the #1 receiver because they get the majority of the targets.

On this team, JuJu plays the Y. He's a big slot, which is a mismatch. The most important aspect of the '#1' reciever is who draws the coverage? Who gets double teamed or bracketed in coverage?

Right now, that player is JuJu. He took all of the coverage last year which is why DJ let in receptions and TDs, and Wash led the team in yards. JuJu was still the #1 because they didn't roll coverage to stop the edges last year, It was all bracket coverage from the middle of the D with LBs and Ss.

So this year the Steelers did a great job of picking up Ebron to split JuJu's coverage in the middle, since you just can't key on JuJu anymore. Claypool is feasting because of JuJu taking multiple players on his routes. Remember when Ben audilbled at the end of the game for Claypool's post route TD. He yelled to JuJu, saying you have the out. JuJu ran the out, his CB followed him and so did the center safety, leaving Claypool 1 on 1 with a LB. This is the aspect of the game a lot of you are missing when dismissing JuJu's value to the team. He's taking coverage and the rest of the team feasts. Now that Claypool had an insane game, look for the Browns to overreact to stop Claypool, and if they do, JuJu will have a BIG game.
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While JuJu might be considered a #1 in this offense, it's mostly in nomenclature only. AB held that position for several seasons, and yes, Brown drew coverage and opened things up for other receivers, including JuJu himself. Difference is, AB was still getting open and putting up monster numbers despite all of the double-teams. Smith-Schuster is not. After this week, he's down to 39 yards per game with an 8.4 average. Again, not what people think of when talking about a "true" #1 receiver.

And don't get me wrong, I'm not dismissing his value as a quality asset and great teammate...I just hope the Steelers don't make the mistake of paying him the kind of money that true #1s command.
 
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