Offensive Problem Summed up in One Sentence

[tapeANaspirin2it]

The 2 least reliable players DJ and Claypool are getting the most targets.

That's it right there. There are other factors of course but everything comes back to the 2 guys they are forcing the ball to are not making plays. There need to be an immediate re-shuffle of the deck.

They need to be on DJ's *** all week with film study. He has too many games under his belt now to make so many mental errors.

Claypool needs to be flat out told to stop being so soft. You are bigger than any DB. When that ball is in the air it is your job to go up and get it, not to wait for it to softly drop into your breadbasket.

 

[SteelBuckeye]

 

[Sarge]

Throw it to Freiermuth more. How bad must Washington be to be stuck behind Claypool and DJ?

 

[Punxsutawney]

What I don't understand is why Juju's role in the offense is not bigger than it is.

He has the best hands, runs the best routes and is hard to tackle after the catch.

He showed his first two seasons that he can play outside and make plays down field.

I'm not sure if using him exclusively as an inside possession receiver is in the team's best interest, with Claypool and DJ ******** the bed as much as they are.

 

[steelreeling]

The 2 least reliable players DJ and Claypool are getting the most targets.

That's it right there. There are other factors of course but everything comes back to the 2 guys they are forcing the ball to are not making plays. There need to be an immediate re-shuffle of the deck.

They need to be on DJ's *** all week with film study. He has too many games under his belt now to make so many mental errors.

Claypool needs to be flat out told to stop being so soft. You are bigger than any DB. When that ball is in the air it is your job to go up and get it, not to wait for it to softly drop into your breadbasket.

i just cannot disagree with this statement.

 

[steelreeling]

What I don't understand is why Juju's role in the offense is not bigger than it is.

He has the best hands, runs the best routes and is hard to tackle after the catch.

He showed his first two seasons that he can play outside and make plays down field.

I'm not sure if using him exclusively as an inside possession receiver is in the team's best interest, with Claypool and DJ ******** the bed as much as they are.

Let me ask you this... exactly WHAT is the Steeler's offensive identity right now? Cause i don't know what it is.

Golden JET! Golden JET! Golden JET!

 

[Ironcitysteelers]

I’d change that sentence. “We didn’t change **** from last year, and are doing the same bs which stacks the box until we are behind.”

 

[Skott]

What I don't understand is why Juju's role in the offense is not bigger than it is.

He has the best hands, runs the best routes and is hard to tackle after the catch.

He showed his first two seasons that he can play outside and make plays down field.

I'm not sure if using him exclusively as an inside possession receiver is in the team's best interest, with Claypool and DJ ******** the bed as much as they are.

Tomlin is a moron

 

[SteelerSask2]

I'd say square peg round hole. Ben is trying to run an offense like he is 32. Or with a real line. They are stopping the run and pressure with 4 or 5 man pressures. Yet I sit there and yell at the screen for 2 plus hours" check it down to Harris" the first time he does it's like a 20 yard td. You can blame DJ and Claypool here but c'mon. It isn't like Ben is shot or anything. He just refuses to stay ahead of the chains.

 

[KStilley]

And what makes this alarming is Washington definitely isn't resigning and JuJu is probably gone as well.

 

[Drink IRON City]

The 2 least reliable players DJ and Claypool are getting the most targets.

That's it right there. There are other factors of course but everything comes back to the 2 guys they are forcing the ball to are not making plays. There need to be an immediate re-shuffle of the deck.

They need to be on DJ's *** all week with film study. He has too many games under his belt now to make so many mental errors.

Claypool needs to be flat out told to stop being so soft. You are bigger than any DB. When that ball is in the air it is your job to go up and get it, not to wait for it to softly drop into your breadbasket.

Claypool............. High-point and ******* Combat catch.!!! James washington is twice the combat catcher than Claypool. JUGGs machine with a defender on him, defender isn't going after the ball but after Chase to toughen him up. Practice against ruffians and you will become one and that's what chase clay[poool needs right about now.




Salute the nation

 

[Punxsutawney]

Let me ask you this... exactly WHAT is the Steeler's offensive identity right now? Cause i don't know what it is.

Golden JET! Golden JET! Golden JET!

It's really hard to determine given the poor play in so many areas.

Ben has more left than many think. He can still make all the throws, though not quite as consistently as he once did.

He's now at the point where he needs more help around him, and it just isn't there.

The running game may be at the bottom of the league again, and their two most talented WRs cannot be counted on to consistently run the right route or catch the ball.

 

[SteelerFan448]

I don't agree with the premise of this post. DJ is the Steelers best receiver, which is why he gets the most targets. He's the only guy on the roster who can consistently create separation and he's done a much better job catching the ball this year. Claypool just doesn't use his size well enough yet. He misses way too many big plays, including one today.

Count me in with Punx as to why the Steelers don't use JuJu differently. It gets old watching him catch 4-yard passes every game. And for how much we hear how reliable Washington is, what does he do on his only target? Drops it. He is another guy who doesn't consistently make plays when given the chance.

 

[Drink IRON City]

What I don't understand is why Juju's role in the offense is not bigger than it is.

He has the best hands, runs the best routes and is hard to tackle after the catch.

He showed his first two seasons that he can play outside and make plays down field.

I'm not sure if using him exclusively as an inside possession receiver is in the team's best interest, with Claypool and DJ ******** the bed as much as they are.

Change Deonte Johnson and JuJu's role. Switch them two in position on the field and in the role they play and see what happens. I bet both become more productive. Claypool needs to go over the middle as well, occasionally.

Most importantly BEN needs to see the check downs, something he seems to ignore.





Salute the nation

 

[SteelerSask2]

It's really hard to determine given the poor play in so many areas.

Ben has more left than many think. He can still make all the throws, though not quite as consistently as he once did.

He's now at the point where he needs more help around him, and it just isn't there.

The running game may be at the bottom of the league again, and their two most talented WRs cannot be counted on to consistently run the right route or catch the ball.

He has all the weapons he needs. He doesn't have a very capable line. Now some might think they would pressure him. But that is not what is happening. They are bringing minimal pressures and flooding the field knowing he wants to push it. They are in way too many third and longs. There was one where he stepped up into the pocket. Harris was directly in front of him. He would have got 6 yards. He refused to throw it and got tripped for a one yard loss. You have to stay in front of the chains. You can't keep chasing on third down. It's math. I ****** knew it was gonna look like this. They pushed the chips in one too many times.

 

[bermudasteel]

It might be time to sit Ben. Love him always; but he cannot move in the pocket (very well) and he still doesn't throw the ball away to save a sack/hit...

Yeah, get your tomatoes and cast them at me but I'm watching all the young guys score TD's at will---we always start slow and we do not scare anyone w/ this offense.

 

[SteelerFan448]

The offense's problem is the OL stinks. So many said "it can't be worse than last year." Well, they are. Much worse.

In order to be successful on offense this season, it was essentially the Steelers could run the football. Roethlisberger isn't going to do it with his arm anymore and he resembles more of the last 6 games version of himself than the early 2020 season version that put up a lot of points. The team assumed Harris alone would fix the running game and they were clearly off on this evaluation. They should've rebuilt the offensive line first to set up the next QB.

 

[SCSteeler4life]

I agree with most of what’s been said. Bad thing is DJ is the only one that creates separation. JuJu seems to have a hard time doing that. They need more plays to get JuJu open since he seems to be the most reliable. I just wish he was better at creating space by himself.

 

[Punxsutawney]

He has all the weapons he needs. He doesn't have a very capable line. Now some might think they would pressure him. But that is not what is happening. They are bringing minimal pressures and flooding the field knowing he wants to push it. They are in way too many third and longs. There was one where he stepped up into the pocket. Harris was directly in front of him. He would have got 6 yards. He refused to throw it and got tripped for a one yard loss. You have to stay in front of the chains. You can't keep chasing on third down. It's math. I ****** knew it was gonna look like this. They pushed the chips in one too many times.

There is still basically zero running game

You cannot expect the passing of a 38-year-old QB with worn out legs and a reconstructed throwing elbow to be your ONLY offense each week, but that's what we've had since last season.

I think Ben has enough left to win another championship in a balanced offense, but the line is nowhere near good enough for that to happen.

 

[SteelerFan448]

There is still basically zero running game

You cannot expect the passing of a 38-year-old QB with worn out legs and a reconstructed throwing elbow to be your ONLY offense each week, but that's what we've had since last season.

I think Ben has enough left to win another championship in a balanced offense, but the line is nowhere near good enough for that to happen.

Harris has 32 touches through two games. Only 26 rushes. He is a back who will get better with more carries. For a team so committed to improving the ground game, I'm surprised they haven't tried to get him 20 carries in a game yet.

 

[SteelBuckeye]

So tired of the "separation" argument. What good does it do if a WR creates separation but runs the wrong route or drops the ball? I'd take JuJu and his little to no separation "just get me the ball and I'll catch it" over DJ running free and dropping the ball/running the wrong route/quitting on the right route every day ... Especially on Sundays!
Separation doesn't mean **** if you continue to find new ways to **** up anyway.

 

[SteelerSask2]

There is still basically zero running game

You cannot expect the passing of a 38-year-old QB with worn out legs and a reconstructed throwing elbow to be your ONLY offense each week, but that's what we've had since last season.

I think Ben has enough left to win another championship in a balanced offense, but the line is nowhere near good enough for that to happen.

100 % and exactly what I said last February/March when they made these choices. You gonna tell me they couldn't be doing what they are doing with Rudolph at QB. And then at least you could make a decision based on that going into next off season. Here they are gonna win like 9 or 10 games or maybe a few less depending on health. And then if Rudolph isn't a starter you are looking at 2023 draft at best. A lot of Steelers fans enjoy fools gold facade of contending and the Steelers are more than happy to provide.

 

[Punxsutawney]

Harris has 32 touches through two games. Only 26 rushes. He is a back who will get better with more carries. For a team so committed to improving the ground game, I'm surprised they haven't tried to get him 20 carries in a game yet.

Given how frequently he's been getting stuffed, I'm not sure I really blame Tomlin and Canada for not giving him more carries.

It's not like they haven't been trying to establish him.

 

[SteelerSask2]

Given how frequently he's been getting stuffed, I'm not sure I really blame Tomlin and Canada for not giving him more carries.

It's not like they haven't been trying to establish him.

No one can run with that blocking. No one. And Ben won't find other ways to put the ball in his hands.

 

[Punxsutawney]

. And Ben won't find other ways to put the ball in his hands.

Ben's has been looking for him in the passing game, but with mixed results.

Najee scored today and Ben threw to him twice in 3rd and goal situations against the Bills, sailing one and Najee being stopped short on another.

They're using Najee quite a bit.