steelreeling
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Yeah i have to admit this was a big mistake. Like more than once as well.
Offensive Problem Summed up in One Sentence
- Thread starter tapeANaspirin2it
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You're probably right about Claypool, but I totally disagree with your outlandish assessment of DJ. So many mental errors? Like what? Be specific.
Let me guess -- you're going to blame that horrendous INT on him instead of Ben, right?
Im going to keep pointing this out until people take note… at no time is changing a coordinator a complete instantaneous break with the previous years offense… when Whiz left in 07… Arians ran his run first offense with some of BA’s stuff sprinkled in the entire first year… there are oodles of articles about him officially transitioning to his own in 08… coinciding with possibly Bens worse full season…
when BA left and haley took over… he was brought in to install a run game and better blocking scheme and less all or nothing offensive plays…. For the first half of 2012 he mostly ran arians plays… people wanted him out by like week six because the run game still looked ******…
when Fitchner took over from haley, that first year the offense and especially the run game looked like it didn’t miss a beat.. but by the end of tge season as he put more of his stuff in you saw that tail off and by tge next year it was the dink and dunk that we had through now…
this offense isn’t a finished product… it’s barely started… two games isn’t a great indicator of anything…
when BA left and haley took over… he was brought in to install a run game and better blocking scheme and less all or nothing offensive plays…. For the first half of 2012 he mostly ran arians plays… people wanted him out by like week six because the run game still looked ******…
when Fitchner took over from haley, that first year the offense and especially the run game looked like it didn’t miss a beat.. but by the end of tge season as he put more of his stuff in you saw that tail off and by tge next year it was the dink and dunk that we had through now…
this offense isn’t a finished product… it’s barely started… two games isn’t a great indicator of anything…
Which Sunday this year did DJ have a drop? What wrong route did he run today? He didn't quit on that route when the interception was thrown; he was covered from the start. I don't even think Ben was looking at Johnson, it looked to me like he overthrew JuJu on that play.
It all begins with the Offensive Line. They are ATROCIOUS! They can't run block, They can't pass block! Makes it virtually impossible to evaluate the rest of the offense.....running game, passing game.....Our O-line might be the worst in football right now!
You mean the 41-yard catch that set up the Steelers at the 5 for 1 of their 2 touchdowns? Yeah, I saw it. I also saw the defender push him out of bounds. Watch it again.
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He doesn’t have the hype factor. I think if actually given the chance he would surprise you.
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Because they have let the same QB have too much say in the offensive identity. Sure Ben should have some say, but it appears that he has too much.
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Separation means **** if you continuously drop the ball. Ward never really created separation, but he was money when it came to catching the ball. This team needs dependable pass catchers, not flashy occasional pass catchers with potential. Johnson is who he is, unreliable with huge potential, but he isn’t going to get any better.
Feel free to watch the game again. You'll discover that DJ didn't drop any passes. You'll find that in great contrast to your statement and the stern declarations of many other misguided posters here, DJ (along with Freiermuth) was indeed the Steelers' most reliable pass catcher.
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I don’t cherry pick stats, he has a history of dropping passes, he will continue that history. I so wish it were not true.
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You don't think that DJ has made many mental errors in his career? I do. Last year he had 144 targets and just 88 receptions. That's terrible. It is clear that he and ben are not on the same page far too often. Is it Ben that's wrong most of those times? I guess that's possible but I doubt it.
I've posted this before but a great many of DJ's drops are not because he has bad hands. It's because Ben throws it to him and he's not ready so the ball gets on him before his hands are in postion to make a catch. AB was no rocket surgeon but he was smart enough to know to be ready for Ben to throw it to him quickly if the DB plays off.
Ben has his own issues, but i think a big part of his issues is that he doesn't trust that his WR are making the same reads as him.
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Since last season, there are seemingly two or three plays every week where Ben or DJ is expecting the other to do something else.
It's like they rarely practice together.
Juju is the only one Ben seems to have consistent rhythm with, though the timing he is developing with Freiermuth over the middle looks promising.
Cherry-pick stats? The **** are you talking about?
DJ had a history of dropping passes in the past. That trend has NOT continued in 2021, no matter how much you and everyone else ripping the guy insists that it has.
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I was super down in DJ last year, but for my eyes he seems improved this year so far with the dropsies...and while he did cut off the route on the early pick I doubt he was doing much to prevent the INT in that garbage throw.
Across the board everything needs to be better: pass pro, run blocking, timing between Ben and receivers, dedication to running, WRs winning the LOS/gaining separation in routes, concentration, play calling, situational moments, pass coverage...there’s a lot to fix, but it’s early and I did fully expect a sluggish start for the O with so many new pieces. Couple the offensive woes with a wounded D and we’re lucky to be 1-1 and tied for first in the division, at least for now.
That being said, it’s time to wake up boys!!!
Across the board everything needs to be better: pass pro, run blocking, timing between Ben and receivers, dedication to running, WRs winning the LOS/gaining separation in routes, concentration, play calling, situational moments, pass coverage...there’s a lot to fix, but it’s early and I did fully expect a sluggish start for the O with so many new pieces. Couple the offensive woes with a wounded D and we’re lucky to be 1-1 and tied for first in the division, at least for now.
That being said, it’s time to wake up boys!!!
Why do you and others continue to dwell on the past? I'm not arguing that DJ has had his problems. But you said that DJ is one of the two least reliable players on the Steelers, and that he's the root of the offensive problems RIGHT NOW. That's simply bullshit. He didn't drop a single pass yesterday.
You can't cite any specific examples of a "mental error" by Johnson from yesterday's game, because there weren't any. He caught 9 passes for 105 yards on 12 targets. One of those missed targets was the INT, which was a desperate heave by Ben that could very well have been intended for JuJu, because if you watch the play, that's who Ben was following with his eyes. Another was a miscommunication late in the third quarter when DJ ran a 15-yard comeback route, and Ben instead threw the ball 30 yards downfield. I don't know whose fault it was, but I'd imagine DJ's route was the more likely call on a 3rd-and-10 from the Raiders' 45. I couldn't find the last missed target, I'll have to look for it when I watch the whole game again.
Bottom line is: It's easy to blame DJ for the Steelers' offensive struggles, based on his past performances -- but that simply is NOT the case here in the present.
No, there weren't seemingly 2 or 3 of those plays yesterday. In actuality, there was one. But carry on.
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Deonte Johnson definately dropped a lot of passes early to midrange last season. He reconized his problem and started staying late and getting more time on the JUGGs machine. It started showing in the last 1/4 season or so. I asume he continued his JUGGs machine and other things to contimually improve his "catchability ratio" and has succeeded in doing so. I'm amazed at his surehandedness this season VS last season. A player doing everything he can to make himself better in his catching ability
Just my observation.
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Not literally every game, but it happens far too frequently.
It definitely happened a few times against the Bills and was a common theme last year.
88 looked really good out there when he got the ball. Throw the kid the damn ball. Ebron is Ebron. Guy drops too many.
DJ quit on too many plays. Claypool won't fight enough.
Play Washington (yeah I know he dropped one too) and sit Claypool on his *** until he figures it out.
DJ quit on too many plays. Claypool won't fight enough.
Play Washington (yeah I know he dropped one too) and sit Claypool on his *** until he figures it out.
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I agree with pretty much all of the above. My thoughts.
Claypool and Washington should be splitting time at the Z. Whoever has the hot hands gets more reps after your scripted 10-15 plays are done.
I want to see JuJu running some deeper routes as well. Maybe some go and post routes. Everyone seems to know he’s not running past 10 yards.
I don’t get why with Freiermuth and Ebron we don’t attack every LB that gets singled up on one of them. Our TE core should get a MINIMUM of 10 targets a game.
This Canada offense doesn’t look much better then Fichtner or Haley’s.
Claypool and Washington should be splitting time at the Z. Whoever has the hot hands gets more reps after your scripted 10-15 plays are done.
I want to see JuJu running some deeper routes as well. Maybe some go and post routes. Everyone seems to know he’s not running past 10 yards.
I don’t get why with Freiermuth and Ebron we don’t attack every LB that gets singled up on one of them. Our TE core should get a MINIMUM of 10 targets a game.
This Canada offense doesn’t look much better then Fichtner or Haley’s.
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The season just ******* started, he is still dropping passes and running the wrong routes or half-assing it. When he PROVES that he is past these issues I will be the first to admit it. I don’t think I am in danger of that happening any time soon.
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DJ sometimes seems to run the wrong route or quits on the play, but overall has improved. Claypool needs to fight more for any pass that is a toss up. Gotta get Harris the ball more...in the flat, out in space, whatever it takes so he can be the playmaker he can be. The OL needs to improve - bottom line, above all else. Klemm needs to instill a killer attitude in these guys. May take a year for these guys to mature, beef up and gel
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I might be going out on a limb here but I think if our OL starts to block drastically better all of our problems might just go away....maybe.