So your the GM and this is your secondary going into the offseason...what would u do?

[Chicoman]

So this is your secondary going into the offseason.....what would you do?

Ike Taylor - UFA - Not under contract - I hate to say it but the time has come for IKE.....
Troy Polamalu - 1 year remaining @ $6MM - I say the Steelers keep him one more year if Troy wants to come back.
Mike Mitchell - Big 5yr $25MM contract.......UGH - This contract might be one of the worst Free Agent signings of all-time. This guy just plain sucks! Don't want him back next year but the cap hit will hurt!
Cortez Allen - 4yr $24.6 MM contract...Due a $3MM roster bonus March 1st - I'm not a Cortez Allen fan I think the Steelers can use the roster bonus money to resign a guy like Will Allen, Brice McCain or Antwon Blake.
Will Allen - UFA - I'd like to see him back in some form.
Antwon Blake - RFA - This kid really improved a lot since the beginning of the season...yeah he had a bad game vs the Rats tonight but this kid is pretty good
Brice McCain - UFA - He's another guy who played pretty damn good as the season progressed....could provide some veteran leadership to a young secondary next season.
Shamarko Thomas - 2yrs left base salary $585k - Special teams guy....hopefully he can step up
William Gay - 1 year remaining @ $1.5MM - I hate to say it but I think Gay is our best DB
BW Webb - 2 years remaining @ $585k - Never really saw him on the field much....
Robert Golden - RFA - I know some people were high on this kid but he hasn't done much
Ross Ventrone - 1 year remaining @ $585k - Special teams demon! They need a guy like this who can make plays on special teams...one of the reasons our special teams were better in kickoff and punt coverage this year.

 

[Hineswardkickedurpanzyass]

Th first thing i would do is post this in the football section.

I agree with most of your analysis, except with Troy. He needs to ride off into the sunset, he has nothing more to prove and even if he did I dont think he is capable of doing so anymore. Thanks for the incredible memories 43, you were one of a kind and will fit in nicely in the Steelers wing at the HOF.

 

[Steelr4evr]

Troy has to go unfortunately all good things come to an end. He is clearly a liability now.

 

[CharlesDavenport]

I'd fire Tomlin and then myself.

 

[Steeltime]

• Hire Reggie Gillooly to visit a certain Reggie Nelson's knee.

That's all I got. I suck as a GM.

 

[Chicoman]

Th first thing i would do is post this in the football section.

Sorry I was a little drunk last night after that debacle I watched on TV.

 

[SteelerFan448]

Ike Taylor - Thank you for your service and good luck with your post-football career.
Troy Polamalu - As painful as it is, he just doesn't have it anymore. He is just an undersized linebacker (well, for our team he isn't) on the field. The safety position is no longer a fit for Troy.
Mike Mitchell - I normally would say to give him a second year to develop, but no, not Mitchell. I saw nothing good from him this year.
Cortez Allen - We are stuck with this one. Need to get his head on straight and see if we can salvage this contract somehow.
Will Allen - UFA - We can't lose everyone and he is decent enough as a backup.
Antwon Blake - RFA - Good depth player, I keep him.
Brice McCain - UFA - Keep him as hopefully a depth guy, not a starter. May not have a choice.
Shamarko Thomas - Need Thomas to step up and take over a safety spot.
William Gay - Unfortunately he will be a starter next year when we need him to play nickel.
BW Webb - Eh, whatever.
Robert Golden - RFA - Fine special teams player, but that's about it.
Ross Ventrone - Love what he brought on special teams and has a place on this team.

 

[Spike]

The new GM and his new Defensive Coordinator should clean house and start over. Cut em all.

Draft CB CB CB S for a start.

The fat lazy slobs on the DL might have a chance to stop a 3rd and 15 once in awhile if somebody can cover.

After a decade of piss poor drafting. yeah - clean house, the whole defense is stale

 

[slashsteel]

Adams/Ike/Jones/Polamalu/ need to let go.

Give Allen another shot BUT bring in a free agent corner that is above average one

bring in a free agent OLBer above average one

change the main decision maker

I'd start here.......

 

[Ironcitysteelers]

I hope if Dick does retire he does so quickly. Not sure if any candidates out there but we need a bull.

 

[slashsteel]

I think there is enough hungry younger coaches out there to give someone a shot. Maybe a coach like Ryan could be lured if you want experience............

 

[Ironcitysteelers]

I'd take ryan in a heartbeat. Thing is I think he is going to get a HC job.

 

[Skott]

Ross Ventrone is a guy I'd like to see get more of an opportunity, like Blake did this year. They got them on the field more and guess what... They made some plays.

Troy needs to retire.

Taylor needs to retire.

Adams has done nothing to warrant a starting roster spot.

 

[stillwright]

Out with all the OLD players and coaches....in with the new younger guys. We can give up all the 3rd and long with anybody. Why continue to do it with LeBeau and his geriatric crew. And LeBeau....please take Butler with you. Our Defense might not be better next year with this move but a least it will be something different for us all to complain about.

 

[F83]

so this is your secondary going into the offseason.....what would you do?

Ike taylor - ufa - not under contract - i hate to say it but the time has come for ike..... Release
troy polamalu - 1 year remaining @ $6mm - i say the steelers keep him one more year if troy wants to come back. Pursuade to retire
mike mitchell - big 5yr $25mm contract.......ugh - this contract might be one of the worst free agent signings of all-time. This guy just plain sucks! Don't want him back next year but the cap hit will hurt! Keep for another year
cortez allen - 4yr $24.6 mm contrac stuckt...due a $3mm roster bonus march 1st - i'm not a cortez allen fan i think the steelers can use the roster bonus money to resign a guy like will allen, brice mccain re-sign 2 years 4 mill or antwon blake 2 years 3 mill.
Will allen - ufa - i'd like to see him back in some form. 970 k
antwon blake - rfa - this kid really improved a lot since the beginning of the season...yeah he had a bad game vs the rats tonight but this kid is pretty good
brice mccain - ufa - he's another guy who played pretty damn good as the season progressed....could provide some veteran leadership to a young secondary next season.
Shamarko thomas - 2yrs left base salary $585k - special teams guy....hopefully he can step up just a st
william gay - 1 year remaining @ $1.5mm - i hate to say it but i think gay is our best db
bw webb - 2 years remaining @ $585k - never really saw him on the field much.... Have a feeling he will emerge as the nickel cb
robert golden - rfa - i know some people were high on this kid but he hasn't done much
ross ventrone - 1 year remaining @ $585k - special teams demon! They need a guy like this who can make plays on special teams...one of the reasons our special teams were better in kickoff and punt coverage this year.

so hopefully troy goes out on his own, we don't bother talking to ike, re-sign mccain @ blake, allen. Draft a top end cb.
Start camp with allen and gay as the starters with mccain in the slot vs blake vs webb vs richardson

try blake at both s spots in the nickel.

 

[Stryker]

If Pola comes back, he has to take a pay cut. 6mil is too much

 

[Superman]

BAA in the first, Quinten Rollins in the 2nd or 3rd depending on how far up the charts he shoots at the combine.

Cut Allen and use those savings to bring back McCain AND Blake.
Let Ike and Troy retire.

 

[Supersteeler]

Here's my take going into next season and the draft:

The Good:

As far as the D LIne goes, I think mission accomplished in fixing it for the future. They look to be in much better shape with additions (and hopefully the continued development) of Tuitt and McCullers going forward to go along with two solid guys in McClendon and Heyward. Honestly, I feel much better about the D Line than I did at this point last year, so that's one less position on defense to worry about fixing.

I think we are fine at ILB now also. I THINK Shazier will be a good player. I am chalking this year up to bad luck with injuries and being optimistic that he will prove his worth next year. He definitely has the physical tools to make it happen. Timmons is still young-ish and doesn't appear to have lost anything. Spence and Williams played well for the most part so there is good depth there.

Le'veon Bell is a bona-fide star. Can't wait to watch him continue to blossom and wow everyone. However, there definitely needs to be some depth behind him. Will Josh Harris develop the skills necessary to log some carries and keep him fresh? We shall see. Even if Archer develops into something, he is still going to be a gadget player/pass catcher out of the backfield. They still need to find another ball carrier.

WR = Excellent shape. Great stable of young talent. What a rookie year for Bryant. Wow. The kid is good. Wheaton had a nice bounce back in his 2nd year as well. He would be a fine 3rd WR if Bryant becomes the starter.

Offensive line came together and improved this year. They might think about trying to find an upgrade for Gilbert. I think everyone else is ok.


The Bad:

It looks like they probably need 2 new OLB's. Jarvis may very well not develop into much more than he already has. I am willing to give him another year because he lost most of this one with injury but next year is his swan song if he can't improve significantly. Worilds is much too streaky and inconsistent to be counted on to provide a pass rush regularly, especially for the money he wants. As a FA, he will probably walk unless the offers he expects aren't there. I wouldn't be opposed to bringing him back for a fair price but I wouldn't quit looking for another player to add in the mix and possibly replace him either. Our depth is also not good at the position.

At Corner, we seem to have a lot 3rd and 4th corners, instead of starter quality guys. The bright side is that Gay seems to have developed into a starting quality CB based in this year and I think he would be ok, but I wouldn't count on McCain, Blake or Allen to be able to start and match up weekly with some of these offenses. We need a guy who is capable of starting opposite Gay. Ike is not an option at this point. Need help there.

At safety, Troy is finished, I hate to say it but he is. Not sure what to think about Mitchell. Was his good year in Carolina an aberration? I don't know. He certainly didn't seem to do much right this year. I think with a 5 year contract, he comes into next season penciled in as the starter, but I would definitely keep the eraser handy if he doesn't play better than he did this year. Will Allen is a nice reserve player, but he is not a game changing player by any means. Help is needed at safety.

I also think the time has come to look at a young pass catching TE as a position to upgrade on offense. Heath still has some ability but he is very limited physically at this point and isn't going to get any more agile at his age. Spaeth is a fine blocker but he isn't a receiving TE. We need one of those because Heath doesn't have much time left.



Overall I think they are in better shape than they were before last year's draft as far as holes to fill. The D LIne, ILB, and tall red zone WR are all taken care of. I remember last year at this time thinking that they needed help everywhere on defense. Literally everywhere. At least D LIne and ILB should no longer be an issue. However, they won't be a great defense again until they fix CB, Safety and get some better pass rushers at OLB. If they can do that, I think the sky is the limit. I really do think they are getting closer.