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Tonight's game, rib injuries

Greg Lloyd

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Have you ever had a ribs injury? I've had two, and in neither case could I have come anywhere close to playing a game of tackle football 4 days later. 4 weeks later may have been a stretch. What am I saying here? I'm not sure exactly. It's just that from my own personal experience, if a rib injury was bad enough to take out of a game on Sunday, there was little to no chance I'd be back suiting up four days later. I couldn't breath, cough or talk without great difficulty let along move around avoiding tackles, speak of which, getting tackles with a rib injury? No flippin way, not a chance.

So, 1.) Either Kenny's "ribs" were not really what was injured, or, 2.), it's at a lower level than I had experienced. By the 4th day after injury, I still had trouble breathing let along playing tackle football. Could Kenny really experienced another concussion and Shades wants to avoid the entire "protocol" situation? We've seen Shades treat concussions a little sketchy in the past. Which brings us to tonight's game.

https://www.nfl.com/news/2023-nfl-season-four-things-to-watch-for-in-titans-steelers-on-prime-video

  1. Kenny Pickett will play Thursday, but can he avoid a slow start? In 19 starts for the Steelers, Pickett’s exhibited great toughness. He’s only missed one start since earning the job -- last year at Carolina due to a bone bruise. Quarterback injuries have been an unending story around the NFL this season, but Pickett’s proneness for injury in a short span has become concerning. Also troublesome: Outside of some big fourth quarters, he’s been highly inconsistent as an NFL starter. Prickett's propensity to take too many hits and sacks is one bugaboo; starting games too slowly holds merit, too. In first quarters this season, Pickett has completed 19 of 37 passes for 204 yards, with one TD, three interceptions and six sacks. Jeffery Simmons, Arden Key and Harold Landry lead a strong pressure unit in Tennessee. The Titans have an NFL-worst two interceptions and will give up some pass plays, so it could be a big day for Pickett and receivers George Pickens and Diontae Johnson. But Tennessee also plays elite red-zone defense (34.6% TDs allowed) and thoroughly dominated the Bengals offense in Week 4.
  2. Will Levis tries to back up terrific debut on a quick turnaround. You’ll often hear that NFL coaches want to raise a young quarterback’s confidence, often by calling high-percentage passes. The Titans, however, took the opposite approach with Levis in his NFL debut: They chucked it deep, baby. Over and over again. Incredibly, through one game, Levis now has three of the 10 longest TD passes this season by air distance, according to Next Gen Stats. All went longer than 50 yards, with two of them going to DeAndre Hopkins. Prior to Levis starting, the Titans had zero deep TD passes in Weeks 1-7. Hopkins was the biggest beneficiary, catching his first three TDs of the year last week and his two longest catches of the season. But this approach is also a double-edged sword, as Levis was less effective when he was forced to play traditional quarterback more, completing 6 of 9 third-down passes but only converting two of them into first downs. Levis’ checkdown-or-touchdown approach worked in Week 8, although even against a limited Steelers defense, he likely needs to broaden his horizons more to be effective on Thursday. T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith can heat up the edges in a hurry, especially with the status of reliable offensive tackle Chris Hubbard (concussion) in doubt.
  3. Steelers’ defense will be shorthanded without Minkah Fitzpatrick. The Steelers will be in a bind on Thursday with Fitzpatrick (hamstring) out. According to Next Gen Stats, the Steelers are far worse with him off the field this season, allowing a 71.7% completion percentage and 8.4 yards per attempts, than they are when he’s playing (57.2%, 7.4 YPA). Fitzpatrick was the Steelers’ Joker -- he could man multiple spots in Pittsburgh’s three-safety alignment -- and there’s no one-for-one replacement on the roster. This season, the Steelers have used him more close to the line of scrimmage, either in the slot or the box as a run-force player, tight-end eraser and blitzer. That should help Levis quite a bit, as the guessing game of what Fitzpatrick might do on any play is now gone. This also clearly aids Titans running back Derrick Henry, who has come on lately (363 rush yards since Week 4, with a 5.3-yard average). It might also help get tight end Chigoziem Okonkwo going. Despite a slight uptick in recent usage, Okonkwo has been off to a slow start, but this is about the point last season when he started heating up.
  4. Titans struggle on the road, but Steelers up and down at home. The standings say the Titans are 0-3 on the road, and that’s technically true. But they’re actually 0-4 away from home, losing a hard-fought game to the Ravens in London where the Titans were designated the “home” team. In fact, they’ve lost seven straight away from Nissan Stadium. Their last true road win was just over one year ago at Green Bay -- coincidentally, also a Thursday night game. Their biggest problem in those seven straight losses: points. They’ve averaged only 18 ppg, and five of the seven losses were by one possession. But the Steelers haven’t exactly set the world on fire at home. Sure, they delivered season-preserving divisional victories over the Browns and Ravens, but they also lost by double digits at home to the 49ers and Jaguars. The Steelers were 4-4 at home in 2022: Mike Tomlin’s worst season mark as head coach. And as with Tennessee on the road, the Steelers’ home troubles have come down to scoring as they have surpassed the 20-point mark only twice in their past 12 games in Pittsburgh. It’s no wonder many feel this game could be low-scoring, although the QB situations likely have a lot to do with that. [END]

Kenny's slow starts. Should be re-titled "Steelers slow starts." The offensive play calling is horrid to start the game. They tried one long pass last week to open the game and barely missed on it, but that hardly makes up for 6 games of "pee your pants" offensive play calling to start games as Shades lives in his fears in play calling.

On TN's side, they got a rookie QB who threw for 4 TDs in his 1st start, how long did it take Kenny to throw 4 TDs last year? More than 4 games I suspect.

The D is short with Fitz being out, probably a bigger hit to our run D considering where they had him playing. I'm thinking Fitz isn't terribly upset he's not gonna have to be attempting to tackle Henry this week. Fitz and his 207 LB frame having to take down Henry's 250+ LBs who runs as fast or faster than Fitz. No thank you, I'll sit this one out.
 
I've cracked a couple ribs and also bruised ribs before. That **** hurt like a mother for weeks. You can't breath,cough or sneeze without severe pain.It definitely can't be that bad if he's going to play or it was something else.

I am fresh out of positive vibes this season. They'd have to work some serious magic to right all of the wrongs with the team and they're not magicians.
 
I've cracked a couple ribs and also bruised ribs before. That **** hurt like a mother for weeks. You can't breath,cough or sneeze without severe pain.
Same...A rib injury is no joke. I broke my lowest rib from a fall (it was bent in) and if I didn't walk gingerly, even that was next-level pain that brought on involuntary spasms of "uuuuhhh" I couldn't control. Horrible.
 
Just rub on some magic frog juice, you’ll be fine.
 
Same...A rib injury is no joke. I broke my lowest rib from a fall (it was bent in) and if I didn't walk gingerly, even that was next-level pain that brought on involuntary spasms of "uuuuhhh" I couldn't control. Horrible.

I never got medical attention in either case of my jacked up ribs They may have just been bruised, but I can tell you there was no way in he-- I could have played tackle football 4 days later, in either case. No F in way. Kenny's durability is still in question, IMO. Both concussions he took last season really didn't look like he got hit all that badly; sorry, but they just didn't look like it to me. Yes, his head hit the ground, slightly, not not all that hard. Oh, I know, I know "I'd like to see you take a hit like that" and all that jazz. It just didn't look that hard to me, not to cause a full-fledged concussion. Could his "rib injury" really been something else, like a concussion, and Shades didn't want to bring that whole process about? Wan't one of Kenny's concussions treated odd last year, like they were in concussion denial?

 
I think this is a classic case of a tough blue collar attitude kid combined with good old fashioned nfl painkillers whether it be pills, needle, or both. North Dallas Forty for you young uns if you want a good pregame football movie.
 
They said KP didn't break any ribs or tear any cartilage. I think that's why he is able to come back so quickly. I think he's just dealing with a bruise.
 
I got butt ended in the ribs playing hockey in my late teens. I thought the world was coming to an end the next day. After 2 days of ice and ultrasound and heat treatments it was to the point I was well enough.
 
KP is one tough SOB, sucking it up when he knows he is going to get hit again, he will earn a ton of respect from players going out and putting it on the line for them. Maybe, it will give the line a little incentive to do a better job for him in this game.

Salute one tough SOB and steelers nation!
 
KP is one tough SOB, sucking it up when he knows he is going to get hit again, he will earn a ton of respect from players going out and putting it on the line for them. Maybe, it will give the line a little incentive to do a better job for him in this game.
The OL get's a tad too much of the blame, IMO. No, they aren't playing like a top 10 OL, maybe not even top 20. But a lot of KP's sacks are on him, for pulling the ball down and restarting the whole play, when, in fact, if he would just make a quicker decision at the start, the ball would be long gone. I know, I know, some of you will say "Well maybe no one is open when he pulls the ball back down." Maybe. Or maybe his brain isn't quick enough at processing what's going on in front of him. I see way too many instances of him pulling the ball back down and finding no one open. And then "running into" pressure. At some point, the QB has to take part of the blame.
 
I've cracked a couple ribs and also bruised ribs before. That **** hurt like a mother for weeks. You can't breath,cough or sneeze without severe pain.It definitely can't be that bad if he's going to play or it was something else.

I am fresh out of positive vibes this season. They'd have to work some serious magic to right all of the wrongs with the team and they're not magicians.
When I cracked my ribs it was winter time and I had a nasty cold/ cough that had started the day I did it. It hurt so bad when I coughed and blew my nose that I had to laugh, which hurt even more 😩
 
I think playing Pickett is a mistake. I think Pickett's arm is fine for the NFL, but i certainly wouldn't call his arm strong. If he is compromised and can't throw with his normal power i see a few ints happening. He is also probably going to have extra padding which could hinder his throwing motion as well. Then you also just have the pain issue
 
Personally---I think Kenny shouldn't be playing tonite...at least not starting..
He is trying to be that "tough leader" for his team....just like Cam's doing tonite.

50/50 that either one or both of them dont finish tonite.
 
Fell off a motorcycle in high school landed on a bunch of bicycle handlebars. Right on my ribs. Couldn't breathe well and walked home. Thought I was like in shock, I luckily lived fairly close to the house, so went home then went to the Dr.

Don't remember it being as painful in comparison to not breathing well. But yeah that injury is no joke.
 
The OL get's a tad too much of the blame, IMO. No, they aren't playing like a top 10 OL, maybe not even top 20. But a lot of KP's sacks are on him, for pulling the ball down and restarting the whole play, when, in fact, if he would just make a quicker decision at the start, the ball would be long gone. I know, I know, some of you will say "Well maybe no one is open when he pulls the ball back down." Maybe. Or maybe his brain isn't quick enough at processing what's going on in front of him. I see way too many instances of him pulling the ball back down and finding no one open. And then "running into" pressure. At some point, the QB has to take part of the blame.
The OL is terrible, period. KP may cause a few issues himself but it's because the OL has him getting killed out there. Cole has taken 3 steps back from last year. Moore is the worst-rated LT. Semoulo has been a disappointment. Daniels as well. And, Chuks is Chuks - he sucks. The blocking schemes coming from Canaduh haven't helped them in the run or pass game.
 
I don't know how severe his rib injury is and I totally believe everyone of you guys about the incapacitating nature of a rib injury whether bruised or broken. Like bkwheat28 said, needle and pills more then likely. I don't think Kenny has anymore pain tolerance than most here. If he needs an injection, it's benefit will subside around half time and from what I'm led to believe, doctors are reluctant to give multible injections in a short period of time.

What I do know is, if it is a concussion and Tomlin and company are hiding it, god help him and the organization if/when it's revealed. I don't believe Tomlin would jeopardize his standing. Word would have gotten back to Rooney as well, the organization would get roasted, financially, suspensions and draft picks etc. (Deserved) considering the NFL's new found concern over player safety. Goodell would go off showing the media, NFLPA, general public and congress how aggrieved he is.

Would probably force the franchise to Anchorage.
 
You mean like the over done 3-2-1 ribs?
Think it is time I smoked some ribs..

In the mood to use the smoker lately ever since my beef jerky experiment was a success.😅

I call it experiments as I am a late bloomer as far as cooking. Except the time I forgot to turn the smoke feature to temperature I have done well.
 
Previous to us drafting him, one of the things that was considered a universal positive for Pickett was him toughing it out through injuries …
 
Previous to us drafting him, one of the things that was considered a universal positive for Pickett was him toughing it out through injuries …
speaking of Pickett per Steelers now.


"In the last two seasons, Kenny Pickett has the most go-ahead touchdown passes in the final five minutes with four. Pickett’s seven game-winning drives in the last two seasons ranks second to only Kirk Cousins."


Kenny ******* ⛏️!


Haters out there make sure you factor this in when you are dissing Kenny.

You welcome,

Me.
 
"In the last two seasons, Kenny Pickett has the most go-ahead touchdown passes in the final five minutes with four. Pickett’s seven game-winning drives in the last two seasons ranks second to only Kirk Cousins."

OK, but I have to temper that enthusiasm with the fact his 1st half play always seems to ensure he will have to come from from behind in the 4th, just saying, it's part of it.
 
OK, but I have to temper that enthusiasm with the fact his 1st half play always seems to ensure he will have to come from from behind in the 4th, just saying, it's part of it.



That goes without saying. Not sure I understand your point.
Slash does need to curb his enthusiasm though. lol
 
Last edited:
That goes without saying. Not sure I understand your point.
Slash does need to curb his enthusiasm though. lol
I curb it from quarter 1-3.

Then in quarter 4, I step off the curb.

😁
 
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