After further review, Arians getting the job done.

[zulater]

http://blog.triblive.com/steel-mill/2011/11/16/after-further-review-steelers-vs-bengals/

Taking a look back at the Steelers-Bengals game on my DVR.

Ben Roethlisberger is having a great year. So are Mike Wallace and Antonio Brown.

But none of them would be nearly as successful as they have been if it wasn’t for Bruce Arians.

The guy you love to hate is having one heck of a year.

Sure, the talents of Roethlisberger, Wallace and Brown sometimes makes Arians’ job look easy, but don’t kid yourself, Arians has been on point all season, especially with stuff that you don’t even realize.

The Steelers have been tremendous on opening drives all year, and that’s just not a coincidence.

Arians’ opening script has been near flawless.

Against the Bengals, the opening series resulted in an 8-play drive in which the Steelers marched right down the field against a very stingy defense and scored a touchdown.

The success can be traced back to confusing the defense, and Arians did that by mixing and matching personnel groupings.

Out of the eight plays, only twice did Arians have the same six skill players on the field at the same time.

Arians used a three-tight end set twice, a two tight end set three times, a three wide receiver set three times and even three receivers, a tight end and a running back in a five receiver look once.

The skinny in all this is that Arians does a fantastic job of confusing defenses during his scripted calls to start the game, and also uses that later in the game to predict how defenses will react to different personnel groupings.

Yeah, I know all offensive coordinators do something similar to what Arians does, but not many do it as well as him.

[zulater]

discuss... :chuckle:

[fansince'76]

Yeah, I know all offensive coordinators do something similar to what Arians does, but not many do it as well as him.
Must be a relative. Everyone knows the guy's the worst OC in NFL history.

:chuckle:

[polamalubeast]

The Steelers offense is supposed to be as good as the greatest show on turf.:rolleyes:

[tube517]

Fire Randy Fictner :heh:

[Steeldude]

i am still awe as to why the browns let this mastermind go. what's even more puzzling is no NFL team has reached out to him for a HC job.


But none of them would be nearly as successful as they have been if it wasn’t for Bruce Arians

bold statement. IMO, they would all be fine without arians. it's not like BR is going to forget how to evade sacks and/or hold onto the ball until a WR is open without arians as the OC.

[pepsyman1]

I think Arians is doing a better job this year with his game plans, but I still don't think he's very good at adjusting when we are struggling. He also seems to let go of things that ARE working just as easily. I think there have been some great improvements (I've even seen some I-formation in the running game), but the act remains that we are still in the bottom half of he league in scoring while being in the top ten in yardage. All that production doesn't mean anything if you don't score points with it.

[HometownGal]

Nice to see BA getting some much deserved props instead of the blame for what blunders the other units make which is out of his control. :applaudit:

[zulater]

i am still awe as to why the browns let this mastermind go. what's even more puzzling is no NFL team has reached out to him for a HC job.



bold statement. IMO, they would all be fine without arians. it's not like BR is going to forget how to evade sacks and/or hold onto the ball until a WR is open without arians as the OC.

The Browns also let Bellichick go, so maybe their track record on coach retention isn't all that special.

And just because a coach isn't a head coaching candidate doesn't mean they're not a good positional coach or coordinater.



I've never been an Arians fan myself, but there's no doubt this offense has evolved in a good way this year. Given the early season offensive line limitations I don't know how anyone could find fault with the overall job BA has done so far this year?

[suitanim]

Oh, this won't sit well with some. The clouds could part, Jesus could ride down on a rainbow and proclaim "Bruce Arians is a fine Offensive Coordinator" and the usual naysayers and nattering nabobs of negativism would still deny it was so...

[Devilsdancefloor]

He has done a really good job this year hats off to him! i just wish as a team we didnt let off the gas when we get a 10+ lead.

[Godfather]

The Browns also let Bellichick go, so maybe their track record on coach retention isn't all that special.


No videotape or radio interference devices back then.

Oh, and Arians sucks and should be fired immediately :)

[The WH]

Well, I'll be damned, after how many years Bruce is starting to utilize his weapons.

I will say this though, I think the Offense is more successful with Ben calling the plays.

[steelreserve]

Well, I'll be damned, after how many years Bruce is starting to utilize his weapons.

I will say this though, I think the Offense is more successful with Ben calling the plays.

This. And what's more, he apparently has figured out how to adjust and not stick with crappy gameplans when they're obviously not working. Maybe watching Parker get stuffed 29 times in a row every time we played the Ravens and ran straight at them from a one-back set ... finally gave him a revelation, like, "hey, that didn't work any better on the next 10 possessions of the game than it did on the first." Or, "hey, that guy's not getting it done today, maybe I should try something different." That was absolutely killing him as a coordinator, but now that he's learned how to adjust, I could hardly be happier.

[Edman]

Arians deserves credit.

But I still wish the Steelers didn't lay off the gas when they get a lead. They got off the pedal way too early against the Bengals and sure enough, the lead evaporated in no time flat.

[Psycho Ward 86]

A plethora of opening TD drives, the 2nd highest 3rd down conversion rate in the league, a vaunted batch of speedy receivers. Bravo bravo

LOL

All i see is 19th in scoring. And i know steeldude doesnt get a lot of love, but he's right, that is a bold statement, and an outlandish statement as well.

I find it amusing to say the least that when the realists point out a legitimate flaw in the offense and pin it on Arians, that people freak out and start making horribly outlandish comments like "Oh Arians is THE WORST OC in NFL history" or "god we cant compare to the greatest show on the turf" et cetera et cetera. and thats just in this thread.

Lol, calm down, the rest of us are sooo sorry for hurting your feelings and pointing out that offense should be better

[zulater]

A plethora of opening TD drives, the 2nd highest 3rd down conversion rate in the league, a vaunted batch of speedy receivers. Bravo bravo

LOL

All i see is 19th in scoring. And i know steeldude doesnt get a lot of love, but he's right, that is a bold statement, and an outlandish statement as well.

I find it amusing to say the least that when the realists point out a legitimate flaw in the offense and pin it on Arians, that people freak out and start making horribly outlandish comments like "Oh Arians is THE WORST OC in NFL history" or "god we cant compare to the greatest show on the turf" et cetera et cetera. and thats just in this thread.

Lol, calm down, the rest of us are sooo sorry for hurting your feelings and pointing out that offense should be better

I think 19th in scoring can at least partially be attributed to the lack of turnovers being forced by the defense. Look around the league and see how many points are generated by forced turnover. Or better yet, look how many points the Steelers have given up due to their own offensive mishaps, and then if you put us at average, and added the difference I'm guessing 19th would all of a sudden jump into the top 10.

[Psycho Ward 86]

I think 19th in scoring can at least partially be attributed to the lack of turnovers being forced by the defense. Look around the league and see how many points are generated by forced turnover. Or better yet, look how many points the Steelers have given up due to their own offensive mishaps, and then if you put us at average, and added the difference I'm guessing 19th would all of a sudden jump into the top 10.

lol yeah lets take a good long gander at the bolded print.

[zulater]

lol yeah lets take a good long gander at the bolded print.

Yeah the Steelers had a bad start to the season, none of us forgets it. But also don't forget the main reason why. An offensive line that was playing as poorly as any in Steeler history. I don't give a damn who the OC is, an injured Pouncey, Jonathan Scott as your left tackle, a raw rookie in Gilbert as your right tackle, and Kemo, Foster, and Legurskey all fighting through injuries and ineptness, and it's hard to make a game plan go. Thankfully with the return to health of Pouncey, the addition of Starks, and Gilbert improving with seasoning, the line has stabilized, and the offense in turn has gone from liability to asset.

[fansince'76]

I find it amusing to say the least that when the realists point out a legitimate flaw in the offense and pin it on Arians, that people freak out and start making horribly outlandish comments like "Oh Arians is THE WORST OC in NFL history" or "god we cant compare to the greatest show on the turf" et cetera et cetera. and thats just in this thread.

Lol, calm down, the rest of us are sooo sorry for hurting your feelings and pointing out that offense should be better

Problem is, you "realists" by and large are often guilty of using ridiculous over-the-top hyperbole yourselves and pretty much blame EVERY problem with the offense on Arians. Someone whiffs on a block and the play gets blown up as a result? Arians' fault. Someone fumbles the ball and we lose possession as a result? Arians' fault. Ben makes an ill-advised pass that gets picked? Arians' fault.

Sorry to point this out (for about the thousandth time), but every time a player f*cks up leading to killing a play and/or a drive, it's most often times not on the playcalling. Arians is simply a convenient target and scapegoat, when there are other factors at play that many are simply too lazy or uninformed to look at, when it's so much easier to just heap all the blame on the OC.

Besides that, the non-"realists" also very accurately point out that the next OC will become just as big an "idiot" as Arians to all you "realists" the second it becomes evident that the offense won't magically start scoring 70 points a game under their system either. Book it.

[polamalubeast]

A plethora of opening TD drives, the 2nd highest 3rd down conversion rate in the league, a vaunted batch of speedy receivers. Bravo bravo

LOL

All i see is 19th in scoring. And i know steeldude doesnt get a lot of love, but he's right, that is a bold statement, and an outlandish statement as well.

I find it amusing to say the least that when the realists point out a legitimate flaw in the offense and pin it on Arians, that people freak out and start making horribly outlandish comments like "Oh Arians is THE WORST OC in NFL history" or "god we cant compare to the greatest show on the turf" et cetera et cetera. and thats just in this thread.

Lol, calm down, the rest of us are sooo sorry for hurting your feelings and pointing out that offense should be better
19th?...no

The Steelers are 8th in the NFL for points per drive.

http://footballoutsiders.com/stats/drivestats

And that's despite the fact that the Steelers offense has been bad in the first 4 games.

The Steelers defense has only six turnovers and that's the big problem...And the Steelers are 27th in the field position in offense..

[Psycho Ward 86]

19th?...no

The Steelers are 10th in the NFL for points per drive.

And that's despite the fact that the Steelers offense has been bad in the first 4 games.

The Steelers defense has only six turnovers and that's the big problem...And the Steelers are 23th in the field position in offense..

field position is a liability that is affected by all 3 phases of football. including the offense. We've also coughed up the ball an awful lot, even if you take away the 7 turnovers we gave up against the ravens we have laid a turd in that department as well.

By the time you get as nitpicky as possible to make it seem like we have a great scoring offense, the sum of the statistics will just be a bunch of powder and makeup for the fact that we are NOT doing a good job of churning up points, especially in comparison to the yardage we are accumulating. Plain and simple, we are 19th in points per game. Pathetic, looking at the talent we have all across the board on the offense.

[Psycho Ward 86]

Problem is, you "realists" by and large are often guilty of using ridiculous over-the-top hyperbole yourselves and pretty much blame EVERY problem with the offense on Arians. Someone whiffs on a block and the play gets blown up as a result? Arians' fault. Someone fumbles the ball and we lose possession as a result? Arians' fault. Ben makes an ill-advised pass that gets picked? Arians' fault.

Sorry to point this out (for about the thousandth time), but every time a player f*cks up leading to killing a play and/or a drive, it's most often times not on the playcalling. Arians is simply a convenient target and scapegoat, when there are other factors at play that many are simply too lazy or uninformed to look at, when it's so much easier to just heap all the blame on the OC.

Besides that, the non-"realists" also very accurately point out that the next OC will become just as big an "idiot" as Arians to all you "realists" the second it becomes evident that the offense won't magically start scoring 70 points a game under their system either. Book it.

Im not one of them. And it is the coaches job to put their players in the best position to win, so when a player messes up, yeah, it can be pinned on a coach. William Gay on Gronkowski for all 3 of his TD's last season? Dick Lebeau's fault. Throwing the ball 40+ times in 30-40mph winds against a loss in cleveland in 2009? Arians being a complete moron. Correct, no? Arians has shed some tendencies no doubt, but theres a huge wad of names that come across the brain when thinking of good offensive coordinators or potentially good offensive coordinators.

[fansince'76]

Im not one of them. And it is the coaches job to put their players in the best position to win, so when a player messes up, yeah, it can be pinned on a coach. William Gay on Gronkowski for all 3 of his TD's last season? Dick Lebeau's fault. Throwing the ball 40+ times in 30-40mph winds against a loss in cleveland in 2009? Arians being a complete moron. Correct, no? Arians has shed some tendencies no doubt, but theres a huge wad of names that come across the brain when thinking of good offensive coordinators or potentially good offensive coordinators.

How about when Ben misses a wide open Wallace on a sure TD? Still the coach's fault? And I'd be willing to bet that at least 30 of 32 teams' fans practically burn their OCs in effigy, from some of the comments on other boards I've seen. Everybody seems to think their OC (in particular) sucks.

[polamalubeast]

field position is a liability that is affected by all 3 phases of football. including the offense. We've also coughed up the ball an awful lot, even if you take away the 7 turnovers we gave up against the ravens we have laid a turd in that department as well.

By the time you get as nitpicky as possible to make it seem like we have a great scoring offense, the sum of the statistics will just be a bunch of powder and makeup for the fact that we are NOT doing a good job of churning up points, especially in comparison to the yardage we are accumulating. Plain and simple, we are 19th in points per game. Pathetic, looking at the talent we have all across the board on the offense.

The Steelers are not 19th, but 8th.

http://footballoutsiders.com/stats/drivestats



Points per drive is the most important stats....The steelers are 8th(despite the week one), which is is very good.

[X-Terminator]

Im not one of them. And it is the coaches job to put their players in the best position to win, so when a player messes up, yeah, it can be pinned on a coach. William Gay on Gronkowski for all 3 of his TD's last season? Dick Lebeau's fault. Throwing the ball 40+ times in 30-40mph winds against a loss in cleveland in 2009? Arians being a complete moron. Correct, no? Arians has shed some tendencies no doubt, but theres a huge wad of names that come across the brain when thinking of good offensive coordinators or potentially good offensive coordinators.

Yeah, and not one of them will ever be appreciated here by the so-called "realists," because even if they end up turning this offense into the Green Bay Packers, there will still be "realists" who will whine and bitch about something. So they may as well take another job elsewhere, play in front of fans who would appreciate them.

[Craic]

, but the act remains that we are still in the bottom half of he league in scoring while being in the top ten in yardage. All that production doesn't mean anything if you don't score points with it.

Not true at all. All those yards, also means more time off the clock. Why is it we think that you can only kill the clock with run plays. I know, I know, pass the ball, incomplete, time stops, blah blah blah. And running the ball three times and then punting damaging TOP as well.

So, top ten in yardage, number 2 in TOP. I think that means something.

[polamalubeast]

Not true at all. All those yards, also means more time off the clock. Why is it we think that you can only kill the clock with run plays. I know, I know, pass the ball, incomplete, time stops, blah blah blah. And running the ball three times and then punting damaging TOP as well.

So, top ten in yardage, number 2 in TOP. I think that means something.

and 8th for point per drive!

[fansince'76]

Yeah, and not one of them will ever be appreciated here by the so-called "realists," because even if they end up turning this offense into the Green Bay Packers, there will still be "realists" who will whine and bitch about something. So they may as well take another job elsewhere, play in front of fans who would appreciate them.

It also bears pointing out that Green Bay's offense scores in the 30s on a weekly basis because they HAVE to, thanks to a defense that has inexplicably turned into a sieve this season and gives up points in bunches. Same goes for New England.

[zulater]

I think the best is still to come with this offense, and for the team as well. The offensive line's instability set everything back initially. But now the sky's the limit. With good luck and good health there's no reason to think this team isn't capable of being the best offense in the AFC for the remainder of the season in every meaningful way, including scoring.

[Steeldude]

The Steelers are not 19th, but 8th.

the steelers are 19th in points scored per game.

they are also 19th in points per play.

they are 21st in points scored in the 4th quarter.

they are good at TOP in the 2nd half. they are ranked 1st, but when looking at TOP for the 4th quarter they are ranked at 13.

23rd in points per yard. which means a whole lot of traveling by the offense, but they aren't finishing that well. which explains why they are ranked 15th is red zone %.

everything is to be blamed on the players, OC, HC etc... arians calls some bonehead plays and the players make some bonehead plays. the FO/coaches are to blame for the crappy O-line talent.

[pepsyman1]

The Steelers are not 19th, but 8th.

http://footballoutsiders.com/stats/drivestats

.


The Steelers are 8th in offensive YARDAGE, but they are indeed only 19th in scoring at 22.0 points per game. Lots of yardage in between the 20's, but unfortunately not as many touchdowns as we should have at this point.

[suitanim]

That starting field position stats is INCREDIBLY important. 27th means we are losing the field position differential stat, and it's one if the most important indicators of an abilities team to score and win. The worse the starting field position, the harder it is statistically to score. There are a lot of reasons why they consistently have long fields to work with, including lack of turnovers and lack of explosive returns (punt and kick). To me, that, coupled with the fact that we have the worst offensive line in the NFL, actually completely explains why we are 19th in scoring. We move the ball well, but in the NFL the defenses are very adept at making offensive teams EXECUTE and execute well in order to score. The longer the field the offensive has to work with, the more opportunities there will be for it to break down.

I'm glad some people mined the depths for these stats...it actually shows that Arians is doing an even more impressive job than I originally thought, since he's already battling:
-Too high of expectations
-A terrible offensive line
-A defense that doesn't provide him turnovers (which is closely related to short versus long field)
-A QB that can, at times, hold the ball too long

Toss in 27th worst starting field position and it's a miracle we're even 19th in scoring...

[polamalubeast]

I do not understand why you underestimated the steelers are 8th in points per drive.This is where we see the efficiency.

If the Steelers created the same number of turnovers than the Ravens, the Steelers would be in the top 5 for points scored.

But for points per drive, the Steelers are 8th.....Points per drive, it's where you see the effectiveness of an offense or defense. It's the same thing in the nba.

[zulater]

I do not understand why you underestimated the steelers are 8th in points per drive.This is where we see the efficiency.

If the Steelers created the same number of turnovers than the Ravens, the Steelers would be in the top 5 for points scored.

But for points per drive, the Steelers are 8th.....Points per drive, it's where you see the effectiveness of an offense or defense. It's the same thing in the nba.

I get it, good stat! :applaudit:

[suitanim]

This is another example of Arians haters not even underdstanding the significance of the very stats they are attempting to hang him with...it is, quite literally, blind hate for the man. This thread continues to prove it...

[tube517]

This is another example of Arians haters not even underdstanding the significance of the very stats they are attempting to hang him with...it is, quite literally, blind hate for the man. This thread continues to prove it...

Fire Kirby Wilson :chuckle:

[Steeldude]

what's absurd is the arians lovers who make every excuse possible to keep him from any blame. it's quite literally, blind love for the man. this thread continues to prove it.

the arians lovers motto: if the steelers are doing poor in an area it's the fault of the players only. if the steelers are excelling in an area then it's because of arians only.

[fansince'76]

the arians haters motto: if the steelers are doing poor in an area it's the fault of Arians only. if the steelers are excelling in an area then it's because of the players only, and in spite of Arians, because he's a complete dumbass incapable of coaching a Pop Warner team, much less running a NFL offense.

Fixed.

[polamalubeast]

what's absurd is the arians lovers who make every excuse possible to keep him from any blame. it's quite literally, blind love for the man. this thread continues to prove it.

the arians lovers motto: if the steelers are doing poor in an area it's the fault of the players only. if the steelers are excelling in an area then it's because of arians only.


Why blame a coach when he does a good job(8th for points per drive)?

[The WH]

The Steelers are winning....if they are winning...who gives a shit? really....

[polamalubeast]

The Steelers are winning....if they are winning...who gives a shit? really....

Bruce Arians

[suitanim]

Why blame a coach when he does a good job(8th for points per drive)?

Because critical thought is hard, and blaming the coach is lazy and easy...

[X-Terminator]

The Steelers are winning....if they are winning...who gives a shit? really....

Ask the haters that question. Those of us who don't think Arians is the embodiment of evil really don't give a shit as long as they win.

[Craic]

the steelers are 19th in points scored per game.

they are also 19th in points per play.

they are 21st in points scored in the 4th quarter.

they are good at TOP in the 2nd half. they are ranked 1st, but when looking at TOP for the 4th quarter they are ranked at 13.

23rd in points per yard. which means a whole lot of traveling by the offense, but they aren't finishing that well. which explains why they are ranked 15th is red zone %.

everything is to be blamed on the players, OC, HC etc... arians calls some bonehead plays and the players make some bonehead plays. the FO/coaches are to blame for the crappy O-line talent.

I think some of these stats don't mean what you are intending them to mean, others paint the picture you want. Let's go step by step, instead of the back and forth this thread has seemed to devolve too.

1. Points per game. The offense can only put up points when they have the ball, and then, the question is how many points are they averaging against how many points are other teams averaging when they have the ball. The statisic being quoted here, is that there are only 7 other offenses that are better at putting points on the board, that is, making the most of the opportunity to put up points, than the Steelers offense.

2. 19th in points per play. Yes, that does make sense. But that is not a bad stat. If we were chewing up more yards per play, then our TOP would go down. The fact that it usually takes us all three downs to get a first down, while stressful for us watching, isn't a bad thing. Would I want the offense to be more consistent? Of course, we all would want that. But in all honesty, I'll take what we have now over what we've had before.

3. 21st in points scored in the 4th quarter. That is an ugly stat, and I believe it comes because of that same old desire to play "Steelers football." How many times this year have they stopped with the air game, and gone to the ground game in the fourth quarter, only to get a 3 and out and turn the ball over? There is no justifying this stat, but it seems to be the same problem this team has had since the early 90's, at least. That tells me it's systemic, not just an OC, or QB, or RB, or HC. I think this problem starts with (Gasp) Dan Rooney himself and goes all the way down to the ball-boy who mumbles under his breath when the ball is thrown in the fourth quarter. That doesn't excuse Arians, but I think it should put his responsibility in context.

4. 13th in TOP is 3 spots out of the top third. Yeah, it's a drop from the third quarter, but it's still not bad. Also remember, that ranking includes a couple on-side kicks we failed to recover, if memory serves. Beyond all that, it is also a stat that is impacted by our defense failing to get turnovers.

5. points per yard. This, is a meaningless stat. We could go 3 and out 5 times with 0 yards, then have the defense give the ball to the offense 3 times at the opponents 10 yard line, and be number 1 in the stat. All points per yard means, is that we have to drive quite far every time we have the ball. Again, it's not the distance of the drive that matters in relation to scoring, its the points per drive. The "per yard" average is more important when we are discussing TOP.

6. 15th in redzone is just above average. Do I wish we were better than average? Definitely. But we have an offense that works better from a greater distance, so that is something we need to work on. I'll say this though. I'd rather have team that can drive the field and give us a 50/50 chance to win at the end, over a team that has little shot of driving down the field, but if by some miracle we get there, then we have a 75/25 chance of winning. Seems to me this make keeps us in the game a lot longer...and let's us survive shootouts. Something we couldn't do before Arians.
________________

Do I wonder what this offense would look like with another OC? Yeah. But all in all, yeah, I believe he's getting the job done. He's made mistakes, he's struggled to adjust at times, but so has Lebeau... after all, it took him almost a decade to adjust to the Pats* system. I think we just expect too much perfection, and since many dislike the fact the Steelers have gone away from the ground game, Arians has become a much easier target. The fact is, every offense is going to have holes in it. Free-agency and salary caps assure that problem--and if the offense doesn't have holes in it, then the defense does. But taken as a whole, I'm happy with what we have.

[Psycho Ward 86]

I swear to god, that "oh well we're winning, who cares!" crap does not go anywhere. It's cheap, it's a given, it is too obvious to even mention. Great, we won, let's have a gatorade shower about it like the Ravens do everytime they beat us. Or how about we go back to the drawing board and discuss some of the weaknesses of a strong team?

Oh wait. we're winning, who cares.

[polamalubeast]

I swear to god, that "oh well we're winning, who cares!" crap does not go anywhere. It's cheap, it's a given, it is too obvious to even mention. Great, we won, let's have a gatorade shower about it like the Ravens do everytime they beat us. Or how about we go back to the drawing board and discuss some of the weaknesses of a strong team?

Oh wait. we're winning, who cares.


You said that the Steelers were 19th in the points score.I then replied that the steelers were 8th in the points scored per drive, which is the most important thing was the offense.

This is not the fault of the offense if the defense has only created 6 turnovers.

If the Steelers defense would have made ​​the same number of tunorvers than the Ravens, the Steelers are in the top 5 for points scored.

The Steelers offense has not been good in the first 4 games, but for the next six games, the offense is very good. They play well against an excellent defense of the Ravens and Bengals.

It will only be better in the red zone and be better for the run the ball, but otherwise, the steelers are 8th in the points scored per drive.

[X-Terminator]

I swear to god, that "oh well we're winning, who cares!" crap does not go anywhere. It's cheap, it's a given, it is too obvious to even mention. Great, we won, let's have a gatorade shower about it like the Ravens do everytime they beat us. Or how about we go back to the drawing board and discuss some of the weaknesses of a strong team?

If that was all it was, there wouldn't be a whole lot said. Instead, all we get from the haters is "it's Arians' fault" and no other factors enter the discussion. If someone points out something positive or gives him props, here come the haters with more "proof" that he's terrible, no matter how innocuous it is, and should be fired immediately. Honestly, I cannot believe the guy still wants to coach here after all the abuse he has taken. I've have quit after last year and given the fans the finger on my way out the door.

[HometownGal]

what's absurd is the arians lovers who make every excuse possible to keep him from any blame. it's quite literally, blind love for the man. this thread continues to prove it.

the arians lovers motto: if the steelers are doing poor in an area it's the fault of the players only. if the steelers are excelling in an area then it's because of arians only.

Surely you jest.

I can't tell you how many times over the last couple of years where I've read on this very board that when a play works well and/or we score off that play, Ben called it. If the play blew up or the player(s) failed to execute, that was BA's fault too. :doh: Back a couple of years when our vaunted D was blowing leads in the 4Q's on a pretty regular basis, Arians was being blamed for that too which was absolutely ludicrous. If the OL played a suck ass game (which they did quite often), BA was the scapegoat there too.

Rarely was he ever given the credit I and many others on this board felt he rightfully deserved. It's nice to see some positive instead of unfair negativity with regard to our OC, who, in my opinion, has done a good job with this "predictable grab bag offense".

[zulater]

My biggest problem with Arians for the most part was that I didn't feel as if he was doing enough to evolve Ben's game to the next level. In other words, Ben needed to be less playground and more conventional. Don't get me wrong, I love Ben's improv skills and I'm not suggesting they be taken away from him, but we needed to learn how to start getting the ball out in time better, to reduce the hits and sacks Ben was taking. Well mission accomplished. It's a rarity anymore when the Steelers don't get out the ball in less than 3 seconds on a pass. Obviously if no one is open Ben will usually extend the play, and I'm good with that. It's just that now, way more often than not the ball is getting out in time, and the results are getting better and better.

As to the red zone issues, I think we've become a little too impatient with the running game there. I'm not saying we need to pound it between the tackles, but mix it up a little more, and then the play action might actually work.

[Craic]

My biggest problem with Arians for the most part was that I didn't feel as if he was doing enough to evolve Ben's game to the next level. In other words, Ben needed to be less playground and more conventional. Don't get me wrong, I love Ben's improv skills and I'm not suggesting they be taken away from him, but we needed to learn how to start getting the ball out in time better, to reduce the hits and sacks Ben was taking. Well mission accomplished. It's a rarity anymore when the Steelers don't get out the ball in less than 3 seconds on a pass. Obviously if no one is open Ben will usually extend the play, and I'm good with that. It's just that now, way more often than not the ball is getting out in time, and the results are getting better and better.

As to the red zone issues, I think we've become a little too impatient with the running game there. I'm not saying we need to pound it between the tackles, but mix it up a little more, and then the play action might actually work.
I'm not sure I completely agree with your concerning the redzone... I just don't think we have the bodies up front to be dominant running in the redzone anymore.

But other than that, great post... and I completely agree. You may even be right about the redzone. I'd want to see stats on redzone passes vs. runs first however.

[The WH]

this is a completely off topic response but since we are talking about the redzone....

If you are coming down the sidelines and see two defenders coming at you and you know you can get by them...would most football players say it would be smarter to get out of bounds at the 11, 12, or 13 yard line as opposed to pushing for inside the 10? I would think, from my armchair QB position, that you would want to get out at the 11, 12, 13yd line.... So you have the threat of being 11 out from the endzone but also the chance to get inside the 1 and have a 1st and goal from inside the 3yd line....

[zulater]

I'm not sure I completely agree with your concerning the redzone... I just don't think we have the bodies up front to be dominant running in the redzone anymore.

But other than that, great post... and I completely agree. You may even be right about the redzone. I'd want to see stats on redzone passes vs. runs first however.

I'd like to see someone do a study on first and second down playcalling and formation inside the redzone. Maybe my perception is wrong, but it seems as if we barely give thought to running the ball inside the redzone this year. I'm not suggesting we pound the ball futilely inside the box, just mix it up a little more. It seems like as often as not we go empty back set once we breach the redzone, and I don't understand that on favorable down and distance situations when time isn't a factor. I understand sometimes it works, but you know what you can't do from an empty back set? Play action, that's what. Why make the defense's job easy by tipping your hand and letting them know you're going to pass?

[zulater]

Just rewatching the game. On the Steelers first 4th quarter possession where they started at their own 10, handoff to Redman, Max Starks blocks no one, Rucker untouched makes the tackle on Redman for no gain. I'm assuming that Starks was supposed to block Rucker, had he done so that's an easy 3-5 yard play. Less one break down, that series takes on a different look.

[86WARD]

Arians has been known to be horrible in the past. It was as clear as day. He had his moments, but he made some awful play calls. Anyone who says different is wearing black and gold glasses. Having said that, Arians is having a great season. The offense in the past was extremely vanilla, extremely bland, extremely predictable. This season it's been a lot...A LOT different. Still needs to work on the inside the 10 offense.

[suitanim]

Arians has been known to be horrible in the past. It was as clear as day. He had his moments, but he made some awful play calls. Anyone who says different is wearing black and gold glasses. Having said that, Arians is having a great season. The offense in the past was extremely vanilla, extremely bland, extremely predictable. This season it's been a lot...A LOT different. Still needs to work on the inside the 10 offense.

I disagree with this. Again, the Steelers FO is NOT stupid. If Arians was terrible, he'd have been fired. If stating that the Steelers organization knows more about who they want coaching them and how they want that coach to function, than you do means "I'm wearing black and gold glasses", then so be it...

[Chidi29]

My biggest problem with Arians for the most part was that I didn't feel as if he was doing enough to evolve Ben's game to the next level. In other words, Ben needed to be less playground and more conventional. Don't get me wrong, I love Ben's improv skills and I'm not suggesting they be taken away from him, but we needed to learn how to start getting the ball out in time better, to reduce the hits and sacks Ben was taking. Well mission accomplished. It's a rarity anymore when the Steelers don't get out the ball in less than 3 seconds on a pass. Obviously if no one is open Ben will usually extend the play, and I'm good with that. It's just that now, way more often than not the ball is getting out in time, and the results are getting better and better.

As to the red zone issues, I think we've become a little too impatient with the running game there. I'm not saying we need to pound it between the tackles, but mix it up a little more, and then the play action might actually work.

I hear you zu and that's been the biggest complaint I've had of Ben for a long time.

But at the same token, I think there's a fine line that you walk if you're Arians.

I know he's spoken of the incident multiple times in the past where he tried to change a QB. It was more of a mechancial thing than a mentality/style like it has been for Ben, but he ended up making the mistake of trying to change him too much and wrecked his career. I'm sure it's difficult to find that balance in Ben and something that can't be done overnight.

Another thought to consider. Getting the ball out quick in part means reading the defense well and knowing what is coming. That goes back to film study. We know Ben wasn't exactly the hardest of workers in the film room. He finally got a better work ethic and the mental part of his game has greatly improved. That's not a coincidence.

[Count Steeler]

Another thought to consider. Getting the ball out quick in part means reading the defense well and knowing what is coming. That goes back to film study. We know Ben wasn't exactly the hardest of workers in the film room. He finally got a better work ethic and the mental part of his game has greatly improved. That's not a coincidence.

Thank you Ashley.

[zulater]

I hear you zu and that's been the biggest complaint I've had of Ben for a long time.

But at the same token, I think there's a fine line that you walk if you're Arians.

I know he's spoken of the incident multiple times in the past where he tried to change a QB. It was more of a mechancial thing than a mentality/style like it has been for Ben, but he ended up making the mistake of trying to change him too much and wrecked his career. I'm sure it's difficult to find that balance in Ben and something that can't be done overnight.

Another thought to consider. Getting the ball out quick in part means reading the defense well and knowing what is coming. That goes back to film study. We know Ben wasn't exactly the hardest of workers in the film room. He finally got a better work ethic and the mental part of his game has greatly improved. That's not a coincidence.

I get that. But I also thought part of the problem was that Ben and Bruce were more friends than pupil and student, and that maybe a sterner hand was needed to make Ben more studious.

But those were past concerns, both have amp'ed up their game to the next level, so I'm fine with Arians staying as long as he likes now.

[Chidi29]

Understandable.

See, this is the Arians discussion we need. Not yelling and people making ridiculous statements. That's what gets annoying.

[zulater]

Understandable.

See, this is the Arians discussion we need. Not yelling and people making ridiculous statements. That's what gets annoying.

I must be losing my edge?! :doh:


:wink02: