Predict the Steelers final record.

[zulater]

I'm going 6-10. 7-9 at best.

The defense needs a complete overhaul. Including the coordinater. I don't know if it can be fixed in one offseason.

[steel9guy]

8-8

[fansince'76]

8-8. Just good enough to NOT be able to draft an immediate impact player in the first round.

[Edman]

No better than 8-8.

Send Lebeau out to pasture and overhaul the Defense.

[steelreserve]

8-8 or 9-7, either way seeing our slim playoff hopes disappear on the last day of the season when the Patriots or Texans take the day off and screw up whatever wild mathematical combination would've theoretically gotten us in, not that we deserved it anyway.

[43Hitman]

6-10 if we're lucky. I figure we will sweep the Clowns, beat the Cowgirls and Deadskins, but thats it.

[SteelerFanInStl]

I'd say 7-9 at best. The defense most definitely can't be fixed in one season. The front office has done a poor job of drafting recently. Most of the recent draft picks have yet to even make an impact.

[Edman]

I'd say 7-9 at best. The defense most definitely can't be fixed in one season. The front office has done a poor job of drafting recently. Most of the recent draft picks have yet to even make an impact.

Nope. Talent and drafting isn't the issue. We held onto Lebeau and tired veterans for far too long.

[fansince'76]

Nope. Talent and drafting isn't the issue. We held onto Lebeau and tired veterans for far too long.

Been saying this since the multiple (game losing) collapses in 2009 - if a defense is so dependent on the skills of one player (Polamalu) to work correctly, then it is a fundamentally flawed defense. Yet Arians caught all the stick when the defense shit the bed repeatedly and lost leads in the 4th quarter of games that season and the defense was given a pass. Nothing has really changed since then.

[tube517]

What? No 2-14? :chuckle:

[X-Terminator]

I'm not changing my prediction. 10-6 is what I said before the season started, and I'm sticking with it.

[SteelerFanInStl]

Nope. Talent and drafting isn't the issue. We held onto Lebeau and tired veterans for far too long.

You can't say that. NONE of the young guys drafted recently has made an impact outside of Pouncey and Antonio Brown. What have Hood or Heyward done to prove that they were worth a 1st round pick? What about Worilds? He had two sacks today but he hasn't even shown that he's capable of being a starter.

Who has been drafted in the last 5 years that has made an impact? Mendy, Wallace, Pouncey and Brown. Exclude the rookies because it's definitely too soon for them and you have 4 players in 4 years. Gilbert is starting but he hasn't shown himself to be anything special yet.

[X-Terminator]

You can't say that. NONE of the young guys drafted recently has made an impact outside of Pouncey and Antonio Brown. What have Hood or Heyward done to prove that they were worth a 1st round pick? What about Worilds? He had two sacks today but he hasn't even shown that he's capable of being a starter.

Who has been drafted in the last 5 years that has made an impact? Mendy, Wallace, Pouncey and Brown. Exclude the rookies because it's definitely too soon for them and you have 4 players in 4 years. Gilbert is starting but he hasn't shown himself to be anything special yet.

The drafting has gone downhill since Cowher left.

Heyward never gets on the field. Hood hasn't been that great. The BIG problem with the DL is Hampton in the middle instead of McLendon...unless McLendon played more tonight? Hampton was done 3 years ago and has no business starting and getting most of the snaps. That is the fault of the guy calling the plays and making the personnel decisions.

[Edman]

Been saying this since the multiple (game losing) collapses in 2009 - if a defense is so dependent on the skills of one player (Polamalu) to work correctly, then it is a fundamentally flawed defense. Yet Arians caught all the stick when the defense shit the bed repeatedly and lost leads in the 4th quarter of games that season and the defense was given a pass. Nothing has really changed since then.

Arians got the stick because his Offenses were quite ordinary themselves. The Defense was top notch for 57 minutes. The Offense couldn't even get off the ground.

Lebeau's over-reliance on Troy being superhuman resulted in this predicament. There are 11 players on Defense, not one. When one player goes down and the Defense falls apart, it's a poor TEAM defense, and the very moment Lebeau went conservative, BAM Titans big 3rd conversion.

[Edman]

Heyward never gets on the field. Hood hasn't been that great. The BIG problem with the DL is Hampton in the middle instead of McLendon...unless McLendon played more tonight? Hampton was done 3 years ago and has no business starting and getting most of the snaps. That is the fault of the guy calling the plays and making the personnel decisions.

Heyward never gets on the field because he doesn't do what Lebeau wants him to do: Stand around and titty fight.

As for Hood, do you not forget he was benched to start the 2011 season for Aaron Smith? After completely DOMINATING to close out 2010? Would you say he was a bad player then?

[fansince'76]

Arians got the stick because his Offenses were quite ordinary themselves. The Defense was top notch for 57 minutes. The Offense couldn't even get off the ground.

Lebeau's over-reliance on Troy being superhuman resulted in this predicament. There are 11 players on Defense, not one. When one player goes down and the Defense falls apart, it's a poor TEAM defense, and the very moment Lebeau went conservative, BAM Titans big 3rd conversion.

Sorry, dude. The Raiders game this year was a CARBON COPY of the one that year. Except it was BRUCE FREAKING GRADKOWSKI and Louis Murphy (who?) doing all the damage. And this game tonight was almost a carbon copy of the Chiefs debacle that year - huge ST mistake leading to an opponent's cheap TD and the defense given a lead relatively late in the 4th quarter against another pedestrian offense and couldn't close the deal again. The only difference being that we weren't forced to sit through an extra period before finally dropping the game. PLENTY of parallels with 2009.

And the new Haley offense still doesn't get it done enough inside the red zone. WAY too many FGs. Still.

[X-Terminator]

Heyward never gets on the field because he doesn't do what Lebeau wants him to do: Stand around and titty fight.

As for Hood, do you not forget he was benched to start the 2011 season for Aaron Smith? After completely DOMINATING to close out 2010? Would you say he was a bad player then?

I do remember that.

Let me clarify - I'm not saying that Hood isn't any good at all, only that he hasn't been impressive so far this season. I think much, if not most, of that is because of the defense and the coordinator. Neither Hood nor Heyward are good fits for this scheme, but that's not their fault, nor does it mean they aren't talented. LeBeau needs to go and a defense implemented to take advantage of their strengths, but that's not going to happen until next season.

[X-Terminator]

And the new Haley offense still doesn't get it done enough inside the red zone. WAY too many FGs. Still.

Not being able to run the ball has a lot to do with that...same as it was for that other guy the past few seasons.

[SteelerFanInStl]

Heyward never gets on the field. Hood hasn't been that great. The BIG problem with the DL is Hampton in the middle instead of McLendon...unless McLendon played more tonight? Hampton was done 3 years ago and has no business starting and getting most of the snaps.

I agree. Get Hampton out of there and put McClendon in. Why isn't Heyward playing more? Hasn't he shown enough to garner more playing time? He's been invisible. Why aren't Keisel, Ziggy and Heyward rotating in and out?

[fansince'76]

Not being able to run the ball has a lot to do with that...same as it was for that other guy the past few seasons.

Yep. Which points back to the OL. You and I have both made that argument in the past as well, but it used to fall on deaf ears, since the "other guy" was such a convenient scapegoat.

[SteelerFanInStl]

I do remember that.

Let me clarify - I'm not saying that Hood isn't any good at all, only that he hasn't been impressive so far this season. I think much, if not most, of that is because of the defense and the coordinator. Neither Hood nor Heyward are good fits for this scheme, but that's not their fault, nor does it mean they aren't talented. LeBeau needs to go and a defense implemented to take advantage of their strengths, but that's not going to happen until next season.

If a player isn't a good fit for your scheme then don't take them with a first round pick. That seems pretty simple. That being said, if players on your team don't fit your scheme, then change the f'ing scheme to fit their talents. We can't keep trying to play defense the same way that we've done it for the past 10+ years. The game has changed and our defense needs to change with it. Troy will soon be gone and so will James. We need to start planning the future without them because it could be as early as next year.

[X-Terminator]

Yep. Which points back to the OL. You and I have both made that argument in the past as well, but it used to fall on deaf ears, since the "other guy" was such a convenient scapegoat.

Of course, and nobody dared question LeBeau even when it was more than warranted. Funny how the tone changes when they get rid of the guy that they hate.


If a player isn't a good fit for your scheme then don't take them with a first round pick. That seems pretty simple. That being said, if players on your team don't fit your scheme, then change the f'ing scheme to fit their talents. We can't keep trying to play defense the same way that we've done it for the past 10+ years. The game has changed and our defense needs to change with it. Troy will soon be gone and so will James. We need to start planning the future without them because it could be as early as next year.

I have no problem with them taking Hood and Heyward. They were needs, and they were the 2 best players available in those drafts. So they need to change the scheme, and that isn't happening mid-season.

[st33lersguy]

Anyone who thinks this pile of garbage is going to win more than 7 games is delusional

[steelreserve]

Nope. Talent and drafting isn't the issue. We held onto Lebeau and tired veterans for far too long.

Drafting is a huge issue. The reason we're holding on to so many tired veterans is that beyond Timmons and Woodley in 2007, we haven't hit on a single defensive draft pick in almost a decade. For 20+ picks, you'd think we'd have more to show for it than a couple marginal stopgap guys and a couple guys who we're still waiting for them to "live up to their potential" after two or three years (which is another way of saying they're mainly still in the lineup because they were first-round picks and we're giving them every possible chance, even though if they're not making a big impact by now, you usually know how that goes). Now the key guys on the defense are all at the end of their careers but we have nobody to replace them, so what other choice do we have but sticking with them?


Been saying this since the multiple (game losing) collapses in 2009 - if a defense is so dependent on the skills of one player (Polamalu) to work correctly, then it is a fundamentally flawed defense. Yet Arians caught all the stick when the defense shit the bed repeatedly and lost leads in the 4th quarter of games that season and the defense was given a pass. Nothing has really changed since then.

Yes to your first point. Definite yes. On the one hand, if you have a player like Troy who comes along once in a generation, you have to take advantage of it. But the lack of any cohesive backup plan for so long has just been appalling.

IIRC, people were all over the defense in 2006 and 2009 though, and a lot of the same stuff was being said. And of course, there was the counter-argument: It's just a couple bad games, sky is falling, you just want to fire everyone at the drop of a hat, Steelers fans are so spoiled, we panic if we don't win every game 72-0. Only back then, the counter-arguments held a lot more water, and a lot of the veteran defenders were 5-year veterans instead of 10-year veterans, and people were a lot more willing to back off. We're in some serious shit now, so they don't.

Arians, it seemed like people were more mad at not for "losing games," but because the offense in general never reached its full potential, and a lot of that was because of mistakes that now seem obvious. I maintained back then that the offense could easily be one of the best in the league if it was managed properly, and that's been the direction we're headed with the new regime. Really, I think the issue in 2009 was that under the surface, the defense had not started crumbling to the extent it has now, so we were willing to put some faith in them, whereas the offense was just a lot of wasted potential.

[Steeldude]

Of course, and nobody dared question LeBeau even when it was more than warranted.

I have said my fair share on Lebeau's faults, but I didn't say as much as I wanted because I knew the rah-rah fans would explode in anger.

[st33lersguy]

You got to figure, you can write off all 8 road games (including the road game against Cleveland), and at home Baltimore and San Diego in December (they're best month), and you are looking at anywhere from 2-6 wins.

[X-Terminator]

I have said my fair share on Lebeau's faults, but I didn't say as much as I wanted because I knew the rah-rah fans would explode in anger.

I know you did, and sometimes I wondered why you even bothered since nobody was listening anyway.

[JayC]

the team is in shambles between injuries, old defense, lack of talent on defense, and coaching. i think they go 8-8 though.

[venom]

I voted 8-8 and 3rd place in the North. Congrats guys

[Count Steeler]

I said 7-9 because I am being optimistic.

One thing I noticed last night was the D Line was about 1 yard off the ball at the snap. The Titan's D was right up on our O Line, in contrast. How are you going to stuff the run when you are already ceding ground at the snap of the ball. This is not the CFL. Our D Line is being poorly coached, along with the rest of the D.

Yeah, injuries are a factor, but fundamentals are fundamentals. And when did we un-learn how to tackle. Maybe Clark should take these guys and show them how it is done.

[suitanim]

8-8. We'll go 7-1 at home, and our only road win will come in Cleveland (and it will look a lot like the Rats win in KC).

Shame to waste what's going to a crazy good season for Ben like this...

[Moose]

I said at the beginning of season 7-9, but now I'm swaying to 6-10.

[Edman]

Sorry, dude. The Raiders game this year was a CARBON COPY of the one that year. Except it was BRUCE FREAKING GRADKOWSKI and Louis Murphy (who?) doing all the damage. And this game tonight was almost a carbon copy of the Chiefs debacle that year - huge ST mistake leading to an opponent's cheap TD and the defense given a lead relatively late in the 4th quarter against another pedestrian offense and couldn't close the deal again. The only difference being that we weren't forced to sit through an extra period before finally dropping the game. PLENTY of parallels with 2009.

And the new Haley offense still doesn't get it done enough inside the red zone. WAY too many FGs. Still.

Exactly. The 2009 Raiders game was much the same way. The Offense gets off to a big start, then does nothing for an entire quarter and a half, letting the Faiders hang around, until the team fell behind. The Offense decided to get in gear, but it was too late because the Defense was well in collapse phase. The Offense was just as responsible if not responsible for that disaster.

The Haley Offense was been great until the 1st half last night. Deep in the pit of my gut I knew after that Wallace TD the Offense would fall apart. It always does. It was a copy of what we've seen the last five years. Sure enough, the Offense did very little after that against the juggernaut Titans Defense. Ben got greedy, impatient and ultimately sloppy. The O-Line couldn't pass protect effectively anymore because Impatient Ben was constantly looking for big gains. Nothing like the methodical masetro we've seen in four games this year and more like the ragtag mistake-prone cowboy of 2009-2011. It was the same kind of mess that got Arians cast out in the first place. The difference so far is that we've seen it for one game, while Arians saw it fit to keep it going for seasons on end.

[Moose]

Exactly. The 2009 Raiders game was much the same way. The Offense gets off to a big start, then does nothing for an entire quarter and a half, letting the Faiders hang around, until the team fell behind. The Offense decided to get in gear, but it was too late because the Defense was well in collapse phase. The Offense was just as responsible if not responsible for that disaster.

The Haley Offense was been great until the 1st half last night. Deep in the pit of my gut I knew after that Wallace TD the Offense would fall apart. It always does. It was a copy of what we've seen the last five years. Sure enough, the Offense did very little after that against the juggernaut Titans Defense. Ben got greedy, impatient and ultimately sloppy. The O-Line couldn't pass protect effectively anymore because Impatient Ben was constantly looking for big gains. Nothing like the methodical masetro we've seen in four games this year and more like the ragtag mistake-prone cowboy of 2009-2011. It was the same kind of mess that got Arians cast out in the first place. The difference so far is that we've seen it for one game, while Arians saw it fit to keep it going for seasons on end.

DITTO!! And I couldn't believe how inaccurate Ben was getting on his throws......too high, too low, too far in front, etc.,etc.. And I'm sick of the FG's also. Get to the red zone get the 7.

[NCSteeler]

Of course, and nobody dared question LeBeau even when it was more than warranted. Funny how the tone changes when they get rid of the guy that they hate.



I have no problem with them taking Hood and Heyward. They were needs, and they were the 2 best players available in those drafts. So they need to change the scheme, and that isn't happening mid-season.

it's was easy to give a break to a proven HOF commodity and blame the guy who's biggest claim to fame is coaching Manning. But I do agree recent history is starting to outweigh "historical career" .

[NCSteeler]

I picked 9-7 with my black and gold heart, but the brain looking at the schedule thinks 8-8

I think we win the home games minus Baltimore, I think we can win one road game at cleveland. And I think the cowboys game is a toss up, they could easily be imploding by then. And there is always a chance that we could take this motivation and beat the bengals next week and with this team looking confused and lethargic 10 days could be a big help

[suitanim]

I picked 9-7 with my black and gold heart, but the brain looking at the schedule thinks 8-8

I think we win the home games minus Baltimore, I think we can win one road game at cleveland. And I think the cowboys game is a toss up, they could easily be imploding by then. And there is always a chance that we could take this motivation and beat the bengals next week and with this team looking confused and lethargic 10 days could be a big help

I agree.

[Carolina Steelers]

I'll say 8-8 maybe 9-7 if were lucky the Offense leads the way i could see us score board watcing the last 2 weeks hoping like 4 teams lose and 1 ties to give us a chance @ playoffs

[suitanim]

I will say this. If, and it's a HUGE IF, but IF this team can somehow turn it around, then if you're going to lose, lose early. This ain't the BCS. It's when you peak and play your best football that counts.

[Hindes204]

I'm still hopeful. I still say we turn this thing around and go 11-5, barely sneaking into the playoffs.

[ALLD]

We are choking and bumbling our way to a high teens draft pick and an 8-8 record.