i dont know about that but the past 2 seasons he's always been really slow to secure the ball and move upfield immediately if thats what you mean. this dude needs to learn to average more than single digit YPC. that shit isnt going to cut it in the NFLOriginally Posted by Shoes
above is a huge part of the reason TJ Watt plays Linebacker
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It is indeed, once he catches the ball in traffic he takes choppy steps like he's not sure in what direction he should go.
James is not good enough to make a big play when James is against a slow linebacker
It's a big problem and hopefully McDonald is going to be the answer soon
Re: What I Think I Know After 2 Weeks
I'm never not going to have that vision in my head when James catches the ball & proceeds to stammer around.
Really though, James is a pretty good red-zone weapon, specifically at the goal line... in that he is tall, and more importantly, he doesn't have to run anywhere after the catch if he's already standing in the end zone. I'm not trying to be funny; I'd send him into the end zone on every red-zone snap.
Now, if McDonald could be the guy to play TE between the 20s, our TE problem would be solved.
This is clearly going to be the blueprint to defend the team moving forward.
Teams are going to let them throw to Rogers and James all day. I will say this - James' terrible blocking blows up more plays than his lack of YAC does.
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You're right and he looks too overcautious in securing the catch?? I don't know but he's damn slow to turn upfield and yac for him is me saying "Yack! Jessie move!"
(BTW, I brought grapes for lunch/snack to work so there's that)
James is obviously a completely different player from Heath Miller, but he doesn't have to be the same. He's been a pleasant surprise at getting open over the middle and at securing tough catches. We just have to get used to the fact that where he catches the ball is pretty much going to be where he is tackled. Don't throw him a 6-yard dump when you need 10 yards because you won't get it. The way he runs after the catch is a carbon copy of Matt Spaeth - turtle up and shuffle backwards or sideways for a couple yards until you get blown up. But he is much better than Spaeth at getting open, and will actually catch a 15-yard pass over the middle if you send him there and throw it to him. He's not a big-play type of guy, but we can work with this.
I do like the new look of the defense and the trend of the secondary. Young and boldly aggressive is better than old and slow, or young and dumb. I said before the season that I'd rather keep one of the younger guys with upside than Gay who is a known quantity and a declining one, because even though Gay had more experience, there was no significant difference in their level of play. Glad to see that is coming to pass, although we will have a decision to make once Sutton comes back from IR; I actually hope we keep him over Gay at that point.
As for the bonus Kaepernick question - despite the bad QB play around the league, there is still no compelling reason for any team to hire him. Perhaps he'd be an upgrade over the Kizers and Hoyers of the world, but what's that going to do? Take a 3-13 team to 5-11? What good is that? Maybe he's better than some of the backups on non-horrible teams (Tolzien), but what's that going to do? Bring him in cold during the season and have him try to wing it, gamble that he's somehow going to win the game or two before the real QB is back, and then ... ?
And this is all assuming that he's actually in a place where he's focused first and foremost on playing professional football, to a degree that's going to allow him to not only miantain his level but catch up with everybody else. Based on the available evidence, that's a toss-up being generous (even before all the other bullshit, he was not exactly known as a film-room junkie, locker room leader, or even a team-first kind of guy). You'll notice how I haven't even mentioned the "non-football" part of it, which is that in order to even attempt these marginal on-field gains, table stakes is alienating somewhere between a quarter and a half of your fan base, who regardless of what you think of their political opinions, are still your customers. As an owner, that's not taking a political stand or "blackballing," that's just called not shooting yourself in the foot by pissing off a significant number of the people who are willing to pay you money.
Not even high-risk, high-reward - more like low reward, guaranteed trouble. Much as the media is finger blasting their shitbox over Kaepernick trying to get him a job, there are about a hundred non-opinion, non-political, simply football or business reasons why it's a dumb idea.
See you Space Cowboy ...
Ive always thought the Kaepernick debate was really overanalyzed around the league, so here's my first hot take im posting on the topic. And by hot take, i mean just a whole lot of common sense. From a talent perspective, there is no question that Kaepernick at least belongs on an NFL roster. Put all other variables aside. From that standpoint, this is almost impossible to argue. Do I have a personal vendetta against these pseudo running-QB's like many fans, especially steelers fans? Yes (Sorry to conjure up memories of Kordell Stewart and Michael Vick everybody). I think they were, are, and always will be a gimmick at the end of the day in comparison to a traditional pocket passer. With the right coach and offense however, he's at least a capable, sometimes lethal weapon. Give him to Kyle Shanahan or Bill Belichick and he'll light up the field in a significant number of games. 87.3 QB rating, 84.5 yards rushing per game (including two 100 yard rushing games, one of which was a playoff rushing yards record for QB's) and 11:5 TD:Interception ratio in the playoffs. Yeah, that warrants a roster spot in terms of performance. There are 81 QB's on a 53 man roster in the NFL right now: http://www.ourlads.com/nfldepthcharts/depthchartpos/QB
Even the most insistent Kaepernick hater would admit that he's clearly better than a dozens of these guys.
From a financial/off the field standpoint, rumors about Kaepernick's contract demands ($9-10 million last I checked) plus the attention drawn from his protests (whether you agree, disagree, or something in between) is a gigantic risk. Tim Tebow attracted a media circus, and his on-field prayer-kneeling really wasnt seen as some kind of malicious act, and yet it played a big part in him not being able to get a job. Sure, the numbers say that he sucks, but theres no denying that he did get the job done in the clutch on the back 9 of his career, including against us.
In terms of that perfect fit (a team that actually needs a QB and has a great offensive mind), there really arent many if any. So I can see why he's unemployed. There are definitely teams that have nothing to lose by throwing the dice (Cardinals, 49ers, Bears, Jaguars, Jets?...none of which have an OC thats good enough to utilize him imo) but I agree with you that they arent winning too many more games with him.
re: Kaepernick
Before there was a debate, I always felt he was douchey. He classlessly mocked Cam Newton after beating him in the playoffs. He was grabbing his crotch so much during a Madden (?) videogame commercial, that the director nearly edited his entire portion out. Et cetera.
He pissed & moaned about being benched (which all QBs do, but considering his douchiness, I took it as him being a spoiled brat). And then (only AFTER he was benched) did he all of a sudden become an activist.
Oh... and, he can't hit the inside of a barn if he was standing in the middle of it.
Kaepernick = Tebow
in Tebows defense at least he was admirable ...
Kaepernick not so much ...
neither are a passer and in today's league that is what you should be looking for as a QB
Last edited by Dwinsgames; 09-21-2017 at 10:04 AM.
Kenny Pickett is who I though he was .. Eagles problem now
There's no denying he's got the same or better talent than the half-dozen or so worst starters in the league. On the other hand, they're the worst quarterbacks in the league. Being better than them doesn't necessarily make you good. What we have with Kaepernick is a guy who's somewhere between "low-average" and "pretty good," and has only been "pretty good" in a special offense.
Actually, the last part doesn't get talked about too much, but is probably way more important than people think. He's not very good in a traditional line-'em-up offense, and not many teams use the read option anymore, or even a hybrid of it. You make Kaepernick your starter, you have to go all-in and change your offense. You make him your backup, you have to have two different offenses. Otherwise you're going to suck. Very few teams are willing or able to do that even for a starter, and even then only if you think he's THE GUY who's going to have you competing for a title. You don't do that for a guy who's going to be there slogging you through a couple rough years, and certainly not for a backup. With that in mind, he probably could've fit in as a starter in Denver last year (good team needing a QB as a last piece and desperate to win), or possibly as a backup in Seattle or Carolina where they run an offense around a dual-threat starting QB. That's about it. Opting out of the 49ers contract was about as dumb a move as there was. Even without all of the political BS swirling around it, I think people vastly overestimated the market.
And there really is no getting around the political BS, although I think people are doing it wrong by looking at it as an issue of "social justice" when it's really a business decision. If I owned a McDonald's in Beverly Hills, I probably wouldn't put up a Black Lives Matter sign; if I owned a McDonald's in South Central L.A., I wouldn't put up a sign saying "Repeal Obamacare" or "We are the 1%." But I wouldn't be helping myself if I did the reverse either. The safest political statement for a business is no political statement. And that's exactly what they've chosen to do.
Anyway, I hope that's the last of the Kaepernick crap, and I apologize for taking the bait, because this really was a good thread aside from that and I hope I didn't sidetrack it too far and ruin it.
See you Space Cowboy ...
This is what I see as well. If he turns and faces the catch, he rarely even makes an attempt to turn his body back down field. He makes the grab, wraps it up, back peddles for a yard or two with his butt leading the way. It's like he's waiting for the contact instead of delivering the blow. As you say, we can work with him, but he's gonna have to improve his blocking at some point... He's a liability in that facet of the game.
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Better individually does not always equate to better collectively.
We are on the same page here... outside of the fact I wouldn't consider a 40+ yard attempt a gimmie. Even for Boswell.
Of all the decisions Tomlin gets questioned on, this is just the foam on a beer...
Interesting to see the reaction on James. I wholeheartedly agree with the assessment of his inability to produce yards after the catch. Personally, I just don't care about that. Simply secure the catch and fall down. That'll work in this offense.
But you must be able to block. I mean seriously. How is he that big and that bad at blocking?
In Steelreserve's senario... throwing short of the sticks on 3rd downs. Other than that, no problem
Discounting the times he is just late to his assignment and doesn't get square, he does stay very upright and is easily knocked off his base... if you want to even call it that. Munch would probably hesitate to do so. You look at a guy like Heath, and the his base and his balance are obvious.
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It usually comes down to footwork. Most big guys can fire off the ball and block a gap. It's when they get moving they can't keep their feet in position to leverage another big guy, who has leverage. Like the 'low man wins' situation.
Only 2 games in, but it's looking like the defense is going to be much better against the run this year.
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Meh. Talk about a worthless stat. Anyone with eyes saw him literally making holes where they didn't exist on Sunday, and that's only his second game back. I'd rather have his YPC average from last Sunday then 140 yards and 14 YPC from a guy who had five-foot holes to run through and fifteen yards before being untouched each down.
I was thinking the same thing.
I, too, apologize for derailing this thread (one of the better threads recently).
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Yeah well the point is that Bell put himself in that situation (once more) by holding out. He has no pass with me. My opinion is that the holdout and subsequent sub par play are negotiation tactics from Bell. Next year, when they consider the tag, he wants them to think twice by knowing that he'll hold out till the last day and take several games to be up to par. I'd rather we cut ties and move on after this season TBH. He's not worth $15M.
Plus..... I'd rather have 2 TDs by JJ than 12 YPC
Of course it is a negotiation tactic. This is a business after all.
The Steelers using the tag is a negotiating tactic. What is good for the goose is good for the gander...
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Bell's tactics are very poor IMO. He's overplayed his hand.
Just to be certain: You were watching the Steelers-Vikings game from 2017, right? Because in that game, I saw a guy with average vision making average plays, against a defense that was OK but far from dominant. Better than the first game, in that he was at least falling forward after contact and gaining some yards, but still a shadow of the player we had in 2016. He was almost completely ineffective until garbage time run-the-clock-out mode set in. That's not going to cut it.
The Steelers used the tag to give them time to work on a "real" contract, and then offered one (which was by all accounts a reasonable deal). That's a negotiating tactic.
Bell held out when there was no possibility of gaining any money at all. That's called throwing a bitch fit.
See you Space Cowboy ...
In fact, his agent had accept the steelers offer, but Bell refused this contract.
Maybe Bell will have a bigger deal next year, but I do not think it's going to be with a very good team.
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Bell did not "hold out". It wasn't a hold out. I still do not get why people are pissed about Bell not making TC. He was not going to practice, not in contact drills anyway. The contract issue is a completely different issue than why he didn't report to camp. No player likes camp. He didn't need to/have to be there, so he wasn't. He reported exactly when he said he would when he was asked. I'm so glad the Steelers and Bell have moved on.
I still think it would have been hilarious if the Steelers would have rescinded the tag a few hours prior to Bell showing up ... most teams ( that are worth playing for ) had spent all the money they had to spend and he would have got table scraps or played for a perennial loser and been way behind in the learning curve and mostly ineffective the entire year
Kenny Pickett is who I though he was .. Eagles problem now
Skip the training camp and holdout is the same thing...
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Not in this case. Bell wasn't coming to camp even if he had gotten exactly what he was asking for. TC was a non-issue here.
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