Ryan Shazier has been discharged from UPMC

[86WARD]

He’s getting there...

[stillers4me]

[hawaiiansteeler]

Could Derrick Johnson be a stopgap for the Steelers at linebacker?

By: Curt Popejoy

http://steelerswire.usatoday.com/201...at-linebacker/

[Mojouw]

Could Derrick Johnson be a stopgap for the Steelers at linebacker?

By: Curt Popejoy

http://steelerswire.usatoday.com/201...at-linebacker/

No. Dear me no. The Chiefs cut his snaps because he is old and slow now. I mean Spence and Williams can be a half step slow just fine.

[BlackAndGold]

Timmons will probably be cut by Miami, so he could be the LB they sign.

I'd be surprised if they were interested in DJ

[SteelerFanInStl]

No. Dear me no. The Chiefs cut his snaps because he is old and slow now. I mean Spence and Williams can be a half step slow just fine.

Agreed. Johnson is definitely not what we need.

Timmons will probably be cut by Miami, so he could be the LB they bring sign.

I don't think that Timmons is either. He was let go for a reason. While he's better than Spence, I'd much rather see us sign a younger, faster ILB who's better in coverage.

[Mojouw]

Agreed. Johnson is definitely not what we need.



I don't think that Timmons is either. He was let go for a reason. While he's better than Spence, I'd much rather see us sign a younger, faster ILB who's better in coverage.

If the Steelers want to go the free agency route here are some under the radar names:

Avery Williamson LB Titans
Demario Davis LB Jets
Nigel Bradham LB Eagles
Tahir Whitehead LB Lions
Jon Bostic LB Colts
Devon Kennard LB Giants - would need to move inside.

I can't take credit for most of those names as others have posted many of them around the various threads related to Steelers linebackers, free agency, and the draft. But I would simply point out that I would rather roll the dice on a player between 25-28 hitting their peak then players clearly on the decline such as Johnson or Timmons. Name recognition is a scary thing in free agency.

[steelreserve]

I don't think Timmons is "the" answer but he could still be useful to have on the team. Right now we have a problem two players deep - no one who can play Shazier's role AND no one who can step in for him even halfway decently.

I would hope we find someone better than Timmons to be the starter, but I think even though he may have lost a half-step, he is better than any of the backups we have right now, and could also be the backup/rotation player at both positions. He's probably about an average player at this point. And would also come fairly cheap.

I sure don't want to be counting on a starting lineup of Timmons-Williams, but on the other hand, even by bringing in a FA or high draft pick, we're still a twisted ankle away from the Williams-Spence or Williams-Moats shitshow. So we need more than just one guy. Timmons just seems to fit the need and the moment too well to ignore.

[SteelerFanInStl]

If the Steelers want to go the free agency route here are some under the radar names:

Avery Williamson LB Titans
Demario Davis LB Jets
Nigel Bradham LB Eagles
Tahir Whitehead LB Lions
Jon Bostic LB Colts
Devon Kennard LB Giants - would need to move inside.

I can't take credit for most of those names as others have posted many of them around the various threads related to Steelers linebackers, free agency, and the draft. But I would simply point out that I would rather roll the dice on a player between 25-28 hitting their peak then players clearly on the decline such as Johnson or Timmons. Name recognition is a scary thing in free agency.

Williamson and Bradham are the two that I'm most interested in.

[Craic]

I don't think Timmons is "the" answer but he could still be useful to have on the team. Right now we have a problem two players deep - no one who can play Shazier's role AND no one who can step in for him even halfway decently.

I would hope we find someone better than Timmons to be the starter, but I think even though he may have lost a half-step, he is better than any of the backups we have right now, and could also be the backup/rotation player at both positions. He's probably about an average player at this point. And would also come fairly cheap.

I sure don't want to be counting on a starting lineup of Timmons-Williams, but on the other hand, even by bringing in a FA or high draft pick, we're still a twisted ankle away from the Williams-Spence or Williams-Moats shitshow. So we need more than just one guy. Timmons just seems to fit the need and the moment too well to ignore.

We don't often agree, but when we do . . .

I think you're exactly right.

[BlackAndGold]

The Steelers wanted Timmons back, they just were not willing to give the guaranteed money that Miami offered.

If he's cut, I feel there is no doubt he'll be back. He'll comes cheap and he already knows the defense. Similar when they brought back Larry Foote after his 1 year with Detroit.

[Shoes]

I don't think Timmons is "the" answer but he could still be useful to have on the team. Right now we have a problem two players deep - no one who can play Shazier's role AND no one who can step in for him even halfway decently.

I would hope we find someone better than Timmons to be the starter, but I think even though he may have lost a half-step, he is better than any of the backups we have right now, and could also be the backup/rotation player at both positions. He's probably about an average player at this point. And would also come fairly cheap.

I sure don't want to be counting on a starting lineup of Timmons-Williams, but on the other hand, even by bringing in a FA or high draft pick, we're still a twisted ankle away from the Williams-Spence or Williams-Moats shitshow. So we need more than just one guy. Timmons just seems to fit the need and the moment too well to ignore.

I don't think Timmons is much faster than Spence. Enough of these retreads!

[steelreserve]

The Steelers wanted Timmons back, they just were not willing to give the guaranteed money that Miami offered.

If he's cut, I feel there is no doubt he'll be back. He'll comes cheap and he already knows the defense. Similar when they brought back Larry Foote after his 1 year with Detroit.

Oh man, yikes, they really fucked up the second year of his contract, he has a $5.5M base salary this year and an $8.5M cap hit. I thought that would make him a lock to be cut by Miami - but they guaranteed $4.5M of the base salary, so they'd only get a cap savings of $1M while eating $7M in dead money overall. That means they probably aren't letting him go except by trade.

Maybe we could pull that off while negotiating how much of the guaranteed money is picked up and by whom. Like - I'd be perfectly happy taking him back at a price of $2-3M or something, which would actually make the cap savings for Miami meaningful. More than that and it's just not worth it for us.

But being released outright is really the only way that would make it a no-brainer to sign him, though.

[86WARD]

I’d take Timmons over Johnson but I’d rather go off of Mojouws list before those two.

[pczach]

Oh man, yikes, they really fucked up the second year of his contract, he has a $5.5M base salary this year and an $8.5M cap hit. I thought that would make him a lock to be cut by Miami - but they guaranteed $4.5M of the base salary, so they'd only get a cap savings of $1M while eating $7M in dead money overall. That means they probably aren't letting him go except by trade.

Maybe we could pull that off while negotiating how much of the guaranteed money is picked up and by whom. Like - I'd be perfectly happy taking him back at a price of $2-3M or something, which would actually make the cap savings for Miami meaningful. More than that and it's just not worth it for us.

But being released outright is really the only way that would make it a no-brainer to sign him, though.

He really did shit the bed in Miami. They are extremely unhappy with him. Most things I have heard say that Miami is cutting him no matter what, but we all know that can change.

If Timmons is released, and he is willing to sign for a good number, it's a no-brainer. He knows both ILB positions, and he would immediately be better than any of the backups and maybe both starters without Shazier in the picture. Even if they want Vince Williams long-term, having Timmons as a starter early, while allowing them to draft ILB early and immediately improve the depth of the position makes sense. As long as Timmons understands that they're looking to get younger and more athletic at the position before he signs, it's a good move. As long as they either sign another good free agent ILB or draft one.

Imagine if Vince Williams gets hurt and your starting ILB's are Spence and Matakevich....or maybe Fort and Spence.....or Fort and Matakevich..... Let that sink in.

[steelreserve]

Imagine if Vince Williams gets hurt and your starting ILB's are Spence and Matakevich....or maybe Fort and Spence.....or Fort and Matakevich..... Let that sink in.

That's basically the whole reason for signing Timmons.

I brought this up a while back in another thread, but it bears repeating ... Williams is fine, but not in a bubble. Meaning a guy with his skill set does not work without also having a guy with Shazier's or Timmons' skill set on the field. You can't have two Williams on the field or they will eat your lunch. And all the backups we had were backups with Williams' skill set. Kind of like if you were running a 4-3, a guy like McCullers and a guy who did nothing but generate pressure would work well together as DTs, but two McCullers would suck.

I think it's worth keeping Fort around to see what he turns into, he is unknown but could be the future Williams if we can't afford him. Everyone else I could care less about. I guess Makatevich has made some good ST plays so he could stick around in a DHB role, but it's not that big of a deal.

[Born2Steel]

Timmons would be a huge help as far as making sure people are where they are supposed to be. Putting players in their gaps essentially. He's only going to be another of what we already have player-wise. He's limited to how far he's going to be able to cover somebody. We had him chasing WRs the season before he left. That's not what he's good at. Timmons' skill set, what he's really good at, would help us a lot in the run game and short pass game. We would still need that sideline to sideline ILB if we want to see much improvement from that group.

[Mojouw]

You fine folks have sold me on bringing back Timmons. As long as that doesn't fool the front office into thinking they have "fixed" the position.

[st33lersguy]

I say bring Timmons back if they can

[steelreserve]

You fine folks have sold me on bringing back Timmons. As long as that doesn't fool the front office into thinking they have "fixed" the position.

The good thing about that is, he's got maybe a couple years left of being a serviceable player, so they'll have to be looking for a new guy no matter what. Unless you meant "fixed" the problem enough to put it off until next year, which would indeed be a huge mistake.

I am keeping my fingers crossed, though, because it seems in recent seasons they have been feeling that they are getting closer to a championship while also realizing how little time they have to do it, and they've taken a much more no-bullshit approach toward identifying the immediate problems and dealing with them head-on. Back around like 2010 or 2012 it all seemed geared toward fixing basic problems five years down the road, maybe. Thankfully they seem to understand the situation and are behaving differently now.

[steel striker]

I would say bring Timmons back we, still need to draft somebody.

[teegre]

Colbert just announced that he is indeed going to sign a veteran ILB.

Colbert rarely goes into ANY draft with a gaping hole on his roster. Expect a mid-level ILB to be signed, but replaced on the depth chart almost immediately by a R1 (or R2) pick.

[Mojouw]

Colbert just announced that he is indeed going to sign a veteran ILB.

Colbert rarely goes into ANY draft with a gaping hole on his roster. Expect a mid-level ILB to be signed, but replaced on the depth chart almost immediately by a R1 (or R2) pick.

I agree on the Colbert and roster holes thing. Do you think that TWO ILBs could be signed?

Pre-Draft Depth Chart:

1. VW
2. Timmons
3. Other VET FA
4. Fort
5. Matekavich

The more I think about it, the more I kinda like that plan. It would mean that the Steelers don't HAVE to start a rookie LB. I mean they still likely should...but they wouldn't have too...

[teegre]

I agree on the Colbert and roster holes thing. Do you think that TWO ILBs could be signed?

Pre-Draft Depth Chart:

1. VW
2. Timmons
3. Other VET FA
4. Fort
5. Matekavich

The more I think about it, the more I kinda like that plan. It would mean that the Steelers don't HAVE to start a rookie LB. I mean they still likely should...but they wouldn't have too...

I think Moats is that 5th ILB (while also being the 5th OLB). Moats fills two holes...

[steelreserve]

I think Moats is that 5th ILB (while also being the 5th OLB). Moats fills two holes...

The problem is Moats SUCKS ASS now. He's completely ineffective in either role. Was an OK rotation player when we signed him, but those days are long past. I'd just as soon shove some 5th-round draft pick or minimum-salary FA in there and see if he's any good, won't be any worse.

[SteelerFanInStl]

But Timmons isn't a FA so why is everyone talking about him? I'll take Avery Williamson or Nigel Bradham over Timmons any day. Let's sign someone who can be a quality starter for a while.

[teegre]

The problem is Moats SUCKS ASS now. He's completely ineffective in either role. Was an OK rotation player when we signed him, but those days are long past. I'd just as soon shove some 5th-round draft pick or minimum-salary FA in there and see if he's any good, won't be any worse.

Going into the draft, he’s the 5th ILB/OLB.

After the draft, Yes, he’d be replaced by a R1 (or R2) pick.

[steelreserve]

But Timmons isn't a FA so why is everyone talking about him? I'll take Avery Williamson or Nigel Bradham over Timmons any day. Let's sign someone who can be a quality starter for a while.

Because he's likely to be released, or traded for next to nothing (other than possible cap relief).

And because we need someone in addition to, not instead of, a quality starter, and Timmons fits that description for cheap. We need two guys at ILB unless we want to be paper-thin again.

Unfortunately we have one acceptable ILB on the roster (Williams), and even he isn't acceptable unless there's also someone competent beside him.

- - - Updated - - -

Going into the draft, he’s the 5th ILB/OLB.

After the draft, Yes, he’d be replaced by a R1 (or R2) pick.

2017 was the last year of his contract. Unless we re-sign him just to cut him, we probably don't have a 5th ILB going into the draft. At least I hope not. I don't think we want him on the team anymore, or that he offers anything more than a random street free agent signed after the draft at this point.

[SteelerFanInStl]

Because he's likely to be released, or traded for next to nothing (other than possible cap relief).

And because we need someone in addition to, not instead of, a quality starter, and Timmons fits that description for cheap. We need two guys at ILB unless we want to be paper-thin again.

Unfortunately we have one acceptable ILB on the roster (Williams), and even he isn't acceptable unless there's also someone competent beside him.

I liked LT when he was on the Steelers but he's just not that good any more. I'd much rather sign a younger, faster FA who can help us for many years to come. They can start, along with VW, and then when the draft pick is ready, they can step in to replace VW and we'll have two quality starting ILBers.

[teegre]

2017 was the last year of his contract. Unless we re-sign him just to cut him, we probably don't have a 5th ILB going into the draft. At least I hope not. I don't think we want him on the team anymore, or that he offers anything more than a random street free agent signed after the draft at this point.

Oh... that changes everything.