Willie Colon Our Most Consistent OL...

[pfelix73]

Sorry guys for the headline, but someone just made this statement on the radio and I laughed.

Willie Colon is our most consistent OL... Consistently bad that is....

[frankthetank1]

who the eff would say that? he is the worst out of the bunch

[pfelix73]

No. The caller said he is the most consistent OL - consistently the worst.....!

[TallyStiller]

At least one flag every game - the model of consistency!!!

[steeler_fan_in_t.o.]

You know before the game starts that you can mark him down for at least one hold and one false start.

What is more consistent than that?

[ramblinjim]

and the hold will probably be either a) on a converted first down or b) just enough to put us outside of field goal range.

[Iron Shiek]

and the hold will probably be either a) on a converted first down or b) just enough to put us outside of field goal range.


You forgot one more: "back us up to our own 2 yard line."

Thanks Willie.

[Steeler Mafia]

Most consistant to have a holding penalty called on him every game. :HeadBanger

[Leper Friend]

In all fairness to all the o-lineman , only the coaches know how they grade out every game.

[Oviedo]

Colon is totally overmatched at RT. He cannot handle speed rushers and it is IMO no coincidence that all four of our losses were to teams that played a 4-3 defense and Colon got eaten alive by those outside pass rushers.

Colon needs to move inside to guard or to the bench.

[pittpete]

Colon has naked pics of someone in Tomlins family.
Id bet my life on it :roll:

[JUST-PLAIN-NASTY]

Colon's short arms really cause him to struggle on the edge. He has decent feet and that is why he got a look there to begin with. His feet can't compensate his short arms and he could be beat on any play because of it. If there isn't a change made next camp to put him at G someone needs to be shot. He has the potential to become a very productive RG. I don't think Smith will ever play for the Steelers again unless he plays for back-up money. Starks will be retained along with Kemo & Essex. Simmons might become a cap casualty in camp if it looks like his injury slowed him. Capizzi & Hills will have to battle an early round rookie for RT. I also expect an early round G/C. If they Steelers lock up McFadden, I think we will see 2 OL & 2 DL with the 4 picks we "should" have in the 1st 3 rounds. It will be equally important to lock-up Washington and get Ward to restructure with an extension. Ward will not be here next year with an $8 mil cap hit!

[pittpete]

Why would you expect Kemo to be resigned?
Guy is dumb as a stump.
Some team will throw a boatload of $$$ at him and I hope we arent stupid enough to offer him top dollar.
Not only am I angry that he caused Ben to be hurt(he had no clue what he was doing on the play),but his presnap penalties all year long are no excuse for a guy playing for a contract.

[MaxAMillion]

Why would you expect Kemo to be resigned?
Guy is dumb as a stump.
Some team will throw a boatload of $$$ at him and I hope we arent stupid enough to offer him top dollar.
Not only am I angry that he caused Ben to be hurt(he had no clue what he was doing on the play),but his presnap penalties all year long are no excuse for a guy playing for a contract.

Exactly, the Steelers should be able to draft a Guard with more ability than Kemo. He is wildly inconsistent. Both Guard positions need to be upgraded. Maybe Colon can upgrade one of the positions, and the draft can upgrade the other Guard position.

[Oviedo]

Why would you expect Kemo to be resigned?
Guy is dumb as a stump.
Some team will throw a boatload of $$$ at him and I hope we arent stupid enough to offer him top dollar.
Not only am I angry that he caused Ben to be hurt(he had no clue what he was doing on the play),but his presnap penalties all year long are no excuse for a guy playing for a contract.

Resigning Kemo would be one of my last priorities on the OL. If he walks we can just put Colon there.

Our number one priority has to be solidifying the OT positions on both sides of the line. Obviously the biggest challenge is LT and that will be the most expensive to fix. There is a very low probabaility that we get a LT in free agency simply because we don't get into the bidding wars those players will command. Like it or not that means Max Starks is the most likely solution and to be honest I think he has earned the chance because he has not been the weaklink on the OL.

I would go after a veteran OT for RT and draft an OT in Round 2 of the draft that could develop into the future LT or RT. As I have said before Tony Hills is the wildcard in this mix. If he can play he solves a lot of issues.

[JUST-PLAIN-NASTY]

I expect Kemo to be retained because it is a blueprint of the Steelers. This is Kemo's 1st year at starting full time. He will come cheap. By the 1st game next year, I do not expect Smith or Simmons to be on the roster. So that means you are pretty much looking at the starting OL next season right now with Maybe 1 new OL starting. Personally, I hope it will be a RT and Colon will move to RG. When people start to realize that chemistry is as important as talent on the OL...Things will be easier to understand. The Steelers didn't miss Faneca's talent this year and Harting's the year before...They misses the chemistry of the left side of the OL playing together for so many years. If you were in the trenches when you played football...You know how much of an asset it is to have a guy on each side of you that has been at that position with you. Some fans act like you can pause the game after the snap and plot out a blocking scheme. You have less than a second to recognize a twist/stunt is coming and the guy you engaged needs to be passed off and another guy is your responsibilty. Some time there could be some communication and one of the OL next to you can call it out. Most of the time it is just a "feel" where the guy next to you slide to you and engages your guy and that means you have to look gap away. You don't make these plays with a new guy playing next to you every year. Give me 5 guys who played together for 16 games and understand the O...You can do something with that!

[JUST-PLAIN-NASTY]

Why would you expect Kemo to be resigned?
Guy is dumb as a stump.
Some team will throw a boatload of $$$ at him and I hope we arent stupid enough to offer him top dollar.
Not only am I angry that he caused Ben to be hurt(he had no clue what he was doing on the play),but his presnap penalties all year long are no excuse for a guy playing for a contract.
Kemo will come cheap. Every OL on this team has many pre-snap penalties. "He had no clue what he was doing on the play" won't happen with a new guy or rookie...Doesn't always work out either. Chemistry...Some has been made this year. I wouldn't continue "stirring the pot" on this OL. I think a rookie RT with Colon moved to RG, with the rest intact, could improve the unit. The Steelers need to keep as much chemistry in place as possible on the OL or this team could take a step back for a year or two!

[JUST-PLAIN-NASTY]

Why would you expect Kemo to be resigned?
Guy is dumb as a stump.
Some team will throw a boatload of $$$ at him and I hope we arent stupid enough to offer him top dollar.
Not only am I angry that he caused Ben to be hurt(he had no clue what he was doing on the play),but his presnap penalties all year long are no excuse for a guy playing for a contract.

Exactly, the Steelers should be able to draft a Guard with more ability than Kemo. He is wildly inconsistent. Both Guard positions need to be upgraded. Maybe Colon can upgrade one of the positions, and the draft can upgrade the other Guard position.

I agree a rookie OG is needed for depth and competition. I wish Colon would be moved to RG and acquire a RT via draft or FA. However, the weakest link before his injury was Simmons and he has a large contract. It is uncertain if Simmons will even return to his, average at best, self. He really fell off as of late. Stapleton's future is at C. He was an adequate replacement for Simmons but I wouldn't say he couldn't be upgraded.

[JUST-PLAIN-NASTY]

Why would you expect Kemo to be resigned?
Guy is dumb as a stump.
Some team will throw a boatload of $$$ at him and I hope we arent stupid enough to offer him top dollar.
Not only am I angry that he caused Ben to be hurt(he had no clue what he was doing on the play),but his presnap penalties all year long are no excuse for a guy playing for a contract.

Resigning Kemo would be one of my last priorities on the OL. If he walks we can just put Colon there.

Our number one priority has to be solidifying the OT positions on both sides of the line. Obviously the biggest challenge is LT and that will be the most expensive to fix. There is a very low probabaility that we get a LT in free agency simply because we don't get into the bidding wars those players will command. Like it or not that means Max Starks is the most likely solution and to be honest I think he has earned the chance because he has not been the weaklink on the OL.

I would go after a veteran OT for RT and draft an OT in Round 2 of the draft that could develop into the future LT or RT. As I have said before Tony Hills is the wildcard in this mix. If he can play he solves a lot of issues.

I would put Starks 1st than Kemo. I also believe RT is the starting point. Colon would be a productive RG and give the Steelers the ability to get rid of Simmons contract if he doesn't perform after his injury. Plugging a new face in on both side of the C is a risky move. That is why I would like to see a new RT with Colon(RG), Hartwig(C), Kemo(LG), & Starks (LT). Maybe the RT is on the roster in Hills or Capizzi but I don't think the Steelers could take that chance. If the Steelers could come out of this draft with a G/C & an OT with 2 of the 4 picks in the 1st 3 rounds...I think a good foundation will be laid! OT(Beatty,Loadholt,Tupou) - C/G(Unger,Mack,Luigs) - G(Robinson,Johnson) Some names that might be Steelers. I think another area is coaching...Bring in Howard Mudd!!!

[Oviedo]

I like Max Unger. He seems to have the position flexibility that Tomlin values since he has played at several positions on the OL. Let him be understudy to Hartwig for a year and then step in.

Another player to watch is Andy Levitre from Oregon State. Could be a RT or play Guard.

[SteelStallion]

I personally like Mack from Cal- best center in the draft, amazingly strong but fast with pulling ability- kind of like a Webster but bigger. I would love to see the Steelers get a crack at him in the first round but he may be gone. Otherwise I would go best guard available in the first and best center available in the second.

It's just so telling to me that a guy like Tunch Ilkin who's a complete homer and buddies with all the Steelers and would never criticize (especially the o-line) sais on TV that they need to spend their first three picks on o-line! Who wouldn't agree- there's not a good o-lineman on this team and Starks will more likely be gone than resigned.

[JUST-PLAIN-NASTY]

I personally like Mack from Cal- best center in the draft, amazingly strong but fast with pulling ability- kind of like a Webster but bigger. I would love to see the Steelers get a crack at him in the first round but he may be gone. Otherwise I would go best guard available in the first and best center available in the second.

It's just so telling to me that a guy like Tunch Ilkin who's a complete homer and buddies with all the Steelers and would never criticize (especially the o-line) sais on TV that they need to spend their first three picks on o-line! Who wouldn't agree- there's not a good o-lineman on this team and Starks will more likely be gone than resigned.

I would say Smith is gone. They Steelers will not over pay Gross and they will also not go into the draft looking for their opening day starter at LT....Even if they retain Essex. If Starks is looking for Gross money than maybe they would consider Gross. Do you really think this organization is going into the draft without a proven, starting LT to protect the $100 million dollar man??? This is the Steelers...That's like a Lion's personnel decision! Say the Steelers used that philosophy last year with a loaded draft at LT. They would have missed out and Essex would have been the starter for the majority of the year! Simple math...Smith or Starks! Smith is most likely a back-up in this league with his ailing back. It's not sexy...But Starks will have to be retained! If he's looking for the big contract...The Steelers might be in trouble unless they get lucky in the draft! The Steelers have put themselves in a bad position. So bad that they might have to put a big contract on the table for a LT in FA. Keep your fingers crossed!

As for no good OL on this team...Not true in my opinion. I would say all five could start on some NFL teams. Have you watch other teams besides the Steelers? Ther is no doubt some youth & talent needs to be injected on both the OL & DL. But I will tell you this...An experienced OL coach would go a long way with this bunch! 3 of the 5(Colon,Kemo,&Stapleton) are either in their 1st or 2nd year of full starting roles. 1 of the 5 is in his 3rd full season at starting (Starks). Hartwig is the only seasoned vet with 6 years as a starter. 5 OL with a combined experience of 13 years of starting experience (An average of 2.6 per player). Young...Can't cover up poor coaching with an inexperienced group like this! I would throw some good money at an experienced & successful OL coach. Mudd from the Colts seems to work wonders with young OL. Get him!

[pfelix73]

"If you were in the trenches when you played football...You know how much of an asset it is to have a guy on each side of you that has been at that position with you."

I used to be in the trenches and I agree with this. That is why we will NOT see a total change along the OL next year. Many say there will be as many as 4 new OLmen and if that is the case, we'll be picking in the top 10 of the 2010 draft because we'll wind up with a 4-12 record next year. Cohesiveness along the OL is everything. I highly doubt that Colon will be moved to G. They would have moved him there by now if that were an option. And the coaches only see him as a OT. If Kemo isn't back, we have plenty of G's to fill in with Simmons, Essex, Stapleton, and Parquet. As someone stated earlier, the OT position is where we'll draft. And don't forget about Smith. He could be back for cheap since he was out all year. Starks may get a big contract from someone else too.

[JUST-PLAIN-NASTY]

"If you were in the trenches when you played football...You know how much of an asset it is to have a guy on each side of you that has been at that position with you."

I used to be in the trenches and I agree with this. That is why we will NOT see a total change along the OL next year. Many say there will be as many as 4 new OLmen and if that is the case, we'll be picking in the top 10 of the 2010 draft because we'll wind up with a 4-12 record next year. Cohesiveness along the OL is everything. I highly doubt that Colon will be moved to G. They would have moved him there by now if that were an option. And the coaches only see him as a OT. If Kemo isn't back, we have plenty of G's to fill in with Simmons, Essex, Stapleton, and Parquet. As someone stated earlier, the OT position is where we'll draft. And don't forget about Smith. He could be back for cheap since he was out all year. Starks may get a big contract from someone else too.

Smith staying at a big discount might be the way the Steelers could save some big money too. They could let Starks walk and draft the best LT in the 1st or 2nd. Smith could be the insurance just in case he isn't ready. Could sign Essex as additional insurance. I personally think we could upgrade from Starks through the draft. But I highly doubt the Steelers go into the draft without having either Smith or Starks signed. I think OT is the target. I don't know why Colon wasn't even tried at G. Tunch said he was their best option at RT. That makes some sense. During camp, Tunch thought Capizzi might push Colon and challenge him for the RT position. That was of course before his injury. Maybe Capizzi is the next UDFA success story for the Steelers. I think by the end of the playoffs we will know the direction the Steelers will be going on the OL. One bad game by Starks and it will make up their minds for them. Smith is not in the longterm plan and may get his best offer from the Steelers which might only be a 1-2 year deal. There are a few "middle of the road" OT in FA which are Steeler signings. I expect them to at least look at a them. Any Lion FA OL??? :shock: :shock: :shock: