Steelers Fans Have 1 Growing Concern With Ben Roethlisberger

[hawaiiansteel]

Steelers Fans Have 1 Growing Concern With Ben Roethlisberger

Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers suffered their second loss of the week on NBC’s Sunday Night Football.

The Steelers fell to the Bills, 26-15, less than a week after losing to the Washington Football Team in a Monday night game. Pittsburgh is now 11-2 on the season after opening the year with 11 straight wins.

Pittsburgh is still in very good shape for the playoffs – although the Steelers have lost the No. 1 seed – but there are concerns about the AFC North franchise’s ability to make a deep run.

The main reason for that: Pittsburgh’s lack of scoring power on offense. Does the Steelers’ offense have what it takes to push the ball down field against the Chiefs and Bills’ of the world? We’re not so sure following Sunday night’s loss.

Roethlisberger, 38, might be showing his age a bit. He finished the Sunday night game with 187 passing yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Big Ben was especially shaky with his downfield passes.

“Twice James Washington had his man beat deep from the inside and Steelers can’t connect. Ben Roethlisberger still has velocity on the intermediate throws but the deep ball hasn’t been there. Used to be a strength. Without vertical threat, tough to push through playoffs,” ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler tweeted.

It isn’t all on Big Ben, obviously.

The Steelers’ wide receivers aren’t giving him much help, as Pittsburgh dropped a number of passes on Sunday night.

No matter the excuse, though, the Steelers haven’t gotten it done as of late. That will need to change in a major way moving forward.


https://thespun.com/nfl/afc-north/pittsburgh-steelers/steelers-fans-have-1-growing-concern-with-ben-roethlisberger

[SidSmythe]

His concern is lack of running game combined with a sub par deep ball

[NJ-STEELER]

the deep ball has been off, but these receivers need to contest for it a bit better too.
ex is the J wash ball tonight

and especially chase, with the size and strength he has he needs to be winning those battles

[Steelhere10]

When I said weeks ago Ben was a weak link, of course I got laughed at. Now you see. It's not just Ben though, the whole side of the ball stinks. But it starts with #7. Days off from practice shows big time!

[Ernie]

My guess is.. ben hangs it up at the end of the year. Wont be able to keep this team together next year...and his bloated contract is a big part of the reason.

[BURGH86STEEL]

The coaches did their best to mask the deficiencies with Ben. The turnovers were a killer vs the Bills. We had a QB problem. How far can this team go if Ben doesn't play better?

Even with the injuries the defense kept the team in the game for a substantial period of time. Even the best defenses will eventually crack with multiple injuries, game changing mistakes by the offense, and lack of "help" and scoring from the offense.

I was hopeful that the offense might be able to pick up some of the slack from the defense. I guess time will tell if the coaches and players can make the adjustments and play better.

[Ernie]

A running game would certainly help (in hiding Ben's deficiencies).

I am wondering at this point if we should attempt to make a Carson Wentz type trade in the off season.

[rpmpit]

A running game would certainly help (in hiding Ben's deficiencies).

I am wondering at this point if we should attempt to make a Carson Wentz type trade in the off season.

Would rather have Sam Darnold. Aside from Wentz awful play this year, he has a history of major injuries. Darnold's biggest "sin" is getting drafted by the Jets. We can rebuild him. We have the technology. We can make him better than he was. Better, stronger, faster.

Hopefully some of you older folks will get my Six Million Dollar Man reference.

[Northern_Blitz]

My guess is.. ben hangs it up at the end of the year. Wont be able to keep this team together next year...and his bloated contract is a big part of the reason.

I think it has to be retire, cut, or extend.

Basically can't play this contract out (because you're right about his cap hit).

[Northern_Blitz]

Would rather have Sam Darnold. Aside from Wentz awful play this year, he has a history of major injuries. Darnold's biggest "sin" is getting drafted by the Jets. We can rebuild him. We have the technology. We can make him better than he was. Better, stronger, faster.

Hopefully some of you older folks will get my Six Million Dollar Man reference.

If we cut Ben, he still counts ~ $21M under the cap.

If he plays it's maybe something like $30M?

So if we can find a Fitzmagic special out there (decent QB with a first year hit of ~$5M), maybe that's a better play if Ben retires or the team thinks he's done?

I doubt we cut him though (I think he'll get extended). My guess is the team lets him play as long as he wants.

[NorthCoast]

If anyone saw the Tampa game yesterday you saw shades of Roethlisberger in TB. Missing wide open guys down field. The short stuff, yea that's still there but defenses are smart and know your weaknesses. We are witnessing the passing of a great era of football.

[Northern_Blitz]

If anyone saw the Tampa game yesterday you saw shades of Roethlisberger in TB. Missing wide open guys down field. The short stuff, yea that's still there but defenses are smart and know your weaknesses. We are witnessing the passing of a great era of football.

I agree... And hope we're wrong about the Pittsburgh part at least.

[feltdizz]

I remember a lot of post about why Ben gets paid the big bucks but this season sure took a turn for the worst the last few weeks. Maybe his knee is in worse shape than they want to admit?

[pfelix73]

A running game would certainly help (in hiding Ben's deficiencies).

I am wondering at this point if we should attempt to make a Carson Wentz type trade in the off season.

Yep- I've been thinking this for some time now. Wentz just needs a change of scenery.

[Sword]

When I said weeks ago Ben was a weak link, of course I got laughed at. Now you see. It's not just Ben though, the whole side of the ball stinks. But it starts with #7. Days off from practice shows big time! starts with the coach....

[KYPITTFAN]

The problem is the game plan, we just don't no who is in charge of it, Ben, OC, or Tomlin. The game plane is to keep Ben health and playing the entire season because we have no legit back up QB. The game plan of dink and dunk passing keeps him from getting hit and hurt, that has worked to perfectly. We are going to be in the playoff's with our starting QB. Now, the problem is all the teams have caught onto our game and crowd the line. With all those on the line Ben still has to get rid of the ball fast or he will get hit and hurt. Now that leaves you with no run game and even when the passes are caught they are short of the line to gain a first down. Our line can not run block nor pass block long enough to test a down field game plan. All of this I am sure of but not being a NFL coach I have no idea if you can change this up in three weeks. Defense is still good but not great with all the injuries. They can be had!!

[feltdizz]

Yep- I've been thinking this for some time now. Wentz just needs a change of scenery.

How would that contract play out with Philly? Unless we could get him on a Cam Newton deal I damn sure don’t want Wentz, he looks horrible right now and I wonder if he is the next Andrew Luck who hangs it up early. Something is going ok with his head right now and I’m nit sure we can fix it.

[Eich]

Yep- I've been thinking this for some time now. Wentz just needs a change of scenery.

I definitely wouldn't be opposed to that. He definitely needs out of Philly.

But for any QB to be successful, we need a major upgrade on the line. And the receivers need to remember how to catch. The ball. With their hands.

[hawaiiansteel]

Steelers’ Ben Roethlisberger: ‘If I don’t play good enough football, then I need to hang it up’

CHRIS ADAMSKI | Monday, December 14, 2020

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Ben Roethlisberger referred to one of his two costly interceptions Sunday as “a bad play on my part… 110% on me.”

Roethlisberger answered the next question he took during a postgame video conference call with media by saying, “I’m just not very good.”

And the 38-year-old, 17-year veteran quarterback wrapped up the session with an eyebrow-raising remark after being asked if Pittsburgh Steelers can turn things around to stop a two-game losing streak that has significantly soured their 11-0 start.

“I hope so,” Roethlisberger said. “If I don’t play good enough football, then I need to hang it up.”

Roethlisberger threw two interceptions among his 37 attempts that netted only 187 yards during Sunday’s 26-15 loss to the Buffalo Bills. The outing was the fourth consecutive with a sub-90 passer rating for Roethlisberger, whose rating in 10 of his first 11 games this season was better than 98.0.

Roethlisberger’s yards per attempt Sunday (5.05) was the ninth-worst of the 231 NFL games he’s played. None of his passes Sunday would gain more than 20 yards; according to NFL Next Gen Stats, only three completions were more than seven yards downfield.

One interception was returned 51 yards for a touchdown by the Bills’ Taron Johnson during the final minute of the first half. It gave Buffalo a lead it would never relinquish; Roethlisberger’s second interception came with 7 minutes, 11 seconds left, on an underthrown ball to an open James Washington that all but sealed the Bills’ win.

Receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster indicted the Steelers have not lost confidence in their future Hall of Fame quarterback.

“His mindset is always, ‘whatever happens, happens. We go out there and play 60 (minutes) together,’ ” Smith-Schuster said.

“He’s a leader; he’s been doing this for a very long time. A lot of young guys, they look around, and they know, that’s our captain, that’s our leader.”

Roethlisberger’s postgame remarks were reminiscent of his comments following a career-most five-interception outing he had during a 2017 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

“Maybe I don’t have it anymore,” Roethlisberger said that day.

When he led the Steelers to a win against the then-undfeated Kansas City Chiefs seven days later, Roethlisberger famously said, “I guess this old cowboy’s got a little left him in.”

After opening this season by scoring 26 or more points in 10 consecutive games, the Steelers haven’t cracked 20 in any of the past three contests. The offense has managed just five touchdowns over the past three games.

Though injuries along the offensive line, drops by the receivers and the lack of an adequate running game surely are contributing to the offense’s woes, Roethlisberger insists it’s all fixable.

“I still feel like I can do enough things to help this team win football games,” he said. “I’m going to do everything I can to get us back on track.”


https://triblive.com/sports/steelers-ben-roethlisberger-if-i-dont-play-good-enough-football-then-i-need-to-hang-it-up/

[Chucktownsteeler]

This dink, dank, dunk offense has no chance of succeeding without other threats. The NFL defenses have seen blueprints on how to stop it.

[SteelBucks]

This dink, dank, dunk offense has no chance of succeeding without other threats. The NFL defenses have seen blueprints on how to stop it.

Im still seeing 0 yard out routes and running plays getting blown up in the backfield in my dreams. First downs seem like a minor miracle.

Attack! Throw the ball downfield.

[NorthCoast]

Steelers Fans Have 1 Growing Concern With Ben Roethlisberger

Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers suffered their second loss of the week on NBC’s Sunday Night Football.

The Steelers fell to the Bills, 26-15, less than a week after losing to the Washington Football Team in a Monday night game. Pittsburgh is now 11-2 on the season after opening the year with 11 straight wins.

Pittsburgh is still in very good shape for the playoffs – although the Steelers have lost the No. 1 seed – but there are concerns about the AFC North franchise’s ability to make a deep run.

The main reason for that: Pittsburgh’s lack of scoring power on offense. Does the Steelers’ offense have what it takes to push the ball down field against the Chiefs and Bills’ of the world? We’re not so sure following Sunday night’s loss.

Roethlisberger, 38, might be showing his age a bit. He finished the Sunday night game with 187 passing yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Big Ben was especially shaky with his downfield passes.

“Twice James Washington had his man beat deep from the inside and Steelers can’t connect. Ben Roethlisberger still has velocity on the intermediate throws but the deep ball hasn’t been there. Used to be a strength. Without vertical threat, tough to push through playoffs,” ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler tweeted.

It isn’t all on Big Ben, obviously.

The Steelers’ wide receivers aren’t giving him much help, as Pittsburgh dropped a number of passes on Sunday night.

No matter the excuse, though, the Steelers haven’t gotten it done as of late. That will need to change in a major way moving forward.


https://thespun.com/nfl/afc-north/pittsburgh-steelers/steelers-fans-have-1-growing-concern-with-ben-roethlisbergerthis writeup is totally off base... Steelers fans don't have 1 concern... they got a ton of concerns with this team...

[NorthCoast]

I'm not sure if you've noticed, but the Steelers season is slowly starting to unravel to the point where Ben Roethlisberger is now threatening to retire if he can't play betterWow...talk about twisting a guy's words around. Here's Roethlisberger's quote:
“If I don’t play good enough football, then I need to hang it up. But, you know, I still feel like I can do enough things to help this team win football games and I’m gonna do everything I can to get us back on track”.
The media is having a lot of fun with this.

Oh btw, Cowherd was much kinder today; "The Steelers are still a good football team, they still have a good coach....."

[Northern_Blitz]

Wow...talk about twisting a guy's words around. Here's Roethlisberger's quote:
The media is having a lot of fun with this.

Oh btw, Cowherd was much kinder today; "The Steelers are still a good football team, they still have a good coach....."

This is a combination of twisting what sounded like an off the cuff comment and Ben being dramatic.

I can think of at least ($) 19M reasons for Ben not to retire next year.

[NJ-STEELER]

When I said weeks ago Ben was a weak link, of course I got laughed at. Now you see. It's not just Ben though, the whole side of the ball stinks. But it starts with #7. Days off from practice shows big time!
so our other weak links are bud, bush and who ever else is hurt and misses practice?

yeah, we're still laughing because its sounds as stupid now and it did when you posted it.

the main weak link (starts with ben) on the team in your opinion is a QB with 29 TDs and 9 INTs? is that what you're going with?

not the RBs who can't seem to muster a yard most plays, not the OL which can't seem to open up a whole and not the receivers drops (17) over the last few games. balls as easy as the 2 DJ dropped last night

[hawaiiansteel]

Ben Roethlisberger: “I’m just not very good”


https://www.steelernation.com/ben-roethlisberger-im-just-not-very-good/

[NorthCoast]

Ben Roethlisberger: “I’m just not very good”


https://www.steelernation.com/ben-roethlisberger-im-just-not-very-good/Is this him playing the rope-a-dope just before he goes on a tear?

[Steelhere10]

so our other weak links are bud, bush and who ever else is hurt and misses practice?

yeah, we're still laughing because its sounds as stupid now and it did when you posted it.

the main weak link (starts with ben) on the team in your opinion is a QB with 29 TDs and 9 INTs? is that what you're going with?

not the RBs who can't seem to muster a yard most plays, not the OL which can't seem to open up a whole and not the receivers drops (17) over the last few games. balls as easy as the 2 DJ dropped last night

Here's my women looking for me, slick I don't roll like that. People will think that you ride dirty if you don't stop... STALKING normally leads to domestic violence. Sugar pants!

[Northern_Blitz]

Yep- I've been thinking this for some time now. Wentz just needs a change of scenery.

I wouldn't mind taking this gamble in a non cap league, but I think it's very unlikely given his contract (assuming I understand it, and it seems more complicated than "normal").

https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/philadelphia-eagles/carson-wentz-18950/

1) It's basically impossible for the Eagles to cut him this year (~$79M dead cap...almost over anyway) or before next year (~$60M dead cap). This is too bad, because I think the best way to get him would be them cut him and us pick him up cheap. Maybe something like that can happen after next season? But the cap hit looks like it would be devastating to them if they did it this year.

2) Can they trade him? I think in a trade, the Eagles would pull all remaining SB payouts into their cap hit for next year, but they may not have to pull in the option / roster bonuses depending on when a trade would happen (I think?)

We can look at this as the best case for Philly (2a) or the worst case for Philly (2b). Note that their "best" and "worst" cases would be their trade partners "worst" and "best" case.

2a) If they traded him before roster and option bonuses were due, I think their dead cap hit would "only" be ~ $10M from the signing bonus. But, then I think the team that take on his contract would assume a $31.4M cap hit. I assume that in this scenario we're cutting Ben (so he "only" counts for $21M against the cap). In this situation, we'd have about a $52.5M cap hit at the QB position with Wentz and Ben's dead money. I think that the total cap is ~ $198M, so that's more than 1/4 of the total cap for a guy who sucks in Philly and Ben who isn't on the team in this case.

2b) The trade happens after the roster and option bonuses. Then, I think Philly takes a cap hit of $19.25M and we would take a cap hit of $15.4M (and be on the hook for future cap hits of $28M, $33M, and $29M in the next 3 years). This would put our total QB cap hit at ~ $35M. My guess is that this will be higher (but not necessarily a lot higher) than what we'd end up investing at QB if we extend Ben (but I don't really understand how deals get structured to try to minimize the 1st year of a new of extended contract).

If Philly could agree to something like that, maybe it would be possible. But I'd imagine that it's not likely. And it's a pretty big risk for the team taking on the contract given how Wentz has played. It looks like Philly wants to move on at this point, but I think they basically wouldn't get anything back because of the cap hit risk the other team would be taking.

I think it's always good to bet against big trades happening in the NFL, but you never know.

[NorthCoast]

Having watched a bunch of football the last weeks I am coming to the conclusion Roethlisberger does have a problem that is hampering his game and it's not his arm. It's his legs. He is hardly moving around in or out of the pocket anymore. Someone mentioned a knee and that could be it. His style to make plays was always extending a play and finding a guy. Whether he wants to, or now has to play Brady ball is really counter to what made him great. He was deadly on the run with a pass. The Steelers lack a key player for this offense and that is an Amendola or Edelman. DJ was supposed to be that guy but he is waaay too unreliable for the role.

The QBs that are making plays these days all have legs that can get them out of trouble, extend time to throw, and make defenses pay for mistakes. LJ's last play of the game last night was a prime example. And J Allen did the same against the Steelers, moving around and throwing darts. When the passing game is so short, there really isn't a lot of time for DBs to even make mistakes.

I think the Steelers defense would love to play against this offense every week and that is telling.

[Steelhere10]

Having watched a bunch of football the last weeks I am coming to the conclusion Roethlisberger does have a problem that is hampering his game and it's not his arm. It's his legs. He is hardly moving around in or out of the pocket anymore. Someone mentioned a knee and that could be it. His style to make plays was always extending a play and finding a guy. Whether he wants to, or now has to play Brady ball is really counter to what made him great. He was deadly on the run with a pass. The Steelers lack a key player for this offense and that is an Amendola or Edelman. DJ was supposed to be that guy but he is waaay too unreliable for the role.

The QBs that are making plays these days all have legs that can get them out of trouble, extend time to throw, and make defenses pay for mistakes. LJ's last play of the game last night was a prime example. And J Allen did the same against the Steelers, moving around and throwing darts. When the passing game is so short, there really isn't a lot of time for DBs to even make mistakes.

I think the Steelers defense would love to play against this offense every week and that is telling.

Yea, it's certainly not his arm.

[feltdizz]

I definitely think his knee is impacting his mobility. Last might I watched 2 young QB’s move around with ease and make plays outside the pocket.

Ben is doing a Peyton Manning this year and looks like he is stuck in mud half the time.

[Eich]

I definitely think his knee is impacting his mobility. Last might I watched 2 young QB’s move around with ease and make plays outside the pocket.

Ben is doing a Peyton Manning this year and looks like he is stuck in mud half the time.

Ben never moved around like either of those QBs. That was an electric performance by both offenses.

But you're right, Ben looks like he's in concrete shoes. The getting rid of the ball in under 3 seconds is impressive and has saved him from sacks. But now that it's been figured out how to counter, something needs to change. They have to try something else or add something else.

Decimated offensive line. No run game. No mobility from Ben. No threat of play action. They at least have to try more intermediate passes and hope the pass protection holds up. If all we do is throw to the line of scrimmage in less than 3 seconds, we're done.

At least we know, with 100% confidence, how defenses are going to play us. Until we figure out how to counter. So, it's time for Fichtner to earn his salary.

[hawaiiansteel]

Film Room: Buffalo Dares Ben Roethlisberger To Beat Them Deep


https://steelersdepot.com/2020/12/film-room-buffalo-dares-ben-roethlisberger-to-beat-them-deep/

[NorthCoast]

Film Room: Buffalo Dares Ben Roethlisberger To Beat Them Deep


https://steelersdepot.com/2020/12/film-room-buffalo-dares-ben-roethlisberger-to-beat-them-deep/hawaiian, your not making my day any better posting this. The offensive playbook has shrunk to a one-pager and defenses have it memorized by now.

[NorthCoast]

https://charts-cdn-a.nextgenstats.nfl.com/static-charts/900/pass-chart_ROE750381_2020-REG-14_1607920305627.jpeg

[NJ-STEELER]

Here's my women looking for me, slick I don't roll like that. People will think that you ride dirty if you don't stop... STALKING normally leads to domestic violence. Sugar pants!

Ben is an Azzhole! Period point blank. I met him and about 5 others one night at a club and he was the only arrogant prick out of the group.
It was Willie Parker, Mendenhall, Trai Exense, Ben and Max Starks. It was about TEN others there who I didn't get to meet.

like a scored lover. lololol

[Steel Maniac]

The coaches did their best to mask the deficiencies with Ben. The turnovers were a killer vs the Bills. We had a QB problem. How far can this team go if Ben doesn't play better?

Even with the injuries the defense kept the team in the game for a substantial period of time. Even the best defenses will eventually crack with multiple injuries, game changing mistakes by the offense, and lack of "help" and scoring from the offense.

I was hopeful that the offense might be able to pick up some of the slack from the defense. I guess time will tell if the coaches and players can make the adjustments and play better.

What do you propose we do to find our legitimate QB of the future?

[Steel Maniac]

hawaiian, your not making my day any better posting this. The offensive playbook has shrunk to a one-pager and defenses have it memorized by now.

Sooooooo.....Ben works on his long ball in practice all this week?

[BURGH86STEEL]

What do you propose we do to find our legitimate QB of the future?
Look in the draft.

[Steelhere10]

like a scored lover. lololol

I'm not understanding, do you mean scorned slick? My girlfriend is pulling up stuff from way back then.... Keep going sweet cheeks, just like a stalker!!! ��������

[Northern_Blitz]

https://charts-cdn-a.nextgenstats.nfl.com/static-charts/900/pass-chart_ROE750381_2020-REG-14_1607920305627.jpeg

I think this says there's not much need to defend anything past 10 yards, right?

[Northern_Blitz]

What do you propose we do to find our legitimate QB of the future?

Suck for a bit and draft one high.

Sadly, I think that's the best way to go about doing it.

[Oviedo]

Suck for a bit and draft one high.

Sadly, I think that's the best way to go about doing it.

That only works for about 25% of the time. Whole bunch of teams have drafted QBs at the top of the draft and gotten no where. Heck, we went 25 years between Bradshaw and Ben

[NorthCoast]

That only works for about 25% of the time. Whole bunch of teams have drafted QBs at the top of the draft and gotten no where. Heck, we went 25 years between Bradshaw and BenMan Ovi, you just ruined my future retirement years...:mad:

[feltdizz]

That only works for about 25% of the time. Whole bunch of teams have drafted QBs at the top of the draft and gotten no where. Heck, we went 25 years between Bradshaw and Ben

and part of that was intentional. Cowher didn’t even want Ben. Cohwer comes from Schotty ball and that means draft everything but a quality QB.

but I’ve always said those 25 years between Terry and Ben still had some exciting football and I believe 5 AFCCG’s
and a SB appearance.

People talk about those 25 years like we were trash. Our defense always made one dumb ass mistake that gave the opponent an easy TD.

People think Tomlin doesn’t have our teams prepared but man.. in those home championship games we played some of the tightest football known to man. Even when we finally best the Colts that dude really almost caught that hailmary in the endzone.

[The Glory Days]

Can't believe that so many of you are so far off base with all this. Ben isn't playing up to his standards, or ours. Fair point. But it ends there.

Our offense doesn't start with #7. It starts with our OL. Blaming him for our problems is shortsighted and lazy analysis.

Our running game isn't missing a good running back. We've got 3. Blaming any of our running backs for our pathetic run game is misleading and incorrect.

Our problem is that we can't control the line of scrimmage. We can't create a pocket and hold it for 3 seconds. We can't maintain our blocks and create rushing lanes. We can't seal the outside and allow a pulling guard or tackle to take on a wide end or defensive back for the necessary block to spring an outside run. The rush end or blitzing back routinely blows up the outside runs by shooting gaps.

It starts with our offensive line. Without improved OL play, Ben won't be able to let plays develop and create/take advantage of mismatches.

It's not Ben. Not even close.

[hawaiiansteel]

Bell tolling for aging ‘Big Ben’ Roethlisberger & struggling Steelers

Ben Roethlisberger washed-up?

By John Luciew | jluciew@pennlive.com

Ask not for whom the bell tolls. It tolls for Big Ben Roethlisberger, the Steelers QB nicknamed after the famous London clock tower. Steelers Nation is populated by a significant number of spoiled fans once-relishing a perfect season but now turning on their Hall of Fame quarterback. Many are seemingly ready to write off Big Ben after two-straight losses. To be sure, Big Ben looked bad in the beatdown by the Buffalo Bills. Roethlisberger’s diminished skills were on full, agonizing display on that deep throw to James Washington that turned into a woeful under-throw/interception. It capped a weary three weeks in which Roethlisberger has been exposed as a quarterback who can no longer scramble, no longer by time in the pocket, and no longer hit the long ball with any kind of consistency and accuracy. The NFL has the book on stopping Big Ben and the Steelers O. If he’s still capable of doing anything else, now’s the time to show it. Either way, by the end of this season, we’ll know whether we’ve witnessed the end of Ben Roethlisberger as Pittsburgh Steelers’ starting quarterback.


https://www.pennlive.com/sports/2020/12/bell-tolling-for-aging-big-ben-roethlisberger-struggling-steelers.html

[feltdizz]

Can't believe that so many of you are so far off base with all this. Ben isn't playing up to his standards, or ours. Fair point. But it ends there.

Our offense doesn't start with #7. It starts with our OL. Blaming him for our problems is shortsighted and lazy analysis.

Our running game isn't missing a good running back. We've got 3. Blaming any of our running backs for our pathetic run game is misleading and incorrect.

Our problem is that we can't control the line of scrimmage. We can't create a pocket and hold it for 3 seconds. We can't maintain our blocks and create rushing lanes. We can't seal the outside and allow a pulling guard or tackle to take on a wide end or defensive back for the necessary block to spring an outside run. The rush end or blitzing back routinely blows up the outside runs by shooting gaps.

It starts with our offensive line. Without improved OL play, Ben won't be able to let plays develop and create/take advantage of mismatches.

It's not Ben. Not even close.

its Ben. The offense runs through Ben and he has the ability to audible to better plays on any down.

This whole “the OL cant hold blocks for 3 seconds is bogus”

The OL isn’t even being asked to hold blocks that long to see if its an issue. Ben is hurt. I believe its its knee so he’s doing all he can to avoid contact.

Plenty of those 3rd down and short where he just throws it deep praying for a miracle. He has time.. he’s just not placing the ball where a WR has a chance to get it. I’ve seen more than a few of those long passes sail out of bounds.

As fat as the OL run blocking. We aren’t committed. Maybe its because they can’t but I think its because we just gave Ben the keys and he prefers tossing it 40 to 50 times a game.

[NorthCoast]

it goes without saying, but I'll say it; it takes two to make a successful pass in the NFL. Roethlisberger mostly does his part but can't say that about the other half. DJ has let the offense down. Claypool, while showing some huge promise early, is fading. Have you noticed in the last couple games where he is not extending for the ball? That's his advantage in this league, it's not his speed. He's young. It will take time.

[Eich]

its Ben. The offense runs through Ben and he has the ability to audible to better plays on any down.

This whole “the OL cant hold blocks for 3 seconds is bogus”

The OL isn’t even being asked to hold blocks that long to see if its an issue. Ben is hurt. I believe its its knee so he’s doing all he can to avoid contact.

Plenty of those 3rd down and short where he just throws it deep praying for a miracle. He has time.. he’s just not placing the ball where a WR has a chance to get it. I’ve seen more than a few of those long passes sail out of bounds.

As fat as the OL run blocking. We aren’t committed. Maybe its because they can’t but I think its because we just gave Ben the keys and he prefers tossing it 40 to 50 times a game.

Ben's diminished skills are contributing but you're not giving nearly enough blame to the OL. And I don't think Ben prefers tossing it 50 times a game. He wants another ring. And I think he knows he's not getting one tossing it 50 times a game. EVERY QB on earth wants a complementary running game. It's the only way that other things open up consistently. Elway couldn't win a ring till he got one. Marino never won because he didn't have a consistent one. Brady had an amazing O-Line most of his career.

Ben may be hurt and protecting his injury by getting rid of it fast. But I'm certain he'd prefer a stout run game to what's on display now.

[feltdizz]

Ben's diminished skills are contributing but you're not giving nearly enough blame to the OL. And I don't think Ben prefers tossing it 50 times a game. He wants another ring. And I think he knows he's not getting one tossing it 50 times a game. EVERY QB on earth wants a complementary running game. It's the only way that other things open up consistently. Elway couldn't win a ring till he got one. Marino never won because he didn't have a consistent one. Brady had an amazing O-Line most of his career.

Ben may be hurt and protecting his injury by getting rid of it fast. But I'm certain he'd prefer a stout run game to what's on display now.

Yeah. I disagree completely with your post.

QB’s like Peyton, Marino, Rodgers, Ben... they want the ball in their hands and would pass the ball a ton.

Peyton refused to check to the run early in his career and passed his way out of a few SB’s imo. It wasn’t until he finally have the running game a legit chance that he sniffed his first SB.

But this isn’t about SB’s. Its about preference and play calling when down 7 or less. Most of these QB’s try to pass their way to a win over handing if off even if the running game is successful.

Hell, look at Brady THIS year in Tampa. He has a top 3 RB in Johnson and during their slide the last few weeks Brady ignored the running game.

I think most franchise QB’s like the ones you described will always prefer to pass unless forced to run by the OC. It’s one of the reasons I think Ben liked BA and Fitner, they both treat the run like its an after thought.

Wiz and Haley had more balance and Ben wasn’t a fan of either of those guys even though we had more success offensively with these OC’s.

Ben may say he doesn’t want to throw it 50 times a game but he has even admitted he wasn’t always making the right call at the LOS when tossing it 50 times.

[Eich]

Yeah. I disagree completely with your post.

QB’s like Peyton, Marino, Rodgers, Ben... they want the ball in their hands and would pass the ball a ton.

Peyton refused to check to the run early in his career and passed his way out of a few SB’s imo. It wasn’t until he finally have the running game a legit chance that he sniffed his first SB.

But this isn’t about SB’s. Its about preference and play calling when down 7 or less. Most of these QB’s try to pass their way to a win over handing if off even if the running game is successful.

Hell, look at Brady THIS year in Tampa. He has a top 3 RB in Johnson and during their slide the last few weeks Brady ignored the running game.

I think most franchise QB’s like the ones you described will always prefer to pass unless forced to run by the OC. It’s one of the reasons I think Ben liked BA and Fitner, they both treat the run like its an after thought.

Wiz and Haley had more balance and Ben wasn’t a fan of either of those guys even though we had more success offensively with these OC’s.

Ben may say he doesn’t want to throw it 50 times a game but he has even admitted he wasn’t always making the right call at the LOS when tossing it 50 times.

We'll agree to disagree then. QBs want the ball in their hands, yes, of course - especially when it really matters at the end of the game. And Brady often went spurts in NE ignoring the run game. But it was because they COULD, not because they had to. We are currently in a worst-case situation where there is zero threat of a run game, combined with a similar chance in downfield passing.

No QB wants to hit the playoffs without a run game and playing one-dimensional football. None. Not Brady, Manning, Ben, Brees, etc. Lamar has it different because he IS the run game. Normally when you're throwing 50+ times a game, it's because something is wrong and/or you're losing.

[feltdizz]

We'll agree to disagree then. QBs want the ball in their hands, yes, of course - especially when it really matters at the end of the game. And Brady often went spurts in NE ignoring the run game. But it was because they COULD, not because they had to. We are currently in a worst-case situation where there is zero threat of a run game, combined with a similar chance in downfield passing.

No QB wants to hit the playoffs without a run game and playing one-dimensional football. None. Not Brady, Manning, Ben, Brees, etc. Lamar has it different because he IS the run game. Normally when you're throwing 50+ times a game, it's because something is wrong and/or you're losing.

but here is the thing...

We were leading in 7 out of 8 quarters when Ben threw 105 passes over a 2 game span. Ben was throwing a ton because that’s his preference.

Even if the run game is trash you have to run a few times to burn clock and keep the D honest. We certainly won’t get better at running the football if we just ignore it.

[NJ-STEELER]

I'm not understanding, do you mean scorned slick? My girlfriend is pulling up stuff from way back then.... Keep going sweet cheeks, just like a stalker!!! ��������

stalker?? Like with you and Ben.
All because he wasn’t nice to you.
Hahahahahaha

you’re a b!tch.

I post here pretty regularly. You post when Ben has a bad game.
it’s pretty obvious to anyone here reading this forum

[feltdizz]

what’s with all the name calling lately? lmao

[Steelhere10]

what’s with all the name calling lately? lmao

My girlfriend is being upset, because I ain't spending quality time with her.

[Steelhere10]

stalker?? Like with you and Ben.
All because he wasn’t nice to you.
Hahahahahaha

you’re a b!tch.

I post here pretty regularly. You post when Ben has a bad game.
it’s pretty obvious to anyone here reading this forum

False.... I stop posting because of chumps like you, the ones that don't bring anything to the discussion and spend all their time stalking people that don't agree with them.

[Steelhere10]

Point being, this chump have been in this forum for years and only have 17 total started threads. Meaning this girl spends her time stalking members who don't agree with her.

[skyhawk]

Having watched a bunch of football the last weeks I am coming to the conclusion Roethlisberger does have a problem that is hampering his game and it's not his arm. It's his legs. He is hardly moving around in or out of the pocket anymore. Someone mentioned a knee and that could be it. His style to make plays was always extending a play and finding a guy. Whether he wants to, or now has to play Brady ball is really counter to what made him great. He was deadly on the run with a pass. The Steelers lack a key player for this offense and that is an Amendola or Edelman. DJ was supposed to be that guy but he is waaay too unreliable for the role.

The QBs that are making plays these days all have legs that can get them out of trouble, extend time to throw, and make defenses pay for mistakes. LJ's last play of the game last night was a prime example. And J Allen did the same against the Steelers, moving around and throwing darts. When the passing game is so short, there really isn't a lot of time for DBs to even make mistakes.

I think the Steelers defense would love to play against this offense every week and that is telling.

Haha I think the steelers D would find a way to play down to their inferior opponent;)

[NJ-STEELER]

Point being, this chump have been in this forum for years and only have 17 total started threads. Meaning this girl spends her time stalking members who don't agree with her.

I usually just reply in threads since there’s always multiple points.

or should I be an attention whore like you. AND post subjects about how you were right about a post you made weeks earlier ?

go cry again about how Ben treated you. Twat

[hawaiiansteel]

Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger leads the league in passes dropped

Curt Popejoy
December 20, 2020

NFL quarterbacks love it when they lead the league in something. Passing yards or touchdowns are great. Interceptions, not so much. This season, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger doesn’t lead the league in any major statistical category.

But he does lead the league in one category and it isn’t his fault. According to CBS Sports, Roethlisberger leads the NFL with the most dropped passes on the season with 37. The next closest is Detroit Lions quarterback Matt Stafford with 29.

If it feels like all these drops have happened in the last two weeks and most of them belong to wide receiver Diontae Johnson, you aren’t completely wrong. The wheels have fallen off the passing game completely in recent weeks and it has led to two straight losses.

Hopefully this week, with a woeful Cincinnati Bengals team on the roster and a full week of practice under their belts this group will show some distinct improvements headed into the final stretch run of the season and more importantly into the playoffs.


https://steelerswire.usatoday.com/2020/12/20/steelers-ben-roethlisberger-drops-diontae-johnson-nfl/

[NorthCoast]

Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger leads the league in passes dropped

Curt Popejoy
December 20, 2020

NFL quarterbacks love it when they lead the league in something. Passing yards or touchdowns are great. Interceptions, not so much. This season, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger doesn’t lead the league in any major statistical category.

But he does lead the league in one category and it isn’t his fault. According to CBS Sports, Roethlisberger leads the NFL with the most dropped passes on the season with 37. The next closest is Detroit Lions quarterback Matt Stafford with 29.

If it feels like all these drops have happened in the last two weeks and most of them belong to wide receiver Diontae Johnson, you aren’t completely wrong. The wheels have fallen off the passing game completely in recent weeks and it has led to two straight losses.

Hopefully this week, with a woeful Cincinnati Bengals team on the roster and a full week of practice under their belts this group will show some distinct improvements headed into the final stretch run of the season and more importantly into the playoffs.


https://steelerswire.usatoday.com/2020/12/20/steelers-ben-roethlisberger-drops-diontae-johnson-nfl/It's no coincidence the high number of drops correlates with the changes in the way defenses are playing the Steelers. So it's not clear doing more of the same will have a different result.

[NorthCoast]

What's up with Roethlisberger throwing to his right side? ... or is it who he is throwing to?

https://charts-cdn-a.nextgenstats.nfl.com/static-charts/900/qb-grid-chart_ROE750381_2020-REG-all_1608222460825.jpeg

[NorthCoast]

Pretty eye-opening write up on Roethlisberger's game and the Canada influence. Whether it's discomfort or lack of buy-in by the QB, it's clear it has impacted the early positive results; (too long to post). There is a clash in styles and I don't think it will get solved this season.


https://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/2020/12/16/22176500/the-matt-canada-vs-ben-roethlisberger-offenses-a-tale-of-two-styles-part-1-steelers-randy-fichtner

[hawaiiansteel]

Pretty eye-opening write up on Roethlisberger's game and the Canada influence. Whether it's discomfort or lack of buy-in by the QB, it's clear it has impacted the early positive results; (too long to post). There is a clash in styles and I don't think it will get solved this season.


https://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/2020/12/16/22176500/the-matt-canada-vs-ben-roethlisberger-offenses-a-tale-of-two-styles-part-1-steelers-randy-fichtner

wow, that was a great read.

thanks for posting, definitely a real eye-opener to what's been going on.

[NJ-STEELER]

Pretty eye-opening write up on Roethlisberger's game and the Canada influence. Whether it's discomfort or lack of buy-in by the QB, it's clear it has impacted the early positive results; (too long to post). There is a clash in styles and I don't think it will get solved this season.


https://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/2020/12/16/22176500/the-matt-canada-vs-ben-roethlisberger-offenses-a-tale-of-two-styles-part-1-steelers-randy-fichtner

that’s a weird title for the article. I don’t see a “vs” one type of offense with another.
a failure to fully blend? Yes Maybe.
But how isn’t Ben on board? They’ve never run a short passing game like this before? It’s actually the opposite of the offenses he’s run in the past.

I don’t think we needed to see clips they showed to know defenses have adjusted to short passing game.
it was Interesting to see why they go empty so much. To get the other LB out of the ‘hook’ passing lane.
if anything, they’ll need to try and go long more often to lossen the D up
that’s how you’ll get defenses to stop putting 8 in the box.
and If they’re successful, that should also help the run game as well.
But I’m sure the yinzers will say “ that’s Ben reverting to his old ways”

and as far as showing 2 clips from Cleveland and cincy games. Yeah, ummm we crushed them both. Showing they made 1 good play on defense doesn’t tell me they solved anything we were trying to do. Every team watches tape
Watching those clips and then realizing the score of the games, they may have guessed correctly once each.
that happens to offenses even QB’d by Patrick mahomes

RE: Canada’ run game. He shows the motion on the sweeps being figured out in the bengals clip. If they have figured out something then you know other teams will see it too. As it shows they’ve become too predictable

[NorthCoast]

that’s a weird title for the article. I don’t see a “vs” one type of offense with another.
a failure to fully blend? Yes Maybe.
But how isn’t Ben on board? They’ve never run a short passing game like this before? It’s actually the opposite of the offenses he’s run in the past.
It's already been talked about; this is exactly the offense Roethisberger has wanted to run. Remember Switz and the 3 yd passes? Did you read about him trying to run the RPO and then watch the clip as he throws his hands up when the play doesn't work? Sure it won't work if the QB never looks up field at the exchange.

I don’t think we needed to see clips they showed to know defenses have adjusted to short passing game.
it was Interesting to see why they go empty so much. To get the other LB out of the ‘hook’ passing lane.
if anything, they’ll need to try and go long more often to lossen the D up
that’s how you’ll get defenses to stop putting 8 in the box.
and If they’re successful, that should also help the run game as well.
But I’m sure the yinzers will say “ that’s Ben reverting to his old ways”

and as far as showing 2 clips from Cleveland and cincy games. Yeah, ummm we crushed them both. Showing they made 1 good play on defense doesn’t tell me they solved anything we were trying to do. Every team watches tape It's the pieces of the pie the opponents put together to make the offense struggle in the last few games. Not every team will have all the players to field a perfect defense but they have limited the scoring now for a month. One conclusion seemed to be the lack of solutions as these defenses have evolved. Where is the OC in all this? Why haven't they been working on plan B throughout the season knowing in time that teams would adjust? Lack of adjustments in game?
Watching those clips and then realizing the score of the games, they may have guessed correctly once each.
that happens to offenses even QB’d by Patrick mahomes

RE: Canada’ run game. He shows the motion on the sweeps being figured out in the bengals clip. If they have figured out something then you know other teams will see it too. As it shows they’ve become too predictable. Yes, they are predictable because they are running stuff we've seen since Wk 1. ________________

[Eich]

The good thing about all this is that is painfully obvious how teams have figured out our offense, well before the end of a season that we've already wrapped up a playoff spot. They have time to implement changes. It's on the coaches to make those changes.

We have to assume that receivers will not be dropping passes at the rate they have been. So, let's see if Canada and Fichtner can earn their salaries.

[NorthCoast]

that’s a weird title for the article. I don’t see a “vs” one type of offense with another.
a failure to fully blend? Yes Maybe.
But how isn’t Ben on board? They’ve never run a short passing game like this before? It’s actually the opposite of the offenses he’s run in the past.

I don’t think we needed to see clips they showed to know defenses have adjusted to short passing game.
it was Interesting to see why they go empty so much. To get the other LB out of the ‘hook’ passing lane.
if anything, they’ll need to try and go long more often to lossen the D up
that’s how you’ll get defenses to stop putting 8 in the box.
and If they’re successful, that should also help the run game as well.
But I’m sure the yinzers will say “ that’s Ben reverting to his old ways”

and as far as showing 2 clips from Cleveland and cincy games. Yeah, ummm we crushed them both. Showing they made 1 good play on defense doesn’t tell me they solved anything we were trying to do. Every team watches tape
Watching those clips and then realizing the score of the games, they may have guessed correctly once each.
that happens to offenses even QB’d by Patrick mahomes

RE: Canada’ run game. He shows the motion on the sweeps being figured out in the bengals clip. If they have figured out something then you know other teams will see it too. As it shows they’ve become too predictable
Also, wanted to add that the article concluded that the Steelers really don't have the pieces for this style of offense. You need sure-handed receivers in the mold of AB or Ward. Juju is probably the closest thing they have but for whatever reason Roethlisberger hasn't been targeting him even when he's been open.

[Eich]

Also, wanted to add that the article concluded that the Steelers really don't have the pieces for this style of offense. You need sure-handed receivers in the mold of AB or Ward. Juju is probably the closest thing they have but for whatever reason Roethlisberger hasn't been targeting him even when he's been open.

Juju and Washington are sure-handed. But the Steelers have been so enamored with DJ's play-making ability, that Washington has been the odd man out.

It'll be interesting to see how the offense performs again when the dropsies go away. Surely, they can't keep dropping at the same rate. It's been shocking to see so many drops from professional football players.

[flippy]

What's up with Roethlisberger throwing to his right side? ... or is it who he is throwing to?

https://charts-cdn-a.nextgenstats.nfl.com/static-charts/900/qb-grid-chart_ROE750381_2020-REG-all_1608222460825.jpeg

Interesting chart. I think CC is usually on the left and DJ and JW tend to be on the right. Might not always be the case, but it feels that way when I notice, but I can also remember them being on the other side too.

[feltdizz]

Interesting chart. I think CC is usually on the left and DJ and JW tend to be on the right. Might not always be the case, but it feels that way when I notice, but I can also remember them being on the other side too.

and half those deep passes to the right sail out of bounds.

[NorthCoast]

Interesting chart. I think CC is usually on the left and DJ and JW tend to be on the right. Might not always be the case, but it feels that way when I notice, but I can also remember them being on the other side too.Tracked down some info on passes to the deep right side;

CC targeted 18 times, 3 rec
DJ targeted 7 times, 0 rec
JJSS targeted 4 times, 1 rec
JW targeted 12 times, 4 rec

So it seems regardless of who is playing that side they are not getting the completions.

[flippy]

Tracked down some info on passes to the deep right side;

CC targeted 18 times, 3 rec
DJ targeted 7 times, 0 rec
JJSS targeted 4 times, 1 rec
JW targeted 12 times, 4 rec

So it seems regardless of who is playing that side they are not getting the completions.

Maybe he's taking bigger shots on the right? Is he throwing most of those throws 40-50 yards downfield while his deep throws to the left are going 20-25 yards?

[Northern_Blitz]

Maybe he's taking bigger shots on the right? Is he throwing most of those throws 40-50 yards downfield while his deep throws to the left are going 20-25 yards?

Could be something like this.

Maybe some of the "deep passes" on the left side are shorter throws, but a fair amount of YAC? With deeper throws on the right?

[NorthCoast]

Maybe he's taking bigger shots on the right? Is he throwing most of those throws 40-50 yards downfield while his deep throws to the left are going 20-25 yards?
you can visit nextgenstats and view every week's throwing charts. There were more attempts to the right but depth of targets looked to be a mixed bag.

[SteelerOfDeVille]

its Ben. The offense runs through Ben and he has the ability to audible to better plays on any down.

This whole “the OL cant hold blocks for 3 seconds is bogus”

The OL isn’t even being asked to hold blocks that long to see if its an issue. Ben is hurt. I believe its its knee so he’s doing all he can to avoid contact.
i tend to agree with this...
earlier in the season when we all thought Claypool was a future star because of how much of a deep threat he was, this same OL held blocks and Ben threw accurate deep balls to him.

Either Father Time caught up with Ben a handful of weeks ago, or Ben got hurt a handful of weeks ago.

Whatever side you're on there, from there it's a domino effect.
- All passes are within a few yards of the LOS.
- Defense all stands closer to the LOS.
- The run game suffers because, well, there are 11 defenders close to the LOS.

[NJ-STEELER]

________________


wait, what? a few 3 yard passes to switz and that's the offense Ben has wanted to run all this time?? are you serious?
all the other throws, going deep, going intermate deep the rest of his career was just to throw people off the short passing game scent he really wanted?


his arms came up after the pass was read and defended? damn, you must be right then.lol

my god some of you people. you're worse with creating angles and gossip then women.

[NorthCoast]

wait, what? a few 3 yard passes to switz and that's the offense Ben has wanted to run all this time?? are you serious?
all the other throws, going deep, going intermate deep the rest of his career was just to throw people off the short passing game scent he really wanted?


his arms came up after the pass was read and defended? damn, you must be right then.lol

my god some of you people. you're worse with creating angles and gossip then women.A few passes to Switz?? hahaha...right. This isn't something new. It's been in the works for a couple of years. You can deny it all you want:

2018 was a career season for Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger as not only did he set a new single-season high in passing yards and completions, but touchdown passes thrown as well. Roethlisberger also apparently led the league in passes thrown 5 yards or less, according to a recent update posted on Twitter by the NFL Matchup on ESPN account.

[NJ-STEELER]

A few passes to Switz?? hahaha...right. This isn't something new. It's been in the works for a couple of years. You can deny it all you want:

2018 was a career season for Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger as not only did he set a new single-season high in passing yards and completions, but touchdown passes thrown as well. Roethlisberger also apparently led the league in passes thrown 5 yards or less, according to a recent update posted on Twitter by the NFL Matchup on ESPN account.

do you realize thats what you wrote?
Remember Switz and the 3 yd passes? Did you read about him trying to run the RPO and then watch the clip as he throws his hands up when the play doesn't work? Sure it won't work if the QB never looks up field at the exchange.

yep, all those years of "holding the ball too long" as everyone cried, all to throw the ball for a 5 yard gain. thats the offense ben has always wanted. its clear as day.

[Northern_Blitz]

A few passes to Switz?? hahaha...right. This isn't something new. It's been in the works for a couple of years. You can deny it all you want:

2018 was a career season for Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger as not only did he set a new single-season high in passing yards and completions, but touchdown passes thrown as well. Roethlisberger also apparently led the league in passes thrown 5 yards or less, according to a recent update posted on Twitter by the NFL Matchup on ESPN account.

This just took a while for national news to catch on

[NorthCoast]

do you realize thats what you wrote?
Remember Switz and the 3 yd passes? Did you read about him trying to run the RPO and then watch the clip as he throws his hands up when the play doesn't work? Sure it won't work if the QB never looks up field at the exchange.

yep, all those years of "holding the ball too long" as everyone cried, all to throw the ball for a 5 yard gain. thats the offense ben has always wanted. its clear as day.

You're talking vintage Roethlisberger bub. It's dink and dunk, and it's the only thing working right now.

[NJ-STEELER]

You're talking vintage Roethlisberger bub. It's dink and dunk, and it's the only thing working right now.

jesus man, you're all over the place

again, this is what you wrote
It's already been talked about; this is exactly the offense Roethisberger has wanted to run. Remember Switz and the 3 yd passes? Did you read about him trying to run the RPO and then watch the clip as he throws his hands up when the play doesn't work? Sure it won't work if the QB never looks up field at the exchange

wanted to run since when?

[NorthCoast]

jesus man, you're all over the place

again, this is what you wrote
It's already been talked about; this is exactly the offense Roethisberger has wanted to run. Remember Switz and the 3 yd passes? Did you read about him trying to run the RPO and then watch the clip as he throws his hands up when the play doesn't work? Sure it won't work if the QB never looks up field at the exchange

wanted to run since when?

At least 2 yrs running

[NJ-STEELER]

At least 2 yrs running

2018 NFL Player Passing Stats | ESPN (https://www.espn.com/nfl/stats/player/_/season/2018/seasontype/2/table/passing/sort/yardsPerPassAttempt/dir/desc)

7.6 avg reception.

0.2 away from being right outside the top 10

a little higher then rodgers and prescott. 2 guys i wouldn't consider short passing guys

a lot higher then luck, who again i wouldn't consider a short passing guy

[hawaiiansteel]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I118MdLPEag

[Eich]

3 straight losses. And if there isn't some miracle on the way, it'll be 6. And they could be some pretty ugly ones too.

[Sly]

3 straight losses. And if there isn't some miracle on the way, it'll be 6. And they could be some pretty ugly ones too.

Steelers will defeat the Colts and Browns. Tomlin has never lost 6 straight games, and he won't start now.

[Northern_Blitz]

Steelers will defeat the Colts and Browns. Tomlin has never lost 6 straight games, and he won't start now.

I hope you're right.

But it's hard to see wins against good teams with the offense in it's current state.

Maybe if Ben has a huge turnaround or MR comes in a gives a spark. But neither of those things seem especially likely.

[Sly]

I hope you're right.

But it's hard to see wins against good teams with the offense in it's current state.

Maybe if Ben has a huge turnaround or MR comes in a gives a spark. But neither of those things seem especially likely.

Would the Steelers have three losses if receivers weren't dropping all those passes in prior games? The Bengals loss was because of Ben: fumbling a snap by a pro QB is hard to believe and his passing was terrible. But IMO the Steelers would be 13 and 1 or at worse 12 and 2 if the receivers didn't drop all those passes. As far as the defense is concerned, every defense will wear down when the offense can't make a first down or worst yet have multiple turnovers.

[hawaiiansteel]

It Could Get Ugly

Teams: Steelers, Eagles

Carson Wentz got benched for performance reasons, shortly after signing a massive deal, and Ben Roethlisberger would be benched for performance reasons if not for all he has done in the past. It really is that bad.

Big Ben publicly ruminated about his deteriorating output and perhaps walking away from the game, then 48 hours later let it be know that he's definitely back in 2021 (with the final $19M of his deal on the line). This is a recurring theme for him in the past, and nothing new, but this Steelers offense has never been this handcuffed before, either, and this five-week stretch of play is arguably the worst of his career. This is the guy who didn't take kindly to the Mason Rudolph selection in the third round a few years back. Fair to say it bears monitoring.


https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/pete-priscos-week-16-nfl-picks-rams-rebound-to-upset-seahawks-steelers-and-saints-get-back-on-track/

[feltdizz]

It Could Get Ugly

Teams: Steelers, Eagles

Carson Wentz got benched for performance reasons, shortly after signing a massive deal, and Ben Roethlisberger would be benched for performance reasons if not for all he has done in the past. It really is that bad.

Big Ben publicly ruminated about his deteriorating output and perhaps walking away from the game, then 48 hours later let it be know that he's definitely back in 2021 (with the final $19M of his deal on the line). This is a recurring theme for him in the past, and nothing new, but this Steelers offense has never been this handcuffed before, either, and this five-week stretch of play is arguably the worst of his career. This is the guy who didn't take kindly to the Mason Rudolph selection in the third round a few years back. Fair to say it bears monitoring.


https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/pete-priscos-week-16-nfl-picks-rams-rebound-to-upset-seahawks-steelers-and-saints-get-back-on-track/

read last week that Ben still had Wed. and Thursday off last week.. and supposedly wasn’t injury related.

I think its time to practice as much as possible this week.

[steeler_fan_in_t.o.]

read last week that Ben still had Wed. and Thursday off last week.. and supposedly wasn’t injury related.

I think its time to practice as much as possible this week.

And then after practice pull the receivers aside and work with them for an extra hour or two. Ben has been very father figure / big brother with these young receivers. Very calm and patient with them. If that's the role he wants to play then he has to be teacher / mentor / role model with them. Teach them what he wants them to do, teach them how to act and react to the type of adversity that they are collectively experiencing. Even if he keeps the backup QBs with them as well, be coach Ben. The best way to overcome is greater preparation.

[hawaiiansteel]

Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger says he's playing 'like poo'

ESPN Staff Writer

PITTSBURGH -- Ben Roethlisberger isn't on social media, but he knows what the chatter outside the Steelers organization sounds like right now.

The criticisms are mounting after a third straight loss where Roethlisberger played one of the worst halves of his professional football career.

The noise, though, is warranted, the quarterback said Wednesday.

"I don't blame them," he said. "When you play like poo, you should get talked about like that. I need to play better. If I'm not giving them a reason to talk good, then I'm giving them a reason to talk bad. That's all on me. I need to play better."

Roethlisberger completed 7 of 16 attempts for 19 yards and an interception in the first half of the improbable loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday night. He finished with 170 yards on 20 of 38 attempts with a touchdown and the interception, but it still wasn't good enough to dig out of a 17-point first-half deficit -- one that was largely a product of Roethlisberger's turnovers and mental lapses. The numbers are problematic, but to Roethlisberger, the biggest indication of playing poorly is his team not winning.

"Truthfully, at the end of the day, that's my determining factor if I play well or not, is are we winning the football game?," he said. "That's all that matters to me. Am I not completing enough passes, am I getting us in the right play call? There's a myriad of issues, in my opinion, that aren't helping us win the game and it can be something different all the time.

"I just haven't played well enough to help us win a football game, because at the end of the day, that's all that really matters."

Roethlisberger also said Wednesday that he called a players only meeting for the offense, but it wasn't because the team was on a three-game losing streak.

Instead, he wanted to get his unit -- one with many young players who haven't played in an NFL postseason -- focused ahead of the playoffs.

"Just wanted guys to understand and reiterate how important this time of year is and the playoffs aren't guaranteed to anybody," he said. "It wasn't a players-only panic meeting. Make sure people keep writing that. This was a meeting that we felt was necessary moving forward going into the postseason."

Though things haven't been trending in the right direction for the Steelers, the team did get some good news Wednesday as veteran inside linebacker Vince Williams was activated from the reserve/COVID-19 list.

The importance of Williams' return ahead of Sunday's matchup against the Indianapolis Colts can't be understated. The position's depth has been thin since Devin Bush's ACL injury earlier in the season. In Williams' absence, the team had turned to a combination of safety-turned-inside linebacker Marcus Allen, Avery Williamson and Ulysees Gilbert.

Williams' return gives the position a much-needed boost in veteran leadership and experience against a ground attack that features surging Colts rookie Jonathan Taylor.


https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/30588967/pittsburgh-steelers-qb-ben-roethlisberger-says-playing-poo

[Steel Maniac]

And then after practice pull the receivers aside and work with them for an extra hour or two. Ben has been very father figure / big brother with these young receivers. Very calm and patient with them. If that's the role he wants to play then he has to be teacher / mentor / role model with them. Teach them what he wants them to do, teach them how to act and react to the type of adversity that they are collectively experiencing. Even if he keeps the backup QBs with them as well, be coach Ben. The best way to overcome is greater preparation.

At this point, I agree.

[hawaiiansteel]

Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger calls players-only meeting with offense

Curt Popejoy
December 24, 2020

On Wednesday, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger spoke to the media about the variety of problems the team has been having over the last month. After starting the season 11-0, Pittsburgh has dropped three straight and the offense has looked increasingly worse each week.

During his Zoom meeting, he let everyone know he called a players-only meeting of the offense but it wasn’t to sit and commiserate about the losing streak. It was more about re-connecting as a group.

“It had nothing to do with the losses. It had everything to with where we are and where we’re going,” Roethlisberger said. It was an opportunity for the group to get together to evaluate where they are now and what they need to do going forward to get where they want to be. It was also a chance for the veterans to share with the younger players some of what to expect down this stretch run and into the playoffs.

Hopefully, the offense can use this meeting as a starting point for change. Or it could just be more lip service from a group that’s out of gas.


https://steelerswire.usatoday.com/2020/12/24/ben-roethlisberger-nfl-meeting-offense/

[Ernie]

It is passed time we admit that we should not have expected so much from Ben this year.. coming off of a career ending injury (for most) at 38+ years of age.

[Steel Maniac]

It is passed time we admit that we should not have expected so much from Ben this year.. coming off of a career ending injury (for most) at 38+ years of age.

Yeah.. regardless of how this year winds up, the qb position has to be addressed in the off season. We have to find somebody; we can’t go on with Ben.

I hate to say it but I think he’s done. Feltdizz will take great joy in Ben being done but I think I he’s right now.

[feltdizz]

Would the Steelers have three losses if receivers weren't dropping all those passes in prior games? The Bengals loss was because of Ben: fumbling a snap by a pro QB is hard to believe and his passing was terrible. But IMO the Steelers would be 13 and 1 or at worse 12 and 2 if the receivers didn't drop all those passes. As far as the defense is concerned, every defense will wear down when the offense can't make a first down or worst yet have multiple turnovers.

not sure about that. We dropped passes but they weren’t all in the endzone.

Maybe we score on some of those drives or maybe we throw a pick or have a fumble or stalled drive after those completed passes.

We love to blame a play or 3 as the reason for a loss but unless its a dropped pass in the end zone on the last drive we have no idea.

[feltdizz]

Yeah.. regardless of how this year winds up, the qb position has to be addressed in the off season. We have to find somebody; we can’t go on with Ben.

I hate to say it but I think he’s done. Feltdizz will take great joy in Ben being done but I think I he’s right now.

Great joy? no.. he’s 38. No one stays on top of their game forever.

Now, I will admit I thought this last contract was a mistake because of his age and how much of the cap we used for him.

This is why I preferred signing talent at other positions over the QB.

But no, there is no joy in watching Ben play like this.

[feltdizz]

It is passed time we admit that we should not have expected so much from Ben this year.. coming off of a career ending injury (for most) at 38+ years of age.

Ben has exceeding expectations IMO.

Most people said if we had this defense and Ben we would be hard to beat and for 11 weeks that was true. we won 3 more games than last year and still have 2 left. The problem is its the same formula as last year. D playing too many snaps, passes that go nowhere and injuries piking up because we cant extend drives.

I think covid impacted reps and practice but it may have also extended Ben’s arm since he wasn’t throwing a ton in summer.

We discussed reservations regarding Ben’s cap hit due to his age and declining skills as well.

Still holding out hope for some magic but I definitely think its time to move on and eat this dead money.

The way Ben is playing right now I can’t see how anyone can justify paying $40 mill for it next year.

[Ernie]

Ben has exceeding expectations IMO.

Most people said if we had this defense and Ben we would be hard to beat and for 11 weeks that was true. we won 3 more games than last year and still have 2 left. The problem is its the same formula as last year. D playing too many snaps, passes that go nowhere and injuries piking up because we cant extend drives.

I think covid impacted reps and practice but it may have also extended Ben’s arm since he wasn’t throwing a ton in summer.

We discussed reservations regarding Ben’s cap hit due to his age and declining skills as well.

Still holding out hope for some magic but I definitely think its time to move on and eat this dead money.

The way Ben is playing right now I can’t see how anyone can justify paying $40 mill for it next year.

I guess it depends on what the expectations were. Ben has been mediocre for most of the year...and downright awful at times. Most QBs in the league with this talent behind them.. would have had similar success

[NorthCoast]

BTSC is suggesting Roethlisberger could be suffering this. Did the off-season surgery cause a change in his mechanics? I'm not an MD, but reading the symptoms it certainly sounds plausible:


Dead Arm Syndrome

Dead-arm syndrome often refers to pain during the throwing motion that results in decreased velocity. That said, it may also refer to pain experienced by other overhand athletes including tennis players, typically affecting their serves and overhead shots. Injury to any of the bones or soft tissues in the shoulder can cause the symptoms, but it usually involves the rotator cuff tendons or the labrum.
The rotator cuff is a group of four muscles, but the most commonly injured one is the supraspinatus tendon. The labrum is a cartilaginous structure that surrounds the shoulder socket (or glenoid). It functions like the bumper around the pool table to prevent the shoulder from dislocating.
During the throwing motion or serving motion, the shoulder joint experiences extreme forces. Both the labrum and rotator cuff work extremely hard during this motion to stabilize the arm and dissipate the generated forces. An injury to either structure can make it difficult to throw and or serve.
These injuries result from a myriad of causes including the player compensating for existing problems in order to reduce the discomfort that develops in the shoulders as well as repetitive small tears caused by years of throwing baseballs or hitting tennis balls. The end results are injuries that can range from minor strains or tendonitis to complete tears of the labrum or rotator cuff.
Players with these injuries may complain of a decreased velocity when throwing or serving, decreased control, inability to warm up or pain when hitting or throwing. Often times, these patients have weakness when we test the rotator cuff. Another provocative test of the labrum can generate a positive test result as well. Many of these patients won’t have any abnormalities on standard x-rays, so MRIs are used to confirm the diagnosis. Interestingly, several MRI studies have shown that a large percentage of asymptomatic overhand athletes will have varying degrees of labral and rotator cuff pathology. These findings justify the judicious use of non-operative modalities to try to get symptomatic patients better before indicating them for surgery.

We've seen him struggle making good throws early in games. Is this the inability to warm up? We've blamed some of his bad games on decision-making but could the root cause really be that he knows he cannot make certain throws with accuracy anymore? This could be causing him to look to another option on the field. All of this is speculation but if true I don't think it's something that will improve for the rest of the season. Best case in young athletes is at least of month of rest.

And there is this from the WSJ:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/why-nfl-teams-want-quarterbacks-to-stop-throwing-so-much-1503323944

Edit: Note that BTSC is blaming his poor throwing on a lower leg injury that is disrupting his mechanics.

[Mr.wizard]

BTSC is suggesting Roethlisberger could be suffering this. Did the off-season surgery cause a change in his mechanics? I'm not an MD, but reading the symptoms it certainly sounds plausible:



We've seen him struggle making good throws early in games. Is this the inability to warm up? We've blamed some of his bad games on decision-making but could the root cause really be that he knows he cannot make certain throws with accuracy anymore? This could be causing him to look to another option on the field. All of this is speculation but if true I don't think it's something that will improve for the rest of the season. Best case in young athletes is at least of month of rest.

Edit: Note that BTSC is blaming his poor throwing on a lower leg injury that is disrupting his mechanics.

What's their explanation for his poor reads?

[NorthCoast]

What's their explanation for his poor reads?They don't comment on that, but my take is that he may think he can't make certain throws accurately so intentionally avoids them. I also posted elsewhere his poor completions stats when throwing to the right side of the field. This may be another symptom...but still all speculation.

[Steel Maniac]

They don't comment on that, but my take is that he may think he can't make certain throws accurately so intentionally avoids them. I also posted elsewhere his poor completions stats when throwing to the right side of the field. This may be another symptom...but still all speculation.

If he has this lingering lower leg injury, it’s something that they are keeping hush hush. I wonder what is the prognosis for this injury?

[hawaiiansteel]

If he has this lingering lower leg injury, it’s something that they are keeping hush hush. I wonder what is the prognosis for this injury?

how would we know the prognosis if we don't even know what the injury is :roll:

[Northern_Blitz]

Would the Steelers have three losses if receivers weren't dropping all those passes in prior games? The Bengals loss was because of Ben: fumbling a snap by a pro QB is hard to believe and his passing was terrible. But IMO the Steelers would be 13 and 1 or at worse 12 and 2 if the receivers didn't drop all those passes. As far as the defense is concerned, every defense will wear down when the offense can't make a first down or worst yet have multiple turnovers.

I agree that Ben's not the only problem. But he is the biggest problem.

I think drops cost us the Washington game, but I think we still lose to BUF even without the drops. That one win would really be nice to have right now though.

And it's because Ben can't (or maybe won't) do anything but throw short.

So there's little downside to defenders jumping short routs (and taking them to the house like the Bills did).

[Northern_Blitz]

They don't comment on that, but my take is that he may think he can't make certain throws accurately so intentionally avoids them. I also posted elsewhere his poor completions stats when throwing to the right side of the field. This may be another symptom...but still all speculation.

It definitely seems like he knows that he can't make certain throws.

I don't go through tape of old games but on the Terrible Podcast, they say that we basically haven't challenged cover 2 deep this year. Most of our deep balls come against single high safety and are down the sideline. Apparently very few deep balls to the middle of the field.

[Mr.wizard]

I agree that Ben's not the only problem. But he is the biggest problem.

I think drops cost us the Washington game, but I think we still lose to BUF even without the drops. That one win would really be nice to have right now though.

And it's because Ben can't (or maybe won't) do anything but throw short.

So there's little downside to defenders jumping short routs (and taking them to the house like the Bills did).

To be successful at the short passing game you have to be really good at pre-snap reads and that appears to be where Ben is really struggling. That's why you see him making head scratching throws into coverage, he is determining where he is going to go with the ball pre-snap.

[Ernie]

To be successful at the short passing game you have to be really good at pre-snap reads and that appears to be where Ben is really struggling. That's why you see him making head scratching throws into coverage, he is determining where he is going to go with the ball pre-snap.

Theres some truth to that.. and it's nothing new.. if you look back to the AB era.

[Sly]

To be successful at the short passing game you have to be really good at pre-snap reads and that appears to be where Ben is really struggling. That's why you see him making head scratching throws into coverage, he is determining where he is going to go with the ball pre-snap.

Because the camera focuses on the ball, it's hard to see the defensive alignment after the ball's snapped, but on replays it seems that in the majority of plays the defense has 8 men within 5 yards of the line of scrimmage. That alignment should open up the middle about 15 - 20 yds downfield. But this is nothing new, and should have been exploited by the Steelers weeks ago. So why aren't they doing it? Of course many believe that Ben no longer has the arm strength, but I've heard a couple of ESPN analysts suggest that Ben is afraid to be hit. So he's reluctant to hold the ball for the extra second to allow receivers to get open further down the field.

[NJ-STEELER]

BTSC is suggesting Roethlisberger could be suffering this. Did the off-season surgery cause a change in his mechanics? I'm not an MD, but reading the symptoms it certainly sounds plausible:



We've seen him struggle making good throws early in games. Is this the inability to warm up? We've blamed some of his bad games on decision-making but could the root cause really be that he knows he cannot make certain throws with accuracy anymore? This could be causing him to look to another option on the field. All of this is speculation but if true I don't think it's something that will improve for the rest of the season. Best case in young athletes is at least of month of rest.

And there is this from the WSJ:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/why-nfl-teams-want-quarterbacks-to-stop-throwing-so-much-1503323944

Edit: Note that BTSC is blaming his poor throwing on a lower leg injury that is disrupting his mechanics.

I thought I noticed a slightly different motion at times early in the season

[hawaiiansteel]

By Using Playaction, Fichtner Says He May Have To Take Roethlisberger Out Of His Comfort Zone


https://steelersdepot.com/2020/12/by-using-playaction-fichtner-says-he-may-have-to-take-roethlisberger-out-of-his-comfort-zone/