We have the worst wide receiving corps in the league. If you follow games around the NFL, you can see just how laughable our talent is at the wide receiver position. The Steelers are one of the only teams that can't afford their QB the luxury of throwing any jumpballs or back-shoulder throws or fade routes. Roethlisberger actually hasn't had those options since Burress left, which makes it scary to think of just how good Roethlisberger could have been in the last decade if he had had anything approximating a #1 receiver (which he never did).
Boldin carried the Ravens through the playoffs by making catches in traffic with his solid frame and by catching jumpballs on the sidelines. Flacco could throw it high over the middle or simply in Boldin's vicinity down the sideline, and he would go up and make the plays. Roethlisberger has never had anything close to that luxury. He is throwing to midgets who are considerably smaller than all of the DBs they are going up against. Every throw Roethlisberger makes has to be perfect, in the chest, or it isn't being caught. Roethlisberger has no margin for error and no playmaking ability to rely on from the receivers. The talent that Colbert has provided him with is frankly a joke by NFL standards.
There is a huge misconception out there that a) Big Ben holds the ball too long, and b) the offensive line is the problem. In reality, Ben has always held the ball because his receivers couldn't get open on initial routes. He has never had a standout receiver who could get open conventionally and who Ben could rely on to go and make a play in traffic. Never. In fact, Holmes was a sloppy route-runner and Wallace was a one-trick pony whose awkwardness and lack of adeptness with the hands were obvious. This is why he has held on to the ball - to allow his awkward, short, and slow receivers a chance to get open.
The only solution to this season frankly is to sign Ochocinco. He still has all of the quickness and athleticism needed to be a great receiver. The NFL is just blackballing him for his attitude. But he could walk in to the Steelers this week and make a serious impact. He would easily be the most talented receiver on the roster. That isn't saying much frankly, but since Colbert was stupid and didn't draft a receiver in the early rounds the last couple years, that is the best option now.
Go and sign Chad. He would change the season. Him and Roethlisberger would work magically just like Roethlisberger and Burress worked magically in the half-season they spent together in 2004 when they lit up the Browns, Patriots, and other teams.
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