On Landry Jones

[Oviedo]

All I can say is that the kid has time to turn things around & get better & I think he's got two good tutors in Ben & Gradkowski. That said, I still don't like the fact we wasted a 4th on him when we needed more depth to develop elsewhere & most felt he would've still been at least a round later. Landry (& the Steelers) will be judged not only by what he contributes to the team but also by what late-round picks they passed on bloom into quality players...defensive players like Jesse Williams (DL), Philip Thomas & Sanders Cummings (DBs) that really could've shored up some "weak" areas of the squad - or offensive linemen Earl Watford & Jordan Mills to build depth for a team that desperately needs it or possibly develop into starters. The reality is that a QB wasn't a need, it was luxury & one that we couldn't afford considering the other needs of the team.

Sooner or later you had to get a QB who "could be" a long term solution and possible answer past Ben. You don't want to use a 4th Round this year, but would you like to be forced to use a 2nd Round pick next year or the following year. The Steelers got great value taking Landry Jones in Round 4 who has a lot of upside.

If they wanted to fix a position of for a "weak area" like the OL that needed to happen in Round 1 or 2. Jarvis Jones was a luxury pick we didn't have to make in Round 1. I hope he is the second coming of Lawrence Taylor but we had more pressing needs in Round 1 like OL and TE. Just look that we have to use Beachum as a TE and it should be clear.

[Slapstick]

Need, schmeed....

J. Jones was a value pick in round one, not a luxury pick...he is exactly the sort of player that must be taken when he falls to you, instead of selecting an inferior player at a position of "need"...

The same applies to L. Jones....

[hawaiiansteel]

Bruce Gradkowski and Landry Jones will get extra work for Steelers after release of John Parker Wilson

By SteelCityRoller on Aug 26 2013



The position battle at quarterback is now decided with Wilson released during the Steelers first round of cuts. Gradkowski and Jones will now have the final preseason game all to their selves.

The Pittsburgh Steelers released John Parker Wilson on Sunday, solidifying their quarterback depth chart for the remainder of the 2013 season.

Bruce Gradkowski is the unquestioned backup to starter Ben Roethlisberger, and fourth-round draft pick Landry Jones has the third string job all to himself. The Steelers are expected to rest Roethlisberger in their final preseason game against the Carolina Panthers, leaving Gradkowski and Jones to share what is left of the team's preseason preparation snaps.

Gradkowski, a Pittsburgh area native, is a true veteran. He has been a backup and a starter, and he knows all to well what is expected of him regardless of the offensive system. Jones is finding out exactly what the difference is between playing quarterback in college and the NFL. However, both still have lessons to learn before the Steelers find themselves relying on them in the regular season.

Jones has not looked like the 16,000 yard passer he was at the University of Oklahoma, although head coach Mike Tomlin has noticed improvement as Jones adjusts to the professional game. The biggest knock against Gradkowski since he joined the Steelers in free-agency has been his tendency to lead his receivers into potentially violent contact with anticipating defenders.

For a while, Wilson seemed like stiff competition for Jones, battling for the third quarterback spot once held by Charlie Batch. However, as camp wore on, Jones began to separate himself from Wilson and consumed the majority of the snaps not played by Gradkowski or Roethlisberger.

In 2012, Jerrod Johnson was in Wilson's place of fourth on the depth chart. Johnson was able to hang on through all four games of the preseason, but was eventually released in the final wave of roster cuts. The team allowed Batch and Johnson to split halves against the same Panthers team they will face in 2013 in an effort to preserve Roethlisberger and Leftwich. This year, preservation gives way to preparation.

When the Steelers play the Panthers, Gradkowski and Jones will most likely each play an entire half. They each need to make the most of their opportunities to correct the mistakes they've made in previous preseason action, without getting injured or having a hand in any of their teammates being wounded before the regular season has a chance to start.

[URL]http://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/2013/8/26/4658904/Steelers-roster-Gradkowski-Landry-Jones-Parker-Wilson-Panthers-preseason/in/4423229[/URL]

[Eddie Spaghetti]

If they wanted to fix a position of for a "weak area" like the OL that needed to happen in Round 1 or 2.

a classic case of ovi moving the goal posts. I would love to see you back this up, but you won't/can't. Our two OTs are extremely suspect, yet both are 2nd rounders!!! You need a reason to bitch about the OL all year so you have changed your stance from no OL taken at all is the problem, to it doesn't matter, they wouldn't have helped anyway. We must have 1st or 2nd rounders. This way you can continue to bash the OL while praising burning a 4th on a guy who shouldnt see the field in 3 years.

landry jones was the luxury pick, certainly not jarvis jones.

laughable.

[hawaiiansteel]

Steelers notebook: Rookie QB Jones to get extended look

By Alan Robinson
Published: Tuesday, August 27, 2013

• Landry Jones, it's your turn. The rookie quarterback, uneven to date in the preseason, will get most of the playing time Thursday at Carolina, in part to guarantee that Ben Roethlisberger and backup Bruce Gradkowski will be healthy going into the season. “I feel a lot more comfortable now than I did at the beginning of training camp, just from a reps aspect,” said Jones, who is 14 of 31 for 159 yards this preseason. “I'm getting a lot more reps and I'm able to practice more.”

• Coach Mike Tomlin said the starters will play varying levels depending on what backups he wants to see. He did not define playing time for any starters, including Roethlisberger. He also called his offense a “group in development” but said he is pleased with the rapport developing between Roethlisberger, Gradkowski and the wide receivers, who are in mostly new roles.

• Heath Miller (knee) remains unable to practice but Tomlin said “things are progressing nicely” with him. Neither the Steelers nor Miller are hinting when the Pro Bowl tight end might return from a serious injury that occurred Dec. 23 and involved three ligaments. “I have no clue,” Miller said. “It's still the same thing, (I'm) trying to get better every day.”

• Left guard Ramon Foster believes the offensive line has mastered the zone blocking techniques installed this season to create more outside running room, despite the constant rotation of running backs behind them. ”This is something we wanted to get down,” Foster said. “Everybody is committed to it and (now) it's just making it official in Week 1.”

• Before training camp started, defensive end Brett Keisel challenged some rookies and younger veterans to seize roles and prove they belong in the league. “Markus Wheaton, Shamarko Thomas, Jarvis (Jones) is playing well,” said Keisel, referring to specific players. “Even the young guys in starting roles, Emmanuel Sanders, Steve McLendon, guys that I was referring to — yeah I think they've accepted the challenge.”

• If Isaac Redman is going to run his way into Steelers' opening day lineup, he'll have to do it in practice. Redman (pinched nerve) and rookie linebacker Jarvis Jones (AC sprain) will be held out of the preseason finale Thursday in Carolina. Jonathan Dwyer, Felix Jones and LaRod Stephens-Howling will get carries as the running back competition plays out. “I would like to be the starter. I would like to have the opportunity to distance myself away from the competition,” said Redman, who has had only two preseason carries. “But it's tough to do that when you're not on the field (and) not playing.”

• The Steelers don't like Roethlisberger improvising too much because it increases his risk for injury, yet such a play yielded a TD pass to Dwyer against the Chiefs on Saturday. Roethlisberger is hinting he won't cut down on his playmaking. “It's worked so far for me,” he said. “I've been semi-successful in my career. I'm just going to continue to keep doing what I have to do to win games.” Center Maurkice Pouncey said the offensive line doesn't mind adjusting on the fly. “You don't want to take away the things he's good at,” he said. “If he can still move around and run and throw the ball down the field, let him do it.”

[URL]http://triblive.com/sports/steelers/...#ixzz2dFiYv4Lg[/URL]

[phillyesq]

Need, schmeed....

J. Jones was a value pick in round one, not a luxury pick...he is exactly the sort of player that must be taken when he falls to you, instead of selecting an inferior player at a position of "need"...

The same applies to L. Jones....

I agree that Jarvis was a value pick. And, from what he has shown in the preseason, it seems that Jones can help with forcing turnovers, which is exactly what the defense needs.