Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

[hawaiiansteel]

Re: Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

Did you watch the game?

actually, I did watch the game.

we just have a different definition of what "showing up" for a game means.

but much more importantly, I would like to wish you and all of my fellow Steelers brothers a very Merry Christmas!

[Shoe]

Re: Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

you're tough to please...

the Steelers defense pitched a shutout and these are Timmons' stats:

11 tackles, 1 sack, 1 tfl and 2 QB hits

he led all Steelers defenders in tackles and that now makes four straight games with at least eight tackles for Timmons, sounds like he's beginning to show up in games to me.

I'm not faulting his performance yesterday, or even his general effort I guess... but he's simply not made the impact that we've been led to believe we'd see from him.

I mean look--Steven Jackson had 100 yards rushing, so stats can also mislead too. (i.e. If his primary job as an ILB is to stop the run, then he didn't exactly succeed today.)

But I agree--today, he had a good game. I wouldn't call it great, though the numbers might say that. He didn't seem to "make plays", in the sense that he didn't do anything extraordinary, other than being in the right place at the right time (which says something about him too). It shows he's pretty sound. But we were lead to believe we'd see more, and we haven't seen it... yet.

[pittpete]

Re: Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

You too Hawaii

[fezziwig]

Re: Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

Timmons is our biggest under achiever on the team in my opinion

[Steelerphile]

Re: Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

Timmons performance in the last four games in trending upward and I don't think people are noticing. So I would agree that he was nothing special for a long time, but I think he played very well yesterday and mainly pretty well recently.

[fezziwig]

Re: Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

I hate to always be negative but Timmons is not as advertised. He was a number one pick that they had taken careful time to allow him to watch from the sideline for his learning and understanding. A number one pick that as far as I remember seen very, very little playing time the first couple years and only really got on the field in his third season and not even that much.
The guy that was going to be unleashed, a game changer and all that. He is just average with a huge paycheck.

Another one of those players that impresses everyone in camp but doesn't bring it to the games.

[Slapstick]

Re: Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

I love the retroactive rewriting of history that takes place on message boards...

[Steelerphile]

Re: Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

I would call 2010 a good season. 135 total tkls, 3 scks, 9 passes defensed, 2 ints and 2 fumble recoveries.

He had 7 sacks in 2009 in a more limited role. . I think the organization expected him to improve on his 2010 numbers which I would argue were good, or at least replicate. But he hasn't. But I think he has looked better recently.

The defense is a more transitional this season and he's been doing differnt things. But should I say again. NO. 1 defense in the NFL? People can argue the relative meaning of that stat, but he is a key guy in there.

[fezziwig]

Re: Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

Maybe I'm expecting to much of him due do the hype that we were hearing ?

His teammates were coming out of camp talking what an improvement he was ( last years camp ) how he was going to be unstoppable and all the accolades you could give to a person and so on.

Didn't they take away some of Troys duties in lo of Timmons ? Troy used to fly around making tackles free-lancing and that has changed with giving Timmons the edge.

I just expected him to make more blow up plays, game changing plays and having the opponents attentions focused on Timmons as they do with Troy, Woodley and Harrison.

[TallyStiller]

Re: Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

Kind of what I was talking about... I suppose it depends on expectations. I was honestly, based on the way people were talking pre - season, combined with his statistical trajectory the previous 2 years, looking for a Defensive POY candidate type of season out of Timmons this year. Whatever the merits of his play this season are/are not, I think we can all agree that POY isn't in the cards. From that perspective, the season has been disappointing.

Furthermore, I felt like one of Timmons' great strengths, based on his size/speed physical package, would be ability to cover some of the new breed of really big, fast TE's around the league. I haven't been particularly impressed with that aspect of his game when I've seen him, however, and was struck by that fact when I saw us get abused by Vernon Davis, likely the gold standard in tight end athleticism. Kinda thought that was what we paid him the big bucks for...

[hawaiiansteel]

Re: Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

Timmons is our biggest under achiever on the team in my opinion

the moment Lawrence Timmons signed his latest six-year $50 million contract, expectations for him went to such sky-high levels that it was going to be very difficult for him to meet those expectations.

[fezziwig]

Re: Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

Timmons is our biggest under achiever on the team in my opinion

the moment Lawrence Timmons signed his latest six-year $50 million contract, expectations for him went to such sky-high levels that it was going to be very difficult for him to meet those expectations.

Is he at market value ?

[steelz09]

Re: Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

Timmons is our biggest under achiever on the team in my opinion

the moment Lawrence Timmons signed his latest six-year $50 million contract, expectations for him went to such sky-high levels that it was going to be very difficult for him to meet those expectations.

For me, the 50 mil doesn't have as much to do with it.

It's about the draft position and it's about the expectations and "potential" that he was labeled with. I haven't seen it. I was against the pick from the very beginning but I kept an open mind.

To spin things in another direction... I think it has to do with the 3-4 scheme. Historically, the Steelers have been successful in converting DE to 3-4 OLBs. Timmons was an OLB in a 4-3 trying to convert to 3-4 ILB. That is a huge difference. ILB in general is a very difficult position to "learn" this far into his career. It's more instinctive of a position than OLB. Vision (just like a RB) is key on the inside.

I put a lot of blame on the evaluation of Timmons. He might be a great player stuck in the wrong scheme. I just wish the words potential, playmaker, splash plays, etc would be given a rest for now....

The "potential" label is given to a draft pick, not a 5th year pro.
Timmons is not a playermaker. 1 INT, 1 SACK, 0FF in 15 games. The INT fell right into his lap, and he was unblocked on the sack. Polamalu, Harrison, Suggs, Ed Reed, etc are all playmakers. Timmons is not.
Timmons does not make "Splash Plays". This goes along with being a "playmaker". See above.

[steelsnis]

Re: Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

Timmons is not a playermaker. 1 INT, 1 SACK, 0FF in 15 games. The INT fell right into his lap, and he was unblocked on the sack. Polamalu, Harrison, Suggs, Ed Reed, etc are all playmakers. Timmons is not.
Timmons does not make "Splash Plays". This goes along with being a "playmaker".

Timmons isn't a playmaker? He hasn't made the splash plays THIS season, but you can't discount what he's done in his time with the Steelers. He's had plenty of splash plays here.

I don't have the numbers in front of me, but I'm pretty sure he's bounced back and forth between the linebacker positions a number of times this season. Filled in for both Harrison and Woodley. Don't you think preparing and gameplanning for teams while playing a different position than you normally play will affect your numbers?

You always hear about guys trying to do too much and getting out of position attempting to make a play because of someone being out. Happens all the time. Our guys, especially the inside backers, have to stay gap-sound. When your regulars aren't in on the edges, it's not surprising to see the inside guys trying to do more than they normally would, thereby exposing a hole that ordinarily wouldn't be there.

I expect MUCH bigger things from Timmons than we've seen to this point in the season, but I also see the reasons for it. It has nothing to do with where he was drafted and who drafted him and who else was on the board when the pick came in.

Playoffs are coming and the slate is wiped clean. With a healthy Harrison and Woodley back in their familiar positions outside, I expect to see a loaded-for-bear Timmons unleashed.

[steelz09]

Re: Anybody else wondering where Lawrence Timmons has been?

Timmons is not a playermaker. 1 INT, 1 SACK, 0FF in 15 games. The INT fell right into his lap, and he was unblocked on the sack. Polamalu, Harrison, Suggs, Ed Reed, etc are all playmakers. Timmons is not.
Timmons does not make "Splash Plays". This goes along with being a "playmaker".

Timmons isn't a playmaker? He hasn't made the splash plays THIS season, but you can't discount what he's done in his time with the Steelers. He's had plenty of splash plays here.

I don't have the numbers in front of me, but I'm pretty sure he's bounced back and forth between the linebacker positions a number of times this season. Filled in for both Harrison and Woodley. Don't you think preparing and gameplanning for teams while playing a different position than you normally play will affect your numbers?

You always hear about guys trying to do too much and getting out of position attempting to make a play because of someone being out. Happens all the time. Our guys, especially the inside backers, have to stay gap-sound. When your regulars aren't in on the edges, it's not surprising to see the inside guys trying to do more than they normally would, thereby exposing a hole that ordinarily wouldn't be there.

I expect MUCH bigger things from Timmons than we've seen to this point in the season, but I also see the reasons for it. It has nothing to do with where he was drafted and who drafted him and who else was on the board when the pick came in.

Playoffs are coming and the slate is wiped clean. With a healthy Harrison and Woodley back in their familiar positions outside, I expect to see a loaded-for-bear Timmons unleashed.

The Timmons homers will keep making excuses for the guy. That's the bottom line. He's an underachiever. Meanwhile (and I don't support these guys any more) Gay, Clark, etc will be the whipping boys.

According to the Steelers coaching staff, he can play OLB. He can certainly line up as OLB but he doesn't "play" it very well. Just like I said earlier in this thread, I remember the days when people were saying Timmons was out of position playing ILB and he should be an OLB. Well, this year put that to rest. He flat out sucks at OLB. At least he's average at ILB.