Canada's Offense

[Northern_Blitz]

My point was that you really can't blame the coaches for the team not being prepared. The team was plenty prepared from a coaching standpoint, the players just made a ton of mistakes in that game and that is why we lost.

I agree.

Especially when the three worst offenders IMO (Pouncey, Ben, Heyward) are guys who've played for over a decade each.

[Northern_Blitz]

you think a team would side with a 35 years old (or older) QB instead of (as we've seen written here so many times) a top coach?

i seriously doubt that. check out what the rams just did with a coach that has a fraction of tomlin's tenure

Yes. I think teams will side with a franchise QB over a coach close to 100% of the time.

Even good coaches are more replaceable than successful franchise QBs.

[Northern_Blitz]

check out their history of hiring OCs. all have been assistant coaches already on the team promoted aside from haley who had strong family ties.

if they were concerned about appeasing ben, why was arians ever let go?

Because Arians was killing Ben.

[Northern_Blitz]

no, i'm arguing that just one of the INTs led directly to a 28-7 start. showing how the whole team was blown out in the first quarter. after that qr, there was too much to overcome.
i never said he played well. i'm saying the whole team stunk. ben, the OL, our great defense, our great coach all stunk

and jeezus, please go back and try to find another angle of the DJ int. through his finger tips? he wasn't even off the ground. the ball was right above his helmet. you're making it sound like the ball was so high he jumped and was stretching out for the ball.
that should be a catch in the NFL 90% of the time.

and take a look at the whole play while your at it. there is a browns LB a yard off the LOS that jumps and tries to bat the ball down.
just how in the holy hell is a QB supposed to get the ball high enough to not get the ball batted down and low enough to put into the receivers chest. apparently the only place the league leader in drops needs to have it to hold on to

throw the ball lower and it batted down or up for an INT and the usual suspects complain that it ben's fault for not getting it high enough.
get it high enough over the LBs hands and low enough for DJ to reach up and snag it and now the ball is too high.
that is a bunch of bull$hit. that's 90% or more fault on the wide receiver

Can you find a better angle?

I'll happily look at it.

Even if you put all of the blame on DJ for that pick, it's still a horrible game from Ben. But that's kind of who he is (live by the sword and die by the sword).

He throws way too many picks in the playoffs. His TD% over his career in the playoffs is 4.6% and his INT% is 3.8%. For context, Brees is 5.1% (TD) and 2.1% (INT) and Rodgers is 6.0% (TD) and 1.7% (INT). He's less likely to throw TDs in the playoffs than these other HoF QBs (who are not the GOAT). But he's between two and three times more likely to throw picks. And he's only had one playoff game with DJ.

The way to win with Ben in the playoffs seems to be limit his passes and hope that you get TDs and not INTs. They are almost equally likely in larger sample sizes, so you place fewer bets and hope you keep flipping heads.

Also, I'm not arguing that Ben was the only person who shat the bed. Pouncey basically lost the game for us on the first snap. And Heyward was invisible despite playing against a guy with one (?) game in the NFL. But Ben was terrible. And that just continued his play down the stretch and echoed his performance against the Jags in the playoffs.

He's been a ton of fun to watch over his career. In part because so many plays were "No, no, no, no, YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!". In his prime, I don't think anyone was better at creating amazing plays out of nothing.

But I think it's very hard not to think that he's basically done. He's still going to throw lots of picks (because that's who he is). But without the ability to escape and extend plays, I don't think he's going to have many more of those thrillingly dangerous TDs.

[Joel Buchsbaum]

My point was that you really can't blame the coaches for the team not being prepared. The team was plenty prepared from a coaching standpoint, the players just made a ton of mistakes in that game and that is why we lost.

Disagree, A coaches job is to make sure his players are prepared, ready to go with adjustments if necessary . No we were not prepares or focuses. Did you see the listless performances during out 1-5 slide to end the season?

[Oviedo]

My point was that you really can't blame the coaches for the team not being prepared. The team was plenty prepared from a coaching standpoint, the players just made a ton of mistakes in that game and that is why we lost.

Exactly. This isn't Pee Wee football where you have to motivate the kids because they would rather be playing video games. These are professional athletes who have been playing a sport at the highest level for for at least half a decade. Player execution is 99.9% of why we lose games. Coaches are easy scapegoats because most complainers aren't knowledgeable about the game to identify in game player errors and how they impact the outcomes.

[NorthCoast]

My point was that you really can't blame the coaches for the team not being prepared. The team was plenty prepared from a coaching standpoint, the players just made a ton of mistakes in that game and that is why we lost.

Disagree. How can a player be plenty prepared but make a ton of mistakes? Completely contradictory.

[feltdizz]

Disagree. How can a player be plenty prepared but make a ton of mistakes? Completely contradictory.

6 words

The other team gets paid too!

[Mr.wizard]

Disagree. How can a player be plenty prepared but make a ton of mistakes? Completely contradictory.

Not at all contradictory, humans make mistakes, especially in sports where you have other humans trying to make you make mistakes. You can know what an opponent is going to do and still get beat.

[Sword]

Disagree, A coaches job is to make sure his players are prepared, ready to go with adjustments if necessary . No we were not prepares or focuses. Did you see the listless performances during out 1-5 slide to end the season?

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ yes falls on Coaches on being ready!!

[Northern_Blitz]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ yes falls on Coaches on being ready!!

Not enough hand holding and hoping really, really hard that things go well. Or maybe they just didn't want it bad enough or wish hard enough.



Kidding aside, preparation is important. Especially for young guys.

But don't you think guys that have been in the league for more than a decade (Ben, Pouncey, Heyward) know how to get ready for games by now?

How much more practicing did Pouncey need not to snap it feet over a 6'5" QB? He's probably been preparing and practicing how to snap footballs for 20 years or so. **** like that is just bad execution.

And even if we concede that the DJ pick wasn't on Ben, the first one is a brain fart. Two turnovers on the first three drives on bad plays from veteran leaders isn't how you start a successful playoff game.

[NorthCoast]

When a team captain says they weren't ready for the game, I don't know how you can say otherwise;

https://steelerswire.usatoday.com/2021/01/16/steelers-browns-nfl-playoffs-2020-cam-heyward/

[Northern_Blitz]

When a team captain says they weren't ready for the game, I don't know how you can say otherwise;
https://steelerswire.usatoday.com/20...0-cam-heyward/

I wish Cam spent more time getting ready for that game and / or executing on the field.

It's not surprising that when choosing between the options of "I sucked on that day" and "I wasn't prepared on that day" players choose the latter.

[feltdizz]

When a team captain says they weren't ready for the game, I don't know how you can say otherwise;
https://steelerswire.usatoday.com/20...0-cam-heyward/

semantics..

I don’t think his words matter when you get beat like that.

I personally believe when you have a turnover to start the game on the FIRST play and then follow it up with turnovers on 3 of the next 4 drives its hard for a D to stay up.

Its hard for players to say they got their azz beat. Heyward is older, Ben and Pouncey as well. Unfortunately I think some of these vets will never be prepared for these young guys. Pouncey accepted it and retired.

[Mr.wizard]

When a team captain says they weren't ready for the game, I don't know how you can say otherwise;
https://steelerswire.usatoday.com/20...0-cam-heyward/

Your confusing a player not coming ready to play and a coach not giving them the tools they need. If Ben came out not focused how in the world is that the coach's fault. Veterans like Ben and Pouncy need the coach to get them focused for a playoff game? Come on! Its NFL players job to come ready to play.