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Going back to comments from another thread, I think that this might be the most overlooked issue when it comes to this team. Who are the guys who are responsible for coaching up individual players to make them better. After all, you are not drafting finished products out of college, and in some cases you are bringing in "lumps of clay" who need to be molded and taught the intricacies of their position. Looking at some current and recent concerns:
WR - Claypool was drafted in the second round as a project. Played HS in Canada, 5 catches as a freshman, and no breakout year until his senior year. Got a helmet weekly to play ST. Watching him today he is an unskilled route runner with poor body control. Saw a video of him last week running in the slot, if he would have angled his route slightly he creates a wide open passing lane but he kept going straight upfield allowing the defender to close the angle. A receiver has to learn that.
DJ shows sideline awareness problems and obviously drops. We know that he worked on his own last off-season catching tennis balls, but how much time is spent with him working on his concentration? What is being done to help him focus on watching the ball into his hands before eyeing his next move? There is a WR coach, asst coach, and TE coach for good measure. How much individual one-on-one timeis being spent on CC and DJ working on their shortcomings?
OL - Last year it looked like a coach out of his depth. He was handed garbage, but there did not seem to be one iota of improvement from anyone. Just one guy take a baby step forward. This year during the pre-season the line was awful. One poster told us that new coach Pat Meyer had installed a new technique in which the linemen use their hands independently instead of together. It seemed odd to many of us but I'd say that we are beginning to see some improvements, and I would think that much can be attributed to a coach who is teaching his players. So far, so good.
OL - Kendrick Green. Last season the Steelers drafted Green to move from a position he played most of his career to a position he had played a few times. The rationale was that his skillset could translate to center and the scheme that the team wanted to install. But they brought him in to a room with a horrible coach. Shouldn't somebody have recognized that a rookie line coach and a massive project that must work ASAP is not a good mix? As much a we all bagged on Green last year, he was set up to fail. No question.
OL - Dotson. Here is a guy who came in raw and talented. A fourth rounder from a small school with some credentials. Another guy who has not only not progressed, but who has regressed.
CBs - How many times over the years did we hear that the Steelers can't draft corners? Without going through the list, I always wondered if it was a drafting failure or a coaching and development failure? It is not like they ever drafted a Sauce Gardner, who you tell to just go out and play. When you are drafting guys in the second to fifth rounds, chances are that they need more help than top 15 type picks. One nice recent exception is Sutton, but he was known to already have a high football IQ coming in, so able to figure out a lot on his own. A few with mixed success but nobody who seems to have been developed.
WR - Claypool was drafted in the second round as a project. Played HS in Canada, 5 catches as a freshman, and no breakout year until his senior year. Got a helmet weekly to play ST. Watching him today he is an unskilled route runner with poor body control. Saw a video of him last week running in the slot, if he would have angled his route slightly he creates a wide open passing lane but he kept going straight upfield allowing the defender to close the angle. A receiver has to learn that.
DJ shows sideline awareness problems and obviously drops. We know that he worked on his own last off-season catching tennis balls, but how much time is spent with him working on his concentration? What is being done to help him focus on watching the ball into his hands before eyeing his next move? There is a WR coach, asst coach, and TE coach for good measure. How much individual one-on-one timeis being spent on CC and DJ working on their shortcomings?
OL - Last year it looked like a coach out of his depth. He was handed garbage, but there did not seem to be one iota of improvement from anyone. Just one guy take a baby step forward. This year during the pre-season the line was awful. One poster told us that new coach Pat Meyer had installed a new technique in which the linemen use their hands independently instead of together. It seemed odd to many of us but I'd say that we are beginning to see some improvements, and I would think that much can be attributed to a coach who is teaching his players. So far, so good.
OL - Kendrick Green. Last season the Steelers drafted Green to move from a position he played most of his career to a position he had played a few times. The rationale was that his skillset could translate to center and the scheme that the team wanted to install. But they brought him in to a room with a horrible coach. Shouldn't somebody have recognized that a rookie line coach and a massive project that must work ASAP is not a good mix? As much a we all bagged on Green last year, he was set up to fail. No question.
OL - Dotson. Here is a guy who came in raw and talented. A fourth rounder from a small school with some credentials. Another guy who has not only not progressed, but who has regressed.
CBs - How many times over the years did we hear that the Steelers can't draft corners? Without going through the list, I always wondered if it was a drafting failure or a coaching and development failure? It is not like they ever drafted a Sauce Gardner, who you tell to just go out and play. When you are drafting guys in the second to fifth rounds, chances are that they need more help than top 15 type picks. One nice recent exception is Sutton, but he was known to already have a high football IQ coming in, so able to figure out a lot on his own. A few with mixed success but nobody who seems to have been developed.
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