The rookie wide receiver from Texas, Limas Sweed saw his most playing time of his short career in the AFCCG against the Baltimore Ravens. All I can say is if he continues to drop balls like he did in that game, his career will be short-lived.
In defense of Sweed, I saw a few positive plays:
- His crushing block on the Raven’s DB, Ivy, on a pass to Heath Miller
- His interception “break-up”
- His critical 3rd down reception to keep the chains moving in the 2nd half of the AFCCG
- His speed – He was able to gain a step on several of the Raven’s defensive backs
- His ability to separate – He was open on several occasions during the AFCCG. Was this due to the lack of depth in the Raven’s secondary or is Sweed starting to create mismatches?
In analyzing Limas Sweed this past week, a few things are obvious to me. Number one, Sweed has great upside. I really think his combination of size, speed, and athleticism is a mismatch to opposing defenses. And let’s face it; we haven’t seen this type of size at the wide receiver position since Plaxico Burress played for the Steelers.
However, Limas Sweed, at this point, may have the worst hands of any offensive-skill position currently on the Steelers roster. He dropped a touchdown pass that could have sealed the victory for the Steelers in the AFCCG. Note to Limas Sweed, this is the playoffs! A play like that, in a game of that type of magnitude could have cost the Steelers the game. You could tell in recent interview with Coach Mike Tomlin that he is NOT happy about Sweeds’ lack of concentration. A lack of concentration could cost the Steelers the Super Bowl regardless of the play: a missed first down, a dropped touchdown pass, a fumble, or a dumb penalty.
Honestly, I don’t think Sweed has very bad hands. I’ve seen his statistics at Texas. I’ve seen his highlight videos at Texas as well. The guy can flat out play. His problem is a lack of confidence, a lack of concentration, a lack of focus, or a combination of these. His physical attributes are NFL talent for sure. Take for instance, the touchdown drop against the Ravens. On the replay, his eyes were not even focused on the ball. He was either looking for the end zone, or looking for a defender. He must understand, that if he catches the ball, he’ll see the end zone sooner rather than later. If a defender was there (which he wasn’t) what difference does it make? It’s the NFL, he has to expect to get hit, whether he catches the ball or drops it, the defender will hit him so he might as well catch the ball.
This week he will be playing the biggest him in his life. It’s hardly the time for lack of focus and concentration issues. We need Limas Sweed to pull through this Sunday especially seeing additional playing time due to Hines Ward’s knee injury.
Sweed, if there was any time to step up and make a play, Super Bowl XLIII would be it.
