Earl has been slacking in his duties.
Jen Selter (I’d like to point out that this post promotes fitness……. and hot women.)
Steel Balls
Where Steeler Nuts Hang Out
Author Archive
NFLPenalties.com
I just stumbled across an interesting site that tracks penalties. This means I won’t have to count on Steelers Depot to do it for me anymore, or search through their archives.
Link: http://www.nflpenalties.com/team/pittsburgh-steelers?year=2013
It doesn’t look as blatant to me anymore
I thought it was last night because I thought he hit the guy blind. The punter didn’t see him, but it looks like it was just a good solid block that was a little high. I don’t see anything intentional here. I can’t say for certain, but the case could be made that he was intending to lead with his forearm and shoulder.
As they say , intent does not matter. He’ll be fined, yes. But $50K, as has been suggested, is egregious.
So, you’re sayin’ there’s a chance?!?!
Playoff Chances Stand at 1.1 Percent
It turns out that Earl and Ricky Bobby were right. We shouldn’t give up on the season yet.….
In Case You Guys Missed This
Peter King tells PFT that the Steelers definitely will lose a late round draft pick and that determination as to what round that will be in will be made after playoff seeding is finalized. This is complete BS! There is absolutely no precedent for punishing a team like this when a coach makes a mistake. The Jets were not penalized this way and that was a coordinated effort by several players and a coach that had to be known by other members of the coaching staff.
Even if they could prove that Tomlin did it on purpose, they knew FOR CERTAIN that the Jets had and did not punish them this way!
Link: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/12/08/steelers-will-indeed-lose-a-late-round-pick/
To me, here he just looks clumsy
He steps right with his right leg and left with his left, then pushes off back toward the sideline….where he should have been in the first place.
What do you want to bet that NFL head coaches stay the heck off the field going forward?
Woodley Isn’t Going Anywhere
Ok, now I’ve read this too many times, (and these are the opinions of reputable scribes), not to offer some kind of opinion in response. Woodley isn’t leaving; he won’t be cut or traded. Here’s why.
The Steelers have restructured him twice, both times pushing large cap hits into future years. If they release him before June 1, the net cap impact is only 580K via a $14.17 million dead money hit, less his projected cap cost of $13.59 Million. If they release him after June 1, or sooner with a post June 1 designation, the net cap impact is a savings of $8 million via the prorated portion of his bonuses for 2014 of $5.59 million, less his 2013 cap hit of $13.59 million. BUT, they would be pushing $8.58 million into 2015 via his remaining bonus proration. These numbers hold true for the respective dates whether he is traded or released.
You can make the argument that you could structure a deal that replaces Woodley with that $8 million savings in year one, you cannot ignore the cap hit in 2015 though. You also have to consider whether the Steelers would be willing to consider investing over $30 million in bonus money into a player and then letting him walk. That figure does not include his salaries over the last three years, just bonus money.
In my opinion, the only way that Worilds stays is if the Steelers move Woodley to the right and stick Worilds on the left side; thus pushing Jones to the backup role he should have held as a rookie. IF and that’s a big if, they don’t restructure Woodley yet again this year, they can contemplate trading or releasing him in 2015 and then insert Jones on the right. Is this the right move? Maybe. Let’s be honest though. Worilds having success for a few games does not amount to the same sustained success that Harrison or Woodley had from 2007 to 2010. Worilds does not look like the second coming of Kevin Greene at LOLB; not yet anyway. In point of fact as far as sustained success goes, he isn’t even on the same level with Keenan Lewis, whom the Steelers let walk.
But, if they could sign Worilds to a deal that they could in effect walk away from after one year via a small signing bonus, or by putting that bonus into the form of a roster bonus, it might be worth it to try for a year to see if Worilds could sustain that performance over a year. That kind of contract arrangement and sticking him on the left side would be the only way I would like to see this done though. Heck, we don’t even know if Woodley can play effectively on the right. And, let’s be honest, we NEED someone on the right to do so in order for the Steelers to consistently get pressure like they used to. It can’t be one sided. Offenses just send their extra protection to one side and nullify that advantage.
In closing, I really have to wonder if these stories are being written as a favor for an agent to drum up interest in his client. Or, are they, at the very least, the product of information being fed to journalists about interest from other teams, which may or may not even exist after a few solid games. I mean, we’ve seen this with QBs before, but would a team really be foolish enough to ignore the rest of a player’s body of work when he’s a linebacker?
Stafford was 16 of 30 for 327 yards and 2 TDs in the 1st half
But was 3 of 16 for 35 yards and a pick in the 2nd half!
The D only surrendered 72 yards total in the 2nd half. After getting their butts handed to them, in the 2nd quarter and surrendering what had been a 14 point lead to Detroit. Coming back from what had to be a huge emotional letdown to perform that way instills confidence in me, as a fan, in their ability to overcome adversity. I’m not saying they’re a playoff contender yet, but I thought it would take this group longer to learn to win as a team than it seems to be taking.
They are still trying to find their way at this point, in my opinion. They still have to find ways to run the ball and stop the run, but they showed the will that is necessary to win a close game yesterday, that I believe could serve them well later on this season.
If they can win the next two games, they will then play 3 of 4 at home in December. They still have a shot at being a winner this year. A long shot, but a shot.
