Q&A: Steelers LB Jason Worilds

Jason Worilds will some day replace veteran James Harrison as the Steelers' right outside linebacker. Right now, though, he's been filling in on the left side while LaMarr Woodley recovers from a hamstring pull. A former Virginia Tech star taken in the second round of last year's NFL draft, Worilds will make his third straight start Sunday night when the Steelers play the Chiefs in Kansas City.

After practice Thursday, Times pro football writer Mike Bires spoke to Worilds about a variety of topics ranging from his days at Virginia Tech to the progress he's making in his second pro season. Following are excerpts of that conversation:

Q: Tuesday, Mike Tomlin said your play the past two games was "above the line." How does it feel to get a compliment from your coach?

A: "I didn't hear that, but it's good news. LaMarr is a heck of a player, so to know that I've been doing my job to the best of my ability and the coaches have noticed, that makes me feel good. I've definitely improved from last year when I got most of playing time on special teams. I thought I played OK in my first start against Baltimore. And I think I did pretty well in the game in Cincinnati. It was definitely a step forward."

Q: You had two sacks last year as a rookie but none yet this season. Are you ready to get that first sack this year? Can you feel it coming?

A: "Yeah, I do. I think if I keep getting pressure, it's going to come. I've been close a couple times, but I need to get there."

READ MORE: http://www.timesonline.com/sports/local_sports/q-a-steelers-lb-jason-worilds/article_d3548134-1764-11e1-b4d5-001a4bcf6878.html

Hopefully he develops into the player that they envisioned.

supytalpeht wrote:

Hopefully he develops into the player that they envisioned.

I've been a little disappointed in his play. I have to keep reminding myself that he's young with no experience. He'll get better. How much better we'll just have to wait and see.

Wallace108 wrote:

supytalpeht wrote:

Hopefully he develops into the player that they envisioned.

I've been a little disappointed in his play. I have to keep reminding myself that he's young with no experience. He'll get better. How much better we'll just have to wait and see.

At this point he's got all of 2 starts under his belt, in my opinion we haven't seen enough to pass judgement either way.

He's kinda like where Timmons was early on. We were all disappointed in him too but he's come around. I hope Worilds does too.

solardave wrote:

He's kinda like where Timmons was early on. We were all disappointed in him too but he's come around. I hope Worilds does too.

That said, I'm still waiting on Timmons' "break out year". Although he's a solid LB with amazing physical skills and moments of greatness, he still hasn't quite blown up like I expected he would. I'm not hating on him, he just hasn't been consistent or dominant enough to merit his hype and draft position yet.

I think the comparison of Worilds to Timmons is a good one. Timmons was getting a reputation as a possible bust early on (absurd considering his youth and inexperience). He (Timmons) has since rounded out nicely as a solid, above average player and if Worilds can get to his level as a player, I would consider him an excellent draft pick. The only thing that bothers me about Timmons is that I'd like to see a little more out of a first-rounder with his skill set. I think he could be so much more.

solardave wrote:

He's kinda like where Timmons was early on. We were all disappointed in him too but he's come around. I hope Worilds does too.

Good point.

Buddha Bus wrote:

solardave wrote:

He's kinda like where Timmons was early on. We were all disappointed in him too but he's come around. I hope Worilds does too.

That said, I'm still waiting on Timmons' "break out year". Although he's a solid LB with amazing physical skills and moments of greatness, he still hasn't quite blown up like I expected he would. I'm not hating on him, he just hasn't been consistent or dominant enough to merit his hype and draft position yet.

I think the comparison of Worilds to Timmons is a good one. Timmons was getting a reputation as a possible bust early on (absurd considering his youth and inexperience). He (Timmons) has since rounded out nicely as a solid, above average player and if Worilds can get to his level as a player, I would consider him an excellent draft pick. The only thing that bothers me about Timmons is that I'd like to see a little more out of a first-rounder with his skill set. I think he could be so much more.

I agree with your assessment of Timmons. I was expecting him to have a Pro-Bowl caliber season. In his defense, he was playing out of position a few games, but he still hasn't had the impact I was expecting.

Buddha Bus wrote:

solardave wrote:

He's kinda like where Timmons was early on. We were all disappointed in him too but he's come around. I hope Worilds does too.

That said, I'm still waiting on Timmons' "break out year". Although he's a solid LB with amazing physical skills and moments of greatness, he still hasn't quite blown up like I expected he would. I'm not hating on him, he just hasn't been consistent or dominant enough to merit his hype and draft position yet.

I think the comparison of Worilds to Timmons is a good one. Timmons was getting a reputation as a possible bust early on (absurd considering his youth and inexperience). He (Timmons) has since rounded out nicely as a solid, above average player and if Worilds can get to his level as a player, I would consider him an excellent draft pick. The only thing that bothers me about Timmons is that I'd like to see a little more out of a first-rounder with his skill set. I think he could be so much more.

I think part of our disappointment in these LBs is the fact that we've been spoiled over say the last 30 years. If anyone mentions the Steelers one of the first topics is our outstanding LBs. We've rarely had just one stand out at a time.
Lambert/Ham
Loyd/Greene
Harrison/Woodley.

We've had guys who could start for any other team sitting the bench
not so much because they weren't good enough to start for us but because we had better. Case in point was Vrabel. Look at what he did in Cheatriot land. I'm pretty sure he played a lot of DE but with us he was a STer and backup LB. He was our Kemo on defense.

Wallace108 wrote:

I agree with your assessment of Timmons. I was expecting him to have a Pro-Bowl caliber season. In his defense, he was playing out of position a few games, but he still hasn't had the impact I was expecting.

Yeah, he has been out of position a few games this year, but even when he's playing his normal position, he hasn't been the Pro-Bowl caliber LB that he should be. Maybe he'll turn it up a notch going into the playoffs. It would sure be a good time to start peaking right now.

solardave wrote:

I think part of our disappointment in these LBs is the fact that we've been spoiled over say the last 30 years. If anyone mentions the Steelers one of the first topics is our outstanding LBs. We've rarely had just one stand out at a time.
Lambert/Ham
Loyd/Greene
Harrison/Woodley.

We've had guys who could start for any other team sitting the bench
not so much because they weren't good enough to start for us but because we had better. Case in point was Vrabel. Look at what he did in Cheatriot land. I'm pretty sure he played a lot of DE but with us he was a STer and backup LB. He was our Kemo on defense.

Good points. We are definitely spoiled when it comes to the LB position. I really like Timmons, I just wish he'd live up to his potential a bit more.