Bench Antwon Blake

Steelers film session: Secondary benefits from switch

It wasn't until the Colts' third series that a change was made: Brandon Boykin entered to play the slot, with Gay moving outside in the nickel for the first time this season and Cockrell heading to the bench.

Boykin's second snap as the Steelers' regular nickel cornerback? An interception. From then on, he never left the field in such situations.

What's interesting is the Steelers made another change from that point on. The first time the nickel was needed on the next Colts' possession, Cockrell was in to play the outside.

Blake was not — but he did play in the “base” defense (and short-yardage) the remainder of the game.

So, the Steelers choose to use Blake when they need two cornerbacks — but not when they use three. Gay plays the entire game (when healthy), and he is paired with Blake in the “base” and Cockrell/Boykin in the nickel.

http://triblive.com/sports/steelers/9562070-74/steelers-yards-game#ixzz3tmc6Z2UT

ImperialFan wrote:

It was interesting that Butler said the problems with the secondary are fatigue based. I didnt really agree but you got to admit they did a pretty  I good job against the colts. Even Blake looked better. It would be nice if fatigue were all it was. Personally I think Boykin should be on the field more.

Blake has also been playing with a broken thumb which can't feel good when you're trying to make tackles. Tackling used to be somewhat of a strength of his, and he was particularly good in run support but what I've seen since he broke that thumb is a guy that's more timid in his tackling. Tries to throw just the shoulder instead of hitting/wrapping up. I think that has a lot to do with his increasingly bad play this season.

He'd be better if he wasn't playing with an injury like that, and wasn't being asked to do everything, and that much was evidenced in the Colts game.

Expectations have become so low for this secondary. Look at this thread.....fans are discussing for 7 pages of how a db with the skill set of a special team player and no NFL track record of success should be benched or not.

As former player and current NFL analyst Louis Riddick said, " Antowan Blake just isn't that good."

IowaSteeler927 wrote:

ImperialFan wrote:

It was interesting that Butler said the problems with the secondary are fatigue based. I didnt really agree but you got to admit they did a pretty  I good job against the colts. Even Blake looked better. It would be nice if fatigue were all it was. Personally I think Boykin should be on the field more.

Blake has also been playing with a broken thumb which can't feel good when you're trying to make tackles. Tackling used to be somewhat of a strength of his, and he was particularly good in run support but what I've seen since he broke that thumb is a guy that's more timid in his tackling. Tries to throw just the shoulder instead of hitting/wrapping up. I think that has a lot to do with his increasingly bad play this season.

He'd be better if he wasn't playing with an injury like that, and wasn't being asked to do everything, and that much was evidenced in the Colts game.

That falls on the coaches. Why play a player who's at 50 percent when you have a healthy Boykin riding the bench makes no sense what so ever.. In fact it's just plain stupid.

steelcityboyz wrote:

IowaSteeler927 wrote:

ImperialFan wrote:

It was interesting that Butler said the problems with the secondary are fatigue based. I didnt really agree but you got to admit they did a pretty  I good job against the colts. Even Blake looked better. It would be nice if fatigue were all it was. Personally I think Boykin should be on the field more.

Blake has also been playing with a broken thumb which can't feel good when you're trying to make tackles. Tackling used to be somewhat of a strength of his, and he was particularly good in run support but what I've seen since he broke that thumb is a guy that's more timid in his tackling. Tries to throw just the shoulder instead of hitting/wrapping up. I think that has a lot to do with his increasingly bad play this season.

He'd be better if he wasn't playing with an injury like that, and wasn't being asked to do everything, and that much was evidenced in the Colts game.

That falls on the coaches. Why play a player who's at 50 percent when you have a healthy Boykin riding the bench makes no sense what so ever.. In fact it's just plain stupid.

I completely agree.

If you have one of the worst CB's in the NFL who is playing injured and you traded for one of the top slot CB's in the NFL in August, why not play the healthy Boykin in the slot and move Will Gay to the outside in sub packages?? Somebody's ego was in the way of making this move sooner IMO and it might have cost the loss to the Seahawks.

El-Gonzo Jackson wrote:

If you have one of the worst CB's in the NFL who is playing injured and you traded for one of the top slot CB's in the NFL in August, why not play the healthy Boykin in the slot and move Will Gay to the outside in sub packages??  Somebody's ego was in the way of making this move sooner IMO and it might have cost the loss to the Seahawks.

This from Gerry Dulac in his P-G chat today

Boykin clearly could have been contributing all year...I don't care what happened in practice, he was a proven cover guy in 3 years as a pro. Incomprehensible the way he was handled. Do you agree.

Gerry Dulac: No. Don't believe this crap about practice. The decision not to trust Boykin or play him goes back to the preseason and how he performed in those preseason games. I have never met a coach in any sport who didn't play the players who gave them the best chance to win, unless it was a discipline or team rules matter. And that is not the case with Boykin, a good guy and a good professional


http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2015/12/09/Gerry-Dulac-s-Steelers-chat-transcript-12-9-15/stories/201512090223

Atlanta Dan wrote:

El-Gonzo Jackson wrote:

If you have one of the worst CB's in the NFL who is playing injured and you traded for one of the top slot CB's in the NFL in August, why not play the healthy Boykin in the slot and move Will Gay to the outside in sub packages??  Somebody's ego was in the way of making this move sooner IMO and it might have cost the loss to the Seahawks.

This from Gerry Dulac in his P-G chat today

Boykin clearly could have been contributing all year...I don't care what happened in practice, he was a proven cover guy in 3 years as a pro. Incomprehensible the way he was handled. Do you agree.

Gerry Dulac: No. Don't believe this crap about practice. The decision not to trust Boykin or play him goes back to the preseason and how he performed in those preseason games. I have never met a coach in any sport who didn't play the players who gave them the best chance to win, unless it was a discipline or team rules matter. And that is not the case with Boykin, a good guy and a good professional


http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2015/12/09/Gerry-Dulac-s-Steelers-chat-transcript-12-9-15/stories/201512090223

There are lots of cases in the NFL where coaches overlook players if they are not "their guy".

Drew Brees wasn't AJ Smith's guy as much as Phil Rivers. Shady McCoy was drafted before Chip Kelly was there and obviously wasn't "his guy". My intuition tells me that in the coaching hierarchy, Blake is somebody's "guy" and the entire group was not in consensus about acquiring Boykin.

The stuff about coaches not playing the guy who gives them the best chance to win is true.....but some guys use their personal bias to jade who they think gives them the best chance. Just like some thought Carey Davis was the better choice than Jon Kuhn, because Kuhn was a true fullback. One or a few of the coaches really like Blake and that is why the brought him here. Those coach(es) probably thought of Boykin as just insurance and depth, but don't want him taking snaps from "their guy".

steelcityboyz wrote:

IowaSteeler927 wrote:

ImperialFan wrote:

It was interesting that Butler said the problems with the secondary are fatigue based. I didnt really agree but you got to admit they did a pretty  I good job against the colts. Even Blake looked better. It would be nice if fatigue were all it was. Personally I think Boykin should be on the field more.

Blake has also been playing with a broken thumb which can't feel good when you're trying to make tackles. Tackling used to be somewhat of a strength of his, and he was particularly good in run support but what I've seen since he broke that thumb is a guy that's more timid in his tackling. Tries to throw just the shoulder instead of hitting/wrapping up. I think that has a lot to do with his increasingly bad play this season.

He'd be better if he wasn't playing with an injury like that, and wasn't being asked to do everything, and that much was evidenced in the Colts game.

That falls on the coaches. Why play a player who's at 50 percent when you have a healthy Boykin riding the bench makes no sense what so ever.. In fact it's just plain stupid.

I totally agree, Boykin should've been playing weeks ago in my honest opinion. Blake just hasn't been getting the job done, and he got destroyed multiple times in that Seahawks game. The secondary wasn't great across the board, but Blake played the worst I've seen him play so far. He made Russell Wilson and Doug Baldwin look like Dan Marino and Mark Clayton.

IowaSteeler927 wrote:

steelcityboyz wrote:

IowaSteeler927 wrote:

ImperialFan wrote:

It was interesting that Butler said the problems with the secondary are fatigue based. I didnt really agree but you got to admit they did a pretty  I good job against the colts. Even Blake looked better. It would be nice if fatigue were all it was. Personally I think Boykin should be on the field more.

Blake has also been playing with a broken thumb which can't feel good when you're trying to make tackles. Tackling used to be somewhat of a strength of his, and he was particularly good in run support but what I've seen since he broke that thumb is a guy that's more timid in his tackling. Tries to throw just the shoulder instead of hitting/wrapping up. I think that has a lot to do with his increasingly bad play this season.

He'd be better if he wasn't playing with an injury like that, and wasn't being asked to do everything, and that much was evidenced in the Colts game.

That falls on the coaches. Why play a player who's at 50 percent when you have a healthy Boykin riding the bench makes no sense what so ever.. In fact it's just plain stupid.

I totally agree, Boykin should've been playing weeks ago in my honest opinion. Blake just hasn't been getting the job done, and he got destroyed multiple times in that Seahawks game. The secondary wasn't great across the board, but Blake played the worst I've seen him play so far. He made Russell Wilson and Doug Baldwin look like Dan Marino and Mark Clayton.

Actually, I think the Cardinals game where he allowed 9 receptions on 13 targets for 163 yards and 1 TD was worse. So too was the Raiders game where he was targeted 15 times and only actually defended 2 of them.... and then the Seahawks game was his 3rd worst performance of the season.

El-Gonzo Jackson wrote:

IowaSteeler927 wrote:

steelcityboyz wrote:

IowaSteeler927 wrote:

ImperialFan wrote:

It was interesting that Butler said the problems with the secondary are fatigue based. I didnt really agree but you got to admit they did a pretty  I good job against the colts. Even Blake looked better. It would be nice if fatigue were all it was. Personally I think Boykin should be on the field more.

Blake has also been playing with a broken thumb which can't feel good when you're trying to make tackles. Tackling used to be somewhat of a strength of his, and he was particularly good in run support but what I've seen since he broke that thumb is a guy that's more timid in his tackling. Tries to throw just the shoulder instead of hitting/wrapping up. I think that has a lot to do with his increasingly bad play this season.

He'd be better if he wasn't playing with an injury like that, and wasn't being asked to do everything, and that much was evidenced in the Colts game.

That falls on the coaches. Why play a player who's at 50 percent when you have a healthy Boykin riding the bench makes no sense what so ever.. In fact it's just plain stupid.

I totally agree, Boykin should've been playing weeks ago in my honest opinion. Blake just hasn't been getting the job done, and he got destroyed multiple times in that Seahawks game. The secondary wasn't great across the board, but Blake played the worst I've seen him play so far. He made Russell Wilson and Doug Baldwin look like Dan Marino and Mark Clayton.

Actually, I think the Cardinals game where he allowed 9 receptions on 13 targets for 163 yards and 1 TD was worse.  So too was the Raiders game where he was targeted 15 times and only actually defended 2 of them.... and then the Seahawks game was his 3rd worst performance of the season.

Speaking towards this season itself.

IowaSteeler927 wrote:

El-Gonzo Jackson wrote:

IowaSteeler927 wrote:

steelcityboyz wrote:

IowaSteeler927 wrote:

ImperialFan wrote:

It was interesting that Butler said the problems with the secondary are fatigue based. I didnt really agree but you got to admit they did a pretty  I good job against the colts. Even Blake looked better. It would be nice if fatigue were all it was. Personally I think Boykin should be on the field more.

Blake has also been playing with a broken thumb which can't feel good when you're trying to make tackles. Tackling used to be somewhat of a strength of his, and he was particularly good in run support but what I've seen since he broke that thumb is a guy that's more timid in his tackling. Tries to throw just the shoulder instead of hitting/wrapping up. I think that has a lot to do with his increasingly bad play this season.

He'd be better if he wasn't playing with an injury like that, and wasn't being asked to do everything, and that much was evidenced in the Colts game.

That falls on the coaches. Why play a player who's at 50 percent when you have a healthy Boykin riding the bench makes no sense what so ever.. In fact it's just plain stupid.

I totally agree, Boykin should've been playing weeks ago in my honest opinion. Blake just hasn't been getting the job done, and he got destroyed multiple times in that Seahawks game. The secondary wasn't great across the board, but Blake played the worst I've seen him play so far. He made Russell Wilson and Doug Baldwin look like Dan Marino and Mark Clayton.

Actually, I think the Cardinals game where he allowed 9 receptions on 13 targets for 163 yards and 1 TD was worse.  So too was the Raiders game where he was targeted 15 times and only actually defended 2 of them.... and then the Seahawks game was his 3rd worst performance of the season.

Speaking towards this season itself.

Yeah, he never really has had much playing time since this season. Anyways, today I think he was his consistent poor self. I think we will see a stat line of something like 6 receptions allowed on 8 targets, 2 missed tackles, 105 yds receiving allowed and 1 TD.

After the AJ Green TD, you could see Tomlin talking with Lake and Butler, then Cockrell, Gay and Boykin were in the next series. Hopefully coach Tomlin starts to get on Carnell Lake to get #41 off the field more than he is on it.

The Blake experiment needs to end