After listing him as questionable going into the weekend, the Steelers have ruled out James Conner for Monday night’s matchup with the Bengals in Cincinnati. Conner missed practice Thursday and was limited Friday and Saturday with a quadriceps injury, so Benny Snell, Jaylen Samuels and Anthony McFarland will man the backfield.
The Steelers also are bringing in reinforcements at a couple thin positions, activating offensive lineman Danny Isidora and elevating inside linebacker Tegray Scales from the practice squad.
Did you guys see Wisnewski playing for Kansas City yesterday? He had a hell of a game too! LOL... fuck...
The NFL went very much to my disliking yesterday...everything from Chiefs game to Browns and rats wins. Although it was awesome seeing the cheats eliminated from the playoffs their genius cheating coach is lacking now that he doesn't have a top QB just like Shanahan when he lost Elway. Reid is the current "genius" head coach but I think he'd quickly regress if Mahomes wasn't playing.
_________________
Stella Nation
Posts : 1506 Join date : 2015-05-13 Location : Stella City
And Conner is... out Seriously with his availability he can stay for 4M/year, everything else is an overpay
seriously ? 4 million ? i'd bet the farm he wont be on the roster next year...and his next team wont be paying him anywhere near 4 million a year. he will be lucky to get a 2 year 4 million contract.
4M isn't that much since we almost pay that for Derek Watt who does nothing for us. Conner is at least a great #2. With lesser snaps as #2 he will be more durable and if we would need him for a game or 2 as a starter we won't miss a beat.
jak341
Posts : 3609 Join date : 2015-04-09 Location : Pittsburgh
_________________ When the truth gets buried deep Beneath the thousand years asleep Time demands a turnaround And once again the truth is found
IowaSteeler927
Posts : 5054 Join date : 2015-04-11 Location : Des Moines, Iowa
Subject: Re: Week 15: Steelers @ Bengals. Tue Dec 22, 2020 1:33 am
Well I listened to the game on SNR into the 4th Quarter after the Steelers tried to make it a game in the second half. Turns out I should've just went to sleep, but for some stupid reason I had some kind of ignorant optimism that they'd somehow manage to pull out a win. Boy was I wrong.
What a pathetic showing. I don't blame them for losing to the Bills but the losses to Washington and Cinci are unacceptable. There's no excuses in my book. I listened a bit to ESPN radio on my way to work and the were talking about them being "mentally exhausted". Give me a f$%^*(& break with that crap. Every other team is playing games every week, every other team has faced some kind of adversity (injuries, illnesses, scheduling, etc...) this season. Thing is, good teams don't crumble and fall apart in the face of adversity. While they might not always come out on top, they at least put up a fight. The Steelers aren't even doing that. Offensively they're a pathetic excuse of a unit. Routine short passes feel like a struggle and I cringe every time Ben throws the ball. The running game (while it was better tonight) is still too ineffective and it seems like no matter who we face, they can pretty well shut us down and win in the trenches.
I realize these guys have been through a bit of gauntlet because they haven't had a bye week since Week 4, and they've played some of their toughest competition late in the season. I can handle the losses to Washington, and Buffalo because Washington is still in contention for their division and Buffalo is obviously one of the best teams on our schedule. I cannot and will not listen to any excuses for losing this game tonight though. The Bengals exposed us tonight as a team with no backbone, no sense of urgency, and one that will just roll over and die when the going gets tough.
All of that being said (sorry for the long-winded post), that's not even mentioning the pre-game antics by Juju. I used to be firmly on his side, and I've defended Juju quite a bit when he's been criticized for his social media stuff by jackasses like Mark Madden. Tonight showed me though that Juju isn't mature, and that he is willing to put his ego and his social media persona ahead of the organization, the fans, and the success of his team overall. The Bengals even laid it out there that they were going to use his actions as motivation and Tomlin and Co. still allowed him to go out and act like a total clown with the media spotlight firmly on him. Juju is at fault here for this stupidity, but so is Tomlin for allowing this. Celebrating a touchdown is one thing, going out and willfully giving your opponent bulletin board material by disrespecting their logo/image is just selfish stupidity. He paid for it when Bell lit his sorry ass up and he coughed up yet another fumble at a crucial time in a game. The organization should be telling Juju either act like a professional, or get the hell out. It's not as if Juju is having a great season either to make up for these mental miscues, he's been incredibly inconsistent, which makes it all the more maddening.
All in all, I'm disgusted with what I saw tonight. It was embarrassing. Kevin Greene just died, they should've been amped up to kick some ass to honor him in his passing. Instead our offense was absolute garbage, and our defense was Charmin Ultra Soft when we needed them the most. This team has been disappointing at times throughout my years, but losing this game, in this fashion, to that opponent... It ranks right up there as one of the most embarrassing losses I've ever seen/heard.
_________________
"Success isn't owned, it's leased and the rent is due every day." - TJ Watt
effyou515, Stella Nation and LambertWardSteel like this post
effyou515
Posts : 5116 Join date : 2011-09-28 Location : from upper Ohio Valley to Conyers Ga.
Subject: Re: Week 15: Steelers @ Bengals. Tue Dec 22, 2020 2:29 am
Fichtner can't call a full game, Ben is done he locks on receivers not seeing the field accuracy is off, offensive line is trash can't push defensive fronts back, same defense Cowher brought in when he became the head coach.
_________________ When the truth gets buried deep Beneath the thousand years asleep Time demands a turnaround And once again the truth is found
IowaSteeler927
Posts : 5054 Join date : 2015-04-11 Location : Des Moines, Iowa
Subject: Re: Week 15: Steelers @ Bengals. Tue Dec 22, 2020 2:32 am
effyou515 wrote:
Fichtner can't call a full game, Ben is done he locks on receivers not seeing the field accuracy is off, offensive line is trash can't push defensive fronts back, same defense Cowher brought in when he became the head coach.
Yeah I'm at my wit's end with Fichtner. Nothing seems to work in his offense as of late and they haven't added any wrinkles or tried anything drastically different as far as I can tell. I'm just an armchair GM but I feel as though he isn't getting the job done and isn't getting the most out of his talent with his schemes. Maybe I'm wrong, but that's just how I feel.
_________________
"Success isn't owned, it's leased and the rent is due every day." - TJ Watt
LambertWardSteel
Posts : 1643 Join date : 2015-05-14 Location : Myerstown PA
Subject: Re: Week 15: Steelers @ Bengals. Tue Dec 22, 2020 2:39 am
IowaSteeler927 wrote:
Well I listened to the game on SNR into the 4th Quarter after the Steelers tried to make it a game in the second half. Turns out I should've just went to sleep, but for some stupid reason I had some kind of ignorant optimism that they'd somehow manage to pull out a win. Boy was I wrong.
What a pathetic showing. I don't blame them for losing to the Bills but the losses to Washington and Cinci are unacceptable. There's no excuses in my book. I listened a bit to ESPN radio on my way to work and the were talking about them being "mentally exhausted". Give me a f$%^*(& break with that crap. Every other team is playing games every week, every other team has faced some kind of adversity (injuries, illnesses, scheduling, etc...) this season. Thing is, good teams don't crumble and fall apart in the face of adversity. While they might not always come out on top, they at least put up a fight. The Steelers aren't even doing that. Offensively they're a pathetic excuse of a unit. Routine short passes feel like a struggle and I cringe every time Ben throws the ball. The running game (while it was better tonight) is still too ineffective and it seems like no matter who we face, they can pretty well shut us down and win in the trenches.
I realize these guys have been through a bit of gauntlet because they haven't had a bye week since Week 4, and they've played some of their toughest competition late in the season. I can handle the losses to Washington, and Buffalo because Washington is still in contention for their division and Buffalo is obviously one of the best teams on our schedule. I cannot and will not listen to any excuses for losing this game tonight though. The Bengals exposed us tonight as a team with no backbone, no sense of urgency, and one that will just roll over and die when the going gets tough.
All of that being said (sorry for the long-winded post), that's not even mentioning the pre-game antics by Juju. I used to be firmly on his side, and I've defended Juju quite a bit when he's been criticized for his social media stuff by jackasses like Mark Madden. Tonight showed me though that Juju isn't mature, and that he is willing to put his ego and his social media persona ahead of the organization, the fans, and the success of his team overall. The Bengals even laid it out there that they were going to use his actions as motivation and Tomlin an Co. still allowed him to go out and act like a total clown with the media spotlight firmly on Juju. Juju is at fault here for this stupidity, but so is Tomlin for allowing this. Celebrating a touchdown is one thing, going out and willfully giving your opponent bulletin board material by disrespecting their logo/image is just selfish stupidity. He paid for it when Bell lit his sorry ass up and he coughed up yet another fumble at a crucial time in a game. The organization should be telling Juju either act like a professional, or get the hell out. It's not as if Juju is having a great season either to make up for these mental miscues, he's been incredibly inconsistent, which makes it all the more maddening.
All in all, I'm disgusted with what I saw tonight. It was embarrassing. Kevin Greene died, they should've been amped up to kick some ass to honor him in his passing. Instead we our offense was absolute garbage, and our defense was charmin ultra soft when needed the most. This team has been disappointing at times throughout my years, but losing this game, in this fashion, to that opponent... It ranks right up there as one of the most embarrassing losses I've ever seen/heard.
Well said. I'm with you, bud.
JuJu should be reigned in by Tomlin. JuJu is the one doing this but Tomlin needs to take charge. JuJu's fumble was crucial, they probably don't hit him like that and cause the fumble if not for the dance. The coach could have benched JuJu when this started to get his head straight. The coach just let it go like AB...like Bell.
It isn't just the negativity after a loss but I really don't see them winning again. Not with the Colts-Browns-1st round playoffs. That is an 11 game win streak to start season and likely 0-6 to finish. That is epic. That would have to be one of the greatest collapses in NFL history. That is worse than 2009 when Tomlin was going to unleash hell in December. At some point the coach needs to be held responsible. That being said...Tomlin's record of non-losing seasons will remain intact
I never knew whether they could match up with KC when they were still winning but I really thought they might get to the AFC CG. As it stands now it really feels like they're going in as a wild card then going home. They need to make some tough coaching and player decisions after the season.
I usually am furious during and after losses. I started watching this one and I knew where it was going. I just sort of sat their numbly and nothing they did no matter how inept surprised me. When the game was over I turned it off. The Browns-rats-Bengals fans are all laughing at us the way we do when the cheats lose.
_________________
IowaSteeler927 likes this post
Master_Of_Puppets
Posts : 2784 Join date : 2011-04-08
Subject: Re: Week 15: Steelers @ Bengals. Tue Dec 22, 2020 4:45 am
if you ask me...if you dont win at least one playoff game it is a losing season. the regular season record dont mean shit once the playoffs start. Tomlin has only won a playoff game in 4 of his 13 seasons. most likely it will be 4 for 14.
solardave likes this post
solardave
Posts : 6226 Join date : 2011-09-30 Location : State of Confusion
Subject: Re: Week 15: Steelers @ Bengals. Tue Dec 22, 2020 5:58 am
After watching last night's shit show I can't see us winning another game this year. I still think something isn't right with Ben. Maybe his elbow but then I wonder what that has to do with his head? In all honesty he could have had 3-4 INTs but they dropped them. Our Oline looks like a welcome mat and our defense can't be trusted. The only reason I watched as long as I did last night was my Daughter is here visiting and she watched the game with me. We haven't been able to do that in forever. That means the world to me because it wasn't about the game. to bad I couldn't brag about how good they are. Will going from 11-0 to 11-5 be considered an EPIC meltdown? That's what I'm seeing here. One more question. right now is Ben playing any better than Mason or Duck did last year?
SteelerFreak58
Posts : 2692 Join date : 2015-09-13 Location : Modesto CA
Subject: Re: Week 15: Steelers @ Bengals. Tue Dec 22, 2020 9:31 am
We really honestly havent been that good all year. We have won a lot of close games this year that we could have lost. We were lucky to be 11-0. Ben's arm is toast, his knee is bothering him more then they have let on. Link that to him throwing for 50+ times a game for the last 5 games, him being 38, and you have the mess you see now.
Our Oline is god awful. We have a lot that needs fixing and Ben is simply not capable of putting this team on his back and winning games now.
Our D has sustained way to many injuries at key positions. End of story...
solardave likes this post
jak341
Posts : 3609 Join date : 2015-04-09 Location : Pittsburgh
The bad news is this team has played like a cellar dweller for the past 5 games and only through grit did they win two of them.
The good news is they have the talent to make a Super Bowl push.
The offense has all the talent and are relatively healthy (not sure Ebron's status). The defense has carried the injury bug for the team, yet it's that group that's been keeping them in games for the most part.
Look, sometimes we think too much when considering why our team loses. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I don't think Ben is washed up, the O-line isn't too old, and I don't think Fitchner sucks (although I will get to something I think we'll all agree on later).
The reason the Steelers have looked like trash for the past 5 games is easy, when you think about it. They've been worse than their opponents in the basics of football. Really, football comes down to:
Blocking or beating the blocks (trench warfare) Tackling Throwing Catching Running
Blocking and beating the blocks: Our O-line tends to go backwards on run plays and last night were getting hammered on pass plays. Our D-line was getting driven backwards as well. The Steelers lost trench warfare.
Tackling: Although I think the team generally has done well tackling, they do miss key opportunities to bring the ball carrier down. Some have been costly mistakes.
Throwing: Ben lost the game last night single-handedly. His receivers caught his passes, when he was able to get the ball to them. He has been out-played by the opposing QBs for a few weeks.
Catching: Although the receivers did a much better job catching the ball this week, that was different than the prior 4 games. When Ben was getting them the ball, they dropped too many. Now they catch, and Ben slumps.
Running: I thought Benny Snell ran hard last night. However, the opponents RBs look far better regardless of how their line is blocking. And the receivers just aren't making plays after the catch (Claypool's bubble screen aside).
If there's one thing I would change about this offense it would be developing a run game. I noticed last night was the first time in a while the O-line was getting in a 3 point stance on some run plays (except AV, which I'm not sure why he was the only lineman standing up). Now Fitchner can argue with me on this point, but I'll hold my ground. When the QB is in shotgun, the O-line is in a 2 point stance, and you hand the ball off ... that's a draw. Up until last night, a large majority of the Steelers run plays have been draws. You don't get a push up front on draw plays. On run plays, the linemen need to get their hand in the dirt. In the KC/NO game, the KC O-linemen had their hand in the dirt on every run play and most of those were in shotgun formation. The Steelers did more of that last night and would you believe it? Benny Snell had a respectable 4.7 yards per carry.
As I said, Ben lost that game. I don't think it's his elbow or his age. The deep ball to Claypool was a dime, if only the refs had thrown the flag. But I can tell you how he can fix his issues: show up for practice on Weds ... something he hasn't done all year. When you want to improve something, you work on it, not take extra days off. Get your touch, timing, look and feel for action back and not wait for game day to do it.
The reason I don't blame Fitchner is because last night they were trying to throw downfield and they failed miserably. Yes, there are play calls that I disagree with, but that disagreement almost always comes after the play fails (isn't that funny how it's a great call when it goes for a big play?). Fitchner could become the incarnation of Bill Walsh and still lose games because of the poor, poor, piss poor execution of the players. Now Fitchner might suck and need to get canned, but I can't tell because the offensive players are failing to play the game.
schillah and LambertWardSteel like this post
LambertWardSteel
Posts : 1643 Join date : 2015-05-14 Location : Myerstown PA
The bad news is this team has played like a cellar dweller for the past 5 games and only through grit did they win two of them.
The good news is they have the talent to make a Super Bowl push.
The offense has all the talent and are relatively healthy (not sure Ebron's status). The defense has carried the injury bug for the team, yet it's that group that's been keeping them in games for the most part.
Look, sometimes we think too much when considering why our team loses. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I don't think Ben is washed up, the O-line isn't too old, and I don't think Fitchner sucks (although I will get to something I think we'll all agree on later).
The reason the Steelers have looked like trash for the past 5 games is easy, when you think about it. They've been worse than their opponents in the basics of football. Really, football comes down to:
Blocking or beating the blocks (trench warfare) Tackling Throwing Catching Running
Blocking and beating the blocks: Our O-line tends to go backwards on run plays and last night were getting hammered on pass plays. Our D-line was getting driven backwards as well. The Steelers lost trench warfare.
Tackling: Although I think the team generally has done well tackling, they do miss key opportunities to bring the ball carrier down. Some have been costly mistakes.
Throwing: Ben lost the game last night single-handedly. His receivers caught his passes, when he was able to get the ball to them. He has been out-played by the opposing QBs for a few weeks.
Catching: Although the receivers did a much better job catching the ball this week, that was different than the prior 4 games. When Ben was getting them the ball, they dropped too many. Now they catch, and Ben slumps.
Running: I thought Benny Snell ran hard last night. However, the opponents RBs look far better regardless of how their line is blocking. And the receivers just aren't making plays after the catch (Claypool's bubble screen aside).
If there's one thing I would change about this offense it would be developing a run game. I noticed last night was the first time in a while the O-line was getting in a 3 point stance on some run plays (except AV, which I'm not sure why he was the only lineman standing up). Now Fitchner can argue with me on this point, but I'll hold my ground. When the QB is in shotgun, the O-line is in a 2 point stance, and you hand the ball off ... that's a draw. Up until last night, a large majority of the Steelers run plays have been draws. You don't get a push up front on draw plays. On run plays, the linemen need to get their hand in the dirt. In the KC/NO game, the KC O-linemen had their hand in the dirt on every run play and most of those were in shotgun formation. The Steelers did more of that last night and would you believe it? Benny Snell had a respectable 4.7 yards per carry.
As I said, Ben lost that game. I don't think it's his elbow or his age. The deep ball to Claypool was a dime, if only the refs had thrown the flag. But I can tell you how he can fix his issues: show up for practice on Weds ... something he hasn't done all year. When you want to improve something, you work on it, not take extra days off. Get your touch, timing, look and feel for action back and not wait for game day to do it.
The reason I don't blame Fitchner is because last night they were trying to throw downfield and they failed miserably. Yes, there are play calls that I disagree with, but that disagreement almost always comes after the play fails (isn't that funny how it's a great call when it goes for a big play?). Fitchner could become the incarnation of Bill Walsh and still lose games because of the poor, poor, piss poor execution of the players. Now Fitchner might suck and need to get canned, but I can't tell because the offensive players are failing to play the game.
kirklandrules just talked me off the ledge. I still have very little hope, but I had no hope before reading this. Thanks for the post.
_________________
SteelerFreak58
Posts : 2692 Join date : 2015-09-13 Location : Modesto CA
Subject: Re: Week 15: Steelers @ Bengals. Wed Dec 23, 2020 11:35 am
I hope Kirkland is right... I think in 3 weeks he will be back saying he was wrong but his optimism is comendable. We will have to review this in three weeks after the wildcard game to find out...
their genius cheating coach is lacking now that he doesn't have a top QB just like Shanahan when he lost Elway. Reid is the current "genius" head coach but I think he'd quickly regress if Mahomes wasn't playing. 
seriously ? 4 million ? i'd bet the farm he wont be on the roster next year...and his next team wont be paying him anywhere near 4 million a year. he will be lucky to get a 2 year 4 million contract.
