Steelers Move David Johnson to FB Fulltime

Ed: Steelers Move David Johnson to FB Fulltime

Good afternoon,
Steelers just finished their second spring practice and halfback Isaac Redman dropped some news – tight end David Johnson has been moved to fullback on a fulltime basis. He no longer attends meetings with the tight ends and will be part of the running backs meetings.
Redman also said there will be more emphasis put on the running game this season.

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http://plus.sites.post-gazette.com/i...to-fb-fulltime

Shut the Front Door!

Are you telling me the Steelers have returned with a true FB?

stlrtruck wrote:

Shut the Front Door!

Are you telling me the Steelers have returned with a true FB?

It still concerns me that it's not a true fullback, but a converted tight end... and a mediocre one at best. Hopefully now that he's been given strictly fullback duties and not splitting time at tight end we'll see some improvement in him, but I'm not confident DJ is the guy. I hope I'm wrong.

Buddha Bus wrote:

stlrtruck wrote:

Shut the Front Door!

Are you telling me the Steelers have returned with a true FB?

It still concerns me that it's not a true fullback, but a converted tight end... and a mediocre one at best. Hopefully now that he's been given strictly fullback duties and not splitting time at tight end we'll see some improvement in him, but I'm not confident DJ is the guy. I hope I'm wrong.

He wasn't that great of a 'hands' TE, but now all he'll need to do is move bodies which I think he's better at than catching. I think he probably made the change so he could remain on the team - otherwise he'd be gone.

Speaking of gone, are there any true FBs left in the NFL?

Yes, The Raven's Vonta Leach

Buddha Bus wrote:

It still concerns me that it's not a true fullback, but a converted tight end... and a mediocre one at best. Hopefully now that he's been given strictly fullback duties and not splitting time at tight end we'll see some improvement in him, but I'm not confident DJ is the guy. I hope I'm wrong.

I feel the same way you do. I'm not overly optimistic. I guess we should have known something was up when they re-signed him then went out and brought in several more tight ends.

stlrtruck wrote:

Speaking of gone, are there any true FBs left in the NFL?

The hybrid is quite popular, which is something that's been bothering me ...

We all know the NFL has become a passing league. But does that mean the Steelers have to follow the trend? Sure, the defense has to change and adjust to the new-style offenses, especially our defense, which has been geared toward stopping the run. But our offense doesn't have to face other offenses. So what other offenses are doing should have no bearing on what our offense does. Being a smash-mouth team would actually be a huge advantage. As more and more teams structure their defenses to stop the pass, they'd have a difficult time going up against a team that is built to run.

I hope he can block better as a FB than he did as a TE.

Mach1 wrote:

I hope he can block better as a FB than he did as a TE.

Mach1 wrote:

I hope he can block better as a FB than he did as a TE.

Hopefully his skill will improve. If not who's next? Do we even have anyone in camp other than him?

Mach1 wrote:

I hope he can block better as a FB than he did as a TE.

As a TE he was in the open field blocking, now all he has to do is plow in to a pile and blow shite up. If he can't do that then he shouldn't be playing football.

at 6'2" and 260lbs he has the size to blow some people up. now he can get with the RB coach and learn the FB position.

I would like to see what Will Johnson out of WVU can do out of the FB position on tape looks like he can block, run, and catch but that was college and this is the NFL.

With new offensive coordinator Todd Haley kept under media lockout, analysts and fans alike have been making projections as to what the Steelers offense will look like in 2012.

There's a hint or two here and there, but the biggest wrinkle will no doubt be the inclusion of the fullback position once again.

It appears as if David Johnson will assume a dual-role this year, one part blocking back, other in-line protector.



Clearly, this offense is going to be centered around the players standing 5-7 yards behind QB Ben Roethlisberger, instead of just the ones standing 12-15 yards to his left and right.

The decision could have been made in part to help increase the Steelers' running ability, but at the same time, it could be done for positional flexibility. With the signing of TE Leonard Pope this offseason, as well as the four-game suspension to TE Weslye Saunders, the Steelers are in something of an awkward position in terms of the amount of tight ends they'd be willing to keep. With TE Heath Miller joining Johnson and Saunders, Pope's signing would give them four tight ends - or, one more than they'd normally keep in a season.

Converting Johnson to fullback, allows them to dress two other tight ends, and use Johnson at tight end in case of injury.




http://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/2012/5/24/3040494/the-steelers-offense-will-use-a-fullback-once-again

makes sense to me