Kovacevic: Give Dwyer the ball, already

Emmanuel Sanders bolted off the Steelers’ line on a run-blocking assignment, and he had a pretty good clue that his role in the play might be pivotal when not one but two Redskins converged upon him from opposite sides.

A Manny sandwich, if you will.

“I just wanted to get a little push, maybe just get out of there,” the wispy wide receiver would recall later with a laugh.

What Sanders didn’t fully grasp was why those defenders were bearing down on him.

Nor why a third party suddenly slammed him from behind.

Then he got it.

“That’s Jonathan Dwyer, man. That’s what he does. No one’s going to stop him. I know I’m not going to stop him.”

It’s hard to imagine who could right now, other than Mike Tomlin. But I just can’t see that happening.

Not when Dwyer pinballed off Sanders on that third-quarter play for a 10-yard gain that brought an enthusiastic huzzah from Tomlin on the sideline.

Not when Dwyer would pile up 107 yards on 17 carries.

Not when he had 122 the week before in Cincinnati — including an astounding 114 after contact — and his back-to-back 100-yard outputs are the Steelers’ first since Willie Parker in September 2008.

Not when he’s averaging an absurd 5.16 yards per carry.

Not when he’s got three 100-yard games despite just 83 career carries.

Not when, each of the past two weeks, he’s given the team his biggest runs in the fourth quarter to help protect leads.

Not when …

Well, you get the idea.

With all due respect to Rashard Mendenhall, who made a 74-yard return from knee surgery two weeks ago and is still only 25, Dwyer’s got to be the starter.

Only one technicality remains: Tomlin cited Dwyer in his postgame injury report as having a strained right quad. And even though Dwyer shrugged it off — “I’m fine,” he said — the coach clung to that when asked if Dwyer has earned being named the starter.

e_SDLqHe’s answered the call and taken advantage of the opportunity, and that’s what we expect from all our young people,” Tomlin replied. “He did the job today but, obviously, I read his name here on the list of injuries, so I’m not going to speak too soon on that. We’ll check the health of all the people involved.”

Pressed further for an answer, Tomlin came back, “I’ll see what they look like next week. You’re not getting it today.”

That’s fair, especially given that Mendenhall and Isaac Redman are banged up. But at the soonest clean bill for Dwyer, which presumably will come well before the trip to face the New York Giants next week, he’s got to be the man.

For now, anyway.

It’s too soon to go overboard. Dwyer, 23, lasted until the sixth round out of Georgia Tech, and I’d like to think the Steelers’ coaches knew what they were doing in barely using him his first two seasons in the NFL.

But it’s not too soon to applaud what Dwyer’s done of late. Not just for his own standing but also the Steelers’. They were flagging along at 2-3, flailing for answers in all facets until these past two games. And I dare say he’s been primarily responsible for picking them up when it was needed the most.

Listen to the locker room, and it’s easy to tell they believe in the kid.

“Jonathan’s running is something we’ve fed off, no question,” left tackle Max Starks said. “You can tell he’s getting more comfortable with us, he’s reading off the linebackers, and he’s getting through. We’re learning how to work off him, too.”

“He just runs hard,” quarterback Ben Roethlisberger said. “He runs with a passion, and he’s fun to watch.”

Dwyer, as soft-spoken as they come, wasn’t about to boast.

For one, he was humbled — maybe humiliated — when Tomlin was so angry over a fumble in Oakland that he wrote Dwyer’s name on the locker room chalkboard to announce he wouldn’t be playing the following week.

For another, if you think seeing him run like a mini-Bus has been jarring, you should have seen his face upon being ushered for the first time into Heinz Field’s news conference room, a place generally reserved for Tomlin and the biggest stars.

Has anyone ever made a faster move from inactive list to interview room?

Better question: Does Dwyer think he deserves to start?

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Give him the damn ball. Mendy's days are becoming numbered here if JD keeps this up.

The offensive line blocked better BY FAR in the last two games than they did all season, and for most of Mendenhall's career. In no way has Dwyer earned outright the starting position. Mendenhall needs to be afforded the opportunity to defend his position. There's no question that this offense would be better with Mendenhall at the height of his capabilities than with Dwyer as the height of his, so let's see of Mendenhall can do that.

Dodens Grav wrote:

The offensive line blocked better BY FAR in the last two games than they did all season, and for most of Mendenhall's career. In no way has Dwyer earned outright the starting position. Mendenhall needs to be afforded the opportunity to defend his position. There's no question that this offense would be better with Mendenhall at the height of his capabilities than with Dwyer as the height of his, so let's see of Mendenhall can do that.

Listen...i'm not going to accept the offensive line excuse. Dwyer played better, and with more consistency in the last two games, than any Steeler back has since Parker. I believe Mendenhall deserves the right to defend his position, and he will GET that chance. Make no mistake, Mendenhall is the starting back of this team. But he comes back and runs for 100 yards, only to drop off in production in following games, bench him. We need a consistent running game, and Dwyer has ran for 100 yards in back to back games. Mendenhall needs to step it up.

Edit: I'm not denying the offensive line has improved, by the way. I think it's been an improvement all year, and got better with Adams on it.

Dodens Grav wrote:

The offensive line blocked better BY FAR in the last two games than they did all season, and for most of Mendenhall's career. In no way has Dwyer earned outright the starting position. Mendenhall needs to be afforded the opportunity to defend his position. There's no question that this offense would be better with Mendenhall at the height of his capabilities than with Dwyer as the height of his, so let's see of Mendenhall can do that.

IMO, this might be because Dwyer is hitting the holes quickly, not dancing and skatting through before it can close. Mendy likes to dance and twist and turn. Redman is a tough runner, but he still just seems better equipped to run outside.

Dwyer and Redman would make a great 1-2 RB committee. Dwyer to punish, Redman to make them wish they did more cardio.

i've heard alot of talk around the water cooler this morning regarding the future of Jonathon Dwyer and Rashard Mendenhall. now noone is more excited than DTC about having a back to back 100 yd rushing performance for the first time since Fast Willie Parker back in 2008, but make no mistake about it, Dwyer has not yet earned the full time starting job at RB. if you ask me, Mendy still gets the nod when he is 100% healthy. 34's seat is heating up though. Lets not forget who we played yesterday. Its not like the Redskins are the cream of the nfl crop.

Its definitley a positive and Dwyer has the job FOR NOW. i said it all last week, consistency is the goal. let's see how he does against the feared front four of the G-Men. they're pretty good last time i checked.

and by the way, Mike Adams is a pretty good run blocking RT. do we take this time to finally make the move with Marcus Gilbert to the left side?

What I like about Dwyer is he hits the hole faster then Mendy. Mendy likes to dance to much before making his move. Healthy or not I say we have to start Dwyer this week .

i think he's earned the right to start next week even if Red and Mendy are good to go

ride the hot hand with 27. agree that he hits the hole quicker than mendy.

Dodens Grav wrote:

The offensive line blocked better BY FAR in the last two games than they did all season, and for most of Mendenhall's career. In no way has Dwyer earned outright the starting position. Mendenhall needs to be afforded the opportunity to defend his position. There's no question that this offense would be better with Mendenhall at the height of his capabilities than with Dwyer as the height of his, so let's see of Mendenhall can do that.

he can run over you, through you, around you and defenitily hits the hole a lot faster than Mendy does imo

Quote :

— including an astounding 114 after contact —

Dwyer has:

- a new offense that is better for the run
- a better offensive line
- a fullback

And he's had 2 games. You don't have consistency with two games. I didn't see him get in the endzone in either of those games either. Mendenhall gets in the endzone, and he's proven over a full season with a shit offensive line. He has not been unleashed yet. If he gets his opportunity in this offense with this offensive line, you will forget about Dwyer.

Dodens Grav wrote:

Dwyer has:

- a new offense that is better for the run
- a better offensive line
- a fullback

And he's had 2 games. You don't have consistency with two games. I didn't see him get in the endzone in either of those games either. Mendenhall gets in the endzone, and he's proven over a full season with a shit offensive line. He has not been unleashed yet. If he gets his opportunity in this offense with this offensive line, you will forget about Dwyer.

The same can be said for Mendy as well he has not had consistency either. Go back to last year he was hit or miss and yes you can say that Dwyer has a better line but the point is he hits the holes faster how many times have you seen Dwyer get throwed for a 5 yard loss.

Galax Steeler wrote:

Dodens Grav wrote:

Dwyer has:

- a new offense that is better for the run
- a better offensive line
- a fullback

And he's had 2 games. You don't have consistency with two games. I didn't see him get in the endzone in either of those games either. Mendenhall gets in the endzone, and he's proven over a full season with a shit offensive line. He has not been unleashed yet. If he gets his opportunity in this offense with this offensive line, you will forget about Dwyer.

The same can be said for Mendy as well he has not had consistency either. Go back to last year he was hit or miss and yes you can say that Dwyer has a better line but the point is he hits the holes faster how many times have you seen Dwyer get throwed for a 5 yard loss.

If Dwyer keeps on pace Mendy should be job scared. Tough game ahead of us this week. I hope they pull it all together!

I must disagree to start over a healthy Mendy. Mendy always hit his holes. There just weren't many holes in an Arians offense. Mendy's burst of speed through the hole is something Dwyer just does not have. Dwyer has gotten caught by behind, but Mendy beats that and gets the TD (assuming he doesn't drop the ball, that is). I look forward to having both healthy at the same time. I can't imagine how defenses will be able to handle it.

I do not agree he hits the hole quicker than Mendy. I don't even think he sees the hole or can cut into the hole as quickly as Mendy. I saw him miss a couple of holes during that game just as well. The problem with Mendy is that we mostly saw him play in an Arians offense that didn't HAVE a hole to begin with. When Mendy turns on the jets, he is hard to catch. Dwyer doesn't have anywhere near that kind of speed. I just want to see them both healthy. I fully expect to see Mendy in one drive and Dwyer in the next; like the old days with Parker and Bettis.

BornaSteelersfan wrote:

I do not agree he hits the hole quicker than Mendy. I don't even think he sees the hole or can cut into the hole as quickly as Mendy. I saw him miss a couple of holes during that game just as well. The problem with Mendy is that we mostly saw him play in an Arians offense that didn't HAVE a hole to begin with. When Mendy turns on the jets, he is hard to catch. Dwyer doesn't have anywhere near that kind of speed. I just want to see them both healthy. I fully expect to see Mendy in one drive and Dwyer in the next; like the old days with Parker and Bettis.

I agree somewhat but my point is Dwyer does not dance around when he gets the ball. I have seen over and over Mendy getting caught behind the line because he dances around looking for a hole. If I am not mistaking Dwyer is second in yards after contact he is tough to bring down. Don't get me wrong I am not throwing Mendy out by no means but right now Dwyer is riding the hot hand.

When Mendenhall first returned, he was hitting the hole faster than I've EVER seen him in the past. Second game back --- it's more of the same. Hesitant and ineffective, and ultimately injured and bitching at fans on twitter. Dwyer has ran for 100-yards twice in two games, and that's the kind of consistency we haven't seen since Parker, even if it IS only TWO games.

I'm not ready to pencil Dwyer in as the starter, but he's helping the team more than anyone else at this point.

I'm not saying Dwyer has earned the starting job yet, but the team needs to get a look at him now before they decide Mendenhall's future with the team. What better time than now while Mendy is hurting? Dwyer has proven he can go, but they need to see if he is starting material or a bit player.

I agree Mendenhall needs to get his chances as well to prove he's worth re-signing. He looked good in his first game back, but disappeared in the second. If he can't stay healthy, he won't be of any use to us as a starter going forward. He needs to get fully healthy and then pull out all the stops to either solidify himself as a starter with this team or force them to look elsewhere for the answer. It will be in Mendenhall's hands to decide his fate through his on-field performance.

I think they also need to see what our O-line and Dwyer can do against a much tougher defense with the NY Giants.

stlrtruck wrote:

I think they also need to see what our O-line and Dwyer can do against a much tougher defense with the NY Giants.

That will be a real test.