Steelers seem unconcerned about missing out on inside linebacker in draft

Steelers seem unconcerned about missing out on inside linebacker in draft

by ED BOUCHETTE
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
APR 28, 2018

The Steelers could not or would not draft the inside linebacker they so desperately needed, so they did the next best thing.

They added three big safeties, one or two of whom might help fill the Ryan Shazier void.

to read rest of article:

http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2018/04/28/Steelers-missing-out-on-inside-linebacker-in-draft-Mike-Tomlin-Kevin-Colbert-safeties-Marcus-Allen-Terrell-Edmunds/stories/201804280122

I really wanted Evans or Vander Esch. Wouldn't of minded a guy like Josey Jewell. The jury is still out on Matekavich, and with Bostic there's a reason he's bounced around the league. Definitely would've been nice to add some depth at least. It will be interesting, they're going to have to scheme to fill the void left by Shazier.

I'm also worried about our ability to stop the run. We got scorched by Fournette twice. This defense still has holes. Guess we're gonna see if Edmunds/Allen, Burnett, and Bostic are going to be able to make up for that.

Completely content with where we are after FA and the draft at this point. I think a lot of people will be surprised by Bostic and Burnett. I think Edmunds will provide some help in the dime and may push Davis at FS.

The traditional old school ILB are being phased out because of the way the NFL has made it obvious it is a passing offense oriented league now. Speed and sure tackling is what is needed to help stem that and they now have players that can get it done.

IowaSteeler927 wrote:

I'm also worried about our ability to stop the run. We got scorched by Fournette twice. This defense still has holes. Guess we're gonna see if Edmunds/Allen, Burnett, and Bostic are going to be able to make up for that.

Agreed. From the various player and coaching quotes about the run issues, it sounds very much like it wasn't a personnel or athleticism issue. Sounds like it was a failure to communicate and get the correct calls in prior to the snap. Basically, it was what we all saw ... a sh!t show.

Although the top ILBs were off the board prior to the Steelers 1st round selection, they still had chances to take decent talent at that position in the 2nd and 3rd rounds. I can only guess they are confident in the players they have on the roster and those they drafted to play solid defense that they felt they didn't need to draft a ILB. Can't wait to see what they put on the field come week 1.

Here's a good article that adds some perspective:
http://triblive.com/sports/columnists/timbenz/13589971-74/tim-benz-the-method-behind-the-steelers-draft-madness

From the article concerning the topic of this thread ...

the biggest story of the draft isn't that the Steelers took Ben Roethlisberger's potential replacement (Mason Rudolph). Rather, it's that they have changed their approach to defense.

Don't bother calling them a 3-4 team anymore. Many times throughout the game, only one of those “4” will be someone traditionally classified as an inside linebacker. You often times will see three or four “safeties” flooding the middle of the field at the same time.

But they aren't safeties. They are actually linebackers. Shazier was a linebacker who could do “safety things.” These are safeties who do “linebacker things.”

kirklandrules wrote:

IowaSteeler927 wrote:

I'm also worried about our ability to stop the run. We got scorched by Fournette twice. This defense still has holes. Guess we're gonna see if Edmunds/Allen, Burnett, and Bostic are going to be able to make up for that.

Agreed. From the various player and coaching quotes about the run issues, it sounds very much like it wasn't a personnel or athleticism issue. Sounds like it was a failure to communicate and get the correct calls in prior to the snap. Basically, it was what we all saw ... a sh!t show.

Although the top ILBs were off the board prior to the Steelers 1st round selection, they still had chances to take decent talent at that position in the 2nd and 3rd rounds. I can only guess they are confident in the players they have on the roster and those they drafted to play solid defense that they felt they didn't need to draft a ILB. Can't wait to see what they put on the field come week 1.

i'm not buying that crock of shit. missed tackles, which were aplenty , has nothing to do with communication or the calls. how many times did we see 3 or 4 guys whiff on the same tackle ? piss poor tackling was even an issue when shazier was on the field. guys think throwing their shoulder into a guy should be good enough...fuck the wrapping them up shit. well i seen one knock on edmunds and it was he DOESN'T WRAP UP and just uses his shoulder.

Master_Of_Puppets wrote:

kirklandrules wrote:

IowaSteeler927 wrote:

I'm also worried about our ability to stop the run. We got scorched by Fournette twice. This defense still has holes. Guess we're gonna see if Edmunds/Allen, Burnett, and Bostic are going to be able to make up for that.

Agreed. From the various player and coaching quotes about the run issues, it sounds very much like it wasn't a personnel or athleticism issue. Sounds like it was a failure to communicate and get the correct calls in prior to the snap. Basically, it was what we all saw ... a sh!t show.

Although the top ILBs were off the board prior to the Steelers 1st round selection, they still had chances to take decent talent at that position in the 2nd and 3rd rounds. I can only guess they are confident in the players they have on the roster and those they drafted to play solid defense that they felt they didn't need to draft a ILB. Can't wait to see what they put on the field come week 1.

i'm not buying that crock of shit.   missed tackles, which were aplenty , has nothing to do with communication or the calls. how many times did we see 3 or 4 guys whiff on the same tackle ? piss poor tackling was even an issue when shazier was on the field. guys think throwing their shoulder into a guy should be good enough...fuck the wrapping them up shit. well i seen one knock on edmunds and it was he DOESN'T WRAP UP and just uses his shoulder.

Tackling has definitely been an issue. I'm surprised it doesn't get mentioned more often.

Wallace108 wrote:

Master_Of_Puppets wrote:

kirklandrules wrote:

IowaSteeler927 wrote:

I'm also worried about our ability to stop the run. We got scorched by Fournette twice. This defense still has holes. Guess we're gonna see if Edmunds/Allen, Burnett, and Bostic are going to be able to make up for that.

Agreed. From the various player and coaching quotes about the run issues, it sounds very much like it wasn't a personnel or athleticism issue. Sounds like it was a failure to communicate and get the correct calls in prior to the snap. Basically, it was what we all saw ... a sh!t show.

Although the top ILBs were off the board prior to the Steelers 1st round selection, they still had chances to take decent talent at that position in the 2nd and 3rd rounds. I can only guess they are confident in the players they have on the roster and those they drafted to play solid defense that they felt they didn't need to draft a ILB. Can't wait to see what they put on the field come week 1.

i'm not buying that crock of shit.   missed tackles, which were aplenty , has nothing to do with communication or the calls. how many times did we see 3 or 4 guys whiff on the same tackle ? piss poor tackling was even an issue when shazier was on the field. guys think throwing their shoulder into a guy should be good enough...fuck the wrapping them up shit. well i seen one knock on edmunds and it was he DOESN'T WRAP UP and just uses his shoulder.

Tackling has definitely been an issue. I'm surprised it doesn't get mentioned more often.

Every game I get to watch it gets mentioned. Trust me I mention it often. After Shazier went down it got even worse. Even though he had a habit of over pursuing he made a lot of tackles. Edmunds seems smart enough to learn better technique and Allen is a sure tackler. Bostic should be better than Williams. Like it or not I'm pretty sure we will be seeing a hybrid defense this year.

solardave wrote:

Wallace108 wrote:

Master_Of_Puppets wrote:

kirklandrules wrote:

IowaSteeler927 wrote:

I'm also worried about our ability to stop the run. We got scorched by Fournette twice. This defense still has holes. Guess we're gonna see if Edmunds/Allen, Burnett, and Bostic are going to be able to make up for that.

Agreed. From the various player and coaching quotes about the run issues, it sounds very much like it wasn't a personnel or athleticism issue. Sounds like it was a failure to communicate and get the correct calls in prior to the snap. Basically, it was what we all saw ... a sh!t show.

Although the top ILBs were off the board prior to the Steelers 1st round selection, they still had chances to take decent talent at that position in the 2nd and 3rd rounds. I can only guess they are confident in the players they have on the roster and those they drafted to play solid defense that they felt they didn't need to draft a ILB. Can't wait to see what they put on the field come week 1.

i'm not buying that crock of shit.   missed tackles, which were aplenty , has nothing to do with communication or the calls. how many times did we see 3 or 4 guys whiff on the same tackle ? piss poor tackling was even an issue when shazier was on the field. guys think throwing their shoulder into a guy should be good enough...fuck the wrapping them up shit. well i seen one knock on edmunds and it was he DOESN'T WRAP UP and just uses his shoulder.

Tackling has definitely been an issue. I'm surprised it doesn't get mentioned more often.

Every game I get to watch it gets mentioned. Trust me I mention it often. After Shazier went down it got even worse. Even though he had a habit of over pursuing he made a lot of tackles. Edmunds seems smart enough to learn better technique and Allen is a sure tackler. Bostic should be better than Williams. Like it or not I'm pretty sure we will be seeing a hybrid defense this year.

This goes back to what Colbert said on his end of season interview with the local radio station. The traditional 3-4 (or even 4-3) was being redefined league wide. His own words were it's all about subpackage football now. The nickel is your new base, and you sub in and out in obvious run / pass downs. If you can't sub, the person in there should be able to accommodate you need without too much drop off.

Interesting enough, that was how the Philly defense was described this year. Everyone could do everything good, but no one could do anything great.

solardave wrote:

Every game I get to watch it gets mentioned. Trust me I mention it often.

Yeah, we've talked about it here a lot, especially on game days. I was referring to the "experts" and talking heads. I always hear criticism of the secondary and inability to stop the run, and the focus seems to always be on schemes or lack of talent. I rarely hear them bringing up the poor tackling.

This is unrelated, but I found it intriguing ...

The funny thing is if the Steelers draft went in this order
1. Rudolph
2. Washington
3. Edmunds
3. Allen
5. Chucks
5. Samuels
7. Frazier
All these draft media would love it.

— James Alexander (@jameshall616) April 30, 2018

Wallace108 wrote:

Here's a good article that adds some perspective:
http://triblive.com/sports/columnists/timbenz/13589971-74/tim-benz-the-method-behind-the-steelers-draft-madness

From the article concerning the topic of this thread ...

the biggest story of the draft isn't that the Steelers took Ben Roethlisberger's potential replacement (Mason Rudolph). Rather, it's that they have changed their approach to defense.

Don't bother calling them a 3-4 team anymore. Many times throughout the game, only one of those “4” will be someone traditionally classified as an inside linebacker. You often times will see three or four “safeties” flooding the middle of the field at the same time.

But they aren't safeties. They are actually linebackers. Shazier was a linebacker who could do “safety things.” These are safeties who do “linebacker things.”

this is what I've been posting the Steelers picked up Burnett were drafting Edmund and Allen for the 2 down line men package.

Tim Benz: The Steelers' "Safety" first defense

TIM BENZ | Monday, April 30, 2018

If you are like me, you've heard it 100 times since the NFL Draft ended.

"What are the Steelers gonna do on defense? They didn't even get a linebacker to fill Ryan Shazier's spot!"

No. No, they didn't.

to read rest of article:

http://triblive.com/sports/steelers/13598525-74/tim-benz-the-steelers-safety-first-defense

atown jason: Do you think we may see more Hargrave during 2nd and med going to a 3-3-5 instead of their normal 4-2-5? to help against run and makeup for lack of depth at LB

Ed Bouchette: I think you are more likely to see more 4-1-6

http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2018/05/01/ed-bouchette-chat-steelers-5-1-2018/stories/201805010099

^^^

this draft defensive draft wise the so called 2 down linemen was about drafting SS to be OLBers. it is really a Steelers 4-3 that started in the 70s Tony Dungy tweak in Tampa now Tomlin is tweaking it with pass coverage SS as OLBer better in pass coverage but strong enough against the run. in this defense Tomlin trying to get as many defensive backs on the field against pass but strong enough to stop the run. in the defense the 3 run stoppers are a triangle in the middle the outside is run blitzers or pass coverage.

Steelers rookie linebacker Matthew Thomas went undrafted. But he's not lacking in confidence

RAY FITTIPALDO
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
MAY 11, 2018

The Steelers raised a few eyebrows when they did not draft an inside linebacker, their biggest area of need after losing Pro Bowler Ryan Shazier to injury. But the Steelers did sign an intriguing undrafted free agent at the position, and he’s someone who will have an opportunity to make the roster this summer.

Former Florida State linebacker Matthew Thomas is one of 13 undrafted free agents the Steelers signed after the draft. He comes to the Steelers with a resume filled with high levels of production for one of the top teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference, but he also carries some off-the-field baggage, including some early suspensions and injuries that led to him being bypassed in the draft.

to read rest of article:

http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2018/05/11/Steelers-Matthew-Thomas-Jonathan-Bostic-Vince-Williams-inside-linebacker-NFL-draft/stories/201805110138

Hawaii 5-0 wrote:

Steelers rookie linebacker Matthew Thomas went undrafted. But he's not lacking in confidence
 
RAY FITTIPALDO
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
MAY 11, 2018

The Steelers raised a few eyebrows when they did not draft an inside linebacker, their biggest area of need after losing Pro Bowler Ryan Shazier to injury. But the Steelers did sign an intriguing undrafted free agent at the position, and he’s someone who will have an opportunity to make the roster this summer.

Former Florida State linebacker Matthew Thomas is one of 13 undrafted free agents the Steelers signed after the draft. He comes to the Steelers with a resume filled with high levels of production for one of the top teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference, but he also carries some off-the-field baggage, including some early suspensions and injuries that led to him being bypassed in the draft.

to read rest of article:

http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2018/05/11/Steelers-Matthew-Thomas-Jonathan-Bostic-Vince-Williams-inside-linebacker-NFL-draft/stories/201805110138

Looking forward to keeping an eye on this young man. He has all the stats and ability if he can focus on football and avoid off field issues I am hoping he pans out and we can’t turn him into something special. 4.5 40 and has a good instinct to get to the ball and make the tackles.

Come on August let’s get this season going!

Fallen 5-Star Linebacker Realizes Steelers Are Final Chance

By JIM WEXELL

PITTSBURGH -- Mike Tomlin found his way over to No. 46 gold in the far corner of the first stretch of rookie minicamp, and the coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers started a stream of small talk that had to impress the kid -- an inside linebacker.

An undrafted inside linebacker.

An unknown inside linebacker.

But obviously not to Tomlin.

to read rest of article:

https://247sports.com/nfl/pittsburgh-steelers/Article/Fallen-5-Star-Linebacker-Realizes-Steelers-Are-Final-Chance-118159967

Stay away from the clubs kid and learn the playbook you could be a steal and one hell of a story if you can stay out of trouble!

SteelerFreak58 wrote:

Stay away from the clubs kid and learn the playbook you could be a steal and one hell of a story if you can stay out of trouble!

he was suspended for 6 games for violating team rules. i couldn't find anything that mentioned he had any legal problems. for all we know he could have just missed a team meeting or something ?

Master_Of_Puppets wrote:

SteelerFreak58 wrote:

Stay away from the clubs kid and learn the playbook you could be a steal and one hell of a story if you can stay out of trouble!

he was suspended for 6 games for violating team rules. i couldn't find anything that mentioned he had any legal problems. for all we know he could have just missed a team meeting or something ?

Read an article he was cited for public intoxication his Junior year. The charges were later dropped but it caused teams some concerns.

The ceiling is high. Let's hope he isn't. If he gets his head on straight we have a winner and if he doesn't he's the one that blows what could be his last chance. I mean if we cut him I'm sure Marvin would pick him up as a drinking buddy for Pacman. Burfict could teach him the art of the dirty play.

Does he have a F'ed in the head girlfriend? if not he was a good chance.

Tim Benz: Steelers have revamped views of defense before

TIM BENZ | Monday, May 14, 2018

It seems like just yesterday.

Until you realize it was 25 years ago, and we are all getting really old if we can remember it clearly.

But back in the early 90s, the Steelers pioneered the movement of signing and drafting players as outside linebackers in their 3-4 defensive scheme who were previously ends in a 4-3 scheme.

Kevin Greene was one in free agency. Jason Gildon and Joey Porter were two in the draft.

Largely, the job is the same. The title of the occupation is just different. As a 4-3 end or a 3-4 outside linebacker you go get the other team's quarterback.

So is what the Steelers are doing now with their safety-stocked defense really all that different?

to read rest of article:

http://triblive.com/sports/columnists/timbenz/13647569-74/tim-benz-steelers-have-revamped-views-of-defense-before

remember how great Cowhers defenses were at stopping the run and sacking the QB? yes it was a great until the league figured out its weakness they spread it out and got the ball out of the QB's hand quicker those run stuffing and QB sacking 3-4 OLB'ers were not as good in pass coverage.

now lets change those 3-4 OLBers into stand up DEs and replace them with in the box safeties to play OLBers position take the traditional SS and replace him with a CB the LB and DB positions just got a lot faster better against the pass, and didn't give up much against the run. your new base defense.

Ray Fittipaldo's Steelers chat transcript: 5.21.18

Brian: Will the Steelers keep cap space open for a late ILB free agent signing from training camp or is the team set to move forward with what they have now on the roster ?

Ray Fittipaldo: I think they'll keep their eyes open for any players that might be able to help them. But I don't sense they feel completely uncomfortable with their roster as they start OTAs. Maybe they make a move before training camp or after final cut-downs, but they seem to like Tyler Matakevich as a top reserve. If he's healthy it might not be an issue, but he is coming off shoulder surgery and shoulders sometimes can be tricky.

http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2018/05/21/Ray-Fittipaldo-Steelers-chat-5-21-18/stories/201805210085