July 30, 2026 • 44 mins
King and Starks dissect comments made from Coach McCarthy and the team's approach heading into camp and the upcoming season.
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
This is live coverage of the twenty twenty six Steelers
training camp on the Steelers Audio Network, presented by bud Light,
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(00:22):
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(00:42):
Union Number three. We don't go to the office, We
build it.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
And thank you very much for being with us in
the locker room here on the Steelers Audio Network alongside
Max Starks. I'm rob king fields. You're getting cleaned up.
And they did a great job.
Speaker 3 (00:59):
Hey now, because that's today right, you can't even tell
it's there.
Speaker 2 (01:02):
No, they did a great job patching up the field,
their beautiful fields here at Saint Vincent College. Another good
crowd in attendance, you know, cheering, you know, Will Howard
made a great throw up to see him and everybody
you know, jumped up and cheered.
Speaker 4 (01:15):
It was fun stuff, exciting stuff. We looked for.
Speaker 3 (01:19):
We looked for the big moments, right yeah, and our
fans are definitely very in tuned and ready for those.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
Uh. Aaron Rodgers through a long ball and a sprawling
attempt up the left sideline into the end zone for
Roman Wilson did not.
Speaker 4 (01:32):
Hang on Roman Wilson. Gotta get that.
Speaker 3 (01:34):
Gotta get when we talk about, hey, there's moments where
we're putting trust in you.
Speaker 4 (01:38):
That's one. He had the one on one. It was
cover three and he.
Speaker 3 (01:42):
Had a step on the dB and then he brought
the ball, hauled it in but did not survive the ground.
Speaker 2 (01:48):
So Riley, now Atkowskin, I'm bringing him up only because
it was evident they were doing a special teams drill
and he jumped and he turned around and ran off
and he knew he was done. So is that has
that been standard in with all the coaches or is
that is that one of those little stickler attention to
details thing. That's that's that Mike McCarthy's on.
Speaker 4 (02:09):
That's that standard issue?
Speaker 3 (02:10):
Okay, Yeah, yeah, especially a special teams like like your
margin era is less than zero. Right, So if you
do that and you were gonna have Danny in your
ear chewing twenty seven pieces of of double bubble yelling
at you the entire time, they were going to replace
the guy in the drill. So this is just kind
of more modus operandi, especially like if you mess up
once boom, you're gone, next guy up and you just
(02:31):
move forward. But I think for Mike McCarthy, this is
part of that detail oriented nature yep, like you should
know that you messed up and that you're out of
the drill.
Speaker 4 (02:40):
I shouldn't have to tell you. Yeah, turn jock off.
Speaker 5 (02:44):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (02:44):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
By the way, less than zero maybe my favorite Elvis
cuss tell As song. Yeah, great song. So anyway, we
were talking about Mike McCarthy. So one of the things
that was brought up at the press conference this morning was, okay,
so how do you make sure in a physical game
your guys are physically ready when you're not And again physical,
(03:09):
it's not contact sport, max.
Speaker 4 (03:10):
It is a.
Speaker 2 (03:11):
Colligious exactly, So how do you make sure they're ready
for those collisions? And Mike McCarthy said, look, we just
don't bring guys to the ground there's there's some hitting
going on out there. In fact, you know, tackling and breaking,
breaking tackles is one of our Steelers six.
Speaker 4 (03:29):
And so somebody was like, okay, so what are the
Steeler six? What are the other parts to that six?
Speaker 2 (03:35):
So here here is Mike McCarthy's answer to that question
this morning at the press conference.
Speaker 5 (03:40):
Primary fundamental. We call it the Steeler six. You know,
we have six fundamentals Steeler football of emphasized. Obviously, tackling
and breaking tackles is one of those six. So those
six fundamentals are emphasized daily. We have a period just
fourteen fundamentals to emphasize that. So, you know, doing it
(04:00):
for a long time, I have great confidence and frankly,
evaluating the team last year, you know, I think that's
definitely I would say, is an asset, you know, moving forward.
So it is a veteran team. But we have preseason
games too, you know, so that's that's always part of it.
Who plays the preseason who doesn't, So I mean all
those things are discussed and I think that's why I'll
(04:22):
continue to say there's a systematic approach to everything we do.
You know, we have a plan. But the plan has
proactive adjustice that it gives us in a systematic mindset.
Speaker 4 (04:31):
You share the other five? Do you share?
Speaker 2 (04:33):
The other five have.
Speaker 5 (04:34):
Ball security, obviously taking care of it, extracting it. Ball
security is number one. Blocking, obviously, sustaining break you know,
obviously getting off blocks, already hit, tackling about big plays
as a fundamentals. You can't win in the National Football
League without big playsers, you know, each game. If you
look at the league average average is about thirty six
a game. So, uh so you get you got it.
(04:54):
You gotta emphasize it. The finish, the pursuit and finish
is clearly a big part of that too. But and
one that we you know, spend a lot of time in,
particularly because the way we have to train more than
everyone else seas and is the mannerisms. Mannerisms in disguise
is a big part of pro football. I think it's
particularly coming from the quarterback position. You know my history,
(05:15):
you spend time there. But you know, the games evolved
that way. We're both sides of the of the ball
are doing it a lot more here and seeing it
more on special teams. So those are the six you know,
fundamentals of stair the football.
Speaker 4 (05:29):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (05:30):
You know, uh, this is clearly stuff that he's thought out.
It's clearly a philosophy that he wants to bring to
the team. You know, one of the things that a
lot of people have talked about observers around the team
is the attention to detail that Mike McCarthy has in
his approach to football and expect from his team as well.
Speaker 3 (05:53):
And I think this is, like you said, it goes
with what I'm I'm coining as the academic approach to football.
Speaker 4 (05:58):
Right.
Speaker 3 (05:58):
This is football through two of to football three oh three.
This is upper level football if you're taking the class right.
And this is one of those things where you see
the Steelers six, it's like it's like a poster board
the teachers.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
Absolutely.
Speaker 4 (06:10):
I wonder if it's gonna be off.
Speaker 3 (06:12):
I think it's probably up in the team room, maybe
not in the locker room, but I think it's definitely
something that I'll go investigate further. But you have to
believe if you're calling it the Steelers six, like all
those things have to be. And you know, we had
a similar thing where we had kind of five points
of emphasis every week on offensive side of the football
that Bruce Arians introduced. You know, you had to have
(06:34):
you know, penalty free. You had to be at least
ten exposive plays a game. You have to also pre
snap you know, no pre snap penalties. We kind of
had these different areas. You had to hit running backs,
you know, have to be an efficiency. Offensive line has
to have you know, the least amount of ems, and
you kind of and win the time of possession. Like
(06:55):
there was these tenants that he had and so to
have this and kind of this be a team ethos.
I think it's something that's probably gonna be up and
it all makes sense. I mean, they're all tangible things
and things. When you put them in writing, it makes
it easier to know if you're above or below the line.
Speaker 4 (07:10):
Right, So, did you do your job or not?
Speaker 2 (07:12):
One of the things that I so, I was sitting
next to Brooke prior at the press conference this morning,
and when it was done, I said, Brooke, did he
say three to six big plays or did he say
thirty six big plays? And then I asked Jerry do
Lak Brooks said, I don't know. I wasn't sure because
(07:32):
I wasn't sure. And then I was talking about it
with Jerry, Well, three to six seem too little and
thirty six seem too big. But again the other thing
is what do you define as a big play? Do
you define it as a run of ten or more yards,
a catch of twenty more yards is or different ways
to define it. So in that one, I was listening
very carefully to hear it back again. Thirty six big
plays a game. So he knows the number that means.
Speaker 4 (07:55):
Plays a game.
Speaker 3 (07:56):
What happened, and that's and he has to remember that
is offense, defense, and special teams. Right, So you're splitting
up between so and just I said our goal on
offense from week to week, where Bruce Herrins was ten.
So you know you think about that if you're breaking
it up into three different segments twelve apiece, right, that
you have to be able to create. And I think
(08:17):
the exposive players might be fifteen yards of more in
a reception, right, so ten yard run, fifteen yard reception,
then probably a sack, strip fumble, big explosive play on
the return game, or a big or a big stop
you know on the coverage game.
Speaker 4 (08:32):
Yeah, how do you define big play exactly?
Speaker 3 (08:36):
So, yeah, that would be one that I had that,
and Mike pursuit and I actually talked about it because
he had to say that. He's like, now he said
three to six. I'm like, well, we weren't really get
I said thirty six. Yeah, it just goes to show.
And I was like, in a game between and you say, also,
that's three segments, but then there's the other team, right,
So to get thirty six between two teams and essentially
(08:57):
six segments of football is not that much. Right when
you break it into that, you know six times six
is thirty six. So you're saying if each team has
thirty or twenty, you know it, I'm sorry, eighteen apiece, right,
and the split between three segments, like, that's not that big.
But you want to win the battle of thirty six, right.
You want to be on the positive side. You want
to be at nineteen to twenty, and the other teams
(09:18):
at sixteen are below.
Speaker 2 (09:19):
So if you get ten on offense, they get ten
on offense. That's twenty even less snaps on special teams.
Let's say it's two each on special teams. Now you're
twenty four. Now it means each team gets six on defense.
So you're right again, how you.
Speaker 3 (09:33):
Define the past defense could probably be in that how
do you define sack a tackle for loss?
Speaker 4 (09:37):
Like? So, I think it would be good if somebody follows.
Speaker 3 (09:41):
Up and asks what exactly a you're determining as a
big play, because I think that also helps make that
thirty six look more conceivable.
Speaker 4 (09:48):
Right, I'm fascinated to know that. Yeah, fascinatings.
Speaker 3 (09:51):
I would love to ask him, but I'm not in
the press conference because'm getting ready for.
Speaker 4 (09:54):
You're up here there.
Speaker 3 (09:55):
That's right, you're up there and I'm down there, and
it's trusting. I'm trusting you, Robb to raise your hand
and talked to Mike McCarthy.
Speaker 2 (10:01):
But it is and look, I'm sure there's no question
Mike Tomlin had attention to detail. It's just we are
and again, like you said, we are used to the tomlinisms.
You know, I was talking to somebody on the baseball
side of my job and talking about we're talking about it,
you know one of our our analyst kids, and you
(10:22):
know how aggressive he was playing football, And I said, well,
Mike Tomlin always said I'd rather say woe than sick
of them. Yeah, no, you know so, so so that's
a good. So we have all these things we've heard
from Mike tom and we heard him for two decades
of Mike Tomlin talking about things, and his philosophy on
football shown through in some of those things.
Speaker 4 (10:41):
This is a very uh, this is.
Speaker 2 (10:43):
A a different way of presenting it. You know, it's
still football, right, and we'll see still see how it's
manifested out there. But it's exciting just to hear it
in a different way because look, I always was excited
to hear Mike I would talk because he had he
was an interesting guy the way he phrased things. Had
(11:04):
he had and talked about.
Speaker 4 (11:05):
PhD and wordsmanship. Yeah, that's right. That's so. It's like
we're essentially listened to we've listened to a professor for.
Speaker 3 (11:12):
Nineteen years, right, preach theory, philosophy and kind of broad
abstract culture. Whereas now you have a teacher, right that's
giving it to you directly as it is. There's no
room for interpretation this this I'm talking plainly to you.
However you digest this is what it means at the
end of the day.
Speaker 4 (11:29):
My word ends all.
Speaker 3 (11:31):
So you're getting teacher versus professor, practical application knowledge versus
theoretical and you had to figure out the application. That's
what I look at it as is coming from a
family of teachers.
Speaker 4 (11:40):
Yeah, it's a really good analogy.
Speaker 2 (11:43):
And you know, the other thing is that like much
like we're discussing, it's it's very funny because you know,
I'm looking at the Rogers Center now from out of
our window, and Max was directly behind me up on
the set on the top of the hill with Mike Pursuda.
The whole thirty six or three to six, that conversation
was going on in both those places. Well, one of
the things that you know, I normally sit right next
(12:05):
to Bob Labriola, and there are people in the press
box here that are being entertained at here at Saint
Vincent College, and so today there wasn't anybody up there,
so that allowed me to spread out my notes. I
was going to take some notes, and I was going
to jot these things down, and I'm like, this practice.
Speaker 4 (12:22):
Is happening way too fast.
Speaker 2 (12:24):
I can't I'm I'm jotting something down and I'm looking
up and I'm missing something. And I'm not the only
one who said that. Other reporters have said the exact
same thing.
Speaker 3 (12:35):
Dulac Jerry because they're all asking each other, well, hey,
who did this? Is always like I have to have
a spotter, and you got to work in tandem as
a group, Like somebody has to be constant, that's right,
The other ones have to be constant note takers.
Speaker 2 (12:46):
Yeah, it is happening. These things happen really really fast
out there. So again it's just did they happen faster
than I'm like Tom Win? Sure, but just that extra
ten seconds here, you know, five second zer between plays
in between drills. It's just a different pace. Yeah, to
practice out here, they're shorter.
Speaker 4 (13:07):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (13:07):
And they're shorter practices too, so it's like so everything
is like come packed it in. So it's like almost
like you have to pick your poison, right, Am I
gonna watch the entire practice and try and remember in
my head? Or am I gonna try and write everything
down and I'm probably gonna miss two to three items
per per time that I put my eyes down on
the pad.
Speaker 2 (13:25):
So I'm reminded of you know, and again they're both football, right,
and they're both uh you know, great coaches who won
Super Bowls and had success. It reminds me of remember
the group of the Ramones, the punk group.
Speaker 4 (13:38):
Oh yeah, you know a lot. You know a lot
of quick little songs.
Speaker 2 (13:42):
And somebody plain to their drummer they said, hey, you
guys don't have any long songs. Guys said, oh no,
we have lots of long songs. We're just playing really
really fast.
Speaker 4 (13:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (13:50):
So that's kind of what we're seeing here in practically
just two different ways of going about things, so plenty
more to get to. We want to dive more into
the Mike McCarthy philosophy, because, let's face it, that's what
we're gonna be watching for a while here for the
Pittsburgh Steier is the Mike McCarthy philosophy, and again we're
delving into what he's sharing with us as as journalists
(14:13):
and radio show hosts and play by play and colored
people and all the other sort of things. So we're
gonna get to more of this when we continue in
the locker room here on the Steelers Audio Network.
Speaker 1 (14:24):
This is live coverage of twenty twenty six Steelers Training
canp or the Steelers Audio Network, presented by bud Light,
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(14:46):
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Speaker 6 (15:03):
Is is Hospitality, Welcome back in the locker room here
on the Steeler's Audio network, the field is being tended to.
Speaker 4 (15:13):
What is that thing?
Speaker 3 (15:14):
Max is a lot more that looks like a lawnmower
that is a huge, huge and.
Speaker 4 (15:19):
It keeps all the grass carrier behind it. Yeah, that's exactly.
I don't think that thing's gonna have to be emptied out.
Speaker 3 (15:23):
That's not a day that's technically a riding lawn more.
But that's a riding lawn more on steroids. It's a
it's like a golf cart. Actually it's a bigger, big way.
It's a workman cart.
Speaker 4 (15:32):
It's a workman cart, thank you, a workman cart dragging
behind a gigantic trimmer. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (15:38):
I wondered if they were like seating the grass, But
I guess that's a that's a mower.
Speaker 3 (15:43):
That looks like a mower. It looks like because he's
leaving like a little bit of a trail behind him. Yeah,
all right, so I'm think of keeping the grass, you know,
nice low and even beautiful.
Speaker 4 (15:53):
The fields are beautiful.
Speaker 3 (15:54):
I had a seating, you'd have to you'd have to
go around like we've seen them in the past where
they bring the scene and then they had a little
like opera thing that puts it into the ground a
little bit. Yeah, so this this definitely looks more like
it's the suck cut right of lawn drimmers.
Speaker 2 (16:11):
You know, there's something about a grass field.
Speaker 4 (16:15):
Yeah, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (16:15):
Did you grow up playing on grass or after turf?
Speaker 4 (16:17):
I lived in Florida. There was no such thing as AstroTurf.
Oh yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3 (16:21):
It was only grass and even in college at the
University of Florida, only grass Bermuda grass.
Speaker 4 (16:26):
That it is.
Speaker 3 (16:27):
I was allergic to it all were you it? I
probably could have done better in my in my in
my allergy ridden self, if I played.
Speaker 2 (16:34):
They couldn't find anything that get They got you allergy
shot weekly.
Speaker 3 (16:37):
Really oh, I took alergiy shots every week and then
one time I had a hitch moment, uh where they
put the wrong dose in and my face and everything
just blew up. My wife they had to send me
home with an EpiPen. My wife had to come pick
me up from work. I was like in the Steelers,
Oh okay, Yeah, they gave me the wrong dose, and
I was I was sitting there. They're like, okay, he
(16:58):
might have anaphylactic shock. Uh, anything else gets it there
because we gave them the wrong dose. So yeah, I've
definitely had those touching aulmos.
Speaker 4 (17:06):
We have. My whole career played only on grass and
had to do shots every week.
Speaker 2 (17:10):
So how do you like, how do you mow the
lawn or whatever?
Speaker 4 (17:12):
Out? And I never had lawn? Do you have lawn? Now? No?
Because I live in the mountains and I live in
the desert.
Speaker 3 (17:18):
Knew the desert, but yeah, it's like on a hill,
I mean hill, but you know it's part of a
mountain range, right, the foothills of a mountain range. So
I live on the hill. So I have rocks, rocks
and cacti. And is it all grass you're allergic to?
Speaker 4 (17:32):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (17:32):
I'm allergy to every version of grass. Wow, yeah, every
version of grass. So and my daughters are allergic to
so they know I passed it on, so they so
they're finally in their maintenance cycle where they only have
to go once a month now. But yeah, but I
because I had such high and they played volleyball and softball.
The good thing about softball, my daughter's a pitcher. Uh,
(17:52):
all dirt infield always, yeah, always in softball. Baseball has
the grass and then you have the mounds separate. But
in softball, a dirt in the infield and then you
get grass in the outfield.
Speaker 2 (18:02):
I guess I've never thought about that.
Speaker 4 (18:04):
So she has to pitch almost yeah, yeah, she.
Speaker 3 (18:06):
Has to be Oh she plays one of the bases,
she plays second place. Yeah, but yeah, it would it
bothered her if she played in the outfield. I mean,
it probably would if she's diving. I mean, granted at
her age, she's eleven, so not a lot of people
hitting dingers out to the outfield that often. Usually it
rolls through because your shortstop has missed it, or your
second basement's out of position and you have the running
you get a roller. But she's not diving to catch
(18:28):
anything right now. Older, she probably might have to if
she played outfield at that age.
Speaker 2 (18:31):
By the way, if if you have a good pitcher.
No balls are being hit to the outfield, No balls
are being hit anywhere.
Speaker 4 (18:39):
No. And and she's one. She she's ice cold when
she comes out there.
Speaker 2 (18:42):
So you know, we're digressing here for a moment. But
having seen a little bit of that, that fast pitch
activity with my own daughter, it is, Uh, the two
most important positions are pitcher and catcher.
Speaker 4 (18:56):
Absolutely, that's it.
Speaker 2 (18:58):
Everybody else can be like almost could be like a
cardboard cutout. But if somebody gets on, you've been that
catcher better viable. The cat they're better.
Speaker 4 (19:06):
You better be able to hit second base on Yeh,
there'll be two most important Uh. Okay, so let's let's
get any this point. We're back to the sport of
football here.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
So we were talking about Mike McCarthy and his Steelers six.
He had a couple other well, he had a lot
of fascinating things to say. Again, just talking about things differently,
and when you hear him talking, you understand, you know
where the philosophies come from and then how that's manifested
out here in the practice field. So a lot of
discussion about like you were talking about, you know, position,
(19:39):
flexibility to play. Uh, the X, the Y, the Z
receiver positions, for example, because you get into two minute
drills and fans might be saying, okay, well that's only
the last two minutes of the game. So Mike McCarthy
today was talking about how the fact that seventeen games
on average eight come down the last series of the
(20:01):
game eight. That's incredible.
Speaker 4 (20:04):
Max.
Speaker 2 (20:04):
And by the way, Mike Tomlin is always great about that, right,
always really really good at one score games. But but
and so I'm sure you had different ways of doing that.
These are again just different ways of presenting and talking
about it. He said, eight games. He goes, we're the Steelers,
We're gonna get everybody's best shot. That might be ten
out of seventeen games for the Steelers. And then you
(20:26):
understand why the philosophy if you better play the X,
Y Z, why the philosophy of we're gonna work a
lot on two minute drills. They were working on the
lateral drill yesterday. You know, you have that last play
of the game, you throw it out city. Yeah, you're
trying to ladder all your way down the field and
and you know, like the the col Stanford game and
(20:46):
do all those kind of things. Why because of that
statistic and that bit of knowledge, you know, sort of
dictating what you're gonna do here in a practice field
and dictating how you're gonna you know, present things to
your team as well.
Speaker 4 (21:01):
Yeah, and I think that's one of the keys.
Speaker 3 (21:04):
You know, it's operations is what it comes down to. Yeah,
how do you how do you operate under pressure? The
more we do it, the less pressure it becomes. And
we talked about this earlier, second nature just reacting and
not having to think about it.
Speaker 4 (21:20):
We rehearses said, we're in the first two days of practice.
Speaker 3 (21:22):
They've run two minute drill to culminate practice both days, right,
and it's been different situations.
Speaker 4 (21:28):
You got the guy on the bullhorn eight third and
twelve and twenty seven second. We've got to have a
touchdown to win it.
Speaker 3 (21:32):
They have all these different scenarios that they're bullhorning out and.
Speaker 4 (21:36):
You have to be ready.
Speaker 3 (21:37):
You have to be able to go when there's a
completion in bounce, boom, right on the line, get the
ball back to the referee. None of that kind of
hot dogging it. You know, we had that, We had that.
I'll tell you a specific situation Minnesota Ben's last year,
and we had the and we had the drive, the
two minute drive to go ahead and win it. Well
we had old maple Tron there. I forgot now forgot
(21:59):
his name, but I mabele Tron stuck in my head
because of good old Craig wolf Lee giving it, giving it,
giving everybody a nickname. You know, he was kind of
like talking and putting the first down. I was like, no, man,
we got twenty seven seconds, get get on the ball.
Speaker 2 (22:12):
Stop show.
Speaker 3 (22:13):
But and then he dropped the ball and then the
dude kicked it, so you lost about five to six seconds.
Speaker 4 (22:17):
And then even though Ben's was still able to make it,
try to hit firemooth.
Speaker 3 (22:20):
Split in two defenders and then missed his hands. Just
imagine the game ended on that. If you had those
five to second seven seconds left, you might have had
one more shot at going for the touchdown. Like all
those little situations matter in the in the process. And
I think that's something that you know, the more you
do it here, the more reactive you can be in game,
unless you have to think about it because you know that,
(22:41):
Oh my job is if I caught the ball, I
get down in bounds. I can't get out of bounds,
get it right back to the run, to the line
of scrimmage, give it to the referee to set it,
and then go get in my position whatever.
Speaker 4 (22:50):
The quarterback barks out yep. So it was uh, it
was uh, Chase, there we go, There we go. I
try to Chase.
Speaker 2 (22:59):
I was trying to look this up here while we
were talking. I believe when they traded him to the Bears.
Speaker 3 (23:04):
Is that the pick that got Joey Porter Junior, if
I'm not mistake, Yes, it was number one overall in
the second round. Was is really the thirty second pick
because the Dolphins lost their first round of that year.
Speaker 4 (23:13):
Was Yeah, that's a pretty good trade.
Speaker 2 (23:14):
So again Mike McCarthy talking about the Steelers six, the
ball security and you know, the tackles and breaking tackles,
the big plays, all these other different things blocking, you know,
the finishing games. He talked about that mannerisms and the
different things special teams to go into that Steeler six.
So one of the things he broke down in great detail. Again,
(23:38):
this was very interesting, I thought, was the different aspects
of a play. And here's what he had to say
about what happens, you know, pre snap two point three seconds,
and then after two point three seconds, the anatomy of
a play.
Speaker 5 (23:56):
Anatomy of a play, you know, and there is the
first part of a play. So everything that goes on
in the pre snap up until the ball snap, you know,
the specifics, the mannerism, disguise, that's why, that's why it's
a fundamental the cadence, the substitution patterns, you know, the
ability to get get this personnel and quickly in the
red zones. So you have to practice all those little
(24:18):
things now because it's going to show up in preseason game.
It's going to show up when you get out there
for the first time with the ninety million roster. So
so you got the pre snap. But then if you go,
if you watch this as you watch film, you study
the film, you'll see in the first two point three
seconds that's really the actually that's the execution battleground. That's
where really the play gets established in the first two
point three So that's another time block. So and then
(24:39):
above two point three two point five, now you get
into extended play. Okay, so now we're talking about extended plays,
which is what big plays, big play opportunities, which is
another still er fundamental. So that's that's the way my
brain works. That's the way I've learned it through the
as of a quarterback in my time this league. And
that's why we train our team. So all our situation emphasis,
(25:00):
you know, really is broken down every specific play and
how we can train in those in those little heal
segments and in our and hopefully as I expressed this,
you know, hopefully hopefully you see that in our practice structure.
Speaker 3 (25:16):
What do I think it's more like two point seven
to three point one when it comes to quarterback.
Speaker 4 (25:24):
I mean, but yeah, you would love to see it.
Speaker 3 (25:25):
I mean, if you're getting at two point three to
two point five your upper echelons of quarterback rely that's time.
That's Tom Brady back in New England, where you're operating, Hey,
we got to hit the slot. That's when you can
get guys. Because guys are still warming up into it.
Your pass rush doesn't hit home because a pass rush
is built and designed. Two point seven to three point
one is where the pass rush hits home. That's how
(25:47):
much time it takes for a guy to clear a defender,
get open and then square up the quarterback. And then
a quarterback has to extend with his legs beyond that.
So yeah, I mean that that I wish I had
that during my career.
Speaker 4 (26:00):
I had zero racks allowed.
Speaker 3 (26:02):
Yeah exactly, Yeah, because we we we were in the
four point five to four point seven five point one.
Sometimes Ben Ben Ben with with stiff arm, a defensive
end extended another second and a half.
Speaker 4 (26:14):
Uh we yeah, yeah, two point three. That's that's modern
modern NFL.
Speaker 3 (26:19):
Back when I played, I mean, you were like, okay,
we got three seconds to four seconds that you need
to hold on for dear life, and then after that
it's it's bonus time.
Speaker 4 (26:27):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:27):
Yeah, I rarely remember Ben getting sacked in those situations,
but it seemed like once you got past that certain point,
he was gonna run around.
Speaker 4 (26:35):
I guess probably later in his career, maybe got caught behind,
he had to drag him down.
Speaker 3 (26:39):
It wasn't like it wasn't gonna be one guy was
gonna take him that. He was gonna take multiple hits
and then he was gonna twist around and then he
might fall down trying to get out of a shoe
string tackle or something. But yeah, now Ben's not going
and you know, yeah, definitely the triple decks, I mean,
you could throw in everything.
Speaker 4 (26:56):
I mean, he did it all.
Speaker 3 (26:57):
Yeah, you know, so you know the quarterback position has transitioned.
I would say the evolution of the pass rusher has
changed a lot schematics on how they get those guys
and the guys that fill those positions more hybridized. So
you have little more undersized guys that are now rushers
that are tougher for bigger offensive line. That's why your
offensive line are getting a little bit slimmer.
Speaker 4 (27:17):
But yeah, it's.
Speaker 3 (27:19):
Very interesting to go inside the mind of McCarthy and
see how he's processing this and how he's judging a
victory versus a loss on any given play by position,
group and by individual player.
Speaker 4 (27:32):
Did you win your one on one battles? And that's
why I.
Speaker 3 (27:34):
Think it's also important to know what does he consider
a big play. If you're trying to get a play
done in one point two point three seconds, that's very
quick snap judgments and your receiver I better beat the
guy off the ball. I mean, and that's man coverage.
We're not even talking about his own because if you
get into a cover two situation Cover three that two
(27:54):
point three seconds, your wide receiver might be even with
the dB and now you're hoping that he's going to
burn pass to him to be able to make that
anticipatory throw versus.
Speaker 4 (28:03):
A known throw on Max if we're even I'm leaving,
that's a wide receiver man traved hey single high, let
it fly. I mean, there's a lot of them out there.
Speaker 2 (28:12):
Yeah, so you know, and again, look, coaches are always
going to do we have to avoid pre snap penalties, right,
we have to have clean substitutions, you know, we have
to be able to get rid of the ball quickly.
Speaker 4 (28:26):
We have to be able to protect our quarterback.
Speaker 2 (28:28):
These are just you know, again, I'm not saying that
this is the reinvention of the wheel. I'm just saying
this is a different way to explain things in a
different emphasis on things that we're going to see the
practice field and that we're going to see hopefully when
the game rolls around. Like it's just it's just you know,
(28:50):
some of it might be saying the same stuff in
a slightly different way, but some of it is a
slightly different way of doing things as well.
Speaker 3 (28:59):
Yes, and I go back to this is academia. This
is the academic approach to football. And the more that
you repeat a lesson, the better the student is at
when it comes to test time, right, the reiteration of information.
That's why he doesn't call it install. He calls it recall. Right,
you know, because we've already learned this, I shouldn't have
to reinstall it. I should only have you recall it.
(29:21):
Like we've done the work in the OTAs in the
off season when guys have been here, we've taken that
extra time so that by the time we get here
we should be rolling through. You've had access to the
playbook since we left OTAs up until we get to camp,
so I don't need to re install. I don't need
to repeat the subject as it was. It's more like
(29:42):
a broad overview of study review when we get down
to the field, and then, like you said, the extra
cameras now give you a more in depth look so
you can have deeper level conversations in those meetings. Throughout
the day, we have the talk and walk that they
call them. We're going to walk through all the stuff
slow before we get to the field, and we're going
to talk through every little nuance so that when we
get on this field, like you said, it's it's ripping
(30:03):
and running and that's what it is. And that's why
we can't get all of our notes down because they're
ripping and running, because that's just how he wants this,
so that they become second nature. And like you said,
Mike Tomalin has his own way of doing things, Mike
McCarthy has his own way. You're not reinventing the wheel,
but you're reinventing the way that you communicate what the
(30:23):
function of the wheel is. Right, Yes, it's just simply
practical application of theory versus theoretical uh, you know, references
to what the actual practical is. So it's just a
different way of digesting it. And Coach McCarthy speaks plainly,
and like you said, I mean his press conferences are
very to the point, like he's going to expound, so
(30:46):
that you're when you leave the press corson outside of
three six and thirty six, you're going to know exactly
what he's thinking in this process and you could have
a better appreciation to carry over it, carry that over
to the field and watch him dictate how the practice
is going to go. He doesn't want anything being new,
he doesn't want frenzied response. He just wants phrenetic energy.
Speaker 4 (31:09):
Right.
Speaker 3 (31:09):
He wants guys moving around fast because they know what
they're doing, not moving around fast because they don't know, right,
and they think this is what you're supposed to be doing.
He wants you to know. He doesn't want you to
have to think.
Speaker 2 (31:19):
It's going to be interesting. It's already been interesting. It's
going to continue to be interesting, as is this Steelers team.
More to come as we wrap up today's edition.
Speaker 4 (31:28):
A lot more.
Speaker 2 (31:28):
I want to talk a little bit more about Michae
McCarthy and his philosophy and his background and something really
interesting that he said before, but he reiterated again at
the press conference. We're going to get to when we
continue here in the locker room and this Steer.
Speaker 4 (31:42):
There's Audio Network.
Speaker 1 (31:48):
Is live covering up twenty twenty six Steelers Training Camp
or the Steelers Audio Network, presented by bud Light, Easy
to drink, easy to enjoy, and brought to you in
part by Pennsylvania One Call Systems Dial eight one one
before You dig SNT Bank People Forward Banking by Kalucy Chevrolet,
(32:10):
serving the Pittsburgh area for over one hundred and eight years.
Clearview Federal Credit Union for every touchdown the Black and
Gold score. In twenty twenty six, Clearview will donate five
hundred dollars to the Light of Life Mission. Listen CLEARVIEWFCU
dot org and by iron Workers Local Union Number three.
We don't go to the office, We build it.
Speaker 2 (32:34):
Wrapping up this second show in the Locker Room from
La Trobe here on The Star's Audio Network alongside Max Starks,
I'm rob king two thirds. We're two thirds, Max, Yeah,
we are. We need Missy Matthews to.
Speaker 4 (32:47):
Complete us exactly. She completes the circle. She completes the circle,
the Circle of trusts.
Speaker 2 (32:52):
So thank you for being with us, thank you for
being members in the locker room, thanks for listening during
the course of the season where we have a lot
and lots of fun not only doing this show but
also doing the play by play and color and sidelines
of the Steelers football games. So I just wanted to
go over again. I'm going to make this very quick
(33:13):
for people that might not be familiar with some of
the ins and outs of it. Mike McCarthy's career, let's
start with the NFL. He became the Chiefs quarterbacks coach
in ninety five, ninety five through ninety eight, and he
became the Packers quarterback coach in ninety nine. Then he
became the Saints offensive coordinator forty nine, Ers offensive coordinator,
(33:35):
Packers head coach, Dallas head coach, Steelers head coach. I
can only speak well, I think I could speak broadly
here just knowing, Like, for example, my own profession, my
first job was as a producer, and so when I'm
doing my work, there's a lot of that influence that's
still here many many years later, the influence of being
(33:57):
a producer. First, are we on time with this segments
going the way we want?
Speaker 4 (34:01):
What's up?
Speaker 2 (34:02):
You know, all those kind of things that other people
who are on air might not think about, right, but
that influenced the way I think about it. Well, Mike
McCarthy said that, you know that that quarterback coach in him,
that those early days because influenced what he's done and
his number one goal is to make the quarterback successful.
(34:26):
That's how the offense runs. Again, is this groundbreaking philosophy. No,
But if it's a point of emphasis, again, it can
be a nuanced difference between what you do and the
way you approach your team and the way you approach
your offense and the way somebody else does.
Speaker 3 (34:43):
And let's just be frank, this is the first time
in the fifty five years of head coaches coming through
Pittsburgh that we've had an offensive minded coach. Yep, Chuck
Nole was a defensive coach, Bill Kuerr was a defensive coach.
Speaker 4 (34:57):
And Mike Tomlin was a defensive coach.
Speaker 3 (34:58):
So this is the first time we're really an offensive
minded approach to a team that's had an identity based
off of its defensive tenacity. So that's gonna be a
departure from the norm. Already on top of having the
fourth coach in the better part of half a century, right,
so you know you're getting these different approaches, and so
(35:19):
I think it comes off as novel to us because
we just haven't seen it. And to hear a coach
like you said, defensive minded coaches once again, is this
my offensive side being a little snobbish and tooting my
nose up.
Speaker 4 (35:31):
In the air.
Speaker 3 (35:32):
Probably, But defenses see things more plainly because they're highly reactive.
Offense has to be proactive. We have to dictate the
fight to the defense, and so there's a different mindset
when you're looking at being the proactive one versus the
reactive one. Right, defense doesn't know the snapcount offense does. Right,
(35:52):
they can only react to tendencies that they've seen, but
they don't know what's going on. The offense knows what's
going on and what they want to do versus this defense.
So you see the different tactical deployment of quote unquote.
Speaker 4 (36:07):
Philosophies and thought processes in this.
Speaker 3 (36:10):
So it's just it's a fun process because, like you said,
Mike McCarthy's going to give you plane brare bones. Here's
how we're going about it. We have a methodical approach
because when you're the offense, you're dictating, so you have
to be methodical. Defense can change from play to play.
What personnel gets deployed determines what defense we have to run,
(36:30):
and then what blitz we can and can't do, what
coverage we can and can't run. You're not going to
run cover two versus thirteen personnel, right, you know, But
the offense is like, I don't have to make my
thirteen personnel fit cover two. No defense has to adjust
on the fly. We are the ones that come out
with a premeditated approach to this because we know what
(36:51):
our play calls are there's a reactionary So you have
to be more abstract on defense because you don't know
what's going to be thrown at you. You can see
the personnel grouping in the soom, but they line up different.
We talked about this the accordion style last year of
Arthur Smith. Right, thirteen personnel they can turn to eleven.
The defense has to be able to match that, right,
because if they come out in goal line or six
to two defense and you've got all these guys spread
(37:13):
out at eleven, you're gonna be caught with your pants down.
So you have to be more fluid. You don't have
to be as fluid. You can be more rigid on offense.
Speaker 4 (37:21):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (37:21):
Defense is like to think they can dictate to the offense,
and in some ways they can, I mean if they
if they can beat the other guy what they're trying
to do. But again that's you go back to square one.
What are you trying to do? Well, Yeah, we're trying
to beat you at what you're trying to do as
opposed the other way around. What position, Max does the
(37:43):
field general play in football?
Speaker 4 (37:46):
Oh, it's the most important, right, I mean quarterback?
Speaker 3 (37:48):
Yeah, quarterback is the field general and then no, linebacker's
the next one.
Speaker 4 (37:52):
Yes, but but is that he is.
Speaker 2 (37:55):
They can say what they want and they can analogize
if they want, But the field general is not the
middle linebacker. It's not the strong safety, it's not the
outside linebacker. It's the quarterback. Much to your point, why
because they're the ones doing to dictating.
Speaker 3 (38:10):
Yes, they're the ones that have the strategy and they
know what's supposed to be accomplished. Right, defense, disruption, mayhem,
chaos and forcing a team out of their nature, which
you can call dictating, Yeah, you call dictating, but it's
more it's a pleasant surprise when.
Speaker 4 (38:30):
It does happen.
Speaker 2 (38:31):
Esoteric dictation.
Speaker 3 (38:33):
Yes, exactly dictating, you know, by situation. But like you said,
every time you step on the field, of the twenty
two guys present that can step on that field, only
one is controlling everything else. Right, the quarterback calls the play.
Offensive players now have to adjust to what the quarterback
(38:54):
has just called. Defenses then have to adjust off of
what the offensive players have just lined up in and
then what they moved to. And then you have cues
that give you hints. But it's not an open book
test right, you still have to study and.
Speaker 4 (39:08):
Be ready for whatever that is. And here's the other thing.
Speaker 3 (39:12):
There's four to five options on any given pass play
that the quarterback can go to, and you can't cover
all of them. There's going to be a weakness somewhere,
and that's what the offense's job is to do, is
to find that weakness, whether it's giving the quarterback time
to scan the field or whether it's emotion that then
puts you in a position of strength to run the football.
And the defense is reactionary. They're never in the proactive
(39:35):
position to give you that. They might get to a
position of equal strength, but they will never be in
an advantageous position, you know.
Speaker 2 (39:43):
And you can parse out the definition of this just quickly.
I want to remember when I think wal Terris was
the pit coach and defensive defensive lineman for Boston College
defensive end. I think he went on to play for
the Giants. I can't remember, but a good, real, good
pass rusher and they would move him around and he
would line up on the opposite side of the tight end. Right,
(40:06):
great philosophy. We're gonna have him. He's too fast for
these tackles. We don't want him getting chipped. So you
know what Walt Harris did. They would come out.
Speaker 4 (40:16):
In the tight end set this back day they had
tight ends, there's normal. They wait.
Speaker 2 (40:21):
They'd wait to see which side he lined up on,
and then just before the snap they'd moved the tight
end over to the other side every single time. So
now you're dictating where that tight end is going to
line up. But are you really dictating to play because
they just dictated back to it so.
Speaker 4 (40:38):
Exactly so you get to a position of equal strength.
Speaker 2 (40:40):
That's right, never advantageous, that's right then, and then what's
happening now they're doing something that you have to react
to back exactly where it was.
Speaker 4 (40:47):
So just quickly in a couple.
Speaker 2 (40:49):
Of minutes here that we have remaining, max, how are
we going to see the difference between an offensive coach
and a defensive coach? Are we can you answer this
in two minutes? Does this need to wait till till
tomorrow's show?
Speaker 4 (41:03):
Yeah? I mean, I hear it. I'm gonna try it.
I'm gonna try and expound.
Speaker 3 (41:07):
In an expeditious manner. You're just gonna see more attention
to the offense. I think you know before you look
at the head coach, and the head coach has been
that master manager, or he's had an emphasis, right, he's
had a hand into it. Mike McCarthy is an offensive
coach that also has a hand in the offense. We
have not seen that from the head coach before. We've
(41:28):
watched the other places, right, we watched the Cliff Kingsbury's
of the world, watch the Sean mcvays of the world
do those type of jobs, but we've never had it
here in Western pa here at Saint Vincent College for
the Pittsburgh Stealers organization, we have not seen that in
modern times. So it's going to be different, and I
think you see a height in production when more emphasis
is paid towards it. And what has been the question
(41:48):
the last handful, if not longer years, when is the
offense going to run the ball?
Speaker 4 (41:53):
When is the office going to do this?
Speaker 3 (41:54):
When are they going to produce the points that we
think are necessary? Well, this is going to be the
first because we went and got an offensive coach. So
can this be done? Can you get to that level
of production where you're looking at a team and not
necessarily saying apples to apples, there's Cincinnati Bengals, right, because
I think it's a different personnel, it's a different era
for a lot of those guys. But you know, we
(42:17):
know the defense is good and we brought in a
quality guy that you don't have to micro manage. And
now can that attention be paid to the offense because
we've done it in the draft. We have put a
lot of resources into offensive players over the last four years, right,
for sure, three first round offensive offensive tackles along, right,
and then you think about second, third rounds to offensive
(42:37):
pieces have been added, whether it's been a running back,
whether it's been a wide receiver, a center. Right, a
lot of resources, but you didn't really deploy those resources.
Speaker 4 (42:48):
You kind of put it off. Oh, let's bring Arthur
Smith in, Oh.
Speaker 3 (42:51):
I can't remember the other guys and mister Canada, Oh
Canada over there.
Speaker 4 (42:55):
And try to score eighteen and we'll take care of
the rest.
Speaker 3 (42:58):
Yeah, exactly, like we just need to are enough, right,
But no, it's like, no, can we go all gas,
no break on the offensive side of the ball and
put up forty thirty five and then your defense is
getting a blow and we know what they can do
if they have a lead. They can they can put
they can put the stranglehold on you, because the number
of times we did it almost by accident, you know,
we've we've had those moments. You can get into shootouts
(43:19):
every once in a while, but now when you're dictating
the action, you have the weapons and you have a
coach who wants to deploy them and has a philosophy
that's offense first.
Speaker 4 (43:28):
This something is going to be new.
Speaker 3 (43:29):
I can't wait to see it because I think it's
something we haven't seen. So therefore it's kind of a
wait and see. But you're holding your breath and you're
hoping that that's what it's going to be and what
their intention was.
Speaker 4 (43:38):
We're bringing Mike McCarthy in. Gonna be exciting, it really is.
Speaker 2 (43:41):
And uh again, these these times are flying by Max,
these shows because there's just so much to get to. Yeah,
but that's it for today. We're gonna get to much
more coming up over the next couple of days, and
there's a break on Sunday. Back again next week from
the trope. Up next, you're gonna go into with Matt
Williamson and Wes Euler for Max Starks.
Speaker 4 (44:04):
I'm rob king.
Speaker 2 (44:04):
We thank you for being with us today in the
locker room here on this year there's Audio Network
This is live coverage of the twenty twenty six Steelers
training camp on the Steelers Audio Network, presented by bud Light,
Easy to Drink, Easy to Enjoy, and brought to you
in part by Pennsylvania one Call Systems Dial eight one
one before You dig SNT Bank People Forward Banking by
(00:22):
kalucy Chevrolet, serving the Pittsburgh area for over one hundred
and eight years. Clearview Federal Credit Union. For every touchdown
the Black and Gold Score in twenty twenty six, Clearview
will donate five hundred dollars to the Light of Life
Mission Listit CLEARVIEWFCU dot org and by iron Workers Local
(00:42):
Union Number three. We don't go to the office, We
build it.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
And thank you very much for being with us in
the locker room here on the Steelers Audio Network alongside
Max Starks. I'm rob king fields. You're getting cleaned up.
And they did a great job.
Speaker 3 (00:59):
Hey now, because that's today right, you can't even tell
it's there.
Speaker 2 (01:02):
No, they did a great job patching up the field,
their beautiful fields here at Saint Vincent College. Another good
crowd in attendance, you know, cheering, you know, Will Howard
made a great throw up to see him and everybody
you know, jumped up and cheered.
Speaker 4 (01:15):
It was fun stuff, exciting stuff. We looked for.
Speaker 3 (01:19):
We looked for the big moments, right yeah, and our
fans are definitely very in tuned and ready for those.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
Uh. Aaron Rodgers through a long ball and a sprawling
attempt up the left sideline into the end zone for
Roman Wilson did not.
Speaker 4 (01:32):
Hang on Roman Wilson. Gotta get that.
Speaker 3 (01:34):
Gotta get when we talk about, hey, there's moments where
we're putting trust in you.
Speaker 4 (01:38):
That's one. He had the one on one. It was
cover three and he.
Speaker 3 (01:42):
Had a step on the dB and then he brought
the ball, hauled it in but did not survive the ground.
Speaker 2 (01:48):
So Riley, now Atkowskin, I'm bringing him up only because
it was evident they were doing a special teams drill
and he jumped and he turned around and ran off
and he knew he was done. So is that has
that been standard in with all the coaches or is
that is that one of those little stickler attention to
details thing. That's that's that Mike McCarthy's on.
Speaker 4 (02:09):
That's that standard issue?
Speaker 3 (02:10):
Okay, Yeah, yeah, especially a special teams like like your
margin era is less than zero. Right, So if you
do that and you were gonna have Danny in your
ear chewing twenty seven pieces of of double bubble yelling
at you the entire time, they were going to replace
the guy in the drill. So this is just kind
of more modus operandi, especially like if you mess up
once boom, you're gone, next guy up and you just
(02:31):
move forward. But I think for Mike McCarthy, this is
part of that detail oriented nature yep, like you should
know that you messed up and that you're out of
the drill.
Speaker 4 (02:40):
I shouldn't have to tell you. Yeah, turn jock off.
Speaker 5 (02:44):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (02:44):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
By the way, less than zero maybe my favorite Elvis
cuss tell As song. Yeah, great song. So anyway, we
were talking about Mike McCarthy. So one of the things
that was brought up at the press conference this morning was, okay,
so how do you make sure in a physical game
your guys are physically ready when you're not And again physical,
(03:09):
it's not contact sport, max.
Speaker 4 (03:10):
It is a.
Speaker 2 (03:11):
Colligious exactly, So how do you make sure they're ready
for those collisions? And Mike McCarthy said, look, we just
don't bring guys to the ground there's there's some hitting
going on out there. In fact, you know, tackling and breaking,
breaking tackles is one of our Steelers six.
Speaker 4 (03:29):
And so somebody was like, okay, so what are the
Steeler six? What are the other parts to that six?
Speaker 2 (03:35):
So here here is Mike McCarthy's answer to that question
this morning at the press conference.
Speaker 5 (03:40):
Primary fundamental. We call it the Steeler six. You know,
we have six fundamentals Steeler football of emphasized. Obviously, tackling
and breaking tackles is one of those six. So those
six fundamentals are emphasized daily. We have a period just
fourteen fundamentals to emphasize that. So, you know, doing it
(04:00):
for a long time, I have great confidence and frankly,
evaluating the team last year, you know, I think that's
definitely I would say, is an asset, you know, moving forward.
So it is a veteran team. But we have preseason
games too, you know, so that's that's always part of it.
Who plays the preseason who doesn't, So I mean all
those things are discussed and I think that's why I'll
(04:22):
continue to say there's a systematic approach to everything we do.
You know, we have a plan. But the plan has
proactive adjustice that it gives us in a systematic mindset.
Speaker 4 (04:31):
You share the other five? Do you share?
Speaker 2 (04:33):
The other five have.
Speaker 5 (04:34):
Ball security, obviously taking care of it, extracting it. Ball
security is number one. Blocking, obviously, sustaining break you know,
obviously getting off blocks, already hit, tackling about big plays
as a fundamentals. You can't win in the National Football
League without big playsers, you know, each game. If you
look at the league average average is about thirty six
a game. So, uh so you get you got it.
(04:54):
You gotta emphasize it. The finish, the pursuit and finish
is clearly a big part of that too. But and
one that we you know, spend a lot of time in,
particularly because the way we have to train more than
everyone else seas and is the mannerisms. Mannerisms in disguise
is a big part of pro football. I think it's
particularly coming from the quarterback position. You know my history,
(05:15):
you spend time there. But you know, the games evolved
that way. We're both sides of the of the ball
are doing it a lot more here and seeing it
more on special teams. So those are the six you know,
fundamentals of stair the football.
Speaker 4 (05:29):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (05:30):
You know, uh, this is clearly stuff that he's thought out.
It's clearly a philosophy that he wants to bring to
the team. You know, one of the things that a
lot of people have talked about observers around the team
is the attention to detail that Mike McCarthy has in
his approach to football and expect from his team as well.
Speaker 3 (05:53):
And I think this is, like you said, it goes
with what I'm I'm coining as the academic approach to football.
Speaker 4 (05:58):
Right.
Speaker 3 (05:58):
This is football through two of to football three oh three.
This is upper level football if you're taking the class right.
And this is one of those things where you see
the Steelers six, it's like it's like a poster board
the teachers.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
Absolutely.
Speaker 4 (06:10):
I wonder if it's gonna be off.
Speaker 3 (06:12):
I think it's probably up in the team room, maybe
not in the locker room, but I think it's definitely
something that I'll go investigate further. But you have to
believe if you're calling it the Steelers six, like all
those things have to be. And you know, we had
a similar thing where we had kind of five points
of emphasis every week on offensive side of the football
that Bruce Arians introduced. You know, you had to have
(06:34):
you know, penalty free. You had to be at least
ten exposive plays a game. You have to also pre
snap you know, no pre snap penalties. We kind of
had these different areas. You had to hit running backs,
you know, have to be an efficiency. Offensive line has
to have you know, the least amount of ems, and
you kind of and win the time of possession. Like
(06:55):
there was these tenants that he had and so to
have this and kind of this be a team ethos.
I think it's something that's probably gonna be up and
it all makes sense. I mean, they're all tangible things
and things. When you put them in writing, it makes
it easier to know if you're above or below the line.
Speaker 4 (07:10):
Right, So, did you do your job or not?
Speaker 2 (07:12):
One of the things that I so, I was sitting
next to Brooke prior at the press conference this morning,
and when it was done, I said, Brooke, did he
say three to six big plays or did he say
thirty six big plays? And then I asked Jerry do
Lak Brooks said, I don't know. I wasn't sure because
(07:32):
I wasn't sure. And then I was talking about it
with Jerry, Well, three to six seem too little and
thirty six seem too big. But again the other thing
is what do you define as a big play? Do
you define it as a run of ten or more yards,
a catch of twenty more yards is or different ways
to define it. So in that one, I was listening
very carefully to hear it back again. Thirty six big
plays a game. So he knows the number that means.
Speaker 4 (07:55):
Plays a game.
Speaker 3 (07:56):
What happened, and that's and he has to remember that
is offense, defense, and special teams. Right, So you're splitting
up between so and just I said our goal on
offense from week to week, where Bruce Herrins was ten.
So you know you think about that if you're breaking
it up into three different segments twelve apiece, right, that
you have to be able to create. And I think
(08:17):
the exposive players might be fifteen yards of more in
a reception, right, so ten yard run, fifteen yard reception,
then probably a sack, strip fumble, big explosive play on
the return game, or a big or a big stop
you know on the coverage game.
Speaker 4 (08:32):
Yeah, how do you define big play exactly?
Speaker 3 (08:36):
So, yeah, that would be one that I had that,
and Mike pursuit and I actually talked about it because
he had to say that. He's like, now he said
three to six. I'm like, well, we weren't really get
I said thirty six. Yeah, it just goes to show.
And I was like, in a game between and you say, also,
that's three segments, but then there's the other team, right,
So to get thirty six between two teams and essentially
(08:57):
six segments of football is not that much. Right when
you break it into that, you know six times six
is thirty six. So you're saying if each team has
thirty or twenty, you know it, I'm sorry, eighteen apiece, right,
and the split between three segments, like, that's not that big.
But you want to win the battle of thirty six, right.
You want to be on the positive side. You want
to be at nineteen to twenty, and the other teams
(09:18):
at sixteen are below.
Speaker 2 (09:19):
So if you get ten on offense, they get ten
on offense. That's twenty even less snaps on special teams.
Let's say it's two each on special teams. Now you're
twenty four. Now it means each team gets six on defense.
So you're right again, how you.
Speaker 3 (09:33):
Define the past defense could probably be in that how
do you define sack a tackle for loss?
Speaker 4 (09:37):
Like? So, I think it would be good if somebody follows.
Speaker 3 (09:41):
Up and asks what exactly a you're determining as a
big play, because I think that also helps make that
thirty six look more conceivable.
Speaker 4 (09:48):
Right, I'm fascinated to know that. Yeah, fascinatings.
Speaker 3 (09:51):
I would love to ask him, but I'm not in
the press conference because'm getting ready for.
Speaker 4 (09:54):
You're up here there.
Speaker 3 (09:55):
That's right, you're up there and I'm down there, and
it's trusting. I'm trusting you, Robb to raise your hand
and talked to Mike McCarthy.
Speaker 2 (10:01):
But it is and look, I'm sure there's no question
Mike Tomlin had attention to detail. It's just we are
and again, like you said, we are used to the tomlinisms.
You know, I was talking to somebody on the baseball
side of my job and talking about we're talking about it,
you know one of our our analyst kids, and you
(10:22):
know how aggressive he was playing football, And I said, well,
Mike Tomlin always said I'd rather say woe than sick
of them. Yeah, no, you know so, so so that's
a good. So we have all these things we've heard
from Mike tom and we heard him for two decades
of Mike Tomlin talking about things, and his philosophy on
football shown through in some of those things.
Speaker 4 (10:41):
This is a very uh, this is.
Speaker 2 (10:43):
A a different way of presenting it. You know, it's
still football, right, and we'll see still see how it's
manifested out there. But it's exciting just to hear it
in a different way because look, I always was excited
to hear Mike I would talk because he had he
was an interesting guy the way he phrased things. Had
(11:04):
he had and talked about.
Speaker 4 (11:05):
PhD and wordsmanship. Yeah, that's right. That's so. It's like
we're essentially listened to we've listened to a professor for.
Speaker 3 (11:12):
Nineteen years, right, preach theory, philosophy and kind of broad
abstract culture. Whereas now you have a teacher, right that's
giving it to you directly as it is. There's no
room for interpretation this this I'm talking plainly to you.
However you digest this is what it means at the
end of the day.
Speaker 4 (11:29):
My word ends all.
Speaker 3 (11:31):
So you're getting teacher versus professor, practical application knowledge versus
theoretical and you had to figure out the application. That's
what I look at it as is coming from a
family of teachers.
Speaker 4 (11:40):
Yeah, it's a really good analogy.
Speaker 2 (11:43):
And you know, the other thing is that like much
like we're discussing, it's it's very funny because you know,
I'm looking at the Rogers Center now from out of
our window, and Max was directly behind me up on
the set on the top of the hill with Mike Pursuda.
The whole thirty six or three to six, that conversation
was going on in both those places. Well, one of
the things that you know, I normally sit right next
(12:05):
to Bob Labriola, and there are people in the press
box here that are being entertained at here at Saint
Vincent College, and so today there wasn't anybody up there,
so that allowed me to spread out my notes. I
was going to take some notes, and I was going
to jot these things down, and I'm like, this practice.
Speaker 4 (12:22):
Is happening way too fast.
Speaker 2 (12:24):
I can't I'm I'm jotting something down and I'm looking
up and I'm missing something. And I'm not the only
one who said that. Other reporters have said the exact
same thing.
Speaker 3 (12:35):
Dulac Jerry because they're all asking each other, well, hey,
who did this? Is always like I have to have
a spotter, and you got to work in tandem as
a group, Like somebody has to be constant, that's right,
The other ones have to be constant note takers.
Speaker 2 (12:46):
Yeah, it is happening. These things happen really really fast
out there. So again it's just did they happen faster
than I'm like Tom Win? Sure, but just that extra
ten seconds here, you know, five second zer between plays
in between drills. It's just a different pace. Yeah, to
practice out here, they're shorter.
Speaker 4 (13:07):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (13:07):
And they're shorter practices too, so it's like so everything
is like come packed it in. So it's like almost
like you have to pick your poison, right, Am I
gonna watch the entire practice and try and remember in
my head? Or am I gonna try and write everything
down and I'm probably gonna miss two to three items
per per time that I put my eyes down on
the pad.
Speaker 2 (13:25):
So I'm reminded of you know, and again they're both football, right,
and they're both uh you know, great coaches who won
Super Bowls and had success. It reminds me of remember
the group of the Ramones, the punk group.
Speaker 4 (13:38):
Oh yeah, you know a lot. You know a lot
of quick little songs.
Speaker 2 (13:42):
And somebody plain to their drummer they said, hey, you
guys don't have any long songs. Guys said, oh no,
we have lots of long songs. We're just playing really
really fast.
Speaker 4 (13:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (13:50):
So that's kind of what we're seeing here in practically
just two different ways of going about things, so plenty
more to get to. We want to dive more into
the Mike McCarthy philosophy, because, let's face it, that's what
we're gonna be watching for a while here for the
Pittsburgh Steier is the Mike McCarthy philosophy, and again we're
delving into what he's sharing with us as as journalists
(14:13):
and radio show hosts and play by play and colored
people and all the other sort of things. So we're
gonna get to more of this when we continue in
the locker room here on the Steelers Audio Network.
Speaker 1 (14:24):
This is live coverage of twenty twenty six Steelers Training
canp or the Steelers Audio Network, presented by bud Light,
Easy to drink, easy to enjoy, and brought to you
in part by your neighborhood Ford Store creator Pittsburgh Community
Food Bank, First National Bank. Let's get started member FDIC
(14:46):
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Visit Donzappliances dot com. Guaranteed lowest prices, free next day delivery,
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Speaker 6 (15:03):
Is is Hospitality, Welcome back in the locker room here
on the Steeler's Audio network, the field is being tended to.
Speaker 4 (15:13):
What is that thing?
Speaker 3 (15:14):
Max is a lot more that looks like a lawnmower
that is a huge, huge and.
Speaker 4 (15:19):
It keeps all the grass carrier behind it. Yeah, that's exactly.
I don't think that thing's gonna have to be emptied out.
Speaker 3 (15:23):
That's not a day that's technically a riding lawn more.
But that's a riding lawn more on steroids. It's a
it's like a golf cart. Actually it's a bigger, big way.
It's a workman cart.
Speaker 4 (15:32):
It's a workman cart, thank you, a workman cart dragging
behind a gigantic trimmer. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (15:38):
I wondered if they were like seating the grass, But
I guess that's a that's a mower.
Speaker 3 (15:43):
That looks like a mower. It looks like because he's
leaving like a little bit of a trail behind him. Yeah,
all right, so I'm think of keeping the grass, you know,
nice low and even beautiful.
Speaker 4 (15:53):
The fields are beautiful.
Speaker 3 (15:54):
I had a seating, you'd have to you'd have to
go around like we've seen them in the past where
they bring the scene and then they had a little
like opera thing that puts it into the ground a
little bit. Yeah, so this this definitely looks more like
it's the suck cut right of lawn drimmers.
Speaker 2 (16:11):
You know, there's something about a grass field.
Speaker 4 (16:15):
Yeah, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (16:15):
Did you grow up playing on grass or after turf?
Speaker 4 (16:17):
I lived in Florida. There was no such thing as AstroTurf.
Oh yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3 (16:21):
It was only grass and even in college at the
University of Florida, only grass Bermuda grass.
Speaker 4 (16:26):
That it is.
Speaker 3 (16:27):
I was allergic to it all were you it? I
probably could have done better in my in my in
my allergy ridden self, if I played.
Speaker 2 (16:34):
They couldn't find anything that get They got you allergy
shot weekly.
Speaker 3 (16:37):
Really oh, I took alergiy shots every week and then
one time I had a hitch moment, uh where they
put the wrong dose in and my face and everything
just blew up. My wife they had to send me
home with an EpiPen. My wife had to come pick
me up from work. I was like in the Steelers,
Oh okay, Yeah, they gave me the wrong dose, and
I was I was sitting there. They're like, okay, he
(16:58):
might have anaphylactic shock. Uh, anything else gets it there
because we gave them the wrong dose. So yeah, I've
definitely had those touching aulmos.
Speaker 4 (17:06):
We have. My whole career played only on grass and
had to do shots every week.
Speaker 2 (17:10):
So how do you like, how do you mow the
lawn or whatever?
Speaker 4 (17:12):
Out? And I never had lawn? Do you have lawn? Now? No?
Because I live in the mountains and I live in
the desert.
Speaker 3 (17:18):
Knew the desert, but yeah, it's like on a hill,
I mean hill, but you know it's part of a
mountain range, right, the foothills of a mountain range. So
I live on the hill. So I have rocks, rocks
and cacti. And is it all grass you're allergic to?
Speaker 4 (17:32):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (17:32):
I'm allergy to every version of grass. Wow, yeah, every
version of grass. So and my daughters are allergic to
so they know I passed it on, so they so
they're finally in their maintenance cycle where they only have
to go once a month now. But yeah, but I
because I had such high and they played volleyball and softball.
The good thing about softball, my daughter's a pitcher. Uh,
(17:52):
all dirt infield always, yeah, always in softball. Baseball has
the grass and then you have the mounds separate. But
in softball, a dirt in the infield and then you
get grass in the outfield.
Speaker 2 (18:02):
I guess I've never thought about that.
Speaker 4 (18:04):
So she has to pitch almost yeah, yeah, she.
Speaker 3 (18:06):
Has to be Oh she plays one of the bases,
she plays second place. Yeah, but yeah, it would it
bothered her if she played in the outfield. I mean,
it probably would if she's diving. I mean, granted at
her age, she's eleven, so not a lot of people
hitting dingers out to the outfield that often. Usually it
rolls through because your shortstop has missed it, or your
second basement's out of position and you have the running
you get a roller. But she's not diving to catch
(18:28):
anything right now. Older, she probably might have to if
she played outfield at that age.
Speaker 2 (18:31):
By the way, if if you have a good pitcher.
No balls are being hit to the outfield, No balls
are being hit anywhere.
Speaker 4 (18:39):
No. And and she's one. She she's ice cold when
she comes out there.
Speaker 2 (18:42):
So you know, we're digressing here for a moment. But
having seen a little bit of that, that fast pitch
activity with my own daughter, it is, Uh, the two
most important positions are pitcher and catcher.
Speaker 4 (18:56):
Absolutely, that's it.
Speaker 2 (18:58):
Everybody else can be like almost could be like a
cardboard cutout. But if somebody gets on, you've been that
catcher better viable. The cat they're better.
Speaker 4 (19:06):
You better be able to hit second base on Yeh,
there'll be two most important Uh. Okay, so let's let's
get any this point. We're back to the sport of
football here.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
So we were talking about Mike McCarthy and his Steelers six.
He had a couple other well, he had a lot
of fascinating things to say. Again, just talking about things differently,
and when you hear him talking, you understand, you know
where the philosophies come from and then how that's manifested
out here in the practice field. So a lot of
discussion about like you were talking about, you know, position,
(19:39):
flexibility to play. Uh, the X, the Y, the Z
receiver positions, for example, because you get into two minute
drills and fans might be saying, okay, well that's only
the last two minutes of the game. So Mike McCarthy
today was talking about how the fact that seventeen games
on average eight come down the last series of the
(20:01):
game eight. That's incredible.
Speaker 4 (20:04):
Max.
Speaker 2 (20:04):
And by the way, Mike Tomlin is always great about that, right,
always really really good at one score games. But but
and so I'm sure you had different ways of doing that.
These are again just different ways of presenting and talking
about it. He said, eight games. He goes, we're the Steelers,
We're gonna get everybody's best shot. That might be ten
out of seventeen games for the Steelers. And then you
(20:26):
understand why the philosophy if you better play the X,
Y Z, why the philosophy of we're gonna work a
lot on two minute drills. They were working on the
lateral drill yesterday. You know, you have that last play
of the game, you throw it out city. Yeah, you're
trying to ladder all your way down the field and
and you know, like the the col Stanford game and
(20:46):
do all those kind of things. Why because of that
statistic and that bit of knowledge, you know, sort of
dictating what you're gonna do here in a practice field
and dictating how you're gonna you know, present things to
your team as well.
Speaker 4 (21:01):
Yeah, and I think that's one of the keys.
Speaker 3 (21:04):
You know, it's operations is what it comes down to. Yeah,
how do you how do you operate under pressure? The
more we do it, the less pressure it becomes. And
we talked about this earlier, second nature just reacting and
not having to think about it.
Speaker 4 (21:20):
We rehearses said, we're in the first two days of practice.
Speaker 3 (21:22):
They've run two minute drill to culminate practice both days, right,
and it's been different situations.
Speaker 4 (21:28):
You got the guy on the bullhorn eight third and
twelve and twenty seven second. We've got to have a
touchdown to win it.
Speaker 3 (21:32):
They have all these different scenarios that they're bullhorning out and.
Speaker 4 (21:36):
You have to be ready.
Speaker 3 (21:37):
You have to be able to go when there's a
completion in bounce, boom, right on the line, get the
ball back to the referee. None of that kind of
hot dogging it. You know, we had that, We had that.
I'll tell you a specific situation Minnesota Ben's last year,
and we had the and we had the drive, the
two minute drive to go ahead and win it. Well
we had old maple Tron there. I forgot now forgot
(21:59):
his name, but I mabele Tron stuck in my head
because of good old Craig wolf Lee giving it, giving it,
giving everybody a nickname. You know, he was kind of
like talking and putting the first down. I was like, no, man,
we got twenty seven seconds, get get on the ball.
Speaker 2 (22:12):
Stop show.
Speaker 3 (22:13):
But and then he dropped the ball and then the
dude kicked it, so you lost about five to six seconds.
Speaker 4 (22:17):
And then even though Ben's was still able to make it,
try to hit firemooth.
Speaker 3 (22:20):
Split in two defenders and then missed his hands. Just
imagine the game ended on that. If you had those
five to second seven seconds left, you might have had
one more shot at going for the touchdown. Like all
those little situations matter in the in the process. And
I think that's something that you know, the more you
do it here, the more reactive you can be in game,
unless you have to think about it because you know that,
(22:41):
Oh my job is if I caught the ball, I
get down in bounds. I can't get out of bounds,
get it right back to the run, to the line
of scrimmage, give it to the referee to set it,
and then go get in my position whatever.
Speaker 4 (22:50):
The quarterback barks out yep. So it was uh, it
was uh, Chase, there we go, There we go. I
try to Chase.
Speaker 2 (22:59):
I was trying to look this up here while we
were talking. I believe when they traded him to the Bears.
Speaker 3 (23:04):
Is that the pick that got Joey Porter Junior, if
I'm not mistake, Yes, it was number one overall in
the second round. Was is really the thirty second pick
because the Dolphins lost their first round of that year.
Speaker 4 (23:13):
Was Yeah, that's a pretty good trade.
Speaker 2 (23:14):
So again Mike McCarthy talking about the Steelers six, the
ball security and you know, the tackles and breaking tackles,
the big plays, all these other different things blocking, you know,
the finishing games. He talked about that mannerisms and the
different things special teams to go into that Steeler six.
So one of the things he broke down in great detail. Again,
(23:38):
this was very interesting, I thought, was the different aspects
of a play. And here's what he had to say
about what happens, you know, pre snap two point three seconds,
and then after two point three seconds, the anatomy of
a play.
Speaker 5 (23:56):
Anatomy of a play, you know, and there is the
first part of a play. So everything that goes on
in the pre snap up until the ball snap, you know,
the specifics, the mannerism, disguise, that's why, that's why it's
a fundamental the cadence, the substitution patterns, you know, the
ability to get get this personnel and quickly in the
red zones. So you have to practice all those little
(24:18):
things now because it's going to show up in preseason game.
It's going to show up when you get out there
for the first time with the ninety million roster. So
so you got the pre snap. But then if you go,
if you watch this as you watch film, you study
the film, you'll see in the first two point three
seconds that's really the actually that's the execution battleground. That's
where really the play gets established in the first two
point three So that's another time block. So and then
(24:39):
above two point three two point five, now you get
into extended play. Okay, so now we're talking about extended plays,
which is what big plays, big play opportunities, which is
another still er fundamental. So that's that's the way my
brain works. That's the way I've learned it through the
as of a quarterback in my time this league. And
that's why we train our team. So all our situation emphasis,
(25:00):
you know, really is broken down every specific play and
how we can train in those in those little heal
segments and in our and hopefully as I expressed this,
you know, hopefully hopefully you see that in our practice structure.
Speaker 3 (25:16):
What do I think it's more like two point seven
to three point one when it comes to quarterback.
Speaker 4 (25:24):
I mean, but yeah, you would love to see it.
Speaker 3 (25:25):
I mean, if you're getting at two point three to
two point five your upper echelons of quarterback rely that's time.
That's Tom Brady back in New England, where you're operating, Hey,
we got to hit the slot. That's when you can
get guys. Because guys are still warming up into it.
Your pass rush doesn't hit home because a pass rush
is built and designed. Two point seven to three point
one is where the pass rush hits home. That's how
(25:47):
much time it takes for a guy to clear a defender,
get open and then square up the quarterback. And then
a quarterback has to extend with his legs beyond that.
So yeah, I mean that that I wish I had
that during my career.
Speaker 4 (26:00):
I had zero racks allowed.
Speaker 3 (26:02):
Yeah exactly, Yeah, because we we we were in the
four point five to four point seven five point one.
Sometimes Ben Ben Ben with with stiff arm, a defensive
end extended another second and a half.
Speaker 4 (26:14):
Uh we yeah, yeah, two point three. That's that's modern
modern NFL.
Speaker 3 (26:19):
Back when I played, I mean, you were like, okay,
we got three seconds to four seconds that you need
to hold on for dear life, and then after that
it's it's bonus time.
Speaker 4 (26:27):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:27):
Yeah, I rarely remember Ben getting sacked in those situations,
but it seemed like once you got past that certain point,
he was gonna run around.
Speaker 4 (26:35):
I guess probably later in his career, maybe got caught behind,
he had to drag him down.
Speaker 3 (26:39):
It wasn't like it wasn't gonna be one guy was
gonna take him that. He was gonna take multiple hits
and then he was gonna twist around and then he
might fall down trying to get out of a shoe
string tackle or something. But yeah, now Ben's not going
and you know, yeah, definitely the triple decks, I mean,
you could throw in everything.
Speaker 4 (26:56):
I mean, he did it all.
Speaker 3 (26:57):
Yeah, you know, so you know the quarterback position has transitioned.
I would say the evolution of the pass rusher has
changed a lot schematics on how they get those guys
and the guys that fill those positions more hybridized. So
you have little more undersized guys that are now rushers
that are tougher for bigger offensive line. That's why your
offensive line are getting a little bit slimmer.
Speaker 4 (27:17):
But yeah, it's.
Speaker 3 (27:19):
Very interesting to go inside the mind of McCarthy and
see how he's processing this and how he's judging a
victory versus a loss on any given play by position,
group and by individual player.
Speaker 4 (27:32):
Did you win your one on one battles? And that's
why I.
Speaker 3 (27:34):
Think it's also important to know what does he consider
a big play. If you're trying to get a play
done in one point two point three seconds, that's very
quick snap judgments and your receiver I better beat the
guy off the ball. I mean, and that's man coverage.
We're not even talking about his own because if you
get into a cover two situation Cover three that two
(27:54):
point three seconds, your wide receiver might be even with
the dB and now you're hoping that he's going to
burn pass to him to be able to make that
anticipatory throw versus.
Speaker 4 (28:03):
A known throw on Max if we're even I'm leaving,
that's a wide receiver man traved hey single high, let
it fly. I mean, there's a lot of them out there.
Speaker 2 (28:12):
Yeah, so you know, and again, look, coaches are always
going to do we have to avoid pre snap penalties, right,
we have to have clean substitutions, you know, we have
to be able to get rid of the ball quickly.
Speaker 4 (28:26):
We have to be able to protect our quarterback.
Speaker 2 (28:28):
These are just you know, again, I'm not saying that
this is the reinvention of the wheel. I'm just saying
this is a different way to explain things in a
different emphasis on things that we're going to see the
practice field and that we're going to see hopefully when
the game rolls around. Like it's just it's just you know,
(28:50):
some of it might be saying the same stuff in
a slightly different way, but some of it is a
slightly different way of doing things as well.
Speaker 3 (28:59):
Yes, and I go back to this is academia. This
is the academic approach to football. And the more that
you repeat a lesson, the better the student is at
when it comes to test time, right, the reiteration of information.
That's why he doesn't call it install. He calls it recall. Right,
you know, because we've already learned this, I shouldn't have
to reinstall it. I should only have you recall it.
(29:21):
Like we've done the work in the OTAs in the
off season when guys have been here, we've taken that
extra time so that by the time we get here
we should be rolling through. You've had access to the
playbook since we left OTAs up until we get to camp,
so I don't need to re install. I don't need
to repeat the subject as it was. It's more like
(29:42):
a broad overview of study review when we get down
to the field, and then, like you said, the extra
cameras now give you a more in depth look so
you can have deeper level conversations in those meetings. Throughout
the day, we have the talk and walk that they
call them. We're going to walk through all the stuff
slow before we get to the field, and we're going
to talk through every little nuance so that when we
get on this field, like you said, it's it's ripping
(30:03):
and running and that's what it is. And that's why
we can't get all of our notes down because they're
ripping and running, because that's just how he wants this,
so that they become second nature. And like you said,
Mike Tomalin has his own way of doing things, Mike
McCarthy has his own way. You're not reinventing the wheel,
but you're reinventing the way that you communicate what the
(30:23):
function of the wheel is. Right, Yes, it's just simply
practical application of theory versus theoretical uh, you know, references
to what the actual practical is. So it's just a
different way of digesting it. And Coach McCarthy speaks plainly,
and like you said, I mean his press conferences are
very to the point, like he's going to expound, so
(30:46):
that you're when you leave the press corson outside of
three six and thirty six, you're going to know exactly
what he's thinking in this process and you could have
a better appreciation to carry over it, carry that over
to the field and watch him dictate how the practice
is going to go. He doesn't want anything being new,
he doesn't want frenzied response. He just wants phrenetic energy.
Speaker 4 (31:09):
Right.
Speaker 3 (31:09):
He wants guys moving around fast because they know what
they're doing, not moving around fast because they don't know, right,
and they think this is what you're supposed to be doing.
He wants you to know. He doesn't want you to
have to think.
Speaker 2 (31:19):
It's going to be interesting. It's already been interesting. It's
going to continue to be interesting, as is this Steelers team.
More to come as we wrap up today's edition.
Speaker 4 (31:28):
A lot more.
Speaker 2 (31:28):
I want to talk a little bit more about Michae
McCarthy and his philosophy and his background and something really
interesting that he said before, but he reiterated again at
the press conference. We're going to get to when we
continue here in the locker room and this Steer.
Speaker 4 (31:42):
There's Audio Network.
Speaker 1 (31:48):
Is live covering up twenty twenty six Steelers Training Camp
or the Steelers Audio Network, presented by bud Light, Easy
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(32:10):
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We don't go to the office, We build it.
Speaker 2 (32:34):
Wrapping up this second show in the Locker Room from
La Trobe here on The Star's Audio Network alongside Max Starks,
I'm rob king two thirds. We're two thirds, Max, Yeah,
we are. We need Missy Matthews to.
Speaker 4 (32:47):
Complete us exactly. She completes the circle. She completes the circle,
the Circle of trusts.
Speaker 2 (32:52):
So thank you for being with us, thank you for
being members in the locker room, thanks for listening during
the course of the season where we have a lot
and lots of fun not only doing this show but
also doing the play by play and color and sidelines
of the Steelers football games. So I just wanted to
go over again. I'm going to make this very quick
(33:13):
for people that might not be familiar with some of
the ins and outs of it. Mike McCarthy's career, let's
start with the NFL. He became the Chiefs quarterbacks coach
in ninety five, ninety five through ninety eight, and he
became the Packers quarterback coach in ninety nine. Then he
became the Saints offensive coordinator forty nine, Ers offensive coordinator,
(33:35):
Packers head coach, Dallas head coach, Steelers head coach. I
can only speak well, I think I could speak broadly
here just knowing, Like, for example, my own profession, my
first job was as a producer, and so when I'm
doing my work, there's a lot of that influence that's
still here many many years later, the influence of being
(33:57):
a producer. First, are we on time with this segments
going the way we want?
Speaker 4 (34:01):
What's up?
Speaker 2 (34:02):
You know, all those kind of things that other people
who are on air might not think about, right, but
that influenced the way I think about it. Well, Mike
McCarthy said that, you know that that quarterback coach in him,
that those early days because influenced what he's done and
his number one goal is to make the quarterback successful.
(34:26):
That's how the offense runs. Again, is this groundbreaking philosophy. No,
But if it's a point of emphasis, again, it can
be a nuanced difference between what you do and the
way you approach your team and the way you approach
your offense and the way somebody else does.
Speaker 3 (34:43):
And let's just be frank, this is the first time
in the fifty five years of head coaches coming through
Pittsburgh that we've had an offensive minded coach. Yep, Chuck
Nole was a defensive coach, Bill Kuerr was a defensive coach.
Speaker 4 (34:57):
And Mike Tomlin was a defensive coach.
Speaker 3 (34:58):
So this is the first time we're really an offensive
minded approach to a team that's had an identity based
off of its defensive tenacity. So that's gonna be a
departure from the norm. Already on top of having the
fourth coach in the better part of half a century, right,
so you know you're getting these different approaches, and so
(35:19):
I think it comes off as novel to us because
we just haven't seen it. And to hear a coach
like you said, defensive minded coaches once again, is this
my offensive side being a little snobbish and tooting my
nose up.
Speaker 4 (35:31):
In the air.
Speaker 3 (35:32):
Probably, But defenses see things more plainly because they're highly reactive.
Offense has to be proactive. We have to dictate the
fight to the defense, and so there's a different mindset
when you're looking at being the proactive one versus the
reactive one. Right, defense doesn't know the snapcount offense does. Right,
(35:52):
they can only react to tendencies that they've seen, but
they don't know what's going on. The offense knows what's
going on and what they want to do versus this defense.
So you see the different tactical deployment of quote unquote.
Speaker 4 (36:07):
Philosophies and thought processes in this.
Speaker 3 (36:10):
So it's just it's a fun process because, like you said,
Mike McCarthy's going to give you plane brare bones. Here's
how we're going about it. We have a methodical approach
because when you're the offense, you're dictating, so you have
to be methodical. Defense can change from play to play.
What personnel gets deployed determines what defense we have to run,
(36:30):
and then what blitz we can and can't do, what
coverage we can and can't run. You're not going to
run cover two versus thirteen personnel, right, you know, But
the offense is like, I don't have to make my
thirteen personnel fit cover two. No defense has to adjust
on the fly. We are the ones that come out
with a premeditated approach to this because we know what
(36:51):
our play calls are there's a reactionary So you have
to be more abstract on defense because you don't know
what's going to be thrown at you. You can see
the personnel grouping in the soom, but they line up different.
We talked about this the accordion style last year of
Arthur Smith. Right, thirteen personnel they can turn to eleven.
The defense has to be able to match that, right,
because if they come out in goal line or six
to two defense and you've got all these guys spread
(37:13):
out at eleven, you're gonna be caught with your pants down.
So you have to be more fluid. You don't have
to be as fluid. You can be more rigid on offense.
Speaker 4 (37:21):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (37:21):
Defense is like to think they can dictate to the offense,
and in some ways they can, I mean if they
if they can beat the other guy what they're trying
to do. But again that's you go back to square one.
What are you trying to do? Well, Yeah, we're trying
to beat you at what you're trying to do as
opposed the other way around. What position, Max does the
(37:43):
field general play in football?
Speaker 4 (37:46):
Oh, it's the most important, right, I mean quarterback?
Speaker 3 (37:48):
Yeah, quarterback is the field general and then no, linebacker's
the next one.
Speaker 4 (37:52):
Yes, but but is that he is.
Speaker 2 (37:55):
They can say what they want and they can analogize
if they want, But the field general is not the
middle linebacker. It's not the strong safety, it's not the
outside linebacker. It's the quarterback. Much to your point, why
because they're the ones doing to dictating.
Speaker 3 (38:10):
Yes, they're the ones that have the strategy and they
know what's supposed to be accomplished. Right, defense, disruption, mayhem,
chaos and forcing a team out of their nature, which
you can call dictating, Yeah, you call dictating, but it's
more it's a pleasant surprise when.
Speaker 4 (38:30):
It does happen.
Speaker 2 (38:31):
Esoteric dictation.
Speaker 3 (38:33):
Yes, exactly dictating, you know, by situation. But like you said,
every time you step on the field, of the twenty
two guys present that can step on that field, only
one is controlling everything else. Right, the quarterback calls the play.
Offensive players now have to adjust to what the quarterback
(38:54):
has just called. Defenses then have to adjust off of
what the offensive players have just lined up in and
then what they moved to. And then you have cues
that give you hints. But it's not an open book
test right, you still have to study and.
Speaker 4 (39:08):
Be ready for whatever that is. And here's the other thing.
Speaker 3 (39:12):
There's four to five options on any given pass play
that the quarterback can go to, and you can't cover
all of them. There's going to be a weakness somewhere,
and that's what the offense's job is to do, is
to find that weakness, whether it's giving the quarterback time
to scan the field or whether it's emotion that then
puts you in a position of strength to run the football.
And the defense is reactionary. They're never in the proactive
(39:35):
position to give you that. They might get to a
position of equal strength, but they will never be in
an advantageous position, you know.
Speaker 2 (39:43):
And you can parse out the definition of this just quickly.
I want to remember when I think wal Terris was
the pit coach and defensive defensive lineman for Boston College
defensive end. I think he went on to play for
the Giants. I can't remember, but a good, real, good
pass rusher and they would move him around and he
would line up on the opposite side of the tight end. Right,
(40:06):
great philosophy. We're gonna have him. He's too fast for
these tackles. We don't want him getting chipped. So you
know what Walt Harris did. They would come out.
Speaker 4 (40:16):
In the tight end set this back day they had
tight ends, there's normal. They wait.
Speaker 2 (40:21):
They'd wait to see which side he lined up on,
and then just before the snap they'd moved the tight
end over to the other side every single time. So
now you're dictating where that tight end is going to
line up. But are you really dictating to play because
they just dictated back to it so.
Speaker 4 (40:38):
Exactly so you get to a position of equal strength.
Speaker 2 (40:40):
That's right, never advantageous, that's right then, and then what's
happening now they're doing something that you have to react
to back exactly where it was.
Speaker 4 (40:47):
So just quickly in a couple.
Speaker 2 (40:49):
Of minutes here that we have remaining, max, how are
we going to see the difference between an offensive coach
and a defensive coach? Are we can you answer this
in two minutes? Does this need to wait till till
tomorrow's show?
Speaker 4 (41:03):
Yeah? I mean, I hear it. I'm gonna try it.
I'm gonna try and expound.
Speaker 3 (41:07):
In an expeditious manner. You're just gonna see more attention
to the offense. I think you know before you look
at the head coach, and the head coach has been
that master manager, or he's had an emphasis, right, he's
had a hand into it. Mike McCarthy is an offensive
coach that also has a hand in the offense. We
have not seen that from the head coach before. We've
(41:28):
watched the other places, right, we watched the Cliff Kingsbury's
of the world, watch the Sean mcvays of the world
do those type of jobs, but we've never had it
here in Western pa here at Saint Vincent College for
the Pittsburgh Stealers organization, we have not seen that in
modern times. So it's going to be different, and I
think you see a height in production when more emphasis
is paid towards it. And what has been the question
(41:48):
the last handful, if not longer years, when is the
offense going to run the ball?
Speaker 4 (41:53):
When is the office going to do this?
Speaker 3 (41:54):
When are they going to produce the points that we
think are necessary? Well, this is going to be the
first because we went and got an offensive coach. So
can this be done? Can you get to that level
of production where you're looking at a team and not
necessarily saying apples to apples, there's Cincinnati Bengals, right, because
I think it's a different personnel, it's a different era
for a lot of those guys. But you know, we
(42:17):
know the defense is good and we brought in a
quality guy that you don't have to micro manage. And
now can that attention be paid to the offense because
we've done it in the draft. We have put a
lot of resources into offensive players over the last four years, right,
for sure, three first round offensive offensive tackles along, right,
and then you think about second, third rounds to offensive
(42:37):
pieces have been added, whether it's been a running back,
whether it's been a wide receiver, a center. Right, a
lot of resources, but you didn't really deploy those resources.
Speaker 4 (42:48):
You kind of put it off. Oh, let's bring Arthur
Smith in, Oh.
Speaker 3 (42:51):
I can't remember the other guys and mister Canada, Oh
Canada over there.
Speaker 4 (42:55):
And try to score eighteen and we'll take care of
the rest.
Speaker 3 (42:58):
Yeah, exactly, like we just need to are enough, right,
But no, it's like, no, can we go all gas,
no break on the offensive side of the ball and
put up forty thirty five and then your defense is
getting a blow and we know what they can do
if they have a lead. They can they can put
they can put the stranglehold on you, because the number
of times we did it almost by accident, you know,
we've we've had those moments. You can get into shootouts
(43:19):
every once in a while, but now when you're dictating
the action, you have the weapons and you have a
coach who wants to deploy them and has a philosophy
that's offense first.
Speaker 4 (43:28):
This something is going to be new.
Speaker 3 (43:29):
I can't wait to see it because I think it's
something we haven't seen. So therefore it's kind of a
wait and see. But you're holding your breath and you're
hoping that that's what it's going to be and what
their intention was.
Speaker 4 (43:38):
We're bringing Mike McCarthy in. Gonna be exciting, it really is.
Speaker 2 (43:41):
And uh again, these these times are flying by Max,
these shows because there's just so much to get to. Yeah,
but that's it for today. We're gonna get to much
more coming up over the next couple of days, and
there's a break on Sunday. Back again next week from
the trope. Up next, you're gonna go into with Matt
Williamson and Wes Euler for Max Starks.
Speaker 4 (44:04):
I'm rob king.
Speaker 2 (44:04):
We thank you for being with us today in the
locker room here on this year there's Audio Network
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