July 17, 2025 • 26 mins
Aaron Rodgers is going to be the leader of the offense, but DK Metcalf has the potential to be the biggest difference maker on the new-look offense this season.
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Speaker 1 (00:07):
So we're talking about the impact that Rogers and Metcalf
will have on the show today because Peter schrag Shrekers
said that on Get Up that they were the number one,
in Rogers case, the number four most impactful moves of
the offseason in the NFL. And we ended the episode
talking about like what that impact looks like, and in
terms of Rogers and when it's the quarterback, that obviously
means winning games and winning playoff games. And we talked
(00:30):
about winning that first playoff game and you mentioned the uh, well,
you know what, we're not going to Cinderella run, right,
Like why not feel yourself a little bit? And I
just think that what's been so frustrating for Steelers fans
and what's been so missing over this stretch of losing
playoff games, has been the ability to imagine that, you know,
(00:54):
once the game has started in the playoffs, it's been
over by the end of the first quarter, by halftime
in a lot of cases, and it's like you're basically
just starting the offseason in a very depressing way all
over all, over and over again, like you're Bill Murray
stuck in the time loop. And I think that this team,
(01:15):
like at the very least will give you the ability
in that playoff game to think about a little bit
to maybe win that first round game and then be
up at halftime right in the second in the divisional
round against one of these freak quarterbacks in Baltimore, in
Buffalo and Cincinnati, and you know what, You're at your
house and you're going to the fridge. You're getting one
(01:36):
more beer. You're thinking to yourself, oh my god, Like
we're thirty minutes away from maybe being in the AFC
championship game. And then you lose and then Josh Allen
comes out and beats you or something like that. But
you know what I mean, Like, you just want that
feeling again. I think ASA and I think the team
wants to deliver that feeling, not just for the fans,
but for the team itself. To have that moment of
(01:57):
being in the locks for thirty minutes boys, like third
minutes away from an AFC championship game. Like, and I
do believe that. Well, I don't believe that they will
go on a Cinderella run this year. I don't think
that they will.
Speaker 2 (02:08):
Make that I was trying.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
I do believe that they have better potential to do
that because I think they will be in these games more.
It won't be oh my god, our doors just got
blown off right away.
Speaker 3 (02:19):
Even if your final game of the season in the
playoff ends in a loss, if you get a win
before that one, it's going to feel massively different compared
to when you've gotten to the playoffs in the past
and you've only had a loss. Right even if you
don't make that Cinderella run either to the super Bowl
(02:41):
in the AFC Championship game, if you get one win
under your belt, it's going to make a massive difference.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
I think, yeah, it just kind of flows right, like
like you have to just get that confidence in you
again and be like, oh, we can do this. And look,
I think there is a day this has been kind
of lessened because only one team now gets a team
that's coming off win of a game, like the other
number two seed now has play already in won a
(03:08):
game on the wildcore. But there's a value to being
the team that played on wild card weekend won a
playoff game and has a little bit of momentum going
into the team that just had a bye week and
just kind of has to wake up a little bit
and again in years past, there were two teams that
kind of had to wake up, and we're playing a
team that we're coming off will win. Now it's just
that one seed that draws the lowest seed remaining. But
(03:31):
still like that one seed has to find themselves and
find their sea legs fast because the other team is
coming in like it's old hat almost for them. We
got sixty minutes to playoff ball under our skin already.
So in that sense, yeah, I agree with you. Like
if you are like, say the sixth seed this year,
and you upset your team in the first round and
(03:52):
you're the lowest seed remaining and you're going to the
number one seed, and it's like, oh, we're going to
the number one seed, but we're going to the number
one seed with a little bit of swagger, we have
confidence from a win, and let's go punch them in
the mouth in the first drive. Let's go up seven
to nothing and kind of make the stadium have the
air sucked out of it a little bit, have them
think about it a little bit. And man, we've said
this so many times, like you just want to get
(04:13):
back to that point where well, you want to win
super Bowls obviously, but you also just want to be
at that point where the Steelers just like again, opposing
franchises would see, what do we get in the playoff draw? Oh?
The Steelers like that? That sucks, Like I'm gonna get
my ass kicked, maybe we lose, like if I don't
(04:35):
want this to come down to a field goal. And
the Steelers have been so good in the regular season
for all of this stretch and keeping games muddy and close,
right and making sure that the other teams blink and
being like, you're gonna choke before we choke, because we're
not gonna choke, and we'll have Boswell in this game.
And you'll go home and you'll be listening to Ravens
(04:55):
Nation Radio on the way home and they'll be like,
how did we lose to the Steelers at home? How
did this happen? Again? Because you just kind of hung
in the weeds and hung in the weeds and let
them have the pressure kind of collapse over them. Hasn't
been the case in any of these playoff games. You
hadn't hung in the weeds and hadn't had Buffalo or Baltimore,
Kansas City look up at that scoreboard and look up
(05:16):
at that clock, and kind of goolp have that moment
right where it's like, oh god, no, like they're right
up my butt and if I make one mistake, this
could tip the scales in a way that we won't
be able to get back. Now that the game is
kind of dwindling, So I agree when you said that
Cinderella thing. I think that they are more suited to
(05:37):
at least give that a chance this year than they
have been in years past. And there's just been no
chance of even dreaming really about a run beyond that
first game. And honestly, now that you know, hey it's
the playoffs, what if we go on a run thing
before the wild card round? That has turned I think
in Steeler Nation into just nerves that we're gonna get
our doors blown off again. Like going into that Baltimore
(05:59):
game last year was like a we beat the Ravens.
We do this all the time, Like come on, like
we can win a playoff game, Like we can do this.
It was like we've been playing really bad football. They've
been playing really great football. I don't think this is
gonna go well. And it didn't go well. You know what,
you got to get back to that sense if it's
like you've got that puncher's chance again. And I think
(06:22):
this team is gonna give people that sense, and you
really won't be able to fully feel that way until
they win that playoff game and then get that kind
of get off that schneid. But I do think this
team in the regular season, and maybe the record won't
be much different, but I think their play throughout the
season more consistently will give you a reason to go
into that wild card weekend against whatever opponent is and
(06:43):
not have a oh man, this is gonna get ugly.
I kind of am dreading what's gonna happen. I hope
for the best, but I'm not expecting it and kind
of have a more of a this team is going
to put up a fight in this game. Rogers is
he's gonna be on one. This is probably his last
playoff game, Like, this is going to be good. This
is going to be a tight game, and I think
you're gonna see a lot of evidence throughout the season,
(07:04):
and I think that's part of the change that they
put into this offense, and what they want you to
see is that, no, this team isn't going to just
be that pushover easy win in the first round. Maybe
we do lose in the wildcard round, but it's gonna
be a game that's tight, and it's going to be
a game that makes the other team think about it
as opposed to the other team in the fourth quarter,
Jacob Lately the fourth Lark, they're kicking back, they're drinking game,
and they're like, who we going to we go into Cinci,
(07:25):
We going to Buffalo. They're already making playing I love
the renaissance in Buffalo, Like they're already thinking about the
next city.
Speaker 2 (07:31):
I understand, And you gotta be able.
Speaker 1 (07:32):
To not have that be the case.
Speaker 3 (07:33):
Ironically, the only time that didn't happen was when it
was a one position game in Buffalo when Mason Rudolph
was a quarterback.
Speaker 1 (07:40):
I still, for some reason think they never really stressed
that one though, Like I feel like it was just
like it was.
Speaker 2 (07:45):
A seven point game in the fourth quarter.
Speaker 1 (07:47):
But I also feel like they just were like, that's
Mason Rudolph, We're not gonna lose.
Speaker 3 (07:51):
I get that game, but that that that's kind of
close to the came, but that that kind.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
Of makes the point even further for you. That further
proves point right, because.
Speaker 1 (08:00):
There was no fear of the Steelers right that point, there.
Speaker 3 (08:02):
Was there was okay recognition that, oh, the Stewers are
kind of keeping it close, but it's Mason Rudolpho, Josh Allen.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
There was no tightening of the Bills. It was more
of a hey, let's wake the f up as the Bills,
and I think.
Speaker 3 (08:14):
I think what's separated or what made that the point
differential wider was the Josh Allen like fifty yard touchdown run.
And when you have that kind of play, that just
there's no there's no coming back from that. But I
might push back on you, Tom when you say, what
if you go into Buffalo or Cincinnati or Baltimore, Kansas
City and you play a competitive game all the way
(08:37):
to the end and you'll lose and you just feel better.
I don't know if that's enough.
Speaker 1 (08:43):
I don't know if it's enough. Ultimately, I think you'd
have to say, you know what, you ultimately landed in
the same spot, right, but I think you'd feel a
lot better about it.
Speaker 2 (08:50):
I don't know.
Speaker 1 (08:51):
I would. I just want to be competitive. Well, no,
I want to win. You're right, I want to win.
But I would feel I would still label it as
coming up short. You're correct, but I would be doing
it with more of a smile on my face than
I have been in the past, I guess.
Speaker 3 (09:06):
But then that smile every time I would get a
little perked up by thinking, oh, you remember that great
play the fourth quarter, You're.
Speaker 1 (09:15):
Still in the same spot in another year.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
I would then flash forward to the end of that
game and say, oh, but they still lost.
Speaker 1 (09:21):
But another and then ultimately another year had been added
to the list of not winning a playoff game.
Speaker 3 (09:27):
So like, things can go a messy in that game
and you win and it just be a totally things.
It can be a really ugly game and you win
that game and a much better feeling than if you
played a perfect game.
Speaker 2 (09:40):
So that's what I'm saying. Impact of a playoff win
can have on a team.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
It can really ignite something special and it can make
them go on that Cinderella rund.
Speaker 3 (09:52):
You really hold your head high, you really puff your
chest when you say, yeah, I went into buff I
went into cinc and I'm bloodied, but I ended their season.
Speaker 1 (10:02):
Right, I upset them. Yeah, there's a special, a special
little I think extra juice in that when you go
I not only won a playoff game and end of
the team season. But I upset a team like they
were expecting to be done and now they done and
I'm moving on to the next round. So that's the
impact as far as Rogers is concerned, and wrapping it
(10:23):
into a playoff win. Now, as far as DK is concerned,
for Rogers to have that success and for the team
to have that success, DK's gotta DK's got to push
all pro kind of numbers here.
Speaker 3 (10:35):
Yeah, And that's but that's contingent a lot of how
Rogers performs, right, And I think you know, when we're
talking about Rogers being pretty good at least, look, I
like Johnny Smith being another weapon and him and Friarmuth
should be great.
Speaker 1 (10:48):
And Calvin Austin had a good year last year. I
expect him to be pretty solid. We're talking about Peter
Schreger a lot today too. Shreggy Shreg said look out
on get Up, he said, look out for Calvin Austin
this year as a sleeper picking like your fantasy leagues,
as somebody in a late round.
Speaker 3 (11:00):
I don't know if I am floating any early round
draft capital on any Steelers a late round.
Speaker 1 (11:07):
I mean there's a sleeper kind of thing, but had
a good year last year, and maybe he becomes kind
of like a safety blanket for Aaron, like someone is
kind of always there, like after a few weeks. Rochers
like nineteen's always kind of open, Like I'm just gonna
keep going to him. But DK's got to be like
a thousand, one hundred yards, you know what I mean,
Like five, six, seven, eight touchdowns. Oh yeah, he's gotta have.
Speaker 3 (11:31):
Its gotta be No, he's got to get to if
not six or exceed, he's got a thousand yards and
double digit touchdowns like those are the marks for him.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
And then as far as like impact on a game
to game basis, what I'm really looking forward to seeing
out of him is seeing that receiver that can just
kind of cut you up for a full sixty minutes
and have a stat line at the end of the
game that's like eleven catches, one hundred and thirty yards
and excuse me, and a touchdown. And you've seen not
(12:02):
to that kind of extent, but you've seen Deontay Johnson
a couple of years ago have a game like that, right,
big volume type of catches or nine to ten catch
you to death. But George Pickens then came onto the
scene and you were like, well, this guy's talent is
just different from Deontay and this could be a real
legitimate top five receiver in the NFL. And he had
(12:24):
the highlight reel there's no question about that. But what
always irked me is that you never got that true
number one type of performance where it was like, I'm
targeting him fifteen times, he's catching twelve of them, and
it's just like, oh my god, it's it's Pickings again
and Pickens again and Picks And when you watch the
Bengals and you watch the Vikings, you see like, Chase again,
(12:48):
there's another pass, the Chase Chase up the field, Chase, Chase, Chase, Chase,
Chase and Jefferson and Jefferson and Jefferson and Jefferson, and
they just kind of like have those games where they're
just unstoppable and the quarterback locks in on them and
it's just working and there's just nothing that the defense
can do against it. And as much as I love
George Pickens making those highlight reel catches and having the big,
(13:09):
you know, slants that he would take to the house
or the deep balls that he would take to the
house or get close to the end zone on I
was always missing or feeling like it was lacking that
kind of.
Speaker 4 (13:20):
Just body blow, body blow, bodyblow, bodyblow, bloody bolt. There's
the right hook, fifty yard er over the middle, body blow,
body blow, blo. But you know what I mean, just
all really having a high volume type of game. And
I think that's where DK Metcalf can come in and
have impact in that sense, is that he can be
that type of guy. And he's been that type of guy,
(13:40):
whether it's been with Gino Smith, whether it was early
in his career with Russell Wilson.
Speaker 1 (13:44):
He can catch nine balls, he can catch ten balls.
I mean, shoot, do you remember earlier this year it
was either Nakua or Cup the Rams Man. I'm not
prepared for this, but it just popped in my head.
They were playing a team early in the season last year.
I think it might have been the Let's just go
with that, Okay, that was week one, Like they targeted
(14:05):
Cup or Naku. I can't remember which one was. Almost
twenty times I feel like, yeah, like I'll look up
the box score right now and just confirm it. But
Stafford just found his number one receiver and just locked
the hell in for an entire game and they had
a lot of success in that game doing so. So
(14:27):
that's something that I think has been lacking with the Steelers.
It's just you've had the talent. You've had the talent
for that number one type of player, but you've never
really seen it play out that way on a consistent basis.
And I think DK Metcalf can make that play out
more on a consistent basis. It was Week one against
(14:48):
the Lions. The Rams took him to overtime. In that game,
Cooper Cup had twenty one target and he had fourteen catches.
He had fourteen catches one hundred and ten yards four
It doesn't have to be that extreme, but that's the
stat line I'm looking for from a number one wide receiver.
Is this high volume catches yards a tuddy along of
(15:10):
twenty one. Right, So it wasn't a huge chunk play,
but it was nice, but he was just kind of
giving it to you slow, very slow, and like.
Speaker 2 (15:18):
And the thing about DK is he's physical enough.
Speaker 1 (15:20):
That he can take it right absolutely yeah, oh one
hundred percent. And and where he might not be, you know,
like a Cooper Cup route runner where he's just like
cutting you up.
Speaker 3 (15:30):
Like he's strong, used that body and shield you off.
Like DK's lighting guys up out there as a receiver.
No one's out there. There are very let's just say this,
there are very few guys out there who are in
the secondary along or even in the linebacker position that
are physically built enough to light up DK.
Speaker 1 (15:48):
Right, oh yeah, And I think that that's another thing
that he brings to the table impact wise, is that
the team wants to get bigger. Just they want to
look like they're more intimidating coming off the bus, for
lack of a better way of putting it. And I'm
not saying that they have a bunch of guys that
you know, the typical like off the bus, Sky well
(16:08):
it just looks good, but he's soft on the field,
they don't. I'm saying like, they just want to have
that big, intimidating bully kind of presence.
Speaker 3 (16:15):
And DK adds to that, adds as to that, and
then Pat and Darnell.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
Yeah, and like so you have now a wide receiver
in DK that you know when you go into like
a thirteen personnel or something, and there's only one wide
receiver on the field. He's still massive as far as
that just total mass that you have. And look, there
are gonna be teams like the Ravens are gonna be
fine when they have to handle that stuff. The Eagles,
if you ever played them, which I hope we do
(16:43):
because that would mean the Super Bowl, you would get
them to match up pretty well. Like there's teams that
have the beef that can go. But there's a lot
of teams that I think will just line up against
Steelers and be like, if things work well and the
Steelers don't shoot themselves in the foot offensively, they'll just
be like they're too big, Like they're just too big.
This is just a giant mass of a wall that's
coming towards us every play, and you get you get
(17:03):
that toss play going that Arthur Smith loves. Imagine DK
Metcalf on the outside now leading that blocking that defensive back,
ceiling an edge for the running back to cut up.
Whereas opposed to George Pickens last year would sometimes just
quit on plays and just wouldn't block right, would just
go through the motions on stuff.
Speaker 3 (17:19):
And it was more so it was more impactful than
him just not trying it just ruined the play too,
because you saw the difference in his stature when he
was when he knew he was getting the ball versus
when he wasn't. And when he wasn't in the ball,
you could see him at the lion of scrimmage not
really line up professionally, and that kind of signal to
the defense. Okay, let's folk, let's shift our focus away
(17:41):
from George and on to someone else, because clearly he's
not getting the football.
Speaker 1 (17:45):
You know what, I don't really get either. So obviously,
you know, you score the touchdowns, you make the highlight
reel catches, you get on Sports Center. That's a big deal, right,
That's what you want, and that's what these receivers are after,
and they want to, you know, get their catches. They
want to get their targets. But like anytime you see
a receiver lay a block like that or any like
I remember in the Steelers game a couple of years
ago against the Niners an opening week, you remember Ayuk
(18:06):
came screaming down the field to block for Christian McCaffrey
on a touchdown. Like anytime you see that, like people
like hardcore football people or even Sports Center or something
they show it all the time, and then you get
over big time in the football like community community. It's
like that guy is just a different level of a player.
And it's almost like kind of being like the comedians comedian,
you know what I mean. Like it's just like no
(18:27):
one would ever think of this guy as the top
dog and going on in Madison Square Garden. But the
guy who's performing on stage at Madison Square Garden would
think of this guy and go see him in a
poorly lit seller in some basement somewhere and think he's
the smartest, funniest guy he's ever met in his life.
Maybe that's a little bit of a weird comparison, but
I'm just saying like they sometimes these receivers, like a Pickens,
I feel like they just get enamored with the just
(18:48):
receiving part of the game, and like that's how you
make your name for yourself. But you become like a
nasty blocker. You get you have a couple of highlight
pancake around the field, You get a rep and in
like the football circle, Like I'm not talking about the media,
like the people that know, like inside the football world,
like the bubble, the NFL scouts, the community, the GMS,
the front offices. You're a different kind of player in
(19:09):
their eyes now, like your rep is just a little
bit different. It's like, well, we don't have to worry
about really attitude or commitment to this guy because I
have seven plays here on film where the ball was
going to the opposite end of the field and he
was still roughing up his defensive back. So I think
impact wise with dk Metchf that's the type of guy
you're getting in here too, is someone that's just going
to be willing to play football and not just be
(19:30):
out there for his receiving threat. And then ultimately, and
we end on this one, it is just that receiving
threat too, Like he is a great NFL wide receiver,
has the potential to really be a superstar and be
an all Pro type of player. The big body is
just something that's so unique in the NFL, and I
(19:52):
think so unique to the point where he remember fell
in the draft and they can get drafted in the
first round despite being such a specimen and testing well.
And I think that maybe there was a little bit
of people scared right of saying, like this is a
risk he's got a tight end body, but he's a wider,
but he can't play tight end because he's too fast
(20:13):
and he's too good at catching the ball, and he
doesn't want to have any inclination of being like, you know,
a hybrid tight end, you know what I mean, like
kind of just like a pass catching tight end. Like
now he's a wide receiver, and I wonder if teams
were kind of shot off and being like he's almost
too big for that, like is that gonna work? Seattle
takes him. He takes that picture with Pete Carroll with
their shirts off, and the.
Speaker 2 (20:33):
Rest I forgot about.
Speaker 1 (20:34):
The rest is history. I mean, he's an impactful NFL
player from week one of his rookie season. Can established
a great connection with Russell Wilson and had great seasons
in Seattle. Now he comes to Pittsburgh, gets his big
payday and and as a quarterback has And that's I
think the thing that it has really unlocked what his
(20:54):
impact can be.
Speaker 3 (20:55):
Because if we had gotten that deal done and that
came first, and then never signed Aaron Rodgers, I think
it'd be a lot.
Speaker 2 (21:04):
Of wishful thinking for DK, don't you agree? For this year?
It'd be DK so talented? Why aren't we seeing him
more and more in the stat sheet?
Speaker 3 (21:12):
We're asking that question, but we kind of know the
answers because the guy throwing him the ball as Mason Rudolph.
And even though we were high on Mason Rudolph, we
kind of had to be because there was no one
else on the team that was really capable of competing
with him for that first quarterback spot on the roster.
Speaker 2 (21:27):
On the depth chart point you got Aaron.
Speaker 3 (21:28):
Rodgers, it was, okay, this is going to unlock DK
Metcalf in the Steelers offense this season.
Speaker 1 (21:35):
I agree. And then as far as some of the
other acquisitions on offense, like the Caleb Johnson the impact
that he can have, and John Smith and the impact
that he can have. You know, we headlined with Rogers
and Metcalf because they got national attention, but those two
could be as valuable as impactful additions as the DK
and the Rodgers one too. I mean, Johnson could just
(21:57):
bring something to the running game again on those topics,
a spark, something that is different from nausey, get a
little bit different from nauge, something a little bit better
than nause maybe, and then all of a sudden you've
got a great tandem there and then with John new Smith.
I mean he is a tight end, but as we
did when we did our rankings the other week, like
he is a top tight end in the league, top five,
(22:20):
you could talk yourself into him right on the edge
of that.
Speaker 3 (22:24):
Again, I keep referencing this statistically, he was a top
top five tight end last year.
Speaker 1 (22:30):
Exactly. And I think that that again, as I kind
of said this on Tuesday's episode, that makes you feel
more optimistic for this season and going at it with
the approach of well, maybe one of our tight ends
can become a quarterback, can become a serious difference in
passing game, a difference maker in the passing game. Maybe
(22:50):
we can go that route. And last year you bought
into it, it didn't come to fruition. But this year
you've added some extra to your room, and you've added
that Pro Bowl player to your room, and it gives
me a little bit more confidence that he can have
some serious impact. And I don't mean to ignore Johnny
Smith or John Smith. I don't mean to ignore Jalen
(23:12):
Ramsey at all, because I think he has a healthy
amount of impact on that defensive side of the ball
as well, and I wonder if Ramsey kind of feels
like a sense of rejuvenation coming to Pittsburgh because Miami.
Miami wasn't in a bad spot, but it just kind
of felt like, if you're a player there, it's hard
to trust what two is going to stay healthy and
(23:35):
that things are going to work out perfectly in Miami.
And I feel like, maybe he comes to Pittsburgh again.
It's not like he's coming to It's not like when
he went to Jacksonville to the Rams right where he's
going to a legitimate Super Bowl contender and he feels great.
But maybe it comes to Pittsburgh and he's like, well,
at least they're in more of a stable, better spot.
And it's weird to say that when one has a
franchise quarterback and one has a Mercenaryan Rodgers, but they're
(23:57):
in a more stable spot health wise as far as
their quarterback is concerned, as opposed to Tua. And I
bet you Ramsey, even though it might not work out,
likes the idea of joining a team that has a
lot and a Hayward and Jaran high Smith and.
Speaker 2 (24:16):
H just other guys to play on Rogers. You remember
remember two years ago.
Speaker 1 (24:21):
It feels sorry, but it feels more like his Rams
team with the star power.
Speaker 2 (24:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (24:25):
I was about to say, you remember two years ago
when they when the Dolphins dish Christian Wilkins to the Raiders.
Speaker 2 (24:31):
We were saying, what do you do?
Speaker 3 (24:32):
It is the only other guy you have on your
defense besides Van Ginkel, who they then dished also to Minnesota.
And Ramsey like, why are you getting rid of the
very few defensively talented guys you have on your team?
Speaker 2 (24:47):
I don't know, And so I think you're right. I
think you're I think that that carries beyond just Ramsey.
Speaker 3 (24:52):
I think there are guys like Sleigh, like the inside
linebackers who we talked about earlier this week, like the
like Juwan Thornhill who we talked about earlier this week,
Just guys who are not going to be the stars,
but they're playing next to so many talented guys that
it's going to be hard for them to really let
the ball down so greatly because there's just so much
(25:15):
talent surrounding them. And I think Jillian Ramsey, you know,
like you said, it was a weird year in Miami,
still talented, but you just didn't see it because there
was no one there.
Speaker 2 (25:25):
To help them.
Speaker 3 (25:26):
Now he's got ten guys are maybe nine if you
don't want to include Thornhill. Nine guys were also starting
on that defense that are going to be impactful, right, Yes,
I legitimately think that starting defense is ten guys deep.
And then that does not include the guys behind those
(25:46):
starters in the depth chart. Just the eleven guys you
have on the field to start the season, ten of
them are going to be impact players.
Speaker 1 (25:54):
I completely agree with that. If health permits it, I
think that they should be and if they live up
to what their potential should be this year, all right,
when we come back, there was another rage bait list
that came out there, this one, this one more historical
context that yeah really yeah yeah, And I I I
I think this was legitimately rage bait. Like I think
(26:14):
this legitimately was made to make Steelers fans mad or.
Speaker 2 (26:18):
Do you think there's another case that they just forgot?
Speaker 1 (26:20):
I don't think so. I think they were really twisting
the knife with some of the teams that made it here.
So we'll talk about that next. We'll keep uh talking
about maybe some stuff that we're looking forward to in
training camp. As that is right now, this time, this
time next week, this time next week, there's gonna be
a couple hours away from their first practice.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
They report on Wednesday.
Speaker 1 (26:39):
Yes, yeah, moving days Wednesday, So we'll talk about that
when we come back. It's Tom Offerman, Jacob Breck. It's
a Steelers standard on Steelers Nation Radio and Steelers Audio Network.
So we're talking about the impact that Rogers and Metcalf
will have on the show today because Peter schrag Shrekers
said that on Get Up that they were the number one,
in Rogers case, the number four most impactful moves of
the offseason in the NFL. And we ended the episode
talking about like what that impact looks like, and in
terms of Rogers and when it's the quarterback, that obviously
means winning games and winning playoff games. And we talked
(00:30):
about winning that first playoff game and you mentioned the uh, well,
you know what, we're not going to Cinderella run, right,
Like why not feel yourself a little bit? And I
just think that what's been so frustrating for Steelers fans
and what's been so missing over this stretch of losing
playoff games, has been the ability to imagine that, you know,
(00:54):
once the game has started in the playoffs, it's been
over by the end of the first quarter, by halftime
in a lot of cases, and it's like you're basically
just starting the offseason in a very depressing way all
over all, over and over again, like you're Bill Murray
stuck in the time loop. And I think that this team,
(01:15):
like at the very least will give you the ability
in that playoff game to think about a little bit
to maybe win that first round game and then be
up at halftime right in the second in the divisional
round against one of these freak quarterbacks in Baltimore, in
Buffalo and Cincinnati, and you know what, You're at your
house and you're going to the fridge. You're getting one
(01:36):
more beer. You're thinking to yourself, oh my god, Like
we're thirty minutes away from maybe being in the AFC
championship game. And then you lose and then Josh Allen
comes out and beats you or something like that. But
you know what I mean, Like, you just want that
feeling again. I think ASA and I think the team
wants to deliver that feeling, not just for the fans,
but for the team itself. To have that moment of
(01:57):
being in the locks for thirty minutes boys, like third
minutes away from an AFC championship game. Like, and I
do believe that. Well, I don't believe that they will
go on a Cinderella run this year. I don't think
that they will.
Speaker 2 (02:08):
Make that I was trying.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
I do believe that they have better potential to do
that because I think they will be in these games more.
It won't be oh my god, our doors just got
blown off right away.
Speaker 3 (02:19):
Even if your final game of the season in the
playoff ends in a loss, if you get a win
before that one, it's going to feel massively different compared
to when you've gotten to the playoffs in the past
and you've only had a loss. Right even if you
don't make that Cinderella run either to the super Bowl
(02:41):
in the AFC Championship game, if you get one win
under your belt, it's going to make a massive difference.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
I think, yeah, it just kind of flows right, like
like you have to just get that confidence in you
again and be like, oh, we can do this. And look,
I think there is a day this has been kind
of lessened because only one team now gets a team
that's coming off win of a game, like the other
number two seed now has play already in won a
(03:08):
game on the wildcore. But there's a value to being
the team that played on wild card weekend won a
playoff game and has a little bit of momentum going
into the team that just had a bye week and
just kind of has to wake up a little bit
and again in years past, there were two teams that
kind of had to wake up, and we're playing a
team that we're coming off will win. Now it's just
that one seed that draws the lowest seed remaining. But
(03:31):
still like that one seed has to find themselves and
find their sea legs fast because the other team is
coming in like it's old hat almost for them. We
got sixty minutes to playoff ball under our skin already.
So in that sense, yeah, I agree with you. Like
if you are like, say the sixth seed this year,
and you upset your team in the first round and
(03:52):
you're the lowest seed remaining and you're going to the
number one seed, and it's like, oh, we're going to
the number one seed, but we're going to the number
one seed with a little bit of swagger, we have
confidence from a win, and let's go punch them in
the mouth in the first drive. Let's go up seven
to nothing and kind of make the stadium have the
air sucked out of it a little bit, have them
think about it a little bit. And man, we've said
this so many times, like you just want to get
(04:13):
back to that point where well, you want to win
super Bowls obviously, but you also just want to be
at that point where the Steelers just like again, opposing
franchises would see, what do we get in the playoff draw? Oh?
The Steelers like that? That sucks, Like I'm gonna get
my ass kicked, maybe we lose, like if I don't
(04:35):
want this to come down to a field goal. And
the Steelers have been so good in the regular season
for all of this stretch and keeping games muddy and close,
right and making sure that the other teams blink and
being like, you're gonna choke before we choke, because we're
not gonna choke, and we'll have Boswell in this game.
And you'll go home and you'll be listening to Ravens
(04:55):
Nation Radio on the way home and they'll be like,
how did we lose to the Steelers at home? How
did this happen? Again? Because you just kind of hung
in the weeds and hung in the weeds and let
them have the pressure kind of collapse over them. Hasn't
been the case in any of these playoff games. You
hadn't hung in the weeds and hadn't had Buffalo or Baltimore,
Kansas City look up at that scoreboard and look up
(05:16):
at that clock, and kind of goolp have that moment
right where it's like, oh god, no, like they're right
up my butt and if I make one mistake, this
could tip the scales in a way that we won't
be able to get back. Now that the game is
kind of dwindling, So I agree when you said that
Cinderella thing. I think that they are more suited to
(05:37):
at least give that a chance this year than they
have been in years past. And there's just been no
chance of even dreaming really about a run beyond that
first game. And honestly, now that you know, hey it's
the playoffs, what if we go on a run thing
before the wild card round? That has turned I think
in Steeler Nation into just nerves that we're gonna get
our doors blown off again. Like going into that Baltimore
(05:59):
game last year was like a we beat the Ravens.
We do this all the time, Like come on, like
we can win a playoff game, Like we can do this.
It was like we've been playing really bad football. They've
been playing really great football. I don't think this is
gonna go well. And it didn't go well. You know what,
you got to get back to that sense if it's
like you've got that puncher's chance again. And I think
(06:22):
this team is gonna give people that sense, and you
really won't be able to fully feel that way until
they win that playoff game and then get that kind
of get off that schneid. But I do think this
team in the regular season, and maybe the record won't
be much different, but I think their play throughout the
season more consistently will give you a reason to go
into that wild card weekend against whatever opponent is and
(06:43):
not have a oh man, this is gonna get ugly.
I kind of am dreading what's gonna happen. I hope
for the best, but I'm not expecting it and kind
of have a more of a this team is going
to put up a fight in this game. Rogers is
he's gonna be on one. This is probably his last
playoff game, Like, this is going to be good. This
is going to be a tight game, and I think
you're gonna see a lot of evidence throughout the season,
(07:04):
and I think that's part of the change that they
put into this offense, and what they want you to
see is that, no, this team isn't going to just
be that pushover easy win in the first round. Maybe
we do lose in the wildcard round, but it's gonna
be a game that's tight, and it's going to be
a game that makes the other team think about it
as opposed to the other team in the fourth quarter,
Jacob Lately the fourth Lark, they're kicking back, they're drinking game,
and they're like, who we going to we go into Cinci,
(07:25):
We going to Buffalo. They're already making playing I love
the renaissance in Buffalo, Like they're already thinking about the
next city.
Speaker 2 (07:31):
I understand, And you gotta be able.
Speaker 1 (07:32):
To not have that be the case.
Speaker 3 (07:33):
Ironically, the only time that didn't happen was when it
was a one position game in Buffalo when Mason Rudolph
was a quarterback.
Speaker 1 (07:40):
I still, for some reason think they never really stressed
that one though, Like I feel like it was just
like it was.
Speaker 2 (07:45):
A seven point game in the fourth quarter.
Speaker 1 (07:47):
But I also feel like they just were like, that's
Mason Rudolph, We're not gonna lose.
Speaker 3 (07:51):
I get that game, but that that that's kind of
close to the came, but that that kind.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
Of makes the point even further for you. That further
proves point right, because.
Speaker 1 (08:00):
There was no fear of the Steelers right that point, there.
Speaker 3 (08:02):
Was there was okay recognition that, oh, the Stewers are
kind of keeping it close, but it's Mason Rudolpho, Josh Allen.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
There was no tightening of the Bills. It was more
of a hey, let's wake the f up as the Bills,
and I think.
Speaker 3 (08:14):
I think what's separated or what made that the point
differential wider was the Josh Allen like fifty yard touchdown run.
And when you have that kind of play, that just
there's no there's no coming back from that. But I
might push back on you, Tom when you say, what
if you go into Buffalo or Cincinnati or Baltimore, Kansas
City and you play a competitive game all the way
(08:37):
to the end and you'll lose and you just feel better.
I don't know if that's enough.
Speaker 1 (08:43):
I don't know if it's enough. Ultimately, I think you'd
have to say, you know what, you ultimately landed in
the same spot, right, but I think you'd feel a
lot better about it.
Speaker 2 (08:50):
I don't know.
Speaker 1 (08:51):
I would. I just want to be competitive. Well, no,
I want to win. You're right, I want to win.
But I would feel I would still label it as
coming up short. You're correct, but I would be doing
it with more of a smile on my face than
I have been in the past, I guess.
Speaker 3 (09:06):
But then that smile every time I would get a
little perked up by thinking, oh, you remember that great
play the fourth quarter, You're.
Speaker 1 (09:15):
Still in the same spot in another year.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
I would then flash forward to the end of that
game and say, oh, but they still lost.
Speaker 1 (09:21):
But another and then ultimately another year had been added
to the list of not winning a playoff game.
Speaker 3 (09:27):
So like, things can go a messy in that game
and you win and it just be a totally things.
It can be a really ugly game and you win
that game and a much better feeling than if you
played a perfect game.
Speaker 2 (09:40):
So that's what I'm saying. Impact of a playoff win
can have on a team.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
It can really ignite something special and it can make
them go on that Cinderella rund.
Speaker 3 (09:52):
You really hold your head high, you really puff your
chest when you say, yeah, I went into buff I
went into cinc and I'm bloodied, but I ended their season.
Speaker 1 (10:02):
Right, I upset them. Yeah, there's a special, a special
little I think extra juice in that when you go
I not only won a playoff game and end of
the team season. But I upset a team like they
were expecting to be done and now they done and
I'm moving on to the next round. So that's the
impact as far as Rogers is concerned, and wrapping it
(10:23):
into a playoff win. Now, as far as DK is concerned,
for Rogers to have that success and for the team
to have that success, DK's gotta DK's got to push
all pro kind of numbers here.
Speaker 3 (10:35):
Yeah, And that's but that's contingent a lot of how
Rogers performs, right, And I think you know, when we're
talking about Rogers being pretty good at least, look, I
like Johnny Smith being another weapon and him and Friarmuth
should be great.
Speaker 1 (10:48):
And Calvin Austin had a good year last year. I
expect him to be pretty solid. We're talking about Peter
Schreger a lot today too. Shreggy Shreg said look out
on get Up, he said, look out for Calvin Austin
this year as a sleeper picking like your fantasy leagues,
as somebody in a late round.
Speaker 3 (11:00):
I don't know if I am floating any early round
draft capital on any Steelers a late round.
Speaker 1 (11:07):
I mean there's a sleeper kind of thing, but had
a good year last year, and maybe he becomes kind
of like a safety blanket for Aaron, like someone is
kind of always there, like after a few weeks. Rochers
like nineteen's always kind of open, Like I'm just gonna
keep going to him. But DK's got to be like
a thousand, one hundred yards, you know what I mean,
Like five, six, seven, eight touchdowns. Oh yeah, he's gotta have.
Speaker 3 (11:31):
Its gotta be No, he's got to get to if
not six or exceed, he's got a thousand yards and
double digit touchdowns like those are the marks for him.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
And then as far as like impact on a game
to game basis, what I'm really looking forward to seeing
out of him is seeing that receiver that can just
kind of cut you up for a full sixty minutes
and have a stat line at the end of the
game that's like eleven catches, one hundred and thirty yards
and excuse me, and a touchdown. And you've seen not
(12:02):
to that kind of extent, but you've seen Deontay Johnson
a couple of years ago have a game like that, right,
big volume type of catches or nine to ten catch
you to death. But George Pickens then came onto the
scene and you were like, well, this guy's talent is
just different from Deontay and this could be a real
legitimate top five receiver in the NFL. And he had
(12:24):
the highlight reel there's no question about that. But what
always irked me is that you never got that true
number one type of performance where it was like, I'm
targeting him fifteen times, he's catching twelve of them, and
it's just like, oh my god, it's it's Pickings again
and Pickens again and Picks And when you watch the
Bengals and you watch the Vikings, you see like, Chase again,
(12:48):
there's another pass, the Chase Chase up the field, Chase, Chase, Chase, Chase,
Chase and Jefferson and Jefferson and Jefferson and Jefferson, and
they just kind of like have those games where they're
just unstoppable and the quarterback locks in on them and
it's just working and there's just nothing that the defense
can do against it. And as much as I love
George Pickens making those highlight reel catches and having the big,
(13:09):
you know, slants that he would take to the house
or the deep balls that he would take to the
house or get close to the end zone on I
was always missing or feeling like it was lacking that
kind of.
Speaker 4 (13:20):
Just body blow, body blow, bodyblow, bodyblow, bloody bolt. There's
the right hook, fifty yard er over the middle, body blow,
body blow, blo. But you know what I mean, just
all really having a high volume type of game. And
I think that's where DK Metcalf can come in and
have impact in that sense, is that he can be
that type of guy. And he's been that type of guy,
(13:40):
whether it's been with Gino Smith, whether it was early
in his career with Russell Wilson.
Speaker 1 (13:44):
He can catch nine balls, he can catch ten balls.
I mean, shoot, do you remember earlier this year it
was either Nakua or Cup the Rams Man. I'm not
prepared for this, but it just popped in my head.
They were playing a team early in the season last year.
I think it might have been the Let's just go
with that, Okay, that was week one, Like they targeted
(14:05):
Cup or Naku. I can't remember which one was. Almost
twenty times I feel like, yeah, like I'll look up
the box score right now and just confirm it. But
Stafford just found his number one receiver and just locked
the hell in for an entire game and they had
a lot of success in that game doing so. So
(14:27):
that's something that I think has been lacking with the Steelers.
It's just you've had the talent. You've had the talent
for that number one type of player, but you've never
really seen it play out that way on a consistent basis.
And I think DK Metcalf can make that play out
more on a consistent basis. It was Week one against
(14:48):
the Lions. The Rams took him to overtime. In that game,
Cooper Cup had twenty one target and he had fourteen catches.
He had fourteen catches one hundred and ten yards four
It doesn't have to be that extreme, but that's the
stat line I'm looking for from a number one wide receiver.
Is this high volume catches yards a tuddy along of
(15:10):
twenty one. Right, So it wasn't a huge chunk play,
but it was nice, but he was just kind of
giving it to you slow, very slow, and like.
Speaker 2 (15:18):
And the thing about DK is he's physical enough.
Speaker 1 (15:20):
That he can take it right absolutely yeah, oh one
hundred percent. And and where he might not be, you know,
like a Cooper Cup route runner where he's just like
cutting you up.
Speaker 3 (15:30):
Like he's strong, used that body and shield you off.
Like DK's lighting guys up out there as a receiver.
No one's out there. There are very let's just say this,
there are very few guys out there who are in
the secondary along or even in the linebacker position that
are physically built enough to light up DK.
Speaker 1 (15:48):
Right, oh yeah, And I think that that's another thing
that he brings to the table impact wise, is that
the team wants to get bigger. Just they want to
look like they're more intimidating coming off the bus, for
lack of a better way of putting it. And I'm
not saying that they have a bunch of guys that
you know, the typical like off the bus, Sky well
(16:08):
it just looks good, but he's soft on the field,
they don't. I'm saying like, they just want to have
that big, intimidating bully kind of presence.
Speaker 3 (16:15):
And DK adds to that, adds as to that, and
then Pat and Darnell.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
Yeah, and like so you have now a wide receiver
in DK that you know when you go into like
a thirteen personnel or something, and there's only one wide
receiver on the field. He's still massive as far as
that just total mass that you have. And look, there
are gonna be teams like the Ravens are gonna be
fine when they have to handle that stuff. The Eagles,
if you ever played them, which I hope we do
(16:43):
because that would mean the Super Bowl, you would get
them to match up pretty well. Like there's teams that
have the beef that can go. But there's a lot
of teams that I think will just line up against
Steelers and be like, if things work well and the
Steelers don't shoot themselves in the foot offensively, they'll just
be like they're too big, Like they're just too big.
This is just a giant mass of a wall that's
coming towards us every play, and you get you get
(17:03):
that toss play going that Arthur Smith loves. Imagine DK
Metcalf on the outside now leading that blocking that defensive back,
ceiling an edge for the running back to cut up.
Whereas opposed to George Pickens last year would sometimes just
quit on plays and just wouldn't block right, would just
go through the motions on stuff.
Speaker 3 (17:19):
And it was more so it was more impactful than
him just not trying it just ruined the play too,
because you saw the difference in his stature when he
was when he knew he was getting the ball versus
when he wasn't. And when he wasn't in the ball,
you could see him at the lion of scrimmage not
really line up professionally, and that kind of signal to
the defense. Okay, let's folk, let's shift our focus away
(17:41):
from George and on to someone else, because clearly he's
not getting the football.
Speaker 1 (17:45):
You know what, I don't really get either. So obviously,
you know, you score the touchdowns, you make the highlight
reel catches, you get on Sports Center. That's a big deal, right,
That's what you want, and that's what these receivers are after,
and they want to, you know, get their catches. They
want to get their targets. But like anytime you see
a receiver lay a block like that or any like
I remember in the Steelers game a couple of years
ago against the Niners an opening week, you remember Ayuk
(18:06):
came screaming down the field to block for Christian McCaffrey
on a touchdown. Like anytime you see that, like people
like hardcore football people or even Sports Center or something
they show it all the time, and then you get
over big time in the football like community community. It's
like that guy is just a different level of a player.
And it's almost like kind of being like the comedians comedian,
you know what I mean. Like it's just like no
(18:27):
one would ever think of this guy as the top
dog and going on in Madison Square Garden. But the
guy who's performing on stage at Madison Square Garden would
think of this guy and go see him in a
poorly lit seller in some basement somewhere and think he's
the smartest, funniest guy he's ever met in his life.
Maybe that's a little bit of a weird comparison, but
I'm just saying like they sometimes these receivers, like a Pickens,
I feel like they just get enamored with the just
(18:48):
receiving part of the game, and like that's how you
make your name for yourself. But you become like a
nasty blocker. You get you have a couple of highlight
pancake around the field, You get a rep and in
like the football circle, Like I'm not talking about the media,
like the people that know, like inside the football world,
like the bubble, the NFL scouts, the community, the GMS,
the front offices. You're a different kind of player in
(19:09):
their eyes now, like your rep is just a little
bit different. It's like, well, we don't have to worry
about really attitude or commitment to this guy because I
have seven plays here on film where the ball was
going to the opposite end of the field and he
was still roughing up his defensive back. So I think
impact wise with dk Metchf that's the type of guy
you're getting in here too, is someone that's just going
to be willing to play football and not just be
(19:30):
out there for his receiving threat. And then ultimately, and
we end on this one, it is just that receiving
threat too, Like he is a great NFL wide receiver,
has the potential to really be a superstar and be
an all Pro type of player. The big body is
just something that's so unique in the NFL, and I
(19:52):
think so unique to the point where he remember fell
in the draft and they can get drafted in the
first round despite being such a specimen and testing well.
And I think that maybe there was a little bit
of people scared right of saying, like this is a
risk he's got a tight end body, but he's a wider,
but he can't play tight end because he's too fast
(20:13):
and he's too good at catching the ball, and he
doesn't want to have any inclination of being like, you know,
a hybrid tight end, you know what I mean, like
kind of just like a pass catching tight end. Like
now he's a wide receiver, and I wonder if teams
were kind of shot off and being like he's almost
too big for that, like is that gonna work? Seattle
takes him. He takes that picture with Pete Carroll with
their shirts off, and the.
Speaker 2 (20:33):
Rest I forgot about.
Speaker 1 (20:34):
The rest is history. I mean, he's an impactful NFL
player from week one of his rookie season. Can established
a great connection with Russell Wilson and had great seasons
in Seattle. Now he comes to Pittsburgh, gets his big
payday and and as a quarterback has And that's I
think the thing that it has really unlocked what his
(20:54):
impact can be.
Speaker 3 (20:55):
Because if we had gotten that deal done and that
came first, and then never signed Aaron Rodgers, I think
it'd be a lot.
Speaker 2 (21:04):
Of wishful thinking for DK, don't you agree? For this year?
It'd be DK so talented? Why aren't we seeing him
more and more in the stat sheet?
Speaker 3 (21:12):
We're asking that question, but we kind of know the
answers because the guy throwing him the ball as Mason Rudolph.
And even though we were high on Mason Rudolph, we
kind of had to be because there was no one
else on the team that was really capable of competing
with him for that first quarterback spot on the roster.
Speaker 2 (21:27):
On the depth chart point you got Aaron.
Speaker 3 (21:28):
Rodgers, it was, okay, this is going to unlock DK
Metcalf in the Steelers offense this season.
Speaker 1 (21:35):
I agree. And then as far as some of the
other acquisitions on offense, like the Caleb Johnson the impact
that he can have, and John Smith and the impact
that he can have. You know, we headlined with Rogers
and Metcalf because they got national attention, but those two
could be as valuable as impactful additions as the DK
and the Rodgers one too. I mean, Johnson could just
(21:57):
bring something to the running game again on those topics,
a spark, something that is different from nausey, get a
little bit different from nauge, something a little bit better
than nause maybe, and then all of a sudden you've
got a great tandem there and then with John new Smith.
I mean he is a tight end, but as we
did when we did our rankings the other week, like
he is a top tight end in the league, top five,
(22:20):
you could talk yourself into him right on the edge
of that.
Speaker 3 (22:24):
Again, I keep referencing this statistically, he was a top
top five tight end last year.
Speaker 1 (22:30):
Exactly. And I think that that again, as I kind
of said this on Tuesday's episode, that makes you feel
more optimistic for this season and going at it with
the approach of well, maybe one of our tight ends
can become a quarterback, can become a serious difference in
passing game, a difference maker in the passing game. Maybe
(22:50):
we can go that route. And last year you bought
into it, it didn't come to fruition. But this year
you've added some extra to your room, and you've added
that Pro Bowl player to your room, and it gives
me a little bit more confidence that he can have
some serious impact. And I don't mean to ignore Johnny
Smith or John Smith. I don't mean to ignore Jalen
(23:12):
Ramsey at all, because I think he has a healthy
amount of impact on that defensive side of the ball
as well, and I wonder if Ramsey kind of feels
like a sense of rejuvenation coming to Pittsburgh because Miami.
Miami wasn't in a bad spot, but it just kind
of felt like, if you're a player there, it's hard
to trust what two is going to stay healthy and
(23:35):
that things are going to work out perfectly in Miami.
And I feel like, maybe he comes to Pittsburgh again.
It's not like he's coming to It's not like when
he went to Jacksonville to the Rams right where he's
going to a legitimate Super Bowl contender and he feels great.
But maybe it comes to Pittsburgh and he's like, well,
at least they're in more of a stable, better spot.
And it's weird to say that when one has a
franchise quarterback and one has a Mercenaryan Rodgers, but they're
(23:57):
in a more stable spot health wise as far as
their quarterback is concerned, as opposed to Tua. And I
bet you Ramsey, even though it might not work out,
likes the idea of joining a team that has a
lot and a Hayward and Jaran high Smith and.
Speaker 2 (24:16):
H just other guys to play on Rogers. You remember
remember two years ago.
Speaker 1 (24:21):
It feels sorry, but it feels more like his Rams
team with the star power.
Speaker 2 (24:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (24:25):
I was about to say, you remember two years ago
when they when the Dolphins dish Christian Wilkins to the Raiders.
Speaker 2 (24:31):
We were saying, what do you do?
Speaker 3 (24:32):
It is the only other guy you have on your
defense besides Van Ginkel, who they then dished also to Minnesota.
And Ramsey like, why are you getting rid of the
very few defensively talented guys you have on your team?
Speaker 2 (24:47):
I don't know, And so I think you're right. I
think you're I think that that carries beyond just Ramsey.
Speaker 3 (24:52):
I think there are guys like Sleigh, like the inside
linebackers who we talked about earlier this week, like the
like Juwan Thornhill who we talked about earlier this week,
Just guys who are not going to be the stars,
but they're playing next to so many talented guys that
it's going to be hard for them to really let
the ball down so greatly because there's just so much
(25:15):
talent surrounding them. And I think Jillian Ramsey, you know,
like you said, it was a weird year in Miami,
still talented, but you just didn't see it because there
was no one there.
Speaker 2 (25:25):
To help them.
Speaker 3 (25:26):
Now he's got ten guys are maybe nine if you
don't want to include Thornhill. Nine guys were also starting
on that defense that are going to be impactful, right, Yes,
I legitimately think that starting defense is ten guys deep.
And then that does not include the guys behind those
(25:46):
starters in the depth chart. Just the eleven guys you
have on the field to start the season, ten of
them are going to be impact players.
Speaker 1 (25:54):
I completely agree with that. If health permits it, I
think that they should be and if they live up
to what their potential should be this year, all right,
when we come back, there was another rage bait list
that came out there, this one, this one more historical
context that yeah really yeah yeah, And I I I
I think this was legitimately rage bait. Like I think
(26:14):
this legitimately was made to make Steelers fans mad or.
Speaker 2 (26:18):
Do you think there's another case that they just forgot?
Speaker 1 (26:20):
I don't think so. I think they were really twisting
the knife with some of the teams that made it here.
So we'll talk about that next. We'll keep uh talking
about maybe some stuff that we're looking forward to in
training camp. As that is right now, this time, this
time next week, this time next week, there's gonna be
a couple hours away from their first practice.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
They report on Wednesday.
Speaker 1 (26:39):
Yes, yeah, moving days Wednesday, So we'll talk about that
when we come back. It's Tom Offerman, Jacob Breck. It's
a Steelers standard on Steelers Nation Radio and Steelers Audio Network.
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