September 21, 2023 • 42 mins
A special Thursday edition of the Blitz! Our buddy Tom Opferman is in for Moats and getting into the conversation with Wes about the offense and some crazy PFF grades.
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Speaker 1 (00:29):
This is the Steelers Blitz with Wesley Euler and Arthur
Motes on your twenty four to seven Home of the
Black and Gold SNR.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
What's going on Steelers Nation Radio. It is high noon
on a Thursday afternoon. That can only mean one thing.
It's time to go inside the Electric Factory. Here on
your twenty four to seven Home of the Black and Gold,
it is the Steelers Blitz on SNR. We have got
a familiar face, a familiar name with us today. If
you are an SNR loyalist, if you really listen into
(01:00):
anything that we do, you know Tom Optroman, Shirtless Tom.
He's the co host of the Steelers Standard. He's the
co host of asketon Answered with Bob Labriola's Shirtless Tea,
sitting in for Motsey this afternoon. What's up Tomas?
Speaker 3 (01:13):
You feel it? I feel the electricity in the air
when I come into the Electric Factory.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
It's good to be here.
Speaker 3 (01:17):
I haven't been on the Blitz side. I think it
was last training camp. I had to fill in first.
I was gonna say, so, it's been almost a calendar year.
I've jumped on.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
It's been probably a good thirteen to fourteen months. So
great to have you in here again. If you rock
and roll with us on SNR. You know Tom, you
know his work. Excited to get after it with you
today as always, partner, So let's jump right into it here.
We're kind of at the tail end of some Browns
reaction right when your team plays on Monday night. That
(01:45):
reaction always stretches an extra day or so into into
the week. Then maybe a normal just Sunday one o'clock
or afternoon slaught or whatever. It's Thursday today, so this
is kind of the day that we start to turn
the page. And we'll do that a little bit later on.
But I want to know your thoughts on the question
that seems to be and there's a lot of them,
(02:05):
to be fair, a lot of different questions, no doubt,
that have kind of been burning up the Steeler air
waves and Steelers circles in the last three days since
that game on Monday night. But where I wanted to
start with you today is the Jaleen Warren conversation. Man,
we're hearing a lot of that this week.
Speaker 3 (02:21):
Right nationally too. National Kyle Brandt take on the soapbox
of Jalen Warren. I mean, it's it's really run out
of controlling. I think Mike Florio too has been Mike.
Speaker 2 (02:29):
Florio as well too. Jason Garrett was talking about Jalen Warren.
He will be on the call for the broadcast or
I think he does the studio stuff for the broadcast
part of me on Sunday, of course. Obviously, long time
offensive coordinator, longtime head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, a
guy who knows uh the offensive side of the football,
certainly in the National Football League. Jalen Warren, Jalen Warren,
(02:49):
Jalen Warren, you know, pretty close to a fifty to
fifty split with Nause on carries on Monday Night. So
it's not like there's a huge discrepancy there if you
just look at the pure numbers, but the eyeball, there's
been more pop for Jalen Wore and I think that's
probably the best way to say it.
Speaker 3 (03:04):
There has he has more explosiveness than Nagy, But I
don't think Najy's that type of runner like Warren will
hit you a home run every once in a while.
Nause is like a box of the beats in the
twelve thirteenth round, like he needs twenty twenty five carries
a game, and you mentioned how it was kind of
a fifty to fifty split on Monday Night Football as
far as the volume of carries were concerned, but as
far as the effectiveness of carries are concerned, Nausea blewom
(03:25):
out of the water. I mean, I know people are
gonna point to the twenty one in the eighteen yard
run and they're gonna be like, well, that skews the average, okay,
but those runs still count.
Speaker 2 (03:32):
And particularly for an offense that struggles to get chunk
plays like that.
Speaker 3 (03:35):
And who's to say that if you don't turn Naugy's
ten carries into twenty carries, that those one to two
chunk plays turn into three or four chunk plays from
Najy Harris. So you know, I understand people saying, wow,
Warren really jumps off the screen at you, and he
has more burst, he has more pop than Nagy, But
the numbers just don't bear out that. I'm ready to
quit on Harris right now. I mean I said this
(03:57):
last night on Countdown to Kickoff with Matt Williamson and
Tim Ben with Nagy. To me, it's an offensive line
problem again. I mean, same old, same old for him,
and his entire career as a Steeler. But it's also
just a volume problem. I mean, five point one yards
per carry against the Niners. You have to stop running
the ball as much as you'd want to because you're
down by a million early in that game. Four point
(04:17):
four yards per carry against the Browns. I mean, this
guy's average playing better than his career average would dictate.
He's only gotten like six carries and ten carries. Though,
if you give that guy the rock a little bit more,
I think he's going to pay dividends. I think you're
gonna start to see, you know, not a big Jalen
Warren fifty yard run, but you're gonna see eight yard runs,
(04:38):
four yard run, six yard run, maybe a two yard run,
five yeard run. It's just going to be consistent and
he's just gonna wear that defense down. He wasn't really
a home run thread at Alabama. He Saban gave him
the ball thirty times and in the fourth quarter he
was fresh.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
He was a home run thread in the fourth quarter
when the other teams were beat down, and then he
could really pop up.
Speaker 3 (04:56):
And that's the one thing I will say about Nausee
that I'm not worried about. He's still a very physical runner,
and he's been hit behind the line of scrimmage a
lot again this year, and he's made things happen with that. So,
as far as you know, can he play that style
of game a bruising kind of running back and not
a Jerome Bettis type, but someone that makes the linebackers
hurt a little bit come third or fourth quarter. I
(05:17):
think that's why he's done his entire career. So I
really am a little bit surprised at how much hype
Warren's getting. I guess I see it because of the
burst that you see in the big plays that he's
made pop there for sure, But I mean you're just
ignoring the pop that Nause showed with his twenty one
yard run in his eighteen.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
Yard and he had a twenty four yarder against San
Francisco the week before.
Speaker 3 (05:39):
I mean he's had pop two.
Speaker 2 (05:41):
He certainly has. Now it doesn't look the same as
Jalen Warren when he does it right, just because of
the pure straight line speed element. But you're right, it's
been there in his game. And I really like that
analogy that you opened up with the boxing the fighting
analogy that is he is not Mike Tyson like. He's
not looking to knock you out in the first or
second or third round. He's Floyd Mayweather Dan. He's gonna
(06:06):
grind you down for ten rounds and then around eleven, twelve, thirteen,
that's when he's gonna really have his way, and that's
where he's really going to take advantage of that previous work.
It's it's an analogy. I think that's very apt in Tom.
I just part of it gets back to the offensive line,
which you mentioned as well too. That's the biggest problem
with the running game that they they are just they
are not Nagy's style, right is one read, one cut
(06:29):
and go.
Speaker 3 (06:30):
Yeah, and he'll probably break a tackle from a linebacker
or a defense exactly.
Speaker 2 (06:35):
And whereas Jalen Warren's style you can see more of
that patience, you can see more of that. Okay, I'm
gonna start to the right and nothing's here. I'm gonna
peel back to the left and I'm gonna beat everybody
to the edge. I just I think the way that
the Steelers offensive line is performing some of the play
calling element as well too. Right now, I don't think
it's doing Naugy any favors either.
Speaker 3 (06:56):
No, And I think that's kind of been the way
it's gone his entire Steelers career. I mean, his rookie
year with the line was abysmal. He had to fight
to get to the line of scrimmage almost every carry
he had. It was almost a miracle that he got
to a thousand yards in his rookie season. Then last year,
you know, Nause was probably more to blame for his struggles,
But I think I buy into that injury a little
bit because you saw a different Nause in the second
(07:18):
half after the bye week, getting two weeks off to
really get close to one hundred percent, and he was
a lifeblood for the team. I mean they were a
run heavy offense down the stretch. They went seven to two.
He had a couple hundred yard performances, and he grinded
out another thousand yard season. And I know that doesn't
mean as much anymore with the extra game, but you
start your career back to back a thousand yard seasons,
that's something to hang your hat on as a running back,
(07:38):
even in today's day and age. But yeah, I agree
when people are pointing at twenty two and saying he's
the problem your description of him needing a back that
he needs things blocked up for him. He needs a
hole in front of him, a one cut and he's gone.
He just doesn't have that in front of him. They're
asking him to try to do something that he's not.
And maybe that's why Jaylen Warren oh a little bit
(08:01):
more flash to some people, because I think he can
operate under maybe a little bit more chaotic offensive line.
He can be a handful of plays.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
He can create more out of nothing in a smaller
sample size.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
I mean on the twenty one yeard run, I know
nause didn't look the fastest on that run. He's not
the fastest running back in the league. That's not his style.
But the big problem with Jalen that I have with
people wanting to play him more is I as what
I just said about, I need to see more volume
from Nausey. I have to assume more volume is going
to make Jalen Warren less effective. Like sometimes guys are
(08:32):
just perfect in the role that they're in, and maybe
Warren's playing so well because he's cast perfectly right now.
If you extend them over extend him, you know, maybe
you see some of that production fall off a little bit.
Speaker 2 (08:42):
It's a great point by you. Maybe he's best suited
out of the bullpen. I agree, right to use another
another sports analogy.
Speaker 3 (08:48):
And as much as we want a nausey to be
better in the pass catching game, I think Warren's better
in that aspect. I think you can swing it out
to him, and we saw that on money.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
He's he's so fluid with it, right.
Speaker 3 (08:57):
I mean, if he wants coming to a third down,
third and eight, third and nine, I'm all for that.
Give him a nice little route out of the backfield.
I think he can be a fact. He's a good
run blocker too. He doesn't sacrifice anything.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
Great run blocker, particularly for his size. You're right with
that too, I mean it does. I'll give him this.
It looks different, and I mean this in a good way.
It looks more fluid, it looks smoother when Jaylen Morren's
catching balls out of the backfield. As opposed to nagy,
there's just a seamless transition of find the quarterback, bring
the ball in, get your butt up field. That nausey
just isn't quite as smooth. You know, with nausey, it's
(09:28):
a little more there's like that half second pause to
catch the ball and then turn him play it. So
I'm with you on that. Like again, I there's a
role in this offense for Jalen Warren with I just
don't think it's at the point now where you give
him the complete responsibility while also pulling the plug on
Naji Harris.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
The biggest problem with the offense is not the running game.
It's part of it though, and maybe some of the
other problems are symptoms of them not having a strong
running game. But the biggest gripe that I have so
far with running the football is they're just not doing it. No,
Like I am not ready to make a change at
a position where we've only seen you know what was
the twenty carries on Monday Night football and then it
(10:07):
was like ten or eleven on the week one game
against the Savantis forty nine ers last year, I just
said this, they became a run heavy team down the stretch,
Nause played well. They went seven and two. This year's
evolution was supposed to be that run heavy identity on offense,
but we build off of it. Now we take more
deep shots down the field, we incorporate more passing, elements
(10:29):
into it, but at our core, we're still that run
football team. Second and four, third and ones. We live
in that area. And it's like they had this great
preseason and then they just ripped it all up and
we're like, yeah, let's just throw fifty times. We're the Chiefs.
Like you did so well just running the football last
year down the stretch. Still didn't score enough points, though.
The next evolution is to have that running game be
(10:50):
the foundation and then expand your passing playbook as Kenny
gets more comfortable in the offense. But instead it just
skipped the running part and just pass, pass, pass, and
it's literally hurting Kenny. And we can get to Kenny
in a little bit. I'm sure. Maybe he's not a
quarterback that's cut out to pass pass pass all the time.
Maybe he needs a strong running.
Speaker 2 (11:09):
But he also doesn't need to throw the ball seventy
six times in the first two games of the season
against against two of the best defensive fronts in the
National Football League. Seventy six seventy six games.
Speaker 3 (11:19):
That's just and I get you have to play from
behind against the Niners, but they pulled the plug even
way too early on the running game in that game
down twenty to seven. You still run the football.
Speaker 2 (11:29):
When it's it's it's the first quarter, still you you
you run the football.
Speaker 3 (11:32):
People are gonna jump on me for this one because
they're not the same. But I remember last year Tennessee
in Seattle down by I think two or three touchdowns
in that game. They ran Derek Henry back into the
football game and ended up coming back and winning because
they were down so early. Steelers were down by three
touchdowns in the late third quarter or early fourth you
got a pass, but they were down in the first
and first.
Speaker 2 (11:52):
You don't abandon your ear, bread and butter, your identity
in the first half.
Speaker 3 (11:56):
I thought was going to be their identity. That's a
big problem. They don't have an identity.
Speaker 2 (11:59):
And I think that part of it too. You know what,
I'm glad you went there, and we will talk a
little bit more about Kenny Pickett in the next segment.
Maybe this is a smooth transition there. But they do
kind of look shell shocked in that regard, don't they?
Oh that through two games? What they I mean, they
told everybody all off season we're gonna be able to
run the football. You know when when when coordinators. When
coaches are asked oftentimes what's your identity? What do you
(12:21):
do well? They give some political answer, Right, Matt Canada,
right before the season started, what's your identity? What do
you guys do well? We will run the football. I
mean they told that the offensive line, we're gonna physical,
We're gonna run the football. Nase and Jalen. I mean,
that was not something that they hid from throughout training
camp in the preseason. It was not even something they
tried to downplay throughout training camp in the preseason. All
(12:42):
these different things that you're right, I mean, the the
issues on the offensive side of the football, it's no
one thing. They're all these things are complimentary together to
get to where you're at struggling right now. And we
talk about Kenny, and we talk about Matt Cannon, and
we talked about the Maybe the biggest thing is just
that that shell shock of Wow, through two games, we
haven't been able to run the football close to as
effectively as we thought we were going to be able to.
Speaker 3 (13:04):
Yeah, I mean I think that they have to kind
of be looking as much as we are as pundits
and analysts saying what the hell happened? From preseason to
the regular season. They have to be doing the same thing.
They have to be saying things that we were doing
successfully in camp, things that we worked on and translated
into games in the preseason games, and they work there.
Even when you played the varsity against Buffalo, things were
(13:25):
working there. It's all gone. It's all gone, poof, like,
we have no idea what's happening. So I do think
that the Steelers' offense kind of could be getting into
some dangerous quicksand type area where their confidence is going
to completely evaporate as well as their as their comments
going to complete evaporate as they keep playing poorly week
in and week out, because they really are shells of
(13:46):
what they looked like in the preseason compared to what
they look like now. And again in this next segment,
we might be talking about the guy who's the main
culprit for that, because I that's the person that looks
the most disconnected. I know the line looks worse than
it did in the preseason. I know that the receivers
I guess we're a little bit better, But the biggest
disconnect is what KP eight looked like in preseason and
(14:06):
what he looked like when the calendar turned to September.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
Well, I'm glad you said that. Let's take a break
here and then let's go there. I do want to
talk about Kenny Pickett with Tom, a guy who has
a nice body of work when it relates to seeing
Kenny Pickett over the years. As I've got a pit
season ticket holder in the booth with me here today,
So let's harken back to some of that when we
return on the other side. Has Tom seen Kenny in
a position like this before? Has he been able to
(14:29):
dig himself out of it? How does that kind of
mental moxie that we all know Kenny has play into
getting this thing turned around in the right direction. We'll
discuss all of that on the other side, West Yuler,
Tom on for a minutes. The Steelers Blitz on SNR.
Speaker 1 (15:47):
This is the Steeler's Blitz with Wesley Euler and Arthur
Motes on your twenty four to seven home of the
Black and Gold s n R.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
Blitzing here with our buddy Tom op from and on
a Thursday. That's right, a rare Thursday edition of the
Steelers Blitz.
Speaker 3 (16:05):
I just like let that beat ride.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
You like what I did with these beats and picked
out right.
Speaker 3 (16:10):
I wonder there's always energy on this show.
Speaker 2 (16:12):
I tell you what, you can only listen all due
respect to like our our unlicensed classic rock sounding sn
R beds. I can only do those so much till
I I can only hear the same you know, eleven
beds multiple times a day. That's exactly right. So we
went in. We found a few. You could see how
(16:33):
we got them labeled in the system. Here blitz bed
biggie sounding, you know what I mean. Found we found
all these different let's throw all those in there. I'll
play you one here before the show's done. That sounds
exactly like hypnotize. It's hilarious motes. And I were like,
this is this is this is unlicensed hypnotized right here.
We got to throw this into the system. Uh, speaking
(16:54):
of hypnotized, Oh, how do you like that transition? Canny
Pickett looks a little deer in head like he does.
And you know, I want to talk to you about
this because, as I mentioned before the break, I kind
of teased there. You know, Tom has a wide depth
of Kenny Pickett watching Tom and his dad pit men.
Pit season ticket holders have been going to games forever.
(17:16):
So you saw him all his years with the Panthers obviously,
and then now with the Steelers. Let me ask you this,
because his last season a pit obviously was fantastic, right
broke to Sean Watson's acc records, was a Heisman Trophy finalist,
all these different things, first round draft pick. Things went
pretty smoothly for Kenny his last year at PIT. But
(17:36):
leading up to that, right, he had some growing pains.
He had some struggles, like like every young quarterback does.
Do you remember a moment. Was there ever a moment though,
where it was like this where just the body language
kind of look defeated? Because that's always been the thing
with Kenny, right the confidence, the leadership, the moxie, that
term that gets thrown out there. We all know he's
very charismatic guy, and what might be his greatest strength
(17:58):
right now seems to be going in the opposite direction.
You ever remember another time like this, and all the
time that you've been watching Kenny.
Speaker 3 (18:05):
Body language wise, no, even when you know he wasn't
the best quarterback. He had back to back thirteen touchdowns
nine interception seasons at Pitt before the senior year breakout.
He never looked this distraught. He never looked like the
game was too fast, too big for him. It wasn't
that being the problem. He had some injury problems over
that stretch. And you know one thing that's plagued him
his entire life since entering Pitt. He had unbelievably unfair
(18:30):
expectations at pit because he beats number two Miami in
his first start. Ever, you hear that he's the next
d Amarno right away. They finally got their quarterback. He's so,
he's a freshman, he's gonna be here for the next
four to five years. This is great. And then he
was just he's kind of okay for the next three
to four years. He had his moment, for sure, And
I think that there are some games that he played
(18:51):
well enough for Pitt to win and the old genius
head ball coaches defense might have let him down or
some things like that, but he wasn't ever so shockingly
bad where I was just like, Kenny's not it. You
gotta move off for him, you gotta bench him. I
never felt like he was lost out there quite like
I've seen him. After the first couple drives against the
(19:13):
Niners and and really a lot of that Monday night
football game against the Browns. Just the deer in the
headlights is a very apt description to use for him.
And just to answer your question again, no, I've never
seen his mental acumen look this low in all my
time watching him at PITT. I mean, he, like I said,
didn't put up gaudy numbers, but he did okay enough.
(19:34):
He helped them, you know, win six seven games every
now and again, and I think he always kind of
felt like, I'm getting better, I'm building to I've exactly
like I'm learning this though, and last year Kenny was
overwhelmed at times, but he never looked it because I
think he just, okay, I'm a rookie, like things are fast,
but I'm getting better.
Speaker 2 (19:52):
At this is expect again, anytime you move to that
next level as a quarterback, you're ready to pain.
Speaker 3 (19:57):
But he never looked this frightened out there. And I
don't know if that's a whole offseason worth of great
expectations being leaped onto him, saying, oh, you look great
in the preseason, now it's time to turn it up.
You're the next franchise guy. Doesn't seem like a guy
that would read his own press clippings, maybe he did,
but it clearly looks like he's got like an oh
bleep feel to him right now. Like I I'm the
(20:20):
Steelers starting quarterback. I went to pit you know, the
franchise is pitting their hopes ontos can unravel, and two
games in, I look like I look terrible.
Speaker 2 (20:30):
I think you're absolutely right. And that's again, that's been
the most surprising part to me because, like you mentioned,
even last year, down the stretch, at times where it
wasn't going well for Kenny, his greatest strength was that
ability to hang in there. Right that whole Christmas Eve
game against the Raiders, stink, bad offense, do and nothing,
and then all he needs is the one opportunity to
(20:50):
the end. He drives that team right down the field,
scores the touchdown. Same thing against Baltimore. Right.
Speaker 3 (20:54):
The Baltimore one too, is even crazier to me because
the Ravens hadn't given up a touchdown drive in the
fourth quarter, and like weeks you.
Speaker 2 (21:00):
Had ninety, you had, you had nine points.
Speaker 3 (21:02):
And you're starting at the ninety or at the two,
and it's cold.
Speaker 2 (21:07):
It's prime time in Baltimore. That place is jumping, you know,
I'm fortunate enough now to beat all the games.
Speaker 3 (21:11):
Like they're going to make the playoffs, they're trying to
win the division.
Speaker 2 (21:14):
They have this they have these new lights in Baltimore
so they can cut their lights. They can cut their
lights on and off at any moment without any delay.
Speaker 3 (21:20):
Yeah, they did that at the Oils game when I
was there too.
Speaker 2 (21:22):
It's and like it's like it's like they've got the
Steelers penned at the two yard line. There's a couple
of minutes left, it's cold, it's the end of and
they're doing these lights and the place is going nuts.
In the link, I'm like, this game's over.
Speaker 3 (21:32):
He didn't blink though, Like he didn't he didn't.
Speaker 2 (21:34):
Converted key third downs. That key passed a nausey which
was if I'm right, a third or fourth down as
well too. To score that touchdown at the death and
win the game.
Speaker 3 (21:43):
Face pressure to avoided it and got the ball out.
I mean, it's so weird to see that and that
because that was the gaming pointed and say, well, even
if the skill set's.
Speaker 2 (21:53):
Not there, the mental makeup is there.
Speaker 3 (21:55):
Get into Baltimore, beat Triveal and a fourth quarter comeback.
They hadn't given up a touchdown in the four fourth
quarter since like September. We're playing this game at the
end of December, and yet he does that. Go into
this offseason thinking, well, at least we got the dude
mentally between the years. He's as sharp as anybody.
Speaker 2 (22:10):
We might have some growing pains, but at least we
know his his fortitude is there.
Speaker 3 (22:15):
But I'd rather have that, you know, mental acuity, because
that can make up for a lot of deficiency still wise,
whereas if you're a super skilled player but you don't
have it between the ears, Johnny Manziel, I'm not going
to do anything in the NFL. Right, well, hold on now,
start for him.
Speaker 2 (22:30):
So far as you hate to admit it.
Speaker 3 (22:31):
One hundred percent, you're right like you could be these
number one overall picks and you just don't have what
it takes mentally. I'd almost rather have a guy be
a little less than in the skill department and just
be that much better mentally.
Speaker 2 (22:43):
Tom Brady, right, Tom Brady was never the greatest. Tom
Brady was not Peyton Manning and Aaron Rodgers. In terms
of when you're talent.
Speaker 3 (22:48):
People build those quarterback like the perfect quarterback you say,
I'm taking Rogers's arm, I'm taking Manning's brain, like blah
blah blah. You never knew what to take for Bratty's heart,
maybe like you just never knew what that's about him.
He just was the greatest at you know, keeping a
calm head no matter what the other team did, no
matter how deep the hole is. I still think I'm
going to come back and win this game. And that's
(23:10):
what I thought we had in Kenny at the very
least still might have that, But he has not shown
that kind of fortitude in the first two weeks. For sure.
Speaker 2 (23:17):
He is not. And I think that's the most surprising
thing again about all of this, because everything that we
had seen from Kenny for the previous two years was
the complete opposite, was that ability to hang in there
no matter what. So Tom, listen, I know there's again
this is not all these things work together in an ecosystem.
Right when your offensive line struggling, your run game struggling,
your quarterbacks struggling, and you were losing some wide receivers
(23:39):
to injury, and maybe the play calling isn't the greatest
from the offensive course, all these different things are in
their own ecosystem working against the goal together. But for
Kenny right in terms of just controlling what you can control,
because Kenny can't control how well the offensive line blocks,
he can't control the play calls that are coming in
and some of these different things. For me, there is
(24:01):
still room in there. He needs help as well too.
He needs better offensive line, he needs he needs better
run game. He needs to get Deontay Johnson, his best
route runner and his best separator out there, back on
the field as soon as possible, hopefully just another week
or so here for Deontay, but for him too. Control
what you can control, and to me, that part is
obviously some of the mental stuff that we just talked
(24:22):
about as well too. But there's throws there that we
know Kenny can make over the over the first two
games that you think he's that he's just missing them
when when the play is there, when the call is there,
when the route is there. And I'm not saying it
is every time, obviously, but he's had those opportunities and
has just missed on him. I think it's one of
those things to give him again because all this context matters,
(24:42):
and he played maybe the best defense in the NFL
maybe right up there with the Steelers in Week one
in San Francisco. One of the best teams, one of
the best defensive front certainly, and what they have and
Garrett and Smith there on that line, and they've got
talent all over the place and the secondary, all those
guys in their secondary first and second round draft picks.
Speaker 3 (25:00):
I kind of have a feeling that the defensive coordinator
in Cleveland's a little bit smarter than the head coach
right now as someone those sorts didn't do that great
as a head coach, but.
Speaker 2 (25:08):
As someone who worked in Philadelphia when the Eagles won
that Super Bowl, and Jim Schwartz the defensive coordinator he is,
I think he's a little bit better than Stefanski. He's
I don't know, if there's an offense maybe like a uh,
I don't know, what's the coach who was just with
the card Cliff Kingsbary, like a guy who is like, Okay,
you probably shouldn't be a head coach, but man, you
(25:29):
can do a good coordinator. Just stay on the offensive
side of the football, right, that's Schwartz. That's Schwartz on
the defensive side of the football. I think you're right
that he's he's really improved that Browns defense very quickly here.
That's the one kind of all of Branch too, that
I'm willing to extend. I know, you have to go
on the road, and that's never easy in the NFL,
particularly when you're moving time zones like the Steelers are
(25:50):
the next two weeks in Las Vegas all the way
across the coast, and then Houston down in Texas as
well too. But if you're going to get this thing
moving in the right direction, it's a little bit of
a different story yet. I guess has some talent to
pass rushers up front, but they're not the Niners, and
they're not the Browns, the Texans. They are completely Will
Anderson we think can be great, be good, but but
I mean they are completely revamping that defense. I mean
(26:11):
getting rid of guys like Desmond King because they don't
think they're going to be part of the long term
picture when they do get this thing where they want
it to be in the next couple of years. To me,
these next two weeks are crucial for Kenny because there's
going to be plays that are out there to be made.
If you can get that moving in the right direction.
Then you come back home against Baltimore, then you get
your bye week, all the sudden right, just tread water
(26:32):
till that point, get Deontay back, get things moving in
the right direction, and then you get some more favorable
matchups as well too. I think that's got to kind
of be the blueprint for Kenny. Just control what you
can control, make the throws that you've been making for
years now, and things will start looking up.
Speaker 3 (26:48):
This game coming up on Sunday and a football against
the Raiders, he has got to throw at least two
touchdown passes in a game. Okay, it is fifteen games
now to one, and that's it as far as a
MAXI is concerned. And people pointed to well, he's had
a couple three touchdown games total because he's running the
ball in how dare you I want my quarterback to
be throwing and the touchdown it's.
Speaker 2 (27:09):
Not act like they were Lamar Jackson.
Speaker 3 (27:12):
Yeah, like the one against the Bengals, he's spinning peoples.
Speaker 2 (27:15):
And going for forty yards. They're like one or two
yard from his goal line run.
Speaker 3 (27:18):
But his first touchdown, I think ever in his career
was a quarterback sneak against the Jets which, by the way,
so willing to sneak the ball last year. And then
you get a third and one in this game, and
I know people are on Canada for the play call
and the read the run read there. I think triuld
have handled the ball off the naugy It would have
had a better chance instead of keeping it. But regardless,
where's the sneak?
Speaker 2 (27:37):
Where is the sneak? Yeah, I don't know. Maybe I
was thinking about that too. Maybe they just don't want
him to get hit, you know, the two concussions last year.
Speaker 3 (27:43):
Knock the ball all the time after the two concussions
last year.
Speaker 2 (27:47):
Sure, it's just it.
Speaker 3 (27:48):
That was when it was third and one, fourth and one,
Kenny was because I remember I would joke around to
be like, he's the next Brady as far as quarterback
sneaks are concerned, Becau Kenny would just get it.
Speaker 2 (27:56):
And you can see how that can be such a
cheat code in the NFL.
Speaker 3 (27:59):
Look look at the Eagles right now.
Speaker 2 (28:00):
Look at the Eagles.
Speaker 3 (28:01):
Anytime they have one and a half yards or less.
Speaker 2 (28:04):
Line up Jason Kelcey and you just, god.
Speaker 3 (28:06):
Honestly, on a fourth and two, I would run that play.
They always seem to get two to three yards every
single time.
Speaker 2 (28:11):
So and you can push now in the backfield as
well too. There's not the no push rule anymore.
Speaker 3 (28:15):
That's a tangent I digress on that. It's just weird
that you didn't see any of the quarterback sneak there.
He's got to throw two touchdown passes at least. This
is like you said this week. Next week, these opponents
are right for the taking. They are not good defenses.
Speaker 2 (28:27):
And let's not kick ourselves either. I know it's a
road game in the NFL. They're always tough again, particularly
when you're traveling across country, but it's not you're stepping
into it. You're not going to Arrowhead.
Speaker 3 (28:36):
Stop Baltimore, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (28:38):
Yes, Yeah, you're not going to Buffalo or Philly or
Kansas City. You're going to two areas where you probably
have fifty percent, if not more, of the fan base
in there.
Speaker 3 (28:47):
Yeah, And I mean I think Houston is a stronger
fan base than the Raiders, but the Texans have given
them nothing to root for it in the past four
or five years. Now they're going to start to dwindle off.
They're not going to care. Maybe you get a little
bit resurgence because you know you have the rookie quarterback
and things might be somewhat looking up for them. But yeah,
I think that you're.
Speaker 4 (29:04):
Going to lambeau Field, might be best for Kenny to
get away from Akroscher Stadium for a little bit and
go on the road, but not have to go all
the way to the top of you know, Thunderdome when
it comes to.
Speaker 2 (29:16):
Like Seattle or Green Bay or Kansas City or Philly.
Speaker 3 (29:20):
Get away from the home fans in mass without really
subjecting yourself to abuse from a visiting crowd as well. Yeah,
or from a home crowd as you're visiting.
Speaker 2 (29:29):
I mean, I think for going on the road again,
cross country out of your time zone the next two
weeks in a row, which doesn't happen a ton in
the NFL. You'll get back to back road games, but
it's usually like Okay, we go cross country for one
and the other one somebody in our division or something
like that. I know that that's a tall task. With
that being said, though, other than that, I don't think
it sets up much better because you're going into environments
where it's going to be neutral crowd at worst. I
(29:51):
would say against defenses that feel like, I don't want
to say right for the picking because it's the National Footballer.
You ever, defense has good players, but defenses that certainly
ard as nasty as the one of the first two weeks.
Speaker 3 (30:02):
They should be able to put up some numbers against
this team. In the running game too, Raiders are not
that great against the run. The Bills put up two
hundred and thirty rushing yard the Bills and thirty rush
who don't like the run, just Josh Allen. It was
James Cook who had like one hundred and twenty yards
on the ground. So every aspect of the Steelers offense
that needs fixed, I think this is an opponent that
you can fix it against. But one of the big
(30:23):
problems with the offense has been execution, and you got
to go out to Vegas and execute.
Speaker 2 (30:27):
That is what we are hoping for. It's the Steelers blitz.
Here on SNR. Are going to take another break. On
the other side, I've got some stranger stats for Tom
will kind of put a bow on the week that
was before hour number two where we start looking at
the upcoming task ahead out there in Viva Las Vegas.
It's a Steelers blitz. On SNR.
Speaker 1 (31:05):
This is the Steelers Blitz with Wesley Euler and Arthur
Motes on your twenty four to seven home of the
Black and gold S n R Blitz.
Speaker 2 (31:15):
In here on a Thursday, our buddy Tom opp from
an in for Motzi as we put some final thoughts
on the Browns Monday night football victory. And we'll start
here shortly to begin to look ahead to the challenge
that the Viva Las Vegas Raiders will present to the
Steelers in primetime Sunday night out there in Sin City.
(31:38):
My first trip out there to the desert, Tom, I
can't wait.
Speaker 3 (31:40):
That's gonna be sick. Seeing that stadium is going to
be really sick. Are you gonna poke around the sphere
at all?
Speaker 2 (31:45):
I'm gonna try, fortunately, if you can just go in,
can I don't think so, but you probably want to
be on the outside anyways.
Speaker 3 (31:52):
I've seen something from the inside, the pretty cool Imax
screen Safari like footage from like an health walking and dude,
the elephants just walking over you. It looks insane. Put
it this way, it looked insane, and I was seeing
it on Twitter. I couldn't even imagine we're sitting in
person actually having that atmosphere. You gotta at least walk
by it, though. That's what That's the coolest stadium slash
(32:15):
concert hall I've seen it ever.
Speaker 2 (32:16):
Maybe, I mean it's it's so Vegas that that that
starts there. I'm gonna do. Fortunately, we're leaving early Saturday,
so i'll be out bet you, I'll be out there
by noon on Saturday. And it's not a you know,
it's a five. It's a five. It's a five point
fifteen local time on Sunday. So it's not like i
have to be up early or anything. So I'm gonna
do tour stuff, don't you worry. I'm gonna walk the strip.
(32:37):
I'm gonna go to the water fountains at the Bollaggio
right like I'm in Ocean's eleven.
Speaker 3 (32:42):
Maybe place a little recreational wager.
Speaker 2 (32:44):
Maybe maybe a couple of those. Yeah, I gotta check
out Caesar's Palace. I gotta check out some of the
sports books. I'm gonna walk to the sphere.
Speaker 3 (32:51):
Certainly, that's awesome. That's a great road trip to get
and honestly, Houston the week after is a great time
to go to too.
Speaker 2 (32:56):
I'm excited about Houston the week after as well. Certainly,
road schedule starts out hot for a year traveling really
does Vegas, Houston, LA. I mean, we've already been to Atlanta.
We've already been to Atlanta and Tampa. Pretty good.
Speaker 3 (33:09):
It's gonna make up for having to go to indi landa.
Speaker 2 (33:11):
See. I love Indy. Yeah, that's one of my favorite
Americans day the combine before.
Speaker 3 (33:15):
You don't like Indies, all right, I'm not going to
bash the sign people of Indianapolis.
Speaker 2 (33:20):
I'll tell you this. I'm really easy to please. If
your city is easy to navigate, well, that's true. It's
a completely cool walk anywhere in fifteen minutes without even
everything's in in walkways. The food's great, there's watering holes
that aren't overly expensive. That's kind of the only thing
I'm worried about in Vegas. It's gonna cost me seventeen
dollars to get a light beer. But there you go.
(33:40):
You just figured it out for me. Yeah. Some fun
road trips Seattle at the end of the season. I
love the Pacific Northwest, even though it'll be approximately seven
degrees in Seattle now when we are there.
Speaker 3 (33:49):
No, Seattle's fun. I went there from my honeymoon.
Speaker 2 (33:51):
You're gonna love it, Yeah, you and I, You and
I both did. I love see it.
Speaker 3 (33:57):
I would live there for sure.
Speaker 2 (33:57):
My wife and I love the Pacific Northwest. We did
a few days in Seattle, few days in Vancouver for
for our honeymoon back in twenty sixteen. So yeah, good sushi,
good food.
Speaker 3 (34:06):
Oh, I've never had better suit.
Speaker 2 (34:08):
You've never had better sushi in my life than you will.
U up there and then went back to Northwest.
Speaker 3 (34:12):
That's how good it was. Life and I went one
day to go back to back to back, went to
the Sounders game, and after we're like, we need to eat,
so let's go get some sushi.
Speaker 2 (34:19):
Yes, so damn it's the best. So yeah, some fun
road trips this year for the Steelers, certainly beginning with
Las Vegas this weekend. I will if you check back
on SNR next week, I'll have some stories for you
of Mikeuse. I've never been to Vegas. I've never been
to Vegas before, so I got a full day. I'm
trying to do the touristy stuff. So I'm trying to
have a good time and go to the sports book
and watch my Mountaineers hopefully not lose to Texas Tech.
(34:40):
It should be a grand old time now, Tom, as
we closed down this first hour, here a goofy thing
that we have kind of introduced here. Okay, okay, I'm
just gonna put you on the spot. We're gonna jump
right into it. It's a little segment called stranger Stats. Yeah.
You know again, this is me trying to kind of
(35:02):
find you know, some uh, what do we want to
call it? Stranger things sounding Yeah, So I've got some
stats for you from the Steelers last game, Tom, all right,
and then you got to tell me which one is
the strangest.
Speaker 3 (35:13):
Okay, I love it.
Speaker 2 (35:15):
Stranger Stats. The Steelers scored two defensive touchdowns on Monday
Night Football. That's the first time they've done that in
thirteen years, since two thousand and ten, when Deebo had
a scoop six and Troy Polamalu had to pick six
the players Stranger Stats, the Steelers did not run a
(35:36):
single play in the red zone all game on offense.
I'm not sure if that's ever happened before. It didn't
have time to do all the research, but I couldn't
find any time recently.
Speaker 3 (35:45):
It's safe to say Stranger Stats.
Speaker 2 (35:49):
A quarterback, Deshaun Watson got flagged for face masking two
different times in the same game.
Speaker 3 (35:57):
Big play from her, big there drawing that face mask
Stranger Stats.
Speaker 2 (36:01):
The Steelers entered the fourth quarter on Monday Night down
three points. When that fourth quarter started, the offense generated
negative seven yards in the fourth quarter. They won the
game by four points. Stranger's stats that it is that
the last one. That is the last one, that one that's.
Speaker 3 (36:18):
The longest that they gained negative seven yards and completed
a fourth quarter comeback. That's incredible, right, that I know
has never happened before. I mean maybe in nineteen forty two,
but like that has never happened in the modern era
of football.
Speaker 2 (36:31):
Ever, I don't know if there's been a Stranger Stats
where I mean the three the Steelers did not run
a single play in the reds on all.
Speaker 3 (36:38):
That's pretty strange. The defensive touchdown one is bonkers because
that has happened in thirteen years.
Speaker 2 (36:42):
But you see that Steelers football. Have you ever seen
a quarterback get flagged for face basking, let alone twice
in the same game.
Speaker 3 (36:47):
No, not twice at the very least, but they were
blatant face masks.
Speaker 2 (36:51):
I mean, they're easy calls. Easy calls.
Speaker 3 (36:53):
One time Dejohn Watson was trying to blame the Steelers
defender for it.
Speaker 2 (36:55):
Yeah, it was hilarious. He also should have been ejected
for pushing the referee, but I digress.
Speaker 3 (37:00):
Yeah, what the hell is that about?
Speaker 2 (37:01):
They're normally so strict about like so you.
Speaker 3 (37:04):
Could get suspended after that.
Speaker 2 (37:06):
And there's like no appeal, no nothing like you're you're
out and you're gone.
Speaker 3 (37:09):
Like even though the refs missed it on the field,
even though one of the refs quite literally got hit
by him, you think the league would have steped in
at least a fifty thousand dollars fine or something was coming.
Speaker 2 (37:18):
Down at least. But I don't know.
Speaker 3 (37:21):
Hey, well he's such an upstanding citizen, so maybe.
Speaker 2 (37:23):
He deserves to be given a break. He deserves the
benefit of doubt. I'm with you, though, I think it's
if you you would have told Steelers fans at started
the fourth quarter that they're going to generate negative seven yards.
Speaker 3 (37:32):
Will you come back?
Speaker 2 (37:33):
Will you come back and win? People would have laughed
in your face. Twenty in a uh in a a
game full of stranger stats. I'm with Tom I think
that is the craziest one.
Speaker 3 (37:42):
You save the best one for last. That's nuts that
And like I said, no research done, probably never happened,
and I would have a hunch that it's not gonna
happen again for a long long time. If ever, Like
you might get negative seven yards in a fourth quarter again,
but you're not completing a fourth quarter comeback.
Speaker 2 (37:59):
You might not run a play in the red zone again,
hopefully not hopefully hopefully you do that to Houston.
Speaker 3 (38:05):
I think that was what the thirty or they weren't
even in the thirty I.
Speaker 2 (38:08):
Even got inside of the thirty. And what stinks about
that Tom two before we go to break here is
like you finally we have been begging for explosive plays, right,
chunk splashed for the offense. Seventy one yard touchdown, twenty
one yard run, seventeen yard run. I mean, we haven't
had that in a long time.
Speaker 3 (38:25):
Kyle Brandt said on Good Morning Football on Tuesday with
Pickens past, it was like a lightning strike down the
middle of the field, Like it was just like, whoa.
Speaker 2 (38:32):
We haven't seen that since mister big chest himself was where.
Speaker 3 (38:35):
Did that come from? And by the way, I learned
a little something about mister Pickens on that play too.
Speaker 2 (38:40):
Speed.
Speaker 3 (38:40):
Dude's got sums burners, huh. I mean the play against
Tampa Bay in the preseason. He broke that dude's ankles
and that's how he got to the end zone. It
was in cut and then he cut the other way.
Great juke move. I didn't know he could just say,
I'm gonna run faster than you and he went right
between the round safety and right between the corner back.
Speaker 2 (38:58):
That's safety too, speaking of. He took a decent angle,
but you could see his face. He was like, oh, quickly,
this guy is moving.
Speaker 3 (39:06):
He did, what will you do? He misjudged his speed.
He took an angle as if he was five miles
per hour slower than he actually was.
Speaker 2 (39:12):
It was impressive, awesome it was. It was shot out.
He was shot out of a can and.
Speaker 3 (39:15):
Then people pickings. What about the yards after the catch?
Does he have that ability? That showed me that he's
got the ability to do some things with the football
after he catches it.
Speaker 2 (39:23):
I think you're right, and you're gonna need that. I
mean all season, but particularly in the absence of Deontay
Johnson here for at least a few more weeks.
Speaker 3 (39:30):
But you're right, like we hadn't seen a lightning strike,
and we get one and then the rest of the
offense just goes to put two around it. So it's like,
you can't have both, you.
Speaker 2 (39:40):
Can't have both. Yeah, it's it's it's been frustrating. The
The one positive that I keep pointing to is, you know,
last year we had some of these same conversations, but
you dug yourself into a two and six hole, right
that was just impossible to climb out of. And you
go seven and two down the stretch and you end
up with the winning record, and that's commendable, but you
you're just never gonna make the plaoffs in the NFL
(40:00):
starting two and six if they can, just if they
continue to struggle through these first few weeks, but instead
of being two and six, they're.
Speaker 3 (40:10):
Four and three, say in three and two by the
bye week after the raid, like.
Speaker 2 (40:14):
You're you're hanging in there. All your goals are still
in front of you and then hopefully you do start
playing your best football in November and at the right time,
but you haven't dug yourself such a hole that all
your goals are still in front of you. That's if
I'm going optimistic, if I'm going glass half full. That's
what it's been for me all week. Is Hey, you
know what, this team struggled last year, and they fell
behind mightily and then started, you know, piecing it together
(40:34):
at the right time. It was just too late. Hopefully
they won't fall behind mightily this year and then they
start piecing it together at the right time as well too,
and everything's still in front of them. One more for you, Tom,
before we go to break. This isn't really a stranger stat,
but I think it just bears laying out there. The
Browns have not won a regular season game in Pittsburgh
since October of twenty twenty three. Okay, Tom, you want
(40:56):
to guess who the quarterbacks were for both of the
teams in October of twenty twenty three. The last time
the Browns in a regular season game in Pittsburgh October
of twenty twenty three. Correct or sorry, two thousand and three.
Pardon me part, Okay, Yes, October of two thousand and three.
Speaker 3 (41:08):
Well, the last time the Browns came into Pittsburgh and
won a game with Baker. Yes, two thousand and three.
I mean it would have to be Tommy Maddox, correct
Dealers and the Browns. Was that Derek Anderson or was
that a little too early for Derek Andny?
Speaker 2 (41:25):
So I believe Derek Anderson took over that season in
two thousand and three.
Speaker 3 (41:30):
Yes, the year what they're gonna they went like ten
and six, but still.
Speaker 2 (41:33):
You know what, Actually that was a couple of years
later where they where they went like ten but still
missing Jay. It was Tim Couch the last time.
Speaker 3 (41:42):
I think pretty good guesses.
Speaker 2 (41:44):
Those are pretty good guesses from you. Garcia is a
real good guess. The Browns are not won a regular
season game in Pittsburgh since October of twenty twenty, twenty
thousand and three. Dang it, I did it again, Tim
Couch and Tommy Maddocks a couple of legends.
Speaker 3 (41:55):
Tim Couch beaten Tommy Gunn Hunger Center.
Speaker 2 (41:57):
Yes, but then remember the Steelers got the last laugh
in that while card playoff game later that season where
they had where they had the where they had the
comeback win against the Browns with Chris fu Madamalafala scoring
in the final minute of the game. One hour in
the books with our buddy Tom another hour to go.
Don't you dare go anywhere. It's a Steelers Blitz on
SNR
This is the Steelers Blitz with Wesley Euler and Arthur
Motes on your twenty four to seven Home of the
Black and Gold SNR.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
What's going on Steelers Nation Radio. It is high noon
on a Thursday afternoon. That can only mean one thing.
It's time to go inside the Electric Factory. Here on
your twenty four to seven Home of the Black and Gold,
it is the Steelers Blitz on SNR. We have got
a familiar face, a familiar name with us today. If
you are an SNR loyalist, if you really listen into
(01:00):
anything that we do, you know Tom Optroman, Shirtless Tom.
He's the co host of the Steelers Standard. He's the
co host of asketon Answered with Bob Labriola's Shirtless Tea,
sitting in for Motsey this afternoon. What's up Tomas?
Speaker 3 (01:13):
You feel it? I feel the electricity in the air
when I come into the Electric Factory.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
It's good to be here.
Speaker 3 (01:17):
I haven't been on the Blitz side. I think it
was last training camp. I had to fill in first.
I was gonna say, so, it's been almost a calendar year.
I've jumped on.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
It's been probably a good thirteen to fourteen months. So
great to have you in here again. If you rock
and roll with us on SNR. You know Tom, you
know his work. Excited to get after it with you
today as always, partner, So let's jump right into it here.
We're kind of at the tail end of some Browns
reaction right when your team plays on Monday night. That
(01:45):
reaction always stretches an extra day or so into into
the week. Then maybe a normal just Sunday one o'clock
or afternoon slaught or whatever. It's Thursday today, so this
is kind of the day that we start to turn
the page. And we'll do that a little bit later on.
But I want to know your thoughts on the question
that seems to be and there's a lot of them,
(02:05):
to be fair, a lot of different questions, no doubt,
that have kind of been burning up the Steeler air
waves and Steelers circles in the last three days since
that game on Monday night. But where I wanted to
start with you today is the Jaleen Warren conversation. Man,
we're hearing a lot of that this week.
Speaker 3 (02:21):
Right nationally too. National Kyle Brandt take on the soapbox
of Jalen Warren. I mean, it's it's really run out
of controlling. I think Mike Florio too has been Mike.
Speaker 2 (02:29):
Florio as well too. Jason Garrett was talking about Jalen Warren.
He will be on the call for the broadcast or
I think he does the studio stuff for the broadcast
part of me on Sunday, of course. Obviously, long time
offensive coordinator, longtime head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, a
guy who knows uh the offensive side of the football,
certainly in the National Football League. Jalen Warren, Jalen Warren,
(02:49):
Jalen Warren, you know, pretty close to a fifty to
fifty split with Nause on carries on Monday Night. So
it's not like there's a huge discrepancy there if you
just look at the pure numbers, but the eyeball, there's
been more pop for Jalen Wore and I think that's
probably the best way to say it.
Speaker 3 (03:04):
There has he has more explosiveness than Nagy, But I
don't think Najy's that type of runner like Warren will
hit you a home run every once in a while.
Nause is like a box of the beats in the
twelve thirteenth round, like he needs twenty twenty five carries
a game, and you mentioned how it was kind of
a fifty to fifty split on Monday Night Football as
far as the volume of carries were concerned, but as
far as the effectiveness of carries are concerned, Nausea blewom
(03:25):
out of the water. I mean, I know people are
gonna point to the twenty one in the eighteen yard
run and they're gonna be like, well, that skews the average, okay,
but those runs still count.
Speaker 2 (03:32):
And particularly for an offense that struggles to get chunk
plays like that.
Speaker 3 (03:35):
And who's to say that if you don't turn Naugy's
ten carries into twenty carries, that those one to two
chunk plays turn into three or four chunk plays from
Najy Harris. So you know, I understand people saying, wow,
Warren really jumps off the screen at you, and he
has more burst, he has more pop than Nagy, But
the numbers just don't bear out that. I'm ready to
quit on Harris right now. I mean I said this
(03:57):
last night on Countdown to Kickoff with Matt Williamson and
Tim Ben with Nagy. To me, it's an offensive line
problem again. I mean, same old, same old for him,
and his entire career as a Steeler. But it's also
just a volume problem. I mean, five point one yards
per carry against the Niners. You have to stop running
the ball as much as you'd want to because you're
down by a million early in that game. Four point
(04:17):
four yards per carry against the Browns. I mean, this
guy's average playing better than his career average would dictate.
He's only gotten like six carries and ten carries. Though,
if you give that guy the rock a little bit more,
I think he's going to pay dividends. I think you're
gonna start to see, you know, not a big Jalen
Warren fifty yard run, but you're gonna see eight yard runs,
(04:38):
four yard run, six yard run, maybe a two yard run,
five yeard run. It's just going to be consistent and
he's just gonna wear that defense down. He wasn't really
a home run thread at Alabama. He Saban gave him
the ball thirty times and in the fourth quarter he
was fresh.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
He was a home run thread in the fourth quarter
when the other teams were beat down, and then he
could really pop up.
Speaker 3 (04:56):
And that's the one thing I will say about Nausee
that I'm not worried about. He's still a very physical runner,
and he's been hit behind the line of scrimmage a
lot again this year, and he's made things happen with that. So,
as far as you know, can he play that style
of game a bruising kind of running back and not
a Jerome Bettis type, but someone that makes the linebackers
hurt a little bit come third or fourth quarter. I
(05:17):
think that's why he's done his entire career. So I
really am a little bit surprised at how much hype
Warren's getting. I guess I see it because of the
burst that you see in the big plays that he's
made pop there for sure, But I mean you're just
ignoring the pop that Nause showed with his twenty one
yard run in his eighteen.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
Yard and he had a twenty four yarder against San
Francisco the week before.
Speaker 3 (05:39):
I mean he's had pop two.
Speaker 2 (05:41):
He certainly has. Now it doesn't look the same as
Jalen Warren when he does it right, just because of
the pure straight line speed element. But you're right, it's
been there in his game. And I really like that
analogy that you opened up with the boxing the fighting
analogy that is he is not Mike Tyson like. He's
not looking to knock you out in the first or
second or third round. He's Floyd Mayweather Dan. He's gonna
(06:06):
grind you down for ten rounds and then around eleven, twelve, thirteen,
that's when he's gonna really have his way, and that's
where he's really going to take advantage of that previous work.
It's it's an analogy. I think that's very apt in Tom.
I just part of it gets back to the offensive line,
which you mentioned as well too. That's the biggest problem
with the running game that they they are just they
are not Nagy's style, right is one read, one cut
(06:29):
and go.
Speaker 3 (06:30):
Yeah, and he'll probably break a tackle from a linebacker
or a defense exactly.
Speaker 2 (06:35):
And whereas Jalen Warren's style you can see more of
that patience, you can see more of that. Okay, I'm
gonna start to the right and nothing's here. I'm gonna
peel back to the left and I'm gonna beat everybody
to the edge. I just I think the way that
the Steelers offensive line is performing some of the play
calling element as well too. Right now, I don't think
it's doing Naugy any favors either.
Speaker 3 (06:56):
No, And I think that's kind of been the way
it's gone his entire Steelers career. I mean, his rookie
year with the line was abysmal. He had to fight
to get to the line of scrimmage almost every carry
he had. It was almost a miracle that he got
to a thousand yards in his rookie season. Then last year,
you know, Nause was probably more to blame for his struggles,
But I think I buy into that injury a little
bit because you saw a different Nause in the second
(07:18):
half after the bye week, getting two weeks off to
really get close to one hundred percent, and he was
a lifeblood for the team. I mean they were a
run heavy offense down the stretch. They went seven to two.
He had a couple hundred yard performances, and he grinded
out another thousand yard season. And I know that doesn't
mean as much anymore with the extra game, but you
start your career back to back a thousand yard seasons,
that's something to hang your hat on as a running back,
(07:38):
even in today's day and age. But yeah, I agree
when people are pointing at twenty two and saying he's
the problem your description of him needing a back that
he needs things blocked up for him. He needs a
hole in front of him, a one cut and he's gone.
He just doesn't have that in front of him. They're
asking him to try to do something that he's not.
And maybe that's why Jaylen Warren oh a little bit
(08:01):
more flash to some people, because I think he can
operate under maybe a little bit more chaotic offensive line.
He can be a handful of plays.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
He can create more out of nothing in a smaller
sample size.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
I mean on the twenty one yeard run, I know
nause didn't look the fastest on that run. He's not
the fastest running back in the league. That's not his style.
But the big problem with Jalen that I have with
people wanting to play him more is I as what
I just said about, I need to see more volume
from Nausey. I have to assume more volume is going
to make Jalen Warren less effective. Like sometimes guys are
(08:32):
just perfect in the role that they're in, and maybe
Warren's playing so well because he's cast perfectly right now.
If you extend them over extend him, you know, maybe
you see some of that production fall off a little bit.
Speaker 2 (08:42):
It's a great point by you. Maybe he's best suited
out of the bullpen. I agree, right to use another
another sports analogy.
Speaker 3 (08:48):
And as much as we want a nausey to be
better in the pass catching game, I think Warren's better
in that aspect. I think you can swing it out
to him, and we saw that on money.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
He's he's so fluid with it, right.
Speaker 3 (08:57):
I mean, if he wants coming to a third down,
third and eight, third and nine, I'm all for that.
Give him a nice little route out of the backfield.
I think he can be a fact. He's a good
run blocker too. He doesn't sacrifice anything.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
Great run blocker, particularly for his size. You're right with
that too, I mean it does. I'll give him this.
It looks different, and I mean this in a good way.
It looks more fluid, it looks smoother when Jaylen Morren's
catching balls out of the backfield. As opposed to nagy,
there's just a seamless transition of find the quarterback, bring
the ball in, get your butt up field. That nausey
just isn't quite as smooth. You know, with nausey, it's
(09:28):
a little more there's like that half second pause to
catch the ball and then turn him play it. So
I'm with you on that. Like again, I there's a
role in this offense for Jalen Warren with I just
don't think it's at the point now where you give
him the complete responsibility while also pulling the plug on
Naji Harris.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
The biggest problem with the offense is not the running game.
It's part of it though, and maybe some of the
other problems are symptoms of them not having a strong
running game. But the biggest gripe that I have so
far with running the football is they're just not doing it. No,
Like I am not ready to make a change at
a position where we've only seen you know what was
the twenty carries on Monday Night football and then it
(10:07):
was like ten or eleven on the week one game
against the Savantis forty nine ers last year, I just
said this, they became a run heavy team down the stretch,
Nause played well. They went seven and two. This year's
evolution was supposed to be that run heavy identity on offense,
but we build off of it. Now we take more
deep shots down the field, we incorporate more passing, elements
(10:29):
into it, but at our core, we're still that run
football team. Second and four, third and ones. We live
in that area. And it's like they had this great
preseason and then they just ripped it all up and
we're like, yeah, let's just throw fifty times. We're the Chiefs.
Like you did so well just running the football last
year down the stretch. Still didn't score enough points, though.
The next evolution is to have that running game be
(10:50):
the foundation and then expand your passing playbook as Kenny
gets more comfortable in the offense. But instead it just
skipped the running part and just pass, pass, pass, and
it's literally hurting Kenny. And we can get to Kenny
in a little bit. I'm sure. Maybe he's not a
quarterback that's cut out to pass pass pass all the time.
Maybe he needs a strong running.
Speaker 2 (11:09):
But he also doesn't need to throw the ball seventy
six times in the first two games of the season
against against two of the best defensive fronts in the
National Football League. Seventy six seventy six games.
Speaker 3 (11:19):
That's just and I get you have to play from
behind against the Niners, but they pulled the plug even
way too early on the running game in that game
down twenty to seven. You still run the football.
Speaker 2 (11:29):
When it's it's it's the first quarter, still you you
you run the football.
Speaker 3 (11:32):
People are gonna jump on me for this one because
they're not the same. But I remember last year Tennessee
in Seattle down by I think two or three touchdowns
in that game. They ran Derek Henry back into the
football game and ended up coming back and winning because
they were down so early. Steelers were down by three
touchdowns in the late third quarter or early fourth you
got a pass, but they were down in the first
and first.
Speaker 2 (11:52):
You don't abandon your ear, bread and butter, your identity
in the first half.
Speaker 3 (11:56):
I thought was going to be their identity. That's a
big problem. They don't have an identity.
Speaker 2 (11:59):
And I think that part of it too. You know what,
I'm glad you went there, and we will talk a
little bit more about Kenny Pickett in the next segment.
Maybe this is a smooth transition there. But they do
kind of look shell shocked in that regard, don't they?
Oh that through two games? What they I mean, they
told everybody all off season we're gonna be able to
run the football. You know when when when coordinators. When
coaches are asked oftentimes what's your identity? What do you
(12:21):
do well? They give some political answer, Right, Matt Canada,
right before the season started, what's your identity? What do
you guys do well? We will run the football. I
mean they told that the offensive line, we're gonna physical,
We're gonna run the football. Nase and Jalen. I mean,
that was not something that they hid from throughout training
camp in the preseason. It was not even something they
tried to downplay throughout training camp in the preseason. All
(12:42):
these different things that you're right, I mean, the the
issues on the offensive side of the football, it's no
one thing. They're all these things are complimentary together to
get to where you're at struggling right now. And we
talk about Kenny, and we talk about Matt Cannon, and
we talked about the Maybe the biggest thing is just
that that shell shock of Wow, through two games, we
haven't been able to run the football close to as
effectively as we thought we were going to be able to.
Speaker 3 (13:04):
Yeah, I mean I think that they have to kind
of be looking as much as we are as pundits
and analysts saying what the hell happened? From preseason to
the regular season. They have to be doing the same thing.
They have to be saying things that we were doing
successfully in camp, things that we worked on and translated
into games in the preseason games, and they work there.
Even when you played the varsity against Buffalo, things were
(13:25):
working there. It's all gone. It's all gone, poof, like,
we have no idea what's happening. So I do think
that the Steelers' offense kind of could be getting into
some dangerous quicksand type area where their confidence is going
to completely evaporate as well as their as their comments
going to complete evaporate as they keep playing poorly week
in and week out, because they really are shells of
(13:46):
what they looked like in the preseason compared to what
they look like now. And again in this next segment,
we might be talking about the guy who's the main
culprit for that, because I that's the person that looks
the most disconnected. I know the line looks worse than
it did in the preseason. I know that the receivers
I guess we're a little bit better, But the biggest
disconnect is what KP eight looked like in preseason and
(14:06):
what he looked like when the calendar turned to September.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
Well, I'm glad you said that. Let's take a break
here and then let's go there. I do want to
talk about Kenny Pickett with Tom, a guy who has
a nice body of work when it relates to seeing
Kenny Pickett over the years. As I've got a pit
season ticket holder in the booth with me here today,
So let's harken back to some of that when we
return on the other side. Has Tom seen Kenny in
a position like this before? Has he been able to
(14:29):
dig himself out of it? How does that kind of
mental moxie that we all know Kenny has play into
getting this thing turned around in the right direction. We'll
discuss all of that on the other side, West Yuler,
Tom on for a minutes. The Steelers Blitz on SNR.
Speaker 1 (15:47):
This is the Steeler's Blitz with Wesley Euler and Arthur
Motes on your twenty four to seven home of the
Black and Gold s n R.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
Blitzing here with our buddy Tom op from and on
a Thursday. That's right, a rare Thursday edition of the
Steelers Blitz.
Speaker 3 (16:05):
I just like let that beat ride.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
You like what I did with these beats and picked
out right.
Speaker 3 (16:10):
I wonder there's always energy on this show.
Speaker 2 (16:12):
I tell you what, you can only listen all due
respect to like our our unlicensed classic rock sounding sn
R beds. I can only do those so much till
I I can only hear the same you know, eleven
beds multiple times a day. That's exactly right. So we
went in. We found a few. You could see how
(16:33):
we got them labeled in the system. Here blitz bed
biggie sounding, you know what I mean. Found we found
all these different let's throw all those in there. I'll
play you one here before the show's done. That sounds
exactly like hypnotize. It's hilarious motes. And I were like,
this is this is this is unlicensed hypnotized right here.
We got to throw this into the system. Uh, speaking
(16:54):
of hypnotized, Oh, how do you like that transition? Canny
Pickett looks a little deer in head like he does.
And you know, I want to talk to you about
this because, as I mentioned before the break, I kind
of teased there. You know, Tom has a wide depth
of Kenny Pickett watching Tom and his dad pit men.
Pit season ticket holders have been going to games forever.
(17:16):
So you saw him all his years with the Panthers obviously,
and then now with the Steelers. Let me ask you this,
because his last season a pit obviously was fantastic, right
broke to Sean Watson's acc records, was a Heisman Trophy finalist,
all these different things, first round draft pick. Things went
pretty smoothly for Kenny his last year at PIT. But
(17:36):
leading up to that, right, he had some growing pains.
He had some struggles, like like every young quarterback does.
Do you remember a moment. Was there ever a moment though,
where it was like this where just the body language
kind of look defeated? Because that's always been the thing
with Kenny, right the confidence, the leadership, the moxie, that
term that gets thrown out there. We all know he's
very charismatic guy, and what might be his greatest strength
(17:58):
right now seems to be going in the opposite direction.
You ever remember another time like this, and all the
time that you've been watching Kenny.
Speaker 3 (18:05):
Body language wise, no, even when you know he wasn't
the best quarterback. He had back to back thirteen touchdowns
nine interception seasons at Pitt before the senior year breakout.
He never looked this distraught. He never looked like the
game was too fast, too big for him. It wasn't
that being the problem. He had some injury problems over
that stretch. And you know one thing that's plagued him
his entire life since entering Pitt. He had unbelievably unfair
(18:30):
expectations at pit because he beats number two Miami in
his first start. Ever, you hear that he's the next
d Amarno right away. They finally got their quarterback. He's so,
he's a freshman, he's gonna be here for the next
four to five years. This is great. And then he
was just he's kind of okay for the next three
to four years. He had his moment, for sure, And
I think that there are some games that he played
(18:51):
well enough for Pitt to win and the old genius
head ball coaches defense might have let him down or
some things like that, but he wasn't ever so shockingly
bad where I was just like, Kenny's not it. You
gotta move off for him, you gotta bench him. I
never felt like he was lost out there quite like
I've seen him. After the first couple drives against the
(19:13):
Niners and and really a lot of that Monday night
football game against the Browns. Just the deer in the
headlights is a very apt description to use for him.
And just to answer your question again, no, I've never
seen his mental acumen look this low in all my
time watching him at PITT. I mean, he, like I said,
didn't put up gaudy numbers, but he did okay enough.
(19:34):
He helped them, you know, win six seven games every
now and again, and I think he always kind of
felt like, I'm getting better, I'm building to I've exactly
like I'm learning this though, and last year Kenny was
overwhelmed at times, but he never looked it because I
think he just, okay, I'm a rookie, like things are fast,
but I'm getting better.
Speaker 2 (19:52):
At this is expect again, anytime you move to that
next level as a quarterback, you're ready to pain.
Speaker 3 (19:57):
But he never looked this frightened out there. And I
don't know if that's a whole offseason worth of great
expectations being leaped onto him, saying, oh, you look great
in the preseason, now it's time to turn it up.
You're the next franchise guy. Doesn't seem like a guy
that would read his own press clippings, maybe he did,
but it clearly looks like he's got like an oh
bleep feel to him right now. Like I I'm the
(20:20):
Steelers starting quarterback. I went to pit you know, the
franchise is pitting their hopes ontos can unravel, and two
games in, I look like I look terrible.
Speaker 2 (20:30):
I think you're absolutely right. And that's again, that's been
the most surprising part to me because, like you mentioned,
even last year, down the stretch, at times where it
wasn't going well for Kenny, his greatest strength was that
ability to hang in there. Right that whole Christmas Eve
game against the Raiders, stink, bad offense, do and nothing,
and then all he needs is the one opportunity to
(20:50):
the end. He drives that team right down the field,
scores the touchdown. Same thing against Baltimore. Right.
Speaker 3 (20:54):
The Baltimore one too, is even crazier to me because
the Ravens hadn't given up a touchdown drive in the
fourth quarter, and like weeks you.
Speaker 2 (21:00):
Had ninety, you had, you had nine points.
Speaker 3 (21:02):
And you're starting at the ninety or at the two,
and it's cold.
Speaker 2 (21:07):
It's prime time in Baltimore. That place is jumping, you know,
I'm fortunate enough now to beat all the games.
Speaker 3 (21:11):
Like they're going to make the playoffs, they're trying to
win the division.
Speaker 2 (21:14):
They have this they have these new lights in Baltimore
so they can cut their lights. They can cut their
lights on and off at any moment without any delay.
Speaker 3 (21:20):
Yeah, they did that at the Oils game when I
was there too.
Speaker 2 (21:22):
It's and like it's like it's like they've got the
Steelers penned at the two yard line. There's a couple
of minutes left, it's cold, it's the end of and
they're doing these lights and the place is going nuts.
In the link, I'm like, this game's over.
Speaker 3 (21:32):
He didn't blink though, Like he didn't he didn't.
Speaker 2 (21:34):
Converted key third downs. That key passed a nausey which
was if I'm right, a third or fourth down as
well too. To score that touchdown at the death and
win the game.
Speaker 3 (21:43):
Face pressure to avoided it and got the ball out.
I mean, it's so weird to see that and that
because that was the gaming pointed and say, well, even
if the skill set's.
Speaker 2 (21:53):
Not there, the mental makeup is there.
Speaker 3 (21:55):
Get into Baltimore, beat Triveal and a fourth quarter comeback.
They hadn't given up a touchdown in the four fourth
quarter since like September. We're playing this game at the
end of December, and yet he does that. Go into
this offseason thinking, well, at least we got the dude
mentally between the years. He's as sharp as anybody.
Speaker 2 (22:10):
We might have some growing pains, but at least we
know his his fortitude is there.
Speaker 3 (22:15):
But I'd rather have that, you know, mental acuity, because
that can make up for a lot of deficiency still wise,
whereas if you're a super skilled player but you don't
have it between the ears, Johnny Manziel, I'm not going
to do anything in the NFL. Right, well, hold on now,
start for him.
Speaker 2 (22:30):
So far as you hate to admit it.
Speaker 3 (22:31):
One hundred percent, you're right like you could be these
number one overall picks and you just don't have what
it takes mentally. I'd almost rather have a guy be
a little less than in the skill department and just
be that much better mentally.
Speaker 2 (22:43):
Tom Brady, right, Tom Brady was never the greatest. Tom
Brady was not Peyton Manning and Aaron Rodgers. In terms
of when you're talent.
Speaker 3 (22:48):
People build those quarterback like the perfect quarterback you say,
I'm taking Rogers's arm, I'm taking Manning's brain, like blah
blah blah. You never knew what to take for Bratty's heart,
maybe like you just never knew what that's about him.
He just was the greatest at you know, keeping a
calm head no matter what the other team did, no
matter how deep the hole is. I still think I'm
going to come back and win this game. And that's
(23:10):
what I thought we had in Kenny at the very
least still might have that, But he has not shown
that kind of fortitude in the first two weeks. For sure.
Speaker 2 (23:17):
He is not. And I think that's the most surprising
thing again about all of this, because everything that we
had seen from Kenny for the previous two years was
the complete opposite, was that ability to hang in there
no matter what. So Tom, listen, I know there's again
this is not all these things work together in an ecosystem.
Right when your offensive line struggling, your run game struggling,
your quarterbacks struggling, and you were losing some wide receivers
(23:39):
to injury, and maybe the play calling isn't the greatest
from the offensive course, all these different things are in
their own ecosystem working against the goal together. But for
Kenny right in terms of just controlling what you can control,
because Kenny can't control how well the offensive line blocks,
he can't control the play calls that are coming in
and some of these different things. For me, there is
(24:01):
still room in there. He needs help as well too.
He needs better offensive line, he needs he needs better
run game. He needs to get Deontay Johnson, his best
route runner and his best separator out there, back on
the field as soon as possible, hopefully just another week
or so here for Deontay, but for him too. Control
what you can control, and to me, that part is
obviously some of the mental stuff that we just talked
(24:22):
about as well too. But there's throws there that we
know Kenny can make over the over the first two
games that you think he's that he's just missing them
when when the play is there, when the call is there,
when the route is there. And I'm not saying it
is every time, obviously, but he's had those opportunities and
has just missed on him. I think it's one of
those things to give him again because all this context matters,
(24:42):
and he played maybe the best defense in the NFL
maybe right up there with the Steelers in Week one
in San Francisco. One of the best teams, one of
the best defensive front certainly, and what they have and
Garrett and Smith there on that line, and they've got
talent all over the place and the secondary, all those
guys in their secondary first and second round draft picks.
Speaker 3 (25:00):
I kind of have a feeling that the defensive coordinator
in Cleveland's a little bit smarter than the head coach
right now as someone those sorts didn't do that great
as a head coach, but.
Speaker 2 (25:08):
As someone who worked in Philadelphia when the Eagles won
that Super Bowl, and Jim Schwartz the defensive coordinator he is,
I think he's a little bit better than Stefanski. He's
I don't know, if there's an offense maybe like a uh,
I don't know, what's the coach who was just with
the card Cliff Kingsbary, like a guy who is like, Okay,
you probably shouldn't be a head coach, but man, you
(25:29):
can do a good coordinator. Just stay on the offensive
side of the football, right, that's Schwartz. That's Schwartz on
the defensive side of the football. I think you're right
that he's he's really improved that Browns defense very quickly here.
That's the one kind of all of Branch too, that
I'm willing to extend. I know, you have to go
on the road, and that's never easy in the NFL,
particularly when you're moving time zones like the Steelers are
(25:50):
the next two weeks in Las Vegas all the way
across the coast, and then Houston down in Texas as
well too. But if you're going to get this thing
moving in the right direction, it's a little bit of
a different story yet. I guess has some talent to
pass rushers up front, but they're not the Niners, and
they're not the Browns, the Texans. They are completely Will
Anderson we think can be great, be good, but but
I mean they are completely revamping that defense. I mean
(26:11):
getting rid of guys like Desmond King because they don't
think they're going to be part of the long term
picture when they do get this thing where they want
it to be in the next couple of years. To me,
these next two weeks are crucial for Kenny because there's
going to be plays that are out there to be made.
If you can get that moving in the right direction.
Then you come back home against Baltimore, then you get
your bye week, all the sudden right, just tread water
(26:32):
till that point, get Deontay back, get things moving in
the right direction, and then you get some more favorable
matchups as well too. I think that's got to kind
of be the blueprint for Kenny. Just control what you
can control, make the throws that you've been making for
years now, and things will start looking up.
Speaker 3 (26:48):
This game coming up on Sunday and a football against
the Raiders, he has got to throw at least two
touchdown passes in a game. Okay, it is fifteen games
now to one, and that's it as far as a
MAXI is concerned. And people pointed to well, he's had
a couple three touchdown games total because he's running the
ball in how dare you I want my quarterback to
be throwing and the touchdown it's.
Speaker 2 (27:09):
Not act like they were Lamar Jackson.
Speaker 3 (27:12):
Yeah, like the one against the Bengals, he's spinning peoples.
Speaker 2 (27:15):
And going for forty yards. They're like one or two
yard from his goal line run.
Speaker 3 (27:18):
But his first touchdown, I think ever in his career
was a quarterback sneak against the Jets which, by the way,
so willing to sneak the ball last year. And then
you get a third and one in this game, and
I know people are on Canada for the play call
and the read the run read there. I think triuld
have handled the ball off the naugy It would have
had a better chance instead of keeping it. But regardless,
where's the sneak?
Speaker 2 (27:37):
Where is the sneak? Yeah, I don't know. Maybe I
was thinking about that too. Maybe they just don't want
him to get hit, you know, the two concussions last year.
Speaker 3 (27:43):
Knock the ball all the time after the two concussions
last year.
Speaker 2 (27:47):
Sure, it's just it.
Speaker 3 (27:48):
That was when it was third and one, fourth and one,
Kenny was because I remember I would joke around to
be like, he's the next Brady as far as quarterback
sneaks are concerned, Becau Kenny would just get it.
Speaker 2 (27:56):
And you can see how that can be such a
cheat code in the NFL.
Speaker 3 (27:59):
Look look at the Eagles right now.
Speaker 2 (28:00):
Look at the Eagles.
Speaker 3 (28:01):
Anytime they have one and a half yards or less.
Speaker 2 (28:04):
Line up Jason Kelcey and you just, god.
Speaker 3 (28:06):
Honestly, on a fourth and two, I would run that play.
They always seem to get two to three yards every
single time.
Speaker 2 (28:11):
So and you can push now in the backfield as
well too. There's not the no push rule anymore.
Speaker 3 (28:15):
That's a tangent I digress on that. It's just weird
that you didn't see any of the quarterback sneak there.
He's got to throw two touchdown passes at least. This
is like you said this week. Next week, these opponents
are right for the taking. They are not good defenses.
Speaker 2 (28:27):
And let's not kick ourselves either. I know it's a
road game in the NFL. They're always tough again, particularly
when you're traveling across country, but it's not you're stepping
into it. You're not going to Arrowhead.
Speaker 3 (28:36):
Stop Baltimore, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (28:38):
Yes, Yeah, you're not going to Buffalo or Philly or
Kansas City. You're going to two areas where you probably
have fifty percent, if not more, of the fan base
in there.
Speaker 3 (28:47):
Yeah, And I mean I think Houston is a stronger
fan base than the Raiders, but the Texans have given
them nothing to root for it in the past four
or five years. Now they're going to start to dwindle off.
They're not going to care. Maybe you get a little
bit resurgence because you know you have the rookie quarterback
and things might be somewhat looking up for them. But yeah,
I think that you're.
Speaker 4 (29:04):
Going to lambeau Field, might be best for Kenny to
get away from Akroscher Stadium for a little bit and
go on the road, but not have to go all
the way to the top of you know, Thunderdome when
it comes to.
Speaker 2 (29:16):
Like Seattle or Green Bay or Kansas City or Philly.
Speaker 3 (29:20):
Get away from the home fans in mass without really
subjecting yourself to abuse from a visiting crowd as well. Yeah,
or from a home crowd as you're visiting.
Speaker 2 (29:29):
I mean, I think for going on the road again,
cross country out of your time zone the next two
weeks in a row, which doesn't happen a ton in
the NFL. You'll get back to back road games, but
it's usually like Okay, we go cross country for one
and the other one somebody in our division or something
like that. I know that that's a tall task. With
that being said, though, other than that, I don't think
it sets up much better because you're going into environments
where it's going to be neutral crowd at worst. I
(29:51):
would say against defenses that feel like, I don't want
to say right for the picking because it's the National Footballer.
You ever, defense has good players, but defenses that certainly
ard as nasty as the one of the first two weeks.
Speaker 3 (30:02):
They should be able to put up some numbers against
this team. In the running game too, Raiders are not
that great against the run. The Bills put up two
hundred and thirty rushing yard the Bills and thirty rush
who don't like the run, just Josh Allen. It was
James Cook who had like one hundred and twenty yards
on the ground. So every aspect of the Steelers offense
that needs fixed, I think this is an opponent that
you can fix it against. But one of the big
(30:23):
problems with the offense has been execution, and you got
to go out to Vegas and execute.
Speaker 2 (30:27):
That is what we are hoping for. It's the Steelers blitz.
Here on SNR. Are going to take another break. On
the other side, I've got some stranger stats for Tom
will kind of put a bow on the week that
was before hour number two where we start looking at
the upcoming task ahead out there in Viva Las Vegas.
It's a Steelers blitz. On SNR.
Speaker 1 (31:05):
This is the Steelers Blitz with Wesley Euler and Arthur
Motes on your twenty four to seven home of the
Black and gold S n R Blitz.
Speaker 2 (31:15):
In here on a Thursday, our buddy Tom opp from
an in for Motzi as we put some final thoughts
on the Browns Monday night football victory. And we'll start
here shortly to begin to look ahead to the challenge
that the Viva Las Vegas Raiders will present to the
Steelers in primetime Sunday night out there in Sin City.
(31:38):
My first trip out there to the desert, Tom, I
can't wait.
Speaker 3 (31:40):
That's gonna be sick. Seeing that stadium is going to
be really sick. Are you gonna poke around the sphere
at all?
Speaker 2 (31:45):
I'm gonna try, fortunately, if you can just go in,
can I don't think so, but you probably want to
be on the outside anyways.
Speaker 3 (31:52):
I've seen something from the inside, the pretty cool Imax
screen Safari like footage from like an health walking and dude,
the elephants just walking over you. It looks insane. Put
it this way, it looked insane, and I was seeing
it on Twitter. I couldn't even imagine we're sitting in
person actually having that atmosphere. You gotta at least walk
by it, though. That's what That's the coolest stadium slash
(32:15):
concert hall I've seen it ever.
Speaker 2 (32:16):
Maybe, I mean it's it's so Vegas that that that
starts there. I'm gonna do. Fortunately, we're leaving early Saturday,
so i'll be out bet you, I'll be out there
by noon on Saturday. And it's not a you know,
it's a five. It's a five. It's a five point
fifteen local time on Sunday. So it's not like i
have to be up early or anything. So I'm gonna
do tour stuff, don't you worry. I'm gonna walk the strip.
(32:37):
I'm gonna go to the water fountains at the Bollaggio
right like I'm in Ocean's eleven.
Speaker 3 (32:42):
Maybe place a little recreational wager.
Speaker 2 (32:44):
Maybe maybe a couple of those. Yeah, I gotta check
out Caesar's Palace. I gotta check out some of the
sports books. I'm gonna walk to the sphere.
Speaker 3 (32:51):
Certainly, that's awesome. That's a great road trip to get
and honestly, Houston the week after is a great time
to go to too.
Speaker 2 (32:56):
I'm excited about Houston the week after as well. Certainly,
road schedule starts out hot for a year traveling really
does Vegas, Houston, LA. I mean, we've already been to Atlanta.
We've already been to Atlanta and Tampa. Pretty good.
Speaker 3 (33:09):
It's gonna make up for having to go to indi landa.
Speaker 2 (33:11):
See. I love Indy. Yeah, that's one of my favorite
Americans day the combine before.
Speaker 3 (33:15):
You don't like Indies, all right, I'm not going to
bash the sign people of Indianapolis.
Speaker 2 (33:20):
I'll tell you this. I'm really easy to please. If
your city is easy to navigate, well, that's true. It's
a completely cool walk anywhere in fifteen minutes without even
everything's in in walkways. The food's great, there's watering holes
that aren't overly expensive. That's kind of the only thing
I'm worried about in Vegas. It's gonna cost me seventeen
dollars to get a light beer. But there you go.
(33:40):
You just figured it out for me. Yeah. Some fun
road trips Seattle at the end of the season. I
love the Pacific Northwest, even though it'll be approximately seven
degrees in Seattle now when we are there.
Speaker 3 (33:49):
No, Seattle's fun. I went there from my honeymoon.
Speaker 2 (33:51):
You're gonna love it, Yeah, you and I, You and
I both did. I love see it.
Speaker 3 (33:57):
I would live there for sure.
Speaker 2 (33:57):
My wife and I love the Pacific Northwest. We did
a few days in Seattle, few days in Vancouver for
for our honeymoon back in twenty sixteen. So yeah, good sushi,
good food.
Speaker 3 (34:06):
Oh, I've never had better suit.
Speaker 2 (34:08):
You've never had better sushi in my life than you will.
U up there and then went back to Northwest.
Speaker 3 (34:12):
That's how good it was. Life and I went one
day to go back to back to back, went to
the Sounders game, and after we're like, we need to eat,
so let's go get some sushi.
Speaker 2 (34:19):
Yes, so damn it's the best. So yeah, some fun
road trips this year for the Steelers, certainly beginning with
Las Vegas this weekend. I will if you check back
on SNR next week, I'll have some stories for you
of Mikeuse. I've never been to Vegas. I've never been
to Vegas before, so I got a full day. I'm
trying to do the touristy stuff. So I'm trying to
have a good time and go to the sports book
and watch my Mountaineers hopefully not lose to Texas Tech.
(34:40):
It should be a grand old time now, Tom, as
we closed down this first hour, here a goofy thing
that we have kind of introduced here. Okay, okay, I'm
just gonna put you on the spot. We're gonna jump
right into it. It's a little segment called stranger Stats. Yeah.
You know again, this is me trying to kind of
(35:02):
find you know, some uh, what do we want to
call it? Stranger things sounding Yeah, So I've got some
stats for you from the Steelers last game, Tom, all right,
and then you got to tell me which one is
the strangest.
Speaker 3 (35:13):
Okay, I love it.
Speaker 2 (35:15):
Stranger Stats. The Steelers scored two defensive touchdowns on Monday
Night Football. That's the first time they've done that in
thirteen years, since two thousand and ten, when Deebo had
a scoop six and Troy Polamalu had to pick six
the players Stranger Stats, the Steelers did not run a
(35:36):
single play in the red zone all game on offense.
I'm not sure if that's ever happened before. It didn't
have time to do all the research, but I couldn't
find any time recently.
Speaker 3 (35:45):
It's safe to say Stranger Stats.
Speaker 2 (35:49):
A quarterback, Deshaun Watson got flagged for face masking two
different times in the same game.
Speaker 3 (35:57):
Big play from her, big there drawing that face mask
Stranger Stats.
Speaker 2 (36:01):
The Steelers entered the fourth quarter on Monday Night down
three points. When that fourth quarter started, the offense generated
negative seven yards in the fourth quarter. They won the
game by four points. Stranger's stats that it is that
the last one. That is the last one, that one that's.
Speaker 3 (36:18):
The longest that they gained negative seven yards and completed
a fourth quarter comeback. That's incredible, right, that I know
has never happened before. I mean maybe in nineteen forty two,
but like that has never happened in the modern era
of football.
Speaker 2 (36:31):
Ever, I don't know if there's been a Stranger Stats
where I mean the three the Steelers did not run
a single play in the reds on all.
Speaker 3 (36:38):
That's pretty strange. The defensive touchdown one is bonkers because
that has happened in thirteen years.
Speaker 2 (36:42):
But you see that Steelers football. Have you ever seen
a quarterback get flagged for face basking, let alone twice
in the same game.
Speaker 3 (36:47):
No, not twice at the very least, but they were
blatant face masks.
Speaker 2 (36:51):
I mean, they're easy calls. Easy calls.
Speaker 3 (36:53):
One time Dejohn Watson was trying to blame the Steelers
defender for it.
Speaker 2 (36:55):
Yeah, it was hilarious. He also should have been ejected
for pushing the referee, but I digress.
Speaker 3 (37:00):
Yeah, what the hell is that about?
Speaker 2 (37:01):
They're normally so strict about like so you.
Speaker 3 (37:04):
Could get suspended after that.
Speaker 2 (37:06):
And there's like no appeal, no nothing like you're you're
out and you're gone.
Speaker 3 (37:09):
Like even though the refs missed it on the field,
even though one of the refs quite literally got hit
by him, you think the league would have steped in
at least a fifty thousand dollars fine or something was coming.
Speaker 2 (37:18):
Down at least. But I don't know.
Speaker 3 (37:21):
Hey, well he's such an upstanding citizen, so maybe.
Speaker 2 (37:23):
He deserves to be given a break. He deserves the
benefit of doubt. I'm with you, though, I think it's
if you you would have told Steelers fans at started
the fourth quarter that they're going to generate negative seven yards.
Speaker 3 (37:32):
Will you come back?
Speaker 2 (37:33):
Will you come back and win? People would have laughed
in your face. Twenty in a uh in a a
game full of stranger stats. I'm with Tom I think
that is the craziest one.
Speaker 3 (37:42):
You save the best one for last. That's nuts that
And like I said, no research done, probably never happened,
and I would have a hunch that it's not gonna
happen again for a long long time. If ever, Like
you might get negative seven yards in a fourth quarter again,
but you're not completing a fourth quarter comeback.
Speaker 2 (37:59):
You might not run a play in the red zone again,
hopefully not hopefully hopefully you do that to Houston.
Speaker 3 (38:05):
I think that was what the thirty or they weren't
even in the thirty I.
Speaker 2 (38:08):
Even got inside of the thirty. And what stinks about
that Tom two before we go to break here is
like you finally we have been begging for explosive plays, right,
chunk splashed for the offense. Seventy one yard touchdown, twenty
one yard run, seventeen yard run. I mean, we haven't
had that in a long time.
Speaker 3 (38:25):
Kyle Brandt said on Good Morning Football on Tuesday with
Pickens past, it was like a lightning strike down the
middle of the field, Like it was just like, whoa.
Speaker 2 (38:32):
We haven't seen that since mister big chest himself was where.
Speaker 3 (38:35):
Did that come from? And by the way, I learned
a little something about mister Pickens on that play too.
Speaker 2 (38:40):
Speed.
Speaker 3 (38:40):
Dude's got sums burners, huh. I mean the play against
Tampa Bay in the preseason. He broke that dude's ankles
and that's how he got to the end zone. It
was in cut and then he cut the other way.
Great juke move. I didn't know he could just say,
I'm gonna run faster than you and he went right
between the round safety and right between the corner back.
Speaker 2 (38:58):
That's safety too, speaking of. He took a decent angle,
but you could see his face. He was like, oh, quickly,
this guy is moving.
Speaker 3 (39:06):
He did, what will you do? He misjudged his speed.
He took an angle as if he was five miles
per hour slower than he actually was.
Speaker 2 (39:12):
It was impressive, awesome it was. It was shot out.
He was shot out of a can and.
Speaker 3 (39:15):
Then people pickings. What about the yards after the catch?
Does he have that ability? That showed me that he's
got the ability to do some things with the football
after he catches it.
Speaker 2 (39:23):
I think you're right, and you're gonna need that. I
mean all season, but particularly in the absence of Deontay
Johnson here for at least a few more weeks.
Speaker 3 (39:30):
But you're right, like we hadn't seen a lightning strike,
and we get one and then the rest of the
offense just goes to put two around it. So it's like,
you can't have both, you.
Speaker 2 (39:40):
Can't have both. Yeah, it's it's it's been frustrating. The
The one positive that I keep pointing to is, you know,
last year we had some of these same conversations, but
you dug yourself into a two and six hole, right
that was just impossible to climb out of. And you
go seven and two down the stretch and you end
up with the winning record, and that's commendable, but you
you're just never gonna make the plaoffs in the NFL
(40:00):
starting two and six if they can, just if they
continue to struggle through these first few weeks, but instead
of being two and six, they're.
Speaker 3 (40:10):
Four and three, say in three and two by the
bye week after the raid, like.
Speaker 2 (40:14):
You're you're hanging in there. All your goals are still
in front of you and then hopefully you do start
playing your best football in November and at the right time,
but you haven't dug yourself such a hole that all
your goals are still in front of you. That's if
I'm going optimistic, if I'm going glass half full. That's
what it's been for me all week. Is Hey, you
know what, this team struggled last year, and they fell
behind mightily and then started, you know, piecing it together
(40:34):
at the right time. It was just too late. Hopefully
they won't fall behind mightily this year and then they
start piecing it together at the right time as well too,
and everything's still in front of them. One more for you, Tom,
before we go to break. This isn't really a stranger stat,
but I think it just bears laying out there. The
Browns have not won a regular season game in Pittsburgh
since October of twenty twenty three. Okay, Tom, you want
(40:56):
to guess who the quarterbacks were for both of the
teams in October of twenty twenty three. The last time
the Browns in a regular season game in Pittsburgh October
of twenty twenty three. Correct or sorry, two thousand and three.
Pardon me part, Okay, Yes, October of two thousand and three.
Speaker 3 (41:08):
Well, the last time the Browns came into Pittsburgh and
won a game with Baker. Yes, two thousand and three.
I mean it would have to be Tommy Maddox, correct
Dealers and the Browns. Was that Derek Anderson or was
that a little too early for Derek Andny?
Speaker 2 (41:25):
So I believe Derek Anderson took over that season in
two thousand and three.
Speaker 3 (41:30):
Yes, the year what they're gonna they went like ten
and six, but still.
Speaker 2 (41:33):
You know what, Actually that was a couple of years
later where they where they went like ten but still
missing Jay. It was Tim Couch the last time.
Speaker 3 (41:42):
I think pretty good guesses.
Speaker 2 (41:44):
Those are pretty good guesses from you. Garcia is a
real good guess. The Browns are not won a regular
season game in Pittsburgh since October of twenty twenty, twenty
thousand and three. Dang it, I did it again, Tim
Couch and Tommy Maddocks a couple of legends.
Speaker 3 (41:55):
Tim Couch beaten Tommy Gunn Hunger Center.
Speaker 2 (41:57):
Yes, but then remember the Steelers got the last laugh
in that while card playoff game later that season where
they had where they had the where they had the
comeback win against the Browns with Chris fu Madamalafala scoring
in the final minute of the game. One hour in
the books with our buddy Tom another hour to go.
Don't you dare go anywhere. It's a Steelers Blitz on
SNR
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