Preseason Week 3: @TEN

[Ojb81]

Tuzar Skipper MUST make this team. We've seen enough of Chickillo, and what he brings to the table isn't all that much to write home about. Skipper looks like a guy who could make some big splash plays throughout the the season.

 

[thedddd]

Got to watch the game briefly as I was doing an offline fantasy draft at the time.... But I saw everything that I needed to see from everyone.

Offense... 1st team accomplished their goal, even with a few mistimed plays. Shaking the rust off, but it all came together. Ben to JuJu was too easy. Hope that is the case all year. Rudolph has cemented the backup position. Dobbs should be traded if they feel comfortable with Hodges. PG4 should be just Dobbs & Hodges playing. But I fear Dobbs has started to hurt his value. Not a consistent enough passer in the short to intermediate game, but can create plays under duress. James Washington is the real deal.

Defense... 7 sacks, hell yea. I sure hope Tuitt plays well this year. That D-line is gonna be a problem for a lot of opponents, plus making everything easier on the back end of the D. Just stay healthy Stephon! Great games from the entire cast. Bush & Vince are a formidable duo in the middle. Skipper continues to impress. Sean Davis (ankle) & Bud Dupree (thumb) got minor injuries during the game.

The seven sacks could be misleading, though. Their left tackle was brutal along with most their O-line to the point it made Bud Dupree look useful. With that said if Tuitt can continue to get the penetration in the middle (ie..stay healthy) it will make Dupree better by default.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

The seven sacks could be misleading, though. Their left tackle was brutal along with most their O-line to the point it made Bud Dupree look useful. With that said if Tuitt can continue to get the penetration in the middle (ie..stay healthy) it will make Dupree better by default.

Agreed... and lulz on the "look useful" comment.

If this D-line plays to its potential, then I really don't care who plays outside... The LBers will have lots of room to play with those beasts up front demanding doubles. Funniest part is people will continue to try and iso-block Heyward & Tuitt. The disrespeck!

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Tuzar Skipper MUST make this team. We've seen enough of Chickillo, and what he brings to the table isn't all that much to write home about. Skipper looks like a guy who could make some big splash plays throughout the the season.

The Chick experiment always felt more about insurance than potential. When players like Moats & (aged) Harrison were their best fallback options he was always the rock of the group when others missed time. But I agree, the more playmaking potential the better, and Skipper certainly brings that to the table. But something tells me we will be disappointed after next weekend. If the inevitable happens and they cut Skipper, I hope they find some undisclosed injury so that they can hang him up on IR for the season lol

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Interesting tid bits from Dale Lolley (DKpghSports):

If the battle for the No. 2 quarterback job was a prize fight, it might be stopped on punches right now.

While Josh Dobbs has more yards passing than Mason Rudolph (259 to 243), Dobbs has completed just 15 of 28 passes with no touchdowns and two interceptions, while Rudolph is 21 of 32 with three touchdowns and one interception.

Yes, Dobbs has an added dimension to his game with his running. He has eight carries for 59 yards. He also has a stronger arm and will make some bullet throws that make you take notice, such as this one:


But then later, he'll do something like overthrow 6-foot-8 tight end Zach Gentry from 20 feet away as he did in this game, resulting in an interception deep in Titans territory.

Expect to see a lot of Dobbs and Devlin Hodges, who didn't play in this game, against the Panthers. The Steelers might give Rudolph the starting nod, but don't expect him to play a lot in a game that won't feature too many regulars.

And no, Dobbs doesn't have a lot of trade value. He's thrown 12 career passes in the NFL, after all.

• For those keeping track at home, Kevin Rader played in this game before Zach Gentry.

Gentry, a fifth-round pick, did have one catch for 15 yards compared to none for Rader, a first-year player out of Youngstown State.

But the Steelers have been more pleased with Rader's blocking than they have Gentry's. And that's what they want out of their No. 3 tight end.

• The toughest cut remains at inside linebacker.

The Steelers figure to keep only five and Vince Williams, who had a sack in this game in his first preseason action, Mark Barron and first-round pick Devin Bush are givens. Tyler Matakevich, who has led the team in special teams tackles in each of the past three seasons, is all but a given.

The Steelers could keep six inside linebackers, but that would be a lot.

Robert Spillane and Ulysees Gilbert are making this a tough call. Both had five tackles in this game to lead the team, with Spillane also recording a sack and two tackles behind the line of scrimmage.

Both also were on the field as first-team special teams guys. Whoever did their assignment the best there -- or makes a splash play against the Panthers -- could get the nod.

• Kameron Kelly also seems to have a spot locked up. In fact, the Steelers continue to use him in a three-safety nickel look instead of a true slot corner.

The really interesting thing was that the Steelers kept Kelly on the field in the dime in place of Mike Hilton as the nickel corner. The two extra defensive backs in the dime were Kelly and Cam Sutton.

I know I didn't have him on my initial 53-man projection, but it was because I kept six receivers. I'm not so sure that happens now.

Kelly will be on this roster, especially with Sean Davis suffering a minor ankle sprain in this game.

• One player who did nothing to help his cause was sixth-round pick Sutton Smith. He got into the game early because Bud Dupree suffered a right thumb injury and was overwhelmed by pretty much any front-line player the Titans put in front of him.

The undersized outside linebacker finished with just one tackle and was often washed out of plays.

Tuzar Skipper, on the other hand, continues to make plays. He had four more tackles and a sack in this game, giving him a team-high three in the preseason.

With Ola Adeniyi sidelined for at least another week or two, Skipper, like Adeniyi, a Toledo prospect, could find his way onto the roster, at least at the start of the season. At the very least, he's secured himself practice squad consideration.

• I know everyone gets excited about a quick little return guy like Diontae Spencer. And Spencer, overall, has been good in the return game, averaging 14.7 yards on seven punt returns.

But he picked up just 2 yards on his only return in this game. And you can only run so many end-arounds and reverses with him before teams catch on.

In fact, that happened in the second half of this game when the Steelers went back to the well after Spencer gained 29 yards on a reverse earlier in the game. The second time around, Spencer was dropped for a 10-yard loss that was negated because he was nearly beheaded when he was pulled down by his facemask.

Little guys take big hits in the NFL. And that was one of them.

At 5-foot-8, 185 pounds, Switzer isn't a great deal bigger than the 170-pound Spencer. But he is bigger. And Switzer did have a 20-yard punt return in this game.

Dobbs not having trade appeal based on stats is a little misleading. I think there is still value to be found, albeit don't expect much more than a 5th or 6th Rd pick.

Rader over Gentry... Not surprised. Still don't understand them taking him in the draft. Big swing & a miss there if he doesn't make the 53. Obviously they aren't impressed with Grimble's blocking either, enough so that they put Rader into play in the dress rehearsal. Been complaining about the "blocking TE" since the draft. Nobody fits the bill.

ILB... UG3 should be the guy. Spillane looks good and has the better stats, but that isn't a knock on UG3 at all. It's all about circumstances & position when they're in the game. Honestly I'd much rather have either Spillane & UG3 OVER Dirty Red. Matakevich is a sound player and ST beast, but his ceiling is uber low. He shows out in the preseason to give everyone some hope, but then gets dismantled if pressed into regular season action.

Kelly... Not sure what to make of them not utilizing Hilton much anymore. Coaches seem enamored with the idea of having that bigger sized DB in the dime role. Much like they envisioned with the Morgan Burnett experiment. I like Kelly to make the 53, but to start him over Hilton in the slot? No thanks.

Sutton Smith... Definitely a project at the NFL level. To the PS he goes.

Spencer... Hasn't done enough to take the return role from Switz. But he should stick to the PS.