the bridge on changing quarterbacks, there's still
a lot of angst and and complaining from Steelers fans
about the offense coordinator, Matt Canada. Here's
Tomlin from yesterday, talking about the team's struggles and
his own personal confidence and he may be the only one in
the Pittsburgh area who has confidence in their offense
coordinator. Matt Canada have a listen
largely. We were disaster County in all three phases, and
we have to own that starting with
Myself and I do
and equally as important. We got to build a plan to wish to
move forward. Like also mention after the game,
you know, all all things are on the table when you perform like
that. And and I wasn't just talking tongue and cheek.
I mean it I just think
when you, when you're up against it, man, you got to,
you got to really look at
all components of what it is that you do
not for the sake of changing. But for the, for the, for
change, for the better, you talked about, not shooting
a hostage. But I mean, It's Matt took over last year. The
numbers have been lackluster and they were Christian off of
last year. I mean what's your level
of confidence in his ability to gain plans
and put you guys in the end zone?
I'm confident but confidence means very little
it's what's on tape
and so we understand that we understand the nature of your
questioning
that's just where I'm at with it right now I'm not changing
for the sake of changing I'm changing if I feel like it
produces
a better, desired outcome
in any area and so
we're looking at those things we're open to those things but
But but not in an effort to quell the masses or anything of
that nature.
Chris, you've experienced this before, here's the problem.
If you fire, Matt candidate, who's the backup offense
coordinator, I talked about that before. When when Jeff
Tedford checked out in Tampa right before the start of
the Season,
Josh McCown told me the story at the time of what a mess. It
was because you had a bunch of young assistants and there's
nobody there to take over. It's just a mess at that point, but
what can you really do?
If the team isn't winning,
you're changing the tire on the moving car.
You have a game coming up,
you've got to get ready for that game.
How in the world short of a full blown by week? Do you have
any opportunity to make any meaningful changes on the Fly?
You're locked in the trains rolling. You just have to get
ready for the next game with what you have. That's how
I look at it. I
don't know what major changes there. Aren't enough hours in
the day to make major changes. Changes because you got Tom
Brady in the Buccaneers coming to town. Yeah, in four days.
No, you're right. I mean, that's a major change and I'm
with you. I'm one that sits there and goes like,
man. It's rare, you know, firing the offensive
coordinator and the middle of the season is one that I'll put
my hand up and go. I think that's probably the proper
thing to
do every now. And then, I think the the opportunity arises or
the circumstances call for well with so bad. There's no future
here at all. I don't look at it that way here with Pittsburgh
though and
And it has the o.c. I don't. Totally,
right. I know it's not perfect but this is where I can. I
will stick up for him to a degree here
at least on this side of the,
this side of the ball, it's hard,
okay? To be a good offense and football
with a crappy Old Line,
alright, a crappy old line and,
you know, again, pass protection wise. I'm going to say
it's below average but not much bubble below average,
when it comes to run game blocking,
They, they are sucky ducky,
they stink, they are definitely one of the worst run blocking
offensive lines and football. So there's never anything there
that they're allowed to play that off of and Matt Canada.
Again, I think it's a guy that wants to run the ball. He wants
to move the quarterback, a little off of running the ball,
but when you can't do that, it chops. A big leg of your,
you know, systematic approach out from underneath you.
So, you know, he's not going to reinvent themselves right now
and do something. Totally new. And instead of like, you know,
like you're talking about changing the tire on a moving
car.
I look at it as more, as
maybe we just got to change the hubcap here and change
the philosophy of how we're playing on the offensive side of
the ball and readjust. That would be my biggest thing. Mike, it's
something I brought up a little last week but even the start of
this
game last weekend.
You know, every game is start out with we're going to try to
get some balance and Nagi Harris. It's over. Give it up
nagi's. Good. But it doesn't matter if you got Superman or
not.
IG Nagi Harris or you bring back Bo Jackson or whoever
they're not going to be able to run for anything
behind this offensive line
to where I just feel like. Maybe they even to change
the approach just to make, you know, best of what they got
here. Instead of trying to kind of put the round peg into
the square hole and try to try to work it like that all
the time right now.
And that's always the best coaching taking the guys, you
have do what they do. Well, don't do the things they
don't do well.
The problem though, is then you become one dimensional. Yeah,
I'm predictable. Yeah. Point where your guys just aren't
good enough and I thought, and I had too much faith in Mike
Tomlin this year.
I thought he would be able
to take whatever he had because we've seen this before, for we
have whatever he has, he can whip it into something
competitive, but obviously against the Buffalo Bills,
38, 23, lost the team's
worst defeat since week one of the 1989 season and I went down
the YouTube rabbit hole on that game. I found that game.
At least a shortened version of it. My gosh with Joe Namath on
the call alongside Tom Hammond for NBC. It's amazing 1889
wow shoulder pads were gigantic have right helmet the neck rolls
prehistoric. They're so basic compared to the very
complicated and convoluted helmets we now see, right? The
the Green
carpet rock-hard AstroTurf just just amazing to go.
Can end see that. But that day was fifty one to nothing
33 years ago for the Steelers and Sunday was the worst
experience since then
not that it's going to be 38, 23 against the bucks at home,
but they're going to find themselves in another situation
where they're down and what are they going to do? Are they
going to keep pushing? Are they going to keep pressing? I think
Ryan Clark suggested, maybe guys gave up on Sunday. Then
he tried to walk it back a little bit,
but but something happened there to get their doors blown
off and on top of everything else. But you, you had a kid.
Vince the guys, there's hope there's a reason to go out
there and play your asses off its Pride it's whatever.
There's they're not done yet.
This thing whenever you write them off is when they're
dangerous
but it just feels like this year. It's not going to match.
Well, yeah, it may be that plays into their hands but it
feels to me like it's not going to matter.
They shocked us this weekend, I don't think it matters. I think
your guts right on this one, you know, the thing I come back
to in the Years where you talk about, right? When we've seen
them in this situation, you know, again
in those years I had somewhat of a semblance of a running
game to where they could hang in there, but more importantly,
Mike to your point in these years when they hung in
what was the one thing they always had
this defense, right? There's there's roster problems across
the board right now. Now they've got some aging guys up
front that are just not the same anymore
or not as dominant is coming to an end
first-round picks and Bush. You didn't quite work out lost Bud,
Dupree and free agency, you know? So that's the other thing
that
you couple with this, the offense issues, but the offense
is being asked to play a game right now because the defense
is so bad that now they have to kind of break out of their mold
to. So I think this is a totality issue that we're
talking
about again. Hey, Kenny Pickett. Hey, you get to make
your first start in Buffalo and by the time you warm up, you'll
be down 2:39. Because Josh, Alan's gonna throw bombs and
lasers
and you're gonna blink and go.
Whoa, what happened to the game? Good, congratulations.
Matt Canada. Congratulations to you
you got to make it happen overall, going to blame you.
I mean, that's, I mean, again, that's what really happened.
We're going to talk about that side of the ball. When
the defense just got absolutely obliterated. They had him
pinned on the two yard line, 98 yard touchdown. So it's a lot
of things there in Pittsburgh right now. And to your point,
Mike, I don't think they can overcome it. Not
this year,
they've got the Buccaneers the Dolphins in the Eagles. Now,
the Dolphins don't seem to be the Juggernaut. They were
a couple of weeks ago, so maybe they can win. In one, and go
into the by at 2:00 and 6:00,
even then in the AFC in the AFC North with the Bengals,
the Browns, and the Raven Benito, not going to be easy. I need
I'm going to be easy for the Steelers and it's unfortunate
in part because I picked them to win the division.
But I'll try to talk about that as little as possible as
the season continues to unfold.
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