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Brian Batko's Steelers chat: 01.18.21
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ralph
2:41
The Steelers have so many holes to fill and have such a poor cap position. How do you get to this point when you have professionals to manage the present and future? It is a shame that they have so  many other priorities that either one of the Pitt bookends on defense would be a nice cheap complement to TJ.
Brian Batko
2:42
Because they've never been content to bottom out and tank for the future like many other franchise are comfortable doing when that situation presents itself. They've also had a franchise QB for 17 years, and that's never cheap.
Guest
2:43
How early should the Steelers draft a TE ?
Brian Batko
2:43
Not too early if they keep Eric Ebron around. Very early if they let both him and Vance McDonald walk. To be honest, I don't think that's a crazy idea. An all-around TE would be nice, but colleges aren't producing many of them these days. From what I've gathered, the guy from Penn State, Pat Freiermuth, returned to school but didn't have a great season to improve his draft stock.
MrSamsonite
2:44
Good afternoon Brian. My question is in reference to a new offensive coordinator and a supposed commitment to run the ball. Do you think that Ben would commit to a more run heavy offense? Would he be willing, or even able, to line up under center more often ? I don’t see an effective running game coming from shotgun formation with 4 receivers every down, which is what Ben likes to do.
Brian Batko
2:46
Good afternoon. I think you can still run the ball well out of shotgun. There are O-linemen out there who can blow people off the ball even in a 2-point stance. However, I think that's often dependent on a passing game that can stretch the field and keep defenses honest. Did the Steelers have that consistently in 2020? Doubtful.
Kirby Hogenmiller
2:47
Brian. After Watching the Saints game yesterday all I could think was oh my god these are almost the exact same teams just in different conferences. The past decade has been nothing but underachieving for both teams and both have suffered heart breaking playoff losses even though both teams had a ton of talent over the decade and both teams you would think would have won at least one championship the past decade. Both teams have similar colored uniforms too and both teams have HOF coaches and QBs. Oh and both QBs look old, slow, and done. What do you think? I’m obviously bored since I’m bracing myself for a bad 2021 Steelers season with that schedule.
Brian Batko
2:48
Ha, that's a pretty solid comparison, Kirby. Maybe even all the way down to both great QBs hanging it up this offseason? Mike Thomas and Alvin Kamara are their AB and Le'Veon. Tom Brady is ... well, Tom Brady. I like it. I'm not expecting a great 2021 for the Steelers myself.
iowasteelersfan
2:50
Do you think Ben will simply end up playing out his existing contact at that high hit, or will something else end up happening?
Brian Batko
2:51
If I had to go to Vegas and place a bet, I'd go with another contract restructure to bring him back in 2021. He's just been around so long that I can't wrap my head around him being gone, and I'll believe it when I see it. Kind of like how I vowed to never predict the Pirates would have a winning season (until they did).
roy
2:52
Why does Danny Smith still have a job? I thought our coverage unit was less than good.
Brian Batko
2:54
They didn't seem that bad to me. And if you're into metrics, FootballOutsiders ranked the Steelers 14th in all-around special teams play, so still top half of the league. To me, this is pretty low on the list of concerns.
Boiler G Dog
2:54
What names are being mentioned for the OL coaching position? Seems like this could be as important as the OC spot. Thanks!
Brian Batko
2:56
Haven't seen any names mentioned for interviews yet, but Steelers could just be keeping it quiet, or focusing on OC first. Doug Marrone is an OL coach by trade and is no longer HC in Jacksonville. Some OL coaches around the league are available now that staffs have been fired, one of whom is a familiar name in Hank Fraley. Played at RMU, had a cup of coffee as an UDFA with the Steelers, then a nice playing career before getting into coaching. He was in Detroit the past few years.
CJVT
2:57
How similar is the Steeler's current situation with Ben, his remaining ability, and his cap hit, to the situation the Ravens were in with Joe Flacco a couple years ago? Things seem to have worked out pretty well for the Ravens.
Brian Batko
2:59
Not that similar because Ben is older, pricier and probably still better. Things have worked out, yes, but it wasn't a great weekend for the Ravens.
3:00
OK everyone, thanks as always for hanging out with me for an hour. Lots of good questions, not surprising now that we're in full-on offseason mode and less "can you believe the refs hate the Steelers?" in-season mode. I relish these chats either way, though. Ray Fittipaldo will be in the chair tomorrow at 2. Give him your best.
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