Christopher Carter's Steelers and Pitt chat: 09.14.26
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Jana
11:35
Is Fantanu really injured????
Christopher Carter
11:35
Troy Fautanu only missed a single snap. I wouldn't look too muich into that.
Sunner in Orlando from Lebo
11:35
Do the Steelers have enough depth at corner if Porter does not play this year at all? It may be tough with the type of great quarterbacks they will see this year. What is your take?
Christopher Carter
11:36
I actually think for the first time in what feels like forever, they have solid depth at cornerback.

Even without Porter:

Dean
Samuel
Ramsey
Echols
Everette

would be a better cornerback room than when the Steelers have had everyone healthy in some years. Certainly, you'd want Porter back. But, they couldn't have been positioned much better to handle it than they are this year.
Peter
11:40
Am I correct that the Steelers used a lot of 12 personnel yesterday? Washington's catch and run in the 4th looked good but I also noticed him blocking guys into the cheap seats on the same drive. He also looks slimmed down and a little faster. Your opinion? Thanks. And thanks also for doing the chat during the game. Tough assignment.
Christopher Carter
11:42
They did use it quite a bit! I wouldn't necessarily say a lot, but they were among the teams who used 12 personnel the most.

TruMedia notes the Steelers deployed 12 personnel for 19 of their 68 snaps Sunday. That was the ninth-most of any NFL team this week so far.

Darnell Washington is a weapon that needs to be used more. He can be the battering ram that wears down opponents all game and makes things easier for teammates later in games.
Lou
11:42
Chris, I saw a lot of complaints that the Steelers O looked the same as last year and I don’t know what game people watched, but it was obvious there was a lot of NEW and it just needs to be smoothed out. Thoughts on that?
Christopher Carter
11:43
I agree that the structure of it looked different. The results didn't, which is what most people care about.

But as far as how they tried to go about their business, the playcalling from Mike McCarthy and targets from Aaron Rodgers were completely different than recent years.
Jim Bow Dean
11:43
When Fautanu went out they moved Cook to the left and put Iheanachor on the right. Aren’t coaches usually reluctant to make two changes to the O-line when there is an injury? Should there be a fourth tackle on the roster who can play on the left side?
Christopher Carter
11:47
Not unless they're preparing a first round pick rookie for a specific position while another player is a swing tackle who's starting because they're getting the rookie ready for that spot.

Which is what happened with Fautanu going out. They want Max Iheanachor to lock in at right tackle so that eventually, they do just have two starting OTs used to one side of the line.

But I do think this team could use another real OT. Spencer Anderson I believe would be flexed around in the OL in an emergency.

That's part of what you risk when you keep four quarterbacks on the roster.
The Dude
11:47
It looks like Joey would rather sit than play for say $24 million. If both he and the Steelers continue their hardline stances, Joey could be jeopardizing his career and legacy just like LB did. My question is this - would you rather take $100 million and be a Hall of Famer and member of the Ring of Honor, or hold out for $130 million and end up like Bell?
Christopher Carter
11:49
I don't think this will turn into a Le'Veon Bell situation. But I do think Porter should think about how needs to capitalize on the opportunity he's made for himself. He is a very good cornerback in a league that prioritizes the position and is about to enter his athletic prime.

If he goes off to a bad team, he may miss out on the chance to be an ace cornerback in key moments that not only earn him glory, but another second big paycheck in the NFL. Le'Veon Bell missed out on that, for sure.
Ryan
11:49
Hi Chris.  Why is everyone so upset that we didn't do better in the game yesterday?  We won.  We looked great for the 1st game.  Come on fans.  It is only the first game.
Christopher Carter
11:49
You know you're talking about Steelers fans, right?
BP
11:49
Hi Chris, which receiver has the best "hands" on our team.  Seems the only one who can make the difficult catch is Muth.  I like DK but he has to be able to make the great catches at his salary.
Christopher Carter
11:56
This is an interesting question that's made me do some searching on numbers.

I did some searching to find career drop rates per target and contested rates for Metcalf, Pittman and Freiermuth.

Freiermuth: 3.3% drop rate.
Pittman: 3.7% drop rate
Metcalf: 5.3% drop rate

Contested catch rates:

Freiermuth 55.4%
Pittman: 52.9%
Metcalf: 41.8%

So by the numbers, you'd be right that Freiermuth has shown the best hands of the trio in his career!
Epiballo
11:57
Hey Chris! Thanks for the chats. How do you rate Porter versus Samuel at CB? How did the latter look yesterday?
Christopher Carter
11:57
I don't think Samuel was challenged enough to properly compare the two just yet. But he did get beat for a deep ball and then committed a dumb penalty that turned it into one of the biggest plays for the Falcons.
BP
11:57
What was the snapcount on Herbig?  I didnt see much out of him yesterday or was that just Highsmith and TJ playing elite.
Christopher Carter
11:57
OLB snaps Sunday:
Alex Highsmith 41
Nick Herbig 39
T.J. Watt 38
James Ryan
11:58
Hey Chris. Thanks for the chats. Do you think the Steelers shifting from man to man to a zone D may have been the actual reason as to why JPJ is not as high of a priority for them? Or was that primarily taking advantage of a limited Falcons passing offense?
Christopher Carter
11:59
James, I think you're onto a very under-recognized part of what's going on right now. Porter is excellent in man coverage, but shaky in zone. And yesterday, the Steelers ran ENTIRELY zone coverage. And if that's at the core of their plans, that would limit his value to them.
Ryan
11:59
Chris what do you think about the play of Jaquon brisker i think he looked good yesterday and what do you think about the play of Braylon Lovelace for Pitt i think he has looked good also just like last year
Christopher Carter
12:00
OK last one before I have to get set up for the Pat Narduzzi press conference.

I thought Jaquan Brisker played very well. His interception was huge, he was constantly in place in coverage and his big hit on Bijan Robinson was a big stop that forced a 3rd and 1 that led to a stop for the Steelers.

Braylan Lovelace also looked strong for Pitt. Had a safety/sack, and was all over the field limiting UCF on the ground.

That's two WPIAL products producing for the two teams I cover. Pretty cool stuff!
12:01
Alright everyone, sorry I couldn't get to more questions, but I've got to be on the move. Be on the lookout for our coverage from the Pitt/Steelers facility here, as I'll be at Pat Narduzzi's press conference and Mike McCarthy' presser as well.
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