JotCast | Gerry Dulac's Steelers chat: 11.17.21

Gerry Dulac's Steelers chat: 11.17.21

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Gerry Dulac

10:49

OK kids, we'll start our chat in just a few minutes.

10:53

OK, here we go.....

Jacob

10:54

The offense has been abysmal the past three seasons with different players, coordinators, and even different quarterbacks, with Ben missing pretty much all of 2019. The only common denominators are AR, MT, & KC. I’m not one given to hysterics. Who is to blame for three years of offensive mediocrity at best, failure at worst?

Gerry Dulac

10:57

Well, Jacob, you went from abysmal to mediocre awfully quick there. Hey, there are always different players, all around the NFL, and the only time there were different QBs was when Ben was injured. Be glad there isn't a revolving door at QB. And, to your point about the past 3 seasons, I'll point up their record to date is 25-15-1, including the season without Ben. Certainly not abysmal.

The GM

10:57

Gerry, I know there has been a lot injuries this year to the WR Corps. But is it possible that the current corps of WR's are a little overrated? JuJu isn't a #1 WR, Chase Claypool is great as long as he is wide open and does not have to fight for the ball. And James Washington? Well, I'm starting to see why JuJu, D. Johnson and Claypool were playing ahead of him. Your thoughts?

Gerry Dulac

10:59

It's not only very possible, it could be true, but only if you are among the people who think they are highly rated to begin with. I am not one of those. They have a nice receiving corps, especially when JuJu is there. But he is not, and, so.....

Matt

10:59

I know Minkah wasn't officially ruled out, but Tomlin made it clear they didn't expect to have him back. Is Minkah vaxed? if Monday he tested positive and is/remains asymptomatic, is Friday his 5th day can start the 2 tests and potentially still make the trip?

Gerry Dulac

11:00

I don't know if he is vaccinated or not, nor do I know if he is asymptomatic, so it's difficult to determine the equation.

Mercury

11:01

Why do coaches cover their mouths? Do teams actually have someone with binoculars trying to read their lips? Even if they could, there’s no way they could relay info to coaches and then the players in time to effect anything. And if they’re worried about video, they already know what play or defense you called because it’s already been run.

Gerry Dulac

11:01

It's called paranoia.

The Eman

11:01

I recognize that the bulk of NFL earnings are generated through television, but has the Steelers front office indicated any concern over the number of no shows at this year’s games? Usually seems to be in the 10,000 range.

Gerry Dulac

11:03

I'm sure they don't like it, but I'm also sure a lot of that still has to do with Covid and the lines that exist because of the scanning systems at the gate that have to be in place. And I also think what has happened is some people got comfortable watching the games at home during Covid and realize it's easier and cheaper and less hassle to watch the game at home. Hey, it's happening all across sports, all across the country.

Jacob

11:03

I don’t think it’s a stretch to call Diontae our WR1, but he doesn’t seem to have really, REALLY taken off yet. Why? What’s preventing him from being discussed at the level of those top guys in the league?

Gerry Dulac

11:03

Because he's not one of those top guys.

Jerry

11:03

If Fitzpatrick doesn’t play who will be the starter

Gerry Dulac

11:04

Depends on the defense they want to emply. Could be Tre Norwood. Could be Karl Joseph. Hey, could be Cam Sutton, who can play everywhere. I think you will see a mixed bag.

Tim

11:04

The definition of negligence is having a backup qb pass the ball in sloppy conditions on three straight plays when it was first and goal from the five, especially when you have an emerging star running back also in the huddle. In healthcare, dr canada might be charged with malpractice too.

Gerry Dulac

11:05

I don't call that negligence. I'd say foolish, but I get your point.

Cory

11:06

Like everybody else, I was disappointed in the Steelers' performance on Sunday, especially in terms of offensive production. However, I cannot decide what specifically I found more disappointing--the fact that Rudolph, like Ben has done consistently this year, missed some routine throws that would have sustained drives / led to points, or the fact that the playcalling still de-emphasized downfield passing as much as it did. I guess I was hoping that the focus on underneath throws had more to do with the health or limitations of the QB than it did with the OC. Are you more concerned about the Steelers' offensive direction after what you saw on Sunday?

Gerry Dulac

11:07

No, because they were playing without Ben. I think it's unfair to judge Rudolph based off that game. He wasn't great, for sure, but he wasn't horrible. Also, in case you missed it, it was raining and cold most of the game. Did you see Jared Goff's numbers? Made Rudolph look like Tom Brady.

Javi

11:09

Hello Gerry. I heard recently that Cowher has 8 seasons in his tenure winning at least 1 playoff game while Tomlin only has 4 seasons winning a playoff game. They have coached same number of years. Is this stat a bit misleading or was Cowher better coach?

Gerry Dulac

11:09

That stat is correct and I don't think it's misleading. I'll let you be the judge.

Mercury

11:09

Can Buddy Johnson play Bush’s position? Why don’t they give him a shot? He couldn’t perform any worse.

Gerry Dulac

11:11

Well, as a rookie, maybe he could be worse. But I will remind you of something you should always keep in mind, OK -- Bush was a No. 1 pick whom they traded up 10 spots to draft. Johnson was a 4th round pick

Jesse G

11:11

hello Gerry, teams always say the ultimate goal is to win a super bowl not make the playoffs or win a playoff game. With that being said , do you really think you could win a super bowl with Mason Rudolph? If not the. why stick with him next year?

Gerry Dulac

11:13

Probably not. But you have to have a better option before you decide not to stick with him. Maybe you've heard me say this before -- I think Mason Rudolph is Neil O'Donnell. You can win with him, but you're waiting for something better to come along. I will point up O'Donnell did get to a Super Bowl.

Devin Bust

11:13

Gerry, in your piece yesterday you quoted Joe Schobert as saying - “I think we got a lot of looks we didn’t necessarily practice during the week,” inside linebacker Joe Schobert said. “Their big tight end that they brought in [Brock Wright], we knew [TE Darren] Fells was gone; we didn’t really know what they were going to do to replace him. They gave us a lot of looks and it took us probably longer than it should have to be able to start nailing the screws down on that.” - Does this scream poor coaching to you? It took over 3 quarters for them to slow the run down a little bit.

Gerry Dulac

11:13

Pay the man!!

Ogre

11:13

Damn, Cam Heyward is a monster. That’s all, no Q.

Gerry Dulac

11:14

Yes he is. Best in the league. Unblockable. One-man wrecking crew. Doing it all by himself. Should be All-World, not just All-Pro.

Donna

11:14

Hi Gerry. Have you heard if Juju and James Washington have any interest in re-signing with the Steelers next season? Thank you.

Gerry Dulac

11:14

I think their interest, especially JuJu, is signing with someone who will give them the best deal. And I don't fault them for that.

Leonard from Austin

11:15

GM Gerry, Aside from Heyward and Harris, I am having difficulty identifying the strengths and direction of the these 2021 steelers. Can you help please?

Gerry Dulac

11:18

For starters, I think you left out T.J. Watt. And they have this guy in the secondary who's not bad, name is Minkah I believe. And, well, crazy as it seems, there's only one team that has gone more consecutive games without a loss, and that's the Titans. So, I'm not exactly sure of the direction, but you can rest assured it could be a whole lot worse.

Jim B.

11:18

Any chance we'll get a look at Mr. Haskins this Sunday if Ben is still out?

Gerry Dulac

11:18

Not unless Rudolph gets hurt

Lou

11:19

Hi Gerry. Are the Steelers round numbers a symbol of the Big Ben era? As a fan of the big block numbers, I wonder if there could be a number style change after Ben. Thoughts?

Gerry Dulac

11:19

I like the block numbers better too

Tom in Punta Gorda

11:19

JC #60 has improved a lot. Is he big enough to maybe start at C or G fulltime someday?

Gerry Dulac

11:19

Connecting…