JotCast | Gerry Dulac's Steelers chat: 12.29.21

Gerry Dulac's Steelers chat: 12.29.21

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Gerry Dulac

11:29

It will not drag on till March, trust me

Alex

11:29

The offense not scoring a point in the first half of 5 straight games is indictment of the talent or play calling ?

Gerry Dulac

11:29

The play-calling.

Scott in Georgia

11:29

Good morning Gerry. 15 games in…How would you grade the 2021 draft? And, are you happy with the Najee pick? Thanks

Gerry Dulac

11:34

Well, let's face it, the first two picks are really good players. In retrospect, waiting till the third round to draft a center has not worked out the way they would like. But he's a rookie and I'm willing to give him another year. If he were that bad, the coaches would have replaced him and they didn't. No matter what some people might think of Dan Moore, he has been a starting left tackle in the NFL as a rookie. Like Green, if he were that bad, they would have put Okorafor back at left tackle and Joe Haeg at right tackle, and they didn't. And I think Loudermilk is going to be a decent player, maybe a good one. The problem is they have had to play those players instead of letting them develop. I don't have a huge problem with the draft, all in all.

Guest

11:34

Do you think Harvin has shafted his last punt for the Steelers?

Gerry Dulac

11:34

Ha. Well, the other guy just averaged 60 yards per punt.

Alex

11:35

How can you possibly bring Canada back next season despite all the injuries and aging Ben his offense playcalling has been awful the roster won’t tune over that much

Gerry Dulac

11:36

You make too much sense

Alex

11:36

Why is James Washington used so sparingly, even Ray Ray Mcloud has passed him on the depth chart

Gerry Dulac

11:36

That's a good question and one that will be asked again when they decide not to re-sign him after the season

Troy

11:36

Gerry, since this may be Ben's home swan song. Is there any special media moment of covering him in the media that really stands out to you over the years, that you would like to share?

Gerry Dulac

11:39

Troy, thanx for the question, but if I started listing one it would case me to list 20 and I wouldn't have enough time. Quick one: Ben is walking through the locker room during the week with a bag of ice on his knee, a bag of ice on his shoulder and a black eye. I said, "You going to be OK this week?" He says, "Oh yeah." Reminded me of a scene from Monty Python.

Yates

11:39

Gerry- If I’m the Browns my run vs pass mix is about 90 to 10. Some of the Steelers wins are due to opposing coaches not sticking with that recipe. Will Coach Stef let Baker give away another game?

Gerry Dulac

11:40

Now, see, here's another astute observation!! Bingo...hold your cards.

Justin

11:40

I believe the chances of getting Rodgers, or Wilson to play QB next year are very small, but do you think the Steelers will bring in a quarterback like Jimmy G, Carr, Mariotta, or even Tua if they are released by their teams?

Gerry Dulac

11:42

It's possible, but I think it's more likely they might sign a lower-tier veteran to be a backup to Rudolph if they don't think Haskins can do the job. But, as of right now, I don't think they think that.

Alex

11:42

How far apart are the Steelers falling from the other AFC contenders is it time for a new approach

Gerry Dulac

11:42

Based on the way they have performed the past seven weeks or so, I think they are closer to the worst teams in the league than the top-tier ones.

Utah Jim

11:43

Fitzpatrick: “I feel like last year, especially, we fell off the details”. Doesn’t that apply to this year as well and isn’t that 100% on the HC? Tomlin was a great coach until the moment he decided to acquiesce to AB. When little things like staying on campus for training camp aren’t important anymore then you stopped caring about the details and everyone else follows suit.

Gerry Dulac

11:43

Not going to argue with you.

Jim

11:43

Why do the Steelers constantly leave running backs uncovered on passing down?

Gerry Dulac

11:44

Cause they're more concerned with WRs getting behind them. And they play a ton of zone because they don't have the personnel to cover man

Cain

11:44

Gerry is it the coaching or the personnel the reason for our record

Gerry Dulac

11:45

It's both for sure. Their depth is just not very good, especially on defense and especially on the D-line.

11:45

Happy new year Gerry …I thoroughly understand that talent is lacking on the Steelers team, but Is it so bad that there are no schemes by the coaches that would help this? Because from my point of view, it’s stubborn old Tomlin and company just doing what they always do come Hell or high water!

Gerry Dulac

11:46

You adapt the scheme to the players. So if you don't have the players you would like to have to run your scheme, then you adapt the scheme to the players you are forced to have.

Barry B

11:46

Happy New Year Gerry…if Mason Rudolph our starting QB next year which would make most sense to me…what other position on the team is in MOST drastic need of repair?

Gerry Dulac

11:47

Offensive and defensive lines are 1 and 1A, without question. Anything else can wait. To me, QB is down the list.

Beth

11:47

Problem with hiring a new D coordinator is that he’s got to let Tomlin play a big role in his defensive calls

Gerry Dulac

11:48

Yep. I don't think they will hire, they will promote.

DormontDoug

11:48

Please take care of yourself, and tell Cookie, Starkey, and Zeise the same. I'm hoping you guys keep doing print and radio for decades to come. My question: Do you think a fairly quick upgrade to the O-Line and D-Line can occur by making 2-3 free agency pickups? I feel like it can, and Steelers seem to have cap space to accomplish it.

Gerry Dulac

11:49

No. They have to rebuild the defensive line with quality young players. The offensive line needs to add a quality FA and a high draft pick.

Fineline

11:49

In an interview with Steelers.com Tomlin said Green was drafted because he was NFL ready. Green started just 4 times at center at Illinois. Why did he say that?

Gerry Dulac

11:50

Well....uh....hmmmm.....

11:50

Good Morning Gerry, Will we see a true new defense coordinator next year or will MT not let go of the control and find another to appear to be calling the defensive plays? Don't you think Mr. Rooney should will bring this up in their year end discussion?

Gerry Dulac

11:50

Let's hope so.

Brian

11:50

Since we have a lot of salary cap room for the first time. Do you see us being more active in free agency in 2022?

Gerry Dulac

11:50

They need to be, especially on the lines of scrimmage. Are you starting to detect a trend here with me???

11:51

Ok kids, that's all the time we have. Thanx for the questions. Happy new year

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