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Ray Fittipaldo's Steelers chat: 01.19.21
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Ray Fittipaldo
12:57
Let's get the chat started.
Doug
12:58
Ray the Steelers (when Dan was around) always were able to part with aging stars a year early (faneca Woodson Lloyd etc). Now Ar2 holds onto these guys.  Ex Ramon Foster stunk for two years.  Don’t you think Art needs to realize where we are as a franchise and move on from a lot of guys
Ray Fittipaldo
1:00
That might happen more this year than other years due to the pandemic and the salary cap not going up this year. There are a lot of players with bloated salary cap hits that will be on the chopping block. I wrote about it over the weekend: https://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2021/01/16/pittsburgh-ste.... It's a brutal part of the business. But it's necessary ever year but especially this year.
John
1:00
Ray not one football expert thinks bringing Ben back is smart.  Why can’t tomlin rooney and Colbert see it?   Do we want to get back to winning in playoffs or is Ar2 comfortable just making playoffs.  At this point Ben is holding us back from moving forward
Ray Fittipaldo
1:03
First off, you need to understand how the Steelers operate. They will never tear it down and do a total rebuild. They just don't do that. They always try to win. So if Roethlisberger is retained (and all signs point to that) they are doing so because they believe he can help them win more games than Mason Rudolph or any other QB that would be brought in whether via the draft or free agency. And while Roethlisberger did not finish the season well it's not hard to understand if the team does believe he can lead them to more wins than Rudolph or a rookie in 2021.
Just a fan
1:04
What is the situation with Matt Canada, and why did some get too far ahead of the story?
Ray Fittipaldo
1:05
The NFL Network reported Saturday that Canada is "expected" to get the job. That very well might happen, but it's 72 hours since that was reported, and the Steelers don't appear to be in any hurry to make an announcement. All we know for sure is Canada is a candidate to be the next OC.
DJ
1:06
Ray,Do you think that building a team to not have a losing regular season over the long term is totally different than building a team to contend for the super bowl? It seems to me that we have done a great job of having good regular seasons over the past 10 years where you get to play a mix of competition (Usually 4 wins against Cincinnati and the Browns) but end the end, to be successful in the playoffs, you need to win against the best. We end up being the 6th – 9th best team in the league. I personally think that even our “non losing season” streak will be in jeopardy next year as we play a very tough schedule and we can no longer count on 4 division wins.
Ray Fittipaldo
1:08
What the Steelers believe is if they keep giving themselves opportunities to compete in the playoffs the better their chances are of winning a Super Bowl. That's how they think. And it's hard to argue with their success following that stance. For years, the Browns tried to rebuild and it never worked. Maybe it will this time, but how many times did they have to reset? I would not expect the Steelers to alter their philosophy on this although as you point out they might fall on hard times without enacting a rebuild. They didn't want to finish 6-10 in 2003, but it got them Ben Roethlisberger.
DJ
1:09
Two questions. Do you think defense is as important as it used to be to compete (Points per game - Bills #6, TB #15, KC #18, GB #21) and do you think we have built a defense which focuses more on stopping the pass versus the run during a time when more teams are moving towards the running game with their backs / quarterbacks? We seem to over emphasize sacks. (Sacks ranking: TB #5, GB #10, Bills #15, KC #19).
Ray Fittipaldo
1:11
I still think having a great defense is important. We don't know how that defense would have played if the offense ever got them a lead late in the season. I think 90% of the Steelers' problems this year had to do with their offense. However, your point about the running game is true. And I wish the Steelers would figure that out sooner rather than later. They seem to be a bit behind the times.
Ben
1:11
Ray we are not winning super bowl w Ben anymore.  We all see it.... why don’t they.   I appreciate your honesty because there are several Steelers beat guys in town trying to change the narrative on what we ALL see     It’s time to move on and get this franchise built back up.
Ray Fittipaldo
1:12
It is, but I think you'll see Roethlisberger for one more year.
Madmax
1:12
Hi Ray, what's the chances that the Steelers cut /trade or force retire Decastro and or Pouncey. And should they? They looked like old men's to me, what say you?
Ray Fittipaldo
1:14
I have a hard time seeing both coming back in 2021. It's hard to have an effective running game when your center is 290 pounds. He's been great for a decade, but it does seem like Pouncey's best days are behind him. DeCastro did not have a good year, either, but he dealt with injuries from the start of the season. I'd be more tempted to have him come back and hope he can return to form.
Bub
1:14
Ray, if drafting at 24, any position outside of OL is the wrong decision. Agree?
Ray Fittipaldo
1:15
All depends on who is available. You never want to reach. The nice thing for the Steelers is they need a tackle, guard and a center, so there is a pretty good chance a lineman with good value at that point of the draft will be available.
John Mair
1:15
Would you draft a HB like Najee or a Ol?
Ray Fittipaldo
1:15
I'd go OL in first round and RB second or third round.
DaquidoBazzini
1:15
Though it’s a bit of the past, I was wondering how Cassius Marsh (Who was tossed around like a ragdoll) went into the playoff game when Highsmith was injured. Has Ola fallen that fat?
Ray Fittipaldo
1:16
It was interesting how they used their OLBs late in the season. Marsh played almost as much or more than Adeniyi. The only way to read that is they didn't have a lot of confidence in Adeniyi.
Artie Bridge
1:16
Ray, Let's talk this year's draft.  What is your order of position priorities among these:  ol, rb, qb, olb, ilb, te, sec?
Ray Fittipaldo
1:17
OL, RB, CB and then it's a tossup with the rest... ILB, OLB, TE. And obviously, if Roethlisberger does not come back QB shoots to the top of the list.
texan steeler
1:17
Hi Ray, what is the reason for DeCastro's decline this past season? Was he injured, conditioning, coaching or what? Do you think we will cut him to save money?
Ray Fittipaldo
1:18
They can save $8.7 million of they cut him. But as I mentioned earlier he had two separate injuries early in the season, and it seemed like he never recovered.
Mercury
1:18
When will AR III give his annual “we need to run the ball more” state of the team address?
Ray Fittipaldo
1:18
He usually does that by the end of January. This year should be interesting.
Madmax
1:18
Regardless if Ben comes back, retires or get cut, should this be the year that they draft his replacement. You can't wait until the last year can you?
Ray Fittipaldo
1:19
I might wait. I know other teams have had success drafting and grooming a guy, but those teams usually select earlier than 24. I'm just not sure there will be value in a QB at No. 24. Plus, they have so many other needs this year.
Retire21
1:20
After last weekend, I thin Lamar and Baker are not the second coming as promoted by their teams. One is bound to get really injured and be RGIII II and the other is terminally short. What say ye?
Ray Fittipaldo
1:23
Jackson is 1-3 in the playoffs. It's a no-brainer for the Ravens to pick up his fifth-year option, but I'm not sure if he's the long-term answer. It's hard to win in this league when your QB isn't a good passer. Mayfield is an interesting evaluation, too. They've built a good offense around Mayfield, good O-line, great back in Chubb. Mayfield doesn't have to be a franchise QB. They basically asked him not to screw it up. So do you sign him to a big $ contract? Tough call, but I wouldn't do anything this year. Just pick up the fifth-year option and evaluate him for another year before making that decision.
San Diego Steeler Fan
1:24
Out of all the Steelers free agents who do we absolutely have to sign?
Ray Fittipaldo
1:24
I'm not sure if there is one guy they absolutely have to sign, but I think it's important to keep either Hilton or Sutton. They're both UFAs and I think they need to re-sign one of them before they hit free agency.
Ralph
1:25
Hi Ray.I really like to get Najee Harris in 1st round do u think that is a strong possibility they will do that.
Ray Fittipaldo
1:25
It's a possibility. And if they do that it will tell you what they think of those fourth and fifth-round backs they've drafted in recent years.
GaSteelerFan
1:25
You mentioned many times that the top priority in the draft should be a left tackle. Is there any chance that Chuks Okorafor or Zack Banner can be the LT of the future or they not suited for that position?
Ray Fittipaldo
1:26
I think Banner is a right tackle all the way. Chuks has the skill set to be a left tackle. Not sure if he's good enough to sign to a second contract, but they could go that route for one year if they don't find a tackle in the early rounds that can step in and play right away.
Fineline
1:27
Does Derek Watt's special teams play merit his salary? He didn't earn it on offense.
Ray Fittipaldo
1:27
I would think they'll need to play him more on offense if they ever want to get value out of that deal.
BB
1:28
Ray - Thanks for the chats.  After watching the most recent games, hard to imagine the Steelers hanging in there with many of them.  Any more coaching changes coming?  Special teams coach?
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