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Ray Fittipaldo's Steelers chat: 01.21.25
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Ray Fittipaldo
12:00
Welcome and let's get started.
Tom
12:00
How realistic is it to have Super Bowl expectations every year? In the end the Steelers had the same or one less playoff victory than the best team in the league and their division winner. Playing devil's advocate, is 1 win worth potentially falling into the abyss of losing and the yearly coaching carousel change?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:02
I don't think it's a matter of getting on the coaching carousel or not. The Steelers have conviction on Mike Tomlin. I think it's more a matter keeping a core together and hoping you win and tearing it down and rebuilding with better draft assets. It's a worthy conversation to have even if the Rooneys never commit to a total rebuild. Any seasons with losing records tend to happen organically.
Tom
12:02
Would this roster (or as projected for next year) have the potential to win playoff games if a new coach was brought in?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:05
That's a tough question to answer. I'll say this: I don't think they would necessarily fall apart and go 3-14 if Tomlin left. I think the current roster is probably as bad as those teams in 2012 and 2013 when the Steelers went 8-8. Those were two tough seasons, but the Steelers came out of it well. They made the playoff four consecutive years from 2014-17. The one caveat: That turnaround happened when Ben Roethlisberger was in his prime. The Steelers don't have their franchise QB now. So their current situation might actually be worse when you factor in the QB.
William Wallace
12:06
Which Tomlin stubborness has hurt the Steelers more....believing NFL pedigree came from families and drafted accordingly (Bush, Edmunds etc), fierce loyalty to in-house promotions (Canada, Austin, etc), using only a bellcow back (with Blount, D. Williams, Warren mostly riding the pine), refusal to use FA/backups who then quit (Blount, Harrison, Ingram,  etc), breeding ultra diva receivers (too many to list!)
Ray Fittipaldo
12:07
Diva receivers are everywhere in the NFL so I won't hang that on Tomlin alone although he does have some major issues with how he's handled them. If I had to pick from the other choices I'd say the drafting or the in-house promotions. The Canada thing was pretty ridiculous. They pretty much wasted three years with him as the OC.
William Wallace
12:08
How crazy is it to believe we had Super Bowl caliber years with running backs duos of Bell and DeAngelo Williams and Bell and Blount, but Tomlin decided never to use them abd to only use Bell. But this year we have a 42 year old 3rd string Cordarelle Patterson and Tomlin uses him consistently in some of the most crucial 3rd down this season!?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:10
Tomlin actually used Williams more than you think. He was a good backup. He filled in really well when Bell was injured in 2015. Every team in the NFL uses two running backs now, but you're right about Patterson. The Steelers didn't need to use him as much as they did. I'm taking an educated guess that was an Arthur Smith decision more than Tomlin. Patterson was with Smith in Atlanta.
Linebacker Lounge
12:10
Any idea what assistant coaches contracts have expired?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:13
I'd be guessing, but we know Tom Arth and Zach Azzani have another year left. They just came onboard last year and it's standard for assistants to have at least two years on their deals when they sign them. Pat Meyer also has a year left as does Teryl Austin. Arthur Smith likely has two years left because coordinators usually get a standard three-year deal when they are hired. So that would leave positions like DL (Karl Dunbar), Denzel Martin (OLB), Aaron Curry (ILB), Eddie Faulkner (RB) and Alfredo Roberts (TE). And I'm not sure about Danny Smith either. The special teams had a good year so unless he retired I doubt Tomlin would want to make a change there.
Sam
12:14
Hi Ray...The QB history in the AFC this century is wild in terms of who actually has a shot.  Ben vs. Sanchez in Jan. 2011 is the last time the conference championship has been played without Brady or Mahomes.  So essentially the entire rest of the conference has been playing for 1 spot for a decade and a half.  The only way you're going to elbow your way in is by either cracking some code inside of Fields (not likely) or trying to crack the code, stinking (more likely), and then finding a guy who can compete via the draft.  Time to stop trying to be simply compete for a playoff spot with non-losing seasons and actually get a grip on the landscape of things.
Ray Fittipaldo
12:15
I tend to agree with you, but you don't want to tank. You want to build up your roster in other areas so when you do get your QB you hit the ground running and compete right way. In other words, the QB is the last piece to add. You don't want to get so bad that when you do get your QB you're wasting good years with a bad supporting cast.
Linebacker Lounge
12:15
MT mentioned soft tissue injuries in post game presser. But there was just a change in strength and conditions coaches last year. What’s your take on that comment?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:17
That that could be one of the coaching changes he makes. I also found it interesting that he mentioned that. The most prominent soft tissue injury, of course, came when his starting QB injured his calf in a conditioning test. That could get you fired.
Linebacker Lounge
12:17
How would you assess the job done by LB coaches Martin and Curry? Recently been thru Butler, Porter and Jerry-O. Are we any better today?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:18
The production is down for the OLBs, but I don't know if I pin that on Martin. Same goes for ILBs. Does a position coach really make that much of a difference? I think there are certain positions where it's really important such as offensive line, but other positions it's less important.
Linebacker Lounge
12:19
Is the team today better than one year ago coming off the loss to Buffalo with Rudolph? Better, Worse, Same or other? Thanks
Ray Fittipaldo
12:19
A little worse only because the defensive core is getting older.
ForWhomKordellTolls
12:19
If Pickens is traded for another WR who are the likely targets?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:19
I think it's more likely he's traded for a draft pick.
Brian
12:20
It now seems obvious that the Steelers won't be making any staff changes (unfortunately).  Other than trading GP and cutting Larry O, what "big changes" might we expect.
Ray Fittipaldo
12:21
Some assistants will go. They just haven't been announced or leaked out yet. As far as major moves go, maybe Tomlin can get one of the coaches who doesn't land a head coaching job. The Browns added Mike Vrabel last year as a consultant. The Steelers should do that this year with some coaches who are currently out of a job.
Life's Work
12:22
Ray, thank you for the time and chat. Enjoyed your article about who to sign, cut, or trade. Agree with just about everyone you listed. Would you also consider Leal and Waitman on the cut/trade list? Either Waitman or Johnston will move on but are they going to give Leal another year? Will they shop either on the trade market to gauge interest? If they could get a pick for Leal, regardless of round, it’s better than keeping him in my opinion. Thanks.
Ray Fittipaldo
12:23
Leal is on a cheap rookie deal so I think they'll keep them. I don't think they could even get a late pick for him to be honest. As for Waitman, as long as Johnston comes back he'll be expendable. He did a pretty good job after Johnston was injured.
Life's Work
12:24
Hi Ray. I was listening to a sports talk show this morning talk about the positive changes the Commanders have gone through in 1 year. They said that Magic Johnson (minority owner) hired the right people and let them do their job and that’s a major reason for their success. Validity of a minority owner having that responsibility aside, made me think of how the Steelers have operated during my lifetime. Ownership hired a coach (Noll, Cowher, Tomlin) they believed in and let them do their job. In turn, Noll and Cowher hired coordinators they believed in and let them do their jobs. This seems to be the big issue with Tomlin. Will Art be asked at his press conference if he will tell Tomlin that if he believes he’s hired the right DC, he needs to stop meddling in the defense and let the DC do his job. If TA is not the right DC, he needs to hire the right one to run the defense, because that is how this franchise has built success? There’s nearly a decade of proof that the current set up does not work.
Ray Fittipaldo
12:25
Most of the time Art Rooney lets Tomlin choose his staff. A couple of outliers: when Bruce Arians "retired" and when Matt Canada was fired. It doesn't happen every year.
Brian
12:25
It has been floated by one of your colleagues that Tomlin wants Broderick Jones to take his job more seriously.  Every game I've seen he seems to play with appropriate effort and intensity, always says the right things in the press, and I haven't heard of any knucklehead behavior.  Could you elaborate on this issue?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:27
Jones is still young. He makes mental mistakes such as the one in the playoff game when he pulled on a play when he wasn't supposed to pull. You can't have that. I think overall it's just becoming a better pro, knowing how to train in the offseason, take care of yourself in-season, etc. It's a bunch of little things that add up.
Life's Work
12:27
Should we take the silence over the past week and a half as an indication that little is going to change?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:27
No there will be some changes. Just not the changes many are hoping for.
Commissioner
12:28
At 26 years old next season, I believe  Justin Fields should be the starting quarterback to find out if he can be the player we all hope he is. If he isn’t and they have a disastrous season, the reward may be Arch Manning in the 2026 draft held in Pittsburgh. One terrible season for 15-20 years of having a franchise quarterback is a trade I’d make all day long.
Ray Fittipaldo
12:28
I don't think that's a bad idea.
Life's Work
12:28
Most of the talk about this team has been negative. What are the positives that you see in this team.  Thank you.
Ray Fittipaldo
12:29
Some young OL such as Frazier and Fautanu should be cornerstones to build on. Jayen Warren should get better with more opportunities. The OLBs are good and Payton Wilson makes the ILB room stronger. Other than that there's not a whole lot to be excited about.
Ray in Bradenton
12:30
Hi Ray. Wow, the teams that played this past weekend are so much better than our Stillers. They need help at DL, WR, CB, better play at TE, and assuming Fields is resigned, a young QB to groom like the guy we saw last night from OSU. Not to mention a reset of the coaching staff. Did I miss anything?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:30
Nope.
Mike from Erie,PA
12:31
Hi Ray,  At what point do we consider that it might be the SCHEMES that CoachT uses for the Defense ?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:31
I think that should be studied over the offseason. And they'll do that. I do think they need some fresh ideas. And Tomlin said he was open to that.
Steeltown
12:32
I read that Moore (12) and Jones (11) were the only NFL O-lineman to give up double digit sacks. I hope we release Moore, and do you think that Jones moving back to the left side will help his numbers?
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