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Ray Fittipaldo's Steelers chat: 01.25.22
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Ray Fittipaldo
2:24
There's only one of him. World class tack speed and a football player. Very rare.
Not a hater
2:25
Given the choice who would you take: Josh Allen or Patrick Mahomes?
Ray Fittipaldo
2:26
That's actually a really good question. Mahomes has had more success in the postseason obviously, but I think he's surrounded by better talent and better coaching. Pure talent-wise, it's darn close. But if you are pressing me I say Mahomes because he has more playoff wins.
ErneeHARTner412-305
2:26
BREAKING: SEAN PAYTON IS  RETIRING. Could Matt Canada be a candidate for the Saints HC job?
Ray Fittipaldo
2:26
LMAO. His last job in Louisiana did not go well!
Mercury
2:26
Any idea when Ben might formally announce his retirement?
Ray Fittipaldo
2:27
I think it will be soon.
ErneeHARTner412-305
2:28
Why was Ike Hilliard hired as our assistant coach? He was an average NFL player with limited coaching ability. Our young receivers digressed this year.
Ray Fittipaldo
2:28
They regressed, but I digress.
LovieSmith
2:28
Where would you rate the position strengths in the upcoming 2022 NFL draft
Ray Fittipaldo
2:28
Still doing some research on that, but it appears this is a good year for the secondary and the offensive line.
Which bodes well for the Steelers, who need both positions.
JerseySteel
2:29
Hi Ray - which positions do you think the Steelers look to target in Free Agency and which in the Draft?
Ray Fittipaldo
2:29
I'm writing about that for Sunday, so stay tuned.
Ryan
2:29
Good afternoon Ray which free agents do we resign I’m hoping Edmunds Spillane Witherspoon and Haden go Steelers
Ray Fittipaldo
2:30
Hard to say. Spillane is an RFA so I think they'll definitely re-sign him. The others can hit the open market and it's out of their control once that happens unless they sign them before the new league year.
Jim
2:31
Ray I agree with your assessment that no change is coming because MT doesn't want it. So I think this is the time to move on from Tomlin, new GM, new HC, new QB, perfect storm of a time to do it, why won't ARII do it?
Ray Fittipaldo
2:32
That's a lot of change for one offseason. He knows Mike, trusts him so I think it's logical to have him in place to steer through what might be some rough waters ahead.
Tom M.
2:32
I was surprised the Ravens fired Martindale.  Their defense was not good but I would have given him a pass due to all the injuries. Nonetheless, it was a pretty bold move by Harbaugh. Do you think he overreacted or should  the Steelers be making bold moves like that?
Ray Fittipaldo
2:33
They did have a lot of injuries, and I know his players really liked him and respected him. So he'd be good for a team like the Steelers. I just don't think they're going to hire anyone other than Austin so it's kind of a moot point.
Jay
2:33
Hi Ray.  Can we expect any splash staff changes?  Any hopes for a good assistant hire?
Ray Fittipaldo
2:34
Offensive line remains unsettled. I haven't herd much about Munchak since Fangio was fired so I assume he's still under contract with the Broncos. So they could be waiting on some of these other teams to hire head coaches. When that happens, some of these assistant coaches will shake loose.
Big Sid
2:34
Would you extend Sutton after last year?  Seems risky not to based on how thin we are at corner.
Ray Fittipaldo
2:35
Yeah was thinking about that. He's got a decent cap hit too -- around $6 million or so if my memory serves. So it might make sense to extend him to bring down the cap hit and bring some long-term stability to the secondary.
Justin
2:36
I don't want to keeping bashing on the guy but watching the playoff games this weekend I saw some inventive ways of scheming and getting guys open.  I didn't see that at all in our offense this year.  Tomlin seems hopeful, but I was wondering if you see any positives to cling to (besides individual players) in the Canada offense?
Ray Fittipaldo
2:37
I don't, but I also know what we saw in 2021 wasn't his offense. It was a meshing of his offense and previous Steelers offenses that suited Ben Roethlisberger. Maybe it was a bad decision to hire him in the first place. Or maybe it was a bad decision to bring back Roethlisberger with Canada as the OC.
Latrobe guy
2:37
Hey Ray, if the Steelers draft a rookie QB, do you think that it would be in coach Tomlin’s best interest to bring in a new offense coordinator, especially one who can develop a young QB since Tomlin has never had to worry about that position in his head coaching career?
Ray Fittipaldo
2:38
I think Mike Sullivan is a good QBs coach so I don't have your worries. He's been a coordinator in the league and had success with guys like Eli Manning. I think he knows what he's doing.
ErneeHARTner412-305
2:38
Who cares if Tuitt wants to play? He quit on this team and should not be permitted back? Why would we want him back? We want roll-dawg soldiers, not prisoners!
Ray Fittipaldo
2:39
His teammates don't feel that way. Cam Heyward got choked up talking about Tuitt in the postgame news conference when  he was asked about him.
Nick
2:39
Speaking of the WR corps, what do the Steelers do with JuJu?  Do you think he would even want to stay with the Steelers since they are entering QB purgatory?
Ray Fittipaldo
2:40
JuJu himself said the QB situation would play into his decision. So unless they make a move before March he might not have the answer he wants to hear before free agency arrives.
Big Sid
2:40
Gentry as one of the biggest surprises this year?  It seems like he took a GIANT step forward.
Ray Fittipaldo
2:41
Good year for him. He should be a reliable No. 2 TE. They might even want to think about re-signing him after next season if he continues to improve.
Big Sid
2:41
What was the story on Ebron?  Injured?  Inconsistent?  Disinterested?
Ray Fittipaldo
2:41
He hurt his knee late in the year and finished the season on IR.
Sunner in Orlando
2:42
I thought the creative play calling by all the playoff teams this past weekend was excellent. The question remains was it creative and successful because of the superior talent to the Steelers or is Canada overmatched as his play calling was neither creative nor successful and the Steelers need to move on?
Ray Fittipaldo
2:42
Time will tell because it looks like Canada is coming back.
Daniel11
2:42
Sean Payton stepping away, maybe that is why the Steelers interviewed their DB coach. I like what he did that Seattle, so if not DC maybe for some other role.
Ray Fittipaldo
2:44
Good call. The Steelers will need a DBs coach if Austin is the new DC. So maybe a role similar to what Austin held the past few years. Senior defensive assistant... But hey, he could be in demand and get a better job.
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