Christopher Carter's Steelers and Pitt chat: 09.14.26
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Christopher Carter
10:03
It’s Monday morning and we’ve got the chat fired up! Hit me with all your Pitt and Steelers questions before the Pat Narduzzi and Mike McCarthy press conferences and I’ll answer them here! Let’s get into it!
SMP
10:03
I’ll hold my reservations in saying same old, same old, but I did think our D-line/front looked legit, what say you.
Christopher Carter
10:04
I agree that the defensive front looked promising. For all the issues the Falcons have, the offensive line isn’t the biggest and they have a superstar RB. Felt like the defensive fronts of recent years when Watt, Heyward and Highsmith would dominate with good support from everyone else.
10:05
Also, I thought both Payton Wilson and Patrick Queen looked really good. Flew around, hit, covered, played fast. All good signs.
Bill from Va
10:05
Metcalf did not have a great day but did the refs miss two, rather obvious, PIs against the Falcons? They call alot more petty ones than those. Could have been big plays. What's your take?
Christopher Carter
10:15
I think DK Metcalf needed to come down with those passes that hit him in the hands. But the Falcons certainly got away with at least two DPIs. Both Aaron Rodgers and Michael Pittman Jr. Were very vocal about that after the game. Wonder if it becomes something officials look for next week. Christian Gonzalez is coming.
Butcher
10:15
Chris, a win is a win- but wow - the offense looked stagnant. Running game did nothing til the end, and the line, especially the right side, looked shaky against a team that was missing its primary rusher.  What are our options now that our depth was impacted with the Brod Jones trade?
Christopher Carter
10:35
I think Dylan’s Cook’s days as a starter are dwindling and Max Iheanachor will be a starter in about a month. That will still take some time to adjust to, but he could be a big boost. Still, a lot is needed to clean up what we saw yesterday.
Steeler Nut
10:36
Chris, I expected this game to be a little bit ugly...especially the offense.  It seems like they really need Roman Wilson or Bernard to step up.  Pittman is a nice # 2, and DK should bounce back but neither of them are "quick" in space.  I love the size of our receivers (including Pat and Darnell) but it seems like we need that shifty, slot guy to step up.  Do you think the Wilson drop will impact Rodgers trust in him, and is it possible they try to work Bernard/Wetjen in to the mix?
Christopher Carter
10:45
I think Roman Wilson has the abilities to get open, but needs to be able to connect with Aaron Rodgers when that happens. Sometimes he's a little out of place and it leads to a miss. Another time, he didn't make a catch when Rodgers put it right in his arms.

Germie Bernard was very limited yesterday. I think they might be working him in. Rodgers has been very complimentary of his progress and I think it might just take time for the rookie to be a move involved part.
Jeff M.
10:45
Morning Chris, Do you think if McCarthy was from Kalamazoo, MI he would be the coach of the Steelers?
Christopher Carter
10:49
Yes; but with the caveat that I do think his Pittsburgh background was a big reason why he got into football. He grew up in a football town, was a football assistant coach at Pitt alongside Jon Gruden and Marvin Lewis. Pittsburgh was a big part of his younger football life.

If, for your scenario, McCarthy had the exact same career and success without growing up in Greenfield, I do think he still would've been seen as the same candidate that was hired to be the Steelers head coach. But again, without that background, maybe he doesn't get the career opportunities he got that led to his success.
Brian
10:49
I didn't get to see the game, out of region, but wondered if there was something specific to the weak run defense that you could point to.
Christopher Carter
10:53
A few things. First, Bijan Robinson is spectacular and very hard to completely shut down, especially when he gets almost 30 touches in a game.

Second, I did think the younger defensive linemen needed to warm up a bit to the game. Derrick Harmon and Yahya Black didn't have their best days while Cam Heyward looked like the same as he has for several years now.

The linebackers looked phenomenal. If the younger DL lock in and only grow from here, I think you'll see some good days.

But also, holding a team with an elite running back to 3.9 yards per rush on 31 carries isn't "weak" either.
SDWC
10:53
As much creativity as Kade Bell puts in the passing game, it seems like there’s none in the running game. It’s just basic handoffs and seems like trying to rush to the line after a big play and run it up the middle. How can this style support the need to run out the clock at the end of a game?
Christopher Carter
10:57
I think you might've missed a good amount of the runs Kade Bell has called. A lot of his runs are to the outside. Ja'Kyrian Turner ran the ball 11 times in week 1, and 8 of them went outside the tackles.

Damon Ferguson has 25 rushes so far this season, and 13 of them have been outside the tackles.

I don't think what you might be thinking of is how basic things got in the monsoon Pitt played in to end that game. Now there, they did get conservative. But not because they thought it would strategically crush UCF, but because they wanted to limit the risk of a pitch or a longer developing run play to lead to a fumble in the extremely wet conditions of a close game.
Jack in Kentucky
10:57
I know it's weird in this era of hyper analysis to not nitpick every position group, but I felt pretty good about yesterday's game. Aside from the drops, I don't think I really yelled at the TV at all. I feel good about these Steelers. Am I right, or am I looking at things through Black and Yellow glasses?
Christopher Carter
10:58
I actually think "yell at the TV" moments could be a stat. Maybe that's something I should take on, because I definitely feel you on that lol.

As for bad moments, I do think that there were plenty of fixable problems rather than insurmountable limitations that would hold the offense back this season.
Greg
10:59
Why not make Pittman the primary read more often? He caught all 3 targets for 58 yards while Metcalf got 10 targets, caught 4, and had multiple drops. Doesn't DK need to earn being the first read regardless of how much they're paying him?
Christopher Carter
11:01
DK Metcalf is the more dangerous, big play receiver. That's just a fact when you look at their careers. But Michael Pittman Jr. is the better short reception guy who gets open quickly and can take advantage of defenses underneath, even when pressed.

They have two different skillsets. Typically, you want to get the ball to the explosive guy more for the chance of more big plays. But think of Pittman as a security blanket for the offense while Metcalf is the playmaker.

However, if Metcalf keeps having the drops he did Sunday, he might not get those targets as much in future games.
Silent Bob
11:01
Hello Christopher - I get the big Herbig and Benton signings. My sense is that both will move into starter roles next year. As long as they become legit starters and impact players, it's better to get them under contract now when they are backups. I have a tougher time justifying the big Washington contract. Good player but with Mooth also under a big contract, I don't see him having as big an impact down the road. Are you able to explain why they gave him a big contract? Thanks
Christopher Carter
11:03
Hello!

I hear you on the signing of two tight ends, but as I wrote last week, that's the direction the NFL is headed. And having Washington just gives you a weapon that nobody else has on their roster.

Granted, they need to use more of him. I think the only person who doesn't want to see more of that is Xavier Watts. Part of his gear might still be lodged into the grass when Pitt plays there Thursday.
FC
11:03
GM Chris! 1-0, we'll take it!  The offense wasn't totally in sync, but I see a huge difference in the plays that were called vs the offenses we witnessed over the years with sub offensive OC's. What's with Metcalf? This guy can't catch a cold.  Do you agree this was a horrible signing?
Christopher Carter
11:08
Good morning!

This is a good observation as far as the calls! Last year, about 10.4% of Rodgers' passes went beyond 10 yards downfield and in were in the middle of the field.

Sunday, 20% of his passes were beyond 10 yards to the middle of the field.

That's a small sample size to a big one, but I do think it's a trend that will stick. Rodgers threw at pretty much double the rate he did in farther passes down the field to the middle.

DK Metcalf had a bad day. But I don't think that should be judged too harshly, yet. He had plenty of good ones last year and they wouldn't have won several of those games without him. So, not a horrible signing. But he can't have too many more like Sunday.
yo yo
11:08
Soo, another year of DK Metcalf catching 50% of his targets and getting $30 million to do it. it's time to move on from him.
Christopher Carter
11:10
I get the pitchforks being out for Metcalf today, but moving on from him will be very hard on the Steelers. If they were to cut or trade him, that would be $35.7M of dead cap space next year, and $23.8M of dead cap space in 2028.

That's basically paying star money to get nothing back in return next year and paying the money for a quality starter the year after that. You can't do that, unless he becomes a cancer, which he has not.

I also think people need to relax a bit about Metcalf. He was a good player last year who had a bad game Sunday. Give him time to bounce back.
David Chestnut
11:11
Hi Chris….I’ll be the one to say it.  Everyone RELAX.
Christopher Carter
11:11
This guy gets it.
Marvin P
11:11
🤦🏾‍♂️🤦🏾‍♂️🤦🏾‍♂️.  My question is special teams didn’t look to good yesterday.  Is carrying 4 quarterbacks affecting the special teams play?  Any personnel changes coming soon?
Christopher Carter
11:11
This has been my contention since they drafted Drew Allar. If they kept four quarterbacks, they'd be limited in other areas. I don't know if we see many personnel changes there just yet. But I do agree special teams needed some cleaning up.
Silent Bob
11:12
Hi Christopher, Can you explain the Porter situation? He is under contract. Couldn't the Steelers tell him to play or he is in default of his contract? I know athlete contracts do not quite work this way. I assume it was JPJ's decision to sit out. If they don't come to an agreement soon - which would mean breaking precedent with an in-season signing - do they just pay him to not play all year?
Christopher Carter
11:22
First, it's important to note that if Porter officially has a back injury, and if a player is injured, that factors into things.

But, if the Steelers know he could play and he's not, that certainly doesn't help the politics of the situation. If Porter does actually hold out and not play, he doesn't get paid for that week. If he holds out long enough, this year in his contract wouldn't toll, and that would mean they have him next year under contract still on a rookie deal.

He does have to come back at some point if he's not injured.
Richard Coastal Bend
11:23
Good morning Chris, I'm not sure how the steelers running game could be more ineffective, especially given that we are supposed to have 6 lineman with Darnell Washington being equivalent to an extra jumbo blocker, also play calling seemed out of sync, what are your thoughts, thanks
Christopher Carter
11:25
I do think the run game needs a lot of work. When I asked Mike McCarthy about needing more work for the run game in the preseason, he noted they were focused on developing the young quarterbacks.

Them coming out the gate slow I do think is a product of not working as much on that in camp/preseason games. But it's also something they can work on and gear up as the year continues.

If it does develop, that balanced offensive attack could be a huge difference maker.
Wisc Steeler
11:25
I wasn’t able to watch the game and had to listen on the radio. TJ had a monster game. In your opinion, was that a result of them moving him around like had been discussed, or was it more of a case of a healthy TJ being TJ.? Thanks for all you insights and chats!
Christopher Carter
11:30
I think somewhat, but it wasn't like they did it to a huge degree.

Out of T.J. Watt's 38 snaps, 32 were on the left, 6 were on the right. That's slightly more than the most they did for a game last year (4).

But I do think a bigger note was how often Watt played and how that allowed him to be fresh.

OLB snaps Sunday:
Alex Highsmith 41
Nick Herbig 39
T.J. Watt 38

That let Watt stay fresh, and his biggest impact came in the fourth quarter.
TVC15
11:30
Hi Chris, Am I being overly critical or does DK Metcalf drop too many balls to be a true #1 receiver? I know there are teams that have 2 receivers better than him. Bengals, Cowboys, etc. Where would you rank him overall in the league? Top 20 even?
Christopher Carter
11:32
I think a "true #1 receiver" is a lower bar than people realize. DK Metcalf is a #1, but he's not a superstar like how the Steelers have had in past years like with Antonio Brown.

Also, don't look now, but a certain former Steelers receiver who plays for the Cowboys dropped two passes in a divisional loss last night.
Daniel
11:33
Thanks for doing the chat.  Steelers had positive and negative things in their win.  What was the positive that stood out to you the most?
Christopher Carter
11:35
Thanks for being here!

The biggest positive I saw was how the defense still had its turnover X-factor kick in for big moments. That was something I was wondering if it would drop off this year with the lack of focus on the defense during camp. Their ability to create chaos and capitalize came through in a big way.
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