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Ray Fittipaldo's Steelers chat: 05.06.19
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Ray Fittipaldo
11:52
Welcome to my Steelers chat. Post your questions and we will get started in a moment.
Dan Mucy
11:54
Hi Ray!  Outstanding work on the draft coverage!    Count me in the camp that the Steelers without distractions have something to prove-especially Ben.    With an improved defense+ better kicking game from Boswell (McCrane?) on top of it, am I being TOO optimistic so early?   Thanks...keep up the great work!  Dan
Ray Fittipaldo
11:56
I think the Steelers will contend for the AFC North and a playoff berth so I don't think you're overly optimistic. I just don't think they'll be in the mix for a top seed in the AFC unless some other teams fall off. I think the Steelers, Browns and Ravens will all be in the 10-6 and 7-9 or 8-8 range. The division champ likely is the team that finds a way to win its division games.
KN
11:57
Good Morning Ray. Thank you for the chat as always. Do you think that Steelers consider undrafted players signings of Askew Henry out of WV or Locke out of Texas enough for the depth at the safety position ? They are very thin at the position after Davis and Edmunds.
Ray Fittipaldo
11:59
Well, they did sign those guys, but there is a reason both went undrafted. I'm not exactly sure what it is in either case, but teams use their resources in the draft on the players they believe have the most potential. There are plenty of undrafted players that make NFL rosters, but I can't pretend to tell you if Henry or Locke has what it takes to get on the 53 or even practice squad this year. I do think the Steelers wanted to take a safety and early if there was one there that they liked. But when they traded away their second-round pick to move up to get Bush that hindered their chances. A lot of good safeties went in round 2, probably the ones the Steelers were targeting the most.
DaquidoBazzini
11:59
Do you think Ben Roethlisberger is going to do a press conference at some point in regards to his new contract?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:01
It doesn't look like it's going to happen before OTAs. I would imagine on the first day of OTAs later this month Ben will want to get it out of the way. He hasn't talked to reporters since the end of the season. He knows what questions are coming. He'll have to answer them at some point, and I would think that would be the first day of OTAs.
Craig
12:01
Do you think the Steelers will release Artie Burns?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:02
I can see them keeping him around as a depth CB/special teams player. It never looks good for a GM or the coach if a first-round pick is released before his rookie contract expires.
James
12:03
Ray:  There seems to be an arms race among NFL owners in building new billion dollar plus stadiums to house their teams.  The one-ups-manship is getting quite expensive.  Now that Heinz Field is going into its nineteenth season do you think the Rooney's sometime in the next five years will begin hinting at "major" upgrades to their facility to keep it current?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:04
It's kind of already happened with the expanded seating and scoreboards although I wouldn't call that major.
pbourdon
12:05
Ray... it's hard to believe that the Steelers will be better off without AB or LB but then again, it's not that hard. Team harmony is so much more important...Which is why it's even harder to believe that the Brown are 8/1 favorites to win the SB - A team that hasn't been in a playoff game in the Big Ben era.... If talent alone was enough to win, the Steelers would have won it the last 4 years and the Patriots would have exactly 0 post season wins (QB excluded). This is why I love football. It's the ultimate team sport. If the Browns win the SB this year, it won't be because they added a lot of talent (although I realize it helps), it will be because they finally figured out how to be a team. Something the Bengals could never figure out under Marvin Lewis (and that team never had a shortage of talent). Call me a skeptic but I still think the Steelers will win the North and it won't be close.
Ray Fittipaldo
12:06
They could win the North, but I'd be shocked if they ran away with it. The Browns appear ready to take that next step to compete for a division title, and the Ravens won it last year with a rookie QB at the helm. I feel safe in saying the Steelers won't have it easy if they do win it.
thomastown
12:06
In a couple recent articles, it was interesting to note differences about Ben and Brady.  Ben’s new contract will cut into Steelers available cap space.  Meanwhile, Brady settles for less to allow Patriots more cap space to put a better team around him. In addition to just the dollars for cap space, doesn’t this difference in attitudes help explain why the Patriots have been so much more successful?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:08
Tom Brady's wife makes more than he does. Brady has more endorsement deals than Ben. I'm sure that plays into his decision to play for well-below market value. The thing that I continue to be stunned about is how little the NFLPA says about it. The MLBPA would be putting crazy pressure on one of their players if that happened in their sport. The NFLPA just lets it slide. It's part of the reason why the NFLPA is widely regarded as the least effective of the unions in the four major sports.
thomastown
12:08
What’s the logic for releasing Bostic now rather than at least keeping him through training camp? I assume Bush will start but wouldn’t Bostic provide depth since Fort is gone and in case the other rookies don’t work out or there is an injury?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:10
If they thought he could help in any way they would have kept him. I just think they're going in a another directions with the makeup of their LB corps. They want quicker, faster and more athletic ILBs. Bostic just doesn't fit that mold. Plus, the Steelers gave him an opportunity to hook on with another team early in the process. If they cut him in training camp it might be more difficult for him to find a team to employ him.
Joe
12:10
What combination of linebackers do u see playing the most this season with Barron, bush, and Williams?????
Ray Fittipaldo
12:13
I think Williams will still have a fairly prominent role. That is, if the opposition is smart. Let me explain. Good teams will run at the Steelers if they choose to play Barron and Bush together a lot in the base defense or running downs. The Patriots showed late last season that you still have to have players that are capable of stopping the run on your roster. Williams is effective in that role. So I think Williams will find his way onto the field more than people think. What percentage? I can't tell you because it depends on what opposing coaches do with their offensive game plans. But if coaches want to throw it all the time against the Steelers the truth is Williams won't see as much playing time as he did last season. They drafted Bush and signed Barron because Williams and Bostic were not good in coverage. At least the Steelers have a diverse set of linebackers now. They should be able to adapt to whatever the game plan is.
pbourdon
12:13
Ray,  everyone is very excited about the Devin Bush pick, myself included.... But doesn't it underline the fact that at the core, the Steelers believe that Ryan Shazier will never play football again? If he was in fact a year away from playing again, would they have given so much to get his replacement? I really wish Ryan the best - and I hope he stays involved with team in some sort of fashion.... But I don't see a scenario based on what just happened in the draft as Ryan ever wearing a Steelers uniform? What are your thoughts?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:14
The Steelers are allowing Shazier to pursue his comeback because it's the right thing to do for his personal well-being. They're not counting on him coming back. That's why they got Bush.
Nick La Rock
12:15
Ray - love your chats!  I'm coming from New York to be with my people for the first time!  Tell me - where can I get the most unforgettable meal?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:15
There are plenty of great places to eat in Pittsburgh, but I'll leave it to my loyal readers to suggest some of the best. Help Nick out.
pbourdon
12:15
I don't read too much into power rankings... But I got a chuckle looking at NFL.com and Elliott Harrison post draft rankings. He has the Browns at #10, the Ravens are #13 and the Steelers at #18 (The Steelers were #18 before free agency began so they either didn't improve or a lot of others teams did)... I know I shouldn't care, but this stuff is maddening and I think that's the point!
Ray Fittipaldo
12:16
You're right. You shouldn't care.
AK
12:16
Do you think the Steelers will pick up another safety from other teams’ cuts?  There doesn’t appear to be any affordable FA safeties left.
Ray Fittipaldo
12:17
If they need to add to the safety group I would imagine it will be after final cutdowns in September.
PP
12:17
It seems to me that the Steelers have a strong #1 TE and two #3s.  Do you think Grimble is a legit #2 or is a pick up from another team a good possibility?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:18
If Grimble doesn't play well in camp I think they'll address their depth with a trade or by signing someone after final cuts. Remember, they weren't happy with Jesse James in 2017 so they went out and traded for Vance McDonald.
TJ
12:18
Hi Ray - Do you think our D has chance to be a top 5 unit? I think offense has chance to be more efficient.
Ray Fittipaldo
12:18
Let's pump the brakes on the defense being a top 5 unit. If they're top 10 the Steelers will be in great shape.
PP
12:18
Is Tyler Matekavich worth keeping?  He’s decent at special teams but a liability on defense.
Ray Fittipaldo
12:20
To be fair, Matakevich almost never plays on defense so it would be unfair to label him a liability. He very well might be. His lack of speed certainly would make him susceptible in pass coverage. He's a special teams guy, and I could see him being replaced by one of those small, quicker ILBs the Steelers drafted a week ago or so.
KA
12:20
Hilton had a lot of problems last year in coverage.  Do you think he will still be the starting slot CB?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:21
They don't really have any other options right now unless Cam Sutton came on and had a great camp and preseason. Sutton and Hilton arrived around the same time, and Hilton has outplayed him. I'm not saying Sutton can't do it, but wouldn't he have done it by now if he was better than Hilton?
Devin
12:21
Looking at the measurements and combine numbers of Bush/White to Shazier is surprising. Shazier put up better numbers in every category but was taken 15th a few years back. With the change of the game, would Shazier have been a Top 3 pick this year?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:23
Probably not top 3. Maybe top 5 like Devin White. But you have to acknowledge how much the game has changed in five years. These fast off-ball linebackers are hard to find. Did you notice the drop-off after White and Bush this year? It's crazy how the college game failed to produce so few impact players at that position this year. That's another reason White and Bush were taken so high. It was simple supply and demand.
Randy's Obsession
12:24
Everyone seems to forgetting how obsessed Finctner was with Switzer last season. Was he just a stop gap until Washington or another WR steps up?
Ray Fittipaldo
12:26
Switzer stepped up and filled a need last season. They're expecting big things from James Washington and Diontae Johnson so unless one or both have problems this year I would not think Switzer's role would grow in 2019. It's likely to decrease if their plans come to fruition.
Questfor7
12:26
I feel like Justin Layne was a steal at 83. Many had a second round grade on him. Do you think eventually he could start outside and consequently use Nelson in the slot?
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