Studs and Duds: Pack in Steeltown

[OldSchool101]

Stud:
Jordan Love. With a good sample size Jordan is performing at a great clip. Yesterday the projections and predictions were mixed. Many NFL Pundits actually picked The Steelers at home and for good reason. They are a Division leader. Today the target has moved. Today the Steelers are the worst D in football by a mile, because that’s the only way Jordan Love could perform.

2025 QB Leaders

W/L Record
Daniel Jones 7-1
#2 Jordan Love 5-1-1

Completion %
Drake Maye
Jared Goff
Daniel Jones
#4 Jordan love (70.9%)

Passing Yards/Gm
Justin Herbert
Matt Stafford
Mac Jones
Dak Prescott
Daniel Jones
Patrick Mahomes
#7 Jordan Love (256.9 yds)

Passer Rating
Drake Maye
Jared Goff
Jalen Hurts
#4 Jordan Love (112.8%)

QB rating
Dak Prescott
Daniel Jones
Pat Mahomes
Drake Maye
#5 Jordan Love (73.5%)

Net Yards/Attempt
Sam Darnold
Daniel Jones
#3 Jordan Love (7.69/attempt)

Game Winning Drives
Baker Mayfield
Bo Nix
#3 Jordan Love (2)

4th Qtr Comebacks
Baker Mayfield
Bo Nix
#3 Jordan Love (3)

INT %
Justin Fields, Jalen Hurts, Jayden Daniels, Baker Mayfield, Patrick Mahomes, Matt Stafford
#7 Jordan Love

 

[bm1090]

I'd still rate the playoff game against Dallas as Love's best game, but this is a close second for me. He was fantastic.

Kraft is a monster. Same with Parsons. And Gary really benefits from not seeing the double team. Quay has made major strides. Cooper played great. Really solid performance for three quarters tonight. First time I've believed they can win a super bowl.

 

[Magooch]

I thought all scoring or potential ones were automatically reviewed under 2 minutes in a game by the booth, regardless? As long as they get it right, I honestly have no qualms with it.

Edit: I actually prefer it vs challenges, we want the result of a play called correctly, when in doubt, review it. College Football does it, and overall it seems to work for them.

The trouble is that it occurred with 2:07 left on the clock AND with Pittsburgh having no time outs left (i.e. unable to challenge themselves).

McAulay's explanation seemed remarkably flimsy too with the whole "Oh well they do expedited review when it's an obvious call"... you mean to tell me teams shouldn't be expected to challenge "obvious calls" because the booth will just jump in and do it for them? Yeah, okay. Lemme sell you a bridge while we're at it... To be fair I got the impression that Collinsworth and Tirico didn't exactly buy that either but I think they just kinda bit their tongues for the moment as I remember it.

To be honest though I can't stand it pretty much any time any of the networks call upon their "rules expert" or whatever. Maybe like 2% of the time I come away thinking "That was a really good explanation for that rule that I wouldn't have known otherwise" and about 98% of the time it comes off as the "rules expert" just being a spokesperson for the NFL shield, always just protecting their buddies in the officiating crews and bending over backwards to defend whatever decision was already made. Miss me with that lol

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

I thought all scoring or potential ones were automatically reviewed under 2 minutes in a game by the booth, regardless? As long as they get it right, I honestly have no qualms with it.

Edit: I actually prefer it vs challenges, we want the result of a play called correctly, when in doubt, review it. College Football does it, and overall it seems to work for them.

It wasn't under 2 minutes. I think there was 2:07 on the clock.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

The trouble is that it occurred with 2:07 left on the clock AND with Pittsburgh having no time outs left (i.e. unable to challenge themselves).

McAulay's explanation seemed remarkably flimsy too with the whole "Oh well they do expedited review when it's an obvious call"... you mean to tell me teams shouldn't be expected to challenge "obvious calls" because the booth will just jump in and do it for them? Yeah, okay. Lemme sell you a bridge while we're at it... To be fair I got the impression that Collinsworth and Tirico didn't exactly buy that either but I think they just kinda bit their tongues for the moment as I remember it.

To be honest though I can't stand it pretty much any time any of the networks call upon their "rules expert" or whatever. Maybe like 2% of the time I come away thinking "That was a really good explanation for that rule that I wouldn't have known otherwise" and about 98% of the time it comes off as the "rules expert" just being a spokesperson for the NFL shield, always just protecting their buddies in the officiating crews and bending over backwards to defend whatever decision was already made. Miss me with that lol

Spot on and is exactly how I felt. I will say it again, if that was the tying or go ahead touchdown, and the Steelers won as a result, the Media would be all over this today.

Again, maybe it was a TD, but maybe it wasn't. It was not called on the field as a TD by the refs, so really it isn't a "scoring play", is it? Had that happened outside of the EZ, same review and results, in which case it would have been a fumble (if reversed to complete)? I just thought the way it was handled was poor and it was a lot closer play than McAulay passed it off as.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

I think it was Wyatt. But Micah confused him into going offside. Evidently, none of the officials were watching the line.

I'm just glad that they didn't make contact. Rodgers thought he had a free play, I was grinning ear to ear after I found out that he didn't.

 

[mradtke66]

Romeo Doubs - the stability he provides and repore with Love makes a ton of sense...

He's so hard for me to get a bead on. He obviously has Love's trust, but Watson and Golden are more dynamic players. I can't tell if he's (Doubs) is a possession receiver that's exceeding his ceiling or if he's getting open because the offense is worried about other guys.

My opinion comes down to "how much do you value him" ? I don't have a solid answer.

Rasheed Walker - hard to walk from a LT, but also incredibly hard to pay both tackles top of market...

We could certainly afford to pay both tackles, but I have to assume they see Morgan as their LT of the future. Of course depending what else they do on the line, they may not have that flexibility.

I still don't like Morgan at RG. He's a great a pass protector there, but he really struggles to get movement in the running game.

Rhyan could be a cost effective type signing if we walk from Jenkins and the value while cheaper could be good...

Jenkins is all but assuredly gone. His cap number doesn't line up with his value as a center. It probably doesn't line up with his value if he stayed at guard. And he's officially old.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

He's so hard for me to get a bead on. He obviously has Love's trust, but Watson and Golden are more dynamic players. I can't tell if he's (Doubs) is a possession receiver that's exceeding his ceiling or if he's getting open because the offense is worried about other guys.

My opinion comes down to "how much do you value him" ? I don't have a solid answer.

Personally, I think Romeo is a really solid receiver. He isn't flashy and he isn't cocky. He goes out there, runs good routes, gets open, catches the ball and quietly goes back to work. Those wanting to trade him before the season started for what a 5th or later round pick, bite me.

 

[Magooch]

He's so hard for me to get a bead on. He obviously has Love's trust, but Watson and Golden are more dynamic players. I can't tell if he's (Doubs) is a possession receiver that's exceeding his ceiling or if he's getting open because the offense is worried about other guys.

My opinion comes down to "how much do you value him" ? I don't have a solid answer.

I think this is a really tough one too. Love definitely has a good rapport with him, but I also wonder how much of that comes down to "seniority" to a degree? Golden is new, and Watson has been hurt... and last night for instance it seemed like Kraft and Watson were Love's preferred guys (Kraft led game in targets; Doubs did have more targets than Watson - 6 to 4 - but played ~80% of snaps while Watson played just ~50%)

But with many of these scenarios it's really a question of replacement cost. How much can you get for Doubs, and how much will it cost you to replace him? How much will it cost to keep him? In a perfect world I'd like to see us keep him, but I do wonder if we won't end up seeing a situation where a receiver-needy team decides they "value" him more than we can compete with...

 

[El Guapo]

I'll call out that amazing Rodgers play where Brooks was sacking him but Aaron smartly threw the ball into the turf to get an "incomplete" call instead of a sack. That is some "elite" play from an old QB that couldn't get away from the pass rush.

 

[mradtke66]

Personally, I think Romeo is a really solid receiver. He isn't flashy and he isn't cocky. He goes out there, runs good routes, gets open, catches the ball and quietly goes back to work. Those wanting to trade him before the season started for what a 5th or later round pick, bite me.

I'm not advocating to trade him, though I understand the thought experiment at least.

The question comes down to assessing him. Your own comment labels him as "a really solid receiver." What is a really solid receiver worth? He's not a super star, so we won't get top-15 money. Where do we slot him?

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

I'm not advocating to trade him, though I understand the thought experiment at least.

The question comes down to assessing him. Your own comment labels him as "a really solid receiver." What is a really solid receiver worth? He's not a super star, so we won't get top-15 money. Where do we slot him?

I wasn't necessarily pointing at you when saying "some wanted him traded." I couldn't even tell you who was making that argument, I just remember some wanted to.

Anyway. Yes, Doub's rookie contract is up at the end of this season, so this potentially could be his last season in GB. That said, if the Packers signed him to a new deal now, I don't think it breaks the bank. Having Golden, Reid, Watson and Doubs would be a good "problem" to have. While at this moment, he may not be a #1 WR, but that isn't an issue at all for me, because he is a solid starting WR.

Normally, I don't like handing out new contracts, before the current one is up. However, in the case of Doubs, I could see doing it, because right now, I think we could get him for less than during free agency. How much? Really not sure, without studying what the say top 32-62 WR's are worth in the NFL. But I guess that tells you where I think he ranks. I also think he has a higher ceiling as well.

This team went without a solid WR group for too long, I would hate to see them trade Doubs for a late round pick and regret it when they lose their first playoff game because 2 of our top 4 WR's were hurt.

 

[AmishMafia]

I'll call out that amazing Rodgers play where Brooks was sacking him but Aaron smartly threw the ball into the turf to get an "incomplete" call instead of a sack. That is some "elite" play from an old QB that couldn't get away from the pass rush.

I think it was bad officiating. There is another component to intentionally grounding that it has to be realistic chance of completion. There was no chance as he purposely threw it to the ground 1' away.

The exact wording for intentional grounding is that a passer, "facing an imminent loss of yardage because of pressure from the defense, throws a forward pass without a realistic chance of completion."

Now that is what AI brought up but I was hoping to read the actual rule.

A little common sense needs to prevail here as nobody seeing that would think he was trying to complete that.

So I want to add:

Duds: the refs. Not just the intentional grounding thing but:

The offsides by the Packers. Pittsburgh can't complain too much because Parsons waited a moment to rush because he assumed an offsides penalty was coming. I dont know how you miss that. Clearly the line judge was doing something other than watch the line of scrimmage.

The other biggie is the illegal procedure by the OT for Pittsburgh. I wonder if the refs were thinking it was a TE going in motion? That is another what-were-you-looking-at!???!?! Moment by the refs.

 

[mradtke66]

The offsides by the Packers. Pittsburgh can't complain too much because Parsons waited a moment to rush because he assumed an offsides penalty was coming. I dont know how you miss that. Clearly the line judge was doing something other than watch the line of scrimmage.

The other biggie is the illegal procedure by the OT for Pittsburgh. I wonder if the refs were thinking it was a TE going in motion? That is another what-were-you-looking-at!???!?! Moment by the refs.

I initially wondered if not throwing the offsides flag was a makeup call for the terrible no-call you mentioned. Both were awful.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

I think it was bad officiating. There is another component to intentionally grounding that it has to be realistic chance of completion. There was no chance as he purposely threw it to the ground 1' away.

The exact wording for intentional grounding is that a passer, "facing an imminent loss of yardage because of pressure from the defense, throws a forward pass without a realistic chance of completion."

Now that is what AI brought up but I was hoping to read the actual rule.

A little common sense needs to prevail here as nobody seeing that would think he was trying to complete that.

So I want to add:

Duds: the refs. Not just the intentional grounding thing but:

The offsides by the Packers. Pittsburgh can't complain too much because Parsons waited a moment to rush because he assumed an offsides penalty was coming. I dont know how you miss that. Clearly the line judge was doing something other than watch the line of scrimmage.

The other biggie is the illegal procedure by the OT for Pittsburgh. I wonder if the refs were thinking it was a TE going in motion? That is another what-were-you-looking-at!???!?! Moment by the refs.

Good point on the Intentional Grounding No call. I mean if you have a RB blocking for you, and you are in the grasp, why not ALWAYS throw the ball (forward) at their feet, if it isn't intentional grounding? If you look at the Steelers RB, Jaylen Warren, he was actively blocking when Rodgers threw the ball at his feet. Could Warren be called for Offensive pass interference?

If Rodgers was within the rules, smart play on his part, as well as good call by the ref. If it was, by rule, intentional grounding, then just another brain fart by another officiating crew.

https://x.com/ThePoniExpress/status/1982635930268872866

 

[Heyjoe4]

Yeah even with Quay's elevated play he isn't even in my Top 3 likely to sign back guys honestly....if forced I'd order our pending UFAs at least first few as:

Romeo Doubs - the stability he provides and repore with Love makes a ton of sense...
Rasheed Walker - hard to walk from a LT, but also incredibly hard to pay both tackles top of market...
Quay Walker is likely third...but you also have to factor in Rhyan could be a cost effective type signing if we walk from Jenkins and the value while cheaper could be good...

It does seem very unlikely Walker will be back next year. He's maybe a little better than Blake Martinez - lots of activity and tackles, but very little that contributed to the team's success.

And it will be hard enough to extend Doubs and Walker, but they should be extended. They aren't All Pros, maybe someday, but they get their jobs done and are key members of the team.

 

[Heyjoe4]

I think it was bad officiating. There is another component to intentionally grounding that it has to be realistic chance of completion. There was no chance as he purposely threw it to the ground 1' away.

The exact wording for intentional grounding is that a passer, "facing an imminent loss of yardage because of pressure from the defense, throws a forward pass without a realistic chance of completion."

Now that is what AI brought up but I was hoping to read the actual rule.

A little common sense needs to prevail here as nobody seeing that would think he was trying to complete that.

So I want to add:

Duds: the refs. Not just the intentional grounding thing but:

The offsides by the Packers. Pittsburgh can't complain too much because Parsons waited a moment to rush because he assumed an offsides penalty was coming. I dont know how you miss that. Clearly the line judge was doing something other than watch the line of scrimmage.

The other biggie is the illegal procedure by the OT for Pittsburgh. I wonder if the refs were thinking it was a TE going in motion? That is another what-were-you-looking-at!???!?! Moment by the refs.

It was not a stellar night for the officials. Fortunately, their weak performance didn't play favorites.

 

[Heyjoe4]

I thought all scoring or potential ones were automatically reviewed under 2 minutes in a game by the booth, regardless? As long as they get it right, I honestly have no qualms with it.

Edit: I actually prefer it vs challenges, we want the result of a play called correctly, when in doubt, review it. College Football does it, and overall it seems to work for them.

I think all scoring plays are reviewed, not just the ones under the 2-minute warning.

 

[Heyjoe4]

Defense had given up over 80 yards rushing in the first half. In the second half Pitt gave up on the run because we were putting up points.

I noticed that. They were routinely running for 8-9 yards on first down.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

Rodgers was back to his old tricks with this one too.

Rodgers spotted firing savage two-word insult at Metcalf after dropped TD pass

DK Metcalf denied Aaron Rodgers his first-ever touchdown against the Green Bay Packers, and the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback was seen shouting a colorful expletive

www.themirror.com

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

Maybe someone else mentioned this. But Packer fans were so loud last night, that Rodgers had to switch to a silent count.

https://x.com/packers_access/status/1982677489379090458

 

[mradtke66]

It does seem very unlikely Walker will be back next year. He's maybe a little better than Blake Martinez - lots of activity and tackles, but very little that contributed to the team's success.

I think many are colored by his dumb penalties as a rookie.

He's grown into his role with Hafley. 3rd on the team in TFLs. 2nd on the team in passes defensed. Tied for 1st in solo tackles, 1st in assisted tackles (not that put a ton of weight on tackles--Mike and Will should lead the team in tackles.). He's been an excellent blitzer up the middle.

I also need to find the all-22 for this week. I seem to recall Quay carrying a TE on a seam route late in the 4 quarter and he broke up the pass. As long as my memory is accurate, that was a big time play. I doubt Blake Martinez could even be in position to make that play, let alone actually make it.

 

[OldSchool101]

Also Chris tian Watson with a big return to the team and goes 4 - 85 in his season debut. Plus had a key block to spring Jacobs for a TD run.

Something told me he wouldn’t miss a beat. We’ve really missed his physical presence. His 6’4 size with high pointing ability and above average blocking is difficult to replicate when he’s out.
imo What this really does to opponents going forward, is created mismatches with other Receivers. He’s going to demand attention from many CB1’s. Doubs, Golden, Heath, Wicks, Williams will see lesser intensity/quality matchups.

 

[OldSchool101]

I'm just glad that they didn't make contact. Rodgers thought he had a free play, I was grinning ear to ear after I found out that he didn't.

Yes. To level this out though there was a play where Pitt OL pulled an easy 0.5 early and it also didn’t get called. It should’ve been a very obvious flag also and they just missed it on highlights. I sometimes wonder if they don’t try to correct the game a little for the other team if they realize they missed an easy call. No one will ever admit that but I wouldn’t be surprised they attempt to even the score on a similar Line infraction.

 

[tynimiller]

He's so hard for me to get a bead on. He obviously has Love's trust, but Watson and Golden are more dynamic players. I can't tell if he's (Doubs) is a possession receiver that's exceeding his ceiling or if he's getting open because the offense is worried about other guys.

My opinion comes down to "how much do you value him" ? I don't have a solid answer.



We could certainly afford to pay both tackles, but I have to assume they see Morgan as their LT of the future. Of course depending what else they do on the line, they may not have that flexibility.

I still don't like Morgan at RG. He's a great a pass protector there, but he really struggles to get movement in the running game.



Jenkins is all but assuredly gone. His cap number doesn't line up with his value as a center. It probably doesn't line up with his value if he stayed at guard. And he's officially old.

Jenkins is a restructure or gone for sure and there is a world easily where Rhyan could be had for som what cheaper deal, cut Jenkins and let Rasheed get bank elsewhere and assume Morgan, Tom, Belton and Kinnard will solve two tackle spots between them. Rhyan to center like he’s done some or if Monk is there Rhyan is there our swing guy that is crucial insurance and you only do two year deal to coincide with when others come up.

Doubs has delivered when he everyone has been out, when he is focal and when he is just one of many. Think how many redzone balls he’s out jumped or got open with proper body positioning and route savviness.

The hardest thing with Doubs is he is not a WR1 but a damn good WR2 type guy that flourishes with Jordan. So much I think you try like hell to see if you can come to an agreement both parties give some on.