Latest / In the Locker Room presented by Neighborhood Ford Store (Pittsburgh Steelers) / HR1: Season Begins

Transcript

HR1: Season Begins · In the Locker Room presented by Neighborhood Ford Store (Pittsburgh Steelers)

• 0:07
  Speaker 1: This is In the Locker Room with Rob King, Max Starks,
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: and Willie Colon on Steelers Nation Radio. Brought to you
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: in part by the Steelers Pro Shop. Get it direct
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: from the team at the Steelers Pro Shop at shop.steelers.com.
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: And by your neighborhood Ford store. The F-150 is the
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: official truck of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
• 0:33
  Speaker 2: Okay, welcome into the locker room. And it is Max
• 0:39
  Speaker 2: Starks once again leading the charge along with my fearless
• 0:42
  Speaker 2: co-host Willie Colon. Rob King on assignment. One of the
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: last few times he'll be doing that with the Bucs.
• 0:50
  Speaker 2: So it is just the two-man weave today. And of course,
• 0:53
  Speaker 2: let me welcome in my co-host Willie. How are we
• 0:55
  Speaker 2: doing today, man?
• 0:58
  Speaker 3: All is well, Max. Football is here. Football's back. It
• 1:02
  Speaker 3: is better than ever. Football is back. Yeah, so, yeah.
• 1:08
  Speaker 3: I'm happy, though. Football's back. We had some good football
• 1:12
  Speaker 3: last night. Can I jump out and say something.
• 1:14
  Speaker 2: Quickly, Max? Yeah, go ahead.
• 1:18
  Speaker 4: I get annoyed because, you know, I think, I don't
• 1:21
  Speaker 4: know if you do this, but I watched the game
• 1:25
  Speaker 4: and then I watched Twitter.
• 1:26
  Speaker 3: And then, you know, while I'm watching him, I'm surfing
• 1:30
  Speaker 3: social media.
• 1:31
  Speaker 4: I just go back and forth looking at comments, tweeting
• 1:34
  Speaker 4: out random things myself, and kind of just doing whatever.
• 1:37
  Speaker 4: And there were a couple comments last night that really
• 1:40
  Speaker 4: annoyed me. One of the comments in particular was that
• 1:43
  Speaker 4: this game is boring.
• 1:45
  Speaker 3: Oh, my God.
• 1:46
  Speaker 4: This reminds me of the Super Bowl.
• 1:51
  Speaker 3: Oh, Sam Darnold's out? I don't want to watch this.
• 1:54
  Speaker 3: Who wants to see Drew Locke?
• 1:55
  Speaker 4: Ugh.
• 1:56
  Speaker 3: Oh my God, Drake May running? What happened to him
• 1:59
  Speaker 3: throwing the ball? Ugh. And I'm saying to myself, what
• 2:03
  Speaker 3: the hell is wrong with people?
• 2:05
  Speaker 4: Last night, between Patriots and Seahawks, on a Wednesday, first
• 2:10
  Speaker 4: of all, watching football on a Wednesday is like finding
• 2:13
  Speaker 4: a $ 20 bill in your back pocket, right?
• 2:16
  Speaker 3: It's awesome. It's surprising. It's refreshing. It's like, yes, football
• 2:21
  Speaker 3: in the middle of the week, give me more.
• 2:24
  Speaker 4: With all that said, Last night game, for all you
• 2:27
  Speaker 4: Steeler fans, you should feel somewhat encouraged because we watched
• 2:32
  Speaker 4: two defenses. But one defense in particular showed up and
• 2:37
  Speaker 4: showed it out, and that was the Seattle Seahawks. And
• 2:39
  Speaker 4: they showed you with a dominant front set and a
• 2:42
  Speaker 4: back end that elevated the game. As the game got
• 2:46
  Speaker 4: grittier and tougher and, I guess, more kind of situational,
• 2:51
  Speaker 4: if you will, the secondary of the Seahawks, man, showed
• 2:55
  Speaker 4: up and showed out and made.
• 2:57
  Speaker 3: Some big plays that really turned the game.
• 2:59
  Speaker 4: And if you're a Steelers fan, like, man, I know
• 3:02
  Speaker 4: we got guys on our team that can play like that.
• 3:04
  Speaker 4: I know we got guys that can show up and
• 3:07
  Speaker 4: make those type of plays. I know we do because
• 3:09
  Speaker 4: not only are they being paid to make those plays, right?
• 3:12
  Speaker 4: We talked about Steelers defense being well-paid, if you will.
• 3:15
  Speaker 4: But on top of that, we have the talent to
• 3:17
  Speaker 4: do so.
• 3:18
  Speaker 3: Right.
• 3:19
  Speaker 4: So we have the talent to do so.
• 3:21
  Speaker 3: So there should be some– I guess, own some synergy,
• 3:26
  Speaker 3: if you will.
• 3:29
  Speaker 2: No, and I agree with you, Willie. I think last
• 3:31
  Speaker 2: night just kind of showed you that defense carries wherever
• 3:36
  Speaker 2: it is. And they picked up where they left off.
• 3:40
  Speaker 2: And I think with the additions that the Steelers have
• 3:44
  Speaker 2: and just the pride that I think this group is
• 3:48
  Speaker 2: going to play with, you have to be encouraged because
• 3:50
  Speaker 2: like you said, you lose Sam Darnold six plays into,
• 3:53
  Speaker 2: into the game and a backup has to jump in.
• 3:59
  Speaker 2: And listen, was your rock block perfect? No, but he
• 4:04
  Speaker 2: played pretty darn good for assuming he was going to
• 4:07
  Speaker 2: be sucking down Gatorade and, and talk it over, talk
• 4:10
  Speaker 2: it over adjustments on the sideline with Sam Darnold all night.
• 4:12
  Speaker 2: That was, that was the plan going in. And then
• 4:17
  Speaker 2: that plan got scrapped immediately. And he had to go
• 4:21
  Speaker 2: in and play. And I think that's what it goes
• 4:23
  Speaker 2: to show you why this is a team game and
• 4:25
  Speaker 2: not a singular player can take over like any other sport, right?
• 4:31
  Speaker 2: You know, LeBron can take over a game. Steph Curry
• 4:34
  Speaker 2: can take over a game. And they can carry the
• 4:38
  Speaker 2: other four guys on a basketball court. But when it comes...
• 4:41
  Speaker 2: Messi can take over a soccer match, right? But in football... hey,
• 4:48
  Speaker 2: you need all 11 who are present on the field
• 4:50
  Speaker 2: at any given time to make things go. If one
• 4:54
  Speaker 2: person is weak, the rest of the team can literally,
• 4:58
  Speaker 2: the house of cards can fall down immediately. And I
• 5:01
  Speaker 2: thought what Seattle showed in that moment, that grit, resiliency,
• 5:06
  Speaker 2: and stepping up, you know, that kind of the same
• 5:09
  Speaker 2: mentality we had when we played, right? We always said
• 5:12
  Speaker 2: we all we got, right? That's what you saw last
• 5:15
  Speaker 2: night with Seattle. And, man, like you said, it was
• 5:18
  Speaker 2: a defensive showcase by the Seattle Seahawks. I mean, three
• 5:22
  Speaker 2: interceptions of Drake May. And remember, we were talking about
• 5:26
  Speaker 2: just yesterday, Will, hey, who are these next-tier quarterbacks and
• 5:30
  Speaker 2: what can you do with the great defense and, you know, yada, yada, yada. Well,
• 5:35
  Speaker 2: we've seen what a great defense can do. A great
• 5:38
  Speaker 2: defense can get up and left. You're backed up with
• 5:41
  Speaker 2: very little reps going into that first game.
• 5:44
  Speaker 4: Well, two things quickly, uh, for the game last night,
• 5:47
  Speaker 4: I don't know if anybody's watching Patriots Seahawks, both put
• 5:50
  Speaker 4: on a show. Um, we're sitting here talking about the
• 5:55
  Speaker 4: defense of the Seattle Seahawks, man. Ernest Jones had 13
• 5:58
  Speaker 4: combined tackles. When I talked about their, their, uh, the
• 6:02
  Speaker 4: secondary Julian love had a pick. I am Prickett had
• 6:04
  Speaker 4: a pick Josh Joe, uh, from out of Philly had
• 6:09
  Speaker 4: the pick to kind of ice the game. Um, It
• 6:12
  Speaker 4: was awesome, but I also want to pivot back to
• 6:15
  Speaker 4: the offensive side for the Seahawks. You talked about Drew
• 6:19
  Speaker 4: Locke stepping in, and it's interesting because you, me, and Rob,
• 6:25
  Speaker 4: and the powers that be, and everybody in the Steelers
• 6:27
  Speaker 4: nation has been very aware of the current quarterback situation
• 6:32
  Speaker 4: for the Steelers, meaning Aaron Rodgers, Mason Rudolph, Will Howard,
• 6:37
  Speaker 4: who they.
• 6:37
  Speaker 3: Drafted out of Penn State.
• 6:39
  Speaker 4: One of the guys that during this preseason that I
• 6:43
  Speaker 4: felt needed to kind of put a stamp on his
• 6:47
  Speaker 4: position was Mason Rudolph. And he did that against the Pittsburgh,
• 6:53
  Speaker 4: excuse me, against the Jets. And I thought it was
• 6:56
  Speaker 4: interesting because you talk about the value of having a
• 6:59
  Speaker 4: number two and what a number two means.
• 7:01
  Speaker 3: And that's what Drew Locke did, showed the world.
• 7:03
  Speaker 4: Like as much as you fall in love with your
• 7:05
  Speaker 4: starting quarterback and what he's capable of doing and his
• 7:08
  Speaker 4: arm talent and his ability to command an offense, Your quarterback, too,
• 7:13
  Speaker 4: your QB, too, has to be just as efficient and
• 7:15
  Speaker 4: just as good. And me and you, Max, both were
• 7:19
  Speaker 4: privileged to have solid backup quarterbacks in Charlie Batch and
• 7:23
  Speaker 4: Byron Leftwich. But now you're talking about Steelers from this standpoint.
• 7:27
  Speaker 3: Aaron Rodgers being 42 years old, we can go.
• 7:30
  Speaker 4: There legit concerned that he may get dinged or whatever
• 7:34
  Speaker 4: the situation, that he may have, you know, there's a
• 7:37
  Speaker 4: course of his journey, there may be a time where
• 7:40
  Speaker 4: he may have to step out of the lineup for
• 7:42
  Speaker 4: whatever reason. Or he may get hurt and be forced
• 7:46
  Speaker 4: to play. But having number two in Mason Rudolph, who's
• 7:50
  Speaker 4: been playing football for a long time, played meaningful games,
• 7:54
  Speaker 4: there's value in having a quarterback, too, who's a stabilizer.
• 7:58
  Speaker 3: And I think that's what was interesting about Julak.
• 8:01
  Speaker 2: You're right.
• 8:01
  Speaker 3: He didn't make all the throws, but he made the
• 8:03
  Speaker 3: throws he needed to make. But he was a stabilizer
• 8:05
  Speaker 3: for the office. The only thing that pissed me off
• 8:07
  Speaker 3: with Julak last night is that his arm band gave
• 8:09
  Speaker 3: him pounds.
• 8:10
  Speaker 4: I've never seen a quarterback struggle with an armband. He
• 8:14
  Speaker 4: was so caught up looking down at his armband, he
• 8:16
  Speaker 4: was forgetting the clock, and it was messing up the operation.
• 8:19
  Speaker 3: And the Seahawks weren't clean, by the way.
• 8:20
  Speaker 4: They had penalties. There was a lot of things going
• 8:22
  Speaker 4: on with them. But they found a way to win.
• 8:25
  Speaker 4: And so, if you're still a fan right now, you
• 8:28
  Speaker 4: watch the team who won a Super Bowl, has a defense,
• 8:32
  Speaker 4: and played with their number two, won their opening game
• 8:35
  Speaker 4: with their number two quarterback. So, it just shows you
• 8:38
  Speaker 4: that the Steelers aren't as far off as you think.
• 8:41
  Speaker 4: They just got to produce and continue to do what
• 8:44
  Speaker 4: they do best, and that's stacked up.
• 8:47
  Speaker 2: Well, and I think the key to that, Willie, really is,
• 8:52
  Speaker 2: you know, that's why you have to trust your depth.
• 8:55
  Speaker 2: You have to trust the depth that the coaches have
• 8:59
  Speaker 2: set for the team going into a game because the
• 9:03
  Speaker 2: best-laid plans can have some of the worst outcomes. And
• 9:08
  Speaker 2: that's why, you know, people are like, oh, well, you know,
• 9:12
  Speaker 2: you shot Mason Rudolph because you have Drew Aller and
• 9:15
  Speaker 2: Will Howard. And it's like, no, because of situations like
• 9:19
  Speaker 2: we saw, literally the start of the NFL season. You
• 9:22
  Speaker 2: don't know what is going to happen. And to have
• 9:25
  Speaker 2: a tried, tested, and true guy in Mason Rudolph is invaluable. Drew,
• 9:31
  Speaker 2: you know, I feel like, you know, for Drew, Drew
• 9:34
  Speaker 2: didn't have that many of, like, big moments in his
• 9:38
  Speaker 2: career thus far until last night. Like, last night was
• 9:40
  Speaker 2: a big moment that now he gets to hang on
• 9:42
  Speaker 2: his resume that, you know, he had to go in
• 9:45
  Speaker 2: and play. And we don't know how long he's going
• 9:47
  Speaker 2: to have to play, right? I mean, the only reports
• 9:50
  Speaker 2: is that, you know, the hip is not a fracture,
• 9:52
  Speaker 2: as it says right now. Adam Schefter reported it. Also
• 9:55
  Speaker 2: was commented on by Coach McDonald in the post-game conference
• 9:59
  Speaker 2: because they sent him straight to the hospital after he
• 10:02
  Speaker 2: got injured to get the initial diagnosis, and they said
• 10:06
  Speaker 2: they could, as of right now, they could rule out
• 10:09
  Speaker 2: a fracture. But you don't know how long Sam Darnold
• 10:12
  Speaker 2: is going to be sidelined, and you have to sit
• 10:14
  Speaker 2: there and say, okay, well, after last night, you can say, okay,
• 10:17
  Speaker 2: we feel better about Drew Locke. going into a game
• 10:20
  Speaker 2: and what he could do with preparation, but Mason Rudolph's
• 10:22
  Speaker 2: already been through that. I remember my first year as
• 10:26
  Speaker 2: a sideline reporter, well, we're about to play the Detroit Lions,
• 10:32
  Speaker 2: and we're going through, and Friday afternoon, they found out
• 10:37
  Speaker 2: that Ben had COVID and could not play in the
• 10:41
  Speaker 2: game on Sunday, and Mason, all he had was a
• 10:46
  Speaker 2: Saturday walkthrough in the morning, and he had to start
• 10:50
  Speaker 2: the game against the Lions on primetime night game, and
• 10:56
  Speaker 2: it was raining, windy, and in my head, I'm thinking, okay,
• 11:01
  Speaker 2: you know, I was talking with Craig Wolfley and Bill Hillgrove,
• 11:03
  Speaker 2: and we were saying, all right, the game plan is
• 11:06
  Speaker 2: going to be simple. We got to run the ball
• 11:07
  Speaker 2: because it's raining, and the ball is going to be slick,
• 11:10
  Speaker 2: and it's windy, and Major Rudolph went out and threw
• 11:14
  Speaker 2: 50 passes in that game, Will. 50 passes in rain
• 11:21
  Speaker 2: and high wind. I mean, so that's where you, I mean,
• 11:27
  Speaker 2: and this guy also, Kenny Piggy gets knocked out. He
• 11:30
  Speaker 2: leaves the team at the end of the season, critical
• 11:32
  Speaker 2: moments to get into the playoffs. They earn a playoff
• 11:35
  Speaker 2: bin and he's starting a game in Buffalo. And then
• 11:38
  Speaker 2: there's an emergency state of emergency in Buffalo, New York.
• 11:42
  Speaker 2: they shift the game to Monday because it was too
• 11:46
  Speaker 2: bad to play the game on Sunday, and he comes
• 11:49
  Speaker 2: out and he has to play the playoff game. So
• 11:51
  Speaker 2: when we're talking about the quality of those, you can't
• 11:55
  Speaker 2: rep that. And we have that sitting right behind Aaron Rodgers,
• 11:59
  Speaker 2: who is a Hall of Famer, who is Mr. Everything,
• 12:02
  Speaker 2: four-time MVP. To have a guy like that as your
• 12:05
  Speaker 2: number two, that's a good place to be because I'm
• 12:08
  Speaker 2: sure when Sam went down and they said, And now
• 12:11
  Speaker 2: starting for the Seattle Seahawks, Drew Locke. Okay. Right?
• 12:20
  Speaker 3: So I think you're right, man. I don't want to
• 12:25
  Speaker 3: add this. I know we're pressing the gun.
• 12:28
  Speaker 4: I think for a lot of people who watched that
• 12:30
  Speaker 4: game last night and what you, however you dissect it,
• 12:35
  Speaker 4: when you feel like Drake may, you know, throw in
• 12:37
  Speaker 4: the three innings late in the game, really hurt him.
• 12:39
  Speaker 3: Sure. That's obvious.
• 12:41
  Speaker 4: What we also saw was a guy in the first
• 12:44
  Speaker 4: half of that game being able to use his legs,
• 12:47
  Speaker 4: which helped the offense for the Patriots stay on time
• 12:51
  Speaker 4: with the foot and get it to stay on time
• 12:52
  Speaker 4: from an offense standpoint. It really kind of stabilized the
• 12:56
  Speaker 4: pass rush of the Seattle Seahawks. And in the second half,
• 13:00
  Speaker 4: you saw Drake May not use his legs as much, right?
• 13:04
  Speaker 4: They had a couple drops. The run game wasn't really
• 13:08
  Speaker 4: hitting like it was in the first half. And then
• 13:11
  Speaker 4: the defense of the Seahawks, they were just keeping everything
• 13:14
  Speaker 4: in front.
• 13:15
  Speaker 3: They weren't going to give up the big plays.
• 13:16
  Speaker 4: And I say all that to say you have to
• 13:20
  Speaker 4: understand from the Steelers' standpoint as you prepare for the
• 13:23
  Speaker 4: Atlanta Falcons and as you continue to kind of.
• 13:25
  Speaker 3: Figure out that, you know, all right, this is who
• 13:28
  Speaker 3: we are. This is what we have.
• 13:31
  Speaker 4: What works for you early in the first half, man,
• 13:33
  Speaker 4: it's not for you to go away from, right? Like
• 13:36
  Speaker 4: there's rhyme and reasons for why it's working, and you
• 13:39
  Speaker 4: have to stay true to it. I think if you're
• 13:41
  Speaker 4: the Steelers preparing for the Falcons and what you can
• 13:44
  Speaker 4: take away besides how good the defense of the Seahawks is,
• 13:48
  Speaker 4: was last night, excuse me, the run game for the
• 13:52
  Speaker 4: Seahawks was also important. Jadarian Price had 10 carries and
• 13:58
  Speaker 4: he was explosive.
• 13:59
  Speaker 3: He's a young man. The Seahawks drafted out of Notre Dame.
• 14:03
  Speaker 4: And I think if you're the Steelers, you know what
• 14:07
  Speaker 4: Aaron Rodgers could do. Yes, you want to ball to
• 14:09
  Speaker 4: DK Metcalf. They actually want to feed Mount Washington and Pittman.
• 14:13
  Speaker 4: But we have to get these two runbacks. These two
• 14:16
  Speaker 4: runbacks we have in Jalen Warren and Rico Dotto. If
• 14:21
  Speaker 4: we can get those guys off to a fast start
• 14:23
  Speaker 4: and we can run the ball as efficient as the
• 14:25
  Speaker 4: Seahawks did in that game, that was the ultimate to me.
• 14:30
  Speaker 3: Their ability to run the.
• 14:31
  Speaker 4: Ball and have explosive plays out of the run game
• 14:34
  Speaker 4: really was what set the Pats on a hill.
• 14:37
  Speaker 3: They knew what....
• 14:40
  Speaker 4: I think knew what to expect from JSN because obviously
• 14:43
  Speaker 4: he had the big fourth quarter touchdown.
• 14:44
  Speaker 3: They knew they had our weapons.
• 14:45
  Speaker 4: But that run game, it really was like, man, we
• 14:48
  Speaker 4: not only got to run, we not only got to cover,
• 14:50
  Speaker 4: but we got to run and tackle.
• 14:52
  Speaker 3: The Seahawks tackled way better than the Patriots.
• 14:55
  Speaker 4: And the Patriots, you start to see get fatigued towards
• 14:58
  Speaker 4: the back end because of how effective the run game
• 15:00
  Speaker 4: of the Seahawks started to be.
• 15:01
  Speaker 3: So I thought it was a lot.
• 15:03
  Speaker 4: If you're still a fan, if you're the Steelers, it
• 15:05
  Speaker 4: was a lot to take away from last night's game.
• 15:07
  Speaker 4: So congratulations to the Seattle Seahawks.
• 15:11
  Speaker 2: Yeah, no, absolutely. I mean, you just think about this.
• 15:14
  Speaker 2: I mean, the Patriots controlled that game for a majority
• 15:19
  Speaker 2: of it, and they had way more plays. Think about this.
• 15:23
  Speaker 2: The Seahawks only ran 46 offensive plays. The New England
• 15:30
  Speaker 2: Patriots ran 64 in the game. Right?
• 15:36
  Speaker 3: So.
• 15:37
  Speaker 2: So efficiency, I think, was also the key that you
• 15:40
  Speaker 2: talk about. And I think the biggest thing was being
• 15:44
  Speaker 2: able to control the ball on the ground. Jerrion Price
• 15:48
  Speaker 2: had 10 rushes for 52 yards, a 5.2 average. Broke off,
• 15:52
  Speaker 2: you know, the biggest rush was 13 yards, I think,
• 15:54
  Speaker 2: for him. The biggest rush in the game was actually
• 15:55
  Speaker 2: Drew Locke, that scramble he had. But, you know, it's
• 16:02
  Speaker 2: important to have that balance. It's important to... to make
• 16:06
  Speaker 2: sure that you can run the ball effectively because if
• 16:10
  Speaker 2: you control the line of scrimmage more often than not,
• 16:15
  Speaker 2: you're going to win games. I mean, that was one
• 16:17
  Speaker 2: of our few, Willie, you know, that was one of
• 16:19
  Speaker 2: our few hallmarks that we had, you know, that was
• 16:22
  Speaker 2: a stat that was solely based off of what we
• 16:26
  Speaker 2: could do as an offensive line. And that's the key
• 16:29
  Speaker 2: to making sure that we're doing the right things to
• 16:31
  Speaker 2: get this offensive line going. ready because you have to
• 16:35
  Speaker 2: be the tone setter. You have to be the tempo guys, right?
• 16:40
  Speaker 2: We're the drum that keeps the cadence for the rest
• 16:44
  Speaker 2: of the team out there. You know, we talk about,
• 16:46
  Speaker 2: you know, the importance of, you know, the drummer boy
• 16:49
  Speaker 2: or the drummer to keep the cadence for the troops marching.
• 16:54
  Speaker 2: That's what you have to do. And that's what the
• 16:56
  Speaker 2: offensive line provides. That's that heartbeat. That's that syncopated rhythm
• 17:01
  Speaker 2: that that keeps everybody aligned. And the more you can
• 17:05
  Speaker 2: hold that point and hold that side of the ball
• 17:07
  Speaker 2: and determine the new line of scrimmage, I think that's
• 17:10
  Speaker 2: a dictation of that. And that's what Seattle, I felt
• 17:12
  Speaker 2: like their offensive line did a really good job saying, hey, listen,
• 17:15
  Speaker 2: it doesn't matter who's calling the plays. It's all about us, right?
• 17:19
  Speaker 2: You know, five fingers have to become a fist. And
• 17:21
  Speaker 2: you've got to go out there and you have to
• 17:23
  Speaker 2: control that because your team needs it. In those moments,
• 17:28
  Speaker 2: I'm sure Leonard Williams, DeMarcus Lawrence and company was happy
• 17:31
  Speaker 2: to see the team rushing the ball as well as
• 17:34
  Speaker 2: they were because they knew time was ticking off the clock.
• 17:36
  Speaker 2: So they were fresher sucking down Gatorade so that they
• 17:38
  Speaker 2: could go hunt when they got out there and hunt
• 17:40
  Speaker 2: they did. They put Drake May in a lot of duress.
• 17:42
  Speaker 2: That's why he threw three interceptions in the game was
• 17:46
  Speaker 2: because they were fresh. So it all leans on each
• 17:50
  Speaker 2: other for this. And I think that's kind of the
• 17:55
  Speaker 2: key that we're going to continue to focus on as
• 17:56
  Speaker 2: we kind of start To break down Atlanta, Willie, I
• 18:00
  Speaker 2: can't wait to get into this because there's a lot
• 18:02
  Speaker 2: of stuff with Atlanta. So it's going to be fun
• 18:06
  Speaker 2: getting into.
• 18:07
  Speaker 3: The nuts and bolts, you know, today and tomorrow. I'm
• 18:11
  Speaker 3: with you. Can't wait. I know we got to go
• 18:13
  Speaker 3: to break, so I'll let you take us out of it.
• 18:15
  Speaker 2: Yeah. Yeah. So when we come back, we're going to
• 18:17
  Speaker 2: start taking our first preview at the Atlanta Falcons. Let's
• 18:21
  Speaker 2: go into, you know, let's start on the offensive side
• 18:23
  Speaker 2: of the ball, Willie, when we come out of the
• 18:25
  Speaker 2: break here. and then we're going to start dissecting the Falcons.
• 18:29
  Speaker 2: We're going to do a little bird expose in the
• 18:32
  Speaker 2: next segment here inside the locker room. It starts in
• 18:36
  Speaker 2: Cologne here on the Steelers Audio Network and Steelers Nation Radio.
• 18:45
  Speaker 1: This is In the Locker Room with Rob King, Max Starks,
• 18:49
  Speaker 1: and Willie Colon on Steelers Nation Radio, brought to you
• 18:53
  Speaker 1: in part by the Steelers Pro Shop. Get it direct
• 18:56
  Speaker 1: from the team at the Steelers Pro Shop at shop.steelers.com.
• 19:00
  Speaker 1: And by your neighborhood Ford store. The F-150 is the
• 19:05
  Speaker 1: official truck of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
• 19:10
  Speaker 2: Back inside the locker room here, and... You know, Willie,
• 19:14
  Speaker 2: we talked about this. You know, this is a game that,
• 19:21
  Speaker 2: you know, I know on paper we talk about the
• 19:24
  Speaker 2: losses that this team has had, the transition, right? First
• 19:30
  Speaker 2: year head coach Kevin Stavante, obviously not new to us
• 19:34
  Speaker 2: here at the Steelers.
• 19:36
  Speaker 5: Longtime coach of the Browns. Gets fired in the offseason.
• 19:40
  Speaker 5: Gets immediately picked up by the Falcons to lead them.
• 19:44
  Speaker 5: they bring in a host of just free agents, just
• 19:48
  Speaker 5: really kind of, kind of kind of rebuild and remake
• 19:53
  Speaker 5: uh you know just roster defensively they bring in the
• 19:56
  Speaker 5: quarterback and we're going to start on that offensive side
• 19:59
  Speaker 5: of the ball just kind of let's let's take the
• 20:02
  Speaker 5: let's take the thousand yard view first will um As
• 20:07
  Speaker 5: you kind of look at the personnel offensively, what's your
• 20:10
  Speaker 5: initial kind of thought about the Atlanta Falcons as it stands?
• 20:18
  Speaker 4: Well, first and foremost, you got to start quarterback position.
• 20:20
  Speaker 4: It looks like Tua Tungvalu is going to be fighting
• 20:22
  Speaker 4: for his NFL career week one because Kevin Stefanski has
• 20:26
  Speaker 4: already come out and said that he's not necessarily going
• 20:28
  Speaker 4: to be committed to starting Tua next week after the
• 20:33
  Speaker 4: Steeler game, right? So Tua has to really come out
• 20:37
  Speaker 4: and prove he can, you know, survive this game.
• 20:42
  Speaker 3: And potentially continue to be an option for the Falcons
• 20:46
  Speaker 3: next week.
• 20:46
  Speaker 4: And so if from a Steelers standpoint, you're like, all right, well,
• 20:51
  Speaker 4: you know Tuan doesn't want to get hit anymore.
• 20:53
  Speaker 3: You know, that's not happening.
• 20:54
  Speaker 4: He's going to do whatever he can to protect himself,
• 20:58
  Speaker 4: especially because of his concussion history. And on top of that,
• 21:01
  Speaker 4: It looks like they're going to be trying to pound
• 21:03
  Speaker 4: the ball down the Steelers throat just to keep them
• 21:05
  Speaker 4: safe and keep the offense somewhat competitive. The Falcons have weapons.
• 21:09
  Speaker 4: I mean, you talk about Kyle Pitts. You talk about
• 21:11
  Speaker 4: Drake London. You talk about their office line. I think
• 21:14
  Speaker 4: they just resigned their guard. But it comes down to
• 21:17
  Speaker 4: the quarterback position. I think the Falcons are at that.
• 21:20
  Speaker 4: They're at that position where they're at that level, excuse me,
• 21:23
  Speaker 4: that they're really they feel like they have enough. They
• 21:26
  Speaker 4: just don't have the right guy driving the car right
• 21:28
  Speaker 4: now just because they don't know who that is. And
• 21:30
  Speaker 4: so when you don't necessarily have 100% faith in your
• 21:34
  Speaker 4: starting quarterback, rightfully so, it causes some uneasiness, especially with
• 21:38
  Speaker 4: Michael Penix, because people have to understand, they were trying
• 21:42
  Speaker 4: to prepare Michael Penix for this week one start against
• 21:45
  Speaker 4: the Steelers. He himself said, one, mentally I'm not there,
• 21:49
  Speaker 4: and two, physically I'm not ready to start. So that
• 21:52
  Speaker 4: kind of left the Falcons to either go with Tua
• 21:57
  Speaker 4: Tungvalu or Cooper Rush. And so now, if you're the Falcons,
• 22:03
  Speaker 4: you're saying, man, if Tua gets hurt in this game
• 22:05
  Speaker 4: for whatever reason, you're now looking at Cooper Rush as
• 22:08
  Speaker 4: your number two. And I still think you should be
• 22:12
  Speaker 4: drooling at that. You should be drooling at both options,
• 22:15
  Speaker 4: but especially the fact that Cooper Rush gets to get
• 22:18
  Speaker 4: thrown out there. And defensively, they're always pretty, they're average,
• 22:23
  Speaker 4: but they got a better back end. But overall, I
• 22:28
  Speaker 4: think the state of the Falcons doesn't scare anybody and
• 22:31
  Speaker 4: steal the nation, but the Steelers, it's not about the Falcons.
• 22:34
  Speaker 4: It's how efficient, how explosive the Steelers can be right
• 22:37
  Speaker 4: off the bat. Cause I think one of the things,
• 22:39
  Speaker 4: one of the dynamics we haven't talked about max is
• 22:41
  Speaker 4: that Michael Pittman hasn't had a lot of time with
• 22:44
  Speaker 4: Aaron Rogers, right? Aaron Rogers hasn't played a whole lot
• 22:47
  Speaker 4: in the preseason. Michael Pittman, both hasn't haven't played a
• 22:49
  Speaker 4: whole lot. A lot of reps that they've taken that
• 22:51
  Speaker 4: have been in practice. And we both know what happens
• 22:54
  Speaker 4: in practice is definitely different from in the game. So,
• 22:57
  Speaker 4: And you know, it has been well documented how detailed
• 23:01
  Speaker 4: Aaron Rodgers is at the line of scrimmage with sign
• 23:04
  Speaker 4: and signals and being able to communicate to the receivers and,
• 23:07
  Speaker 4: you know, adjust routes on the fly. So as much
• 23:10
  Speaker 4: as we sit here and we say, Hey, the Steelers
• 23:12
  Speaker 4: have the edge. It's really, what we're really looking for
• 23:15
  Speaker 4: is how in tune can this receiving core be with
• 23:17
  Speaker 4: Aaron Rodgers and get to play an explosive football like
• 23:20
  Speaker 4: we expect.
• 23:23
  Speaker 2: Yeah. And I think, you know, well, you're on the right,
• 23:26
  Speaker 2: right track. It's, What do we look like when we
• 23:31
  Speaker 2: actually assemble all the Avengers, right? You put everybody together
• 23:36
  Speaker 2: because in today's NFL, they don't rep it out like
• 23:40
  Speaker 2: we did. When we did it, first preseason game, we
• 23:44
  Speaker 2: got at least a series of two under our belts.
• 23:46
  Speaker 2: Second preseason game, we got a quarter. And then we
• 23:49
  Speaker 2: built up to a half and maybe first play or
• 23:53
  Speaker 2: first series of the second half if we got the
• 23:55
  Speaker 2: ball together. And then fourth game, we throttled down and
• 23:59
  Speaker 2: allowed the bottom of the roster to kind of– but
• 24:01
  Speaker 2: we still went out for a series or two. And then, boom,
• 24:03
  Speaker 2: we're ready to play. We've actually had tangible reps over
• 24:07
  Speaker 2: a four-game sample size. That doesn't happen in today's NFL.
• 24:12
  Speaker 2: Aaron Rodgers took zero snaps. DK Metcalf, Michael Pittman, zero snaps.
• 24:17
  Speaker 2: And so how do you manufacture what that looks like? And, yes,
• 24:22
  Speaker 2: the offensive line got some reps together. But they were
• 24:25
  Speaker 2: still figuring it out, so there was still some motion
• 24:28
  Speaker 2: and moving different guys around, trying to see who this
• 24:31
  Speaker 2: starting five is going to be. And I think that's
• 24:33
  Speaker 2: the biggest question.
• 24:35
  Speaker 3: And we still don't know who the right tackle is
• 24:37
  Speaker 3: going to be, right?
• 24:39
  Speaker 2: You said what?
• 24:40
  Speaker 3: And we still don't know who the right tackle is
• 24:42
  Speaker 3: going to be, right?
• 24:43
  Speaker 2: It has not been announced, but I think, you know,
• 24:45
  Speaker 2: both you and I kind of talked about it. I mean,
• 24:48
  Speaker 2: let's think about this. I mean, you know, Dylan Cook
• 24:52
  Speaker 2: is the safe choice, right? He's got experience. He has played.
• 24:55
  Speaker 2: Do you really want to throw Max Yonatur out there?
• 24:59
  Speaker 2: I was like, well, based off of letting Broderick Jones go,
• 25:02
  Speaker 2: I was like, oh, well, maybe they do feel comfortable
• 25:04
  Speaker 2: with where Yonatur is. But now that I've kind of
• 25:06
  Speaker 2: chewed on it, I'm kind of in the school of
• 25:08
  Speaker 2: thought with you, is that, man, let's just– why not
• 25:12
  Speaker 2: do the same thing to Dylan Cook? At least he's
• 25:13
  Speaker 2: got experience, and you can protect him the same way
• 25:15
  Speaker 2: you're going to protect Yonatur if you're worried about the
• 25:19
  Speaker 2: edge of and what Dylan cook can do. Cause he
• 25:21
  Speaker 2: didn't have the strongest preseason when the job was his
• 25:25
  Speaker 2: to take, but you still got to rely on that
• 25:27
  Speaker 2: experience and see if you could possibly easy on a
• 25:31
  Speaker 2: chore into the season. So I've kind of come around
• 25:34
  Speaker 2: to that. I was at 70, 30 on a chore
• 25:36
  Speaker 2: starting now, I'm probably flipping that and saying it's a 30,
• 25:40
  Speaker 2: 70 that, you know, that, that he's going to start.
• 25:42
  Speaker 2: I think I lean more towards what you're saying is
• 25:45
  Speaker 2: that Dylan cook's probably going to be that guy. And
• 25:48
  Speaker 2: from your perspective, you think that's a good idea, right?
• 25:51
  Speaker 2: I mean, we're not being crazy. I think that's how
• 25:54
  Speaker 2: you kind of have to approach it, right? When you
• 25:56
  Speaker 2: have such uncertainty. Yeah.
• 25:59
  Speaker 3: And I'm only going off. I do think Dylan cook.
• 26:03
  Speaker 3: And I was there.
• 26:03
  Speaker 4: I was just like you, I felt like after watching
• 26:05
  Speaker 4: the maximum that you're in a Buffalo game, I felt
• 26:09
  Speaker 4: like because of his size athleticism and what he could
• 26:12
  Speaker 4: be for the Steelers, he, he looks like the solid pick,
• 26:16
  Speaker 4: which you have to worry about is one. His conditioning,
• 26:19
  Speaker 4: I thought, needs to be better just because he only
• 26:22
  Speaker 4: played a half, right? So you're talking about a kid
• 26:23
  Speaker 4: who didn't play much of the preseason, but when he
• 26:27
  Speaker 4: got in the preseason game, he just played a half.
• 26:29
  Speaker 4: Now throwing him into a four-quarter all-in football game is
• 26:34
  Speaker 4: just a different.
• 26:34
  Speaker 3: Level of condition that he's not used to.
• 26:36
  Speaker 4: On top of really understanding how much of the playbook
• 26:39
  Speaker 4: has he been able to digest, with understanding that what
• 26:43
  Speaker 4: he does in practice, because we, you, well, you said it, me, you, I,
• 26:47
  Speaker 4: and the powers that be have said it, that this is,
• 26:49
  Speaker 4: this is a different training camp for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
• 26:51
  Speaker 3: This wasn't as physical, physically demanding.
• 26:55
  Speaker 4: That is that this was more about tempo and reps
• 26:58
  Speaker 4: and just getting more about volume than anything.
• 27:02
  Speaker 3: When you're a new, when you're a young tackle on me,
• 27:03
  Speaker 3: you both have experience in this, in this.
• 27:05
  Speaker 4: Category, you have to be put through the fire of,
• 27:09
  Speaker 4: during training camp. It's not just about the one-on-ones. It's
• 27:12
  Speaker 4: about going through two-minute, nine-on-seven, situational football, things where they're
• 27:16
  Speaker 4: leaving you out there without edge pressure, without chip help
• 27:19
  Speaker 4: or tight end help, so you can get engaged of
• 27:22
  Speaker 4: how you should operate within the offense.
• 27:24
  Speaker 3: A lot of that time he hasn't had because he's
• 27:26
  Speaker 3: been out with this injury.
• 27:27
  Speaker 4: So if you want to protect a young fella's confidence
• 27:30
  Speaker 4: and you want to protect him and not make him
• 27:32
  Speaker 4: look like a goddamn sore thumb on the offensive side,
• 27:39
  Speaker 4: you have to do little things to kind of, you know,
• 27:42
  Speaker 4: you have to be slow to push them out the gate.
• 27:45
  Speaker 4: And I think Dylan Cook and Spencer Anderson is probably
• 27:47
  Speaker 4: the safest just because they've had more reps and more
• 27:51
  Speaker 4: time together on the right side.
• 27:53
  Speaker 3: And I think it just works for them.
• 27:54
  Speaker 4: But I think if you're the Steelers moving into this game,
• 27:58
  Speaker 4: understanding one thing also that, you know, Rico Dotto being
• 28:02
  Speaker 4: the new running back, he hasn't had a lot of time.
• 28:04
  Speaker 4: So as much as you want to see him kind
• 28:06
  Speaker 4: of pop off the tape, He needs to get acclimated
• 28:09
  Speaker 4: as well. I think the Steelers are primed to win
• 28:11
  Speaker 4: this game, but if they're an adult fight, I think
• 28:14
  Speaker 4: that would be telling as well.
• 28:17
  Speaker 2: No, I think you're absolutely right because let's just do
• 28:20
  Speaker 2: the comparative analysis since we're right here at the offensive line.
• 28:26
  Speaker 2: You know, it's the opposite over there in Atlanta, right?
• 28:30
  Speaker 2: I mean, they've had five guys who played together and
• 28:35
  Speaker 2: who've been– in the system to work together. You talked
• 28:39
  Speaker 2: about it. Matthew Bergeron, the left guard, actually got the
• 28:42
  Speaker 2: four-year extension, $ 96 million up that, you know, to reward him.
• 28:49
  Speaker 2: He's opposite Jake Matthews, who's obviously been there, you know,
• 28:52
  Speaker 2: going on his 13th season. You know, Ryan Neusel is
• 28:57
  Speaker 2: their center, who's been there. Chris Lindstrom, we know about him.
• 29:01
  Speaker 2: He's an all-pro and a multiple pro bowler. And then
• 29:06
  Speaker 2: they actually bring in a new right tackle themselves in
• 29:09
  Speaker 2: Jawan Taylor. They brought Jawan Taylor in on a one-year deal.
• 29:13
  Speaker 2: What were you saying?
• 29:17
  Speaker 3: No, he came from the Chiefs. Remember, he was the
• 29:19
  Speaker 3: right tackle to Kevin.
• 29:20
  Speaker 4: It seemed like he was jumping off sides every damn
• 29:22
  Speaker 4: time he took steps.
• 29:24
  Speaker 2: Jumping off sides or lining up off sides? I mean,
• 29:27
  Speaker 2: pick your pick.
• 29:28
  Speaker 3: I thought he was.
• 29:31
  Speaker 2: Going to take a handoff a couple of times the
• 29:32
  Speaker 2: way he was set up. Yeah.
• 29:37
  Speaker 4: It's interesting, I've watched enough of his films, obviously, a
• 29:40
  Speaker 4: Chiefs and Chiefs make, you know, for the last five
• 29:42
  Speaker 4: years they've been making deep runs in the playoffs. I just–
• 29:46
  Speaker 4: it's almost like he has a glitch in his system.
• 29:48
  Speaker 4: He just– no matter what they've told him or what,
• 29:51
  Speaker 4: he just can't get right. So it's going to be
• 29:53
  Speaker 4: interesting to see him, you know, operate in Atlanta because
• 29:58
  Speaker 4: the court, you know, One thing about jumping off sides,
• 30:02
  Speaker 4: and a lot of people, trust me, I've done it enough,
• 30:04
  Speaker 4: is not so much that you don't know the snap count.
• 30:07
  Speaker 4: You just built this habit of getting out so you
• 30:10
  Speaker 4: can get ahead of the rush, especially if you've got
• 30:11
  Speaker 4: somebody trying to.
• 30:12
  Speaker 3: Dig out and get on your edge fast. It's hard
• 30:17
  Speaker 3: to break old habits, but we'll see if he does
• 30:18
  Speaker 3: it down in Atlanta.
• 30:20
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I know, and I just look at it, and
• 30:22
  Speaker 2: he got in the league really young. And, you know,
• 30:26
  Speaker 2: went to Jacksonville when Jacksonville was still, you know, in transition.
• 30:30
  Speaker 2: I mean, he made all rookie teams. It's the craziest thing, Will.
• 30:33
  Speaker 2: He was on the all-rookie team his first year in
• 30:35
  Speaker 2: the league. And then just proceeded to just degrade in
• 30:42
  Speaker 2: front of our eyes the next six years. So this
• 30:46
  Speaker 2: is year eight. He's been a journeyman. This is his
• 30:49
  Speaker 2: third team in now his eighth season. And like you said,
• 30:54
  Speaker 2: it is almost one of those things that it becomes
• 30:58
  Speaker 2: a habit, right? And you don't know how to stop
• 31:01
  Speaker 2: the cycle because it's just now who you are. You
• 31:05
  Speaker 2: don't trust yourself. And this is what happens, I think,
• 31:08
  Speaker 2: when you throw a guy out there too soon. So
• 31:10
  Speaker 2: I think this is actually a great example of how
• 31:13
  Speaker 2: we could potentially treat Maxi on a tour determines how
• 31:17
  Speaker 2: that trajectory looks because if you throw a guy out
• 31:20
  Speaker 2: there before he's ready to go– yeah, he's going to fight,
• 31:24
  Speaker 2: you know, buttholes and elbows, but at the same time,
• 31:27
  Speaker 2: you're developing bad habits. And if you think you can
• 31:30
  Speaker 2: get away with it once, you're going to definitely try
• 31:32
  Speaker 2: it a second time. And then the ball starts to
• 31:35
  Speaker 2: roll downhill and gain momentum. So I think, and I
• 31:39
  Speaker 2: think if we're looking at where this Atlanta Falcons line
• 31:43
  Speaker 2: can crack, it's going to be at right tackle. That's
• 31:46
  Speaker 2: the first one. Like, you know, Lindstrom through Matthews, the
• 31:49
  Speaker 2: rest of that line, They're solid. They're rock solid. They've
• 31:52
  Speaker 2: been good for years. But right tackle, having a swinging
• 31:57
  Speaker 2: door over there, I think leaves a lot of room
• 32:00
  Speaker 2: open for T.J. Watt, Nick Herbig, Alex Highsmith. I think
• 32:04
  Speaker 2: you try and overload pressure that side a couple of times,
• 32:06
  Speaker 2: test them early. And especially for Tua, if he sees it,
• 32:10
  Speaker 2: you know he's going to get skittish. You know, backside,
• 32:13
  Speaker 2: left side, that blind side is not as much. But
• 32:16
  Speaker 2: when it's in his face, he's going to get jittery.
• 32:19
  Speaker 2: And so... Forcing the Falcons into those certain long situations
• 32:23
  Speaker 2: is going to be key, but it's going to be
• 32:24
  Speaker 2: a heck of a task with B. John Robinson and
• 32:26
  Speaker 2: company in the backfield.
• 32:30
  Speaker 3: Not to cut you off, I'm going to ask you this.
• 32:31
  Speaker 3: There's been talks about T.J.
• 32:33
  Speaker 4: Watt potentially taking less snaps this season to preserve him.
• 32:39
  Speaker 3: Down the long haul. Do you think that's wise?
• 32:42
  Speaker 4: Because I do, I think there's been so much, you know,
• 32:44
  Speaker 4: there's been rumblings that maybe T.J. 's lost a step,
• 32:47
  Speaker 4: that he's not, as effective as he once was or
• 32:51
  Speaker 4: a game record like he once was. And if you
• 32:53
  Speaker 4: put on the tape, I mean, he's either getting double
• 32:54
  Speaker 4: teamed or triple teamed and whatever. He's obviously dealt with
• 32:57
  Speaker 4: some injuries. But nevertheless, do you think it's smart at
• 33:01
  Speaker 4: this point in his career to maybe dial back some
• 33:03
  Speaker 4: of the snaps so they can have him, I guess,
• 33:06
  Speaker 4: more fresh and more ready to go down towards the
• 33:09
  Speaker 4: back end of the season?
• 33:11
  Speaker 2: I think you definitely have to consider a rotation, Will.
• 33:13
  Speaker 2: I think you have to consider the rotation with him
• 33:16
  Speaker 2: because that's why you paid Nick Herbig. So obviously you
• 33:19
  Speaker 2: don't want to have Nick Herbig sitting on the sidelines
• 33:21
  Speaker 2: because it's TJ and Alex, and then he feels like
• 33:24
  Speaker 2: the third wheel. But I would agree, he's just, his
• 33:28
  Speaker 2: presence creates so much more for everybody else, right? Because
• 33:33
  Speaker 2: like you said, you have to double, triple team him.
• 33:36
  Speaker 2: Like they tried, I mean, they did everything in their
• 33:38
  Speaker 2: powers to minimize him a year ago. And yes, they
• 33:42
  Speaker 2: did do that. He only had seven sacks last season.
• 33:45
  Speaker 2: But when you think about the effect that he has,
• 33:48
  Speaker 2: you know, the force fumbles, the TFLs, the PBUs. I mean,
• 33:53
  Speaker 2: he is just a dynamic guy, but I think you
• 33:56
  Speaker 2: do have to create that rotation because you want him
• 33:59
  Speaker 2: in week 17 to be getting stronger. And if you
• 34:04
  Speaker 2: want to make a deep playoff push, you've got to
• 34:06
  Speaker 2: have a healthy TJ Watt in there, just like you
• 34:08
  Speaker 2: do with Cam Hayward. I think for both of them,
• 34:11
  Speaker 2: and I don't say it's necessarily a pitch count per se,
• 34:15
  Speaker 2: but I think it's a flow thing. I think you
• 34:16
  Speaker 2: have enough depth. which we hadn't had before to where
• 34:20
  Speaker 2: you have options. And I think having options and getting
• 34:24
  Speaker 2: other guys in the rotation allows for TJ to be
• 34:28
  Speaker 2: even more effective when he does come down, especially, and
• 34:31
  Speaker 2: you know, he's going to be there in the elite downs, right?
• 34:33
  Speaker 2: He's going to be there in the third and medium
• 34:34
  Speaker 2: third and long situations got to have at moments. He's
• 34:37
  Speaker 2: going to be there, but I think it would be,
• 34:39
  Speaker 2: if you could take a little bit off on those
• 34:41
  Speaker 2: first and second down runs, him not setting the edge
• 34:44
  Speaker 2: as much to where teens can kind of put two
• 34:46
  Speaker 2: big bodies on them, you know, it's tough when you're
• 34:49
  Speaker 2: trying to fight, you know, 550, 650 pounds every single time.
• 34:54
  Speaker 2: That's just natural body wear down is going to happen.
• 34:58
  Speaker 2: And especially with a guy like, like him, you know, he,
• 35:02
  Speaker 2: he's six, four to 50, you know, you're going up
• 35:05
  Speaker 2: against a tackle and a tight end. And thank God
• 35:08
  Speaker 2: there's not as many, uh, Darnell Washington's out there in
• 35:10
  Speaker 2: the world. That looks like office attacker with speed. So,
• 35:15
  Speaker 2: I think from that perspective, I think you're absolutely on
• 35:18
  Speaker 2: to something. And I do want to continue to move on.
• 35:21
  Speaker 2: And I know we have to take a break. I
• 35:24
  Speaker 2: want to continue to move on and kind of continue
• 35:26
  Speaker 2: this conversation. Let's talk about the specialists in this next
• 35:28
  Speaker 2: segment because I think the B. John Robinsons, the Drake Londons,
• 35:31
  Speaker 2: and Kyle Pitts are guys we need to focus on
• 35:34
  Speaker 2: and how we're going to attack that as well. So
• 35:36
  Speaker 2: we're going to step aside. We'll be back with more
• 35:38
  Speaker 2: here inside the locker room on Steelers Audio Network and
• 35:41
  Speaker 2: Steelers Nation Radio.
• 35:49
  Speaker 1: This is In the Locker Room with Rob King, Max Starks,
• 35:54
  Speaker 1: and Willie Colon on Steelers Nation Radio, brought to you
• 35:57
  Speaker 1: in part by the Steelers Pro Shop. Get it direct
• 36:00
  Speaker 1: from the team at the Steelers Pro Shop at shop.steelers.com.
• 36:05
  Speaker 1: And by your neighborhood Ford store, the F-150 is the
• 36:09
  Speaker 1: official truck of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
• 36:15
  Speaker 2: All right, back inside the locker room here, and Continuing
• 36:19
  Speaker 2: kind of our initial assessment of what we see from
• 36:23
  Speaker 2: the Falcons and going through offensive personnel, went through the
• 36:27
  Speaker 2: offensive line, and, you know, we both agreed, Willie, I
• 36:31
  Speaker 2: think that, you know, right tackle is definitely the target
• 36:35
  Speaker 2: zone for this offensive line. The rest of the line
• 36:38
  Speaker 2: is rock solid. And now kind of looking at the specialists,
• 36:42
  Speaker 2: I mean, we know what this team is built around.
• 36:45
  Speaker 2: We know... what they think of their backfield. And I
• 36:51
  Speaker 2: think it's easy to say that everything they do offensively
• 36:55
  Speaker 2: is going to start and end with the running back position.
• 36:58
  Speaker 2: And more specifically, when you're picking from the brothers Robinson,
• 37:03
  Speaker 2: this is the backfield either is B John or Brian. Um,
• 37:07
  Speaker 2: it starts with B John got, got a humongous contract
• 37:10
  Speaker 2: in the off season, the richest one for a running
• 37:12
  Speaker 2: back three years, $ 66 million. Um, and lock him up
• 37:18
  Speaker 2: through 2030. And why not? I mean, the only thing
• 37:22
  Speaker 2: he did was almost rush for almost 1,500 yards a
• 37:24
  Speaker 2: year ago. In that backfield with the carousel of quarterback,
• 37:30
  Speaker 2: it didn't matter because it was B. John Robinson's show.
• 37:32
  Speaker 2: You know, had well over 350 touches on the year.
• 37:38
  Speaker 2: And he is the engine that makes that offense go.
• 37:42
  Speaker 3: Yeah, you hit it right on the head. You talked
• 37:44
  Speaker 3: about the touches.
• 37:45
  Speaker 4: I think he's the type of back that can touch
• 37:47
  Speaker 4: the ball 25 and plus more because it's Kevin Stefanski's offense.
• 37:52
  Speaker 4: It's all about the ground game and they build the grant,
• 37:54
  Speaker 4: you know, they build the pass off the ground game. So,
• 37:57
  Speaker 4: and you also got to understand two things. They don't
• 38:01
  Speaker 4: have serious depth at that position as well. Cause Tyler
• 38:04
  Speaker 4: is gone. And two, they want to use Bijan as a,
• 38:08
  Speaker 4: as a pretty much a safety blanket for a tour, right?
• 38:12
  Speaker 4: They don't want to have to sit in a well
• 38:14
  Speaker 4: and kind of deliver the football. They want to be
• 38:15
  Speaker 4: able to kind of, get Bijon out in space, get
• 38:18
  Speaker 4: him to football and let him do what he do.
• 38:21
  Speaker 4: One of the things that I always loved about Bijon
• 38:23
  Speaker 4: wasn't just his ability to, you know, get the ball
• 38:26
  Speaker 4: and pretty much get North and have a home run
• 38:29
  Speaker 4: and have home run type of speed. What I love
• 38:32
  Speaker 4: about him is that the fact that you can tell
• 38:35
  Speaker 4: he's one of them backs that he plays with a
• 38:37
  Speaker 4: patience that we don't see anymore.
• 38:40
  Speaker 2: Yeah, sure.
• 38:41
  Speaker 4: He can hit the hole and go, but he sets
• 38:43
  Speaker 4: up a lot of his blocks, which means what does
• 38:45
  Speaker 4: that mean for the defense?
• 38:46
  Speaker 3: That means when you get to him, you have to
• 38:48
  Speaker 3: tackle him, right? Because he's now.
• 38:49
  Speaker 4: One of the things that I mentioned quickly when we
• 38:53
  Speaker 4: were talking about the Pats and the Seahawks last night.
• 38:55
  Speaker 4: One of the reasons why the Seahawks lost, excuse me,
• 38:57
  Speaker 4: won that game last night, because they tackled really well.
• 39:01
  Speaker 4: It's going to be important for the Steelers going into
• 39:03
  Speaker 4: this game, week one versus the Falcons, that they tackle
• 39:05
  Speaker 4: really well.
• 39:06
  Speaker 3: And that when they get hands on B.J.
• 39:08
  Speaker 4: Robinson, that they get him down because he's one of
• 39:11
  Speaker 4: those guys, the more touches he gets, the stronger and
• 39:14
  Speaker 4: faster he becomes.
• 39:15
  Speaker 3: It becomes a game record right before your eyes.
• 39:17
  Speaker 4: So for this defense that's kind of, you know, we
• 39:20
  Speaker 4: talked about the front seven, we talked about the secondary,
• 39:23
  Speaker 4: all hands on deck when it comes to this dude.
• 39:25
  Speaker 4: Because he's one of the guys that can change the
• 39:28
  Speaker 4: momentum and the situation of a game just like that
• 39:30
  Speaker 4: because of his speed and because of his patience at
• 39:32
  Speaker 4: the line of scrimmage. So they're going to have to
• 39:35
  Speaker 4: hands full with this dude, B.
• 39:36
  Speaker 2: John Robinson. Yeah, and he breaks tackles too. That's the
• 39:40
  Speaker 2: other thing. So when you talk about that short tackle,
• 39:42
  Speaker 2: it's going to take a swarm style of tackle. It's
• 39:45
  Speaker 2: not going to be, hey, one-on-one in the hole. and
• 39:48
  Speaker 2: you're just going to automatically get a win. Like, he's
• 39:50
  Speaker 2: going to make you earn every bit of that tackle. And,
• 39:55
  Speaker 2: I mean, he's built solid, man. And like you said,
• 39:57
  Speaker 2: the shiftiness and the patience that he possesses, he can
• 40:00
  Speaker 2: dart behind his blocks and be patient and set it
• 40:04
  Speaker 2: up and then have a burst. So it's going to
• 40:06
  Speaker 2: be key. And, you know, Brian Robinson is the only
• 40:08
  Speaker 2: other running back on that depth chart for them. So
• 40:12
  Speaker 2: you're also going to have to be worried about the
• 40:14
  Speaker 2: changeup with him because he is a guy– who brings
• 40:20
  Speaker 2: a little bit of cachet to him. Now, you know,
• 40:22
  Speaker 2: they paid him a little bit to come here, paid
• 40:24
  Speaker 2: him a one-year deal, two and a half mil, coming
• 40:27
  Speaker 2: over from San Francisco. But Brian Robinson, he's still a backup.
• 40:32
  Speaker 2: It's not 1A, 1B. Like, it's the B. John Robinson show.
• 40:35
  Speaker 2: This isn't running back by committee like we have, right?
• 40:37
  Speaker 2: We don't have– they don't have Jalen Warren as well
• 40:40
  Speaker 2: as Enrico Dowell, who you could sub in and each
• 40:43
  Speaker 2: one can do their job. So– very heavy on B.
• 40:47
  Speaker 2: John Robinson.
• 40:49
  Speaker 4: I want to throw this in there real quick, and
• 40:50
  Speaker 4: I think it's good that we're talking about the run game,
• 40:53
  Speaker 4: and I also mentioned that we expect them not only
• 40:56
  Speaker 4: to run the ball, but to really lean heavily on
• 40:58
  Speaker 4: their running backs and their tight ends. And one of
• 41:01
  Speaker 4: the reasons why you've got to be cautious with the
• 41:04
  Speaker 4: Atlanta Falcons, because they have momentum coming into this game
• 41:08
  Speaker 4: that happened last year. You understand, they won their last
• 41:10
  Speaker 4: four games of the season last year. So they feel
• 41:13
  Speaker 4: like they have a foundational piece the office line, the
• 41:16
  Speaker 4: run game, Kyle Pitts, Drake London, and Kevin Stefanski is
• 41:22
  Speaker 4: coming into this game with a chip on his shoulder.
• 41:24
  Speaker 2: Why?
• 41:25
  Speaker 4: Because one, he knows who the hell the Pittsburgh Steelers are.
• 41:28
  Speaker 4: He played against them twice a year as a Cleveland Brown.
• 41:30
  Speaker 4: So he's not stepping into unfamiliar territory. The goal for
• 41:33
  Speaker 4: him right now is how can I keep Tua upright
• 41:36
  Speaker 4: and how can we push this ball down the field
• 41:39
  Speaker 4: and how can we keep the chains moving with the
• 41:42
  Speaker 4: running backs we have? And they feel like they have
• 41:44
  Speaker 4: a lot of confidence going into this game because of
• 41:47
  Speaker 4: how they finished the season last year.
• 41:50
  Speaker 2: Yeah, absolutely. And some of the guys are going to utilize,
• 41:53
  Speaker 2: they brought in two receivers in the Austin. They bring
• 41:57
  Speaker 2: in Jahan Dotson from Philly, signed him to a two-year deal,
• 42:00
  Speaker 2: and then they bring Olamide Zaccheaus. They signed him to
• 42:05
  Speaker 2: a two-year deal as well. Second time here was in
• 42:08
  Speaker 2: Chicago last year. But, you know, you're pairing those guys
• 42:12
  Speaker 2: up with, Drake London, and hopefully you're getting a trio.
• 42:16
  Speaker 2: But I think really, you know, Kyle Pitts, Austin Hooper
• 42:21
  Speaker 2: are going to be the guys who kind of take
• 42:22
  Speaker 2: that kind of stretch. And then Charlie Warner, another guy
• 42:26
  Speaker 2: they brought over last year for them. So, you know,
• 42:30
  Speaker 2: when I look at this receiving core, it really comes
• 42:32
  Speaker 2: down to, like you said, Drake London, and it's going
• 42:35
  Speaker 2: to be Kyle Pitts. And I think Austin Hooper is
• 42:37
  Speaker 2: probably your third receiver as you work in. Is it Dotson?
• 42:40
  Speaker 2: Is it Zaccheaus that's going to be the guy that
• 42:43
  Speaker 2: kind of steps in the range. But I think this
• 42:45
  Speaker 2: is a team, when I look at them, I say
• 42:47
  Speaker 2: 12 personnel. 12 personnel is the world they live.
• 42:54
  Speaker 3: In.
• 42:55
  Speaker 4: This is also an Atlanta Falcons team that wants to
• 42:58
  Speaker 4: start off a lot faster and be better in the
• 43:00
  Speaker 4: first half. They only average 11 points a game in
• 43:03
  Speaker 4: the first half compared to 8.9 in the second half.
• 43:07
  Speaker 4: So this is a team that feels like, man, if
• 43:09
  Speaker 4: we could come out and score more more.
• 43:12
  Speaker 3: And score faster.
• 43:13
  Speaker 4: That's going to help out our defense because they do
• 43:14
  Speaker 4: have some guys that can hunt the quarterback, but a
• 43:16
  Speaker 4: lot of times they're getting blown. They're in dog fights
• 43:19
  Speaker 4: in the second half. They can't put up points, and
• 43:22
  Speaker 4: then they're giving up a ton of points. They were
• 43:25
  Speaker 4: outscored by 54 points in the third quarter last season,
• 43:29
  Speaker 4: which is nuts. So it shows you they have a
• 43:31
  Speaker 4: breaking point. It's going to be up to this defense
• 43:34
  Speaker 4: of the Pittsburgh Steelers understanding that they have to start
• 43:37
  Speaker 4: a lot faster.
• 43:38
  Speaker 3: I talked about this in the preseason.
• 43:39
  Speaker 4: One of the things that I thought Invalid, our first
• 43:42
  Speaker 4: team was worn out there, so I got to kind
• 43:44
  Speaker 4: of breathe a little bit. I thought we kind of
• 43:47
  Speaker 4: eked off the bus. It's going to be imperative for
• 43:49
  Speaker 4: a lot of these guys who haven't played a lot
• 43:51
  Speaker 4: that they start faster, that they win the line, especially
• 43:55
  Speaker 4: our defensive line and offensive line, that we win the
• 43:57
  Speaker 4: line of scrimmage. And from an offensive standpoint, that we
• 44:01
  Speaker 4: run the ball, and from a defensive standpoint, that we
• 44:03
  Speaker 4: get off the field on third down and that we
• 44:05
  Speaker 4: don't let penalties and missed tackles kind of give this
• 44:08
  Speaker 4: team momentum because defensively, They feel like if they can
• 44:11
  Speaker 4: jump out ahead and put the pressure on the Steelers
• 44:13
  Speaker 4: to score, they have a shot because they do understand
• 44:17
  Speaker 4: a lot of our starting offense haven't played together. So
• 44:19
  Speaker 4: there's going to be some mix-match, and there's going to
• 44:22
  Speaker 4: be some bad synergy out the gate that they have
• 44:24
  Speaker 4: to kind of get through.
• 44:25
  Speaker 3: So it's going to be imperative for the Steelers to
• 44:27
  Speaker 3: start fast in this game.
• 44:30
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm right there with you. I mean, a fast
• 44:32
  Speaker 2: start is what the Steelers are hoping for. I think
• 44:34
  Speaker 2: Mike McCarthy– You know, you look at him historically, he
• 44:37
  Speaker 2: wants those fast starts. He wants those top 15 plays
• 44:42
  Speaker 2: to be effective. And I'm sure for Kevin Stefanski, he
• 44:44
  Speaker 2: wants his top 15 to hit, right? You know, everybody
• 44:47
  Speaker 2: wants to get their greatest hits out there, but you
• 44:49
  Speaker 2: don't know when you're starting the season how that's going
• 44:52
  Speaker 2: to go. And, you know, for Tua, you think about
• 44:53
  Speaker 2: the end of his career, right, in Miami, it was
• 44:57
  Speaker 2: a lot of day-by-day change. that's when they were able
• 45:01
  Speaker 2: to do that. So you think about what is Tua
• 45:03
  Speaker 2: comfortable with. He's comfortable with a predominant run game and
• 45:06
  Speaker 2: pick and choose your passing. So for our defense, you're
• 45:10
  Speaker 2: going to have to apply pressure early. You're going to
• 45:12
  Speaker 2: have to keep them in those third and medium. So
• 45:14
  Speaker 2: you have to keep them off track on first downs
• 45:17
  Speaker 2: to make sure that they're in a place where they
• 45:19
  Speaker 2: can operate at our maximum. Our calling card right now
• 45:24
  Speaker 2: is pass rush. That's what the calling card is. Until
• 45:27
  Speaker 2: we prove otherwise... Run defense has been a weak point
• 45:31
  Speaker 2: for the team. I mean, you know, I know this
• 45:33
  Speaker 2: is a new year, new team, but we go back,
• 45:36
  Speaker 2: you know, a year ago, and our defense has given
• 45:39
  Speaker 2: up over 113 yards, was giving up 113 yards a game.
• 45:45
  Speaker 3: On the ground, right?
• 45:47
  Speaker 2: Yeah. Huh?
• 45:49
  Speaker 3: Is that on the ground? On the ground you're talking about, right?
• 45:51
  Speaker 2: Yeah, on the ground. Yeah, yeah.
• 45:52
  Speaker 3: We give up that.
• 45:53
  Speaker 2: And Atlanta a year ago with B.J. Robinson was averaging
• 45:56
  Speaker 2: 125 yards a game. So guess what? we're going to
• 46:00
  Speaker 2: have to figure out a way to slow them down
• 46:02
  Speaker 2: on that. And they were given a four-point yard to carry.
• 46:06
  Speaker 2: So it's going to be key. I mean, the passing
• 46:10
  Speaker 2: defense was something that hurt us because we would commit
• 46:12
  Speaker 2: so many resources to the run and then we'd get
• 46:14
  Speaker 2: beat over the top with single high coverage. So those
• 46:17
  Speaker 2: two things marry with each other and create what we
• 46:21
  Speaker 2: need to do as a unit. So I'm right there
• 46:24
  Speaker 2: with you. I think this is one that, We have
• 46:27
  Speaker 2: to come in with the mentality. We're going to be
• 46:28
  Speaker 2: in base personnel. So how do you effectively get the
• 46:32
  Speaker 2: base personnel going? And, you know, Y.A. Black, you've got
• 46:36
  Speaker 2: to step up. This is a big year for Y.A.
• 46:38
  Speaker 2: Black against the office line. This is a great debut
• 46:42
  Speaker 2: for him.
• 46:44
  Speaker 4: He's the cog that's going to make this thing turn
• 46:47
  Speaker 4: the right way.
• 46:48
  Speaker 3: If Y.A., and I understand this is a second-year guy,
• 46:51
  Speaker 3: He's new to the position.
• 46:53
  Speaker 4: He's penciled in as a day-one starter guy at the
• 46:56
  Speaker 4: nose tackle position. One of the things we were frustrated
• 46:59
  Speaker 4: with his play is that he plays too high to
• 47:02
  Speaker 4: be a nose tackle.
• 47:04
  Speaker 3: Yeah, he's mountain strong.
• 47:06
  Speaker 4: Yes, he has all the rough and tough things that
• 47:08
  Speaker 4: you like about a nose tackle, but there's times when
• 47:10
  Speaker 4: that offensive line starts chipping up and getting to the
• 47:13
  Speaker 4: second level, he gets rolled sometimes because his pads.
• 47:16
  Speaker 3: Are just too high.
• 47:17
  Speaker 4: He has to do a lot better of staying low
• 47:18
  Speaker 4: and using his hand and his leverage to win the blocks.
• 47:21
  Speaker 4: Because with the linebacker court we have, we don't have
• 47:24
  Speaker 4: those downhill thumpers.
• 47:25
  Speaker 3: We actually let one of them go in Eldon Roberts, right?
• 47:28
  Speaker 4: So both of our backers are guys who like to
• 47:31
  Speaker 4: play around blocks, who kind of sift through blocks, and
• 47:33
  Speaker 4: who try to dart at tackles. It's going to be
• 47:36
  Speaker 4: imperative for Y.A. If he wants his defense, if they
• 47:40
  Speaker 4: want this defense and this front seven to be effective,
• 47:42
  Speaker 4: he's going to have to chew up a lot of
• 47:44
  Speaker 4: that interior line. He's not going to be able to
• 47:46
  Speaker 4: do that standing up on his tippy toes.
• 47:48
  Speaker 2: Just not.
• 47:49
  Speaker 4: So hopefully that gets corrected, but it's going to be
• 47:53
  Speaker 4: interesting to see how he adjusts to the Atlanta Falcons
• 47:57
  Speaker 4: because they can roll you off the ball. This isn't
• 47:59
  Speaker 4: a bad offensive line. I hope everybody understands that. It's
• 48:02
  Speaker 4: an offensive line that loves to run the ball and
• 48:04
  Speaker 4: they're used to running the ball because they have to,
• 48:06
  Speaker 4: to have some type of competency and effectiveness out there
• 48:09
  Speaker 4: from an offensive standpoint.
• 48:11
  Speaker 2: Yeah. Like I said, they've already rewarded some of those
• 48:14
  Speaker 2: interior road graders that he's going to have to go
• 48:16
  Speaker 2: up against. So, You know, big challenge. Go from 6'5
• 48:20
  Speaker 2: to 6'2. That's all I need you to do, YA.
• 48:22
  Speaker 2: Just three inches lower, and it's a world of difference
• 48:25
  Speaker 2: in this. All right, well, we're going to step aside,
• 48:28
  Speaker 2: and we're going to continue this conversation. We're going to
• 48:30
  Speaker 2: flip it over to the Falcons' defensive side and our
• 48:34
  Speaker 2: offense against them when we come back here in hour
• 48:36
  Speaker 2: number two for the locker room. I'm Max Starks. He's
• 48:39
  Speaker 2: Willie Colon. We'll be back with more after this commercial
• 48:42
  Speaker 2: break on Steelers Audio Network.