Pre-season, game one

What have we learned from the first half of a shitty, fake game that was disrupted by a small hurricane passing through Allegheny county?

1. Our defensive starters are still the scariest people in the world when they're all healthy and doing their thing. Yes, I know it's just the Lions, and our first team defense should be automatic against them; but still, seeing it happen is a very refreshing sight, especially after a year of defensive chokes against bad teams.

I thought Aaron Smith and Lawrence Timmons both looked like they had something to prove. Smith, obviously because he missed time, and wants to get back out there hitting people. Timmons, because I think he wants to take the next step towards becoming a star. Last year's campaign wasn't the thriller we all thought it would be; yes, his sack numbers were up, but that was a result of him being used as a pass rusher on third down. What was missing from his game was a dominance against the run, which is what Larry Foote always provided. With Foote back in town, it looks like Timmons is making a case for why it should be Farrior who gets platooned, not him. (I don't actually know that the Steelers would ever platoon Farrior, as he's the signal caller for the entire unit.)

Ziggy Hood looked bigger. Reports are that he's put on weight, going from the high 290s to the low 310s. All the veteran linemen rave about his development and ability, so my guess is that he's being groomed to play all three positions on the line. At 6'3", 310 he wouldn't be a true NT, and he'd be a little round for RE, but it's a good tweener size, and should provide him with more than enough versatility if he has the technique down. Creating a rotation of four high quality guys to play three spots will obviously benefit our aging starters as the season goes on. I also wouldn't be surprised if he takes over for Smith as the 1 in the 1-5.

2. Our offense is silly. Thanks, Bruce Arians!

Matt Spaeth is garbage. I wanted to like him. He's like seven feet tall, so you'd think he'd at least be a physical specimen out there. Wrong. He's a slow fatty of a receiver, and absolutely a non-factor in the blocking game. He is the very definition of a backup, scrub TE. This is fine in the sense that every team needs a backup, scrub TE. However, a team that runs multiple TE sets needs two good TEs.

Why am I picking on Matt Spaeth? Because he's taking up space on the field where there should be a FB. Every tailback ever wants a FB. Emmett Smith, in his HoF induction speech last week, saved his biggest thank you for his fullback, saying he couldn't have set the career mark for yards rushed, had it not been for his unsung partner.

Here's the thing: fullbacks typically aren't great athletes. They're slower than halfbacks, weaker than lineman, and smaller than tight ends. Their main asset is their vision; providing the ball carrier with a guide by testing running lanes. They absorb the first hit that was meant for the running back, and a lot of times that can be all the difference on a play.

After several years of single-back formations, I've decided I'm not terribly fond of them. I like the theory that it opens up running lanes because the defense is stretched trying to defend against the pass. But for that theory to pan out, you have to have a legitimately dominant passing unit. We simply don't. No defense is stretched by the offensive prowess of Matt Spaeth. Hines Ward is amazing for more reasons than we can name, but he is not a containment problem for CBs. Same with Miller. Wallace has stretch-worthy speed, but the jury is out on whether he can command double coverage. My point is this: we don't have the personnel to convince teams to play back. We can line up three or four receivers, and they'll still put the safety in the box. When we try to run the ball with no FB and a safety in the box, the matchup is unfavorable for us.

In case you didn't hear, Art Rooney II asked for more running plays this year and Big Ben raped someone and was suspended for a quarter of the season. 2010 is supposed to be a return to smashmouth, grind-em-out, Stillers football. Everything will suck if we call more running plays, but do it out of formations that feign to be pass-likely.

Tonight Mendenhall made some decent cuts, coughed up the ball due to terrible technique, and got stuffed immediately after receiving some handoffs; that's good, terrible, and not his fault, respectively. He was getting hit behind the line by DBs from the worst secondary in football. This is because he has a terrible line, but also because there's no one in the backfield to lay a block. Even if we were to assume Matt Spaeth was great, having him play outside of the LT is pretty useless when the run blitz is bowling over the center.

Okay, that's enough fullback ranting for now. There'll be more later.

3. Our second string defense is shit. If none of our starters get injured, we'll be fine, but the depth issue is still an issue.

4. Dennis Dixon should probably be the starter. He didn't have to play against the first team defense, but whatever. He provides more wrinkles in the offense.

By that I mean that he challenges a defense by being capable of more than Leftwich. Lefty's probably the better passer, but I've already talked about how this team doesn't scare anyone with its receiving corps. If we had three or four dominant receivers, then I'd get why it'd be important to have a QB who could utilize them all. As it is, there isn't that much more that needs to be done with our receivers than what Dixon can do. Furthermore, he brings the added dimension of speed. We'll hear about it a lot in the next few weeks, but it's really not overrated. Dixon's mobility is so much more challenging for a defense to account for than Leftwich's supposedly superior passing.

Put in Dixon. Scale back on the number of receivers he has to keep track of. Put a FB in the backfield. Run the ball a lot. Set up Dixon to pass or bootleg off the PA. Etc...!

5. Issac Redman should probably make the team this year.

He's a legit powerback. That's what we want. And not just for 3rd and short. For, like... anytime. Anytime we want to knock their D-line back, by muscling them. I know a 5'10, 210 Gary Russell type who can average a 2.6 y/c is appealing... but I really think we'll be happier with a powerback who can play on any down, and can move the ball forward.