Ben was out for this preseason game, and the Steelers got a better look at some of the younger guys-especially against the Redskins' first team. Some guys made a great impression, and some did their job, but no one really made a bad impression this game.
Here's some quick thoughts from yours truly.
*Daniel Sepulveda continues to boom, so I may start calling him "thunder." His consistency will make him a key component to the 2009 team.
*Although Fast Willie ran well, Rashard was definitely more impressive. Mendenhall got several carries against the Redskins first team defense, and he made the most of them. After 2 or 3 carries, he got into a great rythm. More importantly, he was making some great cuts between the tackles.
*Run Blocking, for the second game in a row, was not impressive. Runners are getting the getting the ball only to face a brick wall. We can't expect them to make great cuts every time. They need holes to find if the Steelers want to move out of their embarrasing 23rd rushing offense.
*Mike Wallace continues to impress for two reasons. First-his speed is always lingering as a danger for coverage. He hasn't been covered well downfield in a game yet. Second-he's making great short catches to keep the coverage guessing. He made a great sliding catch and ran decent slants when he was in there. More importantly, he was running routes against first team coverage. No one really expected this guy to come into the league with this much polish. If he had Sweed's height, he'd be the number 3 reciever without question. This WR competition is shaping up to be interesting-->it can only help the team. I'm still giving the 3rd spot to Sweed for now; Wallace will get his chances though.
*Tony Hills needs to get his snap count together. He continued to jump the ball, line up in the wront position, etc. Other than that he protected fairly well.
*Stefan Logan was by far the most impressive player this week. His kickoff and punt returns were the most promising and consistent i've seen since Randel El-->and he wasn't even that great. His cuts and speed make him the danger that we've needed at that position. Although I don't think he'll start at the position, he should make the team if he continues his magic in practice/future games.
*The First Team Defense is full of weapons just waiting to explode. There is so much talent at every position, and all of the guys look like they're in the best shape of their lives. It's really a treat to watch these guys perform for just one quarter. I can't wait until the real deal.
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Do you really think Mendenhall has looked that great? I didn't think he was too impressive, but like you said a lot of the times he had to make something out of nothing cuz our run blocking sucked.
ReplyDeleteAnd I watched the game online from a Redskins feed, so I got a lot of their crappy announcers, but they seemed to be convinced that Hills kept on going offsides and lining up in the backfield to try and help himself block Orakpo (who they thought played like a god)
to be fair though, Orakpo did lift Hills about a foot off the ground on one rush.