Special teams badly need a turnaround
Bad special teams can ruin a season. Ask the 2009 Steelers about that. Jeff Reed attacking a Sheetz towel dispenser was good news compared to the way the rest of the season went for that team.
That was the infamous “unleash hell” season, when Mike Tomlin vowed his team would “not go gently” as the season crumbled all around him. Those Steelers amazingly allowed four kickoff returns for touchdowns, not to mention a 55yard punt return by Josh Cribbs in a horrifying loss to the Cleveland Browns.
I am reminded of that group as these Steelers
teeter on the brink of disaster heading into Oakland on Sunday (the ‘09 team lost to a terrible Raiders squad at Heinz Field).
It would be no small feat to outdo Bob Ligashesky’s ‘09 special teams, but say this much for Danny Smith’s guys: They’re giving it a real good shot.
That’s not to say it’s all bad. The Steelers blocked a punt against the Chargers and pulled off the old kickerto-tackle touchdown pass in Denver. But this group is mostly an abomination. The return game stinks. The kicking game stinks. The coverage mostly stinks.
The players often do not appear to the know the rules (they run away from free kicks and touch blocked punts). And if they do know the rules, they don’t seem too inclined to follow them (NFL-leading 25 penalties).
Special teams should be calming the waters at a time like this, not whipping up tsunamis.
The Steelers have enough problems — covering wide receivers with linebackers, throwing interceptions like confetti and watching the ground game disappear — without having to suffer another missed extra point.
Here’s a number that should open your eyes: The Steelers are the only team in the NFL with at least 20 special-teams penalties (accepted penalties). Their 25 is six more than second-place Jacksonville. Many teams are in single-digits.
Pro Football Focus has the Steelers special teams ranked 31st overall, which would be awesome in a 200team league. This one has 32.
And only the Cleve Brownies are worse.
Let’s break it down …
• The Steelers are 28th in kickoff returns with a 19.3 average and a long of 35. They might as well still have Najeh Davenport staggering under footballs back there. They are tied for 16th in punt returns with an 8.2 average and a long of just 23. Ryan Switzer often seems like he’s about to break one. It hasn’t happened yet, although he has three of 20-plus.
• Chris Boswell has missed more extra points (five) this season than any kicker currently employed. His field-goal percentage (71.4) is tied for last among kickers currently kicking, and that would not include 96-year-old Phil Dawson, who was hitting at a 62-percent clip when the Arizona Cardinals put him on on IR last week.
(Question: Do you think Artie Burns could cover Phil Dawson on a fake field goal? Because I’m still wondering how Burns got burned by Antonio Gates on a twopoint play Sunday. Gates just celebrated his 103rd birthday.)
Meanwhile, the Steelers do have the fifth-best kickoff coverage team, but are dead last in punt coverage, allowing 15.3 yards per return. Jordan Berry’s net average of 38.4 is tied for 27th.
The Steelers also are one of only five teams that have given up a punt-return TD — and before you shout, “Yeah, but Brian Allen was blocked in the back,” consider what nose tackle-turned-analyst Chris Hoke told us on the “The Cook & Joe Show” Wednesday.
Hoke watched the coaches’ tape, which offers all kinds of angles, and said the Chargers player “did not lean on [Allen] or extend his arms.” He said it was the right non-call.
I’m just tellin’ ya.
All of which brings us to Trey Edmunds, older brother of Steelers rookie safety Terrell Edmunds. A running back by trade, Trey was signed this week — and he was a special teams demon for the New Orleans Saints last season.
He is “rooted in special teams,” as he told nola.com, from his time at Virginia Tech under Frank Beamer. He might have the size and speed to make a difference.
“I know he earned his stripes in New Orleans in that capacity [on special teams], so forget what he’s able to provide as a runner,” Tomlin said. “This is a guy who has a resume centered around some special teams contributions. And he’ll be given an opportunity there.”
Starting on Sunday, one would hope — when the Steelers look to unleash hell in Oakland.