Welcome back to the Friday Five. Hoping you all have a safe and enjoyable 4th of July weekend. Thanks for making this June a great month for the website. The Steelers did their best to keep us busy. Rumors over Kevin Dotson have been refuted (and joked about by Dotson himself) and the team signed kicker Sam Sloman to its 90 man roster.
Training camp is only a few weeks away and though the team won’t be returning to Latrobe, we’ll do our very best to cover practices as completely as possible.
As usual, I have five Friday night questions for yinz to answer these next several hours. I look forward to reading the responses in the comments below this post.
Have a great rest of your weekend and once again, thank you for stopping by the site.
Peace and love, peace and love!
1 – Earlier this week, Troy Polamalu reflected on his time with the Steelers. What is your favorite Polamalu memory?
2 – Given the claims and refuting of those claims about his conditoning and readiness, are you worried about Kevin Dotson entering 2021?
3 – Yesterday, we reflected on RB Gary Russell’s career. Who is your favorite random Steelers’ RB in team history (so excluding Franco, Bleier, Bettis, Parker, Bell, all those household names)?
4 – Trai Turner hasn’t started a full season since 2016. How many games will he start in 2021?
5 – Which OLB will have more sacks this season – Cassius Marsh or Quincy Roche?
Recap of 2021 Post Minicamp Friday Night 5 Questions
Question 1: Steelers Depot respondents expressed significant surprise when the Steelers released David DeCastro. On a scale of 1-10, answers ranged from a low of four to a high of ten as most surprised. The median response was eight. The first clue for most were reports that he was in street clothes during the mandatory minicamp.
Question 2: Respondents split three ways on whether signing Trai Turner is an upgrade replacing guard David DeCastro or that there’ll be a drop off in play. Some persons responses were guided by whether you were considering DeCastro’s overall career or just his injury hindered last season. Respondents evenly split into three groups. A one vote majority said Trai Turner is an upgrade over an injured David DeCastro. Groups saying Turner’s injury history would lead to a drop off in play and a third group saying it was an even trade evenly split the remaining votes.
Question 3: 62% of respondents stated center Kendrick Green concerned them the most on the offensive line. Several cited his lack of playing time at the position even in college. Chuks Okorafor worried 31% the most due to his move to left tackle protecting Ben Roethlisberger’s blindside. No one mentioned Trai Turner nor Kevin Dotson.
Question 4: Anthony McFarland will average anywhere from zero to 7.5 yards per carry this season. The lowball came from a reader who believes he will not make the 53-man roster. The median response provides a consensus 4.0 yards per carry for McFarland in 2021 an improvement on his 3.6 yard per carry last season. Now will he improve on his successful run rate?
Question 5: The Steelers will return to St. Vincent College for training camp in 2022 according to all but one respondent. Let’s hope so. Some players may not like it but what an opportunity for teambuilding and bringing the fans and strengthening the bonds between the fans and the team.
Thanks to everyone who is responding to the Friday Night Five Questions during the offseason. Good to keep your prognostication skills sharp for the upcoming season.
