Happy Friday and I hope yinz are doing well.
We are full swing in Pittsburgh Steelers training camp. Pads went on this week and we’ve done our best to recap the action over the last two days. We’re out at Heinz Field for this evening’s practice, the closest thing we’ll get to Friday Night Lights this year. Look for a recap and hopefully a podcast tonight.
If you missed it, check out our camp reports from Day One and Day Two.
Hope you all have a great weekend and hope you enjoy following our camp coverage. I thank you for visiting the site and we appreciate all of your great feedback. As always, we have five Friday night questions for you to answer.
1 – What player have you been most excited to hear about throughout training camp? Which player has sounded the most disappointing to you?
2 – What player would you like to learn more about/have us discuss over the next couple practices?
3 – Will this be the Steelers’ starting offensive line for Week One against Buffalo? Okorafor-Dotson-Green-Turner-Banner.
4 – Will CB Justin Layne make the 53-man roster?
5 – Who would you rather have as the Steelers’ backup QB — Mason Rudolph or Dwayne Haskins?
Recap of 2021 Start of Training Camp Friday Night 5 Questions
Question 1: Steelers Depot respondents give Kendrick Green a much greater chance of starting Week 1 against the Buffalo Bills than they do cornerback Antoine Brooks. Respondents said there was between a 75-100% chance of Green starting versus a 0-100% chance of Brooks starting. The median response for Green was 90% and 50% for Brooks. No one gave a percentage chance of both starting but it is no more than 50/50 based on how folks rated their individual chances.
Question 2: Steelers Depot respondents appreciate the contributions of both Larry Foote and Vince Williams based on the comments. However, 69% picked Foote as the better linebacker. He did play 11 seasons for the Steelers and started ten of 16 playoff games played, including two Super Bowl wins. Vince finished with eight seasons wearing the black & gold and just eight playoff games. For what its worth, I have Foote ranked 63 and Vince 109 on my all-time Steelers list.
Question 3: The Steelers will run the ball more than the 36.2% of the time according to respondents. In 2021, respondents predict the Steelers will run the ball at least 40% of the time with the median response 45%. In 2020, NFL teams averaged running the ball 41.9% of the time. I believe that the closer the Steelers are to 45% run plays, the better their season is going.
Question 4: We predict that Melvin Ingram will sack quarterbacks from two to eight times in 2021. The median response has Ingram collecting five sacks. Since entering the league in 2012, Ingram averaged just over 5.4 sacks a season. Let’s see the over!
Question 5: What a wonderful problem. Which of three wide receivers will catch the most passes for the Steelers in 2021? Most teams have one receiver they count on to snag the most receptions. This weekend, Chase Claypool just edged JuJu Smith-Schuster and Diontae Johnson as most likely. Next weekend, it could switch. If each regular season game is like that, opposing defensive coordinators may have difficulty determining which receiver Ben will target the most. Keep them guessing!
Thanks to everyone who is responding to the Friday Night Five Questions during the offseason. The first preseason game is next week. Good to prepare yourself for the regular season Friday Night Five Questions contest that will begin the Friday before week one:
For those interested. Once the regular starts, Steelers Depot will kick off the Friday Night 5 Questions contest administered by David Orochena (Beaver Falls Hosiery). For the second year – we will have weekly winners!
Here is how it will work:
Each week we’ll ask five regular questions with an extra tiebreaker. The person with the best score is the winner. In the case of a tie, the person with the closest response to the tiebreaker will win. If a tie remains, the $25 weekly pot will be evenly split.
We will track cumulative points for correct answers all the way through the questions posed the Friday before the last regular season game. Answering all five regular questions correctly will gain a five-point bonus toward your cumulative score. The tie breaker questions are not part of the cumulative score. In some cases, Steelers Depot will assign more points for a given question or add bonus questions with points. Steelers Depot awards one point each week that a respondent answers the questions – a participation point. The contest will begin with the September 11, 2020, Friday Night 5 Questions.
Once Beaver Falls Hosiery “likes” your response it’s recorded. Sometimes folks revise their responses prior to kickoff. Once Beaver Falls Hosiery “likes” your answers, I’ve recorded your answers on the spreadsheet. If you need to revise an answer, the best way you can ensure that we accurately record your final answers is replying to your original response and NOT editing it.
Generally, the response window will remain open until kickoff for game related questions. Steelers Depot may establish other cutoffs for questions such as active versus inactive players that occur prior to kickoff.
Steelers Depot reserves sole discretion on scoring questions and the point totals for each question. Only one profile name can accumulate points (no sharing between handles). Let’s keep it fun. We’ll offer a cash prize for the top three place finishers, but you must have a PayPal account to collect. First Prize: $100; Second Prize: $75; Third Prize: $25.
Some Steelers Depot respondents are independently wealthy or just genuinely nice people. They may choose not to collect their winnings. In that case, or for any unclaimed winnings, the monies will go to a charity that Steelers Depot supports. Alternatively, you can choose to kick your winnings back into the kitty to spice it up.
Let me know if you have any questions in the comments or you can always send me a twitter DM @subBurgher.
