Vikings Message Board.Com

I think Rhodes will need some help over the top on Brown (because of his speed) so that frees up the other receivers. Waynes and company needs to not get grabby and get us killed with lots of PI penalties. Plus the run D will get a big test as Bell will not be rusty for long. Will be a challenge to stop the run game while at the same time getting the necessary pressure on Big Ben. I do think the Steelers secondary is pretty soft so if our OL can protect then Bradford could have another very productive game. Being on the road in a hostile environment I hope the rookies will remain composed. Very interested to see where we fall on the measuring stick this weekend. In the end I do believe this can be a very winnable game only if we play mistake free and minimize the big homeruns that Pit is capable of.

IMO, we have guys with speed to cover Brown which might not necessarily be Rhodes. The real challenge against PIT is that you can get to Ben, but you can't always get him on the ground. This puts a lot of pressure on the DL to pass rush effectively while also maintain discipline vs. the run.

In their favor is the fact that they just showed excellent discipline and poise vs. NO which is offensively no slouch.

This is a tough game, but it is winnable.

Its worth noting that Big Ben is 35. He isn't going to be the immovable trench warrior forever.

We do need to be disciplined.

One of the biggest reasons is that being disciplined will allow us to take advantage of Pittsburgh's LACK of discipline ... 13 penalties against the Browns for 144 yards. I watched a lot of that game ... Cleveland, with nowhere near the roster talent we have, caused them fits.

Mike Tomlin, as we know, is a very emotional guy. His team takes on his demeanor. That can work against them.

This will be really tough. Pittsburgh is almost unbeatable at home. But we went into Carolina last year in Week 2 thinking we probably would lose, and look what happened there. We can pull this off.

A big key is how we play the RUN, and that also calls for discipline. Cleveland stayed in that game because they shut down Le'Veon Bell. If we can hold him at bay and not let him run crazy, we can neutralize their offense to some degree. They're not as good when they're one-dimensional, no matter how good Big Ben is.

J. Kapp 11 wrote:We do need to be disciplined.

One of the biggest reasons is that being disciplined will allow us to take advantage of Pittsburgh's LACK of discipline ... 13 penalties against the Browns for 144 yards. I watched a lot of that game ... Cleveland, with nowhere near the roster talent we have, caused them fits.

Mike Tomlin, as we know, is a very emotional guy. His team takes on his demeanor. That can work against them.

This will be really tough. Pittsburgh is almost unbeatable at home. But we went into Carolina last year in Week 2 thinking we probably would lose, and look what happened there. We can pull this off.

A big key is how we play the RUN, and that also calls for discipline. Cleveland stayed in that game because they shut down Le'Veon Bell. If we can hold him at bay and not let him run crazy, we can neutralize their offense to some degree. They're not as good when they're one-dimensional, no matter how good Big Ben is.

Spot on Kapp......it will all come down to preparation and discipline....and of course execution. The result of this game will should expose (good or bad) the competency of our coaching staff baring any fluky play or critical injury etc. We have the talent.

I'm more worried about the LB's covering Bell coming out of the backfield.
Gedeon is lacking speed and Barr is lacking a healthy hamstring.

I was thinking Wayne's and a safety on Brown. (Wayne's is faster) and Rhodes take our their second best receiver. Would be good if Kendricks could mind Bell most the game otherwise Gedeon may get abused.

I'm sure Zimmer has plan. Can't wait til Sunday! SKOL!

Err, why not put best DB on their best WR?

mansquatch wrote:Err, why not put best DB on their best WR?

Agreed.

Also, Xavier Rhodes isn't exactly slow. He was measured at 22.4 mph on his 100-yard interception return last year, which was the fastest any NFL player was timed during a scoring play. John Brown of the Cardinals, who is nicknamed "Smoke" because he's so fast, couldn't catch Rhodes.

Waynes just doesn't have the ball skills to cover Brown, IMO, and doubling with a safety leaves others open.

Put the X Man on him.

We're not saying don't put Rhodes on Brown. We're just saying there are other options if Rhodes can't keep up.

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How to beat the Steelers.

https://purpleptsd.com/formulating-a-ga ... s-offense/

dead_poet wrote:How to beat the Steelers.

https://purpleptsd.com/formulating-a-ga ... s-offense/

This was a very good breakdown......thx for sharing. I was reading the quotes from Tomlin and Big Ben and both said the same thing. That Cincy still plays Zimmer defense and since they see them twice a year they expect more of the same. Not cocky just confident. Certainly Zim is (hopefully) well aware of this and will throw some wrinkles at them. Like I mentioned before we have the talent so this may come down to coaching and preparedness. It's possible we could come out of Pit 2-0.....they would probably be oozing with confidence. Can we have nice things? We'll see.

autobon7 wrote: Can we have nice things? We'll see.

Of course not. Why would that change now?

Been lurking in a few Steelers boards. Don't like the team, but most of the posters are pretty level headed. A few are even picking a Vikings win.

Thought this was funny:

Ever watch him (Bradford) play? I feel like his head is always too big to fit in the helmets they give him. His face always looks smashed. Maybe they need to give homeboy a bigger lid.

And his body looks like a little kid wearing his dad's football uniform