@MarkMaddenX I pray to god McDavid never wins a cup cause the undeserved Sid comparisons will be on another level. Amazing generational player but he will never be 87.
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MurraySFC
1.9K posts
B/c he doesn't win. Simple as that. McDavid ain't Sid.
Curtis Der 🇨🇦@CurtisDer
Sid is great... and an All-Timer. But Connor takes it to another level that Sid has never. Sid recognizes this. I don't understand how people continue to discredit McDavid and think he's a terrible leader just because he's not on the winning side of a TEAM SPORT. @OilersNation
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I have watched this performance 100x since Friday
Sovey@SoveyX
This looks like a band that opens for my panic attacks.
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@CarneyMedia “Win games,” “next winning phase.” No mention of of Super Bowl ambitions or getting the team to the next rung of the ladder. Dude doesn’t have his finger on the pulse of the fan base. What a waste.
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Art Rooney II on the negative feedback from #SteelerNation on the #Steelers decision to hire Mike McCarthy:
"We're really not worried about winning the initial press conference. It's about picking the coach we believe will help us win games," said Rooney, "and social media really doesn't enter into it. And none of that will matter once we're starting to play games.
"The message for our fans is we're very excited. We think we have a coach who is well-equipped to lead us into the next winning phase of Steelers football, and that's what it's all about. I think they're going to love Coach Mike."
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We have verbally agreed for Mike McCarthy to become our next head coach.
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What’s a scene from a movie which traumatised you as a child?
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She switched from Broncos to Bills.
It felt like the Bills were going to win, until they didn’t.
How is she doing this 😭 😭
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Who would yinz like to be the next HC, OC & DC of the Steelers?
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@chadwickg09 @FDSportsbook You are 100% spot on what I did. Glad I ain’t the only one.
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@SfcMurray @FDSportsbook Because you went through each team listed from first to last like myself. AFC South doesn’t pop up until the 18th helmet. My guess.
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MurraySFC retweetledi
The audio from inside the space capsule during the Apollo 1 disaster 😬
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@Pittsburgh_Dad That was the most Mike Tomliny Mike Tomlin loss of all time.
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NEW episode! Pittsburgh Dad reacts to that embarrassing loss to the Browns. youtu.be/AROl2VPS41M
YouTube
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@matthewluciow92 Low key the best most exciting running duo in the league. It’s weird but it’s awesome.
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@MarkKaboly @PatMcAfeeShow You would catch the ball 5 yards behind the line of scrimmage and be happy! Welcome to Pittsburgh!
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“I still feel I can run all the routes. I can be a deep threat, intermediate, and short”
Mark Kaboly / Steelers Correspondent
For The @PatMcAfeeShow
PITTSBURGH — Adam Thielen could’ve just enjoyed these final few games with the Minnesota Vikings – the organization where it all started for him a dozen years ago – and then call it a career, and nobody would’ve thought any differently of him.
But that’s not Adam Thielen.
If it meant packing up and leaving his young family just as the holidays hit and moving east to a city he’s been to once during his football life for the final month of his career with absolutely no guarantees attached to whether he would even get an opportunity to retire with his helmet and shoulder pads on, the 35-year-old was willing to take that chance … after much debate.
“It really wore on me mentally,” Thielen admitted about deciding to move to his third team in three years. “Tough. Very, very, very tough, but I am excited to have an opportunity.”
Thielen asked and was granted his release earlier in the week, hoping to catch on with a team that could use his services more than the Vikings were able to since rejoining them in the spring after a two-year road trip to Carolina.
The receiver-needy Steelers claimed the veteran off waivers on Tuesday, a little more than a year after they were seriously contemplating acquiring him at the trading deadline with the hopes that he would have enough left in him to provide a spark to a plodding offense.
“I still feel I can run all the routes,” Thielen said. “I can be a deep threat, intermediate, and short. As an older player, you get tagged as he can only do this and, ‘He can’t run anymore.’ I’ve always felt the need to go prove otherwise. I feel really good, and I’m excited about just being on the field.”
One thing you can be assured about Thielen is that he still has the fire to play, which is typically the first thing to go when it comes to a veteran contemplating, or in his case, announcing that this will be his final year.
Thielen was delayed meeting with the media on Thursday because he lost all sense of time while working after practice with both Mason Rudolph and Will Howard before the unit met with receiver coach Zach Azzanni.
Thielen took part in what was labeled as a “mini walkthrough” where he was getting familiar with the plays, signals, and alignment. Thielen likened the learning curve of getting comfortable with offensive coordinator Arthur Smith’s offense to learning a new language.
The concepts aren’t new, but the verbiage is.
“For me, it’s like going out there every day like I am a rookie minicamp tryout guy and try to prove what I can do, and wherever they see I fit, I am ready,” Thielen said.
Once again, for a guy who had the option to coast into retirement, taking on this burden with no guarantee of a payoff in the end tells you how much he still wants to play football.
“I have a lot of respect for his career and what he has done,” Rudolph said. “He brings a great veteran presence to the room. You can tell that he has a high football IQ. He is smart and knows coverages. He definitely still has the quicks. It is just a matter of getting him up to speed, and it seems like he is picking it up pretty quickly.”
The Steelers are desperate to find some help at the receiver position yet again, and it’s become a critical issue as of late, with teams taking DK Metcalf out of the game with double teams, while the rest have been inconsistent getting open.
Over the past few years, the Steelers tried to acquire a receiver to pair with George Pickens and now Metcalf without any luck.
Guys like Van Jefferson, Allen Robinson II, Robert Woods III, Scotty Miller, Quez Watkins, Ben Skowronek, Marquez Valdez-Scantling, Hakeem Butler, Gunner Olszewski, and Miles Boykin were brought in during free agency over the past three years with not much in the way of success.
The Steelers were close to trading for Brandon Aiyuk last year and Jakobi Meyers this year, but it never materialized.
Last year’s third-round pick, Roman Wilson, has made strides in his second year, and Calvin Austin III has played well at times, but the overall production just hasn’t been there. Steelers receivers not named Metcalf have a combined 42 receptions in 12 games.
To put that number into perspective, running back Kenny Gainwell has 44 catches.
There are 53 other players in the league who have more receptions than every other Steelers receiver other than Metcalf.
That’s been an issue for this all-of-a-sudden struggling offense.
“I see improvement from those guys, it just hasn't shown up consistently,” Rodgers said, who hasn’t had a completed pass 20 yards down the field in a month. “I mean, there haven't been a ton of opportunities. There haven't been a ton of open guys down the field.”
That’s where the Steelers hope Thielen can help.
More known as an elite route runner, Thielen did catch seven deep balls a year ago, four of which went for touchdowns.
At worst, a solid No. 2 could free up Metcalf for more opportunities.
“He’s been great,” tight end Pat Freiermuth said. “He is a hell of a route runner.”
That’s what Thielen was known for during his nine seasons with Minnesota, catching 534 passes for 6,682 yards and 55 touchdowns in that first stint. He moved over to Carolina for 2023-24, where he had a 100-catch, 1,000-yard season as a 33-year-old.
Thielen struggled with injuries last year but turned it on after missing seven games with a hamstring injury. Once healthy, he caught 40 passes for just over 500 yards and four scores.
Thielen’s return to Minnesota this year wasn’t as fulfilling. He had just eight catches for 69 yards through 11 games played before asking and getting waived to seek out a team that could use him more than the Vikings.
“He's an outstanding guy,” Rodgers said. “So, we'll see how quickly he can get up to speed with the playbook. You know, I was joking with him, he said this is the best his body has felt because he hasn't been playing a whole lot, you know, in Minnesota. So, I think he's got a lot left in the tank and a lot of impetus to go out there and put some good play on film.”
Right now, it appears that Thielen will be playing mainly out of the slot, but surely would move to the outside at times as well.
“Adam is a guy that's got a lot of experience,” Arthur Smith said. “He can add a lot of things to the room in terms of guys watching his habits, the way he runs routes. So, we'll see where it goes.”
It’s unknown if Thielen will be ready to play Sunday against the Ravens, but he is trending in that direction despite the short amount of time to get ready.
“At this point, I’m really focused on what I can control,” Thielen said. “That’s learning this playbook as fast as possible. I want to make an impact today. I’m not worried about Sunday right now. I want to make an impact today by being prepared, being mentally prepared, and physically prepared. I’m a big believer that you have to go prove it every day. You can’t just show up somewhere and be given an opportunity. You have to prove what you can do and how you can make an impact.”
Who knows? Thielen could join the long list of receivers who didn’t quite work out, but one thing is for sure – Thielen wants to play football and wants to be in Pittsburgh.
And that should say a lot about a 35-year-old who has a month left in his career.
"I am living in the moment, man," Thielen said. “Whatever today brings me, I am going to give it everything I have."
Graphic by @DerekMurphy32 (DBone)
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@MarkKaboly How hard is it to learn the Steelers offensive play book? Get used to the words “check,” and “down.”
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