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Ben Anderson

Ben Anderson

• Steelers, Pens. • Ravens Suck. • It's Black n GOLD. That song is about his car, not the Steelers. • Follow me on Twitter at @BenAnderson58. Agreement & Disagreement will both be met with discussion. Trolling will be met with the sound of crickets because you'll be blocked.

SCB Steelers Quick Hitters
Quick Hitters

SCB Steelers’ Quick Hitters: The “Seek Forgiveness” Edition

written by Ben Anderson

It sounds as though a pair of Steelers may have gotten themselves into hot water by participating in the Pro Football Arm Wrestling Championship at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino this weekend. James Harrison and Arthur Moats joined almost 3 dozen players for the event this weekend.

@marquetteking @jhharrison92 @rodstreater #ProFootballArmWrestling #Vegas

A post shared by Pro Football Arm Wrestling (@pfarmwrestling) on

According to Jarrett Bell of USA TODAY Sports, the NFL’s gambling policy prohibits players from appearing at casinos as part of promotional events.

How does the adage go? Sometimes it’s better to seek forgiveness after rather than ask for permission before.

“Had we been asked in advance if this was acceptable, we would have indicated that it was in direct violation of the gambling policy,” Joe Lockhart, the NFL’s executive vice president for communications and public affairs, told USA TODAY Sports. “No one sought pre-approval.”

While the league did plant a flag of sorts in Las Vegas a couple of weeks ago, announcing the Raiders relocation there as early as 2019, league policy with regard to gambling and casino events has not changed. Recall that Tony Romo had to cancel a fantasy football convention last summer, due to league objections. The league took issue because of the daily fantasy sports elements in particular, but also because fantasy sports is a form of gambling.

(Editor’s Note: It’s also a good way to get your butt kicked if you’re cheering for a Steelers opposing player during a Steelers game while wearing Steelers gear.)

Speaking to the issue of gambling policy, the commissioner has been quoted as saying, “We did not change any of our gambling policies in the context of the Raiders relocation,” Goodell said in late March, as the NFL owners meetings wrapped up in Phoenix. “It wasn’t necessary and the Raiders didn’t ask us to do that. We don’t see changing our current policies.”

Keep your eye on this one, Steelers fans. It’s got all the makings for another Goodell – Harrison standoff.

Big Al Villanueva was in the news Saturday as well. It seems Al was on his way to Spain when he found that a group of high school kids were on their way there as well and would be delayed due to the flight being overbooked. Al gave up his seat and refused airline compensation for doing so.

The man has character in spades. It’s great seeing a Steelers player be such a stand up guy. He sets a great example for young fans to emulate.

Cnic added another draft journal Saturday on Duke Riley, who may be a nice addition at inside linebacker later this month in the draft. We’ll continue to add to the draft journal page through the draft later this month. You can find that link at the bottom of the page on every prospect profile.

Enjoy your Sunday, Steelers fans. SteelDad is back from Tennessee tomorrow.

April 9, 2017
Voice of the Fan

Steelers Fans, Look at the Bigger Picture

written by Ben Anderson

A Voice of the Fan post submitted by our own Ryan Davis from the Graphics & Social Media Departments

This article is not about any one player or team in the NFL. There won’t be talk about draft day selections and who the Steelers should get at pick thirty or who they shouldn’t pick. The meaning behind this article is one I hope that people read and come to understand the bigger picture of football players when offseason and draft day comes around.

Often we as fans at a young age see a game of football being played on television, either that be college or pro football, and will cling to certain players. We love the way they caught the ball and moved up field or how they ran with the ball by juking around the defense. A few years down the road the player gets older, contract comes up for discussion, and money negotiations go back and forth. Fans want the player to come back and play.

Fans will even go as far as paying whatever the player wants in contract terms. Other fans will hear famous players from other teams become available and will want to sign them no matter the money involved. Before one goes to sign Adrian Peterson or Tony Romo-like players look at the Steelers roster. How will these guys fit in? How much money will it cost to sign them and how much do they want? Letting a player walk who has spent many years on the team is not an easy task if you become attached to a player.

The problem is that fans become attached to players, multiple players, and when you become attached to players you lose sight to the needs of the Steelers. The needs of the Steelers may come in the form of needing to move on from a player to save cap space to needing to upgrade a certain position on the field. Doing this may cause a move like letting a player test the free agency market.

As we approach this draft remember to see the big picture of what the Steelers needs instead of what you yourself want to see happen. If you are into mock drafts online, draft with the Steelers needs in mind before you click that draft button. There is nothing more than I would like to do is sit here behind the keyboard and mock draft the Steelers taking the best Tight End, Edge and Linebacker on the list.

That’s not going to happen because it’s not realistic. I’m a diehard Penn State University fan and I would love to draft WR Chris Godwin along with a couple linebackers for the Steelers to develop into future stars. Same goes for Pitt fans, Ohio State, Florida, and USC fans.

Step back, breath a few times, and look at the bigger picture this daft season. Remember what the Steelers need instead of who you want. We cannot lose sight of how the offseason and draft work. Separate your feelings towards players and your favorite teams and think logically. Go log onto your favorite draft simulator and draft away!

April 9, 2017
SCB Steelers Quick Hitters
Quick Hitters

SCB Steelers’ Quick Hitters: The “Disinformation” Edition

written by Ben Anderson

One of my favorite ongoing Steelers fan hot take topics is the differences between Chuck Noll, Bill Cowher and Mike Tomlin. Every coach has his own style. Tomlin’s win-loss record does stand up well when compared to both his predecessors though. Yes, even his road record when compared to teams that finish below .500.

Ed Bouchette, whom I do respect and admire as a writer, has his own particular, sometimes curt, way of answering questions about Tomlin as compared to the men that came before him. A passage from Ed’s chat on Tuesday:

Always great to read Ed’s responses in chats.

Chris Garman is doing a really good series on identifying Steelers draft targets using SPARQ. I recommend reading it if you consider yourself a draftnik.

Thus far in 2017, SCB has amassed 48 draft prospect profiles, with a few being added each day.

Chuck Smith, a former Atlanta Falcons defensive end and well thought of pass rushing coach, has been working with Bud Dupree again this offseason. Bud looks like he’s already in great shape and working on refining his game.

God is good. Every day is a day to be thankful. #BlessedAndGrateful

A post shared by Chuck Smith (@chucksmithtrainingsystems) on

@djread @bud_dupree @jordan59jenkins had a incredible training week as a group! Competed! Got better… #DrRush

A post shared by Chuck Smith (@chucksmithtrainingsystems) on

Great session and Fellowship @djread @bud_dupree @jordan59jenkins #InTheLab #DrRush

A post shared by Chuck Smith (@chucksmithtrainingsystems) on

To the surprise of almost no one, Ben Roethlisberger announced that he will return for 2017.

Speaking of Ben. Aditi Kinkhabwala tweeted out something that made me shake my head a little.

Every year we hear about Ben wanting more of something added to the offense. This particular tweet has led to fan responses ranging from:
“You already have the best Wide Receiver in the game and a host of other targets at every other position, including the guy who is probably the best receiving running back in the league. What are you complaining about? We need defense in this draft!”
To
“See? I told you that Sammie Coates was a bust! Ben must know something about Martavis too. That’s why he says they need targets.”
The second one is my favorite current hot take.

SteelDad, Cnic & I discussed this a week or two back on the podcast. Half of everything you hear or read this time of year is intentional disinformation; in other words a complete lie. The half that’s true, should also be questioned because there is likely some portion of that which was spun or exaggerated in some way. Why do the Steelers do this? Is it because they want to confuse their fans? No. It’s because they don’t want anyone to know what they are thinking. If one takes the messages they send this time of year at face value, he probably has the wrong idea entirely.

SteelDad is back from his vacation on Monday. Enjoy the rest of your Friday.

April 7, 2017
SCB Steelers Quick Hitters
Quick Hitters

SCB Steelers’ Quick Hitters: The “Trade Realities” Edition

written by Ben Anderson

As we had to scuttle the SCB Steelers Podcast yesterday due to technical issues that our in-house IT guy could not resolve, I’d like to review some of what we discussed last night.

The Ravens traded away Timmy Jernigan, a 3tech in his prime who averages 5 sacks per year, while playing 60% of the defensive snaps. The trade was Jernigan and Baltimore’s 99th overall choice for Philadelphia’s 75th overall choice.
This has been lauded by some NFL “experts” as a shrewd move by Baltimore and bemoaned by some Steelers fans as a smart move that Kevin Colbert would never make. But was it actually smart?  In return the Ravens received what amounts to a 4th round pick.
They moved up to 75 from 99, which costs 111 points. 111 points on the draft trade value chart is a high 4th round value. Jernigan was a high 2nd round pick and a guy many thought would go in the 1st round in 2014.
I speculate that they either gave up on him for some reason, which would be silly; or they’re changing the scheme somehow and don’t need him anymore. There is also the possibility that they had decided that he would not be resigned after this season and that the most his loss would bring as a comp pick would be a 4th. So, they decided to take it now.
Any way you slice it though, it was no great haul. He’s a better player than they are going to get with a 4th round choice and they didn’t actually pick up any draft picks.
Last month, they traded Jeremy Zuttah to the 49ers for a swap of 6th rounders, moving from 198 to 186th overall.
That’s a difference of 4.8 points, or a late 7th. And again, they didn’t actually add draft picks.

The Steelers own the following picks in the 2017 draft. (trade value):
30 (620 points)
62 (284 points)
94 (124 points)
105 (84 points)
135 (38.5 points)
173 (22.2 points)
213 (6.2 points)
248 (1 point)

Trading up to 25, for example, would cost at least 100 points and may cost more. A team may want a premium because it’s the 1st round selection. There is a precedent involving the 94th overall pick. Last year Denver traded the 94th pick to move up from 31 to 25.
The Steelers might be able to move up to 24, for example, by surrendering that same 94th overall pick. But, given that this is a deep draft at the positions of need for the Steelers this year, is it worth squandering what could be a player with a 2nd round grade, who may be available late in the 3rd, to move up 6 slots in the 1st? I don’t think so.

That said, let’s look at the 1st round trades during the Kevin Colbert Era.

More confirmation here that trading up in the 1st round is expensive. Unless there is a talent on the level of Troy Polamalu, or even Santonio Holmes that is falling toward the Steelers, I say stay put at 30 and maybe even entertain offers to trade back, if someone is giving up enough.

Tweet of the day: one more reason to like Tyler Matakevich, aka Dirty Red.

If we can get the technical snafu in our Spreaker Page resolved by Sunday, we’ll have another podcast then. Enjoy the rest of your Thursday.

Image Credit:
Trade Value Chart: Walter Football
Steelers Trade History: Pro-Football-Reference.com

April 6, 2017
SCB Steelers Quick Hitters
Quick Hitters

SCB Steelers’ Quick Hitters: The “Free Martavis?” Edition

written by Ben Anderson

Good Day, Fellow Steelers Fans! And a Happy Hump Day to you. We’re halfway to Friday. SteelDad is out til Monday.

There is a lot of talk among fans about the Steelers potentially taking a safety high in the upcoming draft. We don’t see that happening here. Obi Melifonwu and Jabril Peppers are the two most popular names. We don’t see where they fit because they won’t see the field much in 2017.
While some fans would rather see him utilized elsewhere within the scheme, Mike Mitchell is 29 and is entrenched as the starter at free safety. Sean Davis, over the course of his rookie season, became what many believe to be the best run support safety in the NFL. The Steelers only utilize 3 safeties in their six defensive back alignments; which means 3rd and long. They only face 3rd and 7 plus on a 10% basis. Using a high round draft choice to address 10% of the defensive snap count when there is a greater need to improve the pass rush, and while the team is moving toward man coverage schemes, doesn’t make any sense. The need is far greater at the Edge position and at CB.

I’ve personally been encouraging toward Martavis Bryant during his recovery struggle. I believe he can redeem himself in his teammates’, the organization’s and the NFL’s eyes. The fans will also come back to him. Let’s face it, America loves a redemption story. But, let’s not pretend that Martavis didn’t put himself in this situation. A one-year suspension results from SIX violations of the Substances of Abuse policy. It’s not as if he wasn’t warned several times through fines and previous suspensions.

Tweet of the day: Martavis is working his butt off in Nevada awaiting reinstatement. It will come in due time.
Six reps with 115 dumbells on the bench is no easy feat. Especially when Martavis is self described as a guy who has never really worked out much until this year.

Tony Romo retired yesterday and, as SteelDad pointed out, while a good QB he’s not a Hall of Fame caliber guy. The NFL can give him a nice passer rating certificate he can hang up in his office and reminisce about later in his golden years.

Speaking of SteelDad, he was pretty upset with a couple of his writers yesterday. Sometimes Twitter conversations go where they shouldn’t.
Let’s just say that sometimes we should phrase our questions about other sites and their qualifications to write on certain topics differently. No one should question anyone’s ability to opine on a subject without thoroughly having researched the author. It can give readers the wrong idea about the opinions expressed.
Having one’s take questioned, does not make that take invalid. It means there was a question. It means that someone has requested more information or greater detail. This isn’t a black or white, right or wrong, issue. It’s one where opinions should be shared and discussed. Discussion being the best way to arrive at well thought out conclusions. We do actually try to foster that environment here at SCB.

Anyway, I’d like to publicly apologize for my role in that. Asking questions is a good thing, a positive process, or should be. Defaming someone else without fully understanding their take is not.  I’ll accept responsibility for the one that @Cnic__ played as well. He may be taking my nature to dig into things and apply critical thought to them too seriously. Chris is young and, let’s face it, he’s kind of a knucklehead!

Podcast tonight at 9:30 Eastern! Send your draft questions via Twitter to @SCBlitz. We’ll get to as many as possible.

April 5, 2017
Artie Burns Sean Davis Antonio Brown Le'Veon Bell
Salary CapSteelers OffseasonThe Rooney's

Imbalanced Spending The Result Of Experience, Not Priority

written by Ben Anderson

What is with all the griping about Antonio Brown’s new contract? What is with the griping about the way the Steelers spend on contracts at all? I’ve already explained that the Steelers are not handcuffed to Brown.

Oh, you want balanced spending between the offense and defense. I see. That may be the result of a handful of beat writers and one radio personality doing exactly what they constantly complain that bloggers do: creating controversy to generate clicks. There is no issue with the way the Steelers have spent. Allow me to elaborate.

A cursory review of the Steelers roster shows us that seven defensive starters (Tuitt, Hargrave, Dupree, Shazier, Burns, Davis & Cockrell) are all playing on deals that compensate them at the rookie contract level. Their backups are compensated at backup level. On offense, you only have three starters being compensated at that low level (Villanueva, Rogers & the rotating #2 wide receiver slot). The imbalance in spending between offense and defense is easy to understand.

The big contracts that have been issued on offense are due to experience. The stars on that side of the ball are on their second, and in some cases third, contracts. This isn’t unusual or anything to be concerned about. The defense is less expensive because the team has a lot of young talent there. However, it’s only inexpensive for now. This isn’t something that’s going to last. We should all enjoy it while we can and stop worrying about it. It’s pointless.

For as long as I can remember I’ve enjoyed Ron Cook’s columns. As of late though, he seems to have embraced the tack of writing controversial, click bait pieces that are more worthy of shock jock sports radio hosts whose shtick is designed to inspire outrage and nothing more. In his latest piece he makes the case that the money spent on Antonio Brown should have been used on an outside linebacker to shore up the defense. He states that Brown is less valuable than Le’Veon Bell because Brown doesn’t touch the ball as often and that Brown did not have any leverage because he was not a free agent. And, after all, wasn’t Alan Faneca told he didn’t have the leverage of being a free agent when he wanted a new deal before his final season in Pittsburgh?

Cook’s article is filled with false equivalence throughout. Brown and Bell are both very valuable not just because of what they do with the ball, but because of the opportunities they create for teammates by demanding more attention than your typical player. When a player is routinely assigned a “spy” from the defensive front or is typically double, and even triple, covered, someone else is going to be open or have an easy avenue toward a big gain.

It’s a demonstrable fact that the vast majority of teams that invest big money in outside free agents do not win championships. Further, adding an Edge player at top dollar ($13 million+ per season) when there is no player who is the equivalent of Reggie White available this year would be foolish at best and cripple the development of a defense on the rise, at worst.

He sounds like a fan who thinks you can just go out and order a free agent to spec if you’re willing to pay enough. That isn’t the way it works. Most of the guys who are really good never get away from their original teams because they get locked up. Free agency is not like ordering a pizza. You can’t just decide that you want a receiver like Calvin Johnson and go out and pick him up off the shelf. In most cases, the guys who are available are on the market because their original team decided they aren’t worth their asking price.

He also assumes that Bell will sign a long term deal this year, making the franchise tag available for someone else (Brown), next season. Not a guarantee. In fact more of a 50-50 proposition at this point as they haven’t even begun negotiations. Cook also neglects to consider that the franchise tag for wide receivers will likely be over $17 million next year and that an angry player (Brown) who feels betrayed by a team that promised to redo his deal in 2017 won’t be easy to re-sign.

Lastly, the two free agents that Dan Rooney has always said he truly regrets leaving the Steelers were Rod Woodson and Alan Faneca. He seems to feel like the organization should make every effort to keep its truly great players for the entirety of their careers.

In other words, the club learned it’s lesson through making two great players angry enough to walk away. Faneca got the exact deal he asked the Steelers for one year prior, when he left for the Jets.
Woodson was made so angry during contract negotiations that he left on a 1 year deal with San Francisco for less money after agreeing in principle to re-sign with Pittsburgh. The Steelers had already scheduled a press conference when Woodson bowed out of the deal.
The Steelers aren’t looking to repeat those mistakes.

We’ve already covered the imbalance in cap spending from offense to defense. I won’t rehash it.
Ron Cook as long as he’s been around, knows all of these things. He can be short sighted at times, but he’s not dumb. Far from it. He’s playing at willful ignorance here because it suits his narrative.

Believe it or not, it pains me to write all of this. I have always liked Cook and looked forward to reading his articles. But all of this needed to be said.

March 2, 2017
Antonio Brown TD Dance
Antonio BrownPlayer SpotlightSalary CapWide Receivers

Does Antonio Brown’s New Contract Mean He Retires A Steeler?

written by Ben Anderson

I should begin this article by stating for the record that I think fan (and some writer) concerns about Antonio Brown potentially becoming a bigger distraction than he has been to this point, simply because he has the contract he’s wanted for the past couple of years, are overblown. Brown is highly competitive and works as hard as anyone ever has at his craft. He’s not going to sit back and rest on his laurels now that he’s gotten the big money. Brown was just given a 4 year contract extension worth 68 million dollars with $19 million fully guaranteed at signing via signing bonus. It puts him under contract through 2021.

That said, Steelers contracts are typically structured so that anyone but Ben Roethlisberger can be released after a year or two with minimal financial impact.
How do they do that, you ask? They only guarantee the signing bonus on their contracts and nothing else.

Brown’s contract contains roster bonuses in years two & three that if not paid by the 5th day of the league year will void his contract. The Steelers could, for example, decide that Brown wasn’t worth as much as he is scheduled to make, as soon as after year one of this deal, and simply not pay his roster bonus, making him a free agent.

Generally speaking, the rule of thumb is that as soon as a players cap hit exceeds his dead money, he can be released. It comes down to the dead money, while something you don’t like against your cap, costing you less against it than the player’s scheduled hit. In AB’s deal, that happens after year one.

Year One, Antonio Brown makes $19,910,000 in cash. The remaining bonus proration from his 2012 deal bumps his cap hit to $13,618,334 and if he were for some reason released before June 1st, 2017 (not plausible, but let’s look anyway) he would count $27,908,334.

Year Two, however, it gets interesting. Let’s say, again far fetched hypothetical situation, that Brown robs a liquor store and kills someone with the getaway car and the Steelers decide to allow his contract to void by not exercising the year two option (not cutting a check for his roster bonus).
They can do so. While the thought of $15.2 million dollars worth of dead money yet to be accounted for isn’t appealing, Brown’s cap hit is scheduled to be $17.675 million anyway. Brown being off the team in 2018 actually creates $2.475 million in cap space.

Year Three, it becomes even simpler. Brown’s scheduled cap hit is $18.925 million. The dead money is $11.4 million. Not paying his roster bonus and allowing his contract to void creates $7.525 million in cap space.

As you can see, at the end of the day, Antonio Brown got his money. But, the Steelers also got their security. As an added bonus is Brown becomes a free agent due to his contract voiding, the Steelers would be in line for a compensatory pick the following year.

Anxious fans can rest easy! The Steelers already thought of all of those things that worry you about AB’s deal.

Photo Credit: Peter Diana/Post-Gazette
Contract schedule per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk

February 28, 2017
Antonio BrownPlayer Spotlight

Steelers & Antonio Brown Agree To 4 Year Extension at $17 Million Per Year

written by Ben Anderson

Antonio Brown had been seeking a new deal for the past two years. Each time he came to the Steelers they advanced him money on future salary and effectively created a necessity to re-do his deal prior to the 2017 season.

Details on Brown’s new deal are scarce, but he had 1 year remaining at $4.71 million and his new deal is 5 years total (4 new) at $72.71 million total. That would mean the new money is generated by a 4 year extension averaging $17 million per year.

If Ian Rapoport’s report is to be believed, Brown will receive $55.5 million over the first 3 years of the deal and $68 Million over the first 4 years.

The addition of $17 million per year in new money makes Brown the highest paid wide receiver in NFL history. A distinction he should be able to maintain for at least one, and possibly two years as Sammy Watkins, Mike Evans, Odell Beckham Jr., Brandin Cooks and Kelvin Benjamin are all tied to their teams through 2017 and should all receive a 5th year option tender this May that will tie them to those teams through 2018.

Brown’s deal is not likely to have a huge impact on the salary cap. That of course is the only reason most of you are reading this.
I’ll speculate that Brown’s signing bonus will be in the neighborhood of $20 million.
He had $8,908,334 in remaining 2017 bonus proration. The result of multiple restructures and advances on future salary.
The minimum salary for a player going into his 8th season is $900,000.
If he will receive $20 Million at signing, that bonus can be prorated (accounted for) over 5 years, or $4 million each year.

$8,908,334 remaining 2017 bonus proration
$   900,000 base salary
$4,000,000 signing bonus proration
—————-
$13,808,334 2017 cap hit. His scheduled cap hit before this extension was $13,618,334. The new cap hit is less than $200,000 more in this scenario.

Bear in mind that I am speculating, but that it should come in pretty close to this in 2017, at least.

February 28, 2017
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