Home Steelers 2015 Season Is the Lack of Snaps for Boykin Due to Friction in the Steelers’ Front Office?

Is the Lack of Snaps for Boykin Due to Friction in the Steelers’ Front Office?

by Steeldad

I’m never going to be confused with being the smartest person in the room and I have no problem admitting that unlike many others I know but I can’t help but feel like a total idiot right now. The problem is that I’m having trouble trying to figure out something in regards to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

In week one, Brandon Boykin, arguably the best cover guy the Steelers have, played zero snaps on defense against the defending Super Bowl Champion Patriots. In case you missed it, the Steelers could have used his help just a bit don’t ya think? I was told that Boykin was dealing with a groin injury (he denied that following the game) but I have a hard time understanding that either way if he played 10 snaps on special teams.

Here were Boykin’s comments to the Tribune-Review’s Mark Kaboly following the loss to New England…

Ha, yeah,” said Boykin about not playing a snap. “I feel like I can help. I really don’t know why that happened or what the case is. I haven’t talked to the coaches about it yet. I will definitely ask if it continues for some reason. I am kind of new here. I have been here four weeks. I know I could’ve contributed, but I don’t what there reason was for not getting any snaps.”

“I was up to speed in training camp,” Boykin said. “I knew all the calls and knew the defense and was able to play. Whatever their decision was for not getting me any snaps wasn’t because they thought I didn’t know the defense. It is out of your control. You can’t go into the next day being angry or coming into your workplace mad and all that kind of stuff. It is kind of out of my control.”

If it wasn’t injury and it wasn’t a lack of playbook knowledge then what was it? Why on Earth did the Steelers waste a valuable draft pick on a guy they weren’t going to use? Is this Kevin Colbert or is this Mike Tomlin?

So week two rolled around and by all indications it looked as though Brandon Boykin would see a lot more defensive snaps than he did in week one. With the pregame news that Cortez Allen wasn’t playing due to his knee, it seemed even more so that Boykin would play and play a lot. Surely the newly acquired and far-less experienced Ross Cockrell wouldn’t see the field ahead of Boykin would he?

Well, yes… Yes he would.

Ross Cockrell played 39 defensive snaps against the San Francisco 49ers. Brandon Boykin played 11. Let me analyze the numbers of these two cornerbacks.

Career Starts: Cockrell 0, Boykin 6

Career Games Played: Cockrell 7, Boykin 50

Career Passes Defended: Cockrell 0, Boykin 32

Career Interceptions: Cockrell 0, Boykin 6

I’m not trying to pick on Ross Cockrell here because I know he hasn’t been in the league as long as Boykin has. In fact, isn’t it safe to say that Boykin should be playing ahead of Antwon Blake? Ahead of Cortez Allen? Ahead of even William Gay?

True, Blake had 11 tackles on Sunday but how many of those were of the “tackle the catch” variety when they weren’t against the run? If you needed a receiver covered on a crucial 3rd and eight who are you going to trust in man-to-man coverage, Boykin or Blake? Wait, did I just say “man-to-man?”

Maybe that’s the problem! Boykin has proven he can excel in aggressive man-to-man situations but how often do the Steelers really use that type of coverage? Dick LeBeau may be gone but that concept of ‘tackling the catch’ has remained so far through the first two games. Look no further than how New England attacked the Steelers’ secondary. Short pass after short pass because the Pats’ knew the DBs were playing off.

Even the Niners took what the Steelers’ secondary was giving them but in this game, the Steelers’ front seven was much more active and sacked Colin Kaepernick five times. Playing off is always easier when there’s consistent pressure.

With all of this said, I’m left to wonder and ask a question that has to be in the minds of many of us; why did the Steelers trade for Brandon Boykin? It’s almost like buying a new set of patio furniture and when you take it out of the box, one of the chairs isn’t at all like the others. Instead of returning it, you just decide to keep it even though it just doesn’t fit.

Why the Steelers traded for Boykin is beyond me. Why they keep him and not play him is an even bigger mystery. I’m left to wonder if this isn’t due to friction between Colbert and Tomlin. I mentioned following the opening loss that Steelers’ front office people were not happy about Boykin not playing and they addressed it with Tomlin.

The message didn’t get through to Tomlin now did it? Unless you consider getting 11 snaps on defense following the desires of your bosses. Nothing else makes sense about this situation. Boykin isn’t playing because he doesn’t fit what Tomlin wants to do plain and simple.

That tells me there that things aren’t as rosy on the South Side as we have been led to believe.

Quotes courtesy triblive.com

 

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27 comments

war3069 September 24, 2015 - 3:29 am

i couldn’t agree more…
i don’t want to have a Superbowl caliber offense and see our D go into disarray…
Steeler Nation has the chance to get number 7 if our D can hold opponents to 21 or less… but with controversy like this it can act as an infection and just kill our chances…
Hoping for a quick resolve to this.
🙂

steeldad September 24, 2015 - 11:11 am

I don’t know what’s going on but it sure seems like a pissing contest to me.

HDavis September 25, 2015 - 2:17 pm

It’s really hard to take anything the writer says seriously with all the errors in grammar, misspellings, missing wordsetc. It’s difficult to tell if it’s an actual adult writing this or a third grader. I know for sure that his opening line of the article is absolutely correct, he won’t be confused with anyone smart…

steeldad September 25, 2015 - 2:20 pm

I’m sorry I didn’t realize the English police were going to be moderating things. I’m not a journalist. I have an opinion. Don’t like the way I write? Don’t read it.

j. hackers September 24, 2015 - 10:44 am

wow! your source into the front office is great. got to be driving the north side clique nuts. none of the so called insider press has even hinted at this. good job.

steeldad September 24, 2015 - 11:10 am

Believe me J, I take no pleasure in this and I almost hope I’m wrong but what else could it be? You give up a draft pick for a guy you don’t even play? AND he’s arguably your best DB? Something stinks.

Bill Preston September 24, 2015 - 11:50 am

It appears to me Mike Tomlin is determined not to let Boykin to be a starting CB even though he is a better fit than Blake. Blake has proven he has good speed and is a great tackler after the fact but not a great cover CB, which is why he is a good special teams player. There is definitely something about Boykin that Tomlin dislikes, it could possibly be someone from the Eagles badmouthed Boykin to Tomlin that soured him on Boykin. The bottom line is Tomlin needs to do what is best for the team and put the best players on the field. Cutting Tyler Murphy over Dri Archer is another Tomlin ego decision, he just will not admit Archer is a flop.

steeldad September 24, 2015 - 11:52 am

Spot on Bill. SPOT ON!

Davis mcmillian September 24, 2015 - 7:29 pm

I definitely agree about archer,but I have feeling the organization is trying not to give up that 4th round pick if Boykin plays better than expected.he still would be worth it though.

steeldad September 24, 2015 - 7:32 pm

That’s where I’m at Davis. If Boykin gives you a better chance of winning then you have to play him regardless of the draft pick conditions.

Ben Anderson September 24, 2015 - 2:33 pm

I don’t understand how any of us can presume to know enough about how Mike Tomlin thinks to assume that his ego has somehow found a reason not to play Boykin or that if he would not play someone because disliked that player personally. NFL coaches are about winning and losing. Period.
Personally, I think Tomlin would put Saddam Hussein out on the field if he could play defensive end better than Cam Thomas. They don’t care about players’ personalities until they start to infect other players.
Anyone remember LeGarrette Blount? Tomlin knew what he was before he came to Pittsburgh. Wanted him anyway; thought he could control him. Wrong.
That’s not to imply that Boykin is an attitude case. I think this was about football situations. It was not a great decision week one, especially when they could have adjusted at half time and did not. Week 2, it was a good call, but was also based on injury after Boykin failed to practice Thursday and was limited Friday.
I started an even longer comment than this, but it got too long. I’ll edit it and post it as a separate article. But, suffice it to say that I disagree with the entire premise of this post. I just think the coaching staff made a bad call week one. It happens to all of them.

steeldad September 24, 2015 - 3:00 pm

Always open to disagreement Ben. Boykin claims he wasn’t even injured yet the team says he was. He doesn’t see any snaps week one and then only gets 11 week two? While Ross Cockrell gets 39? There’s no way RC is better than BB. If RC fits the “system” better then the Boykin trade was as foolish as drafting Dri Archer and Landry Jones.

Jeff September 24, 2015 - 4:32 pm

I have the biggest answer here. If Boykin is used more then 60% then the draft pick they gave up, goes up 1 round (example = 5th round to a fourth round pick).

steeldad September 24, 2015 - 4:38 pm

This is something we’ve discussed Jeff and thanks for commenting. I just can’t believe the team would sacrifice winning just give a fifth instead of a fourth.

Ben Anderson September 24, 2015 - 5:52 pm

You guys really think they are more concerned about a 5th turning into a 4th than winning and losing?
The decision was about matchups and in week one, it was a bad one. It really is that simple.

steeldad September 24, 2015 - 5:55 pm

I just don’t see how Boykin would have been dismissed because of a match-up problem. Just my opinion but I have to believe he would have been a better option on Edelman than anyone else. Of course scheme is part of the issue too. He doesn’t fit what the Steelers really do which makes me scratch my head as to why they traded for him.

Ben Anderson September 24, 2015 - 6:30 pm

I agree that he would have been a better option vs Edelman. The thing is, the Gatetriots were going to expose someone by using Gronk in motion out of 12 personnel and facing our base. When they lined up Edleman was the Z and Gronk was tight.
So, the question is would Boykin have been a better option vs Gronk because he was going to have to face him if he had started outside. I still would have replaced Blake at halftime, but I just don’t think we had an answer for their O that day and no matter who we trotted out there, someone was going to be exposed.
If I had my druthers I would have had Shazier shadow Gronk, not Garvin and not Cortez and I would have had either Gay or Boykin cover Edelman. But, TBH, by the time they realized that Blake was having an awful day tackling, it was too late. The Steelers were already down by 11.

Ben Anderson September 24, 2015 - 6:23 pm

Define better. None of us know Cockrell’s skill set well enough to say what he can’t and can’t do. What we do know is that Boykin did not practice Thursday and was limited Friday. He was also listed as probable, but every Pittsburgh beat reporter wrote that he would be the 4th option on Sunday due to health, immediately afterward.
I think what is probably holding Boykin back are the things he does outside of coverage. But, I’m guessing and it’s based on 2 games, only 1 of which he got time in. Brice McCain had a tendency not to keep his shoulders and hips square when facing a ball carrier. He rarely maintained a wide base and would even cross his ankles over one another when working down the line to a runner on the outside. But, he could cover. Unfortunately coverage is not the only thing a CB needs to be good at.
I am encouraged by Boykin’s claim that he was well enough to play. To me it means that he will play a little dinged up and he didn’t consider his groin being tweaked to be that big a deal.

Randy Largent September 24, 2015 - 5:28 pm

Why would you want to play the better player? Tomlin is clueless.

Wayne September 24, 2015 - 7:21 pm

It could have to do with the “conditional” draft pick they are to give up for Boykin. It’s a 5th round pick and based on playing time it could lead to a 4th round pick. If he is able to play, I say play him but it may not necessarily have to do with “friction” in the front office.

steeldad September 24, 2015 - 7:31 pm

I’m not a reporter or a beat writer for the team. I give my opinion and the last thing I expect is for everyone to agree. If there isn’t a problem between Colbert and Tomlin then I don’t know where else to look on this issue. From his own mouth Boykin said he doesn’t know why hasn’t played more.

As for the defensive strategy vs the Pats, I agree Ben, it was a no win situation with Gronk and I also agree that Shazier may have been the best option.

Larry Taghon September 24, 2015 - 11:46 pm

Guys, it’s not hard to figure out. Boykin’s trade was a “conditional” draft pick depending on playing time. If they feel they can get by without him, they will. That keeps the pick from moving to the fourth round. I would LOVE to see Boykin on the field and when it makes sense I think we will. But if the coaching staff feels they can beat the opposing team without him, they will.

steeldad September 25, 2015 - 12:34 am

It’s a very fair point Larry but I just can’t buy the coaches feeling better without him in the lineup. Brady torched the secondary and then Kaepernick (albeit garbage time) still threw for big yards against them.
Boykin not playing has to be scheme-related which tells me they erred in trading for him.

Roger Rabbit September 25, 2015 - 8:22 am

It’s been 2 weeks!! 2 weeks!! If I didn’t know any better I would think it’s been 2 years reading this.. New patio furniture? Try old used patio furniture from a yard sale a very valuable 6th round draft pick cuz every fan in the country just waits for the 6th round cuz we’re guaranteed a steal… this article is silly af hey maybe it’s in the front office? It’s been 2 dam weeks you sound like an Eagle fan

steeldad September 25, 2015 - 10:04 am

Mr. Rabbit, you’re right. It’s been two weeks. In those two weeks the Steelers are 26th in total defense and 27th against the pass. But hey, go ahead and leave the guy with the best coverage skills on the bench.
You seem awfully dismissive of a 6th round pick yet I’m sure you know that’s where AB was drafted. Furthermore, a sixth round pick has nothing to do with this. Right now the team owes the Eagles a fifth. If he plays 60% or more of the snaps on D it becomes a fourth.
Oh and if you are calling Boykin “used patio furniture” then what do you call the rest of this secondary? Garbage?

bob graff September 25, 2015 - 12:46 pm

I think Tomlin just gets this my guy mentality and won’t budge. We certainly could easily upgrade just by letting L.Jones and Archer go but that one is on the front office. I have said in the past and i stand by it Tomlin talent evaluation is sub-par. It shows on draft day and in the depth chart “best man up”. As far as L. Blount was concerned he would have made a great back-up to bell and giving him 8-12 carries a game would have done nothing but lengthen Bell career. Should he have been more humble? Yes, that and walking off the field got him canned but that’s probably just what he wanted. Now let’s see if they use Williams to spell Bell from time to time or is he going to have to eat some pie too.

Edward Carmichael October 8, 2015 - 4:11 pm

the Steelers for some reason they having trouble getting good cover cornerbacks and cover safeties with speed, quickness and size first what should do is move up in the draft 2 trade Cortez Allen and Shamarko Thomas for number 1 draft picks in the 2016 & 2017 draft and they are not using Dri Archer also trade him for extra draft picks or for numbers 1s in 2016 & 2017 these are things that will solve there problem on fixing the defense the GM should learn from the Rams because the GM doesn’t know how to pick talent if I was the GM the Steelers wouldn’t have trouble finding talent the Steelers would stay young and they would have plenty money under the cap and they wouldn’t need to pick up free agents Edward Carmichael Apt# 53 458 West 143 Street New York, New York 10031

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