Larry Foote: Pittsburgh Steelers struggling mentally

[Hawaii 5-0]

Larry Foote: Pittsburgh Steelers struggling mentally

By Kareem Copeland
Published: Oct. 12, 2012

Larry Foote was brutally honest in his assessment of his Pittsburgh Steelers after they were upset 26-23 by the Tennessee Titans on Thursday night.

"We're not strong mentally," the veteran linebacker told KDKA-FM, via CBS Pittsburgh. "We don't look like a championship team right now.

"Everybody's been knocked down, everybody's had doors shut in their face, everybody's gotten beat."

Those aren't the types of things we're used to from the Steelers (2-3). That might be the first time coach Mike Tomlin's team has been accused of being soft. But we're not used to the Steelers being ranked No. 19 in scoring defense (23 points per game) either.

Defense normally is the calling card in the Steel City, but it wasn't Thursday. The Titans (2-4) scored 10 points in the final 4:19. Running back Chris Johnson, who has been shut down in 2012, had his second-best game of the year with 91 yards on 19 carries. Johnson could've had more if he stopped hesitating at the line of scrimmage. Elder quarterback Matt Hasselbeck connected on throws when absolutely needed.

The Steelers clearly miss Troy Polamalu. Linebacker James Harrison (knee) played for a second consecutive week, but LaMarr Woodley was out with a hamstring injury.

It's not over in Pittsburgh, but a loss against the struggling Titans hurts. Two games against the Baltimore Ravens loom, and there's the Week 9 trip to face the New York Giants.

Foote said he's excited to see how the Steelers respond. If that's going to happen, it needs to happen soon.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap100...headline_stack

[Killer]

Call Farrior, and get Carnell Lake back on the field too.

[Goldsteel86]

Originally Posted by Killer

Call Farrior, and get Carnell Lake back on the field too.

I agree call Farrior, this defense needs leadership, as much as I hate to say it without Troy and Lamarr maybe that's what the defense needs and truthfully Foote is definitely not the guy!

[Bayz101]

Foote and Timmons have been excellent this year. We don't need Farrior to come back and get burned eighty yards for a touchdown once a game. In fact, I HIGHLY doubt he's ANYWHERE near football shape now.

[Goldsteel86]

Originally Posted by Bayz101

Foote and Timmons have been excellent this year. We don't need Farrior to come back and get burned eighty yards for a touchdown once a game. In fact, I HIGHLY doubt he's ANYWHERE near football shape now.

Timmons has been lights out, however Foote, hardly so, just ask Darren McFadden, you never know where he could be when talking about "football" shape, maybe, just maybe he is futher along than what is expected, just a thought. The biggest question is what does it take for the defense to get their spark???

[Bayz101]

Originally Posted by Goldsteel86

Timmons has been lights out, however Foote, hardly so, just ask Darren McFadden, you never know where he could be when talking about "football" shape, maybe, just maybe he is futher along than what is expected, just a thought. The biggest question is what does it take for the defense to get their spark???

Actually, ironically, Timmons was at fault for McFadden's run upon further review of the tape via NFL.com's Game Rewind. Larry Foote is the teams leading defensive player with 37 tackles and a pair of sacks.

[Goldsteel86]

Originally Posted by Bayz101

Actually, ironically, Timmons was at fault for McFadden's run upon further review of the tape via NFL.com's Game Rewind. Larry Foote is the teams leading defensive player with 37 tackles and a pair of sacks.

I agree Larry Foote is the leading tackler but Lamarr Woodley is tied in sacks with two, also Foote "scraped" when he should have "plugged", the run was to his side he read the play wrong, now I agree Timmons should have had pursuit as the weak side LB but Foote being the "Veteran Leader" should have stepped up and "plugged" instead of watch the play pass him by.

[Bayz101]

Originally Posted by Goldsteel86

I agree Larry Foote is the leading tackler but Lamarr Woodley is tied in sacks with two, also Foote "scraped" when he should have "plugged", the run was to his side he read the play wrong, now I agree Timmons should have had pursuit as the weak side LB but Foote being the "Veteran Leader" should have stepped up and "plugged" instead of watch the play pass him by.

I think Foote is playing exceptionally well in his role.

Just like Farrior, his weakness is coverage, but he makes up for it with his speed in pursuit of the QB, and his tackling skills. I think he's better at this point in his career at getting to the QB than Farrior was last year, but he has the same liabilities with coverage, and that's just something we'll need to accept.

Foote is a veteran guy, and he's got what it takes to be a veteran leader, as does Ryan Clark. We had all of this leadership last year, and we didn't make it past round one of the playoffs. It's time for our guys to step up and BE leaders, we can't keep the older guys around forever.

[Goldsteel86]

Originally Posted by Bayz101

I think Foote is playing exceptionally well in his role.

Just like Farrior, his weakness is coverage, but he makes up for it with his speed in pursuit of the QB, and his tackling skills. I think he's better at this point in his career at getting to the QB than Farrior was last year, but he has the same liabilities with coverage, and that's just something we'll need to accept.

Foote is a veteran guy, and he's got what it takes to be a veteran leader, as does Ryan Clark. We had all of this leadership last year, and we didn't make it past round one of the playoffs. It's time for our guys to step up and BE leaders, we can't keep the older guys around forever.

Please don't get me wrong Foote plays with passion, he takes every play personally, however he has never been thrusted in his role. Foote needs to wrap his mind around the fact that other than Troy, James and Lamarr he is the veteran. Foote needs to also understand jst like Jack Lambert, Jack Ham and even James Farrior he is the leader of this defense, the Middle LB in any Steeler defensive schem carries the persona of the "Defensive Leader", he needs to bring all the other players up to his level, that is what leaders do, IMO.

[Hawaii 5-0]

Steelers vow to turn season around after loss to Titans

10/13/2012
By F. Dale Lolley

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Maybe they were just trying to convince themselves the sky isn’t falling. Or maybe they still believe they can turn things around.

But there wasn’t any panic in the Steelers locker room following Thursday night’s latest come-from-ahead loss, 26-23, to the Tennessee Titans at LP Stadium.

Following their latest road debacle, the Steelers were full of bluster about how they were going to turn things around.

“Ten games from now, we’re going to be laughing, and everybody is going to forget about this,” said linebacker Larry Foote.

“If this is the worst that can happen, we’ll be all right,” said offensive tackle Max Starks. “The adversity is here. As long as we overcome it, it’ll make us a better team in the end.”

Or maybe not.

Now 2-3, including an 0-3 record on the road, the Steelers look a lot closer to the 2009 team that lost five consecutive games down the stretch to miss the playoffs, than it does the 2005 team that won its final four games after a threegame losing streak to get into the playoffs and win the Super Bowl.

With all three losses having come to AFC opponents, the Steelers have made things awfully difficult on themselves a month and a half into the season.

“We (don’t) have a lot of room for error now,” admitted Starks. “I’ve been through this. I’ve been here a long time, been through a lot worse situations at more critical points of the season. It’s still early, and that’s one of the biggest things we have on our side. There’s still some time, but we have to be vigilant. We can’t be careless with that time.”

Fixing the problems that have plagued the Steelers might be a different issue.

First, they have to narrow down exactly what is wrong.

“Man, if I knew how to fix it, it would already be fixed,” said nose tackle Casey Hampton. “The biggest thing is that we’ve just got to get back to playing football the way we know how.”

The common denominator in the three road losses has been an inability for the defense to hold a fourth quarter lead.

On Thursday night, the Steelers turned a 16-10 halftime deficit into a 23-16 lead midway through the fourth quarter. They then allowed the Titans (2-4) to march 80 yards on 11 plays to score on a five-yard pass from Matt Hasselbeck to Kenny Britt, who was working against Ike Taylor.

In fact, the Titans picked on Taylor throughout the game, and he allowed eight completions on 13 pass attempts for 126 yards and a touchdown. He also was called for three penalties – one was declined. The biggest Taylor penalty was a defensive hold on third down that allowed the Titans to go for the game-tying touchdown rather than a field goal.

“We’re going to see what we’re made of,” said Foote. “We’re dealing with some adversity right now, 2-3, everybody has written us off – even before the season, so nothing has changed.

“All of the answers are in this locker room to get this thing turned around.”

But the solutions are dwindling because of a number of injuries.

While the Steelers expect linebacker LaMarr Woodley – who missed Thursday’s game with a hamstring injury – back when they travel to Cincinnati Oct. 21, strong safety Troy Polamalu is expected to miss at least the next two games with a calf injury.

And the Steelers had a rash of injuries against the Titans, losing running backs Rashard Mendenhall (Achilles’ tendon) and Isaac Redman (ankle), and offensive linemen Maurkice Pouncey (MCL sprain) and Marcus Gilbert (ankle).

Pouncey’s injury is considered the most serious at this point and could sideline him for at least the game at Cincinnati.

Regardless of who lines up in Cincinnati, the Steelers need their road nightmares to end.

“It’s not a dream – it’s reality,” said safety Ryan Clark. “You’ve just got to make stops, period.”

Odds and end zones

The Steelers released tight end Wes Saunders Friday. Saunders had been suspended the first four games of the season for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. … Redman’s 105 yards receiving marked the first 100-yard receiving game for a Steelers running back since Frenchy Fuqua did in against Cleveland in 1970.

http://www.observer-reporter.com/or/...eelers-rebound