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There is no comparison.
I praised Losman's composure last week, which was the biggest asset I saw coming out of Roethlisberger last year. Well Losman showed me just the opposite this week. Confused, jitterish, frustrated, all displayed on the field plainly.
In some ways I wish Losman would have thrown an INT by now. From my vintage view of my couch, I saw a kid who is afraid to make a mistake, especially after those near picks in the first quarter. In contrast, Big Ben was throwing INTs (not many though); he was not afraid to make a mistake and he was not bothered by it. By playing loose and confident, he was also fitting balls into tight areas and hitting TDs.
I have to come back to Mularkay for some deserved criticism. He went with Losman because he was encouraged by Ben's success last year, the same type of offense that Mularkay knows very well. But the one big difference between Mularkay and Wisenhunt (Steelers new OC) is that the latter apparently fits the Steelers mold and ground attack better than Mularkay - in the opener Steelers soundly beat Titans and Big Ben went 9 for 11; I would never imagine a Mularkay coached team throwing the pigskin 11 times all game, ever! The Steelers have a great running game even though they may not have an running back as talented as McGahee, which made life a lot easier for Roethlisberger. If you ask me what is the offensive blueprint yesterday, I recognized it. It's the Steelers'. They always ran down the Bucs throat, even during their superbowl season. But the same strategy simply did not work for the Bills yesterday. As a head coach, Mularkay should know that.
The lack of power running was evident in the Texans game - see the redzone offense down to the 1 yard line. I know people have said that running is more of an attitude. What I see from Mularkay and Clements is that they tried to finesse more than they tried to install the attitude here. I'd have prepared the team on power running last week as the backup plan. If Losman falters, this would be something I go to. I'm not saying running McGahee all day would've worked, but it sure beats asking a rookie to throw on 3rd and long all day while giving the defense a bit more rest. Why put the pressure on the kid when you might have a better chance with the proven back?
I praised Losman's composure last week, which was the biggest asset I saw coming out of Roethlisberger last year. Well Losman showed me just the opposite this week. Confused, jitterish, frustrated, all displayed on the field plainly.
In some ways I wish Losman would have thrown an INT by now. From my vintage view of my couch, I saw a kid who is afraid to make a mistake, especially after those near picks in the first quarter. In contrast, Big Ben was throwing INTs (not many though); he was not afraid to make a mistake and he was not bothered by it. By playing loose and confident, he was also fitting balls into tight areas and hitting TDs.
I have to come back to Mularkay for some deserved criticism. He went with Losman because he was encouraged by Ben's success last year, the same type of offense that Mularkay knows very well. But the one big difference between Mularkay and Wisenhunt (Steelers new OC) is that the latter apparently fits the Steelers mold and ground attack better than Mularkay - in the opener Steelers soundly beat Titans and Big Ben went 9 for 11; I would never imagine a Mularkay coached team throwing the pigskin 11 times all game, ever! The Steelers have a great running game even though they may not have an running back as talented as McGahee, which made life a lot easier for Roethlisberger. If you ask me what is the offensive blueprint yesterday, I recognized it. It's the Steelers'. They always ran down the Bucs throat, even during their superbowl season. But the same strategy simply did not work for the Bills yesterday. As a head coach, Mularkay should know that.
The lack of power running was evident in the Texans game - see the redzone offense down to the 1 yard line. I know people have said that running is more of an attitude. What I see from Mularkay and Clements is that they tried to finesse more than they tried to install the attitude here. I'd have prepared the team on power running last week as the backup plan. If Losman falters, this would be something I go to. I'm not saying running McGahee all day would've worked, but it sure beats asking a rookie to throw on 3rd and long all day while giving the defense a bit more rest. Why put the pressure on the kid when you might have a better chance with the proven back?
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