U mad, bro? Readers grouse over Steelers' losses, Minkah Fitzpatrick trade

“U mad, bro?” is all about spicy Steelers opinions from readers this week. It gets heated about how badly the team is playing, roster construction, the Minkah Fitzpatrick trade and…

….me.

Like many of us in Pittsburgh, Mike is mad at the Steelers.

“That team is awful. I am expecting them to lose to the Bengals on Monday.

I think they’ll lose because they seem to play with an attitude of just expecting to win. They look so disengaged and apathetic. Especially playing the Bengals and Browns they’ll come out ‘flat.’ Because they have the attitude of - ‘It’s the Bengals. It’s the Browns - and we always beat them.’”

This thought has crossed my mind, too.

When the Steelers have been good in recent years, they always lose to a terrible team or two per season.

So what’s going to happen when the Steelers are terrible and they play an even worse team like the Dolphins, Jets, or Bengals?

Can you still “overlook bad teams” when you are rotten yourself?

If it is possible, I’m sure a Mike Tomlin-coached team will be the one to figure it out.

Sean didn’t like my view on the Minkah Fitzpatrick trade. I love Fitzpatrick. But I hate giving up a first-round draft pick to get him in a season where the Steelers may wind up in the top 10.

“You are the kid who opens up his presents on Christmas morning and complains that he didn’t get everything he asked for.

You do a great job of cherry picking those top Pro Bowl draft picks in your article. For every one of those there are a dozen misses!

I can only hope that the Steelers seek your opinion before the next draft.”

Well, Sean, if they sought my opinion in 2015, they would’ve wound up with Landon Collins instead of Bud Dupree.

Oh, what a Christmas present that would have been!

By the way, the top-10 picks in the 2015 NFL Draft included six Pro Bowlers.

Six of the top seven in 2016 have gone to the Pro Bowl. As did six of the top 12 (plus Christian McCaffrey and Leonard Fournette) from 2017.

Last year’s draft featured three rookie Pro Bowlers and four quarterbacks as well as Mike McGlinchey, Fitzpatrick, Bradley Chubb and Roquan Smith.

So it’s not the crapshoot you are pretending it is.

But, sure, I’m the one cherry picking.

Marc expressed some similar thoughts on the debate. Except he acted like a grown up when he did it.

@TimBenzPGH only 2 1st round quality QBs in upcoming draft & Miami is taking 1 so steelers weren't going to draft a QB in the 1st round anyway. Two biggest known needs next year are Edge rusher & safety. We may have edge & AB replacement on team now so trade makes sense

— Marc Miller (@magic8vol) September 22, 2019

Sure, Marc. The trade makes sense in terms of the player’s talent. That’s why I gushed about Fitzpatrick’s skills so much in the column.

But if you are assuming that Ola Adeniyi and Diontae Johnson are the “replacements” for Bud Dupree and Antonio Brown, you are making an assumption I’m not willing to back.

George piles on my Minkah Fitzpatrick take, too.

“While your article cogently points out all of the impactful nuances of the trade for Fitzpatrick, let’s withhold our evaluations until each man has started more than…um…say…one game!?

Jeeeez.”

That was sorta the point of the article, George. Or did you miss that? People are proclaiming it a great trade before we know how high the pick is.

Catch up.

Someone calling himself “Richard Johnson” is ready to clean house when it comes to the Steelers.

“The time for change has come. It is time for these Steelers to go. 1. Mark Barron 2. Joe Haden 3. Donte Stallworth 4. Bud Dupree 5. Ryan Switzer 6. Cam Heywood. 7. Maurkice Pouncey 8. Ben Roethlisberger 9. Mike Tomlin 10. Kevin Colbert 11. Whole Coaching Staff.

Most of these are for too much money with no return. We need cap room, better decision making. We might as well go with younger cheaper players, at least they have an excuse.”

Richard knows that Tomlin, Colbert and the coaching staff don’t count against the salary cap, right?

Right?

Also, I assume he knows that Donte Stallworth hasn’t played in the league since 2012… and never played with the Steelers

And I’m not sure if he is asking the Steelers to cut Cameron Heyward or if wants Pitt to fire Mike Haywood a second time.

I’m going to have to find answers to these questions before I investigate cutting the team down to Shadyside Academy numbers.

Finally, DaRick wanted to share a thought on Twitter.

Lol youre an idiot

— DaRick Marcus (@DarickMarcus) September 22, 2019

You know what, Rick? “Youre” probably right.