The opinions found in Asked and Answered do not reflect the views of the Steelers organization.
Let's get to it:
KEN MAULDIN FROM CLYDE, TX: I was relieved today that Tuesday's trading deadline passed and we did not give up any draft picks for a No. 2 receiver when it seems like Calvin Austin can handle that for the moment with our offensive scheme. However our No. 1 receiver is great after he catches the ball, when he catches it. I was hoping you could tell me if he has a history of dropping balls?
ANSWER: According to Pro-Football-Reference.com, DK Metcalf has been targeted 47 times through the first 8 games of the season with 29 catches for 467 yards (16.1 average), 5 touchdowns, 21 first downs, and 4 drops. Metcalf constantly lives in the combat-catch world where he plays the position physically and undoubtedly encounters defensive backs who regularly try to match his physicality, and so 4 drops doesn't seem like a big number to me. And I'm not certain how a drop is determined as opposed to a pass defensed, so I take that number with a grain of salt. Having seen ever snap of training camp, every preseason game, and all 8 games to date in this regular season, I never had the feeling that Metcalf was someone who had issues with dropped passes.
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MILTON MANION SR. FROM LOUISVILLE, KY: Did Pittsburgh trade for anybody before the deadline? Who will play for them on Sunday against the Chargers?
ANSWER: As a matter of fact, they did. His name is Kyle Dugger, he was acquired from New England on Tuesday, Oct. 28, and he started at safety alongside Jalen Ramsey and played 77 defensive snaps (99 percent) in the win over the Colts on Nov. 2. Expect him to start on Sunday against the Chargers alongside Ramsey again.
ERIC CHRISTOPHER FROM PHOENIX, AZ: If two teams notify the NFL they are in specific negotiations at the expiration of the trade deadline, will the NFL allow those teams to continue to negotiate beyond the deadline?
ANSWER: No.
WALLACE HORTON FROM HYATTSVILLE, MD: Why do teams not run the football more to take time off the clock in the fourth quarter of games when they have a big lead?
ANSWER: What do you consider a big lead? And sure, it would be ideal to be able to run the football with a 2-score lead and drain 5-6 minutes off the clock in the fourth quarter, but as they say, easier said than done. You can't just line up and run the ball on every down and move the chains in the NFL. If the defense knows it's going to be a running play when it actually turns out to be a running play – subtracting the QB and the RB from the offense, because 1 guy handed the ball to the guy carrying it – there is an 11-to-9 numerical advantage on the field for the defense. And I also have my serious doubts that in situations where it's "running the ball when the defense knows you're running the ball" that any offense would be able to run the ball that many times in a row in that situation and not get flagged for holding or some other penalty that puts it behind the chains.
KENNY GREER FROM RALEIGH, NC: Do you think Jalen Ramsey will be our starting free safety moving forward or will the team move him back to corner? He had a decent day on the back end and the defense flowed more efficiently with his presence in the deep secondary.
ANSWER: Observing has taught me to understand that a personnel move like the one you describe typically comes down to a decision based on what gives the team the best chance to win. If Mike Tomlin decides that the combination of Jalen Ramsey at safety and someone else at slot cornerback is better than the combination of leaving Ramsey at slot cornerback and someone else at free safety, then that's what it will be. But when it comes to Sunday's game vs. the Chargers, Tomlin already said Ramsey will play safety exclusively.
DAVE BUCKO FROM PHILADELPHIA, PA: Beanie Bishop had a seemingly successful rookie year for the Steelers. What transpired that he was relegated to the practice squad this year and eventually released this week? I know we made several veteran acquisitions to strengthen the secondary this offseason, but even with multiple weeks of the secondary dipping into the depth chart would he not have been a viable replacement to at least come off the practice squad?
ANSWER: Beanie Bishop didn't make the 53-man roster coming out of training camp and the preseason because there were better players competing for those same slots, and that's just the harsh reality of life as an NFL player. And also understand, that Bishop had to be waived to be signed to the Steelers practice squad, and so every other team had a chance to sign him, either to a roster or with a fresh start on a different practice squad. Then as a member of the Steelers practice squad, any of the other 31 teams could have added him to their active roster. The final thing working against Bishop was that he wasn't an asset on special teams. Not that he had to be a special teams demon, but Bishop provided no real help in that phase, and backup DBs have to be able to contribute on special teams.
JIM NEAL FROM FAYETTEVILLE, TN: Now that you have answered the "muffed punt" ruling for last week, could you explain time-keeping for me? Early in the game I noticed the clock did not stop when someone when out of bounds. I thought that was always a clock-stopper.
ANSWER: If the player with the ball goes out of bounds, the clock only stops on plays like that in the final 2 minutes of the first half and the final 5 minutes of the second half. At all other times, the clock can be stopped briefly until the ball is spotted by the officials, but then the clock will be started again.
MARK BARBUSTIAK FROM ATCO, NJ: I had assumed that Aaron Rodgers was calling all the plays because of his vast amount of knowledge and experience. But in his postgame briefing, he said that he "...loved the play calling." Why has Coach Tomlin not allowed Rodgers to call the plays?
ANSWER: There is not a quarterback in the NFL these days who is "calling all the plays." Not Patrick Mahomes. Not Josh Allen. Not Lamar Jackson. Not Justin Herbert. Not Tom Brady or Peyton Manning when they were playing. It's just not done that way. Quarterbacks may be allowed to audible, or go through a previously determined check-with-me scenario. But with in-helmet technology, teams can take advantage of opportunities to communicate with the quarterback, and they take advantage of those opportunities.
STEFAN PISOCKI FROM WILMINGTON, DE: I know that a "relief QB" system has not successfully occurred in the NFL since Bob Griese/Don Strock in the 1970s, but considering the recent possible season-ending injury to Washington's Jayden Daniels, I want to protect our elder statesmen signal-caller. What would you have thought about the Steelers sitting Aaron Rogers with the score 27-7, minimizing the risk of injury and giving Will Howard/Mason Rudolph some snaps?
ANSWER: First of all, Will Howard is not on the active roster, so he is not a factor in this discussion. But I'm totally against pulling the starter. Completely. As Mike Tomlin once put it, "Never say never. But never." The Steelers never had a 27-7 lead vs. the Colts. They were up, 24-7, with 14:16 remaining in the fourth quarter; it was 27-10 with 6:51 remaining in the fourth quarter. If you believe that either of those leads at those particular points in the game were insurmountable against that opponent, I have no words. At least none that I can type without a TV-MA rating.
