Commentary
It’s time for Steelers to use a spread offense PITTSBURGH – It’s time for the Steelers to start spooning out a little bit of the medicine that got their season off to such a rocky start.
That’s right. It’s time for the Steelers to employ a spread offense, instead of just preparing to stop one.
Face it, four months ago, you probably had never heard of a spread offense. New England showed the nation that such an offense could be used to offset defensive speed. The Oakland Raiders were watching and tweaked the system. The result of those two games was an 0-2 start for the Steelers and a weekly fear that the next opponent was going to employ the strategy.
Simply stated, the spread offense spreads four or five wide receivers from one sideline to the other. It can employ one running back or none. The intent is for a quarterback to read and react quickly to how a defense reacts to the snap of the ball. Find a receiver and get the ball in his hands.
It is most effective against aggressive defenses, which is why this is the perfect time for the Steelers to use it. Tennessee always has been an aggressive defense, but the Titans got even more aggressive when defensive end Jevon Kearse returned from an injury. These guys really come after the quarterback, which is what everybody used to say about Pittsburgh’s defense.
The Steelers certainly have the personnel to make the spread an effective tool. Hines Ward and Plaxico Burress are the best starting receivers in football and Antwaan Randle El gives them a perfect third receiver. Terance Mathis isn’t the receiver he used to be, but he is ideal as a fourth option.
In the backfield, Amos Zereoue is a perfect fit as a running back in a spread offense. Think of Oakland’s Charlie Garner with muscles and you get the picture.
Steelers’ offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey loves tinkering with his offense and the spread could be his next great move. Actually, there isn’t much difference between a spread offense and the hurry-up offense the Steelers used most of the second half last week against Cleveland. Minor tinkering is all it would take.
Perhaps the greatest beauty of it all is that quarterback Tommy Maddox already relies very heavily on most of the traits a spread offense quarterback must depend on to make it work.
Maddox perfected his quick release playing arena football. He already was a quick thinker and has melded those traits into a superb season. A game or two in the spread offense could be what’s next for Maddox to do. So far, he has done all that has been asked of him. This one, he’d do for free. In fact, he’s being giddy about the possibilities.
Remember how frustrated the Steelers defense got when New England and Oakland used the spread against it? Imagine that same frustration all over the faces of Kearse and Kevin Carter and the rest of Tennessee’s defenders.
Remember how bravely the Steelers cornerbacks battled against the spread early in the season? Neither do I, so expect the same deer-in-the-headlights look you saw from Chad Scott and Dewayne Washington on the faces of Samari Rolle, Andre Dyson and the other cornerbacks Tennessee will be forced into getting on the field.
Mularkey would have to sell the strategy on coach Bill Cowher, but that should be easy enough to do. All of the defenses still in the playoffs play an aggressive style similar to the Steelers. Put in the spread now and use it through Super Bowl XXXVII on an as-needed basis.
An easier sell lies straight ahead. The Titans are a perfect defense to use the spread offense against. They are aggressive in their own right, but they should be more so since they had to sit a week and wait for other games to be played. They’re already chomping at the bit.
And wouldn’t it be sweet to see the Steelers take something from another game plan, something that was used to exploit them, and turn it around and use it to their advantage?
Sports editor Mike Ciarochi may be reached at mciarochi@heraldstandard.com