Good Cop vs Bad Cop: Summers, Davis, Redman

The Steelers Punt and Kick coverage units were fantastic last season, there is no reason to mess with that success.  Davis is an important part of that unit and we saw what happened the season before last when every kickoff/punt was an adventure.  We don’t want to live through that again.

The coverage units as a whole were much improved but all the credit doesn’t go to one guy.  Carey Davis was credited with 2 special teams tackles last postseason…so lets not pretend he’s hauling down Returners left and right and that he’s completely irreplaceable.  Did I miss something here?  Since when was Carey Davis being compared to Special Teams Aces like Larry Izzo, Chidi Iwouma, Sean Morey, etc… It seems to me that people started touting his special teams play as soon as they needed a reason to justify him taking up a roster spot.  If I’m making up a roster, I value 11-on-11 play more than I do Special Teams play.  Sure it’s an important part of the game but if you are tight for roster spots you can’t keep guys around who ONLY impact the game on coverage units.  For crying out loud, this guy LOST HIS JOB to Sean McHugh halfway through the season.  The fact that Steeler media insiders are calling him “totally safe” from the chopping block really surprises me.  I don’t see how he can’t be on the roster bubble.

So the Steelers just went to the Super Bowl and you want to toss this guy off the roster without having any clue who will replace him on ‘teams’ or in the backfield?

I think one of the newcomers could fill in for Davis and the coverage teams wouldn’t miss a beat.  We’ll see what shakes out over the next 3 preseason games but keep in mind, Frank Summers leads the team with 2 special teams tackles.  Take Davis off the coverage units next weekend and fill his spot with Redman, Summers, or another backup LB.  By preseason week 3 or 4 you’ll know if Davis can be replaced on the coverage units.  If he is, then he is totally replaceable.

Teams coming off Super Bowl wins don’t overhaul their rosters or tinker with success.  You don’t take a guy like Carey Davis and get rid of him simply because the next flavor of the month has a few splash plays in the preseason.  The guy has been through battles in the AFC North, he has big-game experience, he can run with the ball, catch the ball, block, play on special teams, and he knows the offense inside and out.  You going to cut him so a guy like Redman, Summers, or David Johnson can make the team?  Do you really think Frank Summers brings anything to the table RIGHT NOW that Davis doesn’t?  Do you think Summers can do anything that Daivid Johnson or McHugh can’t?  In my mind he’s redundant right now unless he shows that he can be a powerback, and right now Redman looks more impressive than he does.

Normally, I would agree with you.  In this instance I simply cant.  You do realize that over the past 10 months one could argue that the Steelers front office has brought in at least TWO players that are better than Carey Davis?  Sean McHugh gets brought in after Week 1 last year and by the end of the year he had flat out stolen Carey Davis’ job.  He played more snaps last year than Davis, he became the team’s lead blocker at FB (while also playing TE), he is more versatile, and he is a receiving threat out of the backfield.  Carey Davis is only a threat to catch the ball in the flat and promptly fall down 1 yard short of the sticks on a crucial 3rd down.  How many times did we see that last year?  Once per game?

Fast-forward to training camp and some new faces are looking like they could be keepers.  David Johnson (7th rounder from Arkansas State) can play TE or FB as an H-back.  He has had some devastating blocks in camp and played reasonably well in game 1.  Without a doubt, he can block better than Carey Davis can.  He also provides TE depth and we all know Arians loves his 3 TE sets.  After Spaeth, Miller, and McHugh the Steelers have nobody at TE.  Keeping Johnson around as a TE/FB combo could perhaps kill two birds with one stone.

Frank Summers was brought in as a pure RB but has camp has gone along, we have seen him get reps at FB.  In fact, on both Isaac Redman TDs in game 1….Summers was the lead blocker.  He also led the way to a few TDs during Steeler goal-line drills in Latrobe.  Is he a quality NFL caliber RB/FB yet?

We don’t know….but he has more upside right now than Davis does.  Keep Summers on the 53 man roster and bring him along as a powerback and a FB; using him at whatever position he excels at as the season unfolds.  With 2 special teams tackles in game 1, he might be a nice replacement for Davis on coverage units as well.  You have to like the Redman/Summers combo right now.  The power running game is the one area the Steelers need to improve the most.

You can’t cut Davis because Summers “might become a good player” and you don’t have to cut him just because McHugh came onto the scene and took some playing time away.  There is room for both of them on the roster and at this point, the risk is not worth the reward.  Go ahead and cut Carey Davis….is the “reward” of having Summers potentially turn into somebody decent and David Johnson eventually getting time as an H-back worth the risk?  Johnson had a few blocks in Latrobe and a few in game 1….Summers lead blocks on 2 Redman TDs;  apparently that’s good enough to steal the job from a seasoned vet?  Put them both on the practice squad and bring them up when they’re ready to actually bring something to the team.

OK, I see what you are saying and you have a valid argument.  It’s easy to say “just toss them on the Practice Squad”.  What I don’t get is why you (or anyone) would engage in a discussion like this and encourage the Steelers to keep a guy on the roster who doesn’t do anything better than anybody else on the team.

I’m going out on a limb here (not TOO FAR out on a limb) by saying this:  Redman and/or Summers is a better powerback prospect than Davis.  David Johnson and Sean McHugh are both better blocking FBs than Carey Davis and those two guys can both play TE as well.  Pretend that Johnson and McHugh are both fulltime FBs.  In 3 weeks time, Davis could easily be ranked as the #3 FB on the team.  You think that’s deserving of a roster spot?  Two part-time FBs are better at Carey Davis’ job than he is.  What does that tell you?

In terms of goal-line production and the short-yardage running game, if Frank Summer and Isaac Redman can show that they are a productive tandem in the backfield, I don’t see why you cant squeeze both of them on the roster somehow.  You’ll lose David Johnson but you will possibly be upgrading your short-yardage unit, which was awful last year.

Let me summarize by saying this:  Carey Davis isn’t losing his job to one man.  He’s losing his job because the Steelers have a handful of guys who can do Carey Davis’ job better than Carey Davis can.

No, you can’t keep Redman and Summers.  You can’t spend two roster spots for just “Goal-Line”.  Summers shouldn’t make the team just because of his play as a lead blocker.  As you claimed yourself, McHugh and Johnson are good blockers as well….what’s the need for Summers if those two guys are just as good, if not better, than he is at FB?  If you want to develop him, toss him onto the practice squad.  Nobody can convince me that Summers deserves a roster spot.  David Johnson and Isaac Redman, sure.  But Tank?  Nope.  Redman is the better goal-line runner it seems and 2 other guys on the team are better at FB….which makes him redundant as he brings no special skills to the table at this point.  It’s the same argument you are making about Carey Davis.

Another undrafted gem dug up by the Steelers.  He scores 2 Touchdowns in their first preseason game, he scores twice in the Steelers first goal-line battle in Latrobe and this past weekend he goes 5-of-7 in short-yardage drills.  He will be a fan favorite, he’ll take over the job Gary Russell held, and the Steelers will have 4 defined roles for all their RBs.  Parker is your starter.  Mendenhall comes off the bench.  Moore is your 3rd down guy.  Redman is the finisher.  Sounds perfect; if things go to plan this is one of the best group of RBs in the NFL.

Redman scored twice against 4th stringers in preseason game 1.  Let’s not get too excited.  Sure he has looked good in camp during goal-line drills but we need to see more from this guy during the preseason to feel solid about him one way or the other.  He went undrafted for a reason, he scored 2 TDs on two goal-line runs where he was virtually untouched as he went into the endzone, and after one preseason game he has 0 special teams tackles.  Have we seen him run over anybody to score?  Can he catch out of the backfield?  Is he purely a short-yardage back?  Can he contribute on special teams?

He can’t be Steeler Nation’s favorite running back after 1 quarter of play against Arizona in a preseason game.  The jury is still out on this guy.  Imagine this scenario:  4th and 1 on the Baltimore Ravens 40 yard line looking to pick up one more 1st down to ice the game away.  It’s snowing, it’s an AFC Championship game, everything is on the line.  Is Redman the guy to get the ball in that situation and pick up the 1st down?  That’s what we need to know about this guy.  Yesterday he ran over Nick Eason in Latrobe to score a TD in practice?  Last week he scored against Arizona’s 4th string D?  We don’t know enough about him yet to have this many Steeler fans singing his praises.  We’re usually a skeptical and cautious fanbase; let’s see how he does over the next few weeks before we start coming up with cute nicknames and comparing him to Jerome Bettis.