Not sure where he is going. Just saying he is gonna be loved. Wide receiver that will flatten defenders during the run game. Rare breed!
Aaron Matthews
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Hell of a blocker. Good on special teams, tough and a team player...but he lacked production as a WR. I really like the kid and hope he makes it but he needs to prove he can get open and catch the ball.
Maybe someone keeps him on a practice squad and tries to develop his receiving skills.
Maybe someone keeps him on a practice squad and tries to develop his receiving skills.
Matthews is a real good athlete but DJ was a far superior athlete. Matthews put together a video of his own type of pro day workout but one test he skipped was the 40 because he lacks speed.
DJ ran 4.44 @ 240lbs.... athletically, they're apples and oranges.
Here's thing with Matthews, NFL teams will keep at least 1-2 guys to be special teams demons without intention of them being part of the regular depth chart. He can carve out a role like that, but they are tough to come by, require some luck in addition to effort/skill
Of course that skill is ranked about 15th when it comes to evaluating NFL receivers in the current game.
I wish him the best but there are many that for that description vying for the same handful of spots.
If he doesn't get a UDFA gig, then I hope he goes to Canada. Good kid. Ima miss seeing Bears players on Pitt's roster and with me living on the other coast, I'm not as in touch with who's coming up.
Lol. Did you ever watch Dinkins? I remember watching him work out at Cost Center and he would make Matthews look like a toothpick. DJ was one of the most under utilized talents I can remember. Matthews is a great kid, tough and a good team football player but he isn’t close to Dinkins in ability.
Should have started adding weight as a freshman. Could have bulked up to a very lean TE.
He’s that one guy I always kept asking, Where’s Matthews. He is an absolute freak in size, but boy did he just never get used. Kind of like out TEs catching balls. When it happens you are wondering where was that all season. If he can build speed he will have more options.
He's not an NFL receiver. Have we ever even tried to use him in the red zone since a few failed attempts his freshman year? At 6'5", that tells me a lot (I mean, addition to him barely being a factor in our horrible offenses the past few years).
He should have played defense. He made some great special teams tackles in that Clemson 2016 game. Just seemed more natural to him. And when blocking is your forte as a receiver, it makes me question if that's your best position. I guess I could also see tight end making sense. But certainly not wideout. Shame, because I do think he's a good football player. But you can't pound a square peg into a round hole.
He should have played defense. He made some great special teams tackles in that Clemson 2016 game. Just seemed more natural to him. And when blocking is your forte as a receiver, it makes me question if that's your best position. I guess I could also see tight end making sense. But certainly not wideout. Shame, because I do think he's a good football player. But you can't pound a square peg into a round hole.
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Severe understatement.
A couple years ago he had four, or five, catches out at Notre Dame and then finished the season with nine catches.
Why do you guys think PITT tried to lose football games by not using Matthews?
I don't think that anyone said that.
I think people are pointing out that we had such a shitty offense, especially under the disasterous Shawn Watson.
One year we run the ball with impunity and can't pass the ball to save our lives. Then we can't run the ball to save our lives, but can pass really well.
People saying that Matthews was not utilized enough are not spouting some crazy theory, especially in a thread about Matthews.
Matthews is a “tough western PA kid” I agree he is tough and being a tough local is why many like him...BUT that does not make him an NFL WR. Because you are tall that automatically does not make you a good red zone WR. He did not display the ability to high point the ball like Mack or Wayne and he does not have the best hands.
The biggest issue he has in trying to make a team is speed. The kid is slow. People say he can add weight and become a TE but he is only 215 pounds so he would have to add a lot. That will make him even slower...btw most NFL TE’s have more speed than Matthews and they weigh a ton more.
Matthews played for 3 OC’s and 2 WR coaches and none of them thought much about him as a receiving option, that should tell you something. A kid like Wayne showed more natural WR ability in 5 games than Matthews did his entire career.
This sounds like I’m bashing Matthews but I’m a fan of the kid. Bottom line is he will have to find the perfect situation where a team is looking for a special teams ace like Matthew Slater, but that will be tough.
The biggest issue he has in trying to make a team is speed. The kid is slow. People say he can add weight and become a TE but he is only 215 pounds so he would have to add a lot. That will make him even slower...btw most NFL TE’s have more speed than Matthews and they weigh a ton more.
Matthews played for 3 OC’s and 2 WR coaches and none of them thought much about him as a receiving option, that should tell you something. A kid like Wayne showed more natural WR ability in 5 games than Matthews did his entire career.
This sounds like I’m bashing Matthews but I’m a fan of the kid. Bottom line is he will have to find the perfect situation where a team is looking for a special teams ace like Matthew Slater, but that will be tough.
I thought LB would have been better. Didn’t see him having the speed or quickness for S.
It just doesn't make sense. If you have a shitty offense, you should shine in practice, if you've got the ability and work hard. The coaches need to have faith and trust the player is without doubt the best option to get reps at whatever position you play. I think he's a great kid and repped PITT well.
My question is what evidence suggests he should take targets away from the others? I'm not being negative, I'm just trying to understand this common theme I've read on here about Matthews' under-utilization over the years.
I had Aaron as a student. A really nice young man; REALLY
good special teams player. Blocks well; obviously good size.
Not the fastest kid, but there should be a place in the league for him; he certainly deserves a UFA contract.
good special teams player. Blocks well; obviously good size.
Not the fastest kid, but there should be a place in the league for him; he certainly deserves a UFA contract.
I thought he should have bulked up, and moved to TE before last season.
I could be wrong but I put a lot more on our revolving door at OC. I'm not saying Aaron Matthews is a sure-fire NFL guy. I'm just saying I agree with the sentiment that he was underused at Pitt.
Matthews had the highest yards per catch last season. He didn't totally suck.
Maurice Ffrench had 96 catches with just 4 TDs, and too many were those stupid passes even with the line of scrimmage. Mack had 63 catches with 3 TDs.
I think too often Kenny focused solely on Ffrench to a detriment of the other receivers. I use the UNC game as an example. Ffrench did not play in that game and Pickett was forced to look at others, and nine different receivers caught a combined 25 passes in that one.
The game before against GT I think Ffrench had eight catches in the first half. In the second half he had three or four catches for minus 1 yard, I think. Against Tech Ffrench had 11 of the 25 total catches by six total.
It's not like our passing game was an air-raid offense. It was better than 2018 for sure, but still not great. Didn't we lead the nation with 30+ drops?
I'm not sure what your beef is with Matthews. I think he was a pretty good ball player that was underutilized. I don't think that is an outlandish statement.
If you think he sucked, fine and we will have to agree to disagree.
Because they threw the ball to Nakia-Stewart..that guy could catch COVID-19
I never thought he sucked. I just never saw anything that stood out that he should be taking reps away from other players. I don't know what anyone could base anything on when he didn't show anything.
To be underutilized one has to have some examples in either production - say Kevan Barlow as an example or great ability - Scott McKillop in his early years. Barlow would run for 100+ yards one game and only get 10-12 carries the following week. McKillop lit it up vs WVU his sophomore year when many in the program were saying he should've been on the field with Blades and Session prior to that opportunity. I've never heard those types of things with Matthews.
Narduzzi is and has been desperate for wins. If he has trust in his guys to produce, their going to get reps.
Hope the best for him
But he wasn’t able to make an impact in college -
Not sure why anyone sees nfl ability
But he wasn’t able to make an impact in college -
Not sure why anyone sees nfl ability
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