1. TJ Watt
2. Dare I say Paul Skenes?
3.
4.
5.
Who after that? I don't watch hockey, so I'm not qualified.
2. Dare I say Paul Skenes?
3.
4.
5.
Who after that? I don't watch hockey, so I'm not qualified.
Top 5 Current Pittsburgh Pro Athletes
- Thread starter TheWerewolfFromTwilight
- Start date
No way is Cam Heyward a top 5 athlete right now. Brian Reynolds would be ahead of him, for instance. I'm not talking about career accomplishments. Basically, who would be valued the most in an open market on a one-year contract.
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What active Pittsburgh pro athletes have won MVPs/POYs? Watt, Crosby, McCutchen. Has Malkin? All those guys are probably past their prime. Even Watt, although Watt is much closer to prime than any of them. Skenes might not be in Pittsburgh by the time he reaches his prime, who knows, but at least we have him for now.
1. Cam Johnson (highest paid)
2. Skenes
3. Watt
4. Crosby
5. who knows
Cam has a bunch of commercials
Bryan Reynolds doesn’t
I wouldn’t know who Reynolds was if he walked past me in a Reynolds jersey
Is your wife named Dorothy, and does she wrap you up in it?
Understandable that she'd want the more durable brand for that.
She does have ruby slippers but is not a fan of wrap music.
Any list that doesn't include Crosby should be eliminated immediately
Is he still a top 5 performer in the city? That's not rhetorical, because I don't watch hockey. He very well may be.
So...
1. Watt
2. Skenes
3.
4. Crosby
5. Brian Reynolds
... something like that? I refuse to submit to the Minkah Fitzpatrick hype, unless someone sits me down with some tape and shows me why his duties are such that I almost never notice him during a game. I noticed Troy. I notice Kyle Hamilton. Don't notice Minkah until someone overthrows a pass right into his bread basket for a centerfield interception. Not ruling out that he may be worthy of the hype, but I don't see it. Different duties, etc. I get it. But still. I noticed Chris Hope quite a bit the year they won a Super Bowl.
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I know this will be unpopular, but outside of the 4 you mention, the rest are clearly debatable. So here goes - I think the fifth one is George PIckens. The guy oozes talent. Had a strong rookie year and a stronger sophomore year. And every excuse you can make for Kenny (bad O-line, horrible OC, etc) can also be said about George, yet George hit the mystical 1,000 yard receiving bogey despite the challenges. This year will probably prove me right with a better oline, a real OC that loves to feed the ball to his #1 WR and a QB that has a history of success. So I'm going with:
1. Watt
2. Skenes
3. Crosby
4. Reynolds
5. Pickens
Watt was 2nd in DPOY voting this past season, wasn't he? Skenes, while fantastic, isn't the 2nd best pitcher in baseball. At least not yet.
Skenes will pass him soon, but I don't think he has yet.
1. Watt
2. Skenes
3. Sid
4. Reynolds
5. Cruz.
Shows you how much of a trough there is. 10 years ago you would have Sid. Ben. Malkin. Cutch. AB. Cole. Bell. Letang. MAF. Cam was just starting. Troy was nearing the end. Heath. Pouncey.
I mean then, Sid, Ben, AB, Geno, Cutch, Cole, Bell were at the top of their professions.
2. Skenes
3. Sid
4. Reynolds
5. Cruz.
Shows you how much of a trough there is. 10 years ago you would have Sid. Ben. Malkin. Cutch. AB. Cole. Bell. Letang. MAF. Cam was just starting. Troy was nearing the end. Heath. Pouncey.
I mean then, Sid, Ben, AB, Geno, Cutch, Cole, Bell were at the top of their professions.
isn't the 2nd best pitcher in baseball....what metric did you use to make that determination?
That's fair. Looking again, he would have the top ERA in baseball if he qualified with innings pitched. I thought there were a few who were lower, but I guess not.
I'm still taking Watt if we're talking about one year, because it's almost amazing how much an OLB can influence a team's W/L record like he can. Skenes isn't far behind, though. Maybe they're even 1 and 1A.
He crossed my mind as well, honestly. But I think he's probably missing that true breakout season. Definitely on the short-list for that next wave of potential great Pittsburgh athletes, along with Jared Jones, Broderick Jones, and some others.
All things considered, the overall caliber of Pittsburgh athletes are way down at the moment. Can you imagine me asking this question around ten years ago, give or take? You had Ben, Polamalu, Crosby, Malkin, McCutchen, Cole, Cam Heyward, Ward, Antonio Brown, Lev Bell, Letang, DeCastro, etc. Probably was a time when you had at least 8-10 Hall of Famers in this town. At least if you include guys like AB who are definitely HOF-caliber but probably won't make it.
pittdan77
Athletic Director
This is where my mind is at as I read these lists. Pittsburgh sports are just way, way down.
i am really lowering my expectations with Pickens for several reasons.. first one and probably the biggest reason, there is zero WRs on this roster other than him, meaning he will always be double (if not triple) teamed on every single passing down. if you are an opposing DC, are you even concerned about anyone else other than Pickens? Does scottie miller really worry you? Quez watkins? The little slot wr from michigan? of course not so therefor that will severely hamper Pickens production.
pickens seems to not have the mental fortitude to deal with this. maybe that's unfair but after a few games of being double teamed with little production, i see him "checking out" mentally. Wont see an AB kind of tirade of him taking off his clothes and leaving the field but expect to see him on bench, not listening to players and coaches and basically quitting on this team.
2nd, the system is extremely run dominant. throw in the fact that we have russ "check down" wilson, the king of passes under 4 yards and people expecting big things from Pickens are going to be extremely dissapointed..
and last, he really hasnt shown any ability to expand his route running other than the obligatory back shoulder catch down the sidelines. we saw this Martavis, we saw it with claypoole too. one hit wonders who's game never evolved.
im really thinking that trade with Dionte leaving for very little return is going to be disastrous for us and pickens especially. i know Dionte had his warts but he was at least an NFL caliber WR who kept some attention off of Pickens.
if im wrong, and i hope to be, i will gladly eat my words..
Yeah, Skenes hasn't done it nearly long enough yet but he seems like he will be legit. And Watt is definitely legit. After that, we're talking about an aged hockey player who is how many years past his prime as occupying that next spot?
We've often said we were lucky in this town. Well, we're seeing how the other half lives.
They definitely need to make a move for a guy like Sutton. No way they're going into the season with this bunch.
pittdan77
Athletic Director
Watt is definitely throwing up stats but in the big scheme of things, I don't see him as a top NFL defender for a host of reasons. Least of which is that he's mostly matched up against right tackles and totally faded when they tried him on the other side. Skenes is possibly at the top of the league right now and has tons and tons of potential but i really think he's heading for an arm injury and will be just "good" afterwards. Also, not a Pirate.
pittdan77
Athletic Director
Fairbanks and Babcock aren't pros so I would assume they weren't thought of for this list. Bub also hasn't really played, yet.
We talkin' about Pittsburgh professional teams, HOF. Last I checked, the Wizards were in Worshington and collegiate volleyball was not a professional sport. But I'll check again!
Yeah I wish I posted something like this. Ahem.
Hahaha, sincerely missed that. I clicked on a quote to one of my posts, which skips you ahead in the thread. My bad. Wow, it's actually kind of crazy how eerily similar the posts were - both using the ten year cutoff.
I feel like I Led Zeppelined you.
If the criteria is who would get the biggest contract on the open market right now, then it is Skenes without a doubt. Even if you adjusted for the different pay scales across sports, still Skenes.
If the NHL didn't have a salary cap, then I'd say Crosby might get a bigger deal on a 1 or 2 year contract from like Toronto, Rangers, etc., if you are willing to adjust for the fact that NHL has less money than MLB. That means grade the contract relative to the overall economy of the sport, not $ to $ against MLB.
If you are looking at accomplishments to date + current ability to still perform, I'd go Watt, Crosby, Skenes.
If the NHL didn't have a salary cap, then I'd say Crosby might get a bigger deal on a 1 or 2 year contract from like Toronto, Rangers, etc., if you are willing to adjust for the fact that NHL has less money than MLB. That means grade the contract relative to the overall economy of the sport, not $ to $ against MLB.
If you are looking at accomplishments to date + current ability to still perform, I'd go Watt, Crosby, Skenes.
Yeah, it would be adjusted for the different pay rates in sports and only be for each sports' respective next season. Skenes would by far get the biggest one if you're including his youth/future production ability in the equation.
Crosby at his age is still producing at an elite level. Additionally he might not be top 5 all time best player but he sure as hell is in the top 10 conversation, correct? I think he is an easy choice for current top 5 Pittsburgh athlete.
I can make an argument for Sid over Watt just because Watt is one dimensional (that's his position). But with the Pens missing the playoffs over the past 2 years and Sid still having great season, that detracts.
JPJ is another one who came to mind. I put him in that "to be determined" category with Broderick Jones, Pickens, etc. Need some of those guys to emerge and take that next step.
You’re clearly baseball centric
Which makes you a fan of the 3rd most popular pro sport in the city
You’re trying to make fetch happen .
Nobody knows or cares about pirate players outside of Skenes in this region
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