I just want to start this post by saying that I'm sitting in the Philadelphia airport en route to Columbus, OH for a weekend trip, and at my gate, I see not one, not two, but THREE people wearing Steeler gear. Outstanding work, Steeler Nation.
Count us as members of the Ben Roethlisberger Fan Club, or as Mondesi's House calls it, the Benwagon. I know its been disputed a lot over the past few weeks, but I still don't see how anyone can still rate Carson Palmer ahead of Roethlisberger. The tired old "he's on a better team" argument doesn't work anymore for Ben. Palmer has more weapons at his disposal and has done much less with them. Period.
Ben proved his value last Sunday with a great game against Cleveland. With the exception of a first-half interception, he was flawless. And he even ran for 49 yards and a score (the crucial 30-yard scamper in the fourth quarter). One of the problems I've had with Roethlisberger in his short career is that he has forced some balls into bad spots in the defense instead of tucking it in to run. The message seems to finally be getting through to him from the coaching staff. When Roethlisberger is playing like he is right now, there's not a QB in the league (except for Brady and Peyton Manning) that I'd rather have.
The receiving corps again impressed against the Browns. Is it time to recognize Heath Miller as one of the top five tight ends in football? Given his blocking ability and receiving acumen, I'm ready to put him up there.
Looking ahead to this week's game against the Jets, I must admit that I'm a little worried that New York will move the ball on the Steelers' defense. I don't have a very good explanation for this, but its just a hunch. With the Jets starting Kellen Clemens and having a bye last week for him to work with the first team offense, New York will certainly provide more of a challenge than if it had started Chad Pennington.
Also, I know its been said on a few other blogs, but Mike Tomlin, please, be careful with your challenges. Its not a good sign that Tomlin's challenge success percentage at the end of the year is likely to rival that of a Pittsburgh Pirates' player's batting average (if he's lucky).
Showing posts with label Recaps. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Recaps. Show all posts
11/16/2007
11/07/2007
Silverback Deserves the Gold Medal
In lieu of an actual recap of Monday night's thrashing of the Ravens, let's just think back again to the game that James "Silverback" Harrison played. The play that best summed up Harrison's complete domination Monday was when he sacked Steve McNair, forcing a fumble that Willis McGahee picked up. McGahee attempted to run with the ball but was forced back to his own goal line and tackled by, who else, Harrison. Just a great effort from #92 the entire night. I don't hear anyone asking for Joey Porter these days. Here are some other random thoughts from the game:
- What's up with Jeff Reed trying to fight someone? Calm down, Skippy, you're not at a bar on Carson Street at last call. No need to fight.
- The long touchdown to Nate Washington was the result of a great job by Ben Roethlisberger to get out of the pocket away from the pass rush and by Nate to change his route and run to the area of the field where Ben could hit him for a wide-open score. And Nate caught the ball, too! Baby steps, baby steps.
- Willie Parker didn't run the ball much, but hey, with a four-touchdown lead at the half, the Steelers weren't going to do much passing in the second half (Mike Tomlin is the coach, not Bill Belichick). So the Ravens knew that they could load up on the line to stop Fast Willie, which they did. No complaints, though. Its not like Willie is scoring touchdowns even when he's getting 150 yards in a game. As long as the Steelers score, that's all that matters.
- Big Ben is on pace for 40 touchdowns and has a passer rating of 111 thus far this season. Tell the truth - if I would have told that you Ben had 20 touchdown passes at week eight, would any of you be flashing back to the 2003 season of Tommy Gun and the shotgun offense that was quickly abandoned?
- Aaron Smith comes back this week against Cleveland, and the Steeler defense should look even better. Smith is the most underrated player on the entire squad, and he has been missed the past two games.
- It was great to see Troy Polamalu flying around the field Monday night. He's been banged up a bit, but this was the first game all year where I found myself watching him instead of the ball at times. His strip of McGahee was a thing of beauty.
- After the Steelers beat Cleveland 34-7 in week one, I remarked that the 2007 Browns had a chance to be remembered as one of the worst teams of all-time. Remember how they had four penalties called on them on one single play in that game??? But two days later, they traded Charlie Frye to Seattle and Derek Anderson has been incredible. Still, if you would have told me that the Steelers were up one game on Cleveland heading into the ninth game of the season, I would have predicted that Pittsburgh's record was 4-4, at best. Shows what I know.
- What's up with Jeff Reed trying to fight someone? Calm down, Skippy, you're not at a bar on Carson Street at last call. No need to fight.
- The long touchdown to Nate Washington was the result of a great job by Ben Roethlisberger to get out of the pocket away from the pass rush and by Nate to change his route and run to the area of the field where Ben could hit him for a wide-open score. And Nate caught the ball, too! Baby steps, baby steps.
- Willie Parker didn't run the ball much, but hey, with a four-touchdown lead at the half, the Steelers weren't going to do much passing in the second half (Mike Tomlin is the coach, not Bill Belichick). So the Ravens knew that they could load up on the line to stop Fast Willie, which they did. No complaints, though. Its not like Willie is scoring touchdowns even when he's getting 150 yards in a game. As long as the Steelers score, that's all that matters.
- Big Ben is on pace for 40 touchdowns and has a passer rating of 111 thus far this season. Tell the truth - if I would have told that you Ben had 20 touchdown passes at week eight, would any of you be flashing back to the 2003 season of Tommy Gun and the shotgun offense that was quickly abandoned?
- Aaron Smith comes back this week against Cleveland, and the Steeler defense should look even better. Smith is the most underrated player on the entire squad, and he has been missed the past two games.
- It was great to see Troy Polamalu flying around the field Monday night. He's been banged up a bit, but this was the first game all year where I found myself watching him instead of the ball at times. His strip of McGahee was a thing of beauty.
- After the Steelers beat Cleveland 34-7 in week one, I remarked that the 2007 Browns had a chance to be remembered as one of the worst teams of all-time. Remember how they had four penalties called on them on one single play in that game??? But two days later, they traded Charlie Frye to Seattle and Derek Anderson has been incredible. Still, if you would have told me that the Steelers were up one game on Cleveland heading into the ninth game of the season, I would have predicted that Pittsburgh's record was 4-4, at best. Shows what I know.
10/08/2007
Week Five - Steelers 21, Seahawks 0
Seattle fans can't complain about the officiating in this game. But they might find fault with their team's pathetic effort. Facing a Steeler squad missing Hines Ward, Santonio Holmes, Troy Polamalu and Casey Hampton, the Seahawks put up a goose egg on the scoreboard as the Steelers dominated time of possession en route to the first-ever shutout at Heinz Field.
The Good
Ben Roethlisberger looked like the 2004-05 version of himself. He was efficient (18 of 22, no interceptions), confident and made some great throws on the run. Najeh Davenport had an outstanding afternoon, while Fast Willie Parker put up another 100-yard game. The drive to start the second half (over 10 minutes long) was a thing of beauty. And the defense -- what else can you say about a shutout? Without blitzing very much, the Steeler D was still able to pressure Matt Hasselbeck and the coverage was outstanding. Ike Taylor's interception at the goal line to end the first half was a game-changer.
The Bad
Allen Rossum fumbled one punt and had another go off of his hands and then go out of bounds. It was great when Rossum ran the kickoff back for a touchdown against San Francisco a few weeks ago, but it also seems to have given him a false sense of security with regards to trying to run every kick or punt back, regardless of the situation. He needs to fair catch a few more of those punts instead of trying to make something happen.
The Ugly
Seattle's third-down defense against the Pittsburgh offense was awful. And so was the Seahawk effort throughout the game. It is hard to believe that Shaun Alexander was the MVP of the NFL just a few years ago. He looked a step slower every time he ran the ball. And Elizabeth Hasselbeck could have had more success at quarterback than her brother-in-law Matt had on Sunday.
Up Next: The Steelers are off this week before traveling to Denver the following week.
The Good
Ben Roethlisberger looked like the 2004-05 version of himself. He was efficient (18 of 22, no interceptions), confident and made some great throws on the run. Najeh Davenport had an outstanding afternoon, while Fast Willie Parker put up another 100-yard game. The drive to start the second half (over 10 minutes long) was a thing of beauty. And the defense -- what else can you say about a shutout? Without blitzing very much, the Steeler D was still able to pressure Matt Hasselbeck and the coverage was outstanding. Ike Taylor's interception at the goal line to end the first half was a game-changer.
The Bad
Allen Rossum fumbled one punt and had another go off of his hands and then go out of bounds. It was great when Rossum ran the kickoff back for a touchdown against San Francisco a few weeks ago, but it also seems to have given him a false sense of security with regards to trying to run every kick or punt back, regardless of the situation. He needs to fair catch a few more of those punts instead of trying to make something happen.
The Ugly
Seattle's third-down defense against the Pittsburgh offense was awful. And so was the Seahawk effort throughout the game. It is hard to believe that Shaun Alexander was the MVP of the NFL just a few years ago. He looked a step slower every time he ran the ball. And Elizabeth Hasselbeck could have had more success at quarterback than her brother-in-law Matt had on Sunday.
Up Next: The Steelers are off this week before traveling to Denver the following week.
10/04/2007
Week Four - Cardinals 21, Steelers 14
Its Thursday and I'm still mad about the way this game turned out. Therefore, not much to say this week.
The Good
The defense held the Cardinals off the scoreboard until the third quarter.
The Bad
The defense made both Kurt Warner AND Matt Leinart look good at times.
The Ugly
Ben Roethlisberger threw a pick in the end zone. And a penalty that causes a re-kick never turns out well. That's all I have to say for now.
The Good
The defense held the Cardinals off the scoreboard until the third quarter.
The Bad
The defense made both Kurt Warner AND Matt Leinart look good at times.
The Ugly
Ben Roethlisberger threw a pick in the end zone. And a penalty that causes a re-kick never turns out well. That's all I have to say for now.
9/25/2007
Week Three - Steelers 37, 49ers 16
The Steelers moved to 3-0 with another lopsided victory on the scoreboard, but once again, what does it mean? The competition has clearly been inferior, and even San Francisco was able to hang in the game until early in the fourth quarter. The defense continued to dominate, the offense was efficient and the special teams had its best game yet. And that led to another 20-plus point victory for the home team. Plus, the victories in the first two weeks went down another notch as both of those teams (Cleveland and Buffalo) lost on Sunday. With that said, it was a very solid performance and didn't give anyone a reason to think the Steelers are not a contender for a sixth Super Bowl. But I still want to see how they react to the first sign of adversity with a tough opponent.
The Good
With the struggles of the big four running backs (LaDanian Tomlinson, Steven Jackson, Larry Johnson, Frank Gore), Fast Willie is fast looking even more and more like a top-three back in the NFL this year. He currently leads the league in rushing, and despite no touchdowns again this week, he is making his impact felt all across the Steeler offense, as his early success running the ball gave Ben Roethlisberger a chance to take some shots down the field in the second half. Despite the absence of leading TD scorer Matt Spaeth, Roethlisberger continued to get the tight ends involved, as Heath Miller led the team with four catches for 82 yards and Jerame Tuman caught a touchdown pass. The defense was a bit soft on the first possession but was outstanding for the rest of the game after that. As I said earlier, the special teams had its best showing of the season. Allen Rossum's kickoff return for a touchdown led the Steelers back from their only deficit this season. Jeff Reed continued to kick at a Pro Bowl level, despite shaving his head. Rookie punter Daniel Sepulveda booted a kick inside the 10-yard line, where Bryant McFadden made a great play to save it before it went into the end zone.
The Bad
Pittsburgh once again let an opponent hang around too long. In the first two weeks, that meant Cleveland and Buffalo not out of it until the third quarter. And this past week, it was San Francisco hanging around until the fourth. Mike Tomlin's men need to have that killer instinct to be able to put teams away when given the chance, otherwise, that will come back to haunt them later in the season.
The Ugly
The Steeler defense held the 49ers out of the scoreboard for most of the game, but the stats show that it wasn't a dominating performance, at least in terms of total yardage. Sure, Pittsburgh held SF to 289 yards, but the Steelers themselves gained only 350 yards. San Francisco gained 5.1 yards per play, and that number will have to be reduced against better competition.
Up next: Arizona (1-2)
The Good
With the struggles of the big four running backs (LaDanian Tomlinson, Steven Jackson, Larry Johnson, Frank Gore), Fast Willie is fast looking even more and more like a top-three back in the NFL this year. He currently leads the league in rushing, and despite no touchdowns again this week, he is making his impact felt all across the Steeler offense, as his early success running the ball gave Ben Roethlisberger a chance to take some shots down the field in the second half. Despite the absence of leading TD scorer Matt Spaeth, Roethlisberger continued to get the tight ends involved, as Heath Miller led the team with four catches for 82 yards and Jerame Tuman caught a touchdown pass. The defense was a bit soft on the first possession but was outstanding for the rest of the game after that. As I said earlier, the special teams had its best showing of the season. Allen Rossum's kickoff return for a touchdown led the Steelers back from their only deficit this season. Jeff Reed continued to kick at a Pro Bowl level, despite shaving his head. Rookie punter Daniel Sepulveda booted a kick inside the 10-yard line, where Bryant McFadden made a great play to save it before it went into the end zone.
The Bad
Pittsburgh once again let an opponent hang around too long. In the first two weeks, that meant Cleveland and Buffalo not out of it until the third quarter. And this past week, it was San Francisco hanging around until the fourth. Mike Tomlin's men need to have that killer instinct to be able to put teams away when given the chance, otherwise, that will come back to haunt them later in the season.
The Ugly
The Steeler defense held the 49ers out of the scoreboard for most of the game, but the stats show that it wasn't a dominating performance, at least in terms of total yardage. Sure, Pittsburgh held SF to 289 yards, but the Steelers themselves gained only 350 yards. San Francisco gained 5.1 yards per play, and that number will have to be reduced against better competition.
Up next: Arizona (1-2)
9/18/2007
Week Two - Steelers 26, Bills 3
Another week and more of the same from the Black and Gold, with a dominating defense and an efficient offense leading the way in the win over a clearly inferior opponent. So what does that mean? Honestly, I'm not sure. Does the Cleveland win look better now because the Browns outlasted Cincinnati in a 51-45 shootout? Sure it does. Is Cleveland any good? No, they're still bad. The Bengals' defense is just worse. And Buffalo played pretty well in week one against Denver, but J.P. Losman and company had about as much success against the Steelers as Idaho Senator Larry Craig had in Minneapolis International Airport.
The Good
The offensive line looked better than in week one, opening good holes for Willie Parker and Deuce Davenport while giving Ben Roethlisberger the time he needed to look downfield when the plays called for it. Fast Willie had the usual bounce in his step and did a good job of breaking runs outside when the opportunity arose. Matt Spaeth caught his second touchdown in two weeks, leaving him on pace to shatter the team's single-season record of touchdown receptions by a tight end. The defense was aggressive and didn't allow Losman to get comfortable. Rookie tailback Marshawn Lynch had a couple of nice runs along the way to 64 yards, but for the most part, the Steelers were able to use the early lead to force Buffalo into throwing the ball. Larry Foote did a nice job of getting interior pressure that led to a few sacks by the outside linebackers. LaMarr Woodley looked good after subbing for James Harrison in the second half. And DeShea Townsend continued to play well and hold off Bryant McFadden for the starting corner spot opposite Ike Taylor. Oh, and Daniel Sepulveda only had to punt one time.
The Bad
For the second week in a row the Steelers should have had the game in hand by halftime but couldn't convert on some prime chances. Last week it was the numerous drives starting in Cleveland territory - this week it was the offense driving down the field but settling for field goals. As a result, the Steelers only led 12-0 at the half instead of at least 20-0 as it should have been, and when Buffalo ran the opening kick of the second half back to Pittsburgh's 30-yard line, it looked like the Bills might climb back in the game. Speaking of that play, even though the story is that Mike Tomlin didn't see the replay of Terrance McGee stepping out of bounds on that return, someone associated with the Steelers had to have seen it, right? It was obvious that he was out of bounds, and luckily the lack of a challenge flag didn't come back to hurt the Black and Gold. James Harrison got stretchered off at the end of the first half but was okay and wanted to come back to the game in the third quarter, which the doctors had to convince him was a bad idea.
The Ugly
It might be a theme on here with Alex Smith and Matt Leinart playing Pittsburgh in the next few weeks, but man, it must be tough for a young quarterback to have to try to solve Dick LeBeau. In week one, Charlie Frye (who'd played a few games against the Steelers in the past two years) played so bad that he got traded two days later. And he was replaced by Derek Anderson, who looked awful against Pittsburgh but managed to bounce back with five touchdowns against Cincy. Week two saw Losman give it a shot, and he failed to impress. He was 15 of 25 for 154 yards with no TDs, no INTs and one fumble lost, but the Bills offense never really threatened. That's certainly not a good sign for the aforementioned Smith and Leinart. And in a criticism of the CBS broadcast, how could Harrison's neck injury be ignored during the halftime show and only shown when the broadcast team came back for the call of the second half? Not only is that bad to ignore a possible news-worthy event, but especially since it was just one week after Buffalo's Kevin Everett suffered a potentially paralyzing injury, and this was Everett's team involved in maybe another such situation seven days later! Luckily Everett's prognosis is much improved and Harrison is fine and should play this week against the 49ers.
Up next: San Francisco (2-0)
The Good
The offensive line looked better than in week one, opening good holes for Willie Parker and Deuce Davenport while giving Ben Roethlisberger the time he needed to look downfield when the plays called for it. Fast Willie had the usual bounce in his step and did a good job of breaking runs outside when the opportunity arose. Matt Spaeth caught his second touchdown in two weeks, leaving him on pace to shatter the team's single-season record of touchdown receptions by a tight end. The defense was aggressive and didn't allow Losman to get comfortable. Rookie tailback Marshawn Lynch had a couple of nice runs along the way to 64 yards, but for the most part, the Steelers were able to use the early lead to force Buffalo into throwing the ball. Larry Foote did a nice job of getting interior pressure that led to a few sacks by the outside linebackers. LaMarr Woodley looked good after subbing for James Harrison in the second half. And DeShea Townsend continued to play well and hold off Bryant McFadden for the starting corner spot opposite Ike Taylor. Oh, and Daniel Sepulveda only had to punt one time.
The Bad
For the second week in a row the Steelers should have had the game in hand by halftime but couldn't convert on some prime chances. Last week it was the numerous drives starting in Cleveland territory - this week it was the offense driving down the field but settling for field goals. As a result, the Steelers only led 12-0 at the half instead of at least 20-0 as it should have been, and when Buffalo ran the opening kick of the second half back to Pittsburgh's 30-yard line, it looked like the Bills might climb back in the game. Speaking of that play, even though the story is that Mike Tomlin didn't see the replay of Terrance McGee stepping out of bounds on that return, someone associated with the Steelers had to have seen it, right? It was obvious that he was out of bounds, and luckily the lack of a challenge flag didn't come back to hurt the Black and Gold. James Harrison got stretchered off at the end of the first half but was okay and wanted to come back to the game in the third quarter, which the doctors had to convince him was a bad idea.
The Ugly
It might be a theme on here with Alex Smith and Matt Leinart playing Pittsburgh in the next few weeks, but man, it must be tough for a young quarterback to have to try to solve Dick LeBeau. In week one, Charlie Frye (who'd played a few games against the Steelers in the past two years) played so bad that he got traded two days later. And he was replaced by Derek Anderson, who looked awful against Pittsburgh but managed to bounce back with five touchdowns against Cincy. Week two saw Losman give it a shot, and he failed to impress. He was 15 of 25 for 154 yards with no TDs, no INTs and one fumble lost, but the Bills offense never really threatened. That's certainly not a good sign for the aforementioned Smith and Leinart. And in a criticism of the CBS broadcast, how could Harrison's neck injury be ignored during the halftime show and only shown when the broadcast team came back for the call of the second half? Not only is that bad to ignore a possible news-worthy event, but especially since it was just one week after Buffalo's Kevin Everett suffered a potentially paralyzing injury, and this was Everett's team involved in maybe another such situation seven days later! Luckily Everett's prognosis is much improved and Harrison is fine and should play this week against the 49ers.
Up next: San Francisco (2-0)
9/10/2007
Week One - Steelers 34, Browns 7
Mike Tomlin did something that no other Steelers coach has done - he won his first game in Cleveland. Of course, those other coaches presumably played against real Cleveland teams rather than the pseudo-professional squad that took the field on Sunday. Here's a question for you - if you're a Browns fan, is it worse to follow this team than it was to deal with Art Modell taking your franchise to Baltimore and then watching the Ravens win a Super Bowl? The incompetence was evident throughout the game, but the lowlight for Cleveland was clearly the muffed punt snap by punter Paul Ernster, who was signed Saturday because starter Dave Zastudil decided to tell coach Romeo Crennel over the weekend that he felt like he might hurt the team if he played with an injury. Maybe Crennel should have flipped a coin to decide who his punter should have been. Wouldn't be a new strategy for him. Anyways, back to the travails of Ernster, who couldn't field a perfect snap and then finally retrieved the ball and kicked one off the side of his foot while on the run. If that wasn't bad enough, the Browns were whistled for FOUR penalties on the play. Just a few plays later, Ben Roethlisberger hit Hines Ward for a beautiful TD pass and the rout was on. Anyways, here's the Good, the Bad and the Ugly of this week's game.
The Good
The defense played great for Dick LeBeau on his 70th birthday. The pressure on the quarterback looked much better than last year, especially from the linebackers. Ike Taylor had a sack and an interception in his first step toward recovering his 2005 form. Roethlisberger was efficient, and threw four TDs and no picks. Even though his percentage wasn't great, you can chalk up a lot of that to dropped passes. And the Steelers even threw to the tight ends, with Heath Miller and Matt Spaeth catching touchdowns!
The Bad
The aforementioned dropped passes would have come back to haunt the Steelers against probably 30 other NFL teams. Luckily this was Cleveland. The offensive line wasn't exactly dominant, especially in the first half before the Browns basically gave up. Allen Rossum looked like he was intent on proving Tomlin right for trading for him a week ago, but in his haste to field and return every punt that went his way, he left me with a feeling that a similar attitude this week could lead to one of those fumbled punts that troubled the Steelers throughout 2006 and have already made Andy Reid want to try some of his sons' drugs in 2007. And the wasted field position in the first half makes me nervous for the future. And Cedric Wilson wasn't very involved in the offense, so I'm sure we'll hear from "Plaxico Without the Height" pretty soon.
The Ugly
The Browns. Plain and simple. Its hard to tell how good this Steelers team is because Cleveland played one of the worst games I've ever seen an "NFL" team play. The Steelers should have been up 35-0 at the half, but despite the wasted opportunities, the game was still never in doubt.
Up next: Buffalo (0-1)
The Good
The defense played great for Dick LeBeau on his 70th birthday. The pressure on the quarterback looked much better than last year, especially from the linebackers. Ike Taylor had a sack and an interception in his first step toward recovering his 2005 form. Roethlisberger was efficient, and threw four TDs and no picks. Even though his percentage wasn't great, you can chalk up a lot of that to dropped passes. And the Steelers even threw to the tight ends, with Heath Miller and Matt Spaeth catching touchdowns!
The Bad
The aforementioned dropped passes would have come back to haunt the Steelers against probably 30 other NFL teams. Luckily this was Cleveland. The offensive line wasn't exactly dominant, especially in the first half before the Browns basically gave up. Allen Rossum looked like he was intent on proving Tomlin right for trading for him a week ago, but in his haste to field and return every punt that went his way, he left me with a feeling that a similar attitude this week could lead to one of those fumbled punts that troubled the Steelers throughout 2006 and have already made Andy Reid want to try some of his sons' drugs in 2007. And the wasted field position in the first half makes me nervous for the future. And Cedric Wilson wasn't very involved in the offense, so I'm sure we'll hear from "Plaxico Without the Height" pretty soon.
The Ugly
The Browns. Plain and simple. Its hard to tell how good this Steelers team is because Cleveland played one of the worst games I've ever seen an "NFL" team play. The Steelers should have been up 35-0 at the half, but despite the wasted opportunities, the game was still never in doubt.
Up next: Buffalo (0-1)
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