Tuesday News from the P-G

Hooray, Fast Willie Parker is going to get on the field this weekend. This can't happen soon enough for me, its already tough enough to justify taking him #1 overall on my Fantasy Football team. It will be interesting to see how long Tomlin keeps the starters in this next game. Usually the third preseason game is the one where the starters get most of the work. However he treated last game just like the first so this one will probably be played like their second game, which means maybe the starters will see a quarter.

However this article about Faneca seemed like nothing more than a stir up the shit with the disgruntled player.The article, titled Faneca debates versatility question, basically asks Faneca if he was asked to move to left tackle because of injury would he. He says yes, because he would do anything to help the players on the field. But first he expresses some doubt about it. Is it really necessary to fan this flame? It really does seem like asking a disgruntled player a question hoping to escalate an already tenuous situation. When the player doesn't take the bait you go ahead and try and escalate the situation anyway. Maybe Bouchette is making his move to try and get with the New York Post? Or maybe I'm crazy, and people actually care about this.

Reaction to 2nd Pre-Season Game and Email Exchange

Mario and I have watched most Steelers games together for the past 3 years, with the notable exception of the postseason of the Super Bowl Year when we both found separate lucky spots. (Don't believe in that kind of thing? Read Super Bowl Year). This year we are far apart so we will be watching the games separately which will inevitably lead to some email exchanges about the games. If there is anything good or semi-interesting we will put them up. Just a warning, we are prolific emailers so this could get long.

From: David

Nate Washington dropped like a 40 yard bomb, although it looked like he might have caught it, there wasn't a good replay.

Max Starks played HORRIBLY. It was great to have the Steelers announcers for the first half. When something happened they specifically talked about how it affected the Steelers, such as the sacks, they weren't giving Green Bay credit they were crushing Max.

From: Mario

Yeah, from what I heard on the radio and read in the articles, that
wouldn't even be classified as a drop by the coaching staff because he
made a great effort and possibly even did make the catch.

From: David

It’s still factually incorrect.

From: David

Also, I think you underestimate how solid both the first and second team defense looked, the CBs were breaking up plays, getting to the receiver at the same time as the ball and knocking it loose. Closing down holes. Green Bay didn't get a first against our first or second team defense.

From: Mario

I think you overestimate the Packers offense. They were awful last
year and don't appear to have gotten any better at all. But yeah, I
was pleased with the D.

From: David

Like I said, what I was most impressed with was how the Cornerbacks were Ball Hawking, just being in the exactly the right spot all the time

From: Mario

That is good to hear, since they were basically awful all of last
year. You think McFadden beats out Deshea for a starting spot?

From: David

I don't know, he played well, DeShea had the penalty on Cedric’s punt return. Neither one seemed to get burned or anything

From: Mario

Here's another question - if Cedric does indeed get the job as punt
returner (or if Santonio does, for that matter), does Willie Reid make
the team? He hasn't really proven enough to earn a spot solely as a
receiver/special teams guy, especially without the return aspect, has
he?

From: David

No, Willie Reid does not make the team.

Would It Have Been Too Much to Ask Them to Settle It On the Field?

Anytime the Steelers struggle, at least we as fans have this to remember - at least we don't root for Cleveland. Tortured Cleveland fans now get to cheer for a team where coach Romeo Crennel decided yesterday's starting quarterback via a coin flip! Crennel couldn't decide between Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson (Where was Brady Quinn? Getting a manicure or something?) so he went to a coin toss. I wonder if he went with the same rules as the NFL game coin toss, where the call has to be made before the toss (after the 1997 Thanksgiving Day debacle with Jerome Bettis against the Lions). Did Frye get to call it since he's technically the incumbent? And if this had happened in Pittsburgh, would the coin toss have been carried live on all of the local networks? Frye did win the toss, for what that's worth. That may be his only victory of the year.

Preseason Game No. 2 - Steelers vs. Packers Recap

The Black and Gold made their first appearance of the 2007 season at Heinz Field on Saturday night for a game against the Green Bay Packers. Both teams' starters struggled a bit, though the Steelers second team got out to a 9-0 lead before the Packers rallied in the second half for a 13-9 victory.

The game was blacked out in my area but replays are being shown multiple times this week on the NFL Network (see previous post). However, I was able to listen to Bill Hillgrove and Tunch Ilkin's radio broadcast for most of the game, and here are my thoughts:

The no-huddle offense that Bruce Arians had Ben Roethlisberger and the first team offense come out with is tough to exhibit in a preseason game. First of all, Arians is obviously going to want to hide a lot of the wrinkles the team has been working on in order to save them for the regular season. Secondly, the no-huddle is very dependent on a quarterback being in rhythm, and that's tough to ask that of Ben on the very first series of the game. And thirdly, and most importantly in my mind, the no-huddle is much more effective to use against a defense that is worn down at a later point in the game. Its not as if the Packers were gasping for air after three plays. I'm excited to see how the Steelers utilize the new package this year, but for this game, it didn't work.

Charlie Batch looked very good again. He's proving (if he hasn't already proved it) that he is one of the most dependable and serviceable backup signal callers in the league. Batch was 3 of 5 for 97 yards and a touchdown, with the score being on a 41-yard pass to Walter Young. Brian St. Pierre came in for the second half and was 10 of 23 for 99 yards in mostly ineffective play.

The offensive line is definitely a concern. For as good as the line looked last week in roughing up the Saints' defensive front, the opposite happened this weekend. The Disgruntled Alan Faneca was out, and that obviously hurt, but the Steelers gave up three sacks from the left tackle position, where Max Starks got some playing time in a tryout role as opposed to his normal right tackle spot.

The guy who was the darling of Steeler Nation last week, RB Carey Davis, didn't get the ball this week, though he did make some nice special teams plays. However, undrafted rookie Gary Russell looked good once again. After rushing for 41 yards on eight carries against New Orleans, Russell led the Steelers with 56 yards on nine attempts against the Packers. Najeh Davenport started once again in place of Willie Parker and had 34 yards on seven carries, though 21 of those yards came on one run. Kevan Barlow had 25 yards on six carries, including a 17-yard burst.

As for the receivers, Walter Young is trying his best to stay off of the practice squad this year. Young had two catches for 50 yards including that touchdown. Santonio Holmes continued to look like he's in for a big year, with a 49-yard catch and run. Nate Washington didn't even drop a pass!

The special teams play had its ups and downs. Daniel Sepulveda boomed five punts for an average of 49.8 yards, including a 59-yarder in the second quarter that went out of bounds inside the 20-yard line. Cedric Wilson staked his claim to be the punt returner with two runbacks for an average of 19 yards. However, Jeff Reed had a PAT blocked.

Defensively there were no individual standout performances, though rookie William Gay had another solid game, including recording the Steelers' only sack. Pittsburgh held Brett Favre to 2 of 7 passing for 7 yards. So for those keeping track at home, Favre and Drew Brees have combined to go 3 of 13 for 13 yards against the first-team D. Not too shabby. Up next for the Steelers is the third game of the preseason, Saturday at 8 p.m. at Washington.

Preseason Games on NFL Network

This year the NFL Network is televising all 52 preseason games not broadcast on National TV. This is great news for those with the NFL Network. Most of the games will be taped not live and many will be from local stations. The NFL Network will use the announcers from both teams, one for each half.

Here is the television schedule for the Pittsburgh Steelers on the NFL Network, so fire up your TIVOs

Green Bay Packers at Pittsburgh Steelers will air Sunday, August 12, 2007 at 5pm NFLN.
(The game will be played Saturday August 11 at 7:30pm)

Pittsburgh Steelers at Washington Redskins will air Sunday, August 19, 2007 at 2pm NFLN
(The game will be played Saturday August 18 at 8:00pm)

Philadelphia Eagles at Pittsburgh Steelers will be aired live on NBC's Sunday night Package at 8:00pm August 26, 2007.

Pittsburgh Steelers at Carolina Panthers will air Sunday, September 2 2007 at 11am NFLN
(The game will be played Thursday August 30th at 8pm)

The last game is a pretty brutal turnaround but the last game usually doesn't see many starters play for very long. The preseason games are great for watching the young talent that could be the future of the team. Carey Davis and William Gay both had great plays in the Hall Of Game and it will be interesting to see if they continue or if others step up. It will also be interesting to watch the defense adjust and see if any of Mike Tomlin's philosophy sneaks in.

Quick Hit Thoughts From the HOF Game

The Hall of Fame game is in the books and football season has officially started. The Pittsburgh Steelers rolled the New Orleans Saints. The first preseason game means next to nothing but it was nice to see the players hitting hard and executing well so early in the season.

Here are some quick thoughts from the game.

Hopefully Cedric is happy now. He got most of the looks when he was in the game and did well with them. He's needs to stop complaining and recognize that this is a team where you sacrifice stats for wins. He is becoming a short Plaxico Burress in his attitude, it will be interesting to see how long Tomlin and Hines Ward are going to put up with that.

Woodley looked solid in his time in the game, breaking up a pass by diving in front of the receiver.

The overall defense looked strong and looked like a Dick LeBeau defense.

Nate Washington needs to learn how to catch if he is ever going to make an impact on this team.

Great to see all the coverage problems have been fixed. The refs saved Reid on that fumble. The Steelers have to do better in that respect.

Carey Davis looked very solid. It will be interesting to see if he can keep the pace up. He was more impressive than Najeh or Barlow.

St. Pierre's fade to Santonio was beautiful. As was Ben's deep toss to Cedric.

Hey Robert Meachem, welcome to the NFL, a guy named Gay laid your ass out.

The Not So Lazy Days of Latrobe Are Here!

I happened to be looking at my calendar yesterday and noticed that it was only two weeks until the Steelers kick off their preseason schedule in the Hall of Fame game against the Saints. Wow. Now I'm excited to see how many two-a-days Mike Tomlin can fit in before that contest, as your 2007-(hopefully)2008 Steelers will report to St. Vincent's College in Latrobe today at 4 p.m. for the start of training camp. Here are a few links to get you ready for camp:

The P-G's excellent two-part feature on our new fearless leader (Part I) (Part II)

Ed Bouchette's Five Pressing Topics

Bouchette's Position-by-Position Look at the Team - Love the description of a Hines Ward as a "Rolex in a Timex Body" and Ricardo Colclough, summed up by "the bloom is off his rose".

The Trib gives us a look at what diversions the players are bringing to camp. I like Nate Washington, second-guessing himself after being asked the question, after first saying that he'd bring a TV.

"No I take that back, a computer. I have to have Internet. I love playing on the Internet, anything from e-mailing, MySpace, playing little games on the computer to YouTube."

Here's John Harris of the Trib's "Five Issues Steelers Must Address"

In the Beaver County Times, Mike Bires has a Q&A with Tomlin.

And just in case you haven't had enough of it, here's the BCT's version of Five Burning Questions.

Omar Khan is Awesome

I think it's fair to say that most Steeler fans weren't exactly thrilled to see that uberagent Drew "No Comment" Rosenhaus was the representative of first-round draft choice Lawrence Timmons. But apparently ubersalary cap guy Omar Khan is just that good, as Timmons signed a five-year deal today worth between $12 million and $15 million, depending on incentives. Just over $8 million of that is guaranteed, and it appears to be right in line with what last year's 15th overall pick received. And most importantly, all of the Steeler draft choices are now signed and will report to camp tomorrow, along with The Disgruntled Alan Faneca (yes, that's his official name now, at least here on IWIWAR). So far, so good, for Mike Tomlin.

Meet the New Coaching Staff - Amos Jones

Leading to the start of training camp next week, we'll be taking some time here at IWIWAR to introduce you to the new Steelers coaching staff, culminating with a look at new head coach Mike Tomlin. Click on the Meet the Staff tag below to see previous articles. Today, we'll take a look at new assistant special teams coach Amos Jones.








Amos Jones - Assistant Special Teams Coach
Age: 47
Education: Alabama
Professional Playing Experience: None

What to Like: Obviously his first name, Amos. Could he be a member of Bill Simmons' Reggie Cleveland All-Stars? Plus he played for Bear Bryant at Alabama. How much did he play? Eh, not so sure. His official bio says that he played on the 1978 and 1979 teams, but that he lettered on the 1980 squad, so he definitely got some PT that season.

What Not to Like: Not only does Amos not have any professional experience, but he has multiple instances of high school coaching experience, including in the past 10 years. Looking back on his coaching stops, he went from Temple to Shades Valley High School in 1986 (although that might have been a step up, given Temple's football history). He was the kicking game coordinator at Pitt in 1992 and parlayed that into an assistant coaching position at Eau Gallie High School in Florida. After jumping back into college coaching at Tulane in 1995-96, he pulled off that rarely seen coaching jump - NCAA to CFL to high school. Must've been a great experience for those players at East St. John High School in Louisiana! Oh yes, and it appears that he got fired from his most recent job, with Mississippi State!

Random Internet Find: The new coach shares a name with one of the lead characters of Amos 'n' Andy. Also, not only did Mississippi State fire him, but apparently Cincinnati did, too!

Good news for Browns fans!

Guess what, Cleveland? As if your last place ranking by SI.com's Peter King wasn't enough, now a water pipe burst at your stadium and the Browns have canceled Family Fun Night as a result! I'm sure that a photo of Brady Quinn deliberating screwing with the pipes will pop up on the Internet sometime soon.

The Quinn Quiz

With all of the random funny Brady Quinn pictures floating around the Internet (Thanks, Deadspin and Mondesi's House!), we decided to blur the line between fact and fiction and show you a set of photos with Quinn in them. You just need to decide if they are real or fake. Which is real and which is fake? Or more appropriately, which pictures have already been taken in real life and which are sure to be snapped in the next few months? Ladies and gentlemen, starting at quarterback for your 2007 Cleveland Browns, #10, Brady Quinn!










Brady in a pink shirt, grabbing some kid's junk.













Brady with Hollywood Hulk Hogan.
















Brady with Bret Michaels of Poison fame (and also a big Steeler fan).














Brady with former NBA player John Amaechi and *NSYNC star Lance Bass












Brady with the Village People on the cover of the re-release of their Greatest Hits album.

YouTube Clip of the Week

I'm just wondering how these people got a camera in there.

Mistaken Identities

These people may share the same names as your favorite Steelers, but they are most definitely different.


Willie Parker

Charlie Batch

Heath Miller

Kendall Simmons

Willie Reid

Meet the New Coaching Staff - Randy Fichtner

Leading to the start of training camp in July, we'll be taking some time here at IWIWAR to introduce you to the new Steelers coaching staff, culminating with a look at new head coach Mike Tomlin. Click on the Meet the Staff tag below to see previous articles. Today, we'll take a look at new wide receivers coach Randy Fichtner.



Randy Fichtner - WR Coach
Age: 44
Education: Purdue
Professional Playing Experience: None

What to Like: A Meadville native, Fichtner coached with Mike Tomlin at both Arkansas State and Memphis, where he had been the offensive coordinator for the past six seasons. One of his best seasons came with current Carolina Panther DeAngelo Williams in the backfield in 2004, as the Tigers finished 10th in the nation in scoring.

What Not to Like: Fichtner has no NFL experience. And he has a daughter with the same first name as our new running backs coach (Kirby) - that's never a good sign.

Random Internet Find: While there are serious doubts about this, it is always fun when someone speculates on a message board that Fichtner's new house used to be owned by Mr. Rogers.

Carson Palmer Loves the Black and Gold

Cincinnati quarterback Carson Palmer has put up some great numbers in his first few years in the league, but he's had his struggles against the Steelers, throwing seven interceptions in his six career games against the Steelers (well, that's counting regular season games, and I'm pretty sure he didn't throw any picks in that playoff game two years ago because of a guy named Kimo). So it should not surprise anyone that Carson was playing in a celebrity golf tournament last year and managed to hit a wayward approach shot that nailed an 8-year old kid on the back - a kid who happened to be wearing a Steelers jersey. Somehow Carson's golf shots, as well as his passes, just end up going right to the Steelers jerseys.

“I got up there and I said I was sorry, and I said, 'At least you're a Steelers fan, I don't feel so bad,'” Palmer said.

Neither do we, Carson. Neither do we.

Catching Up on the News

Before we get to the latest from Steeler Nation, we'd like to extend our apologies for the lack of updates in June. No excuses, though. July marks the start of training camp, so we're going to ramp up our coverage of the Black and Gold as they make the trek to Latrobe. Soon, we'll be releasing a weekly schedule of updates and what you can expect from IWIWAR once the 2007 regular season begins.

LeCharles Bentley wants to make a comeback from his patella injury turned staph infection, and he even thinks he'll be back for the season opener against the Steelers. LeCharles, have you met Casey Hampton? Maybe you should consider waiting until week two.

Scroll down on this link until the arrests for Copley Township. Not only did the Pittsburgh guy get arrested for fighting a Cleveland fan (in Ohio, too!) at a bar, but his lady friend got arrested for pulling another female out of the car and fighting her. Can't wait for that season opener!

Its good to see that (Face Me) Ike Taylor didn't charge Anthony Madison any rent for staying in his apartment. And its also great to see Ike mocking someone for dropping passes, giving his penchant for struggling to make easy interceptions the past two years.

YouTube Clip of the Week

Yinz - The Movie!

The Dungy Coaching Tree of Woe

New Steeler head coach Mike Tomlin comes from the Tony Dungy coaching tree. You'd think right away that learning from the most-recent Super Bowl winning coach would be a good thing. That may turn out to be true, but in the first year? Let's see what Tony and the other Dungy disciples did in their first seasons.

Tony Dungy - 1996 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Bucs finished strong in those (not so) classic old jerseys, going 5-2 before switching to the pewter uniforms and making the playoffs in Dungy's second season. But still, 6-10 is 6-10.
First-year record: 6-10

Herman Edwards - 2001 New York Jets
Herm took over from Bill Parcells and had a strong first season with most of Parcells' personnel left over, taking Gang Green to the playoffs.
First-year record: 10-6

Lovie Smith - 2004 Chicago Bears
Injuries took their toll on the Bears in Smith's first year, though the defense improved nearly 10 spots in league rankings.
First-year record: 5-11

Rod Marinelli - 2006 Detroit Lions
The last of the Dungy disciples to get a head job in the NFL before Tomlin debuted last year in Detroit. While 2006 was a struggle for the Lions, Jon Kitna apparently thinks 2007 will be better.
First-year record: 3-13

To sum it up, Tony Dungy and his disciples are a combined 24-40 in their debut seasons as head coaches, an average year of 6-10. Somehow it doesn't feel like Steeler Nation will be happy with that record this year.

P.S. - The other Dungy disciple who went to a high-profile coaching job was Mike Shula, his former offensive coordinator with Tampa Bay. Shula's record in his first year at Alabama? 4-9.

That Will Be Enough, Mr. Roethlisberger

Ben Roethlisberger apparently reiterated that he and Coach Cowher were never tight and that he likes Coach Tomlinn because treats him like a man and doesn't yell at him. Let's review some facts:
1. Bill Cowher told Ben to wear a helmet if he was going to ride his motorcycle, even called him out in public. Ben didn't do it, busted his head.

2. Bill Cowher trusted Ben to play in the opening season game last year agaisnt Jacksonville, too quickly after appendix surgery. I was at that game, Charlie Batch could have won that game. After the game Ben claimed to have had a 104 degree fever. Have you ver had a 104 degree fever, it sucks, you can't move or play football. Although everyone backed off of that statement, if Ben felt like he wasn't well enough to play he owed to his team, teamates, coaches, and fans to step aside. That is what a man would do.

3. He singlehandley cost the Steelers the Raiders game with absolutely game killing interceptions on the goal line in what statistically should have been a blowout.

There were numerous other occasions where Ben, who lead the league in interceptions last year made bad mistakes but these three really stick with me. Remember, the Steelers missed the playoffs by one game, if either of those two had been victories, Pittsburgh could have gone to the playoffs.

Last season Ben Roethlisberger received a pass from the media and the fans, but the fact remains that if he would have played average in a couple of games, just average, the Steelers would have at least had a chance to defend their title.

I am perfectly willing to give Ben a pass as well after all the great things that he has done, but Ben, please stop talking. Every time you talk about problems with Cowher, or how he treated you like a kid it makes me want to slap you! You acted like a little kid last year and if that is how Bill Cowher chose to treat you, maybe he had a reason.

Why Old People Shouldn't Use Computers

Dear Larry Zierling,
Why do you want to be that guy? You know the guy who doesn’t quite understand how the email machine works and forwards pornographic material to your entire address book. I know this new technology is tough for you older guys, but you do you realize that the email you forwarded to all the Rooneys and other General Managers had my email address as the one who forwarded it to you? I’m thrilled that Roger Goodell’s secretary knows that I like to look at young girls in various states of undress.

Thanks.

A lot.

Doug Whaley

PS. Seriously how could you be so dumb? You realize that I am in every story that comes out about this now. When people google my name it is probably going to be one of the first things that comes up forever. Thanks again.