Clearing my head
By Mike Batista
One last thing about the Steelers' loss to the Jets before we look ahead to tonight's game against the Panthers.
I was already sick of the Mark Sanchez public service announcement about women's heart health that constantly plays on KDKA the Fan, then that overhyped pretty boy goes out and beats the Steelers.
Of course, that's not the only spot that's been overplayed on TV and radio during the holiday season. Which Christmas car commercial are you most sick of? Vote in my poll.
If you're a Pittsburgh sports fan, you're likely to see each of those nauseating Hyundai, Honda and Lexus commercials at least a dozen times tonight during either the Penguins-Capitals game or the Panthers-Steelers game. The question is, which game will you be watching? Vote in my other poll.
Finally, a little bit of actual football talk. The Steelers are making the right move sitting Troy Polamalu tonight. If they can't beat the 2-12 Panthers at home without Polamalu, they don't deserve to be in the playoffs. Then, if the Steelers need to win in Cleveland on Jan. 2 to get that crucial first-round bye, Polamalu has another 10 days to rest, in addition to the 11 days that he's already rested.
Kickoff's in four and a half hours. Go Steelers!
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Bad date
Jets 22, Steelers 17
By Mike Batista
This was like "Hitch" in reverse.
Mike Tomlin, who despite looking like Omar Epps could be played by a bulked-up Will Smith, might be smoother and more articulate than blowhard Jets coach Rex Ryan, who could be played by a bulked-up Kevin James. But on Sunday, Ryan outwitted Tomlin in the Jets' win over the Steelers.
With the Steelers leading 17-10 in the third quarter, Ryan decided to go for it on fourth-and-1 from the Steelers' 7-yard-line. Jets' quarterback Mark Sanchez, a pretty boy who probably doesn't need Hitch-type counseling, faked a handoff to Shonn Greene and ran untouched around the left side for the game-tying touchdown.
Riverboat Rex gambled and won. And so did the Jets.
Hopefully the postgame handshake between Tomlin and Ryan didn't go like this:
Safety pin
There's something emasculating about a safety, considering the indignity of being tackled in your own end zone, then having to give the ball to the other team.
But emasculation was the least of the Steelers' problems when Jason Taylor, another Jets' pretty boy, tackled Mewelde Moore in the end zone. Those two points increased the Jets' lead to 22-17 and took away a field goal as an option as the Steelers tried to come back with 2:45 to play.
Because of his sure-handedness, Moore often gets the ball when the Steelers are deep in their own end. But Taylor, who by the way was born in Pittsburgh on Sept. 1, 1974, exactly two weeks before the Steelers opened their first championship season, got through because there was a missed blocking assignment on the left side of the Steelers' offensive line.
It's too bad, because the O-Line was just one of the problems the Steelers seem to have solved in this game.
Stupid is as Stupid Does
Ben Roethlisberger was sacked just once in the first three quarters, but twice in the fourth quarter to stunt Steelers drives after they had fallen behind.
The Steelers even curbed the penalties. They were good boys in the first half with no infractions. Unfortunately, they got stupid in the second half. An unnecessary roughness penalty on Ryan Clark (and yes, it was a penalty) added 15 yards to a 15-yard reception by Braylon Edwards, putting the ball on the Steelers' 16 and leading to Sanchez's tying touchdown.
On the ensuing possession, Flozell Adams apparently let Darrelle Revis get under his skin despite having eight inches and 140 pounds on him. The personal foul just about negated a 17-yard pass to Mike Wallace and dragged the Steelers back to their 31.
The Steelers regained their discipline, but that brief flurry of knuckleheadedness proved costly.
Even Rashard Mendenhall didn't make me want to hit myself in the head with a hammer for a change. His dance moves were actually effective Sunday as he gained 100 yards on 17 carries. He also had a touchdown to give the Steelers a 17-10 lead in the third quarter.
But the lead was short-lived, and the Steelers (10-4) lost despite looking better in a lot of areas than they have in a few weeks. Perhaps looks don't matter and "Hitch" was full of shit.
Nothing special
No, the Steelers didn't lose because Troy Polamalu was out, even though he might have been able to cover some ground on the perimeter when Sanchez scored his touchdown.
Somehow I can never get through a column without mentioning the Steelers' Five-Game Losing Streak of 2009. It's hard to forget considering its Titanic-like effect.
Polamalu's injury wasn't the only reason the Steelers lost five in a row last season. Special teams was another culprit. The Steelers allowed two touchdowns on kickoff returns during that slide, including one on the opening kickoff against the Chiefs.
That's exactly what happened Sunday. The Jets came into Heinz Field with their heads hanging after a 45-3 loss at New England and a 10-6 loss at home to the Dolphins. But on Sunday the Steelers allowed Brad Smith to return the opening kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown. That got the Jets (10-4) back on the right track a lot more effectively than Ryan burying the football after the loss to the Patriots.
Tomlin might make empty promises to unleash hell, but he wouldn't do anything that cheesy.
The Steelers eventually answered Smith's touchdown. But they had no answer for Nick Folk's 34-yard field goal with 10:11 left in the game, which gave the Jets the lead for good at 20-17.
As debilitating as it was, the safety didn't finish off the Steelers. They forced a three-and-out and got the ball at their 8 with 2:08 left and one timeout. A 22-yard scramble by Roethlisberger and a 29-yard pass to Emmanuel Sanders on third-and-24 highlighted the Steelers' march to the Jets' 10 with nine seconds left.
But that's as far as they went. Perhaps Heath Miller would have come in handy.
Minimal Damage
Funny how there's less Pittsburgh talk-radio chatter about the Steelers getting another shot at the Patriots in the playoffs.
But somehow the Steelers clinched a playoff berth Sunday, and to figure out the mathematical formula that got them in the playoffs, we need the help of this New Englander:
There's no need to fill a blackboard to figure out how the Steelers get a first-round bye. They just have to win their last two games.
Even though there's been talk about Polamalu sitting out the rest of the regular season, from Tomlin's press conference Monday, it sounds like he could be back Thursday against Carolina. I say let him rest for two more weeks, and have him ready for Cleveland if the Steelers need that game. If the Steelers can't win at home against the 2-12 Panthers, Polamalu or no Polamalu, they don't deserve to be in the playoffs.
The Steelers might have lost five in a row without Polamalu last season, but they also won three in a row without him to end the season, two of those wins coming against playoff teams.
Considering their playoff berth and the fact they control their own destiny, the Steelers got off light with this loss. Losing to Carolina or Cleveland would be a lot more costly.
Jets 22, Steelers 17
By Mike Batista
This was like "Hitch" in reverse.
Mike Tomlin, who despite looking like Omar Epps could be played by a bulked-up Will Smith, might be smoother and more articulate than blowhard Jets coach Rex Ryan, who could be played by a bulked-up Kevin James. But on Sunday, Ryan outwitted Tomlin in the Jets' win over the Steelers.
With the Steelers leading 17-10 in the third quarter, Ryan decided to go for it on fourth-and-1 from the Steelers' 7-yard-line. Jets' quarterback Mark Sanchez, a pretty boy who probably doesn't need Hitch-type counseling, faked a handoff to Shonn Greene and ran untouched around the left side for the game-tying touchdown.
Riverboat Rex gambled and won. And so did the Jets.
Hopefully the postgame handshake between Tomlin and Ryan didn't go like this:
Safety pin
There's something emasculating about a safety, considering the indignity of being tackled in your own end zone, then having to give the ball to the other team.
But emasculation was the least of the Steelers' problems when Jason Taylor, another Jets' pretty boy, tackled Mewelde Moore in the end zone. Those two points increased the Jets' lead to 22-17 and took away a field goal as an option as the Steelers tried to come back with 2:45 to play.
Because of his sure-handedness, Moore often gets the ball when the Steelers are deep in their own end. But Taylor, who by the way was born in Pittsburgh on Sept. 1, 1974, exactly two weeks before the Steelers opened their first championship season, got through because there was a missed blocking assignment on the left side of the Steelers' offensive line.
It's too bad, because the O-Line was just one of the problems the Steelers seem to have solved in this game.
Stupid is as Stupid Does
Ben Roethlisberger was sacked just once in the first three quarters, but twice in the fourth quarter to stunt Steelers drives after they had fallen behind.
The Steelers even curbed the penalties. They were good boys in the first half with no infractions. Unfortunately, they got stupid in the second half. An unnecessary roughness penalty on Ryan Clark (and yes, it was a penalty) added 15 yards to a 15-yard reception by Braylon Edwards, putting the ball on the Steelers' 16 and leading to Sanchez's tying touchdown.
On the ensuing possession, Flozell Adams apparently let Darrelle Revis get under his skin despite having eight inches and 140 pounds on him. The personal foul just about negated a 17-yard pass to Mike Wallace and dragged the Steelers back to their 31.
The Steelers regained their discipline, but that brief flurry of knuckleheadedness proved costly.
Even Rashard Mendenhall didn't make me want to hit myself in the head with a hammer for a change. His dance moves were actually effective Sunday as he gained 100 yards on 17 carries. He also had a touchdown to give the Steelers a 17-10 lead in the third quarter.
But the lead was short-lived, and the Steelers (10-4) lost despite looking better in a lot of areas than they have in a few weeks. Perhaps looks don't matter and "Hitch" was full of shit.
Nothing special
No, the Steelers didn't lose because Troy Polamalu was out, even though he might have been able to cover some ground on the perimeter when Sanchez scored his touchdown.
Somehow I can never get through a column without mentioning the Steelers' Five-Game Losing Streak of 2009. It's hard to forget considering its Titanic-like effect.
Polamalu's injury wasn't the only reason the Steelers lost five in a row last season. Special teams was another culprit. The Steelers allowed two touchdowns on kickoff returns during that slide, including one on the opening kickoff against the Chiefs.
That's exactly what happened Sunday. The Jets came into Heinz Field with their heads hanging after a 45-3 loss at New England and a 10-6 loss at home to the Dolphins. But on Sunday the Steelers allowed Brad Smith to return the opening kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown. That got the Jets (10-4) back on the right track a lot more effectively than Ryan burying the football after the loss to the Patriots.
Tomlin might make empty promises to unleash hell, but he wouldn't do anything that cheesy.
The Steelers eventually answered Smith's touchdown. But they had no answer for Nick Folk's 34-yard field goal with 10:11 left in the game, which gave the Jets the lead for good at 20-17.
As debilitating as it was, the safety didn't finish off the Steelers. They forced a three-and-out and got the ball at their 8 with 2:08 left and one timeout. A 22-yard scramble by Roethlisberger and a 29-yard pass to Emmanuel Sanders on third-and-24 highlighted the Steelers' march to the Jets' 10 with nine seconds left.
But that's as far as they went. Perhaps Heath Miller would have come in handy.
Minimal Damage
Funny how there's less Pittsburgh talk-radio chatter about the Steelers getting another shot at the Patriots in the playoffs.
But somehow the Steelers clinched a playoff berth Sunday, and to figure out the mathematical formula that got them in the playoffs, we need the help of this New Englander:
There's no need to fill a blackboard to figure out how the Steelers get a first-round bye. They just have to win their last two games.
Even though there's been talk about Polamalu sitting out the rest of the regular season, from Tomlin's press conference Monday, it sounds like he could be back Thursday against Carolina. I say let him rest for two more weeks, and have him ready for Cleveland if the Steelers need that game. If the Steelers can't win at home against the 2-12 Panthers, Polamalu or no Polamalu, they don't deserve to be in the playoffs.
The Steelers might have lost five in a row without Polamalu last season, but they also won three in a row without him to end the season, two of those wins coming against playoff teams.
Considering their playoff berth and the fact they control their own destiny, the Steelers got off light with this loss. Losing to Carolina or Cleveland would be a lot more costly.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Going batty
Steelers 23, Bengals 7
By Mike Batista
Thwapp! Biff! Zowie!
Batman and Robin have saved the Steelers again. And yes, "Biff" is an actual word from a fight scene in the "Batman" TV series, not some rich blond guy with a sweater draped around his shoulders and a girlfriend named Muffy.
A week after teaming up to snatch the victory from the dastardly Ravens, Troy Polamalu (Batman) and LaMarr Woodley (let's just say Robin's all grown up now and a little bit bigger than Batman) provided the Steelers with their only touchdowns in Sunday's 23-7 win over the Bengals, who considering their feline nickname and performance this season, could be cast as the Catwoman of the NFL.
For the second straight week, there would have been no Steelers touchdowns without the handiwork of the Steelers' Dymanic Defensive Duo.
Unlike the Ravens last week, the Bengals didn't have the Steelers tied to a spit in one of those "Same Bat Time. Same Bat Channel" cliffhangers. But just when the Bengals' upset plot started coming together, Polamalu was there to answer the Bat Phone.
Troy Wonder
The Bengals scored on the game's opening drive and held a 7-0 lead for most of the first half. The frustration was slowly starting to snowball when Polamalu picked off Carson Palmer and returned it 45 yards for a game-tying touchdown late in the first half.
Polamalu didn't have to do a lot of zig-zagging on his way to the end zone this time. His path was mostly unobstructed until Palmer, his former USC teammate, attempted to knock him out of bounds near the 4-yard-line. So he took to the air, even though Batman isn't a flying superhero, and stuck out his arm to get the ball through the end zone for the TD.
Considering the Steelers' chances of getting the ball into the end zone from the 4, Polamalu's extra effort was needed.
Shaun Suisham added a field goal to give the Steelers a 10-7 halftime lead and another in the third quarter to make it 13-7. While Suisham has made all nine of his field goal attempts as a Steeler and paper towel dispensers in western Pennsylvania are resting easier, Steelers fans were still restless early in the fourth quarter on Sunday.
The Steelers were closing in on another field goal and a two-possession lead when Ben Roethlisberger was sacked on back-to-back plays for 17 yards, yanking them from field goal range and forcing new punter Jeremy Kapinos into action.
But on the first play of the Bengals' ensuing possession, Woodley picked off Palmer and ran it in 14 yards for the touchdown and a 20-7 lead with about 12 minutes to go. It was the linebacker's third career interception, and it gives me a chance to correct an omission in last week's column.
Pick-up and delivery
Woodley has mastered the art of picking up a fumble, not just falling on it, and returning it a long way. It's becoming an annual phenomenon, and he always seems to do it against teams who also could be considered the Catwoman of the NFL with their purple uniforms.
Last week, Woodley scooped up the fumble forced by Polamalu and returned it 20 yards to the Ravens' 9 to set up the Steelers' game-winning touchdown. Last year against the Vikings, he cleaned up a fumble forced by Brett Keisel and returned it 77 yards for a touchdown to give the Steelers a 20-10 lead in a game they went on to win 27-17. In 2008 against the Ravens, he took a fumble forced by James Harrison and brought it in seven yards for the TD and a 17-13 Steelers lead. They went on to win that game 23-20 in overtime.
Woodley also had two sacks Sunday. It was Polamalu, however, who ultimately handcuffed the Bengals and brought them before Chief O'Hara and Commissioner Gordon (who the Steelers would probably rather see in Gotham City than Commissioner Goodell).
Hair-brained
The Bengals still were within a pair of touchdowns and two-point conversions when they moved the ball to the Steelers' 16 with just over two minutes left. Palmer took a shot at the end zone, but there was Polamalu with his second interception.
OK, maybe what Polamalu did next was evidence of his heavy hair weighing down his brain. All he had to do was hit the ground to finish off the Bengals. Instead, he returned the ball and tried to lateral to Bryant McFadden at the Steelers' 10, momentarily leaving a crack in the door for the Bengals. The ball fell on the ground in front of McFadden, but he picked it up and finally secured the win for the Steelers.
Polamalu is now tied for second in the NFL with six interceptions this season. The Steelers' four-game winning streak has coincided with Polamalu's emergence from his mid-season funk. They definitely don't beat the Ravens without Polamalu. They might not beat the Bills without him, and they would have had a much harder time beating the Bengals without him.
Yet it's clear Polamalu isn't 100 percent healthy. He hurt something during his touchdown return and limped for the rest of the game. I'm running out of ways to say that Polamalu's absence sank the Steelers' 2009 season. All I can say is that watching Polamalu is like a parent watching a 3-year-old at the playground. You don't want him to get hurt.
As of Monday morning, no news came out about any Polamalu injury. There was talk that he aggravated an ankle injury he's had all season. Maybe it's his calf. Maybe it's a pulled follicle. Whatever it is, if the Steelers (10-3) win their three remaining games they'll earn a first-round bye in the playoffs. That would come in handy considering how dinged up Polamalu is.
No offense
Another concern for the Steelers is their offense. In their last 185 minutes of football, the Steelers' only touchdown drive on offense has gone for nine yards.
On one hand, there also was a lot of bellyaching about the Steelers' offense and offensive line in the late autumn of 2008, and the Steelers won the Super Bowl.
On the other hand, the Bengals (2-11) did drop three interceptions Sunday, and counting on defensive touchdowns and a flurry of field goals to win games is reminiscent of those Steelers teams led by Neil O'Donnell and Kordell Stewart. Those teams could go far in the playoffs, but they didn't win Super Bowls.
The offense as a unit was not up to snuff Sunday. There were, however, some strong individual performances, including that of Hines Ward. The 13-year veteran had eight receptions, his most in a game this season, for 115 yards.
Ward's 18-yard reception got the Steelers into Bengals territory and helped set up their go-ahead field goal at the end of the first half. His 21-yard catch got the Steelers to the Bengals' 9 and led to the Steelers' field goal on the opening drive of the second half. He also caught one for 29 yards to help get the Steelers out of a 2nd-and-30 hole late in the third quarter.
Hines Ward. That's Burt Ward's brother, right?
Steelers 23, Bengals 7
By Mike Batista
Thwapp! Biff! Zowie!
Batman and Robin have saved the Steelers again. And yes, "Biff" is an actual word from a fight scene in the "Batman" TV series, not some rich blond guy with a sweater draped around his shoulders and a girlfriend named Muffy.
A week after teaming up to snatch the victory from the dastardly Ravens, Troy Polamalu (Batman) and LaMarr Woodley (let's just say Robin's all grown up now and a little bit bigger than Batman) provided the Steelers with their only touchdowns in Sunday's 23-7 win over the Bengals, who considering their feline nickname and performance this season, could be cast as the Catwoman of the NFL.
For the second straight week, there would have been no Steelers touchdowns without the handiwork of the Steelers' Dymanic Defensive Duo.
Unlike the Ravens last week, the Bengals didn't have the Steelers tied to a spit in one of those "Same Bat Time. Same Bat Channel" cliffhangers. But just when the Bengals' upset plot started coming together, Polamalu was there to answer the Bat Phone.
Troy Wonder
The Bengals scored on the game's opening drive and held a 7-0 lead for most of the first half. The frustration was slowly starting to snowball when Polamalu picked off Carson Palmer and returned it 45 yards for a game-tying touchdown late in the first half.
Polamalu didn't have to do a lot of zig-zagging on his way to the end zone this time. His path was mostly unobstructed until Palmer, his former USC teammate, attempted to knock him out of bounds near the 4-yard-line. So he took to the air, even though Batman isn't a flying superhero, and stuck out his arm to get the ball through the end zone for the TD.
Considering the Steelers' chances of getting the ball into the end zone from the 4, Polamalu's extra effort was needed.
Shaun Suisham added a field goal to give the Steelers a 10-7 halftime lead and another in the third quarter to make it 13-7. While Suisham has made all nine of his field goal attempts as a Steeler and paper towel dispensers in western Pennsylvania are resting easier, Steelers fans were still restless early in the fourth quarter on Sunday.
The Steelers were closing in on another field goal and a two-possession lead when Ben Roethlisberger was sacked on back-to-back plays for 17 yards, yanking them from field goal range and forcing new punter Jeremy Kapinos into action.
But on the first play of the Bengals' ensuing possession, Woodley picked off Palmer and ran it in 14 yards for the touchdown and a 20-7 lead with about 12 minutes to go. It was the linebacker's third career interception, and it gives me a chance to correct an omission in last week's column.
Pick-up and delivery
Woodley has mastered the art of picking up a fumble, not just falling on it, and returning it a long way. It's becoming an annual phenomenon, and he always seems to do it against teams who also could be considered the Catwoman of the NFL with their purple uniforms.
Last week, Woodley scooped up the fumble forced by Polamalu and returned it 20 yards to the Ravens' 9 to set up the Steelers' game-winning touchdown. Last year against the Vikings, he cleaned up a fumble forced by Brett Keisel and returned it 77 yards for a touchdown to give the Steelers a 20-10 lead in a game they went on to win 27-17. In 2008 against the Ravens, he took a fumble forced by James Harrison and brought it in seven yards for the TD and a 17-13 Steelers lead. They went on to win that game 23-20 in overtime.
Woodley also had two sacks Sunday. It was Polamalu, however, who ultimately handcuffed the Bengals and brought them before Chief O'Hara and Commissioner Gordon (who the Steelers would probably rather see in Gotham City than Commissioner Goodell).
Hair-brained
The Bengals still were within a pair of touchdowns and two-point conversions when they moved the ball to the Steelers' 16 with just over two minutes left. Palmer took a shot at the end zone, but there was Polamalu with his second interception.
OK, maybe what Polamalu did next was evidence of his heavy hair weighing down his brain. All he had to do was hit the ground to finish off the Bengals. Instead, he returned the ball and tried to lateral to Bryant McFadden at the Steelers' 10, momentarily leaving a crack in the door for the Bengals. The ball fell on the ground in front of McFadden, but he picked it up and finally secured the win for the Steelers.
Polamalu is now tied for second in the NFL with six interceptions this season. The Steelers' four-game winning streak has coincided with Polamalu's emergence from his mid-season funk. They definitely don't beat the Ravens without Polamalu. They might not beat the Bills without him, and they would have had a much harder time beating the Bengals without him.
Yet it's clear Polamalu isn't 100 percent healthy. He hurt something during his touchdown return and limped for the rest of the game. I'm running out of ways to say that Polamalu's absence sank the Steelers' 2009 season. All I can say is that watching Polamalu is like a parent watching a 3-year-old at the playground. You don't want him to get hurt.
As of Monday morning, no news came out about any Polamalu injury. There was talk that he aggravated an ankle injury he's had all season. Maybe it's his calf. Maybe it's a pulled follicle. Whatever it is, if the Steelers (10-3) win their three remaining games they'll earn a first-round bye in the playoffs. That would come in handy considering how dinged up Polamalu is.
No offense
Another concern for the Steelers is their offense. In their last 185 minutes of football, the Steelers' only touchdown drive on offense has gone for nine yards.
On one hand, there also was a lot of bellyaching about the Steelers' offense and offensive line in the late autumn of 2008, and the Steelers won the Super Bowl.
On the other hand, the Bengals (2-11) did drop three interceptions Sunday, and counting on defensive touchdowns and a flurry of field goals to win games is reminiscent of those Steelers teams led by Neil O'Donnell and Kordell Stewart. Those teams could go far in the playoffs, but they didn't win Super Bowls.
The offense as a unit was not up to snuff Sunday. There were, however, some strong individual performances, including that of Hines Ward. The 13-year veteran had eight receptions, his most in a game this season, for 115 yards.
Ward's 18-yard reception got the Steelers into Bengals territory and helped set up their go-ahead field goal at the end of the first half. His 21-yard catch got the Steelers to the Bengals' 9 and led to the Steelers' field goal on the opening drive of the second half. He also caught one for 29 yards to help get the Steelers out of a 2nd-and-30 hole late in the third quarter.
Hines Ward. That's Burt Ward's brother, right?
Sunday, December 5, 2010
A name for all seasons
By Mike Batista
A nickname coined in the lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer finally was earned in the unforgiving chill of December.
Steelers running back Isaac Redman, undrafted out of Bowie State, was dubbed "Red Zone" Redman before the 2009 season because he did well in a goal-line drill during training camp.
That's nice, but producing in the red zone is one thing against teammates under the sunny skies of August, on the pastoral campus of St. Vincent College.
Red zone pressure is quite another thing in the cold, hostile environs of Baltimore, with not just a roster spot, but the AFC North on the line.
The Steelers trailed 10-6 with three minutes left in Sunday's game and faced third-and-goal from the Ravens' 9. If the Steelers' playbook consists of 200 pages, they went to Page 239 when Ben Roethlisberger threw a checkdown pass to Redman, who shed safety Dawan Landry halfway between the line of scrimmage and the goal line, then spun the rest of the way for the Steelers' only touchdown of the night and the first of his career.
The Ravens still had 2:51 and a timeout after Redman's touchdown. With the help of the second pass interference penalty against Bryant McFadden, both in the last five minutes, they reached the Steelers' 31. On fourth-and-2, the Ravens used their last timeout with 37 seconds left and went for the first down instead of attempting a game-tying field goal. Joe Flacco threw the lamest excuse for a pass, which fell well short of tight end Ed Dickson, and the Steelers (9-3) could turn their thoughts from a messy fight for a wild-card berth to a possible first-round bye in the playoffs.
For 56 minutes Sunday night, the Steelers did not look capable of winning this game. The best thing to happen to them was Roethlisberger's broken nose, which hopefully will make him more self-conscious and keep him out of bars.
Roethlisberger already was playing with a cement shoe on his broken right foot. His broken schnoz bloodied up his jersey, but he stayed in the game. Other Steelers weren't so fortunate.
Heath Miller suffered a concussion after a hit by Chris Carr that should have drawn a penalty (perhaps Carr wasn't penalized because the Ravens' leotard-like black pants made them look like guys who would try to fit a yellow handkerchief into their ensemble rather than guys capable of hurting anybody). The Steelers already were without Matt Spaeth, which is one of the reasons tight end David Johnson made three of his six career receptions in this game.
Flozell Adams, one of the Steelers' few offensive linemen not drawing unwanted attention for crappy play this season, was knocked out with a high ankle sprain. And punter Daniel Sepulveda was lost for the season with a torn ACL in his non-kicking leg.
So kicker Shaun Suisham not only kept the Steelers in the game with his two field goals, but also handled the punting duties. Suisham's done it all for the Steelers, except make a field goal at Heinz Field.
One of Suisham's field goals, a 19-yarder that pulled the Steelers to within 10-6 early in the fourth quarter, came at the end of a 16-play, 79-yard drive that was kept alive when Roethlisberger drew the Ravens offsides on a fourth-and-1.
It took that kind of chicanery to give the Steelers even a chance to win this game.
But with less than four minutes to go, it looked like the Steelers had emptied their bag of tricks. The Ravens (8-4) had a second-and-5 at their 43 and needed just a couple more first downs to put the game away and pretty much lock up the AFC North. The Steelers looked good enough to win the fight for a wild-card berth, but they didn't look quite good enough to beat the Ravens.
That's when Troy Polamalu struck. Like a rock band that waits until the end of the concert to play its signature song, the Steelers finally got the game-changing turnover that they could not win this game without.
Polamalu came into the backfield unblocked and made a guillotine-like motion with his arm, chopping the ball from Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco's hands. LaMarr Woodley scooped up the ball and took it to the Ravens' 9.
Those nine yards still seemed like a daunting wall for the Steelers, considering earlier in the game, they couldn't get into the end zone on a first-and-goal from the Ravens' 2. It looked like that wall would get a lot thicker when Terrell Suggs nearly sacked Roethlisberger, but instead tried to strip the ball from him. Roethlisberger, who seemed a lot more mobile in the second half, outmuscled the 260-pound linebacker to keep the ball, then threw it away to keep the Steelers nine yards from the end zone.
Another incomplete pass left the Steelers with two more chances to get that needed touchdown. Just when it looked like the Steelers' best chance would be Roethlisberger plodding into the end zone with a foot that looked like it was in a bucket, Redman finally showed he's more than a training-camp wonder.
Monday, November 29, 2010
Giving thanks
Steelers 19, Bills 16, OT
By Mike Batista
In the final hours of Thanksgiving weekend, the Steelers gave us one more thing to be thankful for.
This win.
Let us give thanks that Bills' receiver Stevie Johnson dropped the winning touchdown pass in overtime. He'll probably be as infamous as this Stevie is famous.
Let us give thanks that Leodis McKelvin tripped over Arthur Moats, his own blocker, on the opening kickoff of OT. Otherwise he'd have had a touchdown.
Let us give thanks that McKelvin fumbled Daniel Sepulveda's punt from the Steelers' end zone, costing the Bills 15 yards of field position. Were the Steelers lucky to dodge the upset and not follow Black Friday with a Black Sunday? Absolutely. But let's give them credit for winning despite being backed up inside their own 1-yard line during overtime. That's usually a recipe for disaster.
Speaking of recipes, let's break down this game by turkey parts, in honor of Thanksgiving:
The Leg
The leg I'm talking about here is that of Steelers kicker Shaun Suisham (pronounced SWEEZE- um). Cutting Jeff Reed seems like a smart move. For now.
To some degree, Suisham probably knew what was going through Johnson's mind Sunday. Last season, kicking for the Redskins, Suisham missed a 23-yard field goal that would have finished off the 11-0 Saints and given them their first loss. That choking legacy followed him to Pittsburgh.
Suisham made four field goals Sunday, all of them longer than 40 yards, including the 41-yard game-winner in overtime. Guaranteed the 2010 Jeff Reed would have missed at least one of those field goals.
Now let's see how Suisham kicks at Heinz Field.
The Wing
Troy Polamalu usually takes flight after an interception. His flight Sunday was more of a puddle jumper. The Bills were at the Steelers' 12 with three minutes left when Polamalu picked off a pass deflected by William Gay at the Steelers' 1. Polamalu returned it five yards to the Steelers' 6. Polamalu's fourth interception of the year temporarily preserved the Steelers' 16-13 lead.
I know it's beating a dead horse to say that Polamalu's absence last season was the main reason for the five-game losing streak that ruined the Steelers' season. It's so much of a dead horse that flies are starting to swirl around it. But the evidence just continues to mount.
Aside from his acrobatic interception, Polamalu also recovered a fumble at the Steelers' 19 on the opening drive of the second half, at least delaying the Bills' comeback. He also had a pass breakup which helped hold the Bills to a field goal on their final drive of regulation, and a key pass breakup and tackle in OT.
This game was taking on the mood of other late-November stinkers by the Steelers, like last year's loss to the Chiefs in overtime, when they were without Polamalu; the 2007 loss to the 1-8 Jets, by the same 19-16 score in overtime, by the way (even though they had Polamalu for that one) and the Thanksgiving loss to the Lions in OT. Guess what the final score of that game was.
But thanks to Polamalu, this will not be one of those years that the Steelers suffer a late-November upset that derails their season.
Keep in mind that Polamalu isn't 100 percent healthy. He's had hamstring issues, but has been able to play on Sundays by limiting himself in practice.
When Polamalu went down for good last season during the home game against the Bengals in Week 10, I was watching at The Public House, a Steelers bar in Manhattan, without the benefit of audio. A fellow Steelers fan receiving cell phone updates broke the news that Polamalu was hurt. Not what I needed to hear.
Due to schedule commitments, I watched Sunday's game at Bob Hyland's Sports Page in White Plains, just a general sports bar but not a Steelers bar in particular. So of course I couldn't hear the announcers.
I'm now so paranoid about Polamalu getting hurt that I became worried that I didn't see him on the field early in the fourth quarter when the Bills faced a third-and-10 at the Steelers' 11. The Steelers led 13-7 at the time and were in danger of losing the lead. Ike Taylor broke up a pass to Lee Evans, forcing the Bills to settle for a field goal. I was relieved when I saw Polamalu lined up on the other side of the field when they showed the replay.
After Polamalu's interception, they showed Polamalu on the sideline, and I didn't know if he was hurt or just praying. Next time Polamalu prays on the sideline, I wish he'd use a rosary so we know he's not hurt.
The Breast
I'm going to talk about the offensive line for the "Breast" portion of my column, because most of these guys have man boobs.
Problems on the offensive line are nothing new for the Steelers. Still, I'd like to dedicate this song to Max Starks and Willie Colon, who might have been seen as part of the problem before being lost for the season with injuries.
The Steelers were poised to dominate this game. They scored a touchdown on their opening drive, taking up nearly half of the first quarter. They ate up another six minutes and ended up with a field goal to take a 10-0 lead early in the second quarter.
But the offensive line kept the Steelers from breaking the game open. Roethlisberger was sacked five times, and six holding penalties were called, four of them on left guard Chris Kemoeatu. The offensive linemen aren't talented enough to block straight up, so they have to cheat.
Steelers reject Kraig Urbik, chosen in the third round of the 2009 draft, started at right guard for the Bills. Does this mean the Steelers missed the boat on him? Or does it mean that the Bills are so bad he can start for them? All I know is Urbik never got called for holding on Sunday.
The Wishbone
This isn't a suggestion about the kind of offense the Steelers should run. It's a reference to the way Marcus Stroud and Moats yanked on Roethlisberger and twisted his knee after sacking him in the fourth quarter. This was after Roethlisberger apparently sprained his right foot in the first half.
Roethlisberger showed some major balls, and not in a women's bathroom kind of way, with his 18-yard run in the fourth quarter. The Steelers had blown a 13-0 lead and faced a third-and-17 at their own 29. On his bad foot, Roethlisberger slipped a sack and scrambled for the first down. Rashard Mendenhall then took advantage of the Steelers' regained momentum with a 22-yard run, his longest in a 151-yard day, that set up Suisham's longest field goal of the afternoon, a 48-yarder that gave the Steelers a 16-13 lead.
In Tuesday's press conference, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin seemed optimistic Roethlisberger would be able to play Sunday in Baltimore. I'm a little worried. He wore a protective boot on Tuesday and it didn't seem likely that he'd practice Wednesday. I just hope this isn't one of those injuries that's more serious than the team is letting on. Roethlisberger needs his feet more than most quarterbacks.
Leftovers
Did James Harrison rough Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick? Probably. But he didn't lead with the crown of his helmet, and at the very least there should have been an offsetting penalty on Fitzpatrick's beard. ... So there's no way the Steelers can win in Baltimore after their performance Sunday in Buffalo, right? Well, things change from week to week in the NFL. Let's hope the Steelers got a wakeup call on Sunday.
Steelers 19, Bills 16, OT
By Mike Batista
In the final hours of Thanksgiving weekend, the Steelers gave us one more thing to be thankful for.
This win.
Let us give thanks that Bills' receiver Stevie Johnson dropped the winning touchdown pass in overtime. He'll probably be as infamous as this Stevie is famous.
Let us give thanks that Leodis McKelvin tripped over Arthur Moats, his own blocker, on the opening kickoff of OT. Otherwise he'd have had a touchdown.
Let us give thanks that McKelvin fumbled Daniel Sepulveda's punt from the Steelers' end zone, costing the Bills 15 yards of field position. Were the Steelers lucky to dodge the upset and not follow Black Friday with a Black Sunday? Absolutely. But let's give them credit for winning despite being backed up inside their own 1-yard line during overtime. That's usually a recipe for disaster.
Speaking of recipes, let's break down this game by turkey parts, in honor of Thanksgiving:
The Leg
The leg I'm talking about here is that of Steelers kicker Shaun Suisham (pronounced SWEEZE- um). Cutting Jeff Reed seems like a smart move. For now.
To some degree, Suisham probably knew what was going through Johnson's mind Sunday. Last season, kicking for the Redskins, Suisham missed a 23-yard field goal that would have finished off the 11-0 Saints and given them their first loss. That choking legacy followed him to Pittsburgh.
Suisham made four field goals Sunday, all of them longer than 40 yards, including the 41-yard game-winner in overtime. Guaranteed the 2010 Jeff Reed would have missed at least one of those field goals.
Now let's see how Suisham kicks at Heinz Field.
The Wing
Troy Polamalu usually takes flight after an interception. His flight Sunday was more of a puddle jumper. The Bills were at the Steelers' 12 with three minutes left when Polamalu picked off a pass deflected by William Gay at the Steelers' 1. Polamalu returned it five yards to the Steelers' 6. Polamalu's fourth interception of the year temporarily preserved the Steelers' 16-13 lead.
I know it's beating a dead horse to say that Polamalu's absence last season was the main reason for the five-game losing streak that ruined the Steelers' season. It's so much of a dead horse that flies are starting to swirl around it. But the evidence just continues to mount.
Aside from his acrobatic interception, Polamalu also recovered a fumble at the Steelers' 19 on the opening drive of the second half, at least delaying the Bills' comeback. He also had a pass breakup which helped hold the Bills to a field goal on their final drive of regulation, and a key pass breakup and tackle in OT.
This game was taking on the mood of other late-November stinkers by the Steelers, like last year's loss to the Chiefs in overtime, when they were without Polamalu; the 2007 loss to the 1-8 Jets, by the same 19-16 score in overtime, by the way (even though they had Polamalu for that one) and the Thanksgiving loss to the Lions in OT. Guess what the final score of that game was.
But thanks to Polamalu, this will not be one of those years that the Steelers suffer a late-November upset that derails their season.
Keep in mind that Polamalu isn't 100 percent healthy. He's had hamstring issues, but has been able to play on Sundays by limiting himself in practice.
When Polamalu went down for good last season during the home game against the Bengals in Week 10, I was watching at The Public House, a Steelers bar in Manhattan, without the benefit of audio. A fellow Steelers fan receiving cell phone updates broke the news that Polamalu was hurt. Not what I needed to hear.
Due to schedule commitments, I watched Sunday's game at Bob Hyland's Sports Page in White Plains, just a general sports bar but not a Steelers bar in particular. So of course I couldn't hear the announcers.
I'm now so paranoid about Polamalu getting hurt that I became worried that I didn't see him on the field early in the fourth quarter when the Bills faced a third-and-10 at the Steelers' 11. The Steelers led 13-7 at the time and were in danger of losing the lead. Ike Taylor broke up a pass to Lee Evans, forcing the Bills to settle for a field goal. I was relieved when I saw Polamalu lined up on the other side of the field when they showed the replay.
After Polamalu's interception, they showed Polamalu on the sideline, and I didn't know if he was hurt or just praying. Next time Polamalu prays on the sideline, I wish he'd use a rosary so we know he's not hurt.
The Breast
I'm going to talk about the offensive line for the "Breast" portion of my column, because most of these guys have man boobs.
Problems on the offensive line are nothing new for the Steelers. Still, I'd like to dedicate this song to Max Starks and Willie Colon, who might have been seen as part of the problem before being lost for the season with injuries.
The Steelers were poised to dominate this game. They scored a touchdown on their opening drive, taking up nearly half of the first quarter. They ate up another six minutes and ended up with a field goal to take a 10-0 lead early in the second quarter.
But the offensive line kept the Steelers from breaking the game open. Roethlisberger was sacked five times, and six holding penalties were called, four of them on left guard Chris Kemoeatu. The offensive linemen aren't talented enough to block straight up, so they have to cheat.
Steelers reject Kraig Urbik, chosen in the third round of the 2009 draft, started at right guard for the Bills. Does this mean the Steelers missed the boat on him? Or does it mean that the Bills are so bad he can start for them? All I know is Urbik never got called for holding on Sunday.
The Wishbone
This isn't a suggestion about the kind of offense the Steelers should run. It's a reference to the way Marcus Stroud and Moats yanked on Roethlisberger and twisted his knee after sacking him in the fourth quarter. This was after Roethlisberger apparently sprained his right foot in the first half.
Roethlisberger showed some major balls, and not in a women's bathroom kind of way, with his 18-yard run in the fourth quarter. The Steelers had blown a 13-0 lead and faced a third-and-17 at their own 29. On his bad foot, Roethlisberger slipped a sack and scrambled for the first down. Rashard Mendenhall then took advantage of the Steelers' regained momentum with a 22-yard run, his longest in a 151-yard day, that set up Suisham's longest field goal of the afternoon, a 48-yarder that gave the Steelers a 16-13 lead.
In Tuesday's press conference, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin seemed optimistic Roethlisberger would be able to play Sunday in Baltimore. I'm a little worried. He wore a protective boot on Tuesday and it didn't seem likely that he'd practice Wednesday. I just hope this isn't one of those injuries that's more serious than the team is letting on. Roethlisberger needs his feet more than most quarterbacks.
Leftovers
Did James Harrison rough Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick? Probably. But he didn't lead with the crown of his helmet, and at the very least there should have been an offsetting penalty on Fitzpatrick's beard. ... So there's no way the Steelers can win in Baltimore after their performance Sunday in Buffalo, right? Well, things change from week to week in the NFL. Let's hope the Steelers got a wakeup call on Sunday.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Monday, November 22, 2010
Just like old times
Steelers 35, Raiders 3
By Mike Batista
As Steelers fans, we have grown accustomed to certain spectacles being part of games in recent years.
A couple of these have been missing this season.
Until Sunday.
The only time the Steelers' 35-3 victory over the Raiders was even remotely threatened, Troy Polamalu eased any budding worries with his first high-flying interception of the year.
It wasn't Polamalu's first pick of the season, it was his third. But it was his first since Week 2, and the first that involved that signature return with his flowing locks blazing behind him like the tail of a comet.
We hadn't seen that all season. It was nice to finally see it, especially with one of the antagonists of the Steelers' 2009 collapse, Bruce Gradkowski, on the verge of getting the Raiders back in the game, kind of.
The fourth of the Steelers' five straight losses last season came at the hands of Gradkowski and the Raiders. In that game, the Steelers only could manage a 10-6 lead after three quarters before a see-saw fourth quarter.
The Steelers (7-3) had the screws tightened a lot better Sunday, leading 21-3 when Gradkowski replaced Jason Campbell late in the third quarter. But Gradkowski, who showed a much quicker release than Campbell, moved the Raiders 76 yards to the Steelers' 24. Not that I was really worried about the Steelers blowing the game, but it was starting to at least look like the Raiders were going to hang around until the end like an annoying kid brother, much like the Browns did earlier this season.
Polamalu took care of that, picking off Gradkowski and returning it to the Steelers' 46. Two plays later, the fourth quarter opened to Ben Roethlisberger's 52-yard touchdown pass to Mike Wallace and a 28-3 Steelers lead.
As distinctive as his appearance is, Polamalu had been pretty much invisible since Week 2. During last week's loss to the Patriots, NBC commentator Cris Collinsworth said that the "roaming" role in the Steelers' defense, which Polamalu used to perform, now belongs to Lawrence Timmons. He said that Polamalu's role with the Steelers' defense is more "structured." If that's true, it's a mistake.
Polamalu's better when he covers a lot of ground. With six tackles to go with his interception, he had his best game since his Pro Bowl-caliber play the first two weeks of the season. It will help to have that hair whipping around down the stretch as the Steelers fight for a playoff spot.
Polamalu's interception wasn't the only bit of Steelers theatrics to make a revival after being absent this season.
No more Seymour
It seems that since his suspension, the new and rehabilitated Roethlisberger has kicked his habit of writhing around in pain after stubbing a toe.
It looked like the old Ben was back when he went down after throwing a 22-yard touchdown pass to Emmanuel Sanders, giving the Steelers a 21-3 lead late in the second quarter.
At the Irish Exit, a Steelers bar in Manhattan, the customary playing of the "Steelers Polka" after every touchdown stopped abruptly when it became apparent Roethlisberger was hurt.
It turns out Roethlisberger was hit in a place that has felt some impact before: his face. Fortunately, Richard Seymour's hand is a lot softer than the pavement at the intersection of Second Avenue and 10th Street in Pittsburgh.
Seymour apparently ejected himself from the game for the incident. Maybe he wanted to get out of there because there was a 3 p.m. showing of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows" at the South Side Works Cinema. Who knows.
That brings us to the penalties. I believe there were a few of them in this game.
Flag Day
The Steelers won despite a team-record 163 penalty yards on 14 infractions. One of those was called on Chris Kemoeatu when he and a bunch of other Steelers bum rushed Seymour after he hit Roethlisberger.
You can talk about how the league's getting soft with all these penalties. I see it as the Steelers winning this game in a bad-ass way. They were ornery after getting pushed around by the Patriots last week. They didn't want to lose five games in a row again, and here was one of the teams that got them during that stretch. The Steelers were in a fighting mood.
Seymour-Roethlisberger might not have been much of a fight, but Roethlisberger showed some toughness by running for a 16-yard touchdown on third down. Unlike Super Bowl XL and this year's game in Miami, there was no doubt the ball got across the goal line. The touchdown gave the Steelers a 14-3 lead and essentially put them in control of the game.
The Raiders (5-5) seemed even more dangerous than the team that burned the Steelers last year. They entered the game having won three in a row, beating the Broncos, Seahawks and Chiefs.
If you can beat an up-and-coming team like that by 32 points -- the Steelers' biggest margin of victory since 2006, by the way -- despite getting flagged on just about every other play, then you're a damn good team. Or at least good enough to bring a team that's a little full of itself down a few pegs.
Steelers 35, Raiders 3
By Mike Batista
As Steelers fans, we have grown accustomed to certain spectacles being part of games in recent years.
A couple of these have been missing this season.
Until Sunday.
The only time the Steelers' 35-3 victory over the Raiders was even remotely threatened, Troy Polamalu eased any budding worries with his first high-flying interception of the year.
It wasn't Polamalu's first pick of the season, it was his third. But it was his first since Week 2, and the first that involved that signature return with his flowing locks blazing behind him like the tail of a comet.
We hadn't seen that all season. It was nice to finally see it, especially with one of the antagonists of the Steelers' 2009 collapse, Bruce Gradkowski, on the verge of getting the Raiders back in the game, kind of.
The fourth of the Steelers' five straight losses last season came at the hands of Gradkowski and the Raiders. In that game, the Steelers only could manage a 10-6 lead after three quarters before a see-saw fourth quarter.
The Steelers (7-3) had the screws tightened a lot better Sunday, leading 21-3 when Gradkowski replaced Jason Campbell late in the third quarter. But Gradkowski, who showed a much quicker release than Campbell, moved the Raiders 76 yards to the Steelers' 24. Not that I was really worried about the Steelers blowing the game, but it was starting to at least look like the Raiders were going to hang around until the end like an annoying kid brother, much like the Browns did earlier this season.
Polamalu took care of that, picking off Gradkowski and returning it to the Steelers' 46. Two plays later, the fourth quarter opened to Ben Roethlisberger's 52-yard touchdown pass to Mike Wallace and a 28-3 Steelers lead.
As distinctive as his appearance is, Polamalu had been pretty much invisible since Week 2. During last week's loss to the Patriots, NBC commentator Cris Collinsworth said that the "roaming" role in the Steelers' defense, which Polamalu used to perform, now belongs to Lawrence Timmons. He said that Polamalu's role with the Steelers' defense is more "structured." If that's true, it's a mistake.
Polamalu's better when he covers a lot of ground. With six tackles to go with his interception, he had his best game since his Pro Bowl-caliber play the first two weeks of the season. It will help to have that hair whipping around down the stretch as the Steelers fight for a playoff spot.
Polamalu's interception wasn't the only bit of Steelers theatrics to make a revival after being absent this season.
No more Seymour
It seems that since his suspension, the new and rehabilitated Roethlisberger has kicked his habit of writhing around in pain after stubbing a toe.
It looked like the old Ben was back when he went down after throwing a 22-yard touchdown pass to Emmanuel Sanders, giving the Steelers a 21-3 lead late in the second quarter.
At the Irish Exit, a Steelers bar in Manhattan, the customary playing of the "Steelers Polka" after every touchdown stopped abruptly when it became apparent Roethlisberger was hurt.
It turns out Roethlisberger was hit in a place that has felt some impact before: his face. Fortunately, Richard Seymour's hand is a lot softer than the pavement at the intersection of Second Avenue and 10th Street in Pittsburgh.
Seymour apparently ejected himself from the game for the incident. Maybe he wanted to get out of there because there was a 3 p.m. showing of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows" at the South Side Works Cinema. Who knows.
That brings us to the penalties. I believe there were a few of them in this game.
Flag Day
The Steelers won despite a team-record 163 penalty yards on 14 infractions. One of those was called on Chris Kemoeatu when he and a bunch of other Steelers bum rushed Seymour after he hit Roethlisberger.
You can talk about how the league's getting soft with all these penalties. I see it as the Steelers winning this game in a bad-ass way. They were ornery after getting pushed around by the Patriots last week. They didn't want to lose five games in a row again, and here was one of the teams that got them during that stretch. The Steelers were in a fighting mood.
Seymour-Roethlisberger might not have been much of a fight, but Roethlisberger showed some toughness by running for a 16-yard touchdown on third down. Unlike Super Bowl XL and this year's game in Miami, there was no doubt the ball got across the goal line. The touchdown gave the Steelers a 14-3 lead and essentially put them in control of the game.
The Raiders (5-5) seemed even more dangerous than the team that burned the Steelers last year. They entered the game having won three in a row, beating the Broncos, Seahawks and Chiefs.
If you can beat an up-and-coming team like that by 32 points -- the Steelers' biggest margin of victory since 2006, by the way -- despite getting flagged on just about every other play, then you're a damn good team. Or at least good enough to bring a team that's a little full of itself down a few pegs.
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Monday, November 15, 2010
You Bastards!
Patriots 39, Steelers 26
By Mike Batista
When Tom Brady sets foot in Heinz Field, the Steelers turn into Kenny from "South Park" or Georgie from "The Sopranos."
Sunday's 39-26 loss to the Patriots followed the same plot line, to the letter, as the Steelers' 41-27 loss to the Patriots in the 2004 AFC championship game at Heinz.
Not only were the scores almost identical, but in both games, it was clear the Patriots had the Steelers figured out early. In both games, the Steelers fell behind by three touchdowns. In both games, the Steelers made it mildly interesting, getting as close as 11 points in the second half.
Steelers fans had seen this show before. When the Steelers mounted their futile comeback attempt Sunday night, the sea of yellow seats at Heinz Field were speckled by the foolish few who thought they had a chance.
It was the same predictable television as Kenny dying in every "South Park" episode or Georgie getting bludgeoned with a phone receiver every time he rubs Tony the wrong way on "The Sopranos."
Only once have the Steelers beaten Brady, when they ended the Patriots' 21-game winning streak in 2004. But even then Brady, the Hoodie and his henchmen had the last laugh when they went back to Pittsburgh and won the AFC championship game that season.
The Steelers beat the Patriots at Gillette Stadium during their 2008 championship season, but those Patriots were quarterbacked by bed wetter Matt Cassel.
The last decade, which has included two Super Bowl wins, certainly has been a glorious one in the history of Steelers football. However, the fondness of this era will be tempered somewhat by their inability to beat Brady.
One of the main reasons Brady has been impervious to the Steelers' feared defense is his quick, short-range passes, which neutralize the Steelers' blitz and serve the same purpose as running the football. That's exactly how he carved up the Steelers' defense in 2007 during the Patriots' perfect regular season.
The Brady who beat the Steelers Sunday is a lot different from the one who beat them in 2007. Brady now sports long, romance-novel hair. That new look, combined with the drama he displayed when he screamed at his teammates after a failed third-down conversion in the first half, make it clear that he's auditioning to be either a model or an actor after football. He knows where the cameras are.
Despite the fact that he's as much of a pretty boy as ever, Brady out-toughed the entire Steelers' defense in the third quarter by plowing through for a 3-yard touchdown run, giving the Patriots a 23-3 lead and officially making the game a bitchslapping.
If Brady's life after football involves walking on the red carpet, he got a lot of practice Sunday night, because the Steelers defense only got close enough to take pictures of him. They didn't sack him and barely even touched him.
Sure, the Steelers might get another shot at Brady. But from what I've seen over the past few weeks, I have my doubts whether they will this season.
Not only did the Steelers (6-3) suffer their most lopsided loss at Heinz Field since Mike Tomlin became coach in 2007, but they haven't won impressively since beating the Browns 28-10 nearly a month ago. Since then they got a favorable replay review to beat the duller-than-dogshit Dolphins by a point; lost to the Saints and nearly blew a 20-point lead to the Bengals. And let's face it, the Bengals flat-out suck.
The Steelers' win over the Browns seems like a long time ago. Are they still better than the Browns? For the second time in three weeks, the Steelers lost to a team the Browns kicked the shit out of the week before. The Steelers once again couldn't pick up the chick their roommate banged.
Now historically, failing their BBT (Beat Brady Test) doesn't mean the Steelers can't win the Super Bowl. They recovered from an early-season, 23-20 loss to the Patriots to win the Super Bowl in 2005. But it took a last-minute drive in that game to set up Adam Vinatieri's winning field goal.
If the Steelers want to show that they're good enough to win a championship, they have to at least stand up to Brady. They didn't do that Sunday.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Happy Mondays
Steelers 27, Bengals 21
By Mike Batista
Now the season can finally start.
For the fourth straight year, the Steelers won on a Monday night to complete the first half of the season with a 6-2 record.
It's the fifth time in the last six seasons the Steelers have been 6-2 at the turn.
In 2005, they recovered from a three-game losing streak in the second half and won the Super Bowl.
In 2007, they experienced a slow, steady decline in November and December and lost in the first round of the playoffs.
In 2008, they went 6-2 again in the second half and won the Super Bowl.
In 2009, they completely collapsed.
That covers all the possibilities, right? I've just described every way the second half of an NFL season can unfold. There's no way the Steelers can show us anything we haven't seen before, right?
Well, they tried their hardest to do just that Monday night.
Just like old times
The Steelers were on the verge of blowing the first 20-point lead in franchise history. Not even those horribly dressed, laughable Steelers teams of the 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s managed to blow a 20-point lead.
With 40 seconds left in Monday's game, the Steelers were 12 yards away from not only blowing a 20-point lead, but blowing it all in the fourth quarter. They'd have been the first team to do that since the Giants in November of 2006.
Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer threw to Jordan Shipley on fourth down. Had Shipley held onto the ball, the Bengals, trailing by six, would have had a first-and-goal at the 5.
But Ike Taylor and James Harrison did the Malachi Crunch on the rookie, the ball popped out of his hands, and it was Happy Days for the Steelers.
To give the Steelers their 20-point lead, Antwan Randle-El didn't quite turn the clock back to the days of the Fonz, but he did make like it was 2005 again when he took the ball from Ben Roethlisberger on an end around and fired a 39-yard touchdown pass to Mike Wallace to open the fourth quarter, making the score 27-7.
Unfortunately, the defense took its foot off the gas pedal, letting the Bengals back into the game with Terrell Owens' second touchdown just 98 seconds later.
Then Roethlisberger threw a lollipop to Heath Miller that was intercepted by Robert L. Williams, and the Steelers entered full collapse mode.
On a day in which the incompetence of the Cowboys was highlighted with the firing of Wade Phillips, Flozell Adams paid tribute to how much his former team sucks by getting called for unsportsmanlike conduct on the interception, giving the Bengals the ball at the Steelers' 36.
The officials then got into the spirit of 2005 when they flagged Casey Hampton for roughing the passer. Hampton approached Palmer's knee much the same way Kimo von Oelhoffen did five years ago, but he just grabbed his calves and flipped him down. Palmer's knees were not in danger. Nonetheless, a five-year-old makeup call was issued, putting the ball on the Steelers' 21.
Next was a pass interference penalty on Ike Taylor in the end zone. The flag came late after Terrell Owens bitched and moaned for it. What a diva wants, a diva gets.
The penalty moved the ball to the 1. A drive that featured more flags than the United Nations ended with Cedric Benson's touchdown, pulling the Bengals to within 27-21 with 9:21 to go.
The Steelers appeared to restore order by going back to their smashmouth roots and handing off to Rashard Mendenhall seven straight times. Mendenhall gained 43 of his 99 yards on the clock-chomping drive. But Jeff Reed, despite looking like Big Foot with his monstrous beard, came up very small with his foot, missing a 46-yard field goal and keeping the Bengals in the game.
Damage control
This whole scene was reminiscent of the Steelers' inability to put teams away last season, when they didn't have Troy Polamalu. The Steelers do have Polamalu this season, but even with his flowing locks, he's been invisible at times. After performing at a Pro Bowl trajectory in the first two games of the season, there's been a curious lack of "splash" plays from Polamalu.
Monday night was no different. However, Polamalu was in position to prevent further damage on the biggest play of the Bengals' final drive. Like a one-man stone wall, he whacked Terrell Owens right after he caught the ball at the 17 after a 20-yard pass from Palmer with 1:01 left.
That stop seemed to stall the Bengals' momentum just enough. A holding call on the next play dragged them back to the 27, and three of Palmer's final four passes fell incomplete.
Dick LeBeau, the Steelers defensive coordinator who 40 years ago Monday was on the Lions team that was beaten by the Saints and Tom Dempsey's record 63-yard field goal, raised his arms over his head in relieved celebration when Taylor and Harrison broke up Palmer's final pass.
A way with words
In the grand scheme of things, however, there isn't much to celebrate. We now know that a Steelers season is far from over after their standard 6-2 start. The season really begins -- and ends -- Sunday night.
Huh?
You see, the Steelers host the Patriots in The Game You Must Not Lose. The Steelers have the upper hand -- kind of -- in this rivalry right now, having won two Super Bowls since the Patriots' last championship, and beating them in New England the last time the teams met. But the Steelers' only win over a Tom Brady-led Patriots team came on Halloween in 2004.
This is the third straight time the Steelers face the Patriots after beating the Bengals in prime time. In 2007, they were home on a Sunday night before going to Foxboro, Massachusetts the following Sunday. In 2008, it was a Thursday-night game, giving them a 10-day break before facing the Patriots.
This time, the prime time win over the Bengals costs the Steelers a day of preparation. When the weary Steelers got back to Pittsburgh in the wee hours Tuesday morning, Cranky Pants Belichick already had been at work for a full day, thumbing through a dozen dictionaries trying to find a meaning for the word "scalded" that might make good bulletin board material.
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin labeled the Patriots as "scalded" Monday night, alluding to their 34-14 loss in Cleveland on Sunday. Tomlin might be too articulate for his own good.
Sure, the Browns bitchslapped the Patriots Sunday, but they did the same thing to the Saints two weeks ago and the Steelers couldn't beat them.
That puts another layer of importance on Sunday's game. A loss to the Patriots would suck not only because it's the Patriots, but also because it would hint that the Steelers aren't even as good as the Browns.
Yep, 6-2 means nothing.
Steelers 27, Bengals 21
By Mike Batista
Now the season can finally start.
For the fourth straight year, the Steelers won on a Monday night to complete the first half of the season with a 6-2 record.
It's the fifth time in the last six seasons the Steelers have been 6-2 at the turn.
In 2005, they recovered from a three-game losing streak in the second half and won the Super Bowl.
In 2007, they experienced a slow, steady decline in November and December and lost in the first round of the playoffs.
In 2008, they went 6-2 again in the second half and won the Super Bowl.
In 2009, they completely collapsed.
That covers all the possibilities, right? I've just described every way the second half of an NFL season can unfold. There's no way the Steelers can show us anything we haven't seen before, right?
Well, they tried their hardest to do just that Monday night.
Just like old times
The Steelers were on the verge of blowing the first 20-point lead in franchise history. Not even those horribly dressed, laughable Steelers teams of the 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s managed to blow a 20-point lead.
With 40 seconds left in Monday's game, the Steelers were 12 yards away from not only blowing a 20-point lead, but blowing it all in the fourth quarter. They'd have been the first team to do that since the Giants in November of 2006.
Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer threw to Jordan Shipley on fourth down. Had Shipley held onto the ball, the Bengals, trailing by six, would have had a first-and-goal at the 5.
But Ike Taylor and James Harrison did the Malachi Crunch on the rookie, the ball popped out of his hands, and it was Happy Days for the Steelers.
To give the Steelers their 20-point lead, Antwan Randle-El didn't quite turn the clock back to the days of the Fonz, but he did make like it was 2005 again when he took the ball from Ben Roethlisberger on an end around and fired a 39-yard touchdown pass to Mike Wallace to open the fourth quarter, making the score 27-7.
Unfortunately, the defense took its foot off the gas pedal, letting the Bengals back into the game with Terrell Owens' second touchdown just 98 seconds later.
Then Roethlisberger threw a lollipop to Heath Miller that was intercepted by Robert L. Williams, and the Steelers entered full collapse mode.
On a day in which the incompetence of the Cowboys was highlighted with the firing of Wade Phillips, Flozell Adams paid tribute to how much his former team sucks by getting called for unsportsmanlike conduct on the interception, giving the Bengals the ball at the Steelers' 36.
The officials then got into the spirit of 2005 when they flagged Casey Hampton for roughing the passer. Hampton approached Palmer's knee much the same way Kimo von Oelhoffen did five years ago, but he just grabbed his calves and flipped him down. Palmer's knees were not in danger. Nonetheless, a five-year-old makeup call was issued, putting the ball on the Steelers' 21.
Next was a pass interference penalty on Ike Taylor in the end zone. The flag came late after Terrell Owens bitched and moaned for it. What a diva wants, a diva gets.
The penalty moved the ball to the 1. A drive that featured more flags than the United Nations ended with Cedric Benson's touchdown, pulling the Bengals to within 27-21 with 9:21 to go.
The Steelers appeared to restore order by going back to their smashmouth roots and handing off to Rashard Mendenhall seven straight times. Mendenhall gained 43 of his 99 yards on the clock-chomping drive. But Jeff Reed, despite looking like Big Foot with his monstrous beard, came up very small with his foot, missing a 46-yard field goal and keeping the Bengals in the game.
Damage control
This whole scene was reminiscent of the Steelers' inability to put teams away last season, when they didn't have Troy Polamalu. The Steelers do have Polamalu this season, but even with his flowing locks, he's been invisible at times. After performing at a Pro Bowl trajectory in the first two games of the season, there's been a curious lack of "splash" plays from Polamalu.
Monday night was no different. However, Polamalu was in position to prevent further damage on the biggest play of the Bengals' final drive. Like a one-man stone wall, he whacked Terrell Owens right after he caught the ball at the 17 after a 20-yard pass from Palmer with 1:01 left.
That stop seemed to stall the Bengals' momentum just enough. A holding call on the next play dragged them back to the 27, and three of Palmer's final four passes fell incomplete.
Dick LeBeau, the Steelers defensive coordinator who 40 years ago Monday was on the Lions team that was beaten by the Saints and Tom Dempsey's record 63-yard field goal, raised his arms over his head in relieved celebration when Taylor and Harrison broke up Palmer's final pass.
A way with words
In the grand scheme of things, however, there isn't much to celebrate. We now know that a Steelers season is far from over after their standard 6-2 start. The season really begins -- and ends -- Sunday night.
Huh?
You see, the Steelers host the Patriots in The Game You Must Not Lose. The Steelers have the upper hand -- kind of -- in this rivalry right now, having won two Super Bowls since the Patriots' last championship, and beating them in New England the last time the teams met. But the Steelers' only win over a Tom Brady-led Patriots team came on Halloween in 2004.
This is the third straight time the Steelers face the Patriots after beating the Bengals in prime time. In 2007, they were home on a Sunday night before going to Foxboro, Massachusetts the following Sunday. In 2008, it was a Thursday-night game, giving them a 10-day break before facing the Patriots.
This time, the prime time win over the Bengals costs the Steelers a day of preparation. When the weary Steelers got back to Pittsburgh in the wee hours Tuesday morning, Cranky Pants Belichick already had been at work for a full day, thumbing through a dozen dictionaries trying to find a meaning for the word "scalded" that might make good bulletin board material.
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin labeled the Patriots as "scalded" Monday night, alluding to their 34-14 loss in Cleveland on Sunday. Tomlin might be too articulate for his own good.
Sure, the Browns bitchslapped the Patriots Sunday, but they did the same thing to the Saints two weeks ago and the Steelers couldn't beat them.
That puts another layer of importance on Sunday's game. A loss to the Patriots would suck not only because it's the Patriots, but also because it would hint that the Steelers aren't even as good as the Browns.
Yep, 6-2 means nothing.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Finding religion
Saints 20, Steelers 10
By Mike Batista
It figures God finally got me when the Steelers played the Saints.
In 2007, my rookie year as a Steelers blogger, I coined the nickname "Hands of God" for Heath Miller after he helped the Steelers come from behind for a 31-28 win over the Browns.
He now has been stripped of that moniker, just like he was stripped of the ball Sunday night.
The Steelers trailed 13-10 with less than seven minutes left when Miller took a pass from Ben Roethlisberger near midfield and rumbled to the fringe of field goal range.
The Saints' Marvin Mitchell jarred the ball loose. Darren Sharper recovered the fumble before it even hit the ground, and the Saints eventually scored the clinching touchdown in their 20-10 victory.
That's what I get for comparing the skills of a Steelers player to God.
Miller's gaffe is my penance for violating Section 2, Paragraph 12, Line J of the First Commandment.
Or maybe it's penance for my blatant disregard for the Second and Third commandments every Sunday during football season.
Or maybe it was just God's way of telling me that He never would have fumbled in that situation.
On KDKA the Fan, Vinnie Richichi and Ron Cook were preaching forgiveness for Sunday night's loss. Oh, the Saints (5-3) needed this game more than the Steelers. Oh, the Steelers are still 5-2.
Folks, in this era of Steelers football, it's very difficult to excuse a loss. The Steelers have won two of the last five Super Bowls and are expected to make a run at a championship every year as long as Roethlisberger and Troy Polamalu are healthy.
The Steelers will need to go to confession for this loss. They easily could have won this game. Momentum was squarely on their side when Miller coughed up the ball.
Rashard Mendenhall ran 38 yards for a touchdown to pull the Steelers to within 13-10 with just under 11 minutes left in the game. The Saints reached the Steelers 20 on their ensuing possession when Bryant McFadden sacked Drew Brees and forced a fumble. LaMarr Woodley recovered at the 27.
A 12-yard pass to Matt Spaeth (yes, he's still on the team) and a 2-yard gain by Mendenhall was followed by Miller's flub.
A turnover into the hands of Darren Sharper almost would have been forgivable last season, when the Saints seemed blessed during their championship run. Turnovers were a big part of the Saints' success, and Sharper seemed to be in the middle of it all.
But this isn't 2009. The Saints struggled going into this game and were slapped around by the Browns in the Superdome the week before.
That's hard to swallow. The Browns beat the Saints in New Orleans but the Steelers couldn't. It's like going out with a girl you know put out for previous boyfriends, but never getting any yourself.
The most basic sign of football virility is the ability to penetrate the end zone from the 1-yard line, and the Steelers again failed to measure up in that department Sunday.
Antwan Randle-El finally did something besides fair-catching punts when he took a 12-yard pass from Roethlisberger and scored an apparent touchdown early in the second quarter. But it was overturned by replay, giving the Steelers a first-and-goal from the 1.
On first down, Isaac Redman lost a yard. Redman, an undrafted free agent from Bowie State, was dubbed "Red Zone" Redman in 2009 for his prowess in goal line drills during training camp.
Guess what. There's a big difference between practicing on the campus of a quaint little college in August and playing for real in front of Guinness world record mass of Halloween revelers in New Orleans.
Not even in the Big Easy is scoring in goal line situations easy for the Steelers. It never has been since Jerome Bettis retired.
Mendenhall, who ended up with 71 rushing yards on 15 carries, might turn out to be a better overall running back than Bettis, but he couldn't get the ball into the end zone, either. He at least made up for Redman's lost yardage on second down. Then on third down, he was stopped.
What I can't understand is why Mendenhall went to his right on both of those plays and not just up the gut. The Steelers were in their power formation with tight end David Johnson lined up in front of Mendenhall.
The Steelers settled for a field goal (not even Jeff Reed is going to miss from 19 yards out) to take a 3-0 lead. That's at least four points the Steelers left out there. Who knows how many points Miller's fumble cost?
After Miller's fumble, NBC ran a graphic that said Miller didn't fumble in the first 58 games of his career, but has fumbled four times in the last 27 games.
Maybe it's time for Miller to carry the ball everywhere he goes around the Steelers' practice facility, with $100 going to anyone who can take it away from him.
Hopefully Miller won't need that treatment. Maybe the steep price of Sunday's fumble will be a wake-up call for him to take care of the ball like he did earlier in his career.
Perhaps it's a blessing in disguise that the Steelers got this stinker out of their system now. Next week, they're at Cincinnati in a division game and the week after they host the Patriots in The Game You Must Not Lose.
Wins in those games might put me in a more forgiving mood.
Saints 20, Steelers 10
By Mike Batista
It figures God finally got me when the Steelers played the Saints.
In 2007, my rookie year as a Steelers blogger, I coined the nickname "Hands of God" for Heath Miller after he helped the Steelers come from behind for a 31-28 win over the Browns.
He now has been stripped of that moniker, just like he was stripped of the ball Sunday night.
The Steelers trailed 13-10 with less than seven minutes left when Miller took a pass from Ben Roethlisberger near midfield and rumbled to the fringe of field goal range.
The Saints' Marvin Mitchell jarred the ball loose. Darren Sharper recovered the fumble before it even hit the ground, and the Saints eventually scored the clinching touchdown in their 20-10 victory.
That's what I get for comparing the skills of a Steelers player to God.
Miller's gaffe is my penance for violating Section 2, Paragraph 12, Line J of the First Commandment.
Or maybe it's penance for my blatant disregard for the Second and Third commandments every Sunday during football season.
Or maybe it was just God's way of telling me that He never would have fumbled in that situation.
On KDKA the Fan, Vinnie Richichi and Ron Cook were preaching forgiveness for Sunday night's loss. Oh, the Saints (5-3) needed this game more than the Steelers. Oh, the Steelers are still 5-2.
Folks, in this era of Steelers football, it's very difficult to excuse a loss. The Steelers have won two of the last five Super Bowls and are expected to make a run at a championship every year as long as Roethlisberger and Troy Polamalu are healthy.
The Steelers will need to go to confession for this loss. They easily could have won this game. Momentum was squarely on their side when Miller coughed up the ball.
Rashard Mendenhall ran 38 yards for a touchdown to pull the Steelers to within 13-10 with just under 11 minutes left in the game. The Saints reached the Steelers 20 on their ensuing possession when Bryant McFadden sacked Drew Brees and forced a fumble. LaMarr Woodley recovered at the 27.
A 12-yard pass to Matt Spaeth (yes, he's still on the team) and a 2-yard gain by Mendenhall was followed by Miller's flub.
A turnover into the hands of Darren Sharper almost would have been forgivable last season, when the Saints seemed blessed during their championship run. Turnovers were a big part of the Saints' success, and Sharper seemed to be in the middle of it all.
But this isn't 2009. The Saints struggled going into this game and were slapped around by the Browns in the Superdome the week before.
That's hard to swallow. The Browns beat the Saints in New Orleans but the Steelers couldn't. It's like going out with a girl you know put out for previous boyfriends, but never getting any yourself.
The most basic sign of football virility is the ability to penetrate the end zone from the 1-yard line, and the Steelers again failed to measure up in that department Sunday.
Antwan Randle-El finally did something besides fair-catching punts when he took a 12-yard pass from Roethlisberger and scored an apparent touchdown early in the second quarter. But it was overturned by replay, giving the Steelers a first-and-goal from the 1.
On first down, Isaac Redman lost a yard. Redman, an undrafted free agent from Bowie State, was dubbed "Red Zone" Redman in 2009 for his prowess in goal line drills during training camp.
Guess what. There's a big difference between practicing on the campus of a quaint little college in August and playing for real in front of Guinness world record mass of Halloween revelers in New Orleans.
Not even in the Big Easy is scoring in goal line situations easy for the Steelers. It never has been since Jerome Bettis retired.
Mendenhall, who ended up with 71 rushing yards on 15 carries, might turn out to be a better overall running back than Bettis, but he couldn't get the ball into the end zone, either. He at least made up for Redman's lost yardage on second down. Then on third down, he was stopped.
What I can't understand is why Mendenhall went to his right on both of those plays and not just up the gut. The Steelers were in their power formation with tight end David Johnson lined up in front of Mendenhall.
The Steelers settled for a field goal (not even Jeff Reed is going to miss from 19 yards out) to take a 3-0 lead. That's at least four points the Steelers left out there. Who knows how many points Miller's fumble cost?
After Miller's fumble, NBC ran a graphic that said Miller didn't fumble in the first 58 games of his career, but has fumbled four times in the last 27 games.
Maybe it's time for Miller to carry the ball everywhere he goes around the Steelers' practice facility, with $100 going to anyone who can take it away from him.
Hopefully Miller won't need that treatment. Maybe the steep price of Sunday's fumble will be a wake-up call for him to take care of the ball like he did earlier in his career.
Perhaps it's a blessing in disguise that the Steelers got this stinker out of their system now. Next week, they're at Cincinnati in a division game and the week after they host the Patriots in The Game You Must Not Lose.
Wins in those games might put me in a more forgiving mood.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Two words
Steelers 23, Dolphins 22
By Mike Batista
So far in 2010, the Steelers' fortunes have hinged on two words uttered by people in positions of authority.
Six and a half months ago, when Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit D.A. Fred Bright called a press conference to announce if sexual assault charges against Ben Roethlisberger would go forward, the utterance "cannot" triggered a collective "Whew!" across Steelers Nation. The 2010 season wasn't doomed.
On Sunday, everyone awaited the ruling of referee Gene Steratore. A touchdown was called when Roethlisberger ran the ball in from the Dolphins' 2-yard line on third down with 2:30 left in the game. But it appeared Dolphins safety Chris Clemons knocked the ball loose before it reached the goal line.
Dolphins coach Tony Sparano, whose team had been leading 22-20, challenged the call. Steratore, who the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette notes lives in Washington, Pa., spent more time under the hood than some juries spend deliberating.
As the replay was shown over and over, it became increasingly apparent that this was not a touchdown. Hands were on heads and Terrible Towels were held to mouths at the Irish Exit, a Steelers bar in Manhattan, while Steratore studied the evidence.
When Steratore announced his ruling, he did negate the touchdown. Then came the word that served as the Steelers' saving grace on this day: However.
Steratore followed "however" by saying it was not clear that the Dolphins recovered the fumble in the end zone. It looked like they did, but with the touchdown called, no one bothered to peel bodies away from the pile to see who had the ball.
So the Steelers had a fourth down at the 1, and Jeff Reed kicked an 18-yard field goal for what turned out to be the winning points in the Steelers' 23-22 victory.
More of Moore
Just like we all know damn well that something unsavory happened in Milledgeville, what most likely happened Sunday was Roethlisberger fumbled and the Dolphins recovered in the end zone, which should have given them the ball at the 20.
But due to the complexity of this particular replay review, the Steelers (5-1) kept the ball on a technicality.
Maybe Roethlisberger has taught his teammates how to get away with things since returning from his suspension.
The Steelers got away with a boneheaded display that could have left them down 14-0 in the first five minutes of the game. Fortunately, the Dolphins (3-3) could only get two field goals after recovering Emmanuel Sanders' fumble on the opening kickoff and Roethlisberger's fumble on a sack.
The Steelers also got away with allowing another nondescript quarterback to have a decent game -- Chad Henne completed 23 of 36 passes for 257 yards and a touchdown -- and they got away with not being able to run the ball. Rashard Mendenhall was limited to 37 yards on 15 carries.
Covering up a lot of the Steelers' blemishes in this game was the resurgence of Mewelde Moore.
Moore joined the Steelers in 2008 and as a third-down back was a key cog in their championship that season. He wasn't as much of a factor last season, and had been just about invisible so far this season.
That changed Sunday when Moore ignited the drive that got the
Steelers on the board. He moved the chains with a seven-yard run on third-and-7 from the Steelers 13, and later in the drive picked up 16 yards. The sequence led to Jeff Reed's 22-yard field goal, which made the score 6-3 early in the second quarter.
Moore really made it look like it was 2008 (hopefully without the stock market crashes) all over again with less than four minutes left in the game. The Steelers trailed 22-20 and faced a third-and-5 from the Dolphins' 43. Moore took a short pass from Roethlisberger and turned it into a 29-yard gain, eventually leading to the game-winning field goal.
Sanders fueled the game-winning drive with a 48-yard kickoff return to the Dolphins' 48, answering Carpenter's go-ahead field goal and earning forgiveness for his opening fumble.
Sanders also had a 37-yard kickoff return to the Steelers' 47 in the second quarter. Roethlisberger promptly made it look like it was 2009 (hopefully without the five-game losing streak) all over again with a 53-yard touchdown pass to Mike Wallace, extending the Steelers' lead to 17-9.
Hines Ward caught Roethlisberger's other touchdown pass, a 21-yarder that gave the Steelers a 10-6 lead early in the second quarter.
A steep price
The Steelers might not have paid for their spotty performance with a loss. But they were punished anyway, because football is a punishing game.
Defensive end Aaron Smith is almost certainly out for the season with a torn left triceps. The underrated Smith is the Steelers' best run stopper. When he was lost in Week 14 in 2007, the air slowly went out of the Steelers' season. They lost four of their last five games and fell at home to Jacksonville in the wild-card round of the playoffs.
Smith had a Pro Bowl season in 2008, and the Steelers won the Super Bowl.
In 2009, Smith was lost after the Steelers beat the Lions in Week 5. They won the next three games without Smith, then collapsed when Troy Polamalu was hurt. While it's generally believed that the Steelers' demise last season was directly related to Polamalu's absence, Smith's injury couldn't have helped.
Perhaps the Steelers could have absorbed Smith's injury last year had Polamalu stayed healthy. The only way we can test that theory is if Polamalu remains healthy this season.
An extended absense for LaMarr Woodley won't help the Steelers withstand Smith's injury. Woodley left Sunday's game with a hamstring injury. It's not clear how long he will be out.
Woodley's injury pressed Jason Worilds into duty. The rookie chosen in the second round helped the Steelers nail down this victory when the Dolphins tried to get into field goal range on their final drive. On fourth-and-6 with 1:33 to go, Worilds pressured Henne into an incompletion.
It also should be noted that Worilds has seemed very active on special teams. It remains to be seen if Worilds is ready for full-time duty on defense. But considering what's transpired, now would be a good time for him, as well as defensive lineman Ziggy Hood, to offer a glimpse into the future.
Steelers 23, Dolphins 22
By Mike Batista
So far in 2010, the Steelers' fortunes have hinged on two words uttered by people in positions of authority.
Six and a half months ago, when Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit D.A. Fred Bright called a press conference to announce if sexual assault charges against Ben Roethlisberger would go forward, the utterance "cannot" triggered a collective "Whew!" across Steelers Nation. The 2010 season wasn't doomed.
On Sunday, everyone awaited the ruling of referee Gene Steratore. A touchdown was called when Roethlisberger ran the ball in from the Dolphins' 2-yard line on third down with 2:30 left in the game. But it appeared Dolphins safety Chris Clemons knocked the ball loose before it reached the goal line.
Dolphins coach Tony Sparano, whose team had been leading 22-20, challenged the call. Steratore, who the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette notes lives in Washington, Pa., spent more time under the hood than some juries spend deliberating.
As the replay was shown over and over, it became increasingly apparent that this was not a touchdown. Hands were on heads and Terrible Towels were held to mouths at the Irish Exit, a Steelers bar in Manhattan, while Steratore studied the evidence.
When Steratore announced his ruling, he did negate the touchdown. Then came the word that served as the Steelers' saving grace on this day: However.
Steratore followed "however" by saying it was not clear that the Dolphins recovered the fumble in the end zone. It looked like they did, but with the touchdown called, no one bothered to peel bodies away from the pile to see who had the ball.
So the Steelers had a fourth down at the 1, and Jeff Reed kicked an 18-yard field goal for what turned out to be the winning points in the Steelers' 23-22 victory.
More of Moore
Just like we all know damn well that something unsavory happened in Milledgeville, what most likely happened Sunday was Roethlisberger fumbled and the Dolphins recovered in the end zone, which should have given them the ball at the 20.
But due to the complexity of this particular replay review, the Steelers (5-1) kept the ball on a technicality.
Maybe Roethlisberger has taught his teammates how to get away with things since returning from his suspension.
The Steelers got away with a boneheaded display that could have left them down 14-0 in the first five minutes of the game. Fortunately, the Dolphins (3-3) could only get two field goals after recovering Emmanuel Sanders' fumble on the opening kickoff and Roethlisberger's fumble on a sack.
The Steelers also got away with allowing another nondescript quarterback to have a decent game -- Chad Henne completed 23 of 36 passes for 257 yards and a touchdown -- and they got away with not being able to run the ball. Rashard Mendenhall was limited to 37 yards on 15 carries.
Covering up a lot of the Steelers' blemishes in this game was the resurgence of Mewelde Moore.
Moore joined the Steelers in 2008 and as a third-down back was a key cog in their championship that season. He wasn't as much of a factor last season, and had been just about invisible so far this season.
That changed Sunday when Moore ignited the drive that got the
Steelers on the board. He moved the chains with a seven-yard run on third-and-7 from the Steelers 13, and later in the drive picked up 16 yards. The sequence led to Jeff Reed's 22-yard field goal, which made the score 6-3 early in the second quarter.
Moore really made it look like it was 2008 (hopefully without the stock market crashes) all over again with less than four minutes left in the game. The Steelers trailed 22-20 and faced a third-and-5 from the Dolphins' 43. Moore took a short pass from Roethlisberger and turned it into a 29-yard gain, eventually leading to the game-winning field goal.
Sanders fueled the game-winning drive with a 48-yard kickoff return to the Dolphins' 48, answering Carpenter's go-ahead field goal and earning forgiveness for his opening fumble.
Sanders also had a 37-yard kickoff return to the Steelers' 47 in the second quarter. Roethlisberger promptly made it look like it was 2009 (hopefully without the five-game losing streak) all over again with a 53-yard touchdown pass to Mike Wallace, extending the Steelers' lead to 17-9.
Hines Ward caught Roethlisberger's other touchdown pass, a 21-yarder that gave the Steelers a 10-6 lead early in the second quarter.
A steep price
The Steelers might not have paid for their spotty performance with a loss. But they were punished anyway, because football is a punishing game.
Defensive end Aaron Smith is almost certainly out for the season with a torn left triceps. The underrated Smith is the Steelers' best run stopper. When he was lost in Week 14 in 2007, the air slowly went out of the Steelers' season. They lost four of their last five games and fell at home to Jacksonville in the wild-card round of the playoffs.
Smith had a Pro Bowl season in 2008, and the Steelers won the Super Bowl.
In 2009, Smith was lost after the Steelers beat the Lions in Week 5. They won the next three games without Smith, then collapsed when Troy Polamalu was hurt. While it's generally believed that the Steelers' demise last season was directly related to Polamalu's absence, Smith's injury couldn't have helped.
Perhaps the Steelers could have absorbed Smith's injury last year had Polamalu stayed healthy. The only way we can test that theory is if Polamalu remains healthy this season.
An extended absense for LaMarr Woodley won't help the Steelers withstand Smith's injury. Woodley left Sunday's game with a hamstring injury. It's not clear how long he will be out.
Woodley's injury pressed Jason Worilds into duty. The rookie chosen in the second round helped the Steelers nail down this victory when the Dolphins tried to get into field goal range on their final drive. On fourth-and-6 with 1:33 to go, Worilds pressured Henne into an incompletion.
It also should be noted that Worilds has seemed very active on special teams. It remains to be seen if Worilds is ready for full-time duty on defense. But considering what's transpired, now would be a good time for him, as well as defensive lineman Ziggy Hood, to offer a glimpse into the future.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Monday, October 18, 2010
Be very afraid
Steelers 28, Browns 10
By Mike Batista
Ben Roethlisberger looked like a humbled figure when his name was announced before Sunday afternoon's game.
Wearing his Steelers baseball cap backwards, Roethlisberger trotted slowly onto the Heinz Field turf and raised his arms one at a time to acknowledge the fans, who greeted him with loud cheers.
At least in the eyes of Steelers fans, it seems that March night in Milledgeville is a distant memory.
Still, it wasn't a total love-in as Roethlisberger returned from his four-game suspension. There was a small group of protesters outside Heinz Field. Because of the way he has treated women, there are probably a lot of people out there who still might call him a pig.
I'm going to liken Roethlisberger to another creature that most human beings associate with filth.
The Roethlisberger I saw on Sunday looked like a fly.
And that's a good thing.
Only an elite quarterback like Roethlisberger can release the ball and complete a pass just before getting leveled by a pass rusher. It's sort of like when you see a fly on a table and get ready to squash it. Somehow, flies know how to take off just before your hand comes down, and you end up whacking your hand for no reason.
That's how Roethlisberger gave the Steelers the lead for good in Sunday's 28-10 win over the Browns.
With Browns linebacker Matt Roth closing in, Roethlisberger threw a 29-yard touchdown pass to Mike Wallace to give the Steelers a 7-3 lead with 10:40 left in the first half.
The score stayed that way for quite a while. One of the reasons the Browns were able to stay in the game was the punting of Reggie Hodges. He pinned the Steelers (4-1) inside their 10-yard line four times.
Going into Sunday's game, the Steelers really hadn't beaten the Browns convincingly in a game that mattered since the season opener of 2007, Mike Tomlin's head coaching debut.
Considering last season's pathetic display in Cleveland, I should have been happy with any type of win over the Browns (1-5). But just as I was resigning myself to another lackluster win over the Browns, Roethlisberger turned into The Fly again.
Hodges backed the Steelers to their own 4 with 5:12 left in the third quarter. This time it was Scott Fujita who acted as the giant fly swatter, decking Roethlisberger in the end zone just after he found Wallace for a 50-yard reception. Then came a 36-yard pass to Heath Miller, in which Miller looked more like a wide receiver than a tight end.
Three plays later, Hines Ward showed a nose for the end zone, breaking two tackles on an 8-yard TD pass from Roethlisberger and giving the Steelers a 14-3 lead.
Midway through the fourth quarter, special teams ace Keyaron Fox atoned for his costly penalty in the final minutes against the Ravens two weeks ago. Fox recovered a muffed fumble by Chansi Stuckey at the Browns 13, and Rashard Mendenhall eventually scored on a 2-yard run to give the Steelers a 21-3 lead with less than six minutes left in the game.
The Browns weren't done, however. Colt McCoy, making his NFL debut, moved the Browns 70 yards in six plays and threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Benjamin Watson to narrow the Steelers' lead to 21-10 with 4:17 left.
This game wasn't put away until Ryan Mundy tipped a McCoy pass and Lawrence Timmons intercepted it with 1:52 left in the game.
Timmons returned it five yards to the Browns 18. Three plays later, Roethlisberger threw his third touchdown pass, 14 yards to Miller, to make it 28-10.
McCoy, picked in the third round of the draft, threw two interceptions (Ryan Clark had the other) and had a pedestrian 80.5 quarterback rating.
I was expecting Pretty Boy McCoy to consider a career driving a milk truck after Sunday's game. After all, this was a rookie facing the Steelers' dizzying defense. But he did complete 23 of 33 passes and played well enough to look like the Browns' answer at quarterback. The Steelers should not have let that happen.
Also watering down this Steelers' win a little bit is the fact that Joshua Cribbs didn't play two-thirds of the game. Running out of the wildcat, Cribbs knocked heads with James Harrison with 9:27 left in the second quarter. He did not return.
Cribbs always has been an albatross for the Steelers. He's returned three kickoffs for touchdowns against them, tied for most against one team in NFL history. As the point man in the wildcat, he kept the Browns in the game in Pittsburgh last season and shredded the Steelers in Cleveland. The Steelers' job became a lot easier when he went down Sunday.
But, hey, the Steelers must have done something right to beat the Browns by 18 points, more handily than anyone else has beaten them this season. One of those things was protecting Roethlisberger, who wasn't sacked. That's no small accomplishment considering Roethlisberger was sacked eight times in Cleveland last season.
Those eight sacks were among the 189 Roethlisberger has been subjected to over the past four seasons. He already was spared a quarter-season of that punishment with his suspension. Even if he's sacked four times in each of the Steelers' remaining 11 games, it will be the fewest times he's been sacked since 2005.
If Roethlisberger has any sequels of The Fly in him, he'll stay on his feet an awful lot.
Steelers 28, Browns 10
By Mike Batista
Ben Roethlisberger looked like a humbled figure when his name was announced before Sunday afternoon's game.
Wearing his Steelers baseball cap backwards, Roethlisberger trotted slowly onto the Heinz Field turf and raised his arms one at a time to acknowledge the fans, who greeted him with loud cheers.
At least in the eyes of Steelers fans, it seems that March night in Milledgeville is a distant memory.
Still, it wasn't a total love-in as Roethlisberger returned from his four-game suspension. There was a small group of protesters outside Heinz Field. Because of the way he has treated women, there are probably a lot of people out there who still might call him a pig.
I'm going to liken Roethlisberger to another creature that most human beings associate with filth.
The Roethlisberger I saw on Sunday looked like a fly.
And that's a good thing.
Only an elite quarterback like Roethlisberger can release the ball and complete a pass just before getting leveled by a pass rusher. It's sort of like when you see a fly on a table and get ready to squash it. Somehow, flies know how to take off just before your hand comes down, and you end up whacking your hand for no reason.
That's how Roethlisberger gave the Steelers the lead for good in Sunday's 28-10 win over the Browns.
With Browns linebacker Matt Roth closing in, Roethlisberger threw a 29-yard touchdown pass to Mike Wallace to give the Steelers a 7-3 lead with 10:40 left in the first half.
The score stayed that way for quite a while. One of the reasons the Browns were able to stay in the game was the punting of Reggie Hodges. He pinned the Steelers (4-1) inside their 10-yard line four times.
Going into Sunday's game, the Steelers really hadn't beaten the Browns convincingly in a game that mattered since the season opener of 2007, Mike Tomlin's head coaching debut.
Considering last season's pathetic display in Cleveland, I should have been happy with any type of win over the Browns (1-5). But just as I was resigning myself to another lackluster win over the Browns, Roethlisberger turned into The Fly again.
Hodges backed the Steelers to their own 4 with 5:12 left in the third quarter. This time it was Scott Fujita who acted as the giant fly swatter, decking Roethlisberger in the end zone just after he found Wallace for a 50-yard reception. Then came a 36-yard pass to Heath Miller, in which Miller looked more like a wide receiver than a tight end.
Three plays later, Hines Ward showed a nose for the end zone, breaking two tackles on an 8-yard TD pass from Roethlisberger and giving the Steelers a 14-3 lead.
Midway through the fourth quarter, special teams ace Keyaron Fox atoned for his costly penalty in the final minutes against the Ravens two weeks ago. Fox recovered a muffed fumble by Chansi Stuckey at the Browns 13, and Rashard Mendenhall eventually scored on a 2-yard run to give the Steelers a 21-3 lead with less than six minutes left in the game.
The Browns weren't done, however. Colt McCoy, making his NFL debut, moved the Browns 70 yards in six plays and threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Benjamin Watson to narrow the Steelers' lead to 21-10 with 4:17 left.
This game wasn't put away until Ryan Mundy tipped a McCoy pass and Lawrence Timmons intercepted it with 1:52 left in the game.
Timmons returned it five yards to the Browns 18. Three plays later, Roethlisberger threw his third touchdown pass, 14 yards to Miller, to make it 28-10.
McCoy, picked in the third round of the draft, threw two interceptions (Ryan Clark had the other) and had a pedestrian 80.5 quarterback rating.
I was expecting Pretty Boy McCoy to consider a career driving a milk truck after Sunday's game. After all, this was a rookie facing the Steelers' dizzying defense. But he did complete 23 of 33 passes and played well enough to look like the Browns' answer at quarterback. The Steelers should not have let that happen.
Also watering down this Steelers' win a little bit is the fact that Joshua Cribbs didn't play two-thirds of the game. Running out of the wildcat, Cribbs knocked heads with James Harrison with 9:27 left in the second quarter. He did not return.
Cribbs always has been an albatross for the Steelers. He's returned three kickoffs for touchdowns against them, tied for most against one team in NFL history. As the point man in the wildcat, he kept the Browns in the game in Pittsburgh last season and shredded the Steelers in Cleveland. The Steelers' job became a lot easier when he went down Sunday.
But, hey, the Steelers must have done something right to beat the Browns by 18 points, more handily than anyone else has beaten them this season. One of those things was protecting Roethlisberger, who wasn't sacked. That's no small accomplishment considering Roethlisberger was sacked eight times in Cleveland last season.
Those eight sacks were among the 189 Roethlisberger has been subjected to over the past four seasons. He already was spared a quarter-season of that punishment with his suspension. Even if he's sacked four times in each of the Steelers' remaining 11 games, it will be the fewest times he's been sacked since 2005.
If Roethlisberger has any sequels of The Fly in him, he'll stay on his feet an awful lot.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Monday, October 4, 2010
Nobody's perfect
Ravens 17, Steelers 14
By Mike Batista
Somehow, we've gone from hoping and praying that the Steelers go 2-2 without Ben Roethlisberger to being disappointed that they went 3-1 without Ben Roethlisberger.
At least I have.
We should be happy that despite the serious damage Roethlisberger's four-game suspension could have done to their season, the Steelers came out of it as one of the NFL's elite teams at the season's quarter pole.
But it's hard to step back and look at the big picture right now, because the Steelers' first 4-0 start since 1979 was within their grasp Sunday before Joe Flacco's last-minute touchdown pass to T.J. Houshmandzadeh gave the Ravens a 17-14 win.
Since they haven't made it past 3-0 since the days of Bradshaw and Mean Joe, we Steelers fans usually get our "you-can't-win-'em-all" vaccination before the leaves change colors.
Just once, I want the Steelers to be that last unbeaten team standing, the team the relics from the 1972 Dolphins gather to watch every week.
Once again, it will not be a Steelers' loss that cues up the sound of the popping champagne cork on ESPN's NFL Primetime. That's probably a good thing.
The Steelers like to let franchises like the Patriots and Colts tempt perfection while they craft their championship mettle away from the spotlight.
They'll be able to do that again this season, because the last two times they won the Lombardi Trophy, they also started 3-1.
On one hand, the Steelers lost Sunday the same way they lost during their title run of 2008, when they occasionally were out-toughed by a quality opponent. There was no evidence of 2009-type leakage, because they were never really in control of this game and therefore didn't choke away a lead.
Unlike many games last season, the defense supplied the Steelers with two turnovers, both in the third quarter.
Unfortunately, both of those takeaways led to missed field goals by Jeff Reed, which makes this a game the Steelers should have won.
The first came when Lawrence Timmons recovered a Willis McGahee fumble at the Ravens' 27 with the Steelers trailing 10-7. The Ravens pushed the Steelers back four yards from there to set up a 49-yard attempt by Reed, which hit the right upright.
With just over two minutes left in the third quarter, Ike Taylor intercepted a Flacco pass at the Ravens' 33. The Steelers did move forward six yards this time. But five of those yards were awarded when the Ravens were offsides.
Reed, however, could not take advantage of the Ravens' assistance. This time he was wide left on a 45-yard attempt.
Because of his much-heralded lack of "ball skills," Taylor interceptions are as rare as a model sitting next to dorky guy at a bar and talking to him. The Steelers failing to convert Taylor's interception into points is like that dorky guy burping for about 30 seconds. There goes the model, and the dorky guy doesn't get to display his ball skills.
Speaking of guys who like to go to bars, it wasn't just a win the Steelers squandered Sunday, it was a chance to teach Roethlisberger his lesson just in case he hadn't completely learned it by sitting out four games.
By going 4-0, the Steelers would have virtually guaranteed that their winning percentage would be better without Roethlisberger than with him. It would have driven home the point that he's not bigger than the team, and quite likely flushed from his mind any remaining sense of entitlement that led to his boorish behavior.
Whether or not Roethlisberger is a changed man remains to be seen. While he won't be needed to rescue the Steelers, having him Sunday likely would have been enough to overcome the edge the Ravens had.
The Ravens outgained the Steelers 320-210. Charlie Batch literally went more than an hour without completing a pass. In the fourth quarter, however, he moved the Steelers 93 yards on 13 plays, culminating in Rashard Mendenhall's 7-yard touchdown run with 7:14 left, giving the Steelers a 14-10 lead.
Unfortunately, Flacco isn't afraid of the big, bad Steelers defense. He took the Ravens 65 yards on the ensuing drive before William Gay, showing he's a better nickelback than starter, broke up two straight passes.
The Ravens might have fallen short of the end zone, but field position, which so many Ravens-Steelers games come down to, was in their favor. And that proved to be the difference.
The Steelers had the ball on their own 3 with 2:40 left, but could not get the first down needed to stamp out the Ravens. They went into a shell and ran the ball three times. Something tells me Roethlisberger might have been able to give the Steelers a little more breathing room.
All the Steelers could do was burn the clock, leaving the Ravens with 1:15 and no timeouts. Dan Sepulveda punted the ball to the 50, but on a penalty-strewn day for the Steelers (11 for 88 yards), not even special teams ace Keyaron Fox was immune. He was flagged for holding on the punt, giving the Ravens the ball on the Steelers' 40.
Two passes to Anquan Boldin and two to Houshmandzadeh, two weapons Flacco didn't have in his first two seasons, made up the game-winning drive for the Ravens.
Ray Lewis finished off the Steelers by intercepting Batch's last pass as caretaker of the quarterback position.
So the Steelers lost their first game. That, history tells us, is a sign that the season can really start.
Ravens 17, Steelers 14
By Mike Batista
Somehow, we've gone from hoping and praying that the Steelers go 2-2 without Ben Roethlisberger to being disappointed that they went 3-1 without Ben Roethlisberger.
At least I have.
We should be happy that despite the serious damage Roethlisberger's four-game suspension could have done to their season, the Steelers came out of it as one of the NFL's elite teams at the season's quarter pole.
But it's hard to step back and look at the big picture right now, because the Steelers' first 4-0 start since 1979 was within their grasp Sunday before Joe Flacco's last-minute touchdown pass to T.J. Houshmandzadeh gave the Ravens a 17-14 win.
Since they haven't made it past 3-0 since the days of Bradshaw and Mean Joe, we Steelers fans usually get our "you-can't-win-'em-all" vaccination before the leaves change colors.
Just once, I want the Steelers to be that last unbeaten team standing, the team the relics from the 1972 Dolphins gather to watch every week.
Once again, it will not be a Steelers' loss that cues up the sound of the popping champagne cork on ESPN's NFL Primetime. That's probably a good thing.
The Steelers like to let franchises like the Patriots and Colts tempt perfection while they craft their championship mettle away from the spotlight.
They'll be able to do that again this season, because the last two times they won the Lombardi Trophy, they also started 3-1.
On one hand, the Steelers lost Sunday the same way they lost during their title run of 2008, when they occasionally were out-toughed by a quality opponent. There was no evidence of 2009-type leakage, because they were never really in control of this game and therefore didn't choke away a lead.
Unlike many games last season, the defense supplied the Steelers with two turnovers, both in the third quarter.
Unfortunately, both of those takeaways led to missed field goals by Jeff Reed, which makes this a game the Steelers should have won.
The first came when Lawrence Timmons recovered a Willis McGahee fumble at the Ravens' 27 with the Steelers trailing 10-7. The Ravens pushed the Steelers back four yards from there to set up a 49-yard attempt by Reed, which hit the right upright.
With just over two minutes left in the third quarter, Ike Taylor intercepted a Flacco pass at the Ravens' 33. The Steelers did move forward six yards this time. But five of those yards were awarded when the Ravens were offsides.
Reed, however, could not take advantage of the Ravens' assistance. This time he was wide left on a 45-yard attempt.
Because of his much-heralded lack of "ball skills," Taylor interceptions are as rare as a model sitting next to dorky guy at a bar and talking to him. The Steelers failing to convert Taylor's interception into points is like that dorky guy burping for about 30 seconds. There goes the model, and the dorky guy doesn't get to display his ball skills.
Speaking of guys who like to go to bars, it wasn't just a win the Steelers squandered Sunday, it was a chance to teach Roethlisberger his lesson just in case he hadn't completely learned it by sitting out four games.
By going 4-0, the Steelers would have virtually guaranteed that their winning percentage would be better without Roethlisberger than with him. It would have driven home the point that he's not bigger than the team, and quite likely flushed from his mind any remaining sense of entitlement that led to his boorish behavior.
Whether or not Roethlisberger is a changed man remains to be seen. While he won't be needed to rescue the Steelers, having him Sunday likely would have been enough to overcome the edge the Ravens had.
The Ravens outgained the Steelers 320-210. Charlie Batch literally went more than an hour without completing a pass. In the fourth quarter, however, he moved the Steelers 93 yards on 13 plays, culminating in Rashard Mendenhall's 7-yard touchdown run with 7:14 left, giving the Steelers a 14-10 lead.
Unfortunately, Flacco isn't afraid of the big, bad Steelers defense. He took the Ravens 65 yards on the ensuing drive before William Gay, showing he's a better nickelback than starter, broke up two straight passes.
The Ravens might have fallen short of the end zone, but field position, which so many Ravens-Steelers games come down to, was in their favor. And that proved to be the difference.
The Steelers had the ball on their own 3 with 2:40 left, but could not get the first down needed to stamp out the Ravens. They went into a shell and ran the ball three times. Something tells me Roethlisberger might have been able to give the Steelers a little more breathing room.
All the Steelers could do was burn the clock, leaving the Ravens with 1:15 and no timeouts. Dan Sepulveda punted the ball to the 50, but on a penalty-strewn day for the Steelers (11 for 88 yards), not even special teams ace Keyaron Fox was immune. He was flagged for holding on the punt, giving the Ravens the ball on the Steelers' 40.
Two passes to Anquan Boldin and two to Houshmandzadeh, two weapons Flacco didn't have in his first two seasons, made up the game-winning drive for the Ravens.
Ray Lewis finished off the Steelers by intercepting Batch's last pass as caretaker of the quarterback position.
So the Steelers lost their first game. That, history tells us, is a sign that the season can really start.
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