OH...OHIO

Well it had to rain sometime. Ben's perfect record in Ohio (both as a Miami of Ohio player and a Pittsburgh Steeler) came to an end on Sunday. And this time the offensive line was NOT to blame. Actually the O-Line did a great job. Ben was sacked just once, and that was a coverage issue. The running game came back behind the efforts of the O-Line as well. So what went wrong?
First of all, the offense needs to tighten up. A dropped end zone pass? Come on! Ben played well, but the receivers looked uninspired. And the defense is lacking leadership. Two games have been lost by drives against the #1 defense of last season? Troy's physical absence is felt, but the Steelers have won games without him. His leadership, his inspiration, his presence has not been filled. I am also going to fault the end play. Instead of running back and pitching. Logan should have immediately gone out of bounds. 14 Seconds instead of 3. With 14 seconds you can gain yardage against a prevent. And out of bounds. Then you have a few seconds for 1 Hail Mary, and Ben is throwing 40 or 50 yards instead of the 80+ he had to attempt in the final ticks.
And next week the Chargers are in town. I can not buy a 1-3 Steelers.

Windy City Blues

Ugh. There is a donation plate going around for Jeff Reed's therapy... What an ugly loss.
But Steelers fans, I'm here to tell you not to worry. This loss was multi-dimensional. The lack of Troy was clearly felt in the secondary. That will be remedied soon. The rain was another factor. Players couldn't make their cuts on their routes. Ben had a few early-released passes. It was a tough game all around. Five minutes into the first quarter, I said the last team in possession will win this contest. And there you go.
Moving into next week. We got the Bengals in JungleLand. A great AFCN team to bounce back against!

Remember The Titans!

Was it just fitting that that Holmes, who caught the last TD of the 2008 season catch the first TD of the 2009 season? Oh Yeah.
I was a little concerned about Ben in the first quarter. Taking a HUUUGE loss on a third down sac to push them out of FG range. But we believe, right? Ben played much better for the other three quarters.
The run game was a bit off. I hope to see improvement there next week. The offensive line still needs work. Really.
I hate to say it. The real key to this game? Bironas' two missed field goals. Tough play for Ward at the end of regulation, but he bounced back like the trooper that he is. The offense was on the march. So when we won the coin toss, it was like the drive never ended.
AND WE NEVER HAD A DOUBT! People always doubt me when I say I have faith. But this was the 20th time Ben has led the offense in the 4th or OT to a game-winning drive. I am used to this. Give Ben 2:00 and he will beat you. Ask the 2008 Arizona Cardinals.
Unfortunately the Madden Curse has already activated itself for 2009. The good news is Troy is only out 3-6 weeks. AND no surgery. Enjoy the highlights on the right.

Hope your recovery is going good, Doc.

Alas, Poor Isaac

The roster is set to 53. Isaac, I'm going to miss you. I really thought you had a shot.

So a 3-1 pre-season? Not bad. And we are fast approaching the biggest day since 2/1/2009. The Kilt is in good shape. All the elements are together. The Mug is washed. The Newsletter is framed out. Terrible Towel? Check. Superstitious Observations in place? Check. Mojo? Yep! See you Thursday night.

'Here we go. Here we go Steelers. Pittsburgh's going to the Superbowl."

When weeks become days

According to the Calendar, there are about 7 X's left to Steelers football. I got a lot to cover in this one, so let's cut out the pregame and go to the kick-off.

Ben's injury has shown to be less serious than the free world would have liked to think. Even today I was asked by an Eagles' fan if Ben was going to play this year. The game against the Bills seemed to indicate the whole team is in a fairly good state of preparation. Speaking of Ben. He is sporting a different ring these days. After beating Shaq at H-O-R-S-E, he was able to wear Shaq's 3-peat LA Lakers Championship ring. I think my cat Stanley could beat Shaq at basketball these days....

Keisel has signed a five-year deal. And this, in my opinion, is good news. He brings talent to defense, but is better known for his special teams play. And a signed player is a happy player is a performing player.

Trai Essex will show his maturity as he takes the lead spot for Stapleton. Stapleton has been moved to the IR. We'll give that a few weeks to prove itself a good move.

The Bills game? 17-0 says it all.

Steven Black, Martin Nance, Alex Stepanovich, and Derrick Richardson have all been cut. If you are saying 'who?', you are not the only one. It's all part of the unfortunate process of a 53 man roster.

And Dick with a look from the HOF Committee. I got two words for this: NO DOUBT. The day Dick is turned down for the Hall Of Fame is the day I lose faith in the system. Completely. I don't need to make a case here. This guy has worried offensive co-ordinators for years! How many head coaches have sat in their office, looked at a week showing their opponent as the Steelers, then looked at their offense co-ordinator with a questioning stare, and got a doubtful stare back? How many? And how about this quote from Mike Holmgren on the Superbowl XL match-up: 'Well they aren't who we were hoping to play. Dick's guys have ways of taking apart offenses. But we have two weeks to try to put something together.'

OK. 7 days. Check back for a short one next week covering the weekend, and then it's game on. Oh yeah. 13-3. Mark it, dude.

Dr. Z. We will miss you this season. Continue your road back.