So two wins have passed since my last post. The first, against the Colts on Thanksgiving, was closer than it needed to be because of, of course, the defense. They also won because of the defense. They couldn’t stop Scott Tolzien until the goal line. Fortunately the Colts went for it and failed twice. Later in the game when Tolzien had to force something to happen they took care of it, but I can’t understand why they give so much up and give me a heart attack weekly.
This past week was a quality win against the Giants. Like the Colts, the Giants went for it twice and failed. Eli didn’t have a particularly good game and Odell seemed more focused on jumping up and down and raging at the refs than he was on playing. Antonio Brown had that great catch in the back of the end zone, Ladarius Green is finally showing some of the promise he had when they signed him, and Bell, fumble notwithstanding, had a great game as well. I’m happy that Pittsburgh is tied for first, but the early loss to them gives the Ratbirds the tiebreaker, at least until they play on Christmas. That game is shaping up to be the deciding factor in the division race.
But hey, my boys are finally (mostly) healthy and are playing well, and that’s enough for me. Plus, the Bengals are finished. The only thing we have to worry about from them is the possibility that the lunatic Burfict, with nothing to lose, tries to kill Pittsburgh’s stars again in a few weeks. It’s definitely a concern. Otherwise, Pittsburgh really has their fate in their own hands. Next up is the Bills, and that ought to be a win. The Rats get New England, which ought to be a loss. By this time next week I hope I’m posting that the Steelers are in sole possession of first place.
He took out Bell, Brown, and Roethlisberger in one season and came so completely unglued that he cost the Bengals their first playoff win in a generation. There’s no comparison and you know it.
I’d blame that Bengals loss on Jeremy Hill fumbling and the refs not flagging Joey Porter for being on the field inappropriately and taunting the Bengals, but then again Burfict very nearly ran the ball all the way back to his own end zone after an INT for what could have been a Pittsburgh safety.
Anyway - looks like head-to-head tiebreaker won’t come into play for Steelers vs. Ravens this year. One of the teams is going to finish with a better record than the other, rendering the tiebreaker moot. But I think Baltimore stands a slightly better chance than Pittsburgh, despite the tougher Ravens schedule.
Wouldn’t a Raiders vs. Steelers playoff game be something? Bring back the 1970s.
Other than the Brown hit, none of them was remotely questionable. And you know it.
Yes, Hill’s fumble plus Marvin Lewis not just simply running the clock out in that situation forcing all of Pittsburgh’s timeouts and pinning them deep. Three knees and it was over.
This week Pittsburgh comes off the big win and monster performance from Bell and runs smack into the Bengals. They can’t make the playoffs, but they can ruin Pittsburgh’s chances. The Steelers need to win AND keep everybody intact. Against the Bengals.
Done and largely (Tuitt - let’s keep fingers crossed) done. I enjoyed how the Steelers didn’t let themselves get dragged down to the Bengals’ level of brawling and chicanery, but got to work and clearly showed who was the better team. Pity the Eagles didn’t have 2 more points, though - or just 1, for that matter.
Yeah, the Bengals imploded, again, and then tried to provoke Pittsburgh, again. So much for Burfict cleaning up his act. He sees black and gold and that’s it.
So again it comes down to the Ratbirds for the division in late December. That rivalry is alive and well, and recently dominated by Baltimore. But this time Pittsburgh will have everybody, I think. Tuitt and Green are questionable, but that’s not too bad for a Bengals game aftermath.
Hopefully the Steelers will give us all a great Christmas present.
With the entire AFC playoff picture decided except which team comes to Pittsburgh to lose, the Steelers are treating this like a preseason game and sitting Ben, Bell, Brown, Pouncey, Green, and Tuitt. The rest of the starters are going to see limited action.
Now’s a good time for the Browns to win a second game and blow the #1 pick, by far the Brownsiest thing to do ever. I think they have a chance at it. And if they do win, it’ll be the first time in recent memory that it genuinely won’t bother me.
So here we go. The march truly begins today. I think Pittsburgh ought to have this one handled, but the memory of the early season loss still lingers. Stop Ajayi, Dare Matt Moore to beat you, and take it to KC.
Miami never really had a chance. Brown and Bell were just too much to handle, even with Ben not playing all that well. It helped that the Dolphins were playing short because of injuries.
And yet, there are still issues. Ben got his ankle tweaked in garbage time. I am of the opinion that he shouldn’t even have been in at that point, but it wasn’t my decision. Mike Mitchell made some great plays, but he still hits his own teammates far too often in his never-ending quest to lay the wood to people. He really ought to just tackle the guy.
And, of course, we have the hit from Dupree. The flag was certainly correct, he did get a piece of the helmet, but it didn’t look like he left his feet or aimed for the head. Still, you just can’t do that. It’s a shame that after that performance all I hear is “dirty Steelers”. Such is life.
To top it off, Joey Porter was arrested in the South Side tonight. Apparently he was arguing with the police over something, I’m sure we’ll get details later. What is it about some of these guys that they can’t just go out and have a good time like everybody else? So annoying.
Anyway, on to Kansas City. It was an easy win earlier this year, but this time it’s in Arrowhead and it’s a playoff game so a repeat of the early season blowout isn’t likely. I’d still rather have the Chiefs than the Patriots, though they’ll probably be next, assuming a victory next week.