No offense, but this is actually very obvious - I wasn’t being facetious earlier.
No. I’ve explained to you on multiple times the importance of game control and clock management, which comes from a commanding running game. If you need me to explain this further, I will.
Well, “the passing game” involves much more .than pass blocking, and pass blocking is what you’ve been on about from the outset. I’ve simply been saying that among individual elements, pass blocking ranks quite low. You started the season suggesting that the Browns were going to be successful because of their pass blocking, which is ridiculous.
I never implied any such thing. I’ve simply repeatedly contended against your over-valuing of pass blocking.
In fact, this is what I said way back earlier in the thread:
In fact, a good running game and defense are, in my opinion, crucial. I’ve never said anything more than that. You, however, keep making my point for me (first by pointing to rushing stats and now pointing to the weakness of the defense). I will also observe that the Steelers have statistically the worst passing offense in the division, in terms of passing yards and sacks allowed. However, they are poised to go 6 and 0 within the division.
Sorry, I was unclear. I wasn’t referring to today’s game, but games in the past where he’s implied that Cleveland’s offensive line was holding them back more than their defense.
The offensive line performed fine today. Anderson had one of his “why the hell am I throwing here? dunno. do it anyway” games that he hasn’t had in a long time. Pressure didn’t force him to do it, and the run game was healthy.
Rarely is a loss so easy to accurately blame on one person.
I was 13 years old at the start of the 1995 season. Forgive me if I wasn’t a knowledgable and dedicated football fan by then. What does it matter? I study the game - tape, reading about it, etc. I’ve been about as dedicated a fan as there is over the last few years.
I’m not denying that, but this is what you originally said:
That’s the statement I found ridiculous. Not that run blocking is important, but that good pass blocking “just isn’t associated with winning football”, as if it’s some statistical fluke that has nothing to do with playing good football. I’m not saying that run blocking and good defense isn’t important, but you keep wanting to try to steer the argument in that direction.
The thing is, I haven’t. I said that the Browns O-line clearly has very superior pass blocking and that’s something in their favor, but you created a straw man out of this and implied that I said that it’s fine if you can pass block well and not run block at all. That was never my assertion. See this post here. I talk about how the Cleveland line has run blocked well, but the situations they’ve been in have kept them from running much, so their totals are low. This was later proven - as the situations dictated through weather and an improving Cleveland defense that running was more important, Jamal started putting up very nice numbers.
The funny thing is that I refuted this strawman JUST A FEW POSTS AGO and you’re still going on bout it.
And yet you still keep bringing up the straw man that I ever said “Yeah, Cleveland’s O-line can’t run block, because that’s okay because…”
I’ve never said anything like that. You’re not listening to me.
Never denied that. Modern NFL offense is a complex balance, and it’s hard to consider the O-line’s contribution to either of the main types of plays to be unimportant, or, as you said, not associated with winning football.
Nonsense. This whole line of reasoning is a straw man. I never disagreed with your assertions that the running game or defense is important, therefore my direct statement that they are now does not “keep making [your] point for [you]”. You want to create false victory by acting like I’m conceding something, but I’m not, because I never disagreed with these things.
One example in either direction isn’t going to prove the merits of focusing on passing vs running. And it doesn’t directly address the issue at hand. Yes, you can succeed without a great passing game. You can succeed without a great running game. But that doesn’t mean that teams that do one or both very well aren’t typically successful. There’s correlation. And hence, teams that pass block very well tend to correlate with successful football. Teams that run block very well also do. Not every case, but there’s a general correlation.
And even if the yards don’t bear it out, I think it’s pretty silly to call your passing game worse than Baltimore’s in practice.
Your line play is going to be a big reason you won’t go far into the playoffs, though. Big Ben is probably the best QB in the league at shrugging off and running from sacks. If he was less mobile and weaker you could be challenging Detroit for the most sacked team, I think. Your run blocking really hasn’t been great for a while either, though - you get by on reputation from years past in which it was.
I understand that some people need rest for the playoffs, but man, I have $80 riding on this game. Coach Tomlin, can you please try to win? It is the damn Ratbirds, after all.
You’re a brave man. The Steelers haven’t done much lately that would make me think they’d get real excited about a game that has no effect on their future.
This is a long-standing bet. $20 with two Ravens fans, double or nothing for the second game. I can’t lose money, I can only make it. Right now it’s $40 to me, but I get bupkis if the Steelers lose.
Thanks for nothing, guys. Way to show up. Professionals aren’t supposed to mail it in like this, playoffs notwithstanding.
No effect? Would you rather play Cleveland/Tenn and then Indy or Jacksonville and NE? Getting the 3 seed is a big deal and it’s about a sure thing right now that my Chargers are going to get it.
If I were the Steelers I would be ashamed of the fact that it took until the last 7 minutes of the game to start playing something resembling football, and if they somehow pull this garbage performance out they should be eternally thankful that they were playing the Ravens.
Somehow they are still in the game, although it’s highly unlikely that they will come back the whole way and win. We’ll see.
For whatever reason, the Steelers weren’t interested, what with Roethlisberger, Hines Ward and Polamalu inactive. They’ll need to be sharp for the Jags, who will no doubt be feeling that the Steelers are vulnerable.
I know it’s “smart football” to rest people and take it easy if you don’t really need to win the game, but still, I think it’s really not very helpful to go into the playoffs after a showing like that. They oughta be ashamed, and they should be worried that they let a team like the Ravens run all over them. Troy Polamalu being out doesn’t explain that very well.
I did like seeing some emotion from Tomlin, but down the road, the Steelers are going to need someone to step up and be a locker room leader - they are just too flat too often. I criticized Cowher for being all emotion and no brains, but I see you can err on the other side of things as well. Unless, apparently, you are a little penis in a cutoff hoodsie.
Wow. It only took you all season to bring the noise that I came out with in the preseason. I love the playoffs, it brings out all the homers.
As for the game, I don’t think that Pittsburgh will lose twice to the Jaguars, but hey, that could happen. If it does, I take solace in the fact that no matter how disappointed I might be at least I’m not an Eagles fan. 47 years… yeah, that has to hurt.
True. Since the Chargers won, it’s a moot point anyway. Maybe they thought that the odds of SD losing to Oaktown were so low that it wasn’t worth the risk to their starters.
As I said, I guess it doesn’t matter since we are in the playoffs, but I would have liked to see a better game.