Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Coach Cowher's Weekly Steelers Press Conference Podcast: September 19, 2006
(The Burgh - September 20, 2006) - Click here for the Pittsburgh Channel's downloadable .mp3 podcast of Coach Bill Cowher's Weekly Press Conference from Tuesday, September 19, 2006 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.Topics include: The debacle in Jacksonville Monday evening; the upcoming division battle against the Cincinnati Bengals this Sunday afternoon at 1pm; and an injury update.
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Deja Vu All Over Again?
(The Burgh - September 19, 2006) - Well, as my Pops used to say: "if you ain't got nothin' good to say, then don't say anything". Oh, how true. However, Stillers Nation must give props to two defenses that played one helluva game last night. The Steelers win most games when the defense holds the opponent to 9 points. Unfortunately, that didn't hold true last night.In the lowest scoring game in the history of Monday Night Football, fans were treated to a hard-hitting, smash-mouth football game that was won by the team that hit harder and wanted the victory more than the other guys. And so it will be written about the match-up between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Jacksonville Jaguars during Week 2 of the 2006 NFL Season.
However, it got us thinking.....How will the Steelers recover from this game? Especially considering their next opponent: the defending division champion Cincinnati Bengals are coming to town. On a more positive note, they are coming to Heinz Field this Sunday a bit banged up after a slugfest with their cross-state rivals last Sunday.
Some Black & Gold faithful have already hit the panic button, but here at Stillers Nation, we just reflect back to last season. More specifically, November 28, 2005 - another embarrassment on Monday Night Football when the Indianapolis Colts had their way on both offense and defense, humiliating the Steelers 26-7 in a game that had the Steelers complaining to the league office about "piped in noise" to make it more difficult for the Steelers to call plays.
The positives that night were: the Steelers got valuable game time experience in the dome they would play in again several weeks later; Big Ben realized he couldn't comminicate very well with his teammates at the line of scrimmage, thus the beginning of his silent snap count that has worked pretty darn well since that game; and most importantly, the Steelers were deemed the underdog when the teams met again in the playoffs, partially as a result of the lopsided loss during the regular season. And we all know how that second meeting turned out.
Which brings us to the positives from last night. Without question, the highlight of the night was Joey Porter's introduction of the Steelers defense, where he did his impersonation of David Chappelle's impersonation of Howard Dean during the 2004 Democratic primary. However, other positives we observed included: Santonio Holmes needs to practice his pass routes a little more leading up to a big game; Big Ben can take a hit, even after having his appendix removed only two weeks ago; and Troy Polamalu plays a lot better when he can actually use both arms.
The lesson that was learned on that Monday night in Indianapolis last November very well could be the lesson that repeats itself if the Steelers find themselves in a playoff game down at All-Teal stadium next Janaury. Stay tuned.
Friday, September 15, 2006
Week 2 Preview: Steelers at Jagoffs
Next up are the Jacksonville Jaguars, a team that has always found a way to keep the Steelers on their toes. Since NFL realignment separated the twice-a-year meetings between ex-AFC Central foes, the Steelers and Jags still know how to put on a good show every time they meet. For those of you with a short memory, the low point of last season had to be the game ending INT thrown by Tommy Maddox, as seen in the following video from YouTube.com:
Friday, September 08, 2006
"The Kiss" Heard Round the Burgh.
(The Burgh - September 8, 2006) - Well, the season opener is behind us, but I can't think of a better way for the Steelers to kick-off the 2006 NFL season than what I witnessed less than 12 hours ago. It was a beautiful night in the Burgh - and the 99 Bananas was flowing during the tailgate to get me into "game shape".The contest had its highs and lows, but the fourth quarter was one of the best I can remember in all my games at either Heinz Field or Three Rivers Stadium. And to my delight, most of the action unfolded right in front of me - literally - as most of these plays occurred on my side of the field right about where I sit (between the 30 & 40 yard lines).
First, with 6:11 to go in the game, I was treated to a perfect 87 yard pass thrown by Charlie Batch to Heath Miller that resulted in the longest completion from scrimmage in the history of Heinz Field. Since Miller's pattern had him running from left to right across the field, I got to see the ball thrown directly at me before Miller grabbed it in full stride and took off to the races to put the Steelers ahead for good 21-17. That turned out to be just the beginning of the fun.
Next came Troy Polamalu's pick of Daunte Culpper with 5:51 remaining in the game. And then with just under 3 minutes left, came the icing on the cake - Joey Porter's interception and 42 yard return for a touchdown to put the game out of reach 28-17. And then, for all of you who missed it, came what is now known around town as"the kiss".
Coach Cowher, who is more commonly seen slobbering or scowling at his players, and Joey Porter, the meanest player in the NFL as voted by his peers, embraced in what appeared to us (although we were about 30 rows away) to be more than sideline conversation. Then we saw the whole interlude on today's local news. Yes, Stillers Nation, it definitely was a kiss by Porter on the Chin's cheek - and, being in a loving mood, it appeared as if Cowher reciprocated.
WPXI's Alby Oxenreiter poked fun at Porter after the game, when he stopped in mid-interview and said: "Don't try and kiss me", which prompted Porter to crack a big smile and start laughing.
For a wrap-up of last night's win over the Miami Dolphins, check out Rich Walsh and Alby Oxenreiter's video podcast.
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
The Daily Dose of Steelers Hata-Aid...
(The Burgh - September 6, 2006) - As if hearing about how the refs handed the Steelers Super Bowl XL by John Madden the other night wasn't enough, now come the naysayers who say the Steelers have no chance to repeat in Super Bowl XLI. Stillers Nation has seen numerous articles [1] [2] [3], most of which don't even have the defending Super Bowl Champs winning the division. And then there is Syracuse alum, Adam Schein (pictured on the right). No other sportswriter seems to have his head shoved further up his arse than Mr. Schein, who predicts the Steelers will go 8-8 this year in his latest article found on Foxsports.com. I guess he feels this way since they only have 19 of 22 starters returning. Or maybe because they are defending Super Bowl Champs and Mr. Schein, a lifelong Jets fan (pity the thought), just can't stomach a third back-to-back Super Bowl win by the Steelers.
In any case, it seemed kinda strange to Stillers Nation after reading his latest masterpiece that started off stating that the Steelers will finish 3rd in the division with an 8-8 record, but then had several contrasting statements in his summary including:
"The Steelers will be in the mix with their incredible and deep coaching staff. Head coach Bill Cowher, coordinators Ken Whisenhunt and Dick LeBeau, and offensive line coach Russ Grimm, are among the best at what they do."And then this doozy:
"The Pittsburgh defense will always keep them in playoff contention."So, let me get this straight: the Stillers will be "in the mix" and our defense will keep us "in playoff contention", but we're only gonna win 8 games? You can't have it both ways Mr. Schein. Either they're gonna go 8-8 or they're gonna be in playoff contention. Which one is it?
Sunday, September 03, 2006
Big Ben Out for Opener and Beyond?!?!
(The Burgh - September 3, 2006) - As has been widely reported on 6 o'clock local news in Pittsburgh, Ben Roethlisberger will miss the home opener this Thursday and most likely the first several games of the season, due to an emergency appendectomy earlier today. After Ben complained about a pain near his stomach this morning, he was rushed to Pittsburgh's Presbyterian Hospital where doctors discovered a ruptured appendix. A laproscopic appendectomy was immediately performed and as per comments made by Coach Cowher, "the surgery went well and Ben is in the hospital recovering".It has a been a rough off-season for Big Ben, as well as Steelers fans, who take any news about its star QB with baited breath. It should be noted that initial reports state that this has nothing to do with his motorcycle accident this past June.
The Steelers are now scrambling to sign a third string QB, since they released both Shane Boyd and Omar Jacobs on Saturday. The likely candidate would be Jacobs, who was signed onto the Steelers practice squad today along with 7 other players including: CB Anthony Madison, DE Shaun Nua, OT Brandon Torrey, WR Marvin Allen, TE Jon Dekker, DE Orien Harris, RB Cedric Humes, and FB John Kuhn.
Friday, September 01, 2006
A Perfect Pre-Season Ending: Some Questions Answered
(The Burgh – September 1, 2006) – Well, the pre-season is now behind us and the Steelers finished with a perfect record. Unfortunately, the perfect mark appeared in the wrong column and the Steelers finished their first pre-season since 1987 without a single victory. Not that it really matters.Going into last night’s game, we knew that most of the starters would not be playing. And a few players had a lot more than the outcome of a pre-season game riding on last night’s individual performances.
Some of the questions answered last night included:
Who will start at free safety?
Ryan Clark played a solid game, while Tyrone Carter was badly burned early in the game in a play that nearly ended in a TD and then topped that by making the bonhead penalty on 4th and long at the end of the game - a play that should have resulted in the Steelers getting the ball back, but instead resulted in a 1st and 10 for Carolina on their way to the game-winning FG. Anthony Smith made some good plays as he has throughout the pre-season, but the kid is still in the learning phase. End of story. The starter will be Ryan Clark.
Does Duce Staley make the team?
The safe call is yes. Remember, this is a guy a year ago who did not complain about letting the Bus shine in short yardage and goal line situations Althogh, Duce seems to love collecting the paycheck without busting his fat ass. And Cowher, being a man of honor, will most likely reward Staley with a spot on the 53 man roste for not rocking the boat last year a la T.O. or Keyshawn “give me the damn ball” Johnson. But, if we just look at Duce’s performance this pre-season (last night was his "best" in 4 games: 19 times for 46 yards), the answer should be cut the bum. John Kuhn has emerged as a decent backup to Dan Krieder and he seems to have a knack for running over defenders and finding yards around the corners (although he did fumble the ball). Cedric Humes looks like he has a ways to go, but he does have potential, which he showed us by scoring the Steelers only TD last night on a pretty walk up the middle into the end zone.
Do we need three QBs?
Sure. Look at the last couple of years. The #3 QB has been called into duty during the regular season, and if history repeats itself, the #3 QB will most likely see some snaps this year. So, with that being said, Omar Jacobs should also make the roster. After putting up his best performance to date, including a perfectly thrown ball to Walter Young for a 46 yard gain in the 4th quarter, this kid has matured enough in the last 4 weeks to make the team.
Do we need three Centers?
If you asked us two weeks ago, the answer would have been “absolutely”. But the superfreak, backup Center Chukky Okobi, has apparently miraculously healed from a potentially career-ending neck injury and subsequent surgery. Did you see him play last night? Unbelievable. This is all we needed to see to know that the roster spot originally meant for Marvin Phillip will be instead given to a special teams stud like Sean Morey or Chidi Iwouma. If Phillip doesn’t get picked up by another team (most likely the Cleveland Browns), he will be added to the practice squad.
Who is the #3 CB?
Even after being in the right place to recover two fumbles, Ricardo Coclough proved he is not mature enough to have earned the #3 CB, a job which will be kept by Bryan McFadden. Coclough committed two bonehead plays – including spiking a potentially live ball after a decent punt return and being suckered into what appeared to be a clock-stopping spike the ball play by Carolina, but instead turned into a nice 20 yard gain that put the Panthers into easy FG position with :04 left in the game. These two mistakes are inexcusable and will hopefully not be repeated during the regular season. As a result, Coclough, who was supposedly challenging McFadden for the #3 spot, will remain the #4 CB.
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