I guess the Steelers DO get respect (1 Viewer)

[timschochet]

The current day Steelers have a history of getting very little respect among the national sports media. Consider the following:

1. 99% of the press coverage after yesterday's game involves how the Cowboys "blew it". The tone is completely that the Cowboys should have won easily, but didn't, because of their own errors.

2. Prior to this game, nearly every national sports media picked Dallas to win, including ESPN, Sports Illustrated, Fox News, etc.

3. A week ago, all the hype going into the New England game was about Matt Cassell, and once again nearly everyone picked the Patriots to roll the Steelers. Even San Diego was picked two weeks ago by both ESPN and Sports Illustrated to go into Pittsburgh and win.

4.Going into this coming week, although Peter King of Sports Illustrated ranks the Steelers #3 in his fine 15, he suggests that Baltimore will beat them next week, and the Steelers, after also losing to Tennessee, will be headed for a wildcard. I predict this is the first of several national columnists who will be predicting the same thing.

You don't have to point to the shirt; as a Steeler fan, I'm not complaining, I just find it interesting. During the entire reign of Ben Rothlisberger, all he has done is win, win, win, yet I do not remember the Steelers being favored by the national media to win one big game during that time, with the sole exception of the Superbowl game against Seattle (and of course, all the postgame attention after that game involved the officiating.) Big Ben is never given the attention that, for instance, a Tony Romo is, who has never won anything. Before Romo was the NFL glamour boy, it was Carson Palmer who was everyone's golden boy, and he's never won anything either.

Of course, so long as the Steelers keep winning, I could care less what these people think. There is perhaps an advantage to always being "under the rader", though I'm betting teams around the league respect and fear the Steelers plenty. But I always wonder why this disrespect continues. Is it because Big Ben and the Steelers always win ugly? I have no idea. I don't believe there is some sort of prejudice against the Steelers. But somehow national sportswriters never seem to acknowledge to themselves just how good this team really is.

ETA- OK, I was way overreacting when I wrote this. The arguments made against me were very good: read them if you want. I've pretty much changed my mind.

 

[bicycle_seat_sniffer]

IMO Pitt is the odds on to win the AFC. But they arent sexy like dallas oh well

 

[zamboni]

They've more than earned my respect - I benched the Steelers D yesterday concerned about them going up against the juggernaut Cowboys offense. Deeply regretting that decision.

BTW Tim, we need a new draft.

 

[timschochet]

They've more than earned my respect - I benched the Steelers D yesterday concerned about them going up against the juggernaut Cowboys offense. Deeply regretting that decision.BTW Tim, we need a new draft.

Hard to top the last one. I'll think about it.

 

[Godsbrother]

The Steelers offensive struggles is what is keeping them from getting the respect they probably deserve.

If they make the playoffs, win the AFC and win the Super Bowl they'll get plenty of respect.

 

[IndyHavoc]

Honestly, I'm still scratching my head on how the flock the Colts (in their current disfunction) managed to go in and win vs. that D. Big Ben had a particularly bad game, I guess. Either way, I'd give the Colts (or any other AFC team) at best a 50/50 shot to win vs. the Steelers. If the Steelers had ANY ability to run block, they'd be a complete juggernaut of a team. The way it stands, they will be very suspect to teams that excel at rushing the passer (Colts, Giants, Philly, etc.). Is FWP really that banged up, or has Tomlin just forgotten what he has? This is another example of just not giving a guy enough touches to get him going. You can give a RB 2 carries in a quarter, 3 carries in another, and expect good production. It doesn't work like that. You have to stay committed to it, and eventually you'll get something blocked up and Willy will bust a 25 yarder here, a 30 yarder there.

I'm no coaching genius (but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express), but this seems very, very simple to me.

 

[meanjoegreen]

Obviously you care that the Steelers aren't getting the respect from the media you think they deserve, but I think many fans (and teams as well) prefer their team not being plastered all over the media and gushed about, and letting their wins speak for how good a team they are.

 

[plymkr]

They are a good team, but the Cowboys did blow that game.

 

[gman74]

Honestly, I'm still scratching my head on how the flock the Colts (in their current disfunction) managed to go in and win vs. that D. Big Ben had a particularly bad game, I guess. Either way, I'd give the Colts (or any other AFC team) at best a 50/50 shot to win vs. the Steelers. If the Steelers had ANY ability to run block, they'd be a complete juggernaut of a team. The way it stands, they will be very suspect to teams that excel at rushing the passer (Colts, Giants, Philly, etc.). Is FWP really that banged up, or has Tomlin just forgotten what he has? This is another example of just not giving a guy enough touches to get him going. You can give a RB 2 carries in a quarter, 3 carries in another, and expect good production. It doesn't work like that. You have to stay committed to it, and eventually you'll get something blocked up and Willy will bust a 25 yarder here, a 30 yarder there.I'm no coaching genius (but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express), but this seems very, very simple to me.

Moore >>>>>>>>>>>>>>Parker

 

[Chase Stuart]

The Steelers were 3 point favorites this weekend and one point road dogs against the Pats. Please stop.

 

[timschochet]

Honestly, I'm still scratching my head on how the flock the Colts (in their current disfunction) managed to go in and win vs. that D. Big Ben had a particularly bad game, I guess. Either way, I'd give the Colts (or any other AFC team) at best a 50/50 shot to win vs. the Steelers. If the Steelers had ANY ability to run block, they'd be a complete juggernaut of a team. The way it stands, they will be very suspect to teams that excel at rushing the passer (Colts, Giants, Philly, etc.). Is FWP really that banged up, or has Tomlin just forgotten what he has? This is another example of just not giving a guy enough touches to get him going. You can give a RB 2 carries in a quarter, 3 carries in another, and expect good production. It doesn't work like that. You have to stay committed to it, and eventually you'll get something blocked up and Willy will bust a 25 yarder here, a 30 yarder there.I'm no coaching genius (but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express), but this seems very, very simple to me.

I agree with your analysis; I'm very critical of Arians' playcalling myself. I would like to see Parker benched and Russell given the majority of the carries. Russell is a strong, physical runner who, although he's not going to get the home run, is going to get us 4 yards on first down, and that's what we need right now. But my point is this thread goes way beyond this year. Even in prior years, when the Steelers had, for various reasons, a more productive offense, they were still never picked to win big games like yesterday. And Rothlisberger has never received anything close to the national attention given a few years ago to Palmer, and now to Romo.

 

[Couch Potato]

Steelers get plenty of respect. It's only certain fans with an inferiority complex who, despite getting respect, complain they don't get any. And I'm not picking on Steeler fans. There are whiny fans of all teams like this.

 

[timschochet]

The Steelers were 3 point favorites this weekend and one point road dogs against the Pats. Please stop.

Who's talking about Vegas? Vegas is very realistic. I was referring to the sportswriters, and the impression they give.

 

[Chase Stuart]

The Steelers were 3 point favorites this weekend and one point road dogs against the Pats. Please stop.

Who's talking about Vegas? Vegas is very realistic. I was referring to the sportswriters, and the impression they give.

You're creating a straw man.

 

[Godsbrother]

Honestly, I'm still scratching my head on how the flock the Colts (in their current disfunction) managed to go in and win vs. that D. Big Ben had a particularly bad game, I guess.

Manning was very lucky in that game. The first TD was underthrown and tipped from Ike Taylor right into Wayne's hands. Another pass was tipped by Taylor to Clark for a big first down. Still another pass was dropped by Polamalu that should have been a pick 6.

 

[Yenrub]

Honestly, I'm still scratching my head on how the flock the Colts (in their current disfunction) managed to go in and win vs. that D. Big Ben had a particularly bad game, I guess. Either way, I'd give the Colts (or any other AFC team) at best a 50/50 shot to win vs. the Steelers. If the Steelers had ANY ability to run block, they'd be a complete juggernaut of a team. The way it stands, they will be very suspect to teams that excel at rushing the passer (Colts, Giants, Philly, etc.). Is FWP really that banged up, or has Tomlin just forgotten what he has? This is another example of just not giving a guy enough touches to get him going. You can give a RB 2 carries in a quarter, 3 carries in another, and expect good production. It doesn't work like that. You have to stay committed to it, and eventually you'll get something blocked up and Willy will bust a 25 yarder here, a 30 yarder there.I'm no coaching genius (but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express), but this seems very, very simple to me.

I agree with your analysis; I'm very critical of Arians' playcalling myself. I would like to see Parker benched and Russell given the majority of the carries. Russell is a strong, physical runner who, although he's not going to get the home run, is going to get us 4 yards on first down, and that's what we need right now. But my point is this thread goes way beyond this year. Even in prior years, when the Steelers had, for various reasons, a more productive offense, they were still never picked to win big games like yesterday. And Rothlisberger has never received anything close to the national attention given a few years ago to Palmer, and now to Romo.

Maybe it’s because Ben was so bad in has last national commercial “Helloooo people in TV land”I watched the game with a few Steeler fans yesterday and they all agreed that Ben didn’t play well yesterday

 

[Godsbrother]

Steelers get plenty of respect. It's only certain fans with an inferiority complex who, despite getting respect, complain they don't get any. And I'm not picking on Steeler fans. There are whiny fans of all teams like this.

I agree with this. Personally I think it is the Ravens that aren't getting enough respect.

 

[timschochet]

The Steelers were 3 point favorites this weekend and one point road dogs against the Pats. Please stop.

Who's talking about Vegas? Vegas is very realistic. I was referring to the sportswriters, and the impression they give.

You're creating a straw man.

I honestly don't think so. I'm not the one who always picks against the Steelers every time they have a big game. That would be the writers at ESPN, Sports Illustrated, Fox Sports, etc. I'm not the one who never seems to put Big Ben into the elite category of quarterbacks, and yet somehow Tony Romo is. And most importantly, I don't think any of these people have any bias against the Steelers; therefore, they cannot be a straw man. But for some reason or another, they never seem to recognize how good this team is. And there's too much of a pattern here to simply deny this train of thought exists.

 

[timschochet]

Honestly, I'm still scratching my head on how the flock the Colts (in their current disfunction) managed to go in and win vs. that D. Big Ben had a particularly bad game, I guess. Either way, I'd give the Colts (or any other AFC team) at best a 50/50 shot to win vs. the Steelers. If the Steelers had ANY ability to run block, they'd be a complete juggernaut of a team. The way it stands, they will be very suspect to teams that excel at rushing the passer (Colts, Giants, Philly, etc.). Is FWP really that banged up, or has Tomlin just forgotten what he has? This is another example of just not giving a guy enough touches to get him going. You can give a RB 2 carries in a quarter, 3 carries in another, and expect good production. It doesn't work like that. You have to stay committed to it, and eventually you'll get something blocked up and Willy will bust a 25 yarder here, a 30 yarder there.I'm no coaching genius (but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express), but this seems very, very simple to me.

I agree with your analysis; I'm very critical of Arians' playcalling myself. I would like to see Parker benched and Russell given the majority of the carries. Russell is a strong, physical runner who, although he's not going to get the home run, is going to get us 4 yards on first down, and that's what we need right now. But my point is this thread goes way beyond this year. Even in prior years, when the Steelers had, for various reasons, a more productive offense, they were still never picked to win big games like yesterday. And Rothlisberger has never received anything close to the national attention given a few years ago to Palmer, and now to Romo.

Maybe it’s because Ben was so bad in has last national commercial “Helloooo people in TV land”I watched the game with a few Steeler fans yesterday and they all agreed that Ben didn’t play well yesterday

As he has all throughout his career, he came through with the game on the line and led his team to a game-tying touchdown.

 

[Godsbrother]

I watched the game with a few Steeler fans yesterday and they all agreed that Ben didn’t play well yesterday

He didn't have a great game but he played well enough given the conditions and the fact that he had no running game. The Dallas defense is pretty good...17-33 204 1 TD 0 INT 80.9 passer rating ain't great but it sure beat Romo's stats.

 

[Sabertooth]

The inferiority complex is weak. Pittsburgh gets plenty of respect. As they should. I don't play players against them. That's about the only kind of respect that matters.

 

[parrot]

Steelers get plenty of respect. It's only certain fans with an inferiority complex who, despite getting respect, complain they don't get any. And I'm not picking on Steeler fans. There are whiny fans of all teams like this.

I agree with this. Personally I think it is the Ravens that aren't getting enough respect.

The Ravens are 9-4 to the Steelers 10-3 but it's an insult to suggest they might win at home?

 

[timschochet]

The inferiority complex is weak. Pittsburgh gets plenty of respect. As they should. I don't play players against them. That's about the only kind of respect that matters.

Except that I have no inferiority complex. But I think in general sports fans, and especially fantasy football players, are more realistic about this than the national sports media.

 

[AhrnCityPahnder]

Don't care about respect. Care about wins. The rest quickly fades away.

 

[Uruk-Hai]

The Steelers were 3 point favorites this weekend and one point road dogs against the Pats. Please stop.

Who's talking about Vegas? Vegas is very realistic. I was referring to the sportswriters, and the impression they give.

You're creating a straw man.

I honestly don't think so. I'm not the one who always picks against the Steelers every time they have a big game. That would be the writers at ESPN, Sports Illustrated, Fox Sports, etc. I'm not the one who never seems to put Big Ben into the elite category of quarterbacks, and yet somehow Tony Romo is. And most importantly, I don't think any of these people have any bias against the Steelers; therefore, they cannot be a straw man. But for some reason or another, they never seem to recognize how good this team is. And there's too much of a pattern here to simply deny this train of thought exists.

You're doing what many fans do, and that's understandable because you're more sensitive to what's being said (or not said) about the team you root for. But I bet if you were able to log all of the time spent talking about any individual team by the national media you'd be surprised (I'm talking on-the-field stuff - not things like the Giants circus last week). Pittsburgh gets plenty of attention/respect nationally from what I hear.

 

[AhrnCityPahnder]

Steelers get plenty of respect. It's only certain fans with an inferiority complex who, despite getting respect, complain they don't get any. And I'm not picking on Steeler fans. There are whiny fans of all teams like this.

I agree with this. Personally I think it is the Ravens that aren't getting enough respect.

The Ravens are 9-4 to the Steelers 10-3 but it's an insult to suggest they might win at home?

Next week is going to be a tough , ugly game no matter who is favored, dogged, respected or unrespected. Either team could win.

 

[Steeler]

The current day Steelers have a history of getting very little respect among the national sports media

Who cares

 

[AhrnCityPahnder]

2. Prior to this game, nearly every national sports media picked Dallas to win, including ESPN, Sports Illustrated, Fox News, etc.

All 6 of the ESPN Sunday Countdown guys (Berman, Mort, Carter, Ditka, Jackson and Keyshawn) picked Pittsburgh to win.

 

[crowe1130]

I'm a Steeler fan and care a whole lot more about our poor offensive line play (rush AND pass blocking) than I do about whether or not ESPN picks them to win.

If this team goes anywhere beyond a first playoff game, it will be because that unit puts together some half-decent games.

 

[Steel Dillo]

The current day Steelers have a history of getting very little respect among the national sports media

Who cares

I hope the OP is fishing because otherwise he's just being childish.

 

[Anthony Borbely]

They are a good team, but the Cowboys did blow that game.

 

[Leeroy Jenkins]

This Steelers D is the best they've had in quite some time. The problem is the offense. I dont like the playcalling for the most part. Big Ben looks like he is playing scared still IMO.

 

[meanjoegreen]

I'm a Steeler fan and care a whole lot more about our poor offensive line play (rush AND pass blocking) than I do about whether or not ESPN picks them to win.

But ESPN did pick them to win.

 

[meanjoegreen]

I'm a Steeler fan and care a whole lot more about our poor offensive line play (rush AND pass blocking) than I do about whether or not ESPN picks them to win.

But ESPN did pick them to win.

 

[timschochet]

All right, you guys make good points, especially Ahrn City Pahnder's point about ESPN Countdown, which I didn't see, and Uruk-Hai's point that I am being overly sensitive about what I read about my own team. So I will change my mind and back off of this argument.

 

[Manster]

The current day Steelers have a history of getting very little respect among the national sports media. Consider the following:

1. 99% of the press coverage after yesterday's game involves how the Cowboys "blew it". The tone is completely that the Cowboys should have won easily, but didn't, because of their own errors.

2. Prior to this game, nearly every national sports media picked Dallas to win, including ESPN, Sports Illustrated, Fox News, etc.

3. A week ago, all the hype going into the New England game was about Matt Cassell, and once again nearly everyone picked the Patriots to roll the Steelers. Even San Diego was picked two weeks ago by both ESPN and Sports Illustrated to go into Pittsburgh and win.

4.Going into this coming week, although Peter King of Sports Illustrated ranks the Steelers #3 in his fine 15, he suggests that Baltimore will beat them next week, and the Steelers, after also losing to Tennessee, will be headed for a wildcard. I predict this is the first of several national columnists who will be predicting the same thing.

You don't have to point to the shirt; as a Steeler fan, I'm not complaining, I just find it interesting. During the entire reign of Ben Rothlisberger, all he has done is win, win, win, yet I do not remember the Steelers being favored by the national media to win one big game during that time, with the sole exception of the Superbowl game against Seattle (and of course, all the postgame attention after that game involved the officiating.) Big Ben is never given the attention that, for instance, a Tony Romo is, who has never won anything. Before Romo was the NFL glamour boy, it was Carson Palmer who was everyone's golden boy, and he's never won anything either.

Of course, so long as the Steelers keep winning, I could care less what these people think. There is perhaps an advantage to always being "under the rader", though I'm betting teams around the league respect and fear the Steelers plenty. But I always wonder why this disrespect continues. Is it because Big Ben and the Steelers always win ugly? I have no idea. I don't believe there is some sort of prejudice against the Steelers. But somehow national sportswriters never seem to acknowledge to themselves just how good this team really is.

did you watch the game? it makes me want to puke just thinking about it. the Cowboys defense was the most dominate unit in that game. the Cowboys offense totally #### the bed. granted the Steelers D played well, but the Cowboys had that game and ####### pissed it away!

 

[Ghost Rider]

The inferiority complex is weak. Pittsburgh gets plenty of respect.

Exactly.

2. Prior to this game, nearly every national sports media picked Dallas to win, including ESPN, Sports Illustrated, Fox News, etc.

All 6 of the ESPN Sunday Countdown guys (Berman, Mort, Carter, Ditka, Jackson and Keyshawn) picked Pittsburgh to win.

Stop making sense. It makes it more difficult for certain insecure Steelers fans to play hurt.

 

[treat88]

Arians and this OL are tough to cover up.

Arians is poor, but the OL is awful.

I will take 10-3 and not worry about the respect angle.

That's pretty damn good given those two chinks in the armor.

 

[timschochet]

1. 99% of the press coverage after yesterday's game involves how the Cowboys "blew it". .

did you watch the game? it makes me want to puke just thinking about it. the Cowboys defense was the most dominate unit in that game. the Cowboys offense totally #### the bed. granted the Steelers D played well, but the Cowboys had that game and ####### pissed it away!

I'm backing off my OP; it was, in restrospect, probably as immature and overreacting as some posters have suggested. However, I do want to respond to this comment: no, the Cowboys did not piss the game away.1. After the goal line stand, the Steelers D held the Cowboys to only one first down, and forced them to punt.

2. The Steelers had a great punt return, and Ben got a few first downs, enough to get a FG.

3. The Steelers then held the Cowboys to a 3 and out.

4. Ben put together a 60+ yard drive to tie the game up.

5. On 2nd and 8, **** Lebeau, according to reports, changed the defensive playcall, from a cover 2 to a zone. But it was carefully disguised, and Romo thought he recognized a cover 2 and threw accordingly. You can blame Romo for this, but the interception was at least in part to the Steeler's diguised coverages.

NONE of this was due to the Cowboys "choking": simply put, they were outplayed by a better team during this period.

 

[Tybeeman]

Lifelong Steelers fan here. It makes difference to me what any sportswriter, ESPN anchor or anyone else has to say about the Steelers and how good or how bad they are. I care about what the Steelers coaches and players have to say. Bottom line, wins are all that matter, and the Steelers have 10 so far this season.

 

[Ketamine Dreams]

Agree that their offense needs to come together before they really make a push to the next level. They are otherwise solid, but that offense still has some issues throughout.

 

[Manster]

1. 99% of the press coverage after yesterday's game involves how the Cowboys "blew it". .

did you watch the game? it makes me want to puke just thinking about it. the Cowboys defense was the most dominate unit in that game. the Cowboys offense totally #### the bed. granted the Steelers D played well, but the Cowboys had that game and ####### pissed it away!

I'm backing off my OP; it was, in restrospect, probably as immature and overreacting as some posters have suggested. However, I do want to respond to this comment: no, the Cowboys did not piss the game away.1. After the goal line stand, the Steelers D held the Cowboys to only one first down, and forced them to punt.

2. The Steelers had a great punt return, and Ben got a few first downs, enough to get a FG.

3. The Steelers then held the Cowboys to a 3 and out.

4. Ben put together a 60+ yard drive to tie the game up.

5. On 2nd and 8, **** Lebeau, according to reports, changed the defensive playcall, from a cover 2 to a zone. But it was carefully disguised, and Romo thought he recognized a cover 2 and threw accordingly. You can blame Romo for this, but the interception was at least in part to the Steeler's diguised coverages.

NONE of this was due to the Cowboys "choking": simply put, they were outplayed by a better team during this period.

meh. it doesnt matter, the steelers won. but i still believe the Cowboys offense could've beat the steelers D with better decision making. i'm tired of Romo trying to make #### happen when he should just throw the ball away.

 

[Frenchy Fuqua]

This thread is a joke. Coaches use the "no respect" card to rally players but don't buy into all that bs. Listen to the guys that played against them in the game and know the game. TO, Romo, Witten all complimented the Steelers. As did the Pats the week before. And if they didn't... so what? Respect is earned in January not given in December.

 

[SeniorVBDStudent]

This thread is a joke. Coaches use the "no respect" card to rally players but don't buy into all that bs. Listen to the guys that played against them in the game and know the game. TO, Romo, Witten all complimented the Steelers. As did the Pats the week before. And if they didn't... so what? Respect is earned in January not given in December.

 

[SKribbles]

All right, you guys make good points, especially Ahrn City Pahnder's point about ESPN Countdown, which I didn't see, and Uruk-Hai's point that I am being overly sensitive about what I read about my own team. So I will change my mind and back off of this argument.

Flip flopping again. Atta boy timmay.

 

[IndyHavoc]

The Ravens are 9-4 to the Steelers 10-3 but it's an insult to suggest they might win at home?

Next week is going to be a tough , ugly game no matter who is favored, dogged, respected or unrespected. Either team could win.

Not unless Joe Flacco v2.0 is completely different than Joe Flacco v1.0 that the Colts saw @ The Drum. Put a tiny bit of pressure on him, keep coverage tight for 15 yards and the kid will cough up the ball plenty. With absolutely NO run game (which is what they'll have vs. the Pit front 7) The only chance they've got is to turn that exact thing back on Pit. Keep pressuring Ben, keep coverage tight underneath. Shutting down Pit's run game is like shutting down Indy's run game. Even an average D can do it.Yeah, maybe it'll be close. But when the pressure's on the QB's...I'll take Big Ben to make a LOT fewer mistakes.

 

[treat88]

This thread is a joke. Coaches use the "no respect" card to rally players but don't buy into all that bs. Listen to the guys that played against them in the game and know the game. TO, Romo, Witten all complimented the Steelers. As did the Pats the week before. And if they didn't... so what? Respect is earned in January not given in December.

+1

 

[belljr]

Honestly, I'm still scratching my head on how the flock the Colts (in their current disfunction) managed to go in and win vs. that D. Big Ben had a particularly bad game, I guess. Either way, I'd give the Colts (or any other AFC team) at best a 50/50 shot to win vs. the Steelers. If the Steelers had ANY ability to run block, they'd be a complete juggernaut of a team. The way it stands, they will be very suspect to teams that excel at rushing the passer (Colts, Giants, Philly, etc.). Is FWP really that banged up, or has Tomlin just forgotten what he has? This is another example of just not giving a guy enough touches to get him going. You can give a RB 2 carries in a quarter, 3 carries in another, and expect good production. It doesn't work like that. You have to stay committed to it, and eventually you'll get something blocked up and Willy will bust a 25 yarder here, a 30 yarder there.I'm no coaching genius (but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express), but this seems very, very simple to me.

I agree with your analysis; I'm very critical of Arians' playcalling myself. I would like to see Parker benched and Russell given the majority of the carries. Russell is a strong, physical runner who, although he's not going to get the home run, is going to get us 4 yards on first down, and that's what we need right now. But my point is this thread goes way beyond this year. Even in prior years, when the Steelers had, for various reasons, a more productive offense, they were still never picked to win big games like yesterday. And Rothlisberger has never received anything close to the national attention given a few years ago to Palmer, and now to Romo.

The one thing we learned last week is BEN as a LOT of freedom to change and call his own plays. While I don't like Arians much, I think Ben is "causing" some of this

 

[the Jag Zone]

If they make the playoffs, win the AFC and win the Super Bowl they'll get plenty of respect.

the above remark says about all that needs to be said about the "Stillers" getting their due..but some people just don't get it.. and as a Jaguar fan in central Ohio I hear from Bungal and Clown fans religiously along with other friends who fall in love with their various favs after a few W's.. always asking for their due once they win a few games.. I know many Steeler fans also.. and having some close friends that are Pitt fans, I know that a major portion of them are old school true football fans that understand that you gain your respect by your actions on the field.. just because you win a few games (no matter the team) it doesn't mean that your team is going to be anointed as the top dawg.. the Media will create these issues to sell TV and Print.. as a fan the best thing we can do is cheer like hell for our teams and let their on the field actions say all that needs to be said.. and when it's all said and done.. we get our bragging rights per say..

"it's all about what ya do on the field folks..

..we can talk 'til we're blue in the face but that talk has yet to ever win a football game at any level"

 

[Bojang0301]

Honestly, I'm still scratching my head on how the flock the Colts (in their current disfunction) managed to go in and win vs. that D. Big Ben had a particularly bad game, I guess. Either way, I'd give the Colts (or any other AFC team) at best a 50/50 shot to win vs. the Steelers. If the Steelers had ANY ability to run block, they'd be a complete juggernaut of a team. The way it stands, they will be very suspect to teams that excel at rushing the passer (Colts, Giants, Philly, etc.). Is FWP really that banged up, or has Tomlin just forgotten what he has? This is another example of just not giving a guy enough touches to get him going. You can give a RB 2 carries in a quarter, 3 carries in another, and expect good production. It doesn't work like that. You have to stay committed to it, and eventually you'll get something blocked up and Willy will bust a 25 yarder here, a 30 yarder there.I'm no coaching genius (but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express), but this seems very, very simple to me.

I agree with your analysis; I'm very critical of Arians' playcalling myself. I would like to see Parker benched and Russell given the majority of the carries. Russell is a strong, physical runner who, although he's not going to get the home run, is going to get us 4 yards on first down, and that's what we need right now. But my point is this thread goes way beyond this year. Even in prior years, when the Steelers had, for various reasons, a more productive offense, they were still never picked to win big games like yesterday. And Rothlisberger has never received anything close to the national attention given a few years ago to Palmer, and now to Romo.

The one thing we learned last week is BEN as a LOT of freedom to change and call his own plays. While I don't like Arians much, I think Ben is "causing" some of this

This is still why Arians is a bad coordinator. He needs to take the keys away from Ben, establish a run game and use play action.