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Rut roh.
3rd best defense? Which 2 teams are playing better defense than the Steelers this year? It's so funny how just because the Colts and Pats are the 2 best teams in the league, they must be the 2 best teams in every single aspect of the game.
Thanks Mr. Thrill, but in fact I am a diehard Steeler fan and have been for years. Just telling it like it is, though. What have I written that was "ludicrous"?
Uhhh lets see... I know! The Patriots and the Colts!
Uhhh and why do you think that either one of these teams has a better defense than the Steelers?
OK< getting serious here. I love the Steelers, they're my team but I am being realistic. Both of those defenses are more complete than the Steelers, both are more balanced and better against the pass without giving up anything against the run. The Steelers still have questions with pass rush and in the secondary; niether NE or Indy would have allowed Denver to move the ball as they did. Don't get me wrong, I am extremely impressed with the Steeler D, but overall I think they're slightly behind the other 2.
The Steelers have the # 1 defense in the league going by yds/game or pts/game
. The pass rush looked pretty good today and the secondary has played pretty well for the most part. NE and Indy would not allow Denver to move the ball as they did mainly because Denver would be down 17-0 before the game even started. The Pats and Colts have a good defense but a lot of this comes from the fact that their offenses generate huge leads early which allows their defenses to play the opposing team's one dimensional offense. No way would I trade the Steelers defense straight up for either the Colts or pats defense. I'm also being realistic here.
good arguments; I hope youre right!The Steelers have the # 1 defense in the league going by yds/game or pts/game
Wouldn't this fall under coaching though? We're talking about the best overall defense this year. Statistically speaking, the Steelers are the top defense. If a team with a great defense plays the Pats this year, more than likely the Pats defense will come out looking better because of better coaching and the fact that the Pats defense doesn't have to face the Pats offense!!!
Pittsburgh has the NFL's top defense. Without question. Dont shortchange that Steelers O, though. They'd be a tough cover even for their own D.
Yeah, who'd a thunk it. As a Browns homer, I think the smart play is running Parker and Dookie over and over again and keeping the Browns offense off the field. Anderson is wising up and is making quick decisions against the blitz, i.e. Jamal Lewis' long reception in OT this week. That offense is cohesive, productive, and has some quick strike ability; the last thing that Pittsburgh needs is a shootout.
Agree 100%. Unfortunately the Steelers seem to be committed to the "balanced attack", even when common sense says otherwise.
#2 passer rating#3 yards/attempt#2 TDs#3 1st down %You're right, I'm simply a homer and Ben is nowhere near the #3 QB.
I think Brady, P. Manning, Favre, Romo, and Brees are ahead of him. Palmer is having a down year this year, but I still would put him above Ben. I think Roethlisberger is in a group with McNabb and Hasselbeck. I'm not saying he sucks... I'm just saying he's not near top 3. It's your right as a homer to disagree with me.
Watching the Indy/NE game, I was amazed how both teams had previously been ridiculously dominant against the rest of the league yet suddenly looked so ordinary against one another.fred_1_15301 said:
Rather than looking at who they beat, look at how they beat them. They have played well in all phases of the game and have legit stars in all their units. As Steve Young said last night the reason we aren't discussing them with NE and Indy is their two hiccups against Arizona and Denver. So the Steelers still have alot to prove for sure but they have all the pieces to compete with the best teams in the NFL. They have many of the same young players that won a Super Bowl less than two years ago. I expect they will continue to improve as they enter the 2nd half of the season.
I am not sure the Steelers are better than GB, Dallas or Tennessee either but you can only play who is on your schedule and each of the Steelers victories have been lopsided. In any case I wouldn't get my panties in a bunch. We will all know whether or not the Steelers are underrated or overrated at season's end.
voice of reason. good post assani.
Wholeheartedly disagree. Aaron Smith is a beast and Brett Keisel is well on his way to becoming a stud. Since they play the 3-4, the DEs get overlooked as they are not typically piling up the stats. However, what they do is demand the respect of multiple blockers which free up the linebackers to do their jobs and get the stats. I believe that Smith's injury played a huge part in the loss to Denver.James Harrison had an awesome game last night and he is playing well this year, but the defensive line when healthy, along with Troy Polamalu are the strengths of the defense.twitch said:
You can argue that he's not #3, but it doesn't take a homer to argue that he is #3 or is at least close to #3.Doctor Detroit said:CrossEyed said:doughboydeluxe said:
You can argue that he's not #3, but it doesn't take a homer to argue that he is #3 or is at least close to #3.Doctor Detroit said:CrossEyed said:doughboydeluxe said:
Putting potential aside and based on just statistics, rating and wins, you can certainly make a case that Ben is at least close to # 3 qb in the league right now. It's not like we're talking about Grossman here.
What do you get for accomplishing this even if they were the 3rd best team? The goal isn't to be No. 3 or 6 or whatever, it's to be No.1. And what's worse for Pittsburgh, they're No. 3 in the AFC which won't even get you to the AFC Championship game.timschochet said:
They are the 2nd best D, but Pittsburgh is number 1.
You realize they still have to play the games, right?
I think the Steelers are a very good team but a lot of their defensive superiority this season is largely a function of who they've played. Buffalo, SF, Seattle, Arizona, Baltimore and Cleveland pre-Anderson-as-starter are mediocre to awful offensive teams.
There is no doubt the Steelers will be underdogs when they play the Patriots and for good reason. The Patriots are the best team in NFL and it will take a near perfect game to beat them at home. It is possible but not likely.As far as Indy goes I think the Steelers can hang with them. The two teams are pretty much the same as they were in 2005 except the Steelers offense is decidely better than it was 2 years ago. Why do you think the Steelers can't beat Indy?
The Colts defense is much better this year than it was in '05. And do not forget that Bill Cowher is no longer there. I can't believe how some of you Steelers fans are acting like him being gone will not matter come January.Having said that, I do think the Steelers are more likely to win in Indy than they would be to win in NE. The Patriots have had their number for years.
Hasn't seemed to hurt too much so far. And that is more of an endorsement of Tomlin than an indictment of Cowher.
Just like Steelers fans can't say that it won't matter come January, how can you say that it WILL matter? We have not idea how Tomlin will do in January. It's all speculation at this point but so far he's doing a good job. There's nothing that makes me think this would change in January.
I think this is a good post. What separates the Steelers from the Colts/Pats is that they have not played at a high level consistently all year. However, I do believe that when the Steelers are playing their game at the best, they can certainly beat the Pats or Colts. I think there are very few other teams that can make the same claim.
