Steelers Today – A Pittsburgh Steelers blog

It’s 12 hours after the game ended, and I finally feel up to typing an article in response to last night’s game.

Yes, I’m a writer, and I’m supposed to be prompt in recapping Steelers games.  But the reality is that I’m a fan too, and I take it hard when the Steelers lose.  Especially when they lose the Super Bowl.

But now that I’ve had time to mourn, I’m back at the keyboard.

First of all, I have to congratulate the Green Bay Packers.  They won the Super Bowl and are now the NFL Champions.  Steelers fans know what that feels like, and we can appreciate how proud the fans in Green Bay feel right now.

Frankly, I’m amazed that the Packers were able to do what they did with all of the injuries that they’ve suffered during the season.  They had 13 players on injured reserve, and then they lost Charles Woodson and Donald Driver during the game.  If I were a Packers’ fan, I’d be ecstatic about that team’s potential next year when they get all of those injured players back.

As for the Steelers, they have nobody to blame but themselves.  Ordinarily, if a team dominates the time of possession clock by a full 8 minutes, that team is usually going to win.  Moreover, if a team rushes for 126 yards, while holding their opponent to 50 net rushing yards, you’d probably guess that they won the game.

But the most costly thing in the NFL is turnovers, and the Steelers made 3 of them.  I said in my pregame analysis that these two teams were very evenly matched, and that the team that won the turnover battle would probably win the game.  The Steelers turned the ball over 3 times, and the Packers scored on each of those turnovers.  That was basically the story of the game.

The Steelers made a valiant comeback, and had an opportunity to win the game in the final 2 minutes.  But despite all of the big comebacks we’ve seen Ben Roethlisberger orchestrate over the years, he couldn’t work his magic against the packers’ defense.  The Steelers failed to drive the ball down the field, and the Packers won the game.

Like the Packers, the Steelers have reason for optimism.  Their offensive line was decimated by injuries, yet they successfully ran the ball against the Packer in the Super Bowl, and against the New York Jets in the AFC Championship game.  When they get Willie Colon, Max Starks, and Maurkice Pouncey back next year, they should be even better.

The Steelers also have to be optimistic about their young receivers.  Emmanuel Sanders and Antonio Brown will be experienced veterans next year, and Limas Sweed will be coming off of injured reserve and will compete for playing time.

Hopefully, the Steelers will get a talented cornerback (or two) in the draft.  If they do, the team will be even stronger next year than they are this year.

So congratulations Packers.  You won this time.  But we’ll see you next year.

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This is the final installment in our 9-part Super Bowl XLV Preview series.  We’re finally going to bring it all together to tell you who’s going to win the game.

But first, if you haven’t read the earlier installments, please click the appropriate links below to get caught up.

Part 1:  Super Bowl XLV Preview -  Team overviews

Part 2:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The quarterbacks

Part 3:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Offensive Lines

Part 4:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Receivers

Part 5:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Running Backs

Part 6:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Defensive Lines

Part 7:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Linebackers

Part 8:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Defensive Backs

Part 9:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – Putting it all together

We’ve finally come to the end of our Super Bowl Preview series, and I hope I’ve given everyone enough information so that you’ll be the most knowledgeable fan at your Super Bowl party.

Throughout this series, I’ve pointed out how evenly matched these two teams are.  They’re both very talented.  The Steelers have an advantage at the running back and linebacker positions.  The Packers have an advantage with their talented pool of  defensive backs.

I didn’t really talk about special teams, but I’d say that Green Bay has the advantage there.  The Steelers have a punter, Jeremy Kapinos, who they signed midway through the season when Dan Sepulveda went out with an injury.  Kapinos used to play for the Packers before they decided to not resign him.  The Packers probably feel that they’ve upgraded, or else they would have signed Kapinos.

Similarly, the Steelers signed kicker Shaun Suisham in mid-season when veteran kicker Jeff Reed started missing too many untimely kicks.

Since the Steelers have a kicker and a punter who both started the season sitting on their couch, it’s hard to give them an advantage on special teams.  So the Packers get that one.

But I still haven’t said who I think is going to win, and why.

Ordinarily, I go into every game feeling very confident.  But the Packers are a tough foe.  Aaron Rodgers is a very good quarterback.  I’m nervous.  I admit it.

As I’ve mentioned throughout this series, the Packers are good.  Sure, their regular season record was only 10-6, but they’ve peaked at the right time.  They remind me of the Steelers in 2008.  Big Ben was playing out of his mind, and the Steelers just weren’t going to be stopped.  I see similar things in the Packers.

Aaron Rodgers is a very talented quarterback who is playing out of his mind right now.  Moreover, he’s the type of quarterback who can deliver the ball quickly and pick the Steelers apart.  The Steelers MUST put pressure on him.  They have to hit him early and often.

Fortunately, the Steelers have LaMarr Woodley and James Harrison to do just that.  Both of them should have an advantage over the Packers’ tackles that they’ll be facing.  LaMarr Woodley should eat Bryan Bulaga for lunch.  And Chad Clifton should prove to be no match for James Harrison.  If Harrison & Woodley can generate pressure, it will help their defensive backs out tremendously.

But the guys who are going to be most critical to a victory are going to be Mike Wallace and Rashard Mendenhall.

The Packers have an incredibly talented defensive backfield.  But none of them has the speed of Mike Wallace.  Mike has to go deep early and often to take the top off of their defense.  And when he does, Ben can’t under-throw him (like he does so often).  Once the Packers are forced to respect Wallace’s speed, it will open things up for Rashard Mendenhall.

The Packers may be able to stop one or the other, but I don’t think they can stop both.  So they’ll have to pick their poison.  Do they stop Mendenhall and risk Wallace deep one-on-one, or do they keep a safety back to help with Wallace and make it easier for Mendenhall.  Neither is a good option.

And throughout this series, I’ve barely mentioned Heath Miller, the guy that the Packers will probably have the hardest time stopping.

Ultimately, I think the Steelers are going to be too much for the Packers.  Experience is so important in a game like this, and the Steelers have that.  The Packers don’t.

So when the final whistle blows, the score will be 31-24, and the Steelers will bring Lombardi Trophy #7 back to Pittsburgh.

You heard it here first.

Here we go, Steelers!  Here we go!

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This is Part 8 of our 9-part Super Bowl XLV Preview series.  In this installment, we’re going to take a look at the defensive backs on both teams.

If you haven’t read the other parts of this series, click the appropriate link below:

Part 1:  Super Bowl XLV Preview -  Team overviews

Part 2:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The quarterbacks

Part 3:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Offensive Lines

Part 4:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Receivers

Part 5:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Running Backs

Part 6:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Defensive Lines

Part 7:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Linebackers

Part 8:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Defensive Backs

Part 9:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – Putting it all together

I’ve pointed out how evenly matched these two teams are throughout this series.  They’re both very talented.  But the Steelers have a clear advantage at the Running back and linebacker positions.

Well, the Packers enjoy a similar advantage when it come to their defensive backs.  In fact, the Packers may have the best group of defensive backs in the NFL.

Everybody knows about Packers’ cornerback Charles Woodson.  He’s the only collegiate player to ever win the Heisman Trophy as primarily a defensive player.  He’s been a defensive standout for years in the NFL, and was last year’s AP Defensive Player of the Year.

Woodson is no longer the cover cornerback that he once was.  Instead, Packers’ defensive coordinator Dom Capers uses him much like Dick LeBeau uses Troy Polamalu; he’s his secret weapon.  Capers moves him all over the field.  He’s just as likely to blitz as he is to actually cover a receiver.

It may come as a surprise to some, but Woodson is the second best cornerback on the Packers’ team.  The best cornerback on the Packers (in my opinion) is Tramon Williams.

Williams led the Packers in interceptions and passes defensed during the 2010 regular season.  He’s also the NFL’s interception leader in the 2010 post season.  Both Williams and Woodson were named to the Pro Bowl this year (Williams was named as an alternate to replace Philadelphia Eagles’ CB Asante Samuels).

Free safety Nick Collins is also rock solid.  He was named to the Pro Bowl for the 3rd consecutive year in 2010.

Strong safety Charlie Peprah is the most pedestrian member of this group.  He’s competent, but not outstanding.  But with 3 Pro Bowl caliber defensive backs in the Packers’ starting lineup, somebody has to be the weak link.

Dom Capers likes to use lots of nickel and dime packages.  When he does, the Packers’ backup DB’s also do a very good job.

The strength of their defensive backs is one of the key reasons Green Bay’s defense was ranked #5 in the NFL against the pass.  They limited opposing quarterbacks to a passer rating of only 67.2 this season.  That ranked #1 in the NFL.  Moreover, their 24 interceptions was 2nd best in the NFL.

The Steelers’ defensive backs are the exact opposite of the Packers’.  Instead of having 3 Pro Bowl players and a weak link at strong safety, the Steelers have a Pro Bowl strong safety, and less talented players at the other 3 DB positions.

Strong safety Troy Polamalu was recently named 2010 AP Defensive Player of the Year.  He’s obviously the Steelers’ superstar defensive back.  Need we say any more about him?

Ike Taylor is still a very good cornerback.  He’s much better than he gets credit for.  He’s the guy who will probably be shadowing Greg Jennings on Sunday.  If Ike could catch, he might even have a Pro Bowl or two to his credit.  But Ike has hands of stone, so he’ll never be given the credit that he deserves for defending the opponent’s best receiver week after week.

Bryant McFadden is the weak link among the Steelers’ starting DB’s.  He runs hot or cold.  Mostly cold.  He’s great in run defense (which is important when you play cornerback for the Steelers), but he’s scary to watch in pass defense.  If you polled Steelers fans about which starter on the defense they’d like to see replaced next season, McFadden would probably be the unanimous choice.

His back-up, William Gay, isn’t much better.  He has played very well this season as the nickel back.  He’s even made some game-saving plays this year (like his touchdown against the NY Jets in the AFC Championship).  However, I don’t think there are many Steelers fans who want to see him in a starting role.

Free safety Ryan Clark is the final member of the Steelers starting defensive backfield.  He’s a solid player who is an excellent complement to Troy Polamalu.  Clark is not Pro Bowl caliber, but he’s dependable, and it’s that dependability that allows Troy to roam the way that he does.  Clark has good hands, and can make interceptions when needed.  But Clark is probably best known for delivering the most vicious hits among the Steelers’ defensive backs.  Just ask Wes Welker.

The Packers have a clear advantage in pure talent among their defensive backs.  However, even the most talented DB will have difficulty when the Steelers start playing sandlot football.  It’s going to be interesting to see how the Packers handle that situation.  It may well be what determines who wins the game on Sunday.

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This is Part 7 of our 9-part Super Bowl XLV Preview series.  In this installment, we’re going to take a look at the linebackers on both teams.

If you haven’t read the other parts of this series, click the appropriate link below:

Part 1:  Super Bowl XLV Preview -  Team overviews

Part 2:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The quarterbacks

Part 3:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Offensive Lines

Part 4:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Receivers

Part 5:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Running Backs

Part 6:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Defensive Lines

Part 7:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Linebackers

Part 8:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Defensive Backs

Part 9:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – Putting it all together

In 2009 the Green Bay Packers defense was ranked #1 in the NFL against the run.  But in 2010, they dropped all the way down to #18 (while the Steelers defense moved to #1 against the run).  A big part of the decline that the Packers experienced was due to injuries to their linebackers.

The Packers’ linebackers were decimated by injuries just as badly as the Steelers’ offensive line got decimated.  Three of the linebackers who started for the Packers on opening day ended up on injured reserve.  Nick Barnett, Brad Jones, and Brandon Chillar all ended up on the IR list.  Back-up linebacker Brady Poppinga also ended up on injured reserve.

The injuries forced the Packers to rely on guys that they didn’t expect to play an important role when they entered training camp.  Desmond Bishop had only started 1 game in the past 3 seasons.   Erik Walden wasn’t even on an NFL roster when the Packers signed him in October.  Frank Zombo, an undrafted free agent, also gave to Packers some quality minutes.

Bishop and Walden make up the right side of the Packers linebacking corps.  They are not as high profile as Clay Matthews and A.J. Hawk, the two linebackers on the left side of the Packers’ defense, but they played an important role in getting the Packers to the Super Bowl.  Bishop finished second on the team in tackles.

Clay Matthews is obviously the star of this unit.  He’s an All-Pro player, and many thought that he might be named NFL Defensive Player of the Year (Steelers’ safety Troy Polamalu ultimately won the award).

Matthews is an inspirational story.  He entered his senior year at USC as a special teams player.  He hadn’t started his first 3 years, and wasn’t expected to start his final year.  But he won a starting position by sheer determination, and then one year later he was named Defensive Rookie of the Year in the NFL.

Matthews is virtually unstoppable, but unlike the Dallas Cowboys’ DeMarcus Ware, Matthews doesn’t have super human speed, and unlike the Steelers’ James Harrison, he doesn’t have super strength.  What Matthews DOES have is a motor that never stops.  Never.  He’s the type of player who plays until the echo of the whistle.

The final member of the Packers’ starting linebackers is A.J. Hawk.  He entered the NFL as the top rated linebacker coming out of college his senior year.  He’s a solid linebacker, but he’s been a disappointment relative to the expectation of what he would accomplish in the NFL.  He seldom makes game-changing plays, and prior to Brandon Chillar being injured, the Packers used to pull A.J. Hawk in favor of Chillar in their nickel defense.

The Steelers’ linebackers are a much more talented unit than the Packers’.  In my estimation, only Clay Matthews could start for the Steelers.  The rest of the Packers linebackers (even those on IR) would be back-ups for the Steelers.

Outside linebackers LaMarr Woodley and James Harrison are widely recognized as the deadliest outside linebacking duo in the NFL.  Both of them have had double digit sacks for each of the past 3 years.  Their effectiveness is a big part of the reason the Steelers led the NFL in sacks in 2010.

Inside linebacker James Farrior is the captain of the Steelers’ defense.  He makes the defensive calls.  The 14 year veteran is an extremely intelligent player who continues to defy Father Time.

The least heralded of the Steelers’ linebackers is Lawrence Timmons.  Timmons was Mike Tomlin’s first draft pick when he took over as head coach of the Steelers.  Timmons is the fastest of all of the Steelers’ linebackers.  And though he doesn’t get the attention that his fellow linebackers get (Timmons is the only starting linebacker who hasn’t been to the Pro Bowl), Timmons actually led the Steelers in tackles in 2010.  It won’t be long before he’s also a Pro Bowl linebacker.

Besides their starters, the Steelers have excellent back-up linebackers.  Keyaron Fox can step in for James Farrior or Lawrence Timmons, and the team doesn’t seem to miss a beat.  Larry Foote rejoined the Steelers this season after leaving them when Lawrence Timmons took his starting position.  He is a veteran of this system, and he provides quality depth.  Rookie linebackers Jason Worilds and Stevenson Sylvester have played very well whenever they’ve been called on to play.

Clay Matthews may be playing the best football right now of all of the linebackers who will be playing in Super Bowl XLV.  But when taken as a unit, the advantage in this game definitely falls to the Steelers.

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This is Part 6 of our 9-part Super Bowl XLV Preview series.  In this installment, we’re going to take a look at the defensive lines of both teams.

To read the other parts of this series, click the appropriate link below:

Part 1:  Super Bowl XLV Preview -  Team overviews

Part 2:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The quarterbacks

Part 3:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Offensive Lines

Part 4:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Receivers

Part 5:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Running Backs

Part 6:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Defensive Lines

Part 7:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Linebackers

Part 8:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – The Defensive Backs

Part 9:  Super Bowl XLV Preview – Putting it all together

Okay, we’ve finished looking at the offenses of the two teams, now it’s time to turn our attention to the defenses.

Both teams play a base 3-4 defense.  This should make the game interesting, since both teams are used to facing a 3-4 in practice.  Moreover, Packers’ defensive coordinator Dom Capers and Steelers’ defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau were the architects of the 3-4 zone blitz defense back when both were on Bill Cowher’s staff with the Steelers.  Because the two defenses have similar roots, we should see even more similarities between these two 3-4 defenses than we see when the Steelers face 3-4 teams like the Ravens or the Patriots.

The backbone of a 3-4 defense is their three down linemen.  The two defensive ends and the nose tackle are responsible for occupying blockers so the linebackers can roam free to make plays.  They’re also responsible for stuffing the run.

Both of these units are extremely talented.  But they’re very different.  So it’s hard to compare them.

The Packers are built for size, while the Steelers are built for speed.  They use two different philosophies to achieve the same result.

The Packers have the biggest front 3 of any 3-4 defense in the NFL.  Those guys are tanks.

Typically, a 3-4 nose tackle is going to be the biggest guy in the group.  That’s not the case with the Packers.  Ryan Pickett is the Packers’ left defensive end.  He weighs 340 lbs.  That’s about the same as what Casey Hampton weighs.  Howard Green is a back-up at nose tackle, but he has also sometimes plays right defensive end for the Packers.  He also weighs 340 lbs.  Those two are the strongest of the Packers’ linemen.  Green has bench pressed 495 lbs.  He’s very strong.  Fortunately, he’ll primarily be a substitute in this game.

Nose tackle B.J. Raji weighs 337 lbs.  He’s young, and he’s still learning the position.  But he’ll be one of the best nose tackles in the NFL in a few years.

The starting right tackle is Cullen Jenkins.  He’s the midget of the group.  He weighs a mere 305 lbs.  Tiny, isn’t he?

The Packers use their jumbo size to occupy blockers, just like 3-4 defensive linemen are supposed to.  In 2009, the Packers were the #1 defense in the NFL against the run.  So they obviously do something right.  However, in 2010, the Packers became much more susceptible to the running attack.  Their defense dropped to #18 in the NFL against the run, so I’m sure the Steelers will try to test their stoutness.

Unlike the Packers, the Steelers front 3 are built for speed.  Right defensive end Brett Keisel made the Pro Bowl this year.  He was unable to play because the Steelers are in the Super Bowl.   Keisel only weighs 285 lbs.  That’s tiny by Packers’ standards.  But Keisel is fast.  He’s much faster than any of the Packers’ defensive linemen.

Left defensive end Ziggy Hood is also very fast.  Ziggy only weighs 300 lbs.  But he’s right up there with Brett Keisel in terms of his speed.  He may even be slightly faster.  Both Keisel and Hood play much more like Dwight Freeney of the Indianapolis Colts than they do the Packers’ mammoth defensive ends.  They’re not quite as small or quick as Freeney, but like Freeney, they use their speed as their greatest weapon.

Don’t get me wrong.  Keisel and Hood are strong too.  But they’re not the type of jumbo Players that the Packers seem to favor.  But if we had a race between the Steelers’ linemen and the Packers’ linemen, Hood and Keisel would definitely win.  Moreover, their speed allows Dick LeBeau to use them in ways that Dom Capers can’t use his big guys.

Casey Hampton is the Steelers’ nose tackle.  He’s officially listed as 325 lbs.  But let’s just say that the folks who publish the Steelers’ media guide are being kind to Hampton.  He may have weighed 325 when he was in college, but he certainly doesn’t weigh that now.

Hampton has been a Pro Bowl nose tackle on multiple occasions.  His accomplishments speak for themselves.  Yet despite Hampton’s size, he is surprisingly quick.  Moreover, Hampton is helped by his short stature.  He’s officially listed as 6’1″, but he’s more like 6’0″.  So he has a very low center of gravity.  His legs are the size of tree trunks.  And football is a game of leverage.  Low man wins.  And Casey Hampton almost always wins.

The fact that the Steelers were #1 against the run in 2010 just shows how effective their defensive line is.  The 62.8 yards per game that they allowed on the ground in 2010 would be an all-time Packers’ record.

It’s hard to give a big advantage to either of these two units.  As I mentioned, they’re different.  But both are effective at what they do.

If I had to pick one unit, I’d say the Steelers are slightly better.  However, the Packers will be facing a Steelers offensive line that has been a M.A.S.H. unit all year long.  And now they’re probably going to be without Maurkice Pouncey.  So that match-up may give the advantage to the Packers.

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