Steelers Today – A Pittsburgh Steelers blog

August 26, 2009
By Donald Starver

According to the Buffalo Bills, star wide receiver Terrell will not play in this Saturday’s pre-season game against the Steelers.  Owens has been nursing a sprained toe, but was thought to be on track  to play in the final 2 pre-season games.  However, according to Bills head coach Dick Jauron, T.O. might not play in either contest.

“He won’t play this weekend”, said Jauron, speaking about this weekend’s game against the Steelers.  When asked about T.O.’s likelihood of playing in the Bills’ final pre-season tune-up next week, Jauron was less definitive in his answer.  “I wouldn’t make any predictions on that,” said Jauron. “I’m just going to wait and see how he feels.”

Bills' WR Terrell Owens

I don’t mean to sound like a Steelers homer (Who am I kidding?  You all KNOW that I’m a Steelers homer), but this sounds like a thinly veiled excuse to avoid having to play against the 6-time Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers.  T.O. has never played particularly well against the Steelers.  In fact, Steelers cornerback Ike Taylor has traditionally owned T.O.

Despite not being a fan of Terrell Owens, I am nevertheless disappointed to hear that he won’t be playing.  After all, who wants to pay to see the Buffalo Bills without T.O.?  T.O. is perhaps the only interesting aspect of what is definitely one of the worst teams in the NFL. 

T.O. left the Dallas Cowboys, a team that hasn’t won a playoff game in 12 years, to join the Bills, who haven’t won a playoff game in 13 years.  In fact, the Bills haven’t even made the playoffs since 1999.

Saturday’s game kicks off at 7:30 PM at Heinz Field.  Steelers fans should probably start tailgating a little earlier than usual.  After all, they’ll need to be extra drunk to enjoy watching the Buffalo Bills.

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February 22, 2009
By Donald Starver

This week I was reminded once again why we, as Steelers fans, are a very fortunate bunch.

The Steelers have been one of the most successful organizations in the NFL for the past 40 years.  They have won more Super Bowls than any other team.  Moreover, even when they don’t win the Super Bowl, they are almost always in the playoffs.

Sure, we’ve had down years (e.g. the Cliff Stoudt years), but for the most part, the Steelers are almost always competitive.  Even when they don’t make the playoffs or win their division, the Steelers rarely embarrass their fans.  And unlike teams like the Cincinnati Bengals (Bungles), Detroit Lions, and Oakland Raiders, the Steelers are NEVER the butt of jokes.

Contrast that with the other team that vies for the title of “most popular team in the NFL”, the Dallas Cowboys.  The Cowboys (along with the 49ers) have won the next most Super Bowls in NFL history (5 Super Bowl championships).  They were once given the title “America’s team”.  Yet, in their recent history, the Cowboys have given their fans little to be proud of. America’s team? Many Cowboys fans wish they weren’t Dallas’ team.

The Cowboys may be the biggest band of underachievers in the NFL.  Each of the past two years, the Cowboys have had twice as many Pro Bowl players as the Steelers.  In 2008, the Cowboys had 12 of their players in the Pro Bowl, while the Steelers had only 6.  This year, the Cowboys had 6 Pro Bowl players compared to the Steelers’ 3.  Yet despite their star-studded roster, the Cowboys have achieved little.  They haven’t won a playoff game in over a decade (since December 28, 1996).  They failed to even qualify for the playoffs this year. Meanwhile, this year’s Steelers team, which had the toughest schedule in the NFL and included only 3 Pro Bowl players, managed to win the Super Bowl.

Since 1990, the Cowboys have had six different coaches (Jimmy Johnson, Barry Switzer, Chan Gailey, Dave Campo, Bill Parcells, and Wade Phillips.  None of them lasted more than 4 years.  The Steelers have had two coaches during that same period.

The Cowboys are known for signing troubled players.  Terrell Owens, Pacman Jones, and Tank Johnson were all welcomed with open arms by Cowboy’s owner Jerry Jones.  None of those players would have been welcomed by the Steelers, where character is just as important as talent.

The Cowboys are like a soap opera.  The most important news stories about them usually stem from their off-field exploits.  Terrell Owens doesn’t think he’s getting the ball enough (surprise, surprise).   Pacman Jones gets into trouble at a strip club.  Tony Romo and Jessica Simpson are breaking up.    Terrell Owens doesn’t like his coaches.  Tony Romo and Jessica Simpson are back together.  Jerry Jones calls Marion Barber “soft”.  Pacman Jones gets into trouble at a strip club.  Business as usual with the Dallas Cowboys.

Now, Jerry Jones has added another storyline to the Cowboys’ soap opera.  Jones has placed a gag order on his coaches.  They are not allowed to talk about Cowboys affairs to the media.  Only Jones himself is allowed to make public statements pertaining to the Cowboys.

Can you imagine that?  The head coach is not allowed to talk about the team.  Totally bizarre.

When reporters in Indianapolis for the scouting combine approached Cowboys’ head coach Wade Phillips on Thursday, he said, “Can’t talk. Against the rules.”

Jones says that the reason for his new mandate is that too much inaccurate information about the Cowboys was being written.

“Where I’m coming from here, I just want to make sure you’re not getting bits and pieces of information,” Jones said. “That’s not doing anybody any good and you’re not making accurate reports.”

Jones doesn’t think that he is undermining the authority of his head coach, Wade Phillips, by not allowing him to talk to the media, even though all NFL coaches speak to the media while at the Combine.

“It’s well known that relative to our personnel decisions who makes that decision,” said Jones, who has had final say on personnel matter since purchasing the team 20 years ago. “All I’m trying to say is basically that’s where you need to go to see where the status of that decision is. That’s where you need to go. That’s what we’re trying to avoid. What’s happened this off-season, there’s been a lot of misinformation.”

The ironic part of this whole story is that Jones has only placed the gag order on his coaches.  He has not issued a gag order for his players.  So big-mouthed players like Terrell Owens can continue to say whatever they want, and divide the Cowboys’ locker room, with no negative repercussions.  This story would almost be funny, if it weren’t so sad.

Can you imagine Dan Rooney putting a gag order on Mike Tomlin or Kevin Colbert, and telling the media that they needed to talk to him if they wanted information about the Steelers?  Neither can I.

But the Rooneys aren’t Jerry Jones.  The Steelers aren’t the Cowboys.  And I am extraordinarily grateful for that.

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As our regular readers know, we have been pretty hard on Ike Taylor at times.  It’s not that we don’t like Ike.  In fact, nothing could be further from the truth.  We love Ike.  When T.O., or Randy Moss, or Plax are in town, there is not a cornerback that we’d rather have covering them than Ike Taylor.

Unfortunately, when there is an easy interception to be had, there is nobody we’d like attempting to catch it less than Ike Taylor.  Let’s face it, Ike has hands of stone.  I know a guy who had both of his hands amputated who can catch better than Ike.

Some of you felt that we were being too hard on Ike when we wrote an article called “Catch the damn ball, Ike!!!”.  Perhaps we were a bit hard on him.  That’s why we are taking the time now to publically acknowledge Ike Taylor’s great performance this past week against Dallas.

Ike did a tremendous job of shutting down Terrell Owens (on T.O.’s birthday even) this past Sunday.  In fact, in consecutive weeks, Ike has held Randy Moss and Terrell Owens to 45 yards receiving and 32 yards receiving, respectively.  More importantly, he only allowed 1 touchdown between the two of them.  That lone touchdown only happened because the Steelers dropped both James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley into coverage on the play.  That left Tony Romo with plenty of time to finally find T.O. in the back of the endzone.  If either Silverback or Woodley had been pursuing Romo, there’s no way that touchdown happens.  But even Ike can’t cover T.O. indefinitely.

Anyone who watched the game on Sunday knows that there was one extraordinary moment that stood out above all others.  No, we’re not talking about Deshea Townsend’s game winning pick six.  Try again.  Nope, we’re not talking about Troy Polamalu’s 7th interception.  Care to take another guess?  Nope, we’re not talking about Hines Ward’s 159th consecutive game with a catch.  Guess again.  No, we’re not talking about James Harrison’s 7,000th (or at least it seems like that many) sack/forced fumble combination.  No, silly rabbits, we’re talking about Ike Taylor’s first interception of the season.  Yahoo!!!!!!!

Ike snagged his first interception of the year on a diving catch that actually had a pretty high degree of difficulty.  Any interception by Ike is cause for celebration, but a diving interception is cause for a party in “the Burgh”.  Light the fireworks!  Release the pigeons!!

We’re not going to mention the fact that Troy Polamalu has 7 interceptions.  Or that seldom-used backup safety Tyrone Carter already has an interception.  Or that linebacker LaMarr Woodley has as many picks as Ike.  Or that fellow sackmaster James Harrison also has as many picks as Ike.  Moreover, we’re not going to mention that backup linebacker Lawrence Timmons also has the same number of interceptions as Ike.  Nope, we’re not going to mention any of that.  We’re just going to let Ike have his moment in the sun.

Savor this moment.  Afterall, seeing an Ike Taylor interception is about as rare as…..well, seeing a unicorn.  There are even those who put Ike Taylor interceptions into the same mythical category as unicorns.  But this Sunday, Ike proved them wrong.  The Loch Ness Monster may not exist.  Bigfoot may be an urban legend.  but Ike Taylor interceptions really do happen.

Look what we saw on Sunday

Ike may not catch another interception before the end of the season (or the end of the decade for that matter).  But as long as he keeps running stride-for-stride with the best receivers in the league, we want him lining up for the black and gold.  In fact, we wouldn’t trade him for any other cornerback.

We all know what we get with Ike Taylor.  Ike is paid to shadow the league’s best receivers and defense passes.  Nobody expects him to intercept the ball.  An occasional interception is just icing on the cake.  Way to go, Ike!

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Before reading this week’s key match-ups, please read my Steelers-Cowboys Preview. Also, you may want to read our reports on the Steelers and Cowboys historical rivalry by clicking here.

Each week I look at the key match-ups that will most likely impact the outcome of the game. Here are this week’s key match-ups.

Steelers’ linebackers James Harrison vs. Cowboys LT Flozell Adams

Last week, James Harrison faced off against the Patriots’ Pro Bowl left tackle Matt Light. After 2 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, and more hurries than Matt Cassel cares to remember, Harrison proved that he can more than hold his own against a Pro Bowl caliber left tackle.

This week, Silverback gets to give a repeat performance against another Pro Bowl left tackle. This time, it’s the Cowboys’ Flozell Adams. Adams presents a different challenge than Light. Light was a 6’4″ 305 lb. left tackle. He combines strength with reasonable speed. Adams, on the other hand, is more of a behemoth. He’s 6’7″ and 340 lbs. Think Orlando Pace, only heavier. In fact, a better comparison is the Steelers’ own Max Starks. Starks is 6’8″ and 345 lbs.

Since Adams dwarfs Harrison by 7 inches and 100 lbs., it is not likely that Harrison is going to be able to beat him by simply bull rushing him. Fortunately, Harrison has two key advantages that should serve him well. When blocking, leverage is everything, and Harrison’s shorter stature will actually provide him with a leverage advantage over Adams. More importantly, Harrison is significantly faster than Adams. In this situation, Harrison’s speed advantage is more important than Adams’ size advantage. Do you remember how Silverback used to destroy Max Starks in training camp? That’s pretty much what we should see this weekend. Advantage: Steelers.

Steelers’ LT Max Starks vs. Cowboys’ LB DeMarcus Ware

Like Flozell Adams, Max Starks is a massive LT whose greatest advantage is his size. There just aren’t many players who are as big as Starks. Unfortunately, the best way to neutralize humongous size is with superhuman speed. When you look up superhuman speed in the dictionary, there is a picture of DeMarcus Ware. Oh &%$*@$*!!!!!! Advantage: Cowboys.

Steelers’ CB Ike Taylor vs Cowboys’ WR Terrell Owens.

Ike Usually lines up on the opposite side of the field as T.O. does. However, since Owens is Dallas’ greatest weapon, Coach Tomlin will probably have Ike shadow T.O. wherever he goes.

Ike Taylor is one of the best cover corners in the NFL. He has the size and speed to match up with T.O. It will be an excellent test for Ike, but I believe he’s up to the task. The condition of Heinz Field should definitely work to Ike’s advantage. The field should be sloppy, and that should slow Owens down. Moreover, Ike knows Heinz Field, T.O. doesn’t.

If Ike is able to keep T.O. in check for the first half, T.O. should revert to the spoiled child that we all know him to be. He’ll start yelling at Tony Romo and basically self-destruct (dragging the Cowboys down with him). Advantage: Draw.

Steelers’ safety Troy Polamalu vs. Cowboys tight end Jason Witten

Witten is actually Tony Romo’s favorite receiver. He has even more receptions than Terrell Owens. Witten is a Pro Bowl tight end, and he is very effective. However, Troy Polamalu is……..well, Troy Polamalu. There are few players in the league who are as disruptive as Troy. There is a reason that he leads the NFL in interceptions. Advantage: Steelers.

WR’s Santontio Holmes & Hines Ward vs. Cowboys’ secondary

The Cowboys’ secondary is rather weak. There’s no other way to put it. Terence Newman was once one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL, but he’s battled injuries all year. Adam “PacMan” Jones was just reinstated, so he’ll definitely be rusty. The Cowboys only have 6 interceptions this season. That’s the same number that Troy Polamalu has by himself. If the offensive line give Ben Roethlisberger a little time, he should be able to pick this secondary apart. Advantage: Steelers.

“Good Ben” vs. “Bad Ben”

This is probably the match-up that is going to have the greatest impact on the game. “Good Ben” is the accurate game manager who doesn’t try to win the game by himself, avoids turnovers, and maintains a high passer rating. Think Ben of 2007.

“Bad Ben” is the Ben that holds onto the ball way too long, takes unnecessary sacks, throws silly interceptions, and is very inaccurate in his delivery. Think Ben of 2006.

This year has been a mixed bag for Big Ben. We’ve seen both “Good Ben” and “Bad Ben”. Unfortunately, we’ve probably seen “Bad Ben” more often than “Good Ben”. I know that Ben has battled a shoulder injury, but as long as Tomlin chooses to start him, I expect him to be able to perform.

Is it just me, or has anyone else noticed that every time Nate Washington has 2-3 steps on his defender, Ben under-throws the ball and totally neutralizes Nate’s advantage? Can you even remember one time this year when Ben over-threw the receiver on a long route? Me neither. Ben has just about the same number of interceptions (12) as touchdown passes (13). That’s definitely “Bad Ben”. By comparison, Tony Romo has 21 TD passes and only 8 interceptions this year.

Each week, we’ve basically seen the same thing; the defense dominates, while the offense fails to distinguish itself. So far that’s worked. Afterall, the Steelers are 9-3. But I don’t know if the Steelers can reach their ultimate goal with that formula. This week, just like every week, the most important struggle is going to be an internal struggle; “Good Ben” vs. “Bad Ben”. If “Good Ben” shows up, the Steelers can beat any team in the league. But if “Bad Ben” shows up, then the Cowboys may pull out a win this weekend. Advantage: TBD

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This Sunday, our Pittsburgh Steelers (9-3) face the Dallas Cowboys (8-4) at Heinz Field. These historical rivals haven’t faced one another since 2004. In that game, the Steelers defeated the Cowboys 24-20. Some may remember that that was the game in which Steeler Nation took over the Cowboys’ stadium on national TV. The TV announcers commented throughout the game about how there seemed to be as many Steelers fans on-hand as Cowboys’ fans, and that the Steelers fans were much louder than the Cowboys fans. That has nothing to do with this week’s game, but I love reminding Cowboys’ fans of that embarrassing moment.

To show just how long it’s been since these two teams met, Vinny Testaverde was the Cowboys’ quarterback the last time they played, and Ben Roethlisberger threw a touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress. Wow, Big Ben to Plax. That seems like eons ago.

The two teams that will meet this time have much in common. Both teams feature young franchise quarterbacks who have a reputation for being gunslingers. Both teams feature talented running backs who are battling injuries. And both teams have a linebacker who is among the leagues’ leaders in sacks.

First, let’s take a look at the two quarterbacks. They are both mobile, and both tend to hold onto the ball in order to try to make a play. Sometimes that leads to good results, and sometimes……. That’s why both quarterbacks receive similar criticisms from their fans.

Tony Romo is clearly the more prolific passer of the two. He’s already passed for more yards this season than Big Ben despite having missed three games due to injury. While both quarterbacks are known for their mobility, Romo doesn’t seem to be as susceptible to the sack as Roethlisberger. Romo has only been sacked 8 times this year, compared to 33 sacks for Big Ben. Over the past two seasons, Romo has been sacked 32 times versus 80 sacks for Big Ben (Ouch!).

Tony Romo enters the game with the league’s top passer rating (103.2). However, Philip Rivers, Jason Campbell, and Matt Cassel all learned that a high passer rating is meaningless against the Steelers.

At the running back position, both teams will probably have to rely heavily on backup players. Steelers’ starter Willie Parker and Cowboys’ starter Marion Barber are both battling injuries. Both will probably see action on Sunday, but both will probably be less effective than they’d like. If “Fast Willie” falters, the Steelers will call on Mewelde Moore, who has been quite effective filling in for Parker. If Barber is unable to perform, the Cowboys will call on rookie Felix Jones Tashard Choice. Like Moore, Choice has done a good job filling in when called upon.

We all know that the playing surface at Heinz Field can be brutal in the month of December. The weather forecast is calling for snow, so both teams will probably have to rely heavily on their running games. If you participate in fantasy football, you may want to pick up Mewelde Moore and/or Tashard Choice for this weekend.

On defense, the Cowboys feature linebacker DeMarcus Ware, the NFL sack leader. Ware has 15 sacks so far, and will hope to add to his total against the Steelers’ suspect offensive line, and tackling dummy Ben Roethlisberger.

The Steelers will answer the Cowboys’ Ware with a sack specialist of their own, linebacker James Harrison. Harrison is 3rd in the league in sacks, and would love to close the gap between DeMarcus Ware and himself during Sunday’s game.

The Cowboys are one of the top 10 offenses in the NFL this season. They average 356.4 yards per game. Unfortunately, this week they will be facing the NFL’s #1 ranked defense. The Steelers have not allowed any opponent to gain 300 total yards this season. In fact, they’ve kept every opponent below their season yardage average. The Cowboys should be prepared to meet the same fate.

With potentially sloppy conditions, the Cowboy’s greatest weapon, WR Terrell Owens will probably be slowed down greatly. Moreover, Owens will be facing Steelers’ CB Ike Taylor. Despite having hands of stone, Ike Taylor is one of the best cover cornerbacks in the NFL. He thrives on shutting down big name receivers. Just ask Randy Moss.

Despite having talented weapons in Tony Romo, Marion Barber, Felix Jones, Terrell Owens, and TE Jason Witten, the Cowboys’ offense is no match for the Steelers’ defense. With cold weather, a poor playing surface, and the potential for snow also working against them, the Cowboys will have little chance of beating the Steelers.

The one factor that could change that prediction is Ben Roethlisberger. If “Bad Ben” shows up, then the Cowboys may have a chance of winning the game. “Bad Ben” is Ben Roethlisberger’s evil alter ego. He is the one who throws unnecessary interceptions at costly points during the game. However, if “Good Ben” (the efficient game manager) shows up, then victory is almost assured.

With “Good Ben” running the show, I predict a Steelers’ victory by a score of 24-13.

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