Pittsburgh - The Inside Scoop, Part II

[duus]

Well, I just arrived back in this horrible town from a fantastic week long vacation to the Cincinnati area and a few days in Lexington. The week started with a trip to the Bengals/Colts game on Sunday. I absolutely hate a loss, but the atmosphere was tremendous and I thoroughly enjoyed myself! To be honest, one of my favorite parts of the evening was high-fiving guys when they announced that the horrible Ravens had somehow beaten those Stoolers of Pissburgh. Man, that was fun!

So, now I am back home preparing for what I oh so hope is a loss in Indy. The talk is surely coming regarding the 12/4 matchup, and I'll do my best to share it as I hear it. For now, the talk is how the D will come up with a scheme to frustrate the Colts, and the O will put up 40 with Rottenburger back in charge. Ugh ... I hate the Steelers ... and their arrogant fans. You know, I really don't think they believe they have ever TRULY lost a game. Have I mentioned that I hate these guys?!?!??!?!?!?

More to come, but for now enjoy this small quote from one of the Steeler sites regarding the upcoming Colt game and how the Steelers may or may not handle Manning (note the dig on Palmer's intellect and the direct comparison to Carr!), ...

"Unlike non-cerebral QBs like David Carr and Carson Palmer, Manning keenly reads these shenanigans, both pre-snap as well as post-snap, and Pola could find himself out of position in a big hurry."

[HoosierCat]

I'll pin this thread for the week to keep it front and center...based on last time, keep up the good work, duus!

[duus]

One thing I'm curious if anyone has ...

I remember at the start of the Bengals/Steelers game in October, I was sitting here in my home in Pittsburgh and they put the camera on Joey Porter warming up on the field. He made some comment about "they are still the Bungles." Man, I was absolutely frustrated with that. I would love to get the clip of that. Heck, pass it along to the locker room ;-)

Joey Porter ... reason #1387 for every Bengals fan to hate the Steelers.

[BengalszoneBilly]

One thing I'm curious if anyone has ...

I remember at the start of the Bengals/Steelers game in October, I was sitting here in my home in Pittsburgh and they put the camera on Joey Porter warming up on the field. He made some comment about "they are still the Bungles." Man, I was absolutely frustrated with that. I would love to get the clip of that. Heck, pass it along to the locker room ;-)

Joey Porter ... reason #1387 for every Bengals fan to hate the Steelers.

Was it actually audible, or did he mouth the words as the camera passed by?

[duus]

Was it actually audible, or did he mouth the words as the camera passed by?

It was completely audible. He clearly said it. The camera was at ground level, and he was stretching or something, and opened his big mouth. I looked at my wife and just started grinding my teeth in frustration.

[duus]

Needless to say, 100% of the talk around here right now is Colts. Makes sense. I suspect we may not even hear any Bengal talk for another day or so. And if the Steelers somehow win this game tonight, you can trust they will be trash talking big time about the Bengal game being easy, etc. For now, though, there is a bit of a quiet confidence around town about tonight's game. They continue to reference the following:

1) The last time the Steelers played the Colts was a Monday Night game, and they killed them ... something like 28-10 or whatever.

2) Similar defensive-minded teams have given the Colts problems. They point to the Jags and Panthers.

3) As usual, they brag about how they will 'out-physical' them on both sides of the ball. They claim that the Colts small and fast defensive guys will be worn down by the expected active trio of Bettis, Staley, and Parker.

4) And, of course, the town is gloating over the fact that Ben is back and has never lost to any team other than the Patriots.

Blah, blah, blah.

I know this is supposed to be a thread about the Bengals matchup coming up, but ... for now ... while there is no Bengal talk in this obnoxious town ...

GO COLTS!

[Stripes]

"Unlike non-cerebral QBs like David Carr and Carson Palmer, Manning keenly reads these shenanigans, both pre-snap as well as post-snap, and Pola could find himself out of position in a big hurry."

They're so jealous of our top three, rarely injured quarterback.

[BengalByTheBay]

I think that the Squeelers' secondary can be had. If the Colts come out with the game plan they had against us for the first half they could make this into a laugher -- no way Pitt. can put up points like we were able to. Pitt. will try to control the clock, but unless their O-line can play as well as the Bengals did vs. Mathis/Freeny, which I doubt, they should be in for a long night.

[duus]

Still nothing here about the upcoming game, but there sure seems to be a great deal of fear concerning the season in general. From local guys to ESPN nation (Salisbury, Mike & Mike, etc.), there is on-going talk about the possibility of the Steelers not even making the playoffs. I truly doubt that will happen, but a Bengal victory this Sunday will send a lot of Pittsburghers to the emergency room.

[HoosierCat]

Still nothing here about the upcoming game, but there sure seems to be a great deal of fear concerning the season in general. From local guys to ESPN nation (Salisbury, Mike & Mike, etc.), there is on-going talk about the possibility of the Steelers not even making the playoffs. I truly doubt that will happen, but a Bengal victory this Sunday will send a lot of Pittsburghers to the emergency room.

If they lose next Sunday, I think it's very possible Pitt misses the postseason. That would put them at 7-5 with 4 remaining, and both Jax (vs the Browns) and the Chargers (vs Oakland) ought to win next week, making them 9-3 and 8-4. And even if KC loses to Denver next week they would still in this case be tied with Pitt at 7-5.

Pitt does have a head-to-head tiebreaker over the Chargers...but IIRC if they end up in a 3 (or more) way tie head-to-head doesn't count, so even that may not help them. Bottom line is that Pitt falls into a wicked scrum for a WC spot if they lose.

[duus]

Opening of daily sports talk:

"Need a win desperately over the Bengals Sunday or they could miss the playoffs altogether."

"When Ben is hurt, it changes everything." (more excuses)

"The fact that their offensive line has performed so poorly is the biggest concern."

"The onside kick is when the Steelers admitted they were beat. It was the death-nail, it ended the game."

(you should hear these guys cussing up a storm ... I've never heard them this upset ... life is good)

"The defense did a good job against the most potent group of players."

"It's an angry Steeler Nation this morning."

Interviews to come through-out the morning, and the Cowher Press Conference is at noon. More to come.

[Columbusbengal]

both Jax (vs the Browns) and the Chargers (vs Oakland) ought to win next week

I would not be surprised if the Browns beat Jax without Leftwich. The Browns are very inconsistent, but capable of playing very good defense at times.

[duus]

Caller who just drove back from Indy ... "The worst experience of my life." He then when on to complain about the officiating, and especially the low-block call on the punt. (uh, this was the right call ... it is a rule on the 'change of possession' ... you are not allowed to block low)

(man, I cannot wait for everyone to begin talking about the Bengal game!)

[duus]

Ever the opitimism ... they are likening this loss to when both the Pats and Eagles lost to the Steelers last year, but ended up in the Super Bowl. Obviously, they are carrying this to it's logical conclusion, and suggesting that the Steelers will still make it to the Super Bowl. Ugh. A Bengal victory will silence this once and for all.

"RIGHT NOW, the Colts are the better team." (somehow they are confident the Steelers will get better over the next month)

[duus]

Tim Benz (Steelers beat reporter) comments driving back from Indy:

"They (Colts) beat the Steelers up and pushed them around."

"They (Steelers) will probably finish 11-5."

"I think they will beat the Bengals because they know how to do it, and the Bengals don't know how to win a big game."

[bengalboomer7]

I pity you duus, it's gotta be awful dealing with those Pitt fans everyday(which is why I hate UK fans, Billy )

Where i work at I got a UPS guy that's a huge Steelers fan. He always comes in running his mouth, while I just reply "Tell me again, what do those division standings look like"

[duus]

Cowher press conference:

"Not much of an update regarding injuries yet." (he gave no other detail)

(concerning upcoming Bengals game) "It's the biggest game of the year and we all know what's at stake."

(concerning Colts game) "They beat us at the line of scrimmage."

"They (Bengals) are playing well. Their offense is very explosive. We are going to have to play better football."

(concerning onside kick call) "That was my decision. I have no regrets."

"Our passing game has suffered." (due to injuries, etc.) (more excuses)

"We'll be ready to play. Trust me."

"Ben tweaked his ankle in the game, but I think he'll be fine."

"I'm not sure of the status of Marvel."

[Stripes]

Steeler Nation and Cowher himself both sound pretty nervous... They obviously have kept track of how the Bengals have been playing of late in comparison to their own team. They realize this probably won't be as easy as it was last time in Cincinnati, and they don't like it.

[HoosierCat]

Steeler Nation and Cowher himself both sound pretty nervous... They obviously have kept track of how the Bengals have been playing of late in comparison to their own team. They realize this probably won't be as easy as it was last time in Cincinnati, and they don't like it.

Yup. The Bengals drove up and down the field at will in the first half of the last meeting. Only thing that saved Pitt was a series of offensive miscues -- like a wide-open Henry dropping a perfect TD pass, and Graham blowing a chip shot FG -- that resulted in us getting just 6 points out of two red zone posession and one drive to the 21. Like we'd been doing in many games leading up to Pitt-Cincy I, we left points scattered all over the field. But since then Cincy has been much better, starting the following week in Baltimore where they got 3 TDs on 3 red zone appearances.

Key to winning this weekend: Just score, baby.

[duus]

Ed Bouchette interview on Mark Madden show:

"The offensive line was terrible and they were terrible the week before."

"Kendall Simmons is not playing well. He had the three false starts yesterday."

"My bigger problem is with 1:38 left, the Steelers pulled out their white flag. I thought that was the worst coaching decision I have seen." (huh? I think there were MANY other things to be more concerned with!)

"They held Peyton Manning in check. I thought they played winning defense. I really did."

"Have the Steelers special teams become a consistent weakness?" --> "Yes, they may need a punter next year, Mark."

"Sunday is do or die as far as the playoffs go. The Bengals will win the division if they win Sunday."

"They would have a better record had Ben not gotten hurt." (here come the excuses again)

"Do they regroup and beat Cincinnati?" --> "Uh, ... uh, ... no."

(nice)

[duus]

Mark Madden

"The Steelers have to beat the Bengals Sunday. It could all fall apart for the Steelers very quickly."

Caller --> "Relax. After that first play, the D played a lot better. We pretty much gave them 13 points. We had Peyton pretty flustered."

Caller --> "If we win this game this Sunday, then we will not go back to Indy until the AFC Championship."

Caller --> "Cincy still cannot stop the run."

[duus]

Amazing. The more the day wears on, the more everyone is rewriting history, and clearly stating that the Steelers will play much better against the Colts "the next time." Last I checked, you have to have an offense that can score more than a single touchdown on a short field. Ugh. This town is amazing. Even when they get beat, they don't think they get beat. Oh, how I long for a Bengal victory this Sunday. That might actually do this town in for good for 2005. Dare I dream.

[Stripes]

It sounds to me like their instincts are to look ahead to the AFC Championship as if it is a guarantee that they'll be rematching the Colts come that time. They're screwed if they can't knock us off Sunday, this is good stuff.

[Spain]

You should check out their boards. They dont even mention us. They are worried about the bears. This team is in Dissarray andthey are overlooking us like they own us! Big mistake!

[HoosierCat]

Latest line on the game I've seen is Pitt favored by 3.5, i.e. home field advantage + a warm Bud Light. Fans may be taking us lightly but Vegas isn't.