I know, I know. I didn’t believe the mighty Pittsburgh Steelers would succumb to a Super Bowl hangover. After yet another devastating loss, this time to the otherwise-decrepit Oakland Raiders, however, it can’t be anything else.
The problems the Steelers have are too numerous, too across-the-board, to point the finger to one specific area. And the fish stinks from the head.
Maybe Mike Tomlin should have run Camp Lejeune instead of Camp Cupcake this summer. Perhaps Wines Hard and a few of the other vets should not have had any days off. Instead of allowing Ward and Ben Roethlisberger to settle their dispute like gentlemen, maybe Tomlin should have knocked their heads together, WWE-style.
How about an O-Line coach that combines brute strength and technique, instead of just technique? Instead we have Larry Zierlein, who maybe is still reading too many X-rated emails.
Everyone knows Bruce Arians is a pass-happy SOB. Conspiracy theorist that I am, do ya think he deliberately calls run plays that don’t work so the Steelers can get back to the Greatest Show on Earth that he will get credit for engineering? I mean, c’mon, 90% of your run plays to the right side, smack dab in the middle of 4 or 5 Raider defenders..no I-formation, no fullback, no offtackle or misdirection. Even the lowly Oakland defense figured it out. Why shouldn’t Tomlin, and fire Arians’ ass?
Rashard Mendenhall has shown great heart and is getting better all the time. Too bad he came around too late.
Hearing the local media comment about how bad Lawrence Timmons is in coverage makes me shake my head. The buck linebacker position for the Steelers when Larry Foote was part of the team never went in coverage. He stayed in position, and stuffed the run, period. This is a matter of Tomlin sticking a square peg into a round hole. Timmons was his first draft pick and is determined to make it work. Sounds like a bit of Cowher philosophy to me…Tomlin would rather be right than win.
There’s a domino effect because of Timmons’ inadequacy. James Farrior has to cover for him, and doesn’t have the get-up-and-go he used to. Willie Gay was exposed weeks ago, yet Tomlin refuses to put in Joe Burnett or Keenan Lewis. Why not? They can’t do any worse, plus they would get some real-time NFL game experience.
Our defensive backs, and linebackers, depending on the defensive scheme, are continually getting beat underneath. This is devastating and unending, as NFL teams are watching films, figuring out how to beat us, and they are smelling blood.
I refuse to believe the absence of Troy Polamalu is the sole reason for our defensive demise. In 2006-07, he was out eight games; we won 5 of them. It is our front office and our coaching staff that needs to prepare for these eventualities and make sure we have bench depth.
We may still mathematically be in the playoff mix, but our lack of heart and stones have already eliminated the Steelers from contention. Tomlin needs to rethink some of his philosophies, and kick some ass in the locker room instead of treating the players like gentlemen. Mike Tomlin made a very prophetic statement after last year’s Super Bowl, akin to “we will never pass this way again,” referring to the current group of men in the locker room. He also studied the 1975 Steelers, hoping to glean what Chuck Noll did to keep his team on an even keel. One thing for sure Noll and the 1975 Steelers did that Tomlin and the 2009 Steelers could not and did not: stay humble and fundamentally sound.
Moving forward, I would play Ziggy Hood to give him some valuable experience. Bench Gay and Taylor. Make Timmons second string to Keyaron Fox. Fire Bruce Arians. Look to the draft. Learn a lesson in humility. And prepare for Camp Lejeune 2010.