Beer We Go Steelers

So this was long over due, but figured it was worth doing!

Here is the Beer We Go Steelers 2017 Report Card. Coach Tomlin always says, “The Standard is the Standard!” Not making a bigger impact in the Post-Season is extremely frustrating. It was a good showing for the Black and Gold in 2017 but getting throttled by the Jaguars was an extremely bitter way to end.

GRADES: 

Coaching: B+, The Steelers finished at 13-3 and played well the whole year. That doesn’t happen without great coaching. Mike Tomlin never gets the credit he deserves, and he is without question one of the best coaches in football. However, there were several distractions and he needs to do a better job managing those distractions.

Keith Butler’s, defense seemed to take a step backward and was completely pushed around during the playoff loss. The secondary had several communication issues and were prone to the big play. The run defense was awful and the pass rush all but disappeared late in the year. Todd Haley’s offense was solid all season and his challenges seems to come off the field not on it. He was shown the door after a tumultuous but successful tenure.

Is it possible NOT to lose to an under .500 team on the road during a season? Steelers lost to the Jaguars (TWICE) who were 10-6 and a very tough team, the Patriots, who were 13-3 and the AFC Champions again, a game in which they were absolutely cheated and the Chicago Bears who were…wait for it…5-11 and blown off the field by just about everyone they played. Not to mention the leadership made an absolute mess out of the National Anthem Debacle at the game. This is the only real negative during Tomlin’s coaching tenure.

QB: A-, Big Ben had a great year again and played well in all but one game. He continues to give the Steelers a chance to win and is an elite player. He brought the Steelers back to four last-minute victories in a five-game stretch and it should have been five out of six if not for the nonsense of the New England game. His stats are even better if you remove the first Jacksonville game where he threw five interceptions. Either way he had a very good season! Landry Jones, did a nice job and won his only start.

RB: A+, Le’Veon Bell, is an outstanding running back and finished with nearly 2000 yards from scrimmage. James Conner, had a respectable first year campaign, but was sidelined for the last part. Steven Ridley, still has some tread on the tire and he did well when called upon. Roosevelt Nix played a key role on special teams and in the power running game.

WR: A, Antonio Brown and five stiffs would be one of the best receiving groups in the NFL. He is an absolute force and one of the best players in Steelers history. You run out of adjectives to describe him. The Steelers of course don’t have five stiffs, they have an outstanding crew of receivers. JuJu Smith-Schuster was a tremendous addition. He put together a great rookie season and became a go-to guy. Unfortunately, Eli Rogers and Martavis Bryant were both disappointments in different ways. Rogers took a huge step backwards and was inconsistent and eventually shown the door. Martavis Bryant is a world class talent but looked rusty, he started to bounce back in the second half.

TE: C+, Jesse James was a key contributor and despite the Steelers constantly looking to upgrade, James seems to hold them off. His “drop” in the New England game is one of the signature moments of the season. Newcomer Vance McDonald had a nice season but seemed injury prone. Xavier Grimble contributed when called upon and is a solid blocker.

OL: B, The Offensive Line is an absolute strength for the Steelers and survived adversity all season. The protection was excellent, giving up only 21 sacks and the running lanes were consistent if unspectacular. Maurkice Pouncey and David DeCastro are two of the best at their position. Alejandro Villanueva has developed into a pro-bowl talent and is a great Steeler. Ramon Foster continues to play well. Marcus Gilbert was a disappointment, getting suspended and missing most of the season. Chris Hubbard did a great job and will get a chance to start somewhere next season. Matt Feiler played well and should fill Hubbard’s spot.

DL: C+, Cameron “Steelhead” Heyward, had a monster season racking up 12 sacks and played at an All-Pro level. Stephon Tuitt is a great bookend and played well. Javon Hargrave struggled at times in the middle and seemed to regress in his second season. Tyson Alualu was a nice pickup and played well. Mt. McCullers was a non-factor. Despite a good season, the line struggled in the running game and were dominated in the playoff loss.

LB: C+, A very inconsistent season for the linebackers, the usual strength of the Steelers defense. There is no way to compensate for the loss of Ryan Shazier and the Steelers never recovered. With Shazier out everyone struggled. T.J. Watt had a nice start but slowed down at the end. Bud Dupree was inconsistent. Anthony Chickillo and Tyler Matakevich were good on special teams but were not impact players on defense. Vince Williams had a very good year but can’t play to his strengths without Shazier’s speed beside him. Sean Spence did an admirable job, but he clearly couldn’t come off the couch and fill in for the fastest linebacker in football. The James Harrison situation was a disaster and made no sense at all. It was handled terribly by both sides and he was shown the door.

DB: C, The Steelers secondary started out great but then were exposed down the stretch. Joe Haden was a GREAT pickup and played well. Artie Burns and Sean Davis both had sophomore slumps. They played well but clearly took a step back. Both still have bright futures in Pittsburgh. Willie Gay contributed but slowed down. Mike Hilton developed nicely and was a good find. Coty Sensabaugh never really developed. Mike Mitchell, Willie Gay and Robert Golden will not return next season after good careers with the Steelers. This will be a draft need.

Special Teams: B, A much improved season for the Special Teams. Chris Boswell, AKA “Little Bos” was terrific and did a great job and made the Pro-Bowl. factor…again that is a good thing! Jordan Berry, struggled early but came back and did well overall. I actually couldn’t remember the Steelers Long Snapper’s name which again is a good thing…BTW it’s Kameron Canaday. The coverage teams were an asset for the first time in a long time. The return teams were okay highlighted by JuJu Smith-Schuster.

BEER WE GO STEELERS! BEER WE GO!

One of the most unlikely heroes in Steelers history called it a career! James Harrison announced his retirement on Instagram!

MORE TO COME

Sorry for the delay in posting. After a disappointing finish the Steelers finished a successful campaign with another AFC North Championship and plenty to build on. We will have the final report card for the team over the next few weeks and stay tuned for more commentary!

The Steelers talked big, they just didn’t play big! Despite racking up 545 Yards of offense, a record setting day for Ben Roethlisberger and putting up 42 points, they were beaten to the punch all day by a tough and game Jacksonville Jaguars team.

Ben Roethlisberger, had a big day statistically, but he made two crucial and game changing mistakes that put the Steelers in a huge hole. The first was an interception on an errant throw to Vance McDonald that resulted in an interception deep in Steelers territory. The Jaguars converted that for seven points. The second, was a strip sack fumble where Ben held the ball for over eight seconds, that resulted in seven more points and reversed any momentum the Steelers had in the first half, putting them down by three touchdowns.

The plan for the Jaguars was clear, pound the football, keep the Steelers offense on the sidelines and have Blake Bortles throw underneath and avoid mistakes. He did just that. His numbers weren’t pretty but every time he needed to make a play he did it, including a wounded duck 45-Yard completion to Keelan Cole that Artie Burns just missed picking off.

The defense had an awful, embarrassing day. There is no other way to explain it. The front seven was consistently one or two seconds off on the pass rush. T.J. Watt and Bud Dupree were basically non-existent all day. The Jaguars constantly targeted Sean Spence’s side and he had no answers. By the time the Steelers figured out how to stop Leonard Fournette it was too late. They couldn’t force any turnovers despite several opportunities.

The Special Teams was almost an asset, making some nice plays on the return game as well as in the kicking game. Robert Golden turned in a big play on partially blocked punt to start the fourth quarter when it was 28-21. The offense wasted the field position when they were stopped on fourth-and-1 at the Jaguars 39 on JuJu Smith-Schuster play. He was clearly held on the play, but it was a risky call that didn’t pay off. Of course, the onside kick was a complete and total embarrassment and sealed any chance of winning the game. Little Bos literally hit Tyler Matakevitch with the kick resulting in a penalty.

It is easy to spread the blame around on this one. There were breakdowns on all facets of the game and that lands on the coaching staff. They absolutely looked unprepared for the Jaguars running attack and by the time they made the adjustment they were in a huge hole. The play calling was a flat-out disaster including two 4^th and 1 calls that were questionable. It was easy to understand the onside kick call, but not if there was no way to execute it.

The coaching staff owns this loss and they blew a 13-3 (Really 14-2) campaign and will now have to see if the window is closed on this group of talent. Ben can’t play forever, Le’Veon Bell and Martavis Bryant most likely won’t be back. It is going to be a long off season.

BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO!

My “GAME BEER” goes to: Not going with anyone. Despite some great stats, it was an overall rotten day.

Where I watched the game: After some debate, in which we discussed the long shot of possibly going to the ‘Burgh or going into NYC to the Irish Exit, we stayed home in front of a fire with the Tailgate Kids. KGB made a great #sign and several dumplings as snacks, including Chicken, Buffalo Chicken and Edamame. We had Sausage and Peppers for dinner. The Beer of choice was Sam Adams Cold Snap!

My Stat of the week:  45 points given up to a team, that scored 10 points against the Buffalo Bills. Seriously? How is that possible.

My Thoughts on next week: There are absolutely going to be changes in the coaching staff. The Steelers were embarrassed at home to a tough but underwhelming team. Keith Butler and Todd Haley are going to be under fire. The big talk about the Patriots has to stop. This team gave up 45 points to the Jaguars, that leads you to believe that the Patriots would have scored 100 points. We will publish next week, the season report card and the roster review.

This week’s Jersey: Steelers home, Ernie Stautner #70,

The Steelers outlasted the Cleveland Browns, sending the Browns to an 0-16 season! Despite sitting several key players, the Steelers did enough to win and head into the post season as the number two seed.

The defense had a very strange day. They were tough up front setting the new Steelers record with 56 sacks. They had six sacks against the woeful Browns, Tyson Alualu led the team with two and did a great job filling the huge shoes of Steelhead Heyward. He led the point of attack with T.J. Watt and Vince Williams also pitching in. The Browns rushed for over 100 yards, but the running backs had little to no running room. The defense struggled with the mobile DeShone Kizer who slipped out of several jams including a 20-yard dash. The Browns offense had no room to run.

The Secondary is absolutely terrible right now. After a nice bounce back week against the Texans on Christmas, they were roasted again this time by an awful and inconsistent Browns offense. Kizer had a big day, hitting pass plays of 54 and 56 yards in the first half. The Secondary has now given up eight 50-plus-yard catches and thirteen 40-plus-yard catches allowed by the Steelers this season. Even the return of Joe Haden didn’t help. If Corey Coleman doesn’t drop a fourth down pass, the Browns might have pulled out the upset. Despite several opportunities the secondary only had one interception.

The offense had a very nice day behind a makeshift offensive line. Landry Jones, proved he is a capable backup, playing well. He also had to overcome playing with Chris Hubbard at Center who struggled in the shotgun. Jones moved the ball well, completing 15 of 18 passes for 187 yards and a TD before halftime and completed 18 of his last 19 passes and finished with a 100.5 rating and 239 yards passing. When the Steelers needed to move the ball they did.  

While Landry had a good day, JuJu Smith-Schuster had a great day, he finished with a season-high nine catches and 143 yards. He also had the first and only kick return for a TD this season with 96 yards! It was a big play because the Browns had just tied the game up. Eight different receivers caught passes with Martavis Bryant grabbing six!

Stevan Ridley showed he still has gas in the tank. Ridley had a terrific game rushing for 80 yards on 17 carries and broke off four runs of 10+ yards and he did a terrific job. He can be an asset in the playoffs. It was also great to see Darrius Heyward-Bey complete a 29-yard end-around for the first Steelers Touchdown.

In the end the biggest thing, was to make sure no one was hurt and to hold off the Browns. The Steelers did that.

The Steelers finished the regular season 13-3 and everyone knows it should have been 14-2!

BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO!

My “GAME BEER” goes to: No brainer, JuJu Smith-Schuster who had a huge day and has done a great job filling in for Antonio Brown. He caught a TD and ran back a kick return for a TD. He finished with 265 total yards! Also Considered: Matt Felier, Bloomsburg Grad made good in is his first start. Martavis Bryant is starting to bounce back!

Where I watched the game: The first 1Pm game in almost two months had us back at the house with the Tailgate Kids and KGB in front of the fire and with some great sandwiches (Italian and Buffalo Chicken) as the snack. The Beer of choice was Sam Adams Winter!

My Stat of the week:  21-Forty Plus Yard plays by the Steelers secondary. They need to tighten that stat up. Sean Davis and Artie Burns need to play much better in the playoffs!

My Thoughts on next week: The Steelers get a needed week off for the playoffs. The Steelers have played some rough first round games and they struggled to stay healthy. The bye should help that. The key is getting AB back for round two which will be a home game!

This week’s Jersey: Steelers Blackout, Heath Miller #83, which was a late Christmas present from KGB!

The Steelers dominated the Texans and have clinched a first round bye!

More to come!

BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO!

My “GAME BEER” goes to: Going with Joe Haden who basically shutdown one of the best receivers in football, DeAndre Hopkins holding him to 65 yards with 38 of those yards coming on one catch. He needed a circus catch to score the only Texans TD. Also Considered: JuJu Smith Schuster who stepped in nicely for AB with 75 yards and a TD.

Where I watched the game: Christmas Day at the house, was outstanding, with several great pregame snacks, including Sausage Bread (HOT AND SWEET) and several meats and cheeses. We scheduled Christmas dinner for Halftime and we had near perfect execution. Dinner was chicken parmigiana and Baked Ziti. No Beer this week, which is rare, but had an awesome bottle of Caymus.

My Stat of the week:  2.0 T.J. Yates QBR for the game! That defies logic and tells how dominant the Steelers were in the game! The Texans finished with EIGHT catches!

My Thoughts on next week: The Browns who have locked up the First Round Pick win or lose, will be out for blood as they try and avoid the ignominious 0-16 season. The Steelers need to determine if they want to play their starters and try and win home field advantage as the Patriots play a game Jets team. Either way the Steelers should pull out a victory and be ready for the playoffs!

This week’s Jersey: Steelers Throwback #92 James Harrison! I am still very upset and rocked the jersey to mass on Saturday! It trumped my Franco Jersey on Immaculate Reception Day!

Absolutely crushed that the Steelers released James Harrison today!

Happy Immaculate Reception Day:

Original Broadcast

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WM08mW78zi4

The Steelers rallied twice, but in the end were unable to beat their nemesis Patriots and overcome a terrible reversed call. While the playoffs are secured, the number one seed is now in jeopardy. The Steelers lost a lot more than that though as Antonio Brown went out with a torn calf muscle.

The Steelers put together a solid game plan and nearly made it work. The defense used a lot of press coverage and for the most part it kept the Patriots in some type of check, including a near game winning interception that was dropped by Sean Davis. But Davis was completely mismatched against Rob Gronkowski and Gronk torched the Steelers on the final drive.

The defense seemed to finally harass Tom Brady, dropping him for two sacks and being in his face all day, they dropped him on several play. They also had their first interception in about 13 years. But when Brady had both a second and third chance, he is going to beat you, engineering the game winning drive. It was a nice effort by Cam Heyward, Javon Hargrave and Stephon Tuitt. Bud Dupree had a big third down sack. Where is Deebo?

The offense had nice balance and converted 63 percent on third down, even without AB, they spread the ball around and moved the ball well, Martavis Bryant finally stepped up making two awesome catches a diving 39-yarder down the sideline and a one-handed 4-yard TD with a Patriot defender literally holding him. The ghost of Eli Rogers reappeared and had a terrific 18-yard TD on play action. JuJu Smith-Schuster rang in for 114 yards including the 69-yard catch-and run that should have setup at minimum a game tying Field Goal and of course the disputed TD by Jesse James, that was incorrectly overturned by replay.

Le’Veon Bell finished with 117 yards rushing, with 67 coming in the second half, including the 3-yard touchdown run. He finished with 165 scrimmage yards and averaged 5.7 yards on 29 touches. He anchored the offense and really was a weapon, the Patriots had no answer for.

Little Bos nailed his only Field Goal attempt a 51 yarder and Jordan Berry had a solid day punting.

The Steelers had this game and let it and the number seed slip through their fingers. They were clearly jobbed on the game winning touchdown but they also should have had two more shots at it and it never should have gotten that far. Why are the Steelers calling a draw on a 2^nd and long when they have the chance to choke out the Patriots? They moved the ball pretty much at will and gave Tom Brady a chance to beat him and they did.

The good news is win out and you get a bye and maybe another shot at the Patriots!

The NFL has completely made a mockery of the catch rule and seemed to contradict itself this week!

BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO!

My “GAME BEER” goes to: Going with Le’Veon Bell who shouldered the load after AB went out. He finished with 165 Scrimmage Yards and he created a huge question, what would have happened in the AFC Championship game if the Steelers hadn’t lost Bell. Also Considered: JuJu Smith-Schuster who had a huge game and nearly won it. Little Bos who is becoming a huge weapon!

Where I watched the game: KGB and I were back at the house with 2/3 of the Tailgate kids. We had Spaghetti and Meatballs for dinner and buffalo chicken pretzels as the game snack. Because it was New England we switched from Sam Winter to Long Ireland Winter Lager. It was an entertaining game and we were all well behaved given the issues with the ending.

My Stat of the week: THREE! As in three times the Patriots were helped both for and against in the controversial touchdown ruling. The game winner v. the Texans, the game losers against the Steelers and the Jets.* Tell me how there was enough evidence to over turn the ruling on the field! Also from the game eight! The number of receivers that Ben completed passes to during the game, showing how dangerous this team can be and that they aren’t one dimensional!

My Thoughts on next week: It’s crucial that the Steelers pull this win and not do “the usual” drop one to an inferior road team. The biggest key is to get some type of bye in the playoffs! They can do that if they beat the Texans and Browns who are a combined 4-24…which is what scares me! It will also mark the second time the Steelers play on Christmas in two years…which is problematic at the BWG Household.

This week’s Jersey: Steelers Home #86 Hines Ward that I wore to church! Not my best luck jersey as you can probably tell!

 *SOURCE: http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2017/12/18/alberto-riveron-nfl-senior-vice-president-of-officiating-patriots-calls-jesse-james/stories/201712180138

The Steelers jumped out early, fell behind and recovered to beat the Ravens and clinch the AFC North! Backed by a magnificent performance by Ben Roethlisberger and the usual Antonio Brown and Chris Boswell heroics, the Steelers won the game and clinched the AFC North while knocking off their biggest rival.

The offense put together a historic performance. Ben Roethlisberger passed for a career high 64 attempts and racked up a monster 506 yards with two touchdowns. He had solid protection and moved the ball almost at will. The Ravens hadn’t allowed a 300-yard passer all season. Antonio Brown put on another prime-time show. He had 11 catches for 213 yards, making one clutch catch after the other. Vance McDonald and Jesse James racked up 149 yards on 14 catches between them. McDonald once again left the game with an injury.

The defense was clearly missing Ryan Shazier as they were gashed by Alex Collins and the Ravens rushing attack for 26 carries and 152 yards. Collins bounced outside and Sean Spence and Arthur Moats never adjusted. The secondary struggled again, giving up big plays and finding themselves out of position on several plays. Sean Davis had a takeaway but struggled covering Mike Wallace and was hit with a bogus penalty.

The Steelers generated pressure but only had one sack, the game winner by T.J. Watt. James Harrison was finally back in the lineup and in on the last series.

Special teams had a good game on the kicking side, with Little Bos becoming a huge asset. He banged out his second 50+Yarder of the season and he also hit the game winner for 46 yards for the third time in four weeks! Jordan Berry had a solid bounce back week with three booming punts for 141 yards. The return game and the coverage units are still mediocre, including the Steelers getting gashed after they missed a two point try.

The refs for the second week in a row were lousy, getting way to involved and then missing blatant calls.

It was another lesson in escape artistry for the eighth win in a row and the Steelers now sit with the best record in football. They also are playing understaffed and still have not played their best football!

BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO!

My “GAME BEER” goes to: Going with three game beers, Antonio Brown, who put up a monster game again on prime time. Chris Boswell who won yet another game with four great boots and Ben Roethlisberger who put up a monster day against a tough Ravens Defense for 500+ yards.

Where I watched the game: KGB and I decided to watch the game in front of the fire and a Christmas tree, these night games have been brutal and of course they have all been nail biters. We had Sam Adam’s Winter Lager as the beer of choice and Pretzels as the snacks, I am excited to go back to a 4:00PM game next week!

My Stat of the week: ZERO the amount of times the Steelers have lost when they have a 14-point lead. That streak was in serious jeopardy last night, but the rally kept the streak intact.

My Thoughts on next week: It’s a Playoff Preview we hope. The Steelers play the Patriots who are coming off a short week. With the defense in shambles the Steelers are limping into this one. They will need a perfect game to win and need someone to step up!

This week’s Jersey: Steelers Home #36 “The Bus”, Jerome Bettis. I missed Church this week, so wore it on Sunday for dinner!