Beer We Go Steelers

The Pittsburgh Post Gazette is reporting what everyone I believe already knew. Rashard Mendenhall is done for the year with an ACL injury. He went down Sunday in the season finale against the Browns and didn’t return. This is a serious blow but something the Steelers can overcome.

Look for Redman to get the starting job and Clay to be the backup. Keep and eye on Mewelde Moore, who has been out with an injury, as he will become extremely important now.

Ryan Clark is going to sit Sunday. The secondary is pretty banged up and it is tough to lose him, but it also makes very little sense to risk the guys life. For him to play in the altitude of Denver, is a life and death situation for him.

For a few minutes on Sunday, it looked like everything was going to fall into place for the Steelers. The Patriots were losing and the Bengals were fighting back against the Rat-birds. But in the end, the Steelers settled for another hard fought victory and were unable to claim a higher seed than fifth.

It is very frustrating to finish second in the division, but it is also a badge of honor to win 12 games, which is what we predicted at BWG at the beginning of the season!  The Steelers had a very rough beginning this year and lost two of the first three, including a sound thrashing at the hands of the Ravens. They also lost several key players to injuries, but were able to hold on… and like they always do, they battled back and put together the 3rd best record in the AFC.

As for the Browns game, the Steelers had trouble scoring but really kept the Browns on the leash all day. Ben Roethlisberger, who sat out last week, played the entire game. He looked rusty and struggled at times but still led the key drives to victory; including a great end of the first half drive highlighted by a nifty catch by team MVP Antonio Brown. Sean Suisham hit a field goal and cut the lead to 6-3. The Steelers opened the second half with 10 points and never looked back. 

The dark news is that Rashard Mendenhall looks to be lost for the season with a possible ACL tear.  Mendenhall was on pace to break a thousand yards with a big effort Sunday, but went down with a knee injury. The Steelers will rely on Ike Redman who was having a terrific game before he fumbled on consecutive drives. John Clay becomes a very important person now. I also think the Steelers will try and bring in some help if Mewelde is out also.

The pass defense cemented its number one status as Troy Polamalu played a great game and looked like the dominant Troy; he had an interception and an amazing sack, he timed the snap count perfectly and was in the backfield on the snap of the ball. Ike Taylor battled Josh Cribbs all day and kept him in check. Cribbs is plain awesome, he made several special teams tackles, had some good catches, he also sells the hot dogs at half time and the beer in the stands between plays. The Steelers held the Browns to less the 180 yards passing and smacked up Peyton Hillis. Hillis finished with 30 yards on ten carries and was never a factor in the game.

The best highlight for BWG during the day was a little shuffle pass that actually lost 3 yards! Hines Ward caught his fifth pass of the day and now has 1000 catches in his career. This very well might be his last year with the Steelers, but we will be seeing him in Canton, Ohio soon! Hines IS an awesome player and for those who have missed it, is one of the greatest receivers in NFL history.  Keep an eye on him in the playoffs as I expect a huge swan song.

How about the job Mike Tomlin has done; this marks four out of five years that he won at least ten games. He has won 3 AFC North titles, Two Conference Championships and a Super Bowl in FIVE YEARS and we are still counting!!! He is truly a great successor to the Noll, Cowher Dynasty!

BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO!

My “GAME BEER” goes to: Antonio Brown, He was the team MVP and he went over 1000 yards yesterday. He is the first player in NFL history with 1000 Yards receiving and 1000 return yards! Also Considered: Troy Polamalu who was nuts yesterday, Hines Ward for catching his 1000th catch. 

Where I watched the game: Hanging with my family; my daughter Hailey, who is Steelers through and through, my sister Traci and her husband Andrew, who brought Tecate and Corona Light. We wailed down Pizza including Sicilian Pizza with Eggplant. (A great call by KGB) I was driving everyone nuts with the remote as I watched the game mix every commercial!

My thoughts on Next Week: TEBOW TIME. The Steelers will face Tebow Magic in Denver. This is not going to be as easy as it seems. Look for a tough game with the Steelers thwarting a Tebow Comeback. I have terrorized KGB and E-Roc all year about Tebow, so it is just that the Steelers end his season.

THE PRO BOWL

-The Steelers defense is first in yards allowed, second in points allowed and that garners count ’em, one pro bowl Starter, Troy Polamalu. The Ravens defense had you bet; FIVE, including Ray Lewis who has missed significant time and has been a non factor since he has been back. Joe Thomas from the Browns made it, watch this week as he holds Silverback on nearly every play and rides him like a whipping mule.

Congrats to Big Ben, Maurkice Pouncey, Mike Wallace and Antonio Brown on making the team as well.

Suspension Nonsense Part II

-Nice work by the NFL, James Harrison, our beloved Silverback, served a one game suspension last week for hitting Colt McCoy in the facemask with his helmet. The play was a penalty, the FIRST personal foul of the season for Silverback. It was the first time a suspension was handed out for hitting a player on the field in over 20 years. The suspension that was handed out, was completely arbitrary and draconian. Richard Seymour punches another player, not in the heat of battle but after the game. He also did this last year when the Steelers handed the Raiders a beat down and he punched Ben! No suspension is expected. This sends a great message from the league.

I agreed with Coach Tomlin on making everyone be quiet about it. That is what we as the fans are here for. The league is showing a huge double standard.

Also on the subject, nice work by the Browns who didn’t even know that Colt McCoy had a consussion and let him finish the game, he is doubtful for this week as he can’t pass the concussion test. Besides being fined by the league, Pat Shurmur should be horse whipped and thrown off the Moses Cleveland Statue!

Steelers Christmas!

So Christmas has come and Steeler Claus didn’t forget his favorite blogger, the Steelers haul this year was pretty hefty:

-Two Great Steeler books:

MEN OF STEEL, By Jim Wexell. Wexell is a great writer who has a great deal of wit. I always enjoy his work.

100 Things Steelers Fans Should Know and Do before they Die! by Matt Loede. A great compilation book and will let you know after I read it.

-Steeler Gloves

-A Yinz sticker

-Steeler Holiday Hat

-Steeler Seat Covers for my Suburban (AKA The HULK)

-A Steelers plaque of the 2011 Team

-Two Awesome Steelers shirts, (Picture’s to come)

-A Steelers Calendar for 2012

-Steelers Golf Towel

-Ben Roethlisberger “Statue”

-Steelers Office Chair; that is plain awesome

I realize that I am behind almost two months on comments and email, But please send in your Steelers haul and I will post the best stuff!

Playoff Talk

-While we certainly can be be beaten, the team is not bullet proof, we can beat ANYBODY. So trust me no one wants to see the Steelers as they should be the toughest out on the AFC side.

-When picking out playoff teams, the best way to pick, is look at the QB, there is only one QB matchup that the Steelers lose in the AFC and that is to the Brady Bunch.  

-For the sake of all that is Holy, I want to beat the Patriots and I am begging for a rematch with the Packers! It still kills me thinking about what might have been!

The Steelers are a “mediocre” 4-3 on the road. After this week they should be 5-3. That is so lousy that it ranks second in the AFC behind the Evil Patriots. The invincible Ravens are 3-4 and could fall to 3 and 5, Sunday if we get our wish! 

Steelers fans received our favorite Christmas present today, another Christmas Eve shutout! The Steelers shutout the Rams! Rashard Mendenhall rushed for over 100 yards and Charlie Batch did an excellent job filling in for Big Ben!

Charlie Batch is now 5-2 as a Steelers starter. He played a very effective game at QB. The offense played well, despite yet another patchwork offensive line. Doug Legursky went down with an injury forcing Trai Essex to take over. Legursky was filling in for Maurkice Pouncey again and promptly left the game with an injury.

Despite the unsettled line, the Steelers did a great job protecting Batch and busting up the Rams up front. Rashard Mendenhall banged out 116 yards and looked great. Ike Redman chipped in for 35 bruising yards and John Clay, just activated from the practice squad, ran for 10 yards and a Touchdown on his first play from scrimmage on the first play of his career! Way to go Clay!   

The defense turned in a good performance, although the score didn’t tell the story. The defensive line struggled against the run, and for the third time this season an opposing running back gashed the defense for 100 yards. Steven Jackson had a huge day. The Secondary played a great game and again Ryan Clark, turned in a great effort along with the rest of the D-Backs.

The Steelers are rounding into shape as down the stretch we come!

Quick note, finally someone defended Silverback in the national media. It was John Lynch during the broadcast. It isn’t a surprise that Lynch defended him if you saw him play. He was an absolute killer across the middle and he made teams pay for coming his way. His style of play would be a serious issue in the NFl today but to call it dirty is simply wrong. It was good to hear that someone stepped up. Lynch is also extremely close with Coach Tomlin!

BEER WE GO CHRISTMAS, BEER WE GO!

My “GAME BEER” goes to: Charlie Batch, he is an unsung member of the Steelers and his performance was excellent. He has been a great asset to the team and he is a great person off the field. Also Considered were Rashard for banging out 100 yards, Ryan Clark for another solid outing.

Where I watched the game: Frantically wrapping presents and drinking McSorleys Dark Ale. Another time I will share the Captain Tailgate at the actual McSorleys story. KGB put on a great spread of Cheese and Red peppers.

My thoughts on Next Week: The Browns will be tough, the Steelers will be tougher, look for them to play it close and pull away in the second half!

It can be argued, but to me, today marks the most important day in Pittsburgh Steelers history. The Steelers fate changed on December 23, 1972. The Steelers were always physically tough, but they didn’t beat you on the scoreboard, they beat you up on the field. They were an NFL doormat for more than forty years but on this day; the Steelers were lifted from lethargy and launched the greatest dynasty in football history! The Steelers left the darkness and came to the light.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S08LIRj5q5c&feature=related

 BTW Dan Rooney HATED the name Immaculate Reception and considered it blasphemy! 🙂

This was a five star matchup, featuring Eleven Super Bowl Championships between each team. I had a bad feeling going into this game and that manifested it pretty early. When the lights went out twice, it was apparent that it was going to be a tough night.

Big Ben who continued to tough it out and played in a boot was courageous but clearly out of synch he had two HUGE turnovers and his clock management at the end of the half was awful. It seemed like an eternity since the Steelers played and they looked completely rusty. When the night ended the Steelers playoff picture took a major hit and their chance to seize first place in the division was lost.

I can’t stand over officiated games and this one was terribly over officiated, including the soon to be famous “Leaping” penalty. Seriously, leaping? The calls were mostly awful all night for both sides. Adding to the frustration was the AWFUL Monday Night Announcers who just blather on about everything, to be clear they did not “hate” on the Steelers in fact they were complimentary but it is a horrible package to listen too. I was going to comment on how much I liked the Thursday night crew but didn’t want the blog to get too long. I wish I had, as the contrast is night and day. Gruden is just ridiculous, Tirico does an admirable job considering the morons he is paired with and Jaworski is a crappier version of Joe Theisman.

As for the game itself, it was a rough night. The Steelers defense was probably a C+ effort, it was good enough to win but not up to Steelers standards. James Farrior and Lawrence Timmons both had tough games, Farrior was getting killed in coverage and Timmons was out of position so many times. Both are marquee performers so we can give them a pass for an off night. Lamar’s hamstring is becoming a recurring issue and he again had to leave the game early. That caused Jason Worilds to basically be invisible. The best performance by the linebackers was Silverback Tweeting about the lights being out!

I thought the secondary had a very good night after they had a slow start. It was a nice effort by Troy and Ike. Ryan “Crash” Clark played his best game this season and Keenan Lewis is right on the verge!

The Offensive line was horrible, AGAIN. Trai Essex couldn’t pick up any of the stunts and Max Starks played his worst game since he got back. In their defense, the team is completely different with Pouncey in there. The offense moved the ball pretty well but turnovers and extremely long fields were tough to overcome. Jericho Cotchery and Heath Miller had great games. I also have to ask WHERE IS HINES WARD?  

Special Teams, is so important and people never give it the credit it deserves. The Steelers missed a much needed field goal. The player of the game to me was Andy Lee the 49ers Punter, he trapped the Steelers the whole game and they could drive it sixty yards and barely be on the 49ers side of the field.

Here is the bright side, the Steelers almost certainly will make the playoffs and whether they are 1 or 2 or 5 have a clear road to where they need to go. They were missing their best O-lineman, their best defensive player and their QB was playing at 60% and it was a closer game than the score indicates. 

BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO!!!

My “GAME BEER” goes to: Heath Miller! After fumbling last week Heath bounced back to have a great game. The Familiar “Heeeeaaaath” chant was awesome and BWG nation deserves credit! Also considered, Ryan Clark and Jericho Cotchery.

Where I watched the game: SHUTTERED in the house. The Steelers weren’t the only people having a rough week. We needed to just lay low. I also didn’t have a beer which I believe contributed to the mediocre effort.

My thoughts on Next Week: Another short week, The Rams are in for a very bad day as I expect the Steelers to jump them off the bus. This will be an underdog team that the Steelers man handle!

So the league suspended Silverback. The media has been priming the screw gun all week and today they got their wish. I knew the play was going to get fined because when you drill someone with your helmet you are going to hear from the league. But a supension in the heart of the playoff race is such crap, I can’t begin to discuss my annoyance at this.

Here are the honest facts. At no point during this season has James Harrison been flagged for any illegal hits or plays. Second fact, the play was certainly borderline. Again, it warranted a fine given the rules but a SUSPENSION? No player has been suspended for a tackle on the field since Charles Martin wrecked big mouth Jim McMahon in 1986! Lastly, how about throwing a few flags for Silverback since he gets held on nearly every play. Joe Thomas was practically riding on him Thursday night.

Now for all the haters; the Steelers don’t get all the call’s. We are going to lose our best player in a pivotal game. If that isn’t a jag off session I don’t know what is. I hope Thaddeus Gibson gets a ring to maybe try and make the team again. Also, keep your fingers crossed that LaMarr can go.

BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO!

This feels like a bye week since the Steelers played Thursday. The Media is driving me nuts this week regarding “Silverback” James Harrison. It is fair to say that we are biased towards Silverback, I don’t think his play on Colt McCoy is dirty but it DEFINITELY warrants a fine. You can’t hit anyone especially a QB with your helmet. We are not going to sugar coat it. But these discussions about his possible suspension are plain nonsense. He has count them; one personal foul, this year.  The media is up and arms about him as some type of dirty player.

The other media speculation that is driving me up a wall is,  the Ben Roethlisberger and Maurkice Pouncey injuries. The reports as late as Sunday were practically they were going to have to have their respective ankles amputated. Now they have a mild sprain. Who knows?

It amazes me how tough Ben Roethlisberger is. When he was sandwiched by Cleveland’s Scott Paxson, midway through the Second quarter the season seemed lost. I texted the Captain and it read, “It looks very bad.” But Ben did what Ben does and he got off the deck and came out and played the second half leading the Steelers to victory and their tenth win of the year!

“The heart of a champion, the man has a lot of guts, a lot of will. he’s the leader of our team and that’s what they do, they do stuff like that.” Said James Farrior.

Despite moving the ball pretty well all game, the Steelers struggled, including losing the turnover battle. They eventually finished off the Browns with an Antonio Brown 79 yard Touchdown late in the fourth quarter. Brown had a huge game going for 150 yards plus. The Steelers rushed for 147 yards with Mendenhall leading the way. Ben threw for over 260. The issue was trusted veterans Hines Ward and Heath Miller both fumbled inside the Cleveland 20 and the Steelers couldn’t punch it in from the two yard line.

Despite a very game performance by Colt McCoy, the defense put together a good effort and kept Cleveland in check all day. The defense picked off two passes including a red zone pick by Willie Gay and they registered three sacks. Jason Worilds did a good job filling in again for Woodley as he registered two fo the sacks. Silverback can expect another fine from the league as he laid out McCoy with a helmet to helmet hit that sent McCoy from the game.

The Steelers now have ten days off and given the slew of injuries last night including Pouncey again as well as Ziggy Hood, they will need the time.

BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO

My “GAME BEER” goes to: Big Ben, this guy is so freakin’ tough. I mean that was the stuff of legend. Also Considered: Antonio Brown for his huge 79 yard TD. 

Where I watched the game: At my girlfriend KGB’s, on the couch with a Spaten in one hand and the remote in the other. We watched the game with EROC who was agonizing over fantasy and may have lost because of Heath and Hines fumble! Probably not my best recommendation.

My thoughts on Next Week: Ten days off is just what the doctor ordered. The Steelers take on the 49ers next week. This is going to be a defensive battle!

Long time contributor Chris Hoke, is out for the season and requires neck surgery. Unfortunately, this will likely end his career. He was a great contributor and anchored the D-line in the best regular season in Steelers history! He is loved by his teamates and losing him and Aaron Smith in the same season is awful.

My personal recollection of him was riding the elevator with Hokey at the Pittsburgh Hilton Tower and he mistook me for a player! When I explained I wasn’t, his response was; “Holy cow you are bigger than me.” BTW I wasn’t! I walked around with my chest puffed up that day and have told that story at nauseum to anyone who would listen!

As I kind of supsected, LaMarr is out for the Browns game Thursday! It makes sense for him to skip this week as he will have over two weeks off to rest his hamstring. Jason Worilds is a nice prospect but as with Troy and Ryan Mundy, it is like replacing Superman with a mortal. James Harrison, has picked up the slack, but we need both to win long term. I am very nervous about this as anyone who remembers Kendrell Bell can tell you, hamstrings are tricky.

BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO!