Beer We Go Steelers

The Steelers started off slow but eventually put it into overdrive as they dominated the Browns at Heinz field again winning 33-18. They combined a balanced offense with an aggressive defense.

James Conner was the story of the day, putting together his third 100-yard game of the season with 114 yards coming in the second half and finishing with 212 yards from scrimmage. He caught six passes for 66 yards and pounded the Browns defense with 146 yards on the ground and two touchdowns.

To put together a game like that, it starts up front. The offensive line after a shaky first quarter absolutely stuffed the Browns front. Myles Garret had one sack and was never heard from again. Matt Feiler acquitted himself nicely after one bad play and absolutely helped spark the running game. The line has produced three 100-yard games in a row.

The defense went back to a familiar formula…Blitzing. The numbers don’t tell the story because Baker Mayfield was on the run all day and had nowhere to go and nowhere to go and no time to throw. And after starting with 52 yards in the first half Nick Chubb had was an afterthought in the second half. The Secondary produced its best performance of the season limiting Mayfield to just 180 yards with a portion of that coming when the game was well in hand.

The biggest glaring difference in the game however was the coaching. The Steelers clearly out coached Hue Jackson who seemed lost at times. Getting the Steelers back to “Steelers Football” was huge in this game, power running and blitzing defenses.

The special teams continue to absolutely make one weird play after the other, this time losing a free kick after the safety. Little Bos seems to have bounced back as has Jordan Berry, who was instrumental in setting up the safety!

The refs were again way to involved in the game. They made several calls that were just atrocious, including phantom pass interference calls and a missed spot that really hurt Cleveland. The first quarter dragged on for what seemed like forever.

In the end the Steelers beat the Browns and stand atop the division!

BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO!

My “GAME BEER” goes to: This has to go to James Conner. He put on a clinic of what a running back should be and he absolutely took the game over. Also Considered, Matt Feiler who did a terrific job filling in for Marcus Gilbert. Joe Haden who played great and had to be happy being on this side of the rivalry.

Where I watched the game: Back at the house, which is my favorite thing. No beer again because I am in training for a boxing match. KGB had wine instead of Beer in solidarity with me, which I appreciated. She also made homemade Guacamole, Quesadilla’s and chicken cutlets for dinner. Watching with the Tailgate kids was a great way to spend a Sunday!

My Stat of the week: 14 0f 20 times the “new” Browns have had a losing season against the Steelers, including 2002 when they lost three games and this season where they lost one game and had one tie. They have had five splits with the last being in 2014 and ZERO winning seasons against the Steelers and last won at Heinz Field in 2003.

My Thoughts on next week: The Steelers will march into Baltimore and beat the fading Ravens. “Babe it’s Ravens Week!”

This week’s Jersey: Rod Woodson, #26 Throwback…well not really, I bought it over 20 years ago, so I guess it is a Way Back! It was my first Steelers jersey that I purchased with my own money and I usually wear to the Turkey Bowl!

In a familiar Steelers v. Bengals script, the Steelers survived an “almost” fourth quarter collapse to beat the Bengals on a timely play by Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown.  

Powered by a dominating performance by the offensive line, Ben Roethlisberger put together a heroic second half culminating in the 62 second, 77-Yard drive that produced a 31-yard catch-and-run by Antonio Brown with 10 seconds remaining to win the game. It was another fantastic Ohio performance for Roethlisberger who finished with 369 Yards passing and one touchdown.

With the specter of Le’Veon Bell hanging over his shoulder, James Conner had his most complete performance as a Steeler. Conner produced his third 100-Yard game of the season and had several highlight-reel runs including planting Vontaze Burfict on one. Conner finished with 111 yards on the ground and two touchdowns. He leads the NFL in rushing touchdowns.

The receivers had a great day as Roethlisberger completed passes to eight different receivers including himself. Brown was relatively quiet but stepped up when the team needed it most. Vance McDonald and Jesse James are a dangerous combination, they combined for 12 catches for 94 yards.   

In an emotional day for the defense, they put together a good performance overall, but they still seem to struggle in the middle. The defense put up respectable numbers but overall couldn’t make any big plays.

Can the special teams stink anymore? It is amazing how bad they play on a weekly basis. Coming off one of their best games, it was the same formula as before, mistake after mistake and poor coverage.

The Steelers continue to make several mistakes and continue to be penalized. But it was a big division win in hostile territory and put the team back in contention.

BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO!

My “GAME BEER” goes to: This is when my football biased comes out…I am going with the Offensive Line, For the second week in a row they helped produce over 100-yards on the ground and ZERO sacks! It starts up front and with great protection it is amazing what these teams can do! Also Considered, Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown and James Conner all would have been great choices.

Where I watched the game: All over the house! I had to box in the AM but made it home about 5 minutes after kickoff. So, I watched some in my room, while getting changed, some in the upstairs family room with the Tailgate Kids and the Tailgate Pup and finally downstairs when KGB got home. Since I am in training, no beer, but we had amazing Buffalo Chicken Parmigiana Sliders and pasta with Garlic and Oil. One of our best snacks ever!

My Stat of the week: I already highlighted the performance by the O-line which shutout Carlos Dunlop and Geno Atkins. I am going with ONE! One reception by Ben Roethlisberger. While this is an innocuous stat it marks the second catch of Roethlisberger’s career and first in roughly ten years!

My Thoughts on next week: The Steelers needed a big win going into the bye week and they got it. The BYE week should prove timely and may end the Le’Veon Bell drama!

This week’s Jersey: Heath Miller, #83, Steelers “Blackout” jersey. KGB Covets this jersey!

We will review the “first half” next week about this time. Thanks for your patience!

The Steelers rebounded with a huge win over the Atlanta Falcons, putting together a tough defensive performance a dominating offensive performance and even some nice plays on special teams!

It was the best defensive execution of the season combining a tough and diverse pass rush with press coverage. Playing against the Falcons high powered offense, there was no room to run and the Falcons averaged 3.3 yards per carry and only 62 yards on the ground.

The pass rush racked up six sacks and was nearly unstoppable. TJ Watt led the team with three sacks and a forced fumble that lead to the clinching touchdown. Cameron Heyward had 1-1/2 sacks and was in the backfield all day. LJ Fort was all over the field and did a great job filling in for Vince Williams. The star of the defense was Joe Haden who held Julio Jones to only five catches and under 70 yards.

The offensive game plan was to run the football and be physical. James Conner set that tone. He ran hard all day putting together 110 tough yards and chipping in with four catches and 75 yards. The offensive line dominated up front, running at will and keeping Ben Roethlisberger off the ground, the Falcons had no answer.

Antonio Brown was off the snide with his first 100-yard game of the season and he led the team with 101 yards and a big touchdown catch. Ben Roethlisberger played great and managed the game efficiently with the exception of an ill-advised pass at the end of the first half.

The special teams were an asset Sunday.  Rosie Nix blocked a punt and the coverage units did a tremendous job. Jordan Berry had a great day after a rough start to the season and was only called upon three times and averaged 47.7 yards per punt. The only concern was Chris Boswell still seems lost missing his third extra point of the season.

Officiating was horrible, and the refs were way to involved in the game, with several botched phantom calls. Coach Tomlin brought light to that fact in the post-game press conference.

The Steelers finally showed signs of what this team is capable of and need to string to back to back performances together.

BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO!

My “GAME BEER” goes to: Roosevelt Nix an unsung hero on the offense. He led the way for James Connor and he blocked a punt that turned the game. He is the epitome of an old school fullback and a great person to have on the team! Also Considered, TJ Watt for his three sacks, Antonio Brown for his first 100-yard game.

Where I watched the game: At Heinz Field with the family. We got to tailgate with Woody Welch’s “Legacy” group, they were awesome! We also got to stop at the Terrible Bra and Grille with the Janick and Gee! We had an awesome time.

My Stat of the week: 62 yards for Julio Jones who was lighting up the NFL prior to Sunday. Joe Haden is clearly a difference maker on this defense.

My Thoughts on next week: The Steelers need to put together back to back performances and prove that the beginning of the season was the fluke not last week.

This week’s Jersey: Joe Greene #75 Home Jersey, my “gamer”, which I wear to every game I go to.

Reflections of Little Miss Tailgate:

The 2018 Pittsburgh trip will definitely go down in history as the craziest trip when is comes to travel. We left our house by 1 pm and we didn’t end up getting to the hotel until around 11pm because we got a flat tire on the highway then the battery died so we had to jump the car.

We stayed at on Smallman Street in downtown Pittsburgh. On Saturday we visited the Heinz History Center where we checked out the new Apollo 11 exhibit and we also walked around the museum and checked out the various exhibits there.

We then went and shopped on the Strip District where us kids were on a hunt for gifts for our mom for her birthday on Monday. I got a new sweatshirt, a lanyard and a T.J. Watt Pop Funko. We also ate lunch at Peppi’s where I had a cheese steak.

We went to church at St. Santislaus off the strip district. After church we hung out for a little while then we decided to go to Primanti’s on Market Square where I had a Pittsburgher which was pretty good and we also had a surprise appearance by Captain Tailgate who sat with us and we all caught up. After dinner we went and looked around at all the booths on Market Square and then we all walked over to the Milkshake Factory where I had Peanut Butter Fudge Milkshake which was pretty good. We went back to the hotel and went to bed in preparation for the big game the next day!

On Sunday, we got up had a good breakfast and took an Uber to Heinz Field. We met up with a few friends grabbed our tickets and then headed over to the Terrible Bra and Grille Tailgate where we saw all our friends and we hung out there until it was time to head over to the field for the game.

This year my mom and I sat in club seats and then my dad and my brothers joined us after the first quarter.  T.J played a very good game along with Juju, Connor, and Antonio Brown had a good game also. I was on the edge of my seat while watching this great game. Once Renegade started playing the crowd went pretty crazy and as united Steeler fans, we swung or Terrible Towels high and proud during those three minutes. A big highlight of the second half was when we took the ball back in the end zone and ended up scoring on that drive.

The game finished strong with a 41-17 win over the Falcons. After the game, we said our goodbyes to our friends and headed toward PNC Park and waited for our Uber. That night we once again went to Primanti’s and I had salami and cheese instead. After Primanti’s we went to the milkshake factory and I had cookies and cream instead. Then we took an Uber back to our hotel and we slept to prepare for tomorrow’s big drive.

For those of you who didn’t know my mom’s birthday was Monday, October 8. So we got up and went to her door with a sign, her shirts, a card, and a blueberry muffin from downstairs and we sang happy birthday and since I take Spanish in school she asked if I could sing her the happy birthday song in Spanish…. I didn’t say no. Then we packed up the car and said our farewells to the great city of Pittsburgh and drove home. Overall, this trip was a great one and I had so much fun. I hope to be able to go back next year.

Until next time Root Beer We Go Steelers!!

Little Miss Tailgate

In a game that was almost a mirror image of the Chiefs’ game, the Steelers were beaten soundly by the Baltimore Ravens, falling behind early, rallying back and then eventually falling. It has been a dismal season and Super Bowl expectations seem very far off right now.

Ben Roethlisberger had a great second quarter but an abysmal second half. He misfired on several passes in the second half, completing just 8 of 18 passes for 50 yards. It looked like he was poised to continue his 300 yard plus streak even having an opportunity to rack up garbage yards, but he completely folded in the fourth quarter. The offense abandoned the running game relying heavily on the pass.

There seems to be a huge disconnect between Antonio Brown and Roethlisberger. Brown only hauled in one catch in the second half. They continue to have histrionics on the sideline after nearly every play and there were several mistakes again in the protection schemes.

The defense is a horrid mess. The game plan was to rush four and stay in coverage. It never worked. Joe Flacco completely picked apart the coverages and the Ravens offense kept the Steelers off balance. It was an extremely well thought out game plan that the Defense couldn’t counter.

Jon Bostic and Terrell Edmunds look completely lost right now in the defense. T.J. Watt was non-existent the entire game.

Once again coaching has to come into question. The Steelers have fallen behind 49-0 in the first quarter of their last three home games. The defense has been on its heels and the offense becomes one dimensional. At what point do you make some changes or try different schemes?

The season is slipping away.

BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO!

My “GAME BEER” goes to: NO ONE. Seriously the game was that bad.

Where I watched the game: At Buckley’s with my friends and KGB. It was a wings fest and the beer of choice was Miller Lite. It was a great night the game not withstanding.

My Stat of the week: 49 points in the first quarter of last three home games. There is very little room for success with that type of start.   

My Thoughts on next week: The Steelers are up against the wall and will be battling a tough Falcons offense.

This week’s Jersey: Franco Harris #32 Salute to Service.