With how bad the Pittsburgh Steelers were with injuries, I wasn't expecting a win for them against the Cleveland Browns. I missed out on the end of the game that should result in hefty fines on both sides and a suspension that could potentially be very lengthy. It's a bitter rivalry and this is one they won't forget.
Less than 15 seconds left in the game, the Steelers run a play. Mason Rudolph throws to his running back just before getting hit by Myles Garrett. They are on the ground and Rudolph starts the scuffle. Garrett rips off his helmet. Rudolph, with no helmet on, tries to get back at him. Garrett hits him in the head with the helmet. A brawl ensues. Several Steelers kick at Garrett, including center Maurkice Pouncey. Ugly scene. Obvious ejections. So what happens now?
If you're Cleveland, you're looking towards a few defensive guys not dressing up in a couple weeks. Damarious Randall may be fined, but not suspended. They lost Morgan Burnett to an Achilles injury. How severe that is is another story. Garrett will have at least a month's suspension. There is no way that he can defend himself with that. One heck of a year and to blow that opportunity. Especially with the two game winning streak. Don't be surprised either if he's suspended the rest of the year and maybe some games next season. (Suspended indefinitely) They are not far off from the wild card spot, but plenty of competition is around them. At least four teams have better records.
If you're Pittsburgh, I'm expecting Pouncey to be suspended. Yes, he was trying to protect Rudolph, but it's ridiculous. If not suspended, then a big fine. (Three games) I don't expect Rudolph to be suspended, but the NFL should fine him. Why charge at Garrett? Especially when he has had concussions this year? That is stupidity on his part and that's what will be lost. What Garrett did was atrocious, but Rudolph needs to be blamed a little bit, too. If it weren't for charging and losing his composure, he would not have gotten hit in the head by his own helmet.
These teams meet again on December 1. There will be revenge in mind for Pittsburgh, which that game will be at Heinz Field. But the NFL should give out big warnings. I got a feeling we are going to see another big fight if it comes down to another ugly scene. Good drama for Thursday Night Football, but a bad stain for the NFL.
Showing posts with label pittsburgh steelers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pittsburgh steelers. Show all posts
Friday, November 15, 2019
Monday, September 10, 2018
Lowly Tie
If you're the Pittsburgh Steelers, this should be a travesty in itself. Facing the Cleveland Browns should have been a walk in the park somewhat. Instead, they let them comeback and not only tie the game, but end the game in a tie.
For one thing, do not blame this on Le'Veon Bell. James Connor put up one hell of a game that totaled almost 200 scrimmage yards and a touchdown. The defense put up their effort, particularly one T.J. Watt with four sacks. Ben Roethlisberger had the awful game with three interceptions despite over 300 yards passing. More than likely, that was what got Cleveland back in.
On the other side, Tyrod Taylor was abysmal in accuracy, but the ground game is what got him and Carlos Hyde to score. Jarvis Landry is one guy Miami might regret trading away if he has games like he had this week. The defense did not give up. For rookie Denzel Ward to get his first two picks ever off of one of the great quarterbacks, it says a lot for not just him, but for the team.
Pittsburgh has it tough facing Kansas City for Week 2. Although they beat them in the playoffs two seasons ago and the regular season last year, they were tight match ups. Dealing with Tyreek Hill is their most concerning issue. Cleveland goes to New Orleans, who laid an egg against Tampa Bay and backup Ryan Fitzpatrick. I see Drew Brees getting the victory and the winless streak continuing for the Browns. Ultimately, Pittsburgh should be ashamed of having this as, although it's just the first week, it could be a huge factor in whether they are a postseason team or not.
For one thing, do not blame this on Le'Veon Bell. James Connor put up one hell of a game that totaled almost 200 scrimmage yards and a touchdown. The defense put up their effort, particularly one T.J. Watt with four sacks. Ben Roethlisberger had the awful game with three interceptions despite over 300 yards passing. More than likely, that was what got Cleveland back in.
On the other side, Tyrod Taylor was abysmal in accuracy, but the ground game is what got him and Carlos Hyde to score. Jarvis Landry is one guy Miami might regret trading away if he has games like he had this week. The defense did not give up. For rookie Denzel Ward to get his first two picks ever off of one of the great quarterbacks, it says a lot for not just him, but for the team.
Pittsburgh has it tough facing Kansas City for Week 2. Although they beat them in the playoffs two seasons ago and the regular season last year, they were tight match ups. Dealing with Tyreek Hill is their most concerning issue. Cleveland goes to New Orleans, who laid an egg against Tampa Bay and backup Ryan Fitzpatrick. I see Drew Brees getting the victory and the winless streak continuing for the Browns. Ultimately, Pittsburgh should be ashamed of having this as, although it's just the first week, it could be a huge factor in whether they are a postseason team or not.
Friday, January 12, 2018
NFL Divisional Round Predictions 2018
A week in the books already and the Divisional Round of the NFL playoffs begin Saturday. Let's get to the games.
Saturday's games are the Atlanta Falcons and Philadelphia Eagles match late in the afternoon. The night game is between the Tennessee Titans and the New England Patriots. With Philly and Atlanta, it comes down to Atlanta beating up on Philly. If Carson Wentz was under center, I would say otherwise, but whoever is starting is going to have a bad performance. If it is Nick Foles, this is going to be different since this isn't the 2013 version that surprised everyone. The Falcons are top 10 defense this year and are very good at stopping the run, particularly refusing backs from getting touchdowns. With the experience of the postseason last year and last week's victory against the Rams, they can ride that momentum to the Championship game. Philly's keys to victory are the defense to not bend, get the receivers going and rely on running the ball. I don't see two of these going well.
Tennessee was a shocker in their victory against Kansas City. Now they have the task of stopping New England and hoping to make it back to a Championship game for the first time since 1999. It is only their seventh appearance in the postseason since the start of the 1994 season and they need perfection to even pull another upset. Marcus Mariota needs more than just luck as the Patriot defense struggled throughout the year, ranking second to last in pass defense yards given up and in the lower half for rush defense yards. Obviously, New England's passing is at the top, but the question is the defense and if the ground game will show up like it did the last two games of the year. I'm all for the upset with Tennessee, though realistically, it's a losing effort for coach Mike Mularkey.
Sunday's games are two rematches from this season. The early game is the Jacksonville Jaguars and Pittsburgh Steelers, while the New Orleans Saints and Minnesota Vikings are the final game of the Divisional Round. Jacksonville gave Ben Rothelisberger one of his worst games ever, picking him off five times. Their defense is good, but their magic won't work Sunday. The offense was putrid against Buffalo, and the Steeler defense will pulverize Blake Bortles. Leonard Fournette will struggle for yards and the Jaguars will be having issues scoring points. A lot can happen between October and January. The Steelers will win. How much they will win by is a question mark.
Week one saw the Vikes and Saints in a Monday Night game with Minnesota notching a victory. These are the two best teams not only in the NFC, but the entire league. They can throw the ball well and attack on the ground with duo running backs. The defenses can create turnovers and make big plays when necessary. Minnesota has to stop the Saints rushing prowess, which has run rampant throughout the season. Shut down Mark Ingram and Alvin Kamara, they will get their victory. Calm Case Keenum and he will do fine in his first playoff game. New Orleans has to put a lot of pressure on Keenum to make him throw a costly interception. Stop him and Latavius Murray, and a Championship game for the first time since 2009 (Both faced each other in the NFC Championship that year) will be theirs. I'm buying into Minnesota solely on their defense. Either way, this might be the best match up for the playoffs.
Next week, we will discuss the Championship games.
Saturday's games are the Atlanta Falcons and Philadelphia Eagles match late in the afternoon. The night game is between the Tennessee Titans and the New England Patriots. With Philly and Atlanta, it comes down to Atlanta beating up on Philly. If Carson Wentz was under center, I would say otherwise, but whoever is starting is going to have a bad performance. If it is Nick Foles, this is going to be different since this isn't the 2013 version that surprised everyone. The Falcons are top 10 defense this year and are very good at stopping the run, particularly refusing backs from getting touchdowns. With the experience of the postseason last year and last week's victory against the Rams, they can ride that momentum to the Championship game. Philly's keys to victory are the defense to not bend, get the receivers going and rely on running the ball. I don't see two of these going well.
Tennessee was a shocker in their victory against Kansas City. Now they have the task of stopping New England and hoping to make it back to a Championship game for the first time since 1999. It is only their seventh appearance in the postseason since the start of the 1994 season and they need perfection to even pull another upset. Marcus Mariota needs more than just luck as the Patriot defense struggled throughout the year, ranking second to last in pass defense yards given up and in the lower half for rush defense yards. Obviously, New England's passing is at the top, but the question is the defense and if the ground game will show up like it did the last two games of the year. I'm all for the upset with Tennessee, though realistically, it's a losing effort for coach Mike Mularkey.
Sunday's games are two rematches from this season. The early game is the Jacksonville Jaguars and Pittsburgh Steelers, while the New Orleans Saints and Minnesota Vikings are the final game of the Divisional Round. Jacksonville gave Ben Rothelisberger one of his worst games ever, picking him off five times. Their defense is good, but their magic won't work Sunday. The offense was putrid against Buffalo, and the Steeler defense will pulverize Blake Bortles. Leonard Fournette will struggle for yards and the Jaguars will be having issues scoring points. A lot can happen between October and January. The Steelers will win. How much they will win by is a question mark.
Week one saw the Vikes and Saints in a Monday Night game with Minnesota notching a victory. These are the two best teams not only in the NFC, but the entire league. They can throw the ball well and attack on the ground with duo running backs. The defenses can create turnovers and make big plays when necessary. Minnesota has to stop the Saints rushing prowess, which has run rampant throughout the season. Shut down Mark Ingram and Alvin Kamara, they will get their victory. Calm Case Keenum and he will do fine in his first playoff game. New Orleans has to put a lot of pressure on Keenum to make him throw a costly interception. Stop him and Latavius Murray, and a Championship game for the first time since 2009 (Both faced each other in the NFC Championship that year) will be theirs. I'm buying into Minnesota solely on their defense. Either way, this might be the best match up for the playoffs.
Next week, we will discuss the Championship games.
Tuesday, December 5, 2017
The Bad Rep of Pittsburgh
No review this week. Last night's NFL game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals will be one to remember, but for the wrong reasons. First was early in the game when Steeler linebacker Ryan Shazier was injured tackling and wound up in a hospital with a back injury. Whether this is a paralyzing one, I don't know. That will be talked a lot along with what receiver Juju Smith-Schuster did.
Late in the game, Smith-Schuster hit a defenseless Vontaze Burfict, a Bengal linebacker who had his share of controversy against Pittsburgh in this rivalry. Burfict went down to the ground and the receiver stood over him, resulting in a taunting penalty to go with the unnecessary roughness penalty. With ESPN broadcasting the game, both their main guys, Sean McDonough and Jon Gruden were disturbed by the hit. Watching it, Gruden was surprised that there wasn't an ejection. There was another bad one but it was the Bengals George Iloka delivering a hit to the head at Steeler Antonio Brown, who later said it was karma regarding the Burfict hit. Brown was hit viciously a few seasons ago in the playoffs by him and some might say that cost them a Super Bowl run in 2015, losing to the Broncos.
Steeler fans wonder what they get such a bad rep. Last night's game is a very good indication. Especially in the wake of Sunday where Patriot tight end Rob Gronkowski was suspended a game for a cheap shot on a Buffalo Bill, this should be an easy suspension to put on Smith-Schuster. It's the kind of thing the league does not want to see. This simply adds fuel to the fire that Steeler players are dirty. Shazier himself had a rule named after him following a helmet to helmet hit on Bengal Giovanni Bernard that was legal in the playoffs a few years ago. Not to mention some of the other players involved in the rivalry since 2005.
This is a huge black eye for the league. You have to hope Shazier's injury isn't a paralyzing one, but your guess is as good as mine. With stuff like Schuster, however, that crap needs to stop. Refs can't keep giving teams like the Steelers and Seahawks a break. Not much else to say other than Steeler fans can cry all they want, but the rep they have, even with being one of the older franchises in the NFL, will only get worse if they keep doing things like this.
Late in the game, Smith-Schuster hit a defenseless Vontaze Burfict, a Bengal linebacker who had his share of controversy against Pittsburgh in this rivalry. Burfict went down to the ground and the receiver stood over him, resulting in a taunting penalty to go with the unnecessary roughness penalty. With ESPN broadcasting the game, both their main guys, Sean McDonough and Jon Gruden were disturbed by the hit. Watching it, Gruden was surprised that there wasn't an ejection. There was another bad one but it was the Bengals George Iloka delivering a hit to the head at Steeler Antonio Brown, who later said it was karma regarding the Burfict hit. Brown was hit viciously a few seasons ago in the playoffs by him and some might say that cost them a Super Bowl run in 2015, losing to the Broncos.
Steeler fans wonder what they get such a bad rep. Last night's game is a very good indication. Especially in the wake of Sunday where Patriot tight end Rob Gronkowski was suspended a game for a cheap shot on a Buffalo Bill, this should be an easy suspension to put on Smith-Schuster. It's the kind of thing the league does not want to see. This simply adds fuel to the fire that Steeler players are dirty. Shazier himself had a rule named after him following a helmet to helmet hit on Bengal Giovanni Bernard that was legal in the playoffs a few years ago. Not to mention some of the other players involved in the rivalry since 2005.
This is a huge black eye for the league. You have to hope Shazier's injury isn't a paralyzing one, but your guess is as good as mine. With stuff like Schuster, however, that crap needs to stop. Refs can't keep giving teams like the Steelers and Seahawks a break. Not much else to say other than Steeler fans can cry all they want, but the rep they have, even with being one of the older franchises in the NFL, will only get worse if they keep doing things like this.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)