Not long after
the Bears beat the Steelers Sunday, I almost became famous.
The problem is, I also would have been dead.
I watched the game at the Public House in New York, a gathering spot for Steelers fans. Yeah, I pimped my site a little
bit. I handed out business cards and took some pictures, which you can find by clicking here.
On my way back to Grand Central Station, I sprinted across a street thinking I could beat the red light, and a
taxi cab came not too far from hitting me.
Fortunately,
I survived that little bit of stupidity. I felt like a quarterback must feel when a defender drops an interception.
Let's just say I was struck and killed, at least my life would have been taken by an object with Steelers colors. This was
a classic, old-school yellow and black cab.
Not only that,
but readers would flock to this site, because death automatically makes writers famous. I would become a literary giant. This
blog would be required summer reading for high school students. Teachers
would devote entire lectures to the socio-economic interpretation of the line "Here We Go Steelers."
Instead, I'll settle for being alive and making the best of my place
on the fringes of the Steelers blogosphere.
But for any bloggers out there who don't value their life as much,
here's my advice: The best way to increase traffic is to play in traffic.
Now, my NFL power rankings:
1. Giants (2-0, 2): Mario Manningham had 10 receptions
for 150 yards and a touchdown Sunday. He was still on the board when the Steelers picked Limas Sweed AND Bruce Davis in the 2008 draft. I'm just sayin'. 2. Ravens (2-0, 4):
Joe Flacco already has five touchdown passes this season. Last year, he didn't get his fifth until Week 9. 3.
Colts (2-0, 5): Had the ball for only 14 minutes, 53 seconds Monday, the lowest time of possession for a winning
team since 1977. 4. Jets (2-0, 11): Gave their fans the game ball after beating the Patriots Sunday. 5. Falcons (2-0, 8): They should keep the red helmets. I didn't like it when they went all black with their
jerseys and helmets in the Deion Sanders days. 6. Bears
(1-1, 13): Wide receiver Johnny Knox scored a touchdown against the Super Bowl champions on Sunday. A year ago, he
was playing for Division II Abilene Christian against Texas A&M-Commerce. 7. Steelers (1-1, 1): Last time Jeff Reed missed two field goals in a game was Sept. 26,
2004 in Miami. 8. Patriots (1-1, 3): Are now
49-50-1 in 100 all-time meetings vs. the Jets. 9. Saints (2-0, 19): Their 93 points in the first two
games is second only to the 1968 Raiders, who scored 95 in their first two games. 10. Vikings (2-0, 12):
Brett Favre broke Jim Marshall's NFL record with his 271st consecutive start Sunday. 11. Chargers (1-1, 9):
Career-high 436 passing yards Sunday for Philip Rivers. 12. Texans (1-1, 22): Are 8-2 since 2008 when
Andre Johnson has at least 75 receiving yards and 1-7 when he doesn't. 13. Cowboys (1-1,
13) 14. Bengals (1-1, 25) 15. 49ers (2-0, 16) 16. Packers (1-1, 10) 17. Cardinals (1-1, 17) 18.
Eagles (1-1, 7) 19. Redskins (1-1, 15) 20. Bills (1-1, 20) 21. Titans (0-2, 6) 22. Broncos (2-0, 24) 23. Dolphins (0-2, 18) 24. Seahawks (1-1, 23) 25. Raiders (1-1, 27) 26. Panthers (0-2, 21) 27. Rams
(0-2, 31) 28. Buccaneers (0-2, 28) 29. Jaguars (0-2, 26) 30. Chiefs (0-2, 29) 31. Browns (0-2, 30) 32. Lions (0-2, 32)
We've
seen it so many times over the past couple of years.
Either trailing or tied, the Steelers get the ball with seemingly
a lot of time on the clock. Then they surgically move up the field and take time off the clock until there's almost none left,
and they either send the game into overtime or score the winning points.
It looked like it was happening again Sunday. But it didn't
After Jay Cutler moved the Bears 72 yards on nine plays and threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to Johnny Knox to tie the
game at 14-14, the Steelers took over with 6:21 left in the game.
With Ben Roethlisberger navigating the offense, CBS showed a shot of his counterpart, helpless on the sidelines with
a pout on his face.
It turned out Cutler wasn't so helpless. He would get to put his helmet back on.
The Steelers got to the 25 with 3:23 left. Then Jeff Reed missed a 43-yard field goal.
Not only did the Steelers
fail to take the lead, but they left plenty of time for Cutler to put together a game-winning drive, which culminated in Robbie
Gould's 44-yard field goal with 20 seconds left, giving the Bears (1-1) a 17-14 win.
Reed is the convenient goat
in this game. He also missed a 38-yard field goal earlier in the fourth quarter.
Was he that insulted by the Steelers' contract offer before the season? I wouldn't want to be a paper-towel dispenser in the Pittsburgh area right about now.
But Reed doesn't deserve all the blame. One of the reasons he had to try a field goal from 43 yards away on a wet field is because on the previous play,
Santonio Holmes let a touchdown pass slip through his fingers.
After
his MVP performance in Super Bowl XLIII, and his many key grabs in Week 1 against the Titans, I really thought Holmes was
becoming an elite NFL player.
Unfortunately, like so many times last season, he dropped a few passes he should
have had. His head and his ass have been reunited, which probably led to the following reaction:
Rectum: 'Tone, is that you? Hey, long time no see! Large intestine:
Is that Holmes? Hey! Where have you been? You haven't stuck your head up here since before you returned that punt for a touchdown
against the Chargers in the playoffs last season.
As far as I know, Willie Colon was not part of the conversation.
At least Holmes knows how to catch a ball when he feels like
it. Ike Taylor, on the other hand, couldn't catch a cold if he went to the North Pole in a bathing suit.
The Steelers
(1-1) could have used an interception or two on Sunday, and there were a couple Taylor could have had. But, as the scouting
report says, Taylor is a superior cover corner, but he lacks "ball skills."
One person who finally showed
some balls Sunday is Rashard Mendenhall, who was the driving force behind the Steelers' only points in the second half.
After catching a pass from Roethlisberger and falling on his ass, Mendenhall got up, dodged some tacklers and gained
13 yards. Two plays later, he gained 39 yards on the ground to give the Steelers a first-and-goal at the 2. Roethlisberger
took it in himself for a 14-7 Steelers lead with 5:26 left in the third.
Mendenhall, playing in his hometown, put
the bust talk on hold for a week with his three-carry, 39-yard performance. But his effort was wasted.
Yes, it would have helped if the Steelers had Troy Polamalu (Tyrone Carter was picked on more than Waldo in
Van Halen's "Hot for Teacher" video). One sack and no interceptions from the defense isn't going to cut it. But championship teams weather injuries. They also hold onto touchdown passes in the
end zone and make field goals in the fourth quarter.
In the first quarter, the Steelers
looked every bit like a championship team.
They answered their critics by moving the ball on the ground and providing
outstanding pass protection for Roethlisberger. They didn't allow a Bears first down and took a 7-0 lead with Roethlisberger's
TD pass to Matt Spaeth on fourth-and-goal from the 1-foot line.
The second quarter was a different story.
Early
in the period, Roethlisberger completed his 10th straight pass for 21 yards to Hines Ward, giving the Steelers a first down
at the Bears' 38.
But just when it looked like the Steelers were about to take control of the game, Roethlisberger's
disturbing knack for underthrowing rookie receiver Mike Wallace reared its head when he was picked off by Charles Tillman.
The Bears eventually tied the score 7-7, which was the count at halftime.
After completing 11 of his first 12 passes, Roethlisberger completed only 12 of his last 23 and finished 23-of-35
for 221 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Cutler was 27-of-38 for 236 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions.
The proven winner was outdone by the proven whiner.
