Cincinnati 28, Pittsburgh 20

Before, during, and after last Monday night's 9-0 loss to the Jaguars, commentators couldn't say enough about the similarities between the Jags and the Steelers. Both play tough defense, both love to run the ball, both play the role of bully on the field.

Well, add one more similarity to the list: today, both failed in late attempts to tie the game against a major divisional rival. The Jags lost 21-14 to the Colts, at the same time that the Steelers were gagging one up to the Bengals at home. The Jags dominated in the first half, racking up a time-of-possession advantage of roughly 20 minutes. They were, however, able only to manage a 7-7 tie. The Steelers blunted the sharp edge of the Bengals' offense early and pounded the ball down the defense's throat to take an early lead.

Everything changed for the Steelers when Big Ben threw the first of his three interceptions, the first of two that occurred in the end zone. (The other end zone interception, as you probably know if you are reading this, sealed the Steelers' fate in the fourth quarter.) You don't need to be Ron Jawarski to do the analysis on this game: you won't win games when you turn the ball over five times. Despite Ben's sub-par day (18-39, 208 yds), two fumbles killed Pittsburgh: one on a punt return by Rico Colclough and one, less than a minute later, by Verron Haynes. The Bengals turned those two plays immediately into 14 points. I think I may be done defending Rico Colclough.

We can draw comparisons between the Steelers and other teams, as well:

They share a score with the Buffalo Bills, who lost 28-20 to the NY Jets. The Bills, like the Steelers, are 1-2. Their one win? Against the Dolphins. The Dolphins, after beating the Titans today in a 13-10 yawner, are also 1-2. (The lowly Jets, by the way, are 2-1.) Carolina, another team often compared in attitude and style to the Steelers, joined the 1-2 club today by beating Tampa. Two other teams in the 1-2 club feature former Steelers WRs: the NY Giants and the Redskin Potatoes. Maybe it's viral.

What have we learned today? That Ben is not himself. That the Bengals are susceptible to the run (and that Willie P. is the man for the job). And that a win against Cincinnati in Cincinnati is absolutely essential.

Jaguars 9, Steelers 0

Well, no one thought they'd go undefeated, right? The Steelers looked anemic Monday night (and Ben may well have been), and they were beaten by the Jags in impressive fashion. Jacksonville was more physical, more determined, and more intense. In some ways, the 9-0 score wasn't indicative of the Jags' dominance. It's a testament to the defense (who had their problems, to be sure) that the game stayed so close for so long.

Big Ben needed this game. He needed to shake the rust off and get the offense all shiny for next week against the Bengals. To those who would criticize Cowher for playing his big QB I say: better to have the rust-game week 2 in Jacksonville than week 3 at home against Cinci. And here's hoping that the humiliation at the hands of their former division rivals inspires the opposite performance on Sunday.

Three who looked good:

Ryan Clark (did you see that third-quarter arm tackle of Maurice Drew to prevent a first down? Farrior came in late, but was all Clark.)
James Farrior (Mr. Steady, even in the face of adversity.)
Najeh Davenport (I know, he never got on the field. But he kept his mistakes to a minimum.)

Three who looked bad:
Troy Polamalu (That shoulder is seriously bothering him. He isn't tackling well.)
Big Ben (He was flinching in the face of the Jags' onslaught.)
O-Line (See Big Ben comment above. Even without Reggie Hayward, the Jags dominated the line of scrimmage.)

Santonio Holmes deserves special bad-play mention: Ben's first interception looked eerily familiar; remember the pre-season INT in which Holmes never turned around for the ball? Willie Reid isn't dressing, even though he's the superior returner, because Holmes is a more polished receiver. A relative measure, obviously.

And doesn't Rashean Mathis--who showed up on the Steelers' radar the year he was drafted--have this team's number?

Bottom line: Jacksonville is an impressive team; they may have set the bar for the sort of football the Steelers aim to play.

Steelers 28, Miami 17

I like the Dolphins. I have two reasons: because they have the potential to bring down the mighty Patriots, and because they aren't afraid to wear a helmet featuring a dolphin wearing a helmet with an orange M on it. That's pretty cool.

But I like the Steelers quite a bit more, obviously, so I was a happy man last night as the Steelers dominated the Dolphins in Pittsburgh on the NFL's opening showcase. Despite the fact that the Steelers trailed 17-14 in the fourth quarter, and despite the fact that Daunte Culpepper threw for 262 yards, the Steelers dominated: they had a ten minute advantage in time of possession and a 100+ yard advantage on the ground. And we were reminded of something we learned long ago: you don't run on the Steelers. The Dolphins' Ronnie Brown ran for 30 yards on 15 carries; his longest gain was 8 yards.

Other aspects of the game were equally recognizable: Ike Taylor dropped an interception; Joey Porter had two sacks and an INT (and kissed Cowher); Hines Ward caught a touchdown in the back of the end zone. But there were surprises: Nate Washington catching a TD on a jump ball; Jeff Reed's ugly miss; Heath Miller's breakaway speed.

(By the way: I don't want to hear any crap about the challenge flag. Any head coach worth his blood pressure medication sets fire to that flag if that's what it takes to get the ref's attention. Cowher would have knocked someone's hat off with it. Saban, however, threw it like he was afraid he might cause offense. Even worse, he sought to lay blame elsewhere for his mistake.)


Three who looked good:
Joey Porter (the star of the game)
Willie Parker (ran hard inside; is learning to be a patient runner)
Charlie Batch (the dream performance for a Steeler QB: 200+ yards and no INTs; the 3 TD passes are gravy)

Three who looked bad, or at least just okay:
Steelers special teams (Jeff Reed's miss; Wes Welker's returns; James Harrison's hold; and so on)
O-Line (strong, but not dominant; the Phins' front seven is tough!)
Duce Staley (no need to wash that jersey, Duce, just put it back on the hanger)

Speaking of running backs: the Patrick Cobbs era in Pittsburgh is over. The Steelers waived him today after signing former Packer RB and Miami U hamper-dumper Najeh Davenport. Davenport is 6'1" and 247#--just the sort of back the Steelers love. It will be interesting to see who--Staley or Davenport--suits up on Sunday in the weeks to come.

Big Ben Out for Thursday

KFFL.com is reporting that Ben Roethlisberger has undergone an emergency appendectomy and will not play Thursday against the Dolphins. Charlie Batch, obviously, will start in his place; another Steeler will be added to the roster forthwith.

Big Ben will be week-to-week thereafter.

Cripes.

Business as Usual

What are the Steelers known for? Consistency and building through the draft. So it should come as no surprise that Ike Taylor signed a five-year extension today . Of course, the Steelers are also known for their refusal to over-pay for a player (I'm looking at you, Joey Porter); the hype surrounding Taylor's ascendancy made overpayment a possibility. The Steelers did a good thing, then, by locking him down before the open market inflated the price. And good on Taylor, too, for signing now, rather than waiting for the Redskin Potatoes to drive up with a dump truck of cash in the spring.

Maybe Taylor can take some of his new cash and buy a pair of sticky gloves, so that he can perhaps hang on to a few of those interceptions.

Mike Lorello, We Hardly Knew Ye

The practice squad is set, and conspicuous by his absence among those names is BGEF fave Mike Lorello, who lacks NFL skills but not NFL mentality. Several of the Steelers' draft choices--Orien Harris, Cedric Humes, and Omar Jacobs--made the squad, as did rookie free agents Jon Dekker and Anthony Madison. This means that TE Charles Davis is the lone draft choice out of work; he was bumped by Jon Dekker, whom I wrote off after the first pre-season game. Shows what I know.

John Kuhn and Shaun Nua are back for their second year on the p-squad, and the roster is filled out by OT Brandon Torrey and British WR Marvin Allen.

Since my last post, I have watched the tape-delayed airing of the Steelers-Panthers "game," and I must say that I was impressed with Omar Jacobs' performance. It wasn't just the long throw to Walter Young; OJ was consistently quick and accurate with his throws, and he showed something he had yet to show: poise in the pocket. It will be interesting to see if he spends all year on the p-squad, or if he ascends to the 53-man roster at some point (perhaps when concerns over Chukky Okobi's health are abated and Marvin Philip is demoted).

Next stop: football season!

The Final Two

The names of the final two cuts have been posted on the Steelers' team site: OLB Andre Frazier and WR Quincy Morgan. Either or both seem likely to appear soon on the Patriots' roster.

And then there were 53. Duce Staley is the third back behind Willie Parker and Verron Haynes, and may not dress; Marvin Philip has been retained, probably as insurance against complications with Chukky Okobi's neck; and Arnold Harrison used a strong final pre-season game to unseat Frazier at the bottom of the OLB depth chart. I wonder, though, if the Steelers are through making moves: a quick glance at the waiver wire shows that among the cuts at QB is Stefan LeFors, the talented prospect lately of the Carolina Panthers. Mike McMahon was cut by the Vikings; granted, McMahon sucks, but he might be better in a pinch than Cedric Wilson, the current emergency QB. Another interesting cut is Packers RB Najeh Davenport, a bruiser who has performed well at times. Character may be an issue for Davenport, though: apparently, when at Miami U, he once took a dump in a woman's laundry hamper.

So we'll see.

Cut Creator Cut It

(The title, by the way, is from an old LL Cool J song....)

The Steelers trimmed their roster to within two of the final 53 this morning; the final two cuts will happen by 6PM today. Shane Boyd and Omar Jacobs are both gone, as are second-day picks Orien Harris, Charles Davis, and Cedric Humes. The only second-day draft picks remaining on the roster are OT Willie Colon and C Marvin Philip. Colon's roster spot is probably more secure than Philip's. Richard Seigler, who impressed with his tackling ability in the preseason, was also cut, as was Shaun Nua, whose stock dropped precipitously in the past month. (Remember, the Steelers thought enough of Nua to promote him from the practice squad last year when the Panthers threatened to sign him.)

Those most likely to be among the final two cuts include: C Marvin Philip, either OLB Andre Frazier OR OLB Arnold Harrison, RB Duce Staley, WR Quincy Morgan. My guess? Philip and Harrison will spend the year on the practice squad. Others on my practice squad include TE Jon Dekker, RB John Kuhn, S Mike Lorello, DE Shaun Nua, LB Richard Seigler, and QB Omar Jacobs. There may be some concern that another team will claim Jacobs off waivers; however, if Jacobs proved one thing this pre-season, it's that he has difficulty learning an offense quickly. I predict that he will be available when the Steelers call.

Carolina 15, Steelers....ah, who cares

I'm still waiting for the NFL Network to re-play the Steelers' final preseason game, but I'm not doing so with any enthusiasm. For obvious reasons, I hope: the Steelers were a part of the growing trend of holding important veterans out of the final preseason game. The result? The verb in today's Post-Gazette is "slapsticked," as in, "The Steelers and Panthers slapsticked their way...." Sounds like a real thriller.

From what I've seen so far, a few things stand out:

1. Duce got his shot. He carried the ball 19 times for 46 yards, a 2.4-ypc average. Of course, most of that came behind the second-team line; reports are that Staley looked livelier, as though the threat to his career was beginning to seem real to him. But the question remains: Has Duce put the "stale" in Staley?

2. QB3? Omar Jacobs and Shane Boyd made their final pitches for the third QB spot. The tale of the tape? Shane Boyd went 1-3 for 12 yards; Omar Jacobs ended up 13-19 for 179, including a pretty 46-yarder to soon-to-be-former Steeler Walter Young. The Jacobs era seemed to come to an abrupt end when, against the Eagles, he fumbled on his first play and was promptly yanked. His ability to rebound the next week is certainly encouraging; it seems clear that Jacobs has the skills but needs confidence. And maybe a tutor to help him learn the offense.

3. Rico Colclough is suave. Colclough put himself around the ball last night, and consistently made plays. While some have questioned his status on the roster, Colclough should battle Bryant McFadden for the third CB spot. If either plays well enough, Ike Taylor will be elsewhere next year.

4. The Steelers are well-centered. Remarkably, Chukky Okobi played last night, less than a month after having surgery on his neck. I can't fathom this. But there he is. Okobi's return takes pressure off of Kendall Simmons (who stunk as a center in a short-lived experiment), and likely relegates 7th-round draft pick Marvin Philip to the practice squad.

In the coming days, the Steelers will cut their roster down to 53. Here's my best guess:

QB: Big Ben, Charlie Batch
RB: Willie Parker, Duce Staley, Verron Haynes
FB: Dan Kreider
TE: Heath Miller, Jerame Tuman, Tim Euhus
WR: Hines Ward, Cedric Wilson, Santonio Holmes, Willie Reid, Nate Washington, Sean Morey
OT: Marvel Smith, Trai Essex, Max Starks, Willie Colon
OG: Kendall Simmons, Alan Faneca, Chris Kemoeatu
C: Jeff Hartings, Chukky Okobi

DE: Aaron Smith, Brett Keisel, Travis Kirschke, Rodney Bailey
NT: Casey Hampton, Chris Hoke
OLB: Clark Haggans, Joey Porter, James Harrison, Andre Frazier
ILB: James Farrior, Larry Foote, Clint Kreidwaldt, Rian Wallace
CB: DeShea Townsend, Ike Taylor, Rico Colclough, Bryant McFadden, Chidi Iwuoma
S: Troy Polamalu, Ryan Clark, Ty Carter, Anthony Smith, Mike Logan

Special Teams: Greg Warren, Chris Gardocki, Jeff Reed

Plus two of the following: OLB Arnold Harrison, ILB Richard Seigler, RB John Kuhn, WR Quincy Morgan, QB Omar Jacobs, DE Shaun Nua.

The practice squad will be comprised of the five listed above who don't make the squad (minus Morgan, who is too old), plus: Marvin Philip, Mike Lorello, and Jon Dekker. If Morgan gets cut, add Cedric Humes.

Note the absence of second-day picks Charles Davis (TE) and Orien Harris (DE), neither of whom are likely to make the cut. Humes may not, either. It is likely that the only second-day pick to make the final roster will be OT Willie Colon. This speaks to the Steelers' depth, I think--there isn't much room for the new kids--but it may also say something about the quality of this year's draft class. Davis, Humes and Harris have been surpassed by undrafted free agents (though John Kuhn was on the practice squad last year), and Jacobs hasn't been able to lock down the job he was drafted to take. Of the UDFAs, Mike Lorello is perhaps my favorite. He seems like the perfect Steeler, reminiscient of players like Jerry Olsavsky: not terribly skilled, but aggressive, courageous, and proud. I hope Pittsburgh keeps him around.

Update: ESPN has just announced that the Steelers have traded a draft pick to the Pats for Patrick Cobbs, the 5'9", 210# rookie from North Texas. I most recently saw Patrick Cobbs in an ESPN highlight when he fumbled after taking the handoff from Troy Brown. So I guess the Steelers weren't too comfortable with their depth at running back. To me, this means that John Kuhn is headed for his second season on the practice squad, and that Cedric Humes is headed to an Arena League stadium near you.