Game Day 15: Steelers at Green Bay

Photo by Teenie Harris, Pittsburgh Courier, 1951

Green Bay quarterback Matt Flynn will be making his seventh NFL start today.

The 28-year-old Flynn has had a curious NFL career.

A seventh-round draft pick in 2008 out of LSU, where he won the national championship and was named MVP of the BCS title game against Ohio State, Flynn got one start filling in for Aaron Rodgers during the 2010-11 season and one more at the end of the 2011-12 season.

That performance stood out: In his second NFL start, vs. Detroit in the final game of the 2011-12 season, Flynn set Green Bay passing records by throwing for 460 yards and six touchdowns. He parlayed that performance into a respectably lucrative but not ginormous free-agent contract (three years, with $9 million guaranteed) with the Seattle Seahawks.

Flynn never started a game for Seattle. Rookie Russell Wilson beat him out, and Seattle traded him to Oakland during this past off-season.

The Raiders released him on Oct. 7. A week later, Buffalo picked him up and then released him on Nov. 4. Oakland and Buffalo, by the way, both have among the most woeful QB situations in the NFL.

Back to the Pack
With Aaron Rodgers's broken collarbone, Green Bay rescued Flynn from football irrelevance. Since being signed, he's led the Packers to a 2-1-1 record, including wins in the past two games.

Last Sunday in Dallas, Flynn threw for 299 yards and four touchdowns. He led the Packers to five consecutive touchdowns in the second half to help Green Bay overcome a 26-3 halftime deficit and defeat the Cowboys.

If the Packers with their next two games, against the Steelers today and the Bears next week, they will make the playoffs.

Intangibles, and then some

Although Flynn may not have extraordinary physical measurables or arm strength, he passes the eye test. If you watched him last week vs. Dallas, and in the other games where he's had success, you see a guy who has poise, a reasonably quick release, respectable accuracy and pocket presence. Flynn appears to be very adept at looking off defensive backs, which is a skill Rodgers has in spades.

"Flynn is the hot hand, and rightfully so," said Mike Tomlin this week. "He has managed their offense very well. He makes quick decisions. Structurally, they don't change much regardless of which guy is playing. They have definitive characteristics as an offense: quick game, misdirection passing and vertical passing. It's a nice balance of run and pass, like they've been for a number of years."

Today, Flynn will be facing a Steelers' defense that has allowed an average of 25.6 points per game over the past seven games.

Green Bay's defense hasn't done any better. The Pack has allowed an average of 25.9 points per game this season.

Looking to Lacy
With those stats in mind, it's tempting to say it could be a shootout -- except that Green Bay also has a strong running game (which the Steelers haven't had this year).

With game-time temperatures in the single digits, look for Green Bay to try to establish its ground game behind Eddie Lacy and James Starks, and then try to exploit Pittsburgh's weak secondary by going upfield with a vertical pasing game featuring receivers Jordy Nelson, James Jones and Jarrett Boykin.

Mike Tomlin Makes Easy Draft-Day Decisions

"It was an easy decision for me."
-- Mike Tomlin

Sunday's game at Lambeau Field will feature a pair of second-round rookie running backs who appear to be damn good players. The Steelers chose one over the other, and the more Mike Tomlin talks about draft-day decisions, the more he makes it clear that they are his decisions.

Tomlin made the following comment in response to a question this week about the decision to draft running back Le'Veon Bell with the 48th overall pick instead of Eddie Lacy, who went to to Green Bay with the 61st overall pick.  

“It was an easy decision for me. Again, probably because of the things that I talked about with his versatility that he’s displayed here but also at Michigan State. Obviously, Lacy is a top-quality back and rightfully so. He was a great back at Alabama. Obviously, he is over 1,000 yards and is proving his worth in Green Bay. Probably it’s just a matter of preference. Just like I am sure Cincinnati went through the same discussions and thoughts when they took Giovani Bernard in front of both of them.”

Got that? No mention of Kevin Colbert or anybody else ....

"It was an easy decision for me."

Who Makes the Decisions?

Tomlin has made similar veiled statements previously. Which raises the question: Who's been making key draft-day decisions since Tomlin's first year, 2007, when the Steelers selected Lawrence Timmons?

In 2008, was Tomlin's decision "an easy one" to draft Rashard Mendenhall over Ray Rice or Matt Forte or Chris Johnson?  There's not one player left on the Steelers' roster from that infamous, unfortunate draft class.  Nor is there is a single player other than disappointing first-rounder Ziggy Hood left on the Steelers from the wasted 2009 draft class.

Was Tomlin also the one who made the decision to draft, say ... Alameda Ta'amu, Chris Rainey and, oh, take your pick? 

We'd like to know, but we never will.

Those draft-day decisions -- those failed drafts, the whiffs and misses -- are a large reason why the Steelers are where they are today. 

For the Record
We like Le'Veon Bell and believe he'll be really good. And, if you watched last Sunday's Green Bay-Dallas game, you'll probably agree: Lacy played like a ferocious beast -- fast, powerful, explosive. He ran hard, determined, and was extremely tough to bring down. He has a presence that is impossible to ignore. We'll see if it lasts, but he sure was impressive in Dallas.

Repeating something we included in an earlier post ...

After battling early-season injuries, Bell has looked solid for the Steelers.

• Bell has 43 catches for 388 yards and 646 yards rushing on 96 carries. 

• Lacy has 31 catches for 236 yards and 1,028 yards rushing on 248 carries and is in a leading candidate for offensive rookie of the year. He had 141 yards rushing last Sunday vs. the Cowboys. 

Joey Porter's Pit Bulls like Bell a lot and wanted the Steelers to draft him -- but we also were surprised the Steelers took him in the second round. He'd been projected to go later (third or even fourth round), so selecting him in the second round seemed a bit of an over-reach. They believe in him, though, and we'd love to see him succeed. Both he and Lacy appear to be good players.

It's very early in their respective careers, and way too early for second-guessing.

Who's better? Just enjoy the show on Sunday.

Lots of Story Lines Today

The big news in Steeler Nation this week is the placement of linebacker LaMarr Woodley on injured reserve, ending his season and possibly his career in Pittsburgh. Jarvis Jones will start, and it is unclear who will be the top back-up. Maybe veteran Chris Carter, but Terance Garvin may see some snaps although he is listed on the depth chart as an inside linebacker.

Whether Woodley remains a Steeler after this season became a topic of some increasingly robust discussion over the past couple weeks. Over the past few days, especially, speculation grew that Woodley could be gone after this season. The Post-Gazette's Gerry Dulac indicates that is a pretty much a foregone conclusion. That's a question that will sort itself out after the season.

Meanwhile, in Packer Land ...
In Wisconsin, there is considerable angst over the status of quarterback Aaron Rodgers' medical clearance for a possible return to action after being out for the past six weeks with a broken collarbone. Rodgers is one of the best in the game, but if he's not medically cleared to play, he won't play. Simple as that.

Back-up Matt Flynn, who was on the street as a waived player just a few weeks ago, has led the Packers the two straight wins following four losses and a tie by Green Bay in its previous five games. Last Sunday in Dallas, the Packers scored 34 points in the second half to rally from a 23-point halftime deficit to defeat the Cowboys and place themselves right in the thick of the NFC North playoff race.

It was a rousing win, and the Packers hope to ride that momentum this week. If they win their final two games (Steelers and Bears), they'll make the playoffs.

Bell and Lacy
A story line this week will be the respective performances of running backs Le'Veon Bell and Eddie Lacy. The Steelers drafted Bell (Michigan State) 48th overall in the second round instead of Lacy (Alabama), who went to the Packers 61st overall in the second round.

After battling early-season injuries, Bell has looked solid for the Steelers.

• Bell has 43 catches for 388 yards and 646 yards rushing on 96 carries. 

• Lacy has 31 catches for 236 yards and 1,028 yards rushing on 248 carries and is in a leading candidate for offensive rookie of the year. He had 141 yards rushing last Sunday vs. the Cowboys. 

At yesterday's news conference, Mike Tomlin said the decision to draft Bell over Lacy was "an easy one for me."  

It's very early in their respective careers, and way too early for second-guessing. Joey Porter's Pit Bulls like Bell a lot and wanted the Steelers to draft him -- but we also were surprised the Steelers took him in the second round. He'd been projected to go later (third or even fourth round), so selecting him in the second round seemed a bit of an over-reach. They believe in him, though, and we'd love to see him succeed. Both he and Lacy appear to be good players.

Who's better? Just enjoy the show on Sunday.