California's Katrina

"Almost ablaze, still you don’t feel the heat
It takes all you got, just to stay on the beat.
You say it’s a livin’, we all gotta eat
But you’re here alone, there’s no one to compete.
If mercy’s a business, I wish it for you
More than just ashes when your dreams come true.
Fire! Fire on the mountain!"
– The Grateful Dead

Odd, last night, to turn on the TV news, flip through the stations and find the only news coverage of the California wildfires – a disaster of Biblical proportions – was on “Hollywood Access.”

Literally.

CNN, ironically, was broadcasting some pre-recorded “Anderson Cooper Planet in Peril Crap;” Fox News had Bill O’Reilly, characteristically ranting and railing about some “Mean-Spirited, Petty, Irrelevant Crap;” and MSNBC was broadcasting some “Inside Look at Prison Voyeurism for Whitebread America Crap.”

Meantime, “Hollywood Access” breathlessly reported how the fires are disrupting the production of movies and television shows (including – gasp! – “Dancing With the Stars” – the tragedy!) … and how the “stars” are scrambling frantically to save their mansions. It’s nice to know Mel Gibson, Jennifer Aniston, Victoria Principal, Sting, Tanya Tucker, Tom Cruise, Marie Osmond, Kiefer Sutherland, John Travolta, Torie Spelling, et al, ad nauseaum, are coping.

“In between commercials I was on the Blackberry trying to get updates from friends that are watching the news and [checking] online,” Spelling sighed.

Meanwhile, backstage at “Dancing,” Jane Seymour confided in Access, that if the fires hit her house, which they have been threatening to do, she would lose so much.

“If my house goes down I will lose — I don’t want to even consider what I would lose,” she said. “I would lose all my families memorabilia, I’d lose all my oil paintings, I’d lose, oh gosh, every costume from every movie. There is so much. When I was running out of the house I didn’t know what to take.”

It’s good to know that at least Hollywood Access, Entertainment Tonight and the Hollywood Reporter are on this story, even if the major news outlets had other priorities.

"You're doing a helluva job, Brownie."

-------------------------

http://rimoftheworld.net/

http://www.boingboing.net/2007/10/22/southern-ca-wildfire.html

Man, this ain't good, either

One of Joey Porter’s Pit Bulls’ favorite authors, Raymond Chandler, wrote this description of Santa Ana winds:

“Those hot dry winds that come down through the mountain passes and curl your hair and make your nerves jump and your skin itch. On nights like that every booze party ends in a fight. Meek little wives feel the edge of the carving knife and study their husbands' necks. Anything can happen. ”

— Raymond Chandler, Red Wind

-----------------------------------

Sadly, Joey Porter’s Pit Bulls gotta agree with ol' Raymond ... and we must agree also with MJD, who wrote on "The Debriefing" on AOL Fanhouse that …

"I wanted to take a second and wish the best to those people
in Southern California whose homes
are, you know ... engulfed in flames right now.
May your local firemen be brave and strong, may all your stuff
be flame-retardant, and may the wind die down quickly,
or at least shift in the direction of a homeowner you really hate.

"And may someone, if they have the time and inclination
in this time of tragedy, please
see if you can't frame Norv Turner for arson."

Just as regrettably, we must agree with MJD, once again, on his contention that ...

“When you lose to Denver, even if it is on the road,
you get removed from the ‘Upper Echelon
of the AFC’ category, and your resumé goes
back into the ‘needs further review’ pile.
I don't make the rules. That's just the way it is.”

So, as disappointed as we are that the Steelers seem to be relegated to second-tier status, with two losses in their past three games, we've always maintained the nothing happens in a vacuum. With that in mind, yes, the Patriots-Colts storyline is a compelling one.

Everybody's speculating whether the Patriots can go undefeated. It says right here the Colts have just about as good a chance to go undefeated.

Joey Porter's Pit Bulls don't do power rankings -- pointless -- but our feeling is that the Colts remain the top team in the NFL, notwithstanding the Patriots' apparent invincibility. After all, the Colts also are undefeated at 6-0, and the Colts still are the reigning NFL champs. Until somebody knocks off their crown, they’re the champs. And, if anything, their defense is better than it was last year – even as the team at 6-0 is somehow flying under the radar, if that’s possible, given all the attention afforded the Patriots. Bob Cook wrote a good piece about this on MSNBC.com: “Smashmouth Colts quietly dominant”

That Nov. 4 matchup between the Colts and Patriots will be interesting, to say the least.

Also compelling is the Patriots-Dolphins storyline. All those guys from the undefeated '72 Dolphins squad must be looking balefully sideways at one another and saying, "Eh, I dunno, this may be the year." Maybe the worst part for them is, they positively, absolutely know that the 2007 Dolphins have ZERO chance of knocking off the Patriots – even though, as division rivals, the teams play twice – and even though last year’s Dolphins did, in fact, defeat the Patriots. Sunday's 49-28 thrashing by the Patriots of the Dolphs seemed to be Bill Belichick’s way of stating all this emphatically. It’s as if Belicheat were trying to make a statement: "Neither you nor the ghosts of the undefeated '72 team have any chance of stopping us." Prick. San Francisco Chronicle columnist Ray Ratto, columnist for the San FranciscoChronicle, noticed this too: “Just winning isn't enough for Belichick's Patriots”

Meanwhile, in ironic symmetry, the 2007 Dolphins appear to have just as good a chance of going 0-16 as their division rival Patriots have of going 16-0. Personally, we'd rather see the Dolphins go 0-16. That would be fun.

Dissa ‘n Datta
Over at AOL Fanhouse, J.J. Cooper evaluates the Steelers’ offensive line. Maybe offensive line coach Larry Zierlein should have spent less time watching video, and more time watching film? If you know what we mean, wink, wink. Just sayin'.

Non-football stuff …

• Let’s all celebrate 50 years of Frisbees!
• Mother Nature remains HOT and getting hotter!
• Of course, all this doesn’t stop Bully Pulpit Blowhard Glenn Beck from gleefully exulting that “a lot of people who hate America” are losing homes in the California fires.
• It’s hot down South, too, and awfully dry.
• Well, if we’re going to have unfiltered sunlight all the time, we might as well make good use of it.
• Speaking of hot, an ill wind blows in California, and this ain't cool at all.
• These ill winds bode no good:

“The etymology of the word is Santana winds from the
Spanish vientos de Satán (or the winds of Satan,
Sanatanas being a rarer form of Satanás).
The orignal word is drawn from a native language of unknown origin.

"It takes a ‘devil wind’ to wreak havoc and destruction on a community and fire crews in the manner in which this fire persists.
Combine this ‘Devil wind’ with the literal phenom of
a firestorm, and a dangerous situation exists
across the Los Angeles basin, including in
Malibu and Topanga. Add near 100 degree temperatures,
no sleep, little food, water and no break and fire crews are suffering.”

In all sincerity, Joey Porter's Pit Bulls extend our best wishes to the people of California.

This is California's Katrina.

Be safe.

Oh-oh, this ain't good

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that Aaron Smith likely will not play on Sunday against the Bengals.

Circumstances of the Game

“Circumstances of the game dictated …” blah, blah, blah.

Well, what else would you expect the coaches to say?

Joey Porter’s Pit Bulls like Mike Tomlin and Bruce Arians well enough, but we gotta call bullshit on this one. The fact is, you, the coaches – specifically, your play-calling – dictated the circumstances of the game.

When it works, great. When it doesn’t work, guess what? You’re going to get second-guessed. So, let’s continue the second-guessing that began among Steelers faithful, media, pundits and impartial observers immediately after, if not during, the game.

Granted, the first series worked just fine, thank you very much.
After the first series, the rest of the first half, eh, not so great.

Who Dey?!!
What the Steelers brass perpetrated Sunday night is especially unfortunate, given the juxtaposition with the commitment to the run exhibited just this past Sunday by their very next opponent, the Cincinnati Bengals.

Yes, the Bungles.

Let that sink in for a second.

The Bengals – the Bengals! – demonstrated more of a commitment to the run on Sunday than did the Steelers, who were on the road (crowd noise) against the worst-ranked run defense in the NFL – a Broncos defense, by the way, that was shaping up as an historically bad run defense (the worst in the 47-year history of the franchise).
That’s just wrong.

Entering Sunday’s game against the Jets in disarray with a 1-4 record (6-12 since Oct. 1, 2006) and amid continuing turmoil in the locker room, the sputtering Bungles – never known as a running team – apparently finally recognized that for all their glorious aerial fireworks, hey! they weren’t winning games. They finally recognized that what they’d been doing all this time simply wasn’t working.

So, with backup running back Kenny Watkins Watson starting in placed of injured starter Rudi Johnson, the Bengals took this opportunity, against the struggling Jets, to run the ball. In a game the Bengals trailed for much of the afternoon (23-10 in the third quarter), offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski kept calling Watkins' Watson's number.

"We were committed to running the ball; and we chose not to be denied," said Bengals guard Bobbie Williams.

What a concept! At the end of the day, the backup journeyman Watkins Watson had rushed 31 times for 130 yards and three touchdowns (which, in one day, matched his total of three touchdowns in his six-year career). The Bengals team: 41 carries, 177 yards.

By comparison, the Steelers’ Willie Parker had 21 carries for 93 yards, and Najeh Davenport had two carries for six yards. Together, the Steelers two running backs had a total of 23 carries ... vs. a total of 41 carries for the Bengals.

While we’re at it, let’s compare the Bengals/Steelers yards per carry (ypc) averages:

• Watkins Watson: 4.2 ypc with a longest gain of 12 yards.
• Parker: 4.4 ypc with a longest gain of 27 yards.

Yet the Bengals kept giving Watkins Watson, a career backup, the ball in a game the team absolutely had to win. The Steelers showed no such commitment to Parker, an established star and one of the league’s leading rushers.

Keep in mind the Bengals were down by a 23-10 score in the third quarter, yet somehow, despite these “circumstances,” managed to run the ball 41 times.

How it Unraveled
In the first quarter of the Steelers’ game against the Broncos, offensive coordinator Bruce Arians called only three running plays against 10 passes. Ben Roethlisberger threw on the first three plays and six of the first eight.

• It started to unravel with the Steelers’ second possession: On first down, a Willie Parker run gained seven yards. On second-and-three, Roethlisberger was nearly intercepted on a deep throw down the middle. On third and three, an apparently rusty Hines Ward dropped a pass.
• Next series: Roethlisberger completed a four-yard pass to Holmes. On second down, Roethlisberger threw an interception.
• Next series: After gashing the Broncos for 37 yards on four consecutive runs by Parker and Davenport, Roethlisberger, lining up in the shotgun on third-and-four, misfired deep downfield to Ward.
• Next series: Roethlisberger threw another interception. The Broncos scored on the ensuing possession to make it 14-7.
• Next series: Roethlisberger, lining up in the shotgun, takes the bad snap, fumbles as he gets sacked, and the Broncos return the fumbled ball for a touchdown and a 21-7 lead.

All in All
Pass-play calls in the first half resulted in three sacks, two drops, two interceptions, one holding penalty and the crucial fumble return for a touchdown that gave the Broncos life and put the Steelers in a hole too deep.

The Steelers’ coaches would argue publicly that “poor execution” – a botched snap – led to Ben Roethlisberger’s game-turning fumble and the subsequent return for a touchdown.

Joey Porter’s Pit Bulls would counter that the botched snap and fumble would never have occurred if the Steelers had simply called a running play there instead of:

Lining up in the shotgun, on the road, in a noisy stadium full of drunken, rowdy fans, on primetime Sunday night television, against a well-coached Broncocs team coming off a bye week, against a team that was emotionally charged after a pregame flyover and ceremony commemorating two of their players who died in the offseason.

Anyway. The way to quiet a road crowd early in a game is to get the lead, hold it, and establish the run. Pound the ball. Take the crowd out of the game, and keep your foot on the throat of the defense.

But no-o-o-o …
Instead, by lining up in the shotgun in that situation, the Steelers created a set of elements primed for a colossal breakdown.

The crowd noise necessitated a silent count … which made it tough for the linemen to hear … which led to the guards and tackles appearing slow to get off their marks when center Sean Mahan abruptly bounced the ball at Roethlisberger’s feet as he was looking downfield to read how the linebackers and secondary were setting up ... which, in turn, forced Ben to scramble for the ball at his feet, as Marvel Smith missed a block while Elvis Dumervil speed-rushed inside Smith and seized Ben as he was struggling unsuccessfully to control the ball.

Fumble. Touchdown. Game momentum changed.

And that’s when the “circumstances of the game” changed for good or, rather, ill. Ironically, in the second half, the Steelers ran the ball as many times as they passed – and almost pulled off the comeback win (except for the defense breaking down on the last drive, but that’s another story).

Our point? None of this would have happened, if the coaches had simply called a running play on the play where Roethlisberger fumbled. In a noisy stadium, etc, etc., etc.

Back to our original post-game comments by the coaches (“Circumstances dictated, etc. … “). “Just not enough opportunities when you turn the ball over and get down 14 points,” coach Mike Tomlin said.

Tru-dat, but they would never have been down by 14 points, if they had committed to the run early and often.

As Tunch Ilkin observed on Stan Savran’s SportsBeat last night, “Since when do the Steelers let the opposing defense dictate what they do on offense?”

Since when, indeed.

Hey! Guess what?
The Steelers go on the road again on Sunday. Against a still-desperate Bengals team that seems to have been suddenly invigorated by a newfound commitment to the running game.

We wonder if the Steelers will show a similar commitment – and whether they have learned their lesson, or will outsmart themselves once again.

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Post-Script Addendum: After writing the above post, Joey Porter’s Pit Bulls got curious and wondered what others are saying about the Bengals’ Newfound Running Game. This should be interesting, considering the Steelers’ pride and longtime success in preventing opposing running backs from gaining 100 yards. Here's a quick round-up:

• Cincinati Post: Running attack shows new fire
• Newsday: Who the Heck is Kenny Watson?
• Cincy Jungle: Run, Run, Run
• Cincinati Enquirer: Maligned Run Game Delivers Win
• The Sports Network: Are Bengals Off and Running?

Things NOT to do in Denver ...

Abandon the running game without giving it much of a chance against the league’s worst run defense.

and ...

1. Fumble the ball and have it returned 50 yards for a touchdown.
2. Throw interceptions.
3. Drop passes.
4. Allow the Broncos to convert 70 percent of their third downs into first downs.
5. Mismanage the clock while committing penalties during the last two minutes of the first half.
6. Commit two defensive offside penalties during the opposition’s last-minute drive to a game-winning field goal.

Ack. Gack. Furball.

About that running game, the Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac summarized it neatly:

“It didn't seem to matter that the Broncos had a run defense that not only ranked last in the NFL, it was easily on pace to be the worst in the franchise's 47-year history. By nearly 30 yards per game.

“It didn't seem to matter that the Broncos, after allowing just one team in the previous three seasons to rush for more than 200 yards, had allowed three of its previous four opponents to run for 200 or more yards.

“Or that the number of rushing yards allowed per game -- 187.6 -- was 75 yards above the league average.

“The Steelers, the best rushing team in the AFC, decided to ignore what appeared to be a overwhelming edge for them and elected to attack the Broncos through the air -- a decision that proved to be their downfall at Invesco Field.”

And this, also from Dulac …

“Willie Parker, the AFC's second-leading rusher, carried only three times in the first quarter and just 10 times in the first half -- a meager amount considering the Steelers' ability to run the ball and the Broncos' inability to stop the run. Parker finished with 93 yards on 21 carries, but this was a game in which the ineptitude of the Broncos' run defense would suggest he have that many carries by halftime, not the end of the fourth quarter.”

The decision to pass early and often seemed to work for a while but backfired – early and often:

“It didn't seem so bad when Roethlisberger threw 10 times and Parker had only three carries in the first quarter because the Steelers had a 7-0 lead. But when Roethlisberger was nearly intercepted by cornerback Dre Bly on second-and-3 on the next series, and then had to endure the first of two drops by Ward on third down, it started to become apparent that the pass, not the run, might be the choice of attack.

“When he was intercepted in the second quarter by linebacker D.J. Williams, the problems really began to mount. The Broncos turned the mistake into a 1-yard touchdown pass from Jay Cutler to running back Cecil Sapp and a 14-7 lead.”

The game turned for good on Roethlisberger’s fateful second-quarter fumble that was returned for a touchdown and had the Steelers playing catchup the rest of the way:

“On the next possession, the decision to throw really became an issue when Roethlisberger was sacked and stripped of the ball by defensive end Elvis Dumervil and defensive end Tim Crowder returned the fumble 50 yards for a touchdown. All of a sudden, the Broncos were up, 21-7, and the Steelers' greatest weapon -- their ball-control offense -- was negated.”

Foreshadowing, darkly ...

During a pre-game radio interview, the Post-Gazette’s lugubrious and laconic beat writer Ed Bouchette correctly and presciently opined that the Steelers would be well-advised to remember the December 2003 game against the Jets in New York, when the Steelers never tried to establish the run against a terrible Jets run defense – in blustery, wintry weather. In that game, Steelers QB Tommy Maddox finished the game with eight straight incompletions and was 16-of-38 for 137 yards. The Steelers lost 6-0 to seal their elimination from the playoffs.

As Bouchette said of that game, they out-coached themselves.

Which they would have been well-advised to remember as among the things NOT to do in Denver.

Footnotes:

• James Harrison’s offside penalty with 43 seconds left in the game gift-wrapped a crucial first down for the Broncos on their game-winning field goal drive. Harrison somehow managed not so much to line up in the neutral zone as to get caught shifting along the neutral zone in front of his defensive linemates, as the ball was snapped. Inexcusable. We’re betting Harrison gets called out “In the News” for that one.

• The Steelers missed defensive end Aaron Smith, who left early in the game with a knee injury. They missed him badly. Let's hope he returns soon.

• Speaking of defensive ends, the Broncos' Elvis Dumervil can play. Too bad the Steelers’ braintrust (Bill Cowher) didn’t draft him when they had the chance in the 2006 draft. They would have had to do some maneuvering to pull it off – the Steelers’ first three choices in the 2006 draft were Santo Holmes, Anthony Smith and Willie Reid. Dumervil was a late fourth-round pick (126^th overall). He would have been a perfect fit in the Steelers’ 3-4 scheme – a kind of Dwight Freeney Lite. It seems Dumerville is contributing a bit more to his team than some Steelers' players, like, oh, we don't know ...
  

• Willie Reid was on the inactive list for last night's game. The Steelers' 2007 first-round choice Lawrence Timmons also appeared to be inactive (even though he was not on the inactive list).

Joey Porter Still Needs a Hug

Ouch. FOXSports.com senior NFL writer Alex Marvez has a scathing column describing Joey Porter as a “thug” and “this season’s biggest free-agent bust.”

Worse, Marvez’s column follows the release by Fox’s Jay Glazer of a videotape purportedly showing Porter’s beat-down of the Cincy Bengals' Levi Jones at a Las Vegas casino last March. Ugly stuff.

The Steelers’ decision to let Porter test free agency was a no-brainer all along, and it looks better and better with each passing day. No offense, Joey.

By stark contrast, Miami’s front office (led by general manager Randy Mueller) looks worse and worse as the season unfolds with the Dolphins still winless after six losses. First, they signed an aging and in-decline Porter to prop up an aging and in-decline defense.

Then, to continue a recent history of poor drafting, the Dolphins way overspent the ninth overall pick in April’s draft on Ted Ginn Jr. They followed up that mistake by releasing quarterback Daunte Culpepper, now starting in Oakland, and signing the (brain) injury-prone Trent Green – with Cleo Lemon, for cryin' out loud, as the primary backup. Lemon, of course, is now the starter in wake of Green’s latest, potentially career-ending concussion.

Meanwhile, former Dolphins Sammie Morris, Heath Evans and Wes Welker are all making significant contributions to the 6-0 New England Patriots, and Welker’s eye-popping performance yesterday in Dallas punctuated what has already been a stellar season for him.

As for Joey Porter, his longtime foil/nemesis Kellen Winslow II had the last word after finishing yesterday's game with five catches for 90 yards in helping the Browns defeat the Dolphins.

Winslow, whom Porter has insulted repeatedly on and off the field, asked reporters, "Did he play today? I didn't see him."

Ouch.

Flying High

New England 48, Dallas 27. So, yesterday’s "game of the year" -- Patriots vs. Cowboys -- really wasn’t. The game of the year, that is.

That team from New England? Yeah, they're pretty good.

From the New York Daily News:

"The Patriots (6-0) have scored at least 34 points in every game this year and with 21 TD passes in six games, Brady is on pace to smash Manning's record of 49 TD passes in a single season.”

Brady's touchdown-to-interception ratio is 21-2.

Watching the Patriots dismantle the Cowboys in Dallas, one couldn’t help but wonder if the Patriots have any weaknesses. Sheer talent? Nope, not an issue. Hubris and overconfidence? Apparently not. Offensive line? Nope. Quarterback? Absurd. The defense? Nah.
Coaching? Very funny. The defense offense defense Patriots always seem to know what plays the opposition is running next (wink, wink).

Dallas’s secondary has been weak for a long time now, but still … the Patriots’ receivers look unstoppable, especially with that quarterback, behind that offensive line. Randy Moss and Donte Stallworth on the outside are more than enough, and then you have to account for slot receiver Wes Welker, who caught 11 passes yesterday for 124 yards and two touchdowns. And he's a terrific kick returner.

The Patriots’ matchup with the Super Bowl Champion Colts in a few weeks should be interesting, but right now the Patriots really do look unstoppable. Of course, that’s what people were saying about the Colts two years ago when a certain team from western Pennsylvania went on to win the Super Bowl. That was only two years ago? Wow, it seems a lot longer.

Dissa 'n Datta

• New England acquired Wes Welker from Miami on March 5 in exchange for second-round (60th overall) and seventh- round selections (238th overall) in the 2007 NFL Draft. With the 60^th pick of the draft, the Dolphins selected Samson Satele, center, Hawaii. Satele has started all six games for the Dolphins this season. With the 238^th pick, the Dolphins selected Abraham Wright, defensive end, Colorado. Wright apparently is not on the Miami roster.
  
• The Dolphins are 0-6, by the way, after losing to the Cleveland Browns yesterday.
• Speaking of the NFL draft and the Brownies, do ya think maybe Cleveland fans are maybe wishing their team had drafted Adrian Peterson with the draft’s third overall pick in April?
• Give Romeo Crennel’s squad credit, though. At 3-3, they look respectable, and first pick Joe Thomas could be a stalwart tackle in the league for years.
  
• Still, Adrian Peterson, man, Cleveland fans have gotta be thinking he’d look good in a Browns uniform about now. Peterson, who had 224 yards and three touchdowns, looked like he was channeling Gale Sayers during the game against the Bears yesterday.
  
• Why does anybody kick to Devin Hester?
• The Bengals? Pee-yoo! The Bungles stink out loud.
  

Joey Porter Needs a Hug?

Well, at least that's what Kellen Winslow II ("The Soldier") says here and here.

Mother Nature is HOT!

Just ask the Seattle Seahawks. It was witheringly HOT at Heinz Field on Sunday.

Today's high temperature: 80 degrees. It's Oct. 9. October ninth. Eighty.

But there's no such thing as global warming. I know, because Sean Hannity says so. So does Rush Limbaugh. They know.

Friday is Blog Action Day.
http://www.blogactionday.org/

Not to quibble, but ...

It may appear unseemly to take issue with just about any aspect of the Steelers’ thorough beat-down of the Seattle Seahawks ... but that won’t stop Joey Porter’s Pit Bulls!

Following the Special Teams debacle against the Arizona Cardinals, we hoped to see marked improvement on Special Teams play.

And we did.

First, Jeff Reed’s only kickoff of the day, to start the game, produced a touchback, which is the best possible outcome short of a fumble recovery. Plus, the tackling of the coverage units seemed better, as the Steelers did not allow a return touchdown, so we made progress there.

In the first quarter, however, for what it’s worth (seven points), it took a flying tackle by punter Daniel Sepulveda to bring down the speedy Nate Burleson, who otherwise almost certainly would have scored a touchdown if not for Sepulveda’s effort. Because of Sepulveda’s heroics and willingness to actually, you know, tackle, Burleson’s return was “limited” to 22 yards.

Can you imagine Chris Gardocki making that tackle? Didn’t think so.

What really bothers us is this: The Steelers committed two more penalties on Special Teams. Granted, this is a big improvement over the six in Arizona the previous week, but still …

In the first quarter, Willie Reid was flagged for an illegal block above the waist on a punt by Sepulveda. In the third quarter, Ike Taylor incurred the same penalty, only to outdone when Allen Rossum muffed the punt. He recovered the ball, but that didn't stop him from fumbling later, after a seven-yard punt return in the fourth qurter. Arnold Harrison recovered the fumble, so all is forgiven.

But not forgotten.

Those kinds of mistakes tend to get swept under the rug following a win, but they are there nonetheless. They need fixed.

We’re not suggesting there are endemic problems on the Steelers’s Special Teams …but there are too many penalties, long returns by opponents and near-misses to suggest that there isn't ample room for tightening up the play of the Special Teams units – especially for cutting down the number of penalties.

Bob Ligashesky, are you listening?

Dissa ‘n Datta

As for other penalties on Sunday, sheesh, three holding penalties on one drive, and the Steelers’s still managed to overcome them by converting third-and-long situations and scoring a touchdown. Very impressive, but three holding penalties on one drive – at home – is inexcusable. Holding calls at home are frowned upon, to say the least.

At one point, too, Cedric Wilson was lucky he didn’t get flagged for taunting, just as Nate Washington was lucky he didn’t get flagged for clipping on Najeh Davenport’s 45-yard run in the first quarter. Plus, Anthony Smith is lucky he wasn’t thrown out of the game for flying at Matt Hasselbeck’s knees in the second quarter, when Smith was flagged for a late hit.

We're almost surprised Mike Holmgren and Seahawks' fans aren't whining about the officiating.

In any case, we expect Coach Mike Tomlin covered all these penalties and near-misses in “The News.”

No Excuses

Time of possession tells the tale of this game.

Time of possession totals for the game: Steelers: 40:15; Seahawks: 19:15.

After the first quarter, the Steelers had the ball for 35:12 compared to 9:48 for the Seahawks. The Seahawks had the ball for less than eight minutes in the second half.

The second half started with a Steelers’ 17-play, 80-yard touchdown drive that ate more than 10 minutes off the clock. Following the ensuing kickoff, the Steelers’ defense held the Seahawks ran to three-and-out in 1:31. The Steelers offense took over and mounted a 13-play, 85-yard scoring drive that at up more than eight minutes.

Game over, essentially.

“It was hot out there,” Seahawks linebacker Leroy Hill said. “But they were on the same field we were and in the same heat we were, so it was no excuse. I had to come in and miss a series until I got the fluids to get back out there.”

With leading receivers Hines Ward and Santonio Holmes sidelined, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger stepped up by completing 18 of 22 passes for 206 yeards, one touchdown and a 120.8 passer rating. Most importantly, he didn’t turn the ball over. And, while the total number of yards passing is not impressive, he kept drives going with clutch throws. Roethlieberger took three sacks, but he eluded the grasp of Seattle defenders numerous other times.

“He’s talented in there, he’s big and very good at avoiding people – so if you don’t wrap him up, you’re not going to get him down,” Seahawks defensive tackle Craig Terrill said. “He just has the good awareness that the best quarterbacks have in the pocket. You never want to be on the field that much. You need to have some three-and-outs. You need to have some turnovers, and we didn’t have either one.”

While the Seahawks’ defense couldn’t get off the field, the Steelers’ defense had no such problem. It limited star running back Shaun Alexander to 25 yards on 11 carries, and Seattle’s offense managed just 144 total net yards.

“I always wondered what the best defense was that could face us,” Alexander said. “It was a good offense.”

Granted, the Steelers’ defense benefited from the gross disparity in time of possession, but it did what it needed to do, too. This defense has the look of something special.

Bullshit

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino’s explanation of the President’s veto of a bill that would provide $35 billion over five years for children’s health insurance – essentially Medicaid for children of people who can’t afford health insurance:

“In a time when they (legislators) think that they want to increase funding for children's health care, they're actually wanting to pay for it with a cigarette tax, which includes – people who smoke are usually – the majority are in the low-income bracket. And so they're raising taxes on something to pay for a middle-class entitlement. "

This, on the heels of approving an additional $190 billion a year for war?

Gotta call bullshit on this one.

Unconscionable, indefensible, unfathomable and offensive.

The picture above, by the way, was taken earlier this week at the Steelers' practice facility on the South Side.

It shows Troy Polamalu with a Make-a-Wish Kid.

Polamalu sustained torn cartilage, rib cage, during last Sunday's game in Arizona. He may play against the Seahawks this Sunday at Heinz Field.

Miscellany

• It occurs to Joey Porter's Pit Bulls that we may start seeing less and less of Cedric Wilson and more and more of Willie Reid. Let’s hope Reid is up to the challenge.

• Can we please stop hearing this Sunday’s game against the Seahawks described as a "rematch" of Super Bowl XL? Same franchises, two different teams.

• Since Seattle appeared in Super Bowl XL, the Seahawks’ roster has undergone a major overhaul. Gone are 10 of Seattle’s 22 starters in that Super Bowl, along with 28 of 53 players on the roster at the time. The list includes four starters on offense and six on defense.

• Most significantly, perhaps, Seattle has two new starters at safety, and they’ve added heft and speed on the defensive line, with Patrick Kerney and Darryl Tapp, and at linebacker with marquee free-agent acquisition Julian Peterson.

• On offense, Deion Branch is the Seahawks’ new number one, go-to receiver. When he was with the Patriots, the one-time Super Bowl MVP absolutely torched the Steelers, among others.

• The Seahawks have also added tight end Darryl Pollard, who is 35 years old but reportedly catches everything thrown his way … which, of course, makes him a big improvement over the departed and unlamented Jerramy Stevens, aka Joey Porter’s Bitch. Anyway, by any measure, the departure of Stevens is addition by subtraction.

• Joey Porter’s Pit Bulls do NOT Have a good feeling about this game. It’s worrisome. That's from a purely football-vibe perspective.
  

On the other hand, the story of CMU Professor Randy Pausch is downright inspiring and may serve as motivation for the Steelers on Sunday. We recommend you visit Professor Pausch's homepage and watch his "Last Lecture" video or read the transcript.

Reversing the Field?

Thanks to Jody DiPerna of Pittsburgh’s City Paper for soliciting the opinion of Joey Porter’s Pit Bulls, among other Pittsburgh sportsblogglers, for her City Paper column this week. Jody sought input on which players from opposing NFL teams we respect, admire or even like. You can read her column here.

Since, of course, Jody had to make room in her column for the opinion of others, we thought we’d share the contents of the note we sent in reply to her solicitation, which follows below:

Hi. I am the sports writer for Pittsburgh City Paper and was working on a column about NFL players or coaches that Steelers fans actually like. I find that I often am venting about teams or players that I hate. The Patriots, Ray Lewis, yada, yada, yada. So, this column is a bit of a change of pace.

I was hoping to get some feedback. Are there players that you root for despite the uniform? Coaches? And, if you are able to articulate it, why do you pull for those players?

Joey Porter's Pit Bulls' list of "likeable players" mostly overlooks star players, because, well, most of them aren't all that "likeable." There's a distinction, we suppose, between star players (Peyton Manning) whom everybody knows, and marquee players (Marc Bulger), who are very, very good players but seem to maintain a relatively low profile. We like Marc Bulger. Peyton Manning? ... eh, not so much.

We like the ironic names, "Guy Whimper," left tackle, NYG, and "Richie Incognito," guard, Rams. After all, if you're an offensive lineman, you're not likely to whimper much, and you generally want to remain incognito. Also, any guy named "Rocky," as in Rocky Bernard, Seattle, and Rocky Balboa Boiman, Colts. Nicknames are good, too, such as offensive linemen Floyd "Pork Chop" Womack (Seattle) and Flozell "The Hotel" Adams (Dallas). Also on the radar: Pretty much anybody with a Samoan name (Lofa Tatupu, for example), but we're not all that enamored with hyphenated last names (Maurice Jones-Drew; Tully Banta-Cain) … make up your mind already! Although "Carl-Johan Bork" is kind of a cool name. Speaking of names, we wonder what Pacman Jones is doing these days?

More to the point, there are players whose play Joey Porter's Pit Bulls admire, and then there are opponents we just like. These include Steelers' alumnae like Antwaan Randle-El and Kimo Von Oelhoeffen although, realistically, we realize they're gone forever. So, let's start with Defense, which is where everything starts with the Steelers:

Somehow, we can't bring ourselves to actually, you know, "like" any of the ragamuffin rogues from Cincinnati and Baltimore, but we do like and respect at least one player on the Browns -- yes, the Browns! -- linebacker Camerion Wimbley, who would be welcome in Black 'n Gold. Coincidentally, he was Lawrence Timmons' predecessor at Florida State. Great name, and Wimbley can play.

As for veterans, we like Bob Sanders, safety, Indianapolis Colts. A little undersized, gritty and fierce. Linebackers A.J. Hawk, Green Bay, and Ian Gold, Denver, always show up, and on the D-line, Kansas City's Jared Allen and San Diego's Igor Olshansky are both crazy and bring a lot of energy to their respective teams.

Not much of a track record with the following young players, but they've all looked impressive so far, although a couple of them are on injured reserve already: On the Buffalo Bills, Paul Posluszny sure stood out early this season until he broke his arm. Another rookie inside linebacker, San Francisco's Patrick Willis, looks like the real deal and should be a force in the league for years. Ditto his teammate, second-year playmaker Manny Lawson, who, like Posluszny, is now on IR. Another rookie, Jack'ville's Reggie Nelson, a safety, already is in the running for Defensive Rookie of the Year. In Dallas, rookie linebacker Anthony Spencer, the 26th overall pick in April's draft, has supplanted last year's first pick, Bobby Carpenter, as the starting strongside linebacker in the Cowboys' 3-4 defense. By the way, for the record, before last April's draft, JPPBs made the case for the Steelers to draft either Spencer or Nelson. It will be interesting to watch how their respective careers play out in comparison to that of Lawrence Timmons.

On offense, let's start with some skill-position players:

At wideout, although he's a rookie, the Colts' rookie Tony Gonzalez is a guy we always liked when he played at Ohio State and looks like he fits right in on the Super Bowl champs' offense. Also, we like the Bills' Lee Evans, although he flew off the handle and fecklessly incurred back-to-back 15-yard penalties in this season's Game 2, against the Steelers. Still, he'd look good in a Steelers' uniform. The guy's big, fast, rangy and productive.

At fullback, JPPBs always liked Seattle's Mack Strong, and not just because he has the perfect name for a fullback. Also, the Jaguars' Greg Jones has a vanilla name, but he can play. On the O-line, Philly's veteran Jon Runyon is a beast.

On Special Teams, ya gotta love Devin Hester, Chicago's kick-returner extraordinaire. Is Fred McAfee still around? Apparently not.

Coaches: San Francisco's dapper Mike Nolan wins sartorial style points. I've always liked some of the special teams coaches for the manic zaniness -- Bobby April, etc.

Cheerleaders? Love 'em all.

Nothing Special

Joey Porter’s Pit Bulls can’t let it go. The Special Teams.

How the hell can you commit SIX (!) penalties on Special Teams in one game? Those six penalties included two holding calls on one kickoff return (hey, we’re halfway to Browns Territory there), and two other penalties by first-round draft choice Lawrence Timmons.

In all, the Steelers allowed a whopping 101 yards on five punt returns, including the backbreaking 73-yard burn by Steve Breaston. Two other punts were kicked out of bounds, thankfully.

For all the talk about the Ken Whisenhunt/Russ Grimm factor, for our money, the Kevin Spencer/Bob Ligashesky factor was at least as important. Again, for all the emphasis the Steelers put on Special Teams during the preseason, they should never commit six penalties on Special Teams in one game – let alone allow a 73-yard punt return for a touchdown.

Frankly, the penalties bother Joey Porter’s Pit Bulls more than Breaston’s touchdown. Guys like Breaston and Devin Hester will do that. But the penalties … that’s something your guys can control.

Bob Ligashesky, this one’s on you.

Courtesy of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review …

The ineligible downfield penalty on fullback Carey Davis which necessitated a re-punt that resulted in WR Steve Breaston's tie-breaking, 73-yard return for a touchdown was one of six called against the Steelers' special teams.

Too many yellow flags vs. Arizona

Quarter	Player	Special teams play	Infraction/Penalty
Second	LB Lawrence Timmons	Punt	Player out of bounds/ 5 yards
Fourth	LB LaMarr Woodley	Punt Return	Holding/10 yards
Fourth	Davis	Ineligible Downfield	Re-punt/Return for TD
Fourth	TE Jerame Tuman	Kickoff Return	Holding/10 yards
Fourth	FS Anthony Smith	Kickoff Return	Holding/Declined
Fourth	Timmons	Onside Kick	Offside/5 yards

---------------------------

The Steelers had better fix their Special Teams, or it’s going to be a long season. They may even end up hearing something like ...

"We have four fouls on the offense: Illegal formation, offense,
No. 56. That penalty is declined. Holding, No. 90, that penalty is declined. Holding, No. 35, that penalty will be enforced, 10 yards from the end of the kick. We had an ineligible player downfield on the kick, that penalty is declined."
-- Official announcing the four penalties the Browns committed on their first punt to the Steelers in the 2007 season opener in Cleveland.

At the Quarter-Pole Already

Idle thoughts at the quarter-pole of the NFL season …

· Okay, so the Steelers are 3-1 at the quarter-pole. Not bad, but … they’d better beat the Seahawks on Sunday to carry a 4-1 record heading into the bye week. Losing two straight going into the bye would leave a leave a very bad taste and provoke a whole lot of questioning and self-doubt throughout the two-week layover – especially because the rest of the schedule gets tougher from here on out.

· Having said that, it sure is fun to watch the Bengals and Ravens implode so early in the season. Nice little tête-a-tête last night between Carson Palmer and Chad Johnson, eh?

· On the flip side, it’s worrisome to see the Patriots, Colts and Cowboys playing at a level so far above that of other teams. It’s a long season, but we’re a quarter of the way through already, and those three teams show no sign of slowing down.

· In baseball, Pirates’ manager Jim Tracy apparently is twisting in the wind, as new management decides whether to fire him or retain his services for the third year of his three-year contract.

If fired, the Pirates would pay off the approximately $1 million in salary they owe him, based on terms of the contract. With the Pirates, it seems, money is always a factor.

In some ways, Jim Tracy doesn’t seem like a bad guy, or even a bad manager (sometimes), notwithstanding 95-loss and 94-loss seasons in 2006 and 2007, respectively. On the other hand, his hiring by Dave Littlefield absolutely reeked of cronyism, as did his attachment to former Dodgers like Cesar Izturis, Jose Hernandez, Matt Kata, etc., etc. Worse, his questionable ability to evaluate talent – Joe Randa over Freddy Sanchez? – mirrored that of Dave Littlefield. Worse still, he demonstrated stubborn pettiness that seemed of a personal nature, both in Los Angeles in his well-publicized dispute with then-general manager Paul DePodesta, and in Pittsburgh with certain players. The capper came at the end of the season, with the paternity-leave fiasco with Jack Wilson and Solomon Torres. Tracy’s insistence that Wilson and Torres return early to the team, for no reason that makes sense, will leave a lingering aftertaste, and not a good one.

Our hunch is that management will ask Tracy to shake up his coaching staff. He will refuse, of course, and thus be fired.

Excerpts From MJD’s Monday Smorgasbord

Over on Deadspin, MJD’s Smorgasbord contains the following nuggets culled from his watching the Steelers-Cardinals game, among others. It’s recommended reading, and too good not to share … so here are excerpts from MJD’s Smorgasbord, via Deadspin:

• "And speaking of wonderful people ... fuck you, Joey Porter. Guaranteeing a win against the Raiders, and then getting pushed around all day by Justin Fargas and five oafs in front of him ... it just couldn't happen to a better guy. Please feel free to shut the fuck up for the rest of your career now."
• "In fact, there should be consequences for something like that. If you guarantee a win, and then don't back it up, particularly against the Raiders ... the NFL should step in and do something. Mandatory retirement seems appropriate ... perhaps he could be fined his entire yearly salary. Or maybe Roger Goodell could just implement some kind of new punishment, where players aren't allowed to speak for weeks at a time ... I'd like that."
• "Steelers/Cardinals is underway ... and for the second week in a row, I get to see Ben Roethlisberger attempt to block someone. It's just sick-looking ... he ends up laying face down on the grass, the defender untouched ... I really wish I didn't have to see that. It feels like I just walked in on Betty White taking a shit."
• "Santonio Holmes just scored because he can run faster than any of the people assigned to stop him from scoring ... Large Benjamin just heaved one up, Santonio ran under it, and got there before anyone else ... 42-yard TD and a 7-0 lead for the Steelers."
• "Kurt Warner's finally entered the game for the Cardinals ... and he's putting a drive together, and the Cardinals are about this thing. Warner finishes it off with a short pass to a fellow named Urban, who sort of catches it, and sort of doesn't ... On the 40-yard-line, I tend to think that one's ruled an incompletion. The only reason he gets away with it here is that a "football move" is not required once you're in the endzone."
• "Steve Breaston is finally going to take one of these ridiculous, booming Daniel Sepulveda punts to the house ... and the Cardinals lead the Steelers 14-7 in the fourth quarter. This is rather amazing."
• "While we're back on the subject of Santonio ... Dan Dierdorf just called him "San Antonio" Holmes. Somewhere at home, Santonio's mom is watching and thinking to herself, "HA! I finally got someone. Now go do your homework, Langeles and Nork."

That’s Spesh-i-al

Ironic, isn’t it, given all the attention on Special Teams during the pre-season, that the Steelers’ special teams play on Sunday, well, wasn’t so special? Special Teams gaffes on consecutive plays early in the fourth quarter were pivotal.

After the Steelers’ Carey Davis was flagged for leaving too early on a Daniel Sepulveda punt early in the fourth quarter, the Arizona Cardinals’ Steve Breaston, formerly of the University of Michigan and Pittsburgh’s Woodland Hills High School, blazed through coverage for a 73-yard punt-return touchdown.

Davis’s penalty was one of way too many penalties – a total 11 for 73 yards, with a whopping six penalties on special teams alone.

Worse, with Hines Ward out, the Cardinals’ defense showed little respect for the Steelers’ passing game and stacked up against the run, limiting Willie Parker to just 37 yards on 19 carries.

With no running game to support him, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger struggled in the second half, throwing two interceptions while completing just 9-of-21 passes for 124 yards and one late touchdown.

And, if Breaston’s touchdown wasn’t the pivotal play in the game, then Roethlisberger’s third-quarter interception in the end zone was. Following James Harrison’s fumble recovery that gave the Steelers first and goal at the four yard line, Roethlisberger, on a third-and-goal play from the two yard line, inexplicably threw into triple coverage and was picked off by safety Adrian Wilson. The interception breathed new life into the Cardinals and shifted momentum for good.

“This loss is on me,” Roethlisberger said. “I can't throw a pick in the end zone. The defense gives you an opportunity, and you throw it away. It's disappointing. It's frustrating. You feel like you let guys down.”

Maybe.

Roethlsiberger seemed off his game, especially in the second half, but he didn’t get much help from his receivers, except for Santonio Holmes, who had six receptions for 128 yards and two touchdowns. Cedric Wilson and Nate Washington seemingly ran the wrong routes all day, and Washington had at least a couple drops. It also didn’t help that the offensive line struggled to protect Roethlisberger, who took four sacks and was harassed repeatedly.

But if Roethlisberger’s end-zone interception shifted momentum in the Cardinals’ favor, Breaston’s subsequent punt return for a touchdown sealed the win. It was spe-cial.

We’re off to see the Wizard …

All this talk of wizardry confuses Joey Porter’s Pit Bulls. First off, Ken Whisenhunt, “The Wiz,” claims to have nothing especially tricky up his sleeve this weekend for his Arizona Cardinals’ matchup against the Steelers.

“I don't have any feelings,” Whisenhunt said.

Uh-huh. Shurrre.

Also in Arizona, assistant head coach Russ Grimm, a/k/a Karl Rove, says of his being passed over for Pittsburgh’s head coaching job, “If you put your neck out there sometimes, it's not always going to turn out the way you wanted. I wouldn't say it's a disappointment.”

Yeah, right.

Meanwhile, in talking about the Steelers’ defensive coordinator, Steelers linebacker Larry Foote, notes, “Dick LeBeau’s the wizard of defense, everybody knows that.”

So, then: Who will the more dazzling, wizardry wizard, Whisenunt or LeBeau?

Our crystal ball is cloudy, but our Magic 8 Ball says LeBeau’s Minions will baffle and bewitch Whisenhunt's Whizzes, including the beatific Kurt Warner, who shalll be stifled (hopefully) in his attempt to reincarnate himself as no-huddle mastermind and league MVP candidate, yet again.

In any case, the Steelers’ visit to University of Phoenix Stadium this weekend may be only the first of their two trips to Arizona this season.

The other is Feb. 3, date of Super Bowl XLII.