MY Steelers

I’m still trying to wrap my head about Pittsburgh Steelers, six time Super Bowl Champions. It seems amazing. I look at it and I’m half way to what Pops got from ‘his team’. Not to say that I don’t consider this to be his team. He sits there every week to watch same as I do. It’s just that this is a whole other generation of players. This is my generation of players.
It’s funny too because growing up everything was about how great those Steelers were. When the black-n-gold bead the SheHawks all anyone said was how the ref’s gave them that game. How about you tackle Willie before he rips off a 75-yarder? Go back and watch that game footage, there were holding calls missed in both directions. So if you wanted a properly called game where it was perpetually 1st and 35, you can have it. I’m happy with the way it panned out.
This year’s Steeler team was faced with the toughest schedule, all time. [At least modern era, I might be blowing this out of proportion somewhat.] I remember back in August/September telling Fly I thought we were good for a 9 win season, 10 at most. Look at that midseason run. Just a murderer’s row of teams. How was anyone to know that I attempted as many passes as Palmer this year? Who knew the Chargers wouldn’t decide to play for Norv until November? Who knew Dallas was going to implode? Who knew that Tom Brady was going to get undercut in week one? [Conversely who knew Matt Cassell had an 11-win season in him?]
The wins just kept piling up. Every week another challenge came. It seemed like every week they took it on. They never lost back to back. After Manning took them apart, they came right back and dispatched the Chargers.
I’m well aware of the arguments presented to this current team. They didn’t have to face the Titans, Colts or Pats in January. Duly noted, but NE couldn’t beat the team that BLEW the division lead. The Colts and Titans lost to teams that couldn’t beat us the next week. Yes, the Colts go screwed by the system in having to travel to an 8-win team. But that is the system. At least it’s not the BCS – I’m sure the Pats would still have won somehow…
The NFC was equally messed up. The Cardinals – the ARIZONA CARDINALS were the conference representative in the Super Bowl. So they didn’t have to play the Giants, but the beat the team that finished second to the Giants. And the Giants couldn’t hold court at home. [Funny how this whole Plaxico thing has played out. I’m glad that he’s no longer a Steeler, but I have to wonder if this incident goes down anywhere but NYC.]
This all led to the most storied franchise of the Super Bowl era versus the laughingstockingest franchise of the Super Bowl era. This was David versus Goliath. Not just David, but David who everyone said was the weakest team to ever play for a Super Bowl. So here I am, a young man trying to identify with a team that I have cognizantly followed since 1989. And the media coverage was funny. Sunday night, Conference Championship week, everything was about how this would be a Steelers game. It continued that way as the bye weekend approached. Then when both teams touched down and it was shown that both coaches had the reigns on their respective teams, and there wouldn’t be a Eugene Robinson, new stories needed to be manufactured.
The media started saying how, with a few breaks the Cards could win the game. I remember hearing that in the Divisional Round. ‘Scifres is a great punter and was the difference last week. The Steelers are on their third punter this season.’ Santonio then promptly returns the first punt for 6. The next week was all about ‘Flacco isn’t a rookie anymore. He’s done it twice on the road in the playoffs. Anything is possible.’ And, ‘Ed Reed is the best safety in the game. He does it all so well.’
I’ll grant that Flacco won on the road the first two weeks, but it was Miami and Tennessee. Miami’s nice weather negates any home field. And the Titans fans will turn on that team so fast there’s barely any home field advantage. Which brings up the next point, Ed Reed versus Troy Polamalu. Ed Reed was a non factor, mainly because B-Roe looked him off and threw away from him at every turn. Troy was everywhere. Ed can turn a game on an INT [usually a TAINT] or fumble [which will sometimes go for 6]. Troy turns a game with his tackling [rendered moot in the Super Bowl because he was 20-yards deep in coverage, a necessity to negate Boldin/Fitzy (for three quarters)]. It was rewarding even more so when Troy picked off Flacco late and took it to the house. He had out-Reeded Ed Reed [damnit that’s almost a palindrome].
These football playoffs were a thing of beauty, though. Witnessing the one year turn-arounds of Miami and Atlanta [which won’t last next year] and the second year turn-around of the Cardinals [which will last as long as Whisenhunt and Grimm are there]. The choking of Peyton, Delhomme and McNabb in successive weeks. [They are who we thought they were!] The non-growth of Rivers and Eli. The emergence of B-Roe to the point where he’s at least knocking on the door to where Brady and Manning reside.
It was only partially tainted by SixBurgh beating the [allegedly] lowly Cards. Then I looked back and noticed that the only other 9-win team in the Super Bowl was the Rams in ’79 – who were beaten by the Steelers. There was the Dallas game they almost blew [God bless him, he has to be sickest man in America.] Those ‘70s Vikes were the equivalent of the early-90s Bills. In hindsight, MY Steelers are [in some way] like those guys in the 70s [albeit with two less titles]. There’s the underestimated QB who never gets mentioned in the conversation for GREAT, but just wins. [Who else has four rings?] The defense is so nice they can win in spite of the offense [SB XL when Ben was terrible versus the Steelers first SB points coming on a safety against Tarkenton]. None of the guys are Madison Ave dreams [cough, Peyton, cough] none of them are going all Hollywood dating super models [rest your knee, Tommy – you know what, fuck that, keep going out and being all Romo on us]. So yea, I can be proud of MY Steelers historically…