Post-game Thoughts
by Fahey on Oct 27, 2008 12:56 AM EDT
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PrintI had this game chalked up to 50-50 in my head, and so I was prepared for a loss, but not such a heartbreaking one ... one where Black & Gold "won" the game all around, but lost as a result of a few plays.
Offense: Easy enough observation: too slow on a number of occasions, FAR too many penalties, & ineffective pass protection. I'm in agreement with a number of people who have blamed a certain percentage of sacks on Ben's propensity to hold onto the ball ... today, however, the line got beat. Plain and simple, the line got beat.
Refs: called a fair game. Did not disagree with a single call.
I'm getting into Nate Washington. Digging what the guy's been bringing onto the field. And youngster Limas Sweed is showing some promise; it was nice to see him come up with some plays when given the chance. We'll know if the 2nd round pick was a success in two years.
I don't know the statistics exactly, but I'm fairly sure that with a certain turnover differential defeat is guaranteed.
The Defense did what was expected of it. I had hoped for a couple of early sacks to unravel Eli, but he's had a consistent O-line for awhile now. The D held; the Offense just didn't contribute enough to the game.
The coaching was solid. I think a bit more of the hurry-up at times might have proven more effective, but ultimately it was still turnovers and penalties that sapped the offense of any potential.
Long snappers: I'm an Anarchist-minded non-voter. Given up on the larger, dominant political spectrum. But if you are a voter, and you happen to be one of those people who takes issue with immigration and allows immigration (both legal & illegal) to influence your vote, here's my opinion. Long snappers are illegal immigrants. They make the least amount of money, the minimum amount of money ... you don't know their names, you don't know their numbers, you know they exist but you look the other way and assume, comparatively, that when you go to sit down on the shitter, that it'll be clean ... someone making the minimum was there to wipe it off for you ... We've played through D-line & O-line injuries, RB injuries, WR mistakes, & QB injuries ... but the very base, the hardworking anonymous fella we all took for granted was the one whose injury pushed us over the edge.
Like the current mortgage bailout ... the supposed "weakest" members of this Capitalist society --those who couldn't qualify for a standard mortgage -- were the ones it took to usher in emergency/temporary Socialism.(?) Good thing nobody ever told the Soviets that all it takes are folk with bad credit to bring this all down.. We'd all be wearing red.
Anyway. I have no idea what the dude's name is. And I don't hold him to blame in the least. But ultimately it's the working people, those we seldom see or interact with or cheer for that --in a game of inches-- can either secure or undo the ultimate goal of the players and the fans.
The Steelers still control the division, and the two losses are to the NFC East. At this point what this means is that all that matters is how they respond next week in Washington. The Skins are playing as good a game as anybody right now.
It's time for the Offense to decide if it's gonna be good or bad for the rest of the year. Just make up your mind, man.
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If you don't have a "long snapper"..
…don’t long snap. It’s as simple as that. There are alternatives. You wouldn’t have to carry one on the team at all if you were so inclined. Dumb coaching staff.
what?
how in the world would you go without a long snapper? Sunday proved that you need someone that practices that position, not just someone who is ready to go if the guy goes down.
If you don't have a long snapper available..
You don’t punt. At least not in the normal fashion. You either go for the first down and take your chances, or use something like a quick kick. Roethlisberger can punt the ball in a pinch, even from the shotgun. Seems to me they chose the worst possible alternative in this case.
by robert ethan on Oct 27, 2008 1:19 PM EDT up reply actions
It’s 4th and 22 and we go for it? Seriously? On the Pit 18?
Have roethlisberger punt from the Pit 18 in the shotgun? Seriously?
I don’t think anyone can disagree that the way it worked out was not optimal, but the options you have suggested seem like equally bad ideas.
From the shotgun, you're only putting the ball half the distance closer to your goal line
..is how I look at it. With about half the chance of a total breakdown. If Ben is in the shotgun, and the defense lines up in regular fashion, just drop kick it over their heads. If they drop into punt coverage, look for a hole underneath.
by robert ethan on Oct 27, 2008 2:23 PM EDT up reply actions
Alternatives
I really don’t know what the call “should’ve” been. I mean, if 92 makes a perfect snap we’re not talking about this at all … if Berger’s hammy isn’t banged up he rushes back & recovers the bad snap & (hopefully) gets it off in time. Hell, we could’ve had Ben drop back to pass and toss another 65-yarder, hoping for either a reception or even an interception that would’ve been the equivalent to a punt as far as field position. But any corner/safety worth his paycheck would’ve known to just bat it down & take the ball at the goal line.
It’s very easy to look at it now and say do this or that, but in the moment, with a long-snapper injury, nobody knows what to do, and why not put the ball in 92’s hands … he’s a gamer who gives his all on every play.
Of course if you already dislike Tomlin, and over-criticize every decision he makes, well then it makes this very easy to comment on. But ultimately for those who like to consistently point toward Tomlin, Tomlin didn’t throw four picks, Tomlin didn’t take blunts out on the town with him, Tomlin didn’t leave the field on a cart, Tomlin didn’t commit a single penalty to negate a TD or to knock us out of field goal range, and Tomlin didn’t give up a single sack. He made a decision, in conference with his staff, to give 92 the ball for the long snap. It cost 2 points, and gave the Giants the momentum to rally. But late in a game with a lead and any quick decision to make, you put the ball in your playmakers’ hands. You do this every time.
I give credit for this game to the Giants’ O-line … they gave Eli time enough to get just enough plays made. This was a game of just enough. Whoever got just enough was gonna win, and ultimately we ended up on the just short side of the discussion. The D didn’t give up 6 until the end of the 4th. It was up to the O to get the job done, and they just plain didn’t. A 2-pointer outta the endzone wouldn’t have been nearly as big a deal if the offense had maintained its composure (hell, even if just Colon had maintained his composure there would’ve been much more breathing room) … the O was off. I can think of 2 or 3 receptions by Ward that were short of the 1st down. My standard impression of a pass to Ward is either a drop, a 1st down, or a touchdown. He’s almost never short. The O just wasn’t cohesive, wasn’t playing as a unit, and the final score reflects that.
A lot of aspects of a game start at the top, and a lot of coaching decisions all across the league are rightfully criticized. But I think the staff called a good game, used what they had, and what they had out on the grass failed to execute in far too many instances. It was failed execution, and not failed playcalling that put the final numbers on the scoreboard.
This was only the second 4th quarter game-tying safety in the history of the NFL.
Here’s a breakdown of every postseason game played in the Super Bowl era through 2006, looking at interceptions:
INTs … Record … Winning%
0 … 166-44 … .790
1 … 127-97 … .567
2 … 48-103 … .318
3 … 14-73 … .161
4 … 1-26 … .037
5 … 0-10 … .000
6 … 0-3 … .000
Statistics are sometimes manipulative, and are sometimes just flat-out lies. But what this tells me is that if you have 2 good, evenly matched teams playing one another, you’ve gotta make sure that you don’t hand the ball over to the other side.
Post Game Thoughts
Failed long snap was probably an adrenalin-charged effort to make sure the snap got there as opposed to making sure the snap wasn’t too far. Better to have taken the safety than give up a blocked punt.
Referees did an overall credible job; I did notice however, that they seemed to permit Giants motion men to be moving forward prior to ball snap. And they did miss a key pass interference. I’m also thinking that failing to call the Steelers for delay of game was a critical misstep. One could easily tell that the referees were watching for miscreant violent behavior.
What I found interesting is that the Giants defender who went out with back spasms was hurt when he involved himself needlessly in a tackle and was then hit by his fellow defender whou didnt need to involve hinself in the tackle.
Didn't see the telecast
Can anyone tell me if Colon’s holding was a legitimate call? He seemed to be upset on the field. Don’t know if he was upset at the hold or upsert at the call.
yeah,
he held. It wasn’t much, but he held.
Legit
Yep hate to say it but it was a legit call. One of a number of dumb plays for him on the year already. And why cant the regular snapper simply practice long snapping? Can it possibly take that much extra time so that if something happens like this week your linebacker isnt snapping the ball???
I'm worried
How many long snappers are sitting around in October waiting to be signed by the Steelers? And what’s the status of Berger, and Clark, and Ike, and…,, Oh I have a headache!
by Phillysteelrzgirl on Oct 27, 2008 6:42 PM EDT reply actions
Colon's Holding Call
Wasn’t much? It was a classic example of holding directly in view of the referee.
Long snapping is an art. As an analogy, I would liken it to developing muscle skils for a golf swing. I can’t think of any other player on the team whose view of the game is upside down.
I like the Fahey comment re: criticism; it seems like a lot of the Steelers fans are overly critical. In spite of all the issues the team is suffering, they are 5-2 against some good football teams for gosh sakes. You go into a season knowing that there are some issues that need to be addressed with the right front wheel and the next thing you know two other wheels are coming off, the steering gets loose and the radiator overheats. give them a break.
Steelers have never really inspired confidence in final drive results. Sure, they’ve made some nice ones, but in my mind, I can’t think of too many times when I felt that if we could just get our hands on the ball … .
Steelers fans are exceptionally overly critical, that’s just how we roll. When you constantly have a competitive team there needs to be things to improve, and there always are. If we weren’t critical we’d just sit around on these blogs all day slapping each other on the back and talking about how awesome our team is – which happens on a few SBN sites whose names I won’t mention.
I’m glad you think we are 5-2 against some good football teams. I don’t think we are. I think we are 1-2 against good football teams, and the jaguars are a questionable bunch. For this team to give me real faith in a SB run they need to take someone out like the giants. And not just once like the browns, we need to do well and win at least a few of the Giants, Redskins, Titans, Colts before I’ll truly believe we have what it takes. I know our D does, but we need a complete team.
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