There is a reason why some of us cannot stand the crap that is written on Stillers.com…and now we have it here. Swissvale, we understand that you are a cranky old guy, that apparently wishes ill-will toward other human beings. Can you keep your vitriol off this board? Are you in Nashville and did you shoot McNair??

1. it’s juvinile.
2. it’s unethical.
3. karma’s a bitch. And you’re about to step off of a curb and lose your ACL

Yinz must not have read the whole piece. No, wasn’t me shooting McNair, and in my defense, I’ll cite 2 notes from my post:
a. I root for injuries for a competitive advantage, nothing personal. McNair doesn’t play anymore; this doesn’t help the Steelers.
b. Under “Limits…,” I clearly state that “I don’t root for life-threatening or disabling” injuries. THAT is why, Steeler brethren, I rooted for the standard broken leg for Tedy Bruschi. Others were saying, “I hope his heart explodes,” stuff like that. Not me; I’m much too compassionate.

Okay, you didn’t like that piece? Check out “Heckling.” Got plenty more where these came from.

When Palmer went down in the ’05 WC game, my first thought was, “Steelers GOT this game.”

When Brady went down (oh…anyone else own a “Bernard Pollard Fan Club” t-shirt? I do…complements of Father George) in last year’s opener, my first thought was, “Steelers path to the SB just got MUCH easier.”

Lemme get this straight…..none of you had similar thoughts? That’s what you’re telling me?

oooooh……I get it. after the injury occurs, giving your team a competitive advantage, you’re glad it happened. THAT would not be morally reprehensible?? Seriously….you think there’s that much dif between what you do and I do?? You think i seriously say novenas for Brady to go down?

When they happen, to the extent they give my team a better shot at winning, I put it in the positive side of the ledger.

Look…..acrollet……i’m just going with what you just said. I want my team to have the best chance possible to win. Just foolish to wish Brady had played against us. Hey….how many Raiders fans do you think were wishing Franco & Rocky had played in the ’76 AFCCG?

I learned more about this after last season. Like all of you here, I celebrated the hell out of SB 43. Yet at the same time I wondered if this title would mean as much to me as, say, even SB40. I’m not saying it was a cheap win, I’m not trying to devalue the title, the Steelers are the champs fair and square. I guess I’m just saying that it would have meant even more to me if they had gone through Brady’s Pats to do it (or the team that beat them, like on the way to the SB40 title). Ergo, I’m thinking there might be different shades of winning.

Is it great to watch your team win a title? Yes. Is it even better to watch them win that title against all challengers at full strength (or at least in a situation comparable to Pittsburgh) with no excuses? Yes.

So I guess my “totem pole of winning” looks like this:

(1) Winning the game when the other team is at full strength and your team is not;
(2) Winning the game when both teams are at full strength;
(3) Winning the game when neither team is at full strength; and then
(4) Winning the game when the other team is not at full strength and your team is.

For that reason, I don’t wish for injuries to other players/teams/opponents, I want the Steelers to win, very badly, but I also want those wins (if at all possible) to come against the opponent’s full strength, those are the best wins of all.

I can sorta buy that gcn……however, when wer’re looking at equations and such, I submit that the following is true of your “totem pole of winning”

Any of the above, 1 through 4, far far far exceeds NOT winning.

For that reason, I’d rather have the opponents best on the sideline. Personally, as I’ve written, I don’t care about excuses. And, if you happened to see the “America’s Game” piece on the ’76 Raiders yesterday, not one of them was saying, “Gee…we really wish Franco and Rocky had played.”

Fair enough, swissvale72, I’d certainly agree that a win against a team that Pittsburgh has no business losing to (on account of injuries or anything else) is still miles and miles ahead of a loss. No dispute there. As far as final standings go, a win is a win is a win.

…call me naive, but I’ve got enough faith in these Steelers that I think they’re capable of beating every single team in the league on any given Sunday even if the opponent isn’t missing anybody. I think they’re that good, i.e., I don’t think they need to benefit from opposing injuries to put up wins. I’m not challenging your faith in the Steelers, swissvale, I know you’re just making the point that wins are key no matter how you get them, and I’m not predicting this 2009 bunch will go undefeated, either, I’m just reiterating what I said earlier, winning is sweet, and winning against a full-strength opponent that has no excuses is even sweeter.

personally (playing some college sports and a lot of high school/im sports) looking for injuries to help your team is basically saying you’re afraid if the team brings their best players and they play their best your wont win. i really think it’s one thing to hope a player who was already injured in a previous event to not play in an upcoming game. but to hope an opposing player gets injured on a play is just (for lack of a better word) shaddy. and i’d NEVER do that cuz thats just pathetic. how would you feel is a competing company rooted for you to get fired cuz you developed migraines and couldnt continue to work? you’re wishing personal hardship and possible inability to continue working at their current profession cuz you’d like to see your fav team win. i LOVE the steelers. ask anyone who knows me. i freaking plan events around steelers games. but rooting for an opponent to get injured is not only patethic but flat out wrong. i hope you dont carry this “alls fair” mentality in life or else someday you’ll end up like madoff and be sitting in jail for 150 years.

And you implying that some sort of God rewarded you with "due diligence" by punishing opposing teams by injuring their players is disgusting. Now I practically live for Sunday football, but I’m sure there are just as many God fearing patriot fans as steelers fans and certainly he has more important things than to worry about than who wins on Sunday.

And so where does this "competitive advantage" injuries draw the line? You root for HS kids to get injuried to help out your fav team even if it may cost them a cheap education at a good school? Or a professional player’s living? As for your postulate that you’re less of a fan if you don’t root for injuries is absurd. I believe YOU are the one whose less of a fan because you’re implying you don’t think our team can win without an injury to other teams’ key players. And say your contract runs out at your current place of employment and you leave your current job for much better pay at a competing organization…would expect your former fellow co-workers to hate you now and hope you develop sicknesses cuz you "bailed" on them?

As for you implying you arent one of those "maniacal" fans that roots for players to have career ending injuires (just the type that miraculously takes them out for the game against the steelers and leaves them unaffected for the rest of their career….and maybe decides to donates a couple hundred dollars to my personal banking account due to all the unrealistic expectations going on) you certainly say you’d actually prefer if these players did get career ending injures…so you are in fact one of those "maniacal" fans who are footing for that to happen. And your compasion for Bruschi is a joke: "Oh, I wasn’t rooting for him to DIE…just get some career ending injury. That’s all."

Never ever imply that it’s a steelers fan obligation to root for injuries. Ever again.

Jeez, t!mmy, take it easy…you’re getting all worked up over this.

Please allow me to clarify, and to counter.

First, professional football, unlike my field of employment, or I’ll assume, all of your, includes injuries as a fact of life. My business doesn’t publish a mid-week Injury Report, so that argument isn’t germaine. I will tell you that although I wish no ill wil on people that leave my place, I’m not into huge goodbye parties and all, but rather concentrate my resources on those that stick around.

No….I don’t root for high school kids to get hurt, though sometimes I’ve been pleased if the swimmer that I knew would kick my kid’s ass in his or her event didn’t show for the meet. And I don’t root for injuries on any other level. Why?? There’s no other team that I’ve rooted for for 44 years. When my wife says to me, “You care more about the Steelers than you do about us; you care more about the Steelers than do the players that play for them!” my response is, “I’ve rooted for this team longer than any of its players have been alive.” Now…I can say that about the Head Coach as well.

As to my relationship with God, I must confess (and I have some really good confession stories, growing up as a Catholic kid in Swissvale, if anyone’s interested), that I have never, not ever prayed to God for an injury to Tom Brady, despite my claims of having done it weekly, or prayed for anyone else’s injury as well. Fact is, I rarely pray to God about anything, so I surely wouldn’t expect Him to answer my prayers about a Brady injury. Fact is, I’ d expect God to say, “F-you, you only come around when you want some bullshit like this. Shut the f*** up!”

As far as wanting the Steelers opponent to be at full-strength though, I’ll return to the beginning of this post in saying bullshit on that. Injuries are a part of the game; Steelers have certainly had their share. Fortunately, last year, most of these ocurred in the season’s first half. Seems like people are saying that they’re pleased when an injury takes out one of our opponents, but they won’t allow themselves to HOPE they occur.

Oh….for the record, I hope Philip Rivers breaks his effin’ leg!!

How about class-LESS, intelligent Steelers fans, Harry? Can we post, too. I’m sure I can match you with “insightful analysis and great stories.”

I dunno, Babe…..it was damn satisfying beating your Patsies this year, even WITH Matt Cassel at QB.

Seems like some here hedge their bets…admit to enjoying their team’s increased chances to win against an opponent compromised by injury, but reluctant to admit to hoping for that circumstance.

Right….football IS a game, a game in which injuries are such a significant component that the rules around the reporting/management of those injuries continues to develop.

Not the injury, per se, I take pleasure in Babe….I lost two seasons myself, high school and college, to knee injuries. I do appreciate the advantage it gives my team though.

Again, I bet that when the Pats visited Heinz in ‘05, there wasn’t a single Steeler fan, including those on this site, saying, “Damn….Rodney Harrison just had his knee blown out. I really wish that hadn’t happened,” or….“Oh my God, I don’t believe Matt Light broke his leg. I feel bad for him and the Patriots.” C’mon, Babe….get real!

Timmy…..missed your last post. I’ll respond though.

First off, dunno about the rest of you, but I was thanking the Good Lord after Ben tackled Nick Harper that Mrs. Harper had stabbed him the previous night. Were it a hockey game, she woulda been at least the #3 star.

Why am I not honest with my kids about my rooting habits. At that point, they were young and impressionable; my daughter was 8. She’s now 19; my son’s 16. They know I’m an effin’ nut when it comes to Steeler football. I hide nothing of my fandom from them now.

Other thing is that where is it written that we need to succumb to the limits of rationality when it comes to our Steeler fandom. Of course, I don’t root for employees of competing companies to be injured, to contract an illness. In fact, I wish their business well, too. I’m not a stark, raving lunatic when it comes to my work though.

You’ve gotta be getting me, Tim. Palmer’s injury provided the Steelers a “good side effect” to an “unfortunate incident.” Hell….I was on the ceiling screaming with delight. So were a ton of other Steeler fans I know. Same with the Brady injury. You feel that bad for him? Arguable that Steelers would not have won the SB had Brady not gone down. Would you have rather that happened?? Not me!! I was screaming, “DOWN goes Brady!”

Meant….."kidding me…..Tim. For the record, I’ll forever be a L’il Wayne fan, despite him picking the Cards to win the SB. Here’s why…..and some of you may know this.

It was at a L’il Wayne show, that Kevin Faulk got pinched for weed, and was subsequently suspended for a game. THAT game, was the opener against KC. Had Faulk played, it would have been him, not Sammy Morris, assigned to block Bernard Pollard on the fateful play in which Brady went down.

Thank you, L’il Wayne!!

Excuses rendered by the oppostion in defeat don’t bother me; injuries are a part of the game. Look no further than Mike Tomlin for one who will not make excuses for injuries.

Thanks SteelFever, I had thought it odd that there’s such an outcry to my “Rooting for Injuries” piece by the same group that so gleefully embraced the “punch in the face” post, and now I see that its author has shown up to cast stones of the best “pot/kettle” variety, claiming his writing was “figurative, not literal.”

I’m not making the same claim. While I don’t sit in my living room chair or my stadium seat, and obsess with thoughts over whom I would like to see go down with an ACL, a shoulder separation, a broken fibula…I do realize that when some of these fates befall the opposition, that it increases the Steelers chances of winning, and for that, I’m pleased.

Best example…the Carson Palmer injury. I took no glee in knowing the extent of his injury, didn’t get off knowing he had such a hard, grueling rehab in front of him. All that mattered, right then and there, was that he was out of the game, a playoff game, and the Steelers chances of advancing were that much brighter. Others obviously feel the same way, just too PC to be honest about it.

But you’ll gladly accept the advantage it gives us when they inevitably occur, right?

Short-sighted, eh?

Answer me this (or these):
a. Any of you wish Carson Palmer had finished the ’05 WC Playoff against the Steelers ?
b. Any of you wish that Tom Brady had played a complete season in ’08?

A “Yes” vote on either one is equivalent to lessening your Pittsburgh Steelers’ chances of winning SB titles in those respective seasons.

Just reality. I know…..it only a game, it’s only entertaiment, blah, blah, blah.

Early on in this thread, someone took me to task for being an alumni of Stillers.com. The issues which separated me from that site are too numerous and extensive to enumerate, but their motto was right on the mark….“It’s not just a team, it’s a way of life.”
I happen to buy that; if you don’t……oh well.

Glad to see you’re coming around, NY. Let the excuses about refs/injuires fall on deaf ears….or…..better yet, see them for what they are……a bunch of excuses, and allow them to add to your victory celebration. Keep listening, NY…you’ll learn.

I think there’s a difference between ‘rooting’ for injuries and being glad that your team does not have to compete against someone. Was I glad that Carson Palmer got injured? Yes, I was. Do I ever go into a game thinking, gosh I hope we dislocate Tom Brady’s shoulder today? No. I agree with those that find that kind of thinking a little over the top.

My problem with the whole post (plus the heckling pos) is probably prudish, but I appreciate that the majority of this site is free of a lot of profanity and stereotypical name calling. Maybe I’m alone on this (i doubt it we’ve had this discussion a few times on BTSC) but I dislike when a story on BTSC is overtly offensive. That’s not meant as an attack swissvale. I like your writing style and hope you continue to post. There’s just been a lot of it going around and I wanted to vent.

and finally, yes I do think it’s a team, not a way of life. A team I follow probably more closely than I should and care about the results of the game more than I should. But still just a game, and still just a team. If you think you’re a better fan because of that then enjoy that feeling.

Funny that the “punch in the face” thread is taken lightly, yet one would believe that I conduct some kind of “injury soiree” prior to every game.

Fact is….as I’ve heretofore pointed out:
1. I don’t really “pray” for injuries, even though I’ve written that in my “Rooting for Injuries” piece.
2. I do visualize how a game might proceed. The visualization of injuries to an opponent really doesn’t enter my thougts when I’m imagining Steeler touchdowns, sacks and interceptions.
3. Thank you for admitting to being pleased with the Palmer injury. Obviously, I was as well. A Palmer injury though, never entered my sphere of consciousness prior to the actual event.

And while I can’t deny having written, about rooting for injuries, “You are less of a fan if you don’t do it,” and, “It’s your duty,” do you really think that I conduct some type of poll, an assessment of one’s Steeler fandom based on their willingness to root for injuries??

The heckling part IS true……it’s a time-honored American tradition.

People paiting their faces, Varmint, drinking to excess, shouting insults to members of the other team (and sometimes their own) lacks class as well.

Steeler football isn’t Wimbledon. It causes us to behave in ways that we wouldn’t otherwise.

Thanks, Showtime. Every website has its own culture (or un-culture); I’m learning this one.

I’m not quite where Harrison is with this one. I DO want the competitive advantage.

To be clear, I wasn’t in the stands, relishing the McGahee injury. My piece does reference “limits to rooting for injuries.” Did appreciate his coughing up the ball, though.

Oh….most of you won’t remember this, but in an all-time injury story……’82 vs. Patriots, just before half, Steve Grogan runs for a first down, is hit, gets knocked out. At the time, timeouts could only be called by the captain, which was Grogan. Time expires in the half, with the Pats in the red zone, unable to stop the clock.