BTSC Steelers Daily Six Pack- The Return Of The Six-Pack

by Frank Mineo (DYMS) on Aug 17, 2009 2:25 PM EDT

IX-Donovan Woods looks to make an impact on the Steelers this season as an Iniside Linebacker. But did you know that Woods actually played Quarterback at Oklahoma State for his first two seasons and would transition to Safety later on in his college career. Donovan Woods went undrafted last season at least partially because NFL teams were confused as to what position he would play in the NFL. Post Game Heroes broke down Woods' play during last weeks Cardinals preseason match-up.

X-Troy Polamalu's commercial for Coke Zero during Super Bowl XLIII was pretty popular with Steelers fans as well as casual football fans. Somebody had a little bit of extra time on their hands and decided to re-create the commercial using Lego's. I wonder if we will see a re-creation of the Mean Joe Green version or even perhaps a re-enactment of the Cambell's Chunky Soup Commercial with Big Ben.

XIII-When you look up the definition of the word curmudgeon in the dictionary you will see a picture of Ed Bouchette doing one of his Live Chats. Here is a transcript from last weeks chat where surprise, surprise he made a much of sarcastic comments and shed little insight on the Steelers.

UPDATE- The father of Steelers Cornerback and special teams standout Anthony Madison passed away today. From the entire BTSC community we wish his family the best in their time of mourning.

XIV-The Baltimore Ravens and the Pittsburgh Steelers are one of the best rivalries in all of football and after the Ravens lost to the Steelers three times last season, you better believe that the Ravens are looking to take down Pittsburgh. According to ESPN's AFC North Blog the Ravens are specifically looking how to shut down Big Ben Roethlisberger this season after he manufacturer huge drives in each match-up last season. Mike Biers of the Beaver County Times also wrote an article this morning about Ben Roethlisberger's quest to win more Super Bowls.

XL-It seems like just about everyone in Steeler Nation except for the coaches and front office are ready to part with Carey Davis. Steeler Depot wrote a post on their feelings on Carey Davis' prospects. They also wrote a separate post on why Saturday's game against the Redskins should be very important for Tony Hills and Ramon Foster.

XLIII-My apologies for not being around much at the end of last week, I had some work and family things supersede my duties here, so I have gathered a bunch of the post-game reactions from different blogs and websites and will just list each one below. I personally was really impressed with a lot of performances from Thursday nights' preseason opener, especially the offensive line, Isaac Redman, and Shaun McDonald.

One for the Other Thumb

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Comments

I like the break-downs by Post Game Heroes

Its like game-tape review for dumb people, which I happen to be when it comes down to that stuff.

by John Stephens on Aug 17, 2009 2:40 PM EDT reply actions

Nice piece by Mike Biers

Makes it seem that Ben is keeping his head on straight and his nose to the grindstone. I like it.

"That's why they play the game."

by B Dub on Aug 17, 2009 2:43 PM EDT reply actions

I agree

It definitely sounds like he’s got the right mindset. No reason to worry about matching up with a 4X SB champ when he’s already got 2, but he still wants to get better.

For ideas on statistical analyses, email me at wolfpacksteelersfan@gmail.com.

by WolfpackSteelersFan on Aug 17, 2009 6:38 PM EDT up reply actions

As much as I’d like to beat them, the ravens can have both games if they go 2-14 and we go 14-2. I’ll bet the ravens would be satisfied with that result too.

Willie Colon doesn’t get flagged because he has long arms; he gets flagged because he sucks. - cliff harris is still a punk!

by steelguy99 on Aug 17, 2009 3:02 PM EDT reply actions

I will still be happy losing to you guys twice next year and still taking the division. But we will take at least one game……..and still win the division : )

You have to hate losing more than you love winning.

by Mr MaLoR on Aug 17, 2009 6:48 PM EDT up reply actions

I can deal with you taking the division

We’ll have the conference instead.

by barnerburner on Aug 18, 2009 1:14 AM EDT up reply actions

Just as long as one of our teams beats the crap out of NE and knock those pansy’s out of the playoffs.

by Phantaskippy on Aug 20, 2009 5:24 PM EDT up reply actions

about bouchette

serioulsy…does he dislike his job THATmuch? because i would trade him in a heartbeat. writing about my favorite football team…and getting paid to do it? i mean, i’m sure there are some pretty crappy things about the job,too, but geesh, can you at least enjoy it a little bit? his grumpiness is very off-putting to me, and i’d rather do something else with my time than read that garbage.

...die trying
http://www.agentorangerecords.blogspot.com

by agentorange on Aug 17, 2009 3:39 PM EDT reply actions

thanks for saying something about this

Thanks DYMS, I was wondering if anyone else ever said anything about it. He is AWFUL. At my office we refer to him as Gloom N’ Doom, as he is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO negative about everything. I don’t think he cares one bit about the reader, or the Steeler fan. He just sits in his Scrooge chair, acting all high and mighty, complaining about this or that. There are THOUSANDS of people who would love that job. Funny thing is, there are MILLIONS of people who would be better at it. He must be related to somebody.

by SteelerStuckintheSouth on Aug 17, 2009 8:03 PM EDT up reply actions

funny

when someone doesn’t say what you want them to say, they suck. But I will admit i dont like his writing. But its ok for him to have a different point of view, what really push me of the ledge on him was last year before the AFCCG he predicted baltimore to win simply because, “Its hard to beat a team 3 times” We actually if that team is as good as you are it maybe, but in reality the ravens aren’t as good as the steelers which is why there are currently 4-1 against us in the last two years and this year it will at least 5-2 if not 6-1. We are the supieror team and if he is writing for the Steelers he should at least give the team some support in one of the biggest games of the year. I was disgusted.

by tannofsteel84 on Aug 17, 2009 10:53 PM EDT up reply actions

Ed is ok

It’s not his job to support the home team. It’s his job to report what’s going on with the team and he has by far the best internal contacts for what is going on. If he’s asked for his opinion, he’s not afraid to go against the grain. He’s not interested in being a cheerleader and anyone who expects him to be does not understand what Ed’s job is. If you pay attention to his chats there are some good clues for what is happening on the field and what the players, coaches and front office are thinking behind all the public quotes attributed to them. Sometimes he is overly sarcastic about chat questions that are well-intentioned but poorly phrased and if someone throws him a softball (as worldtrip admits to one occasion) he will follow through with the appropriate droll response. But I like the crotchety old bastard. There is some good information in those chats once in a while.

by steeler.lifer on Aug 17, 2009 11:33 PM EDT up reply actions

tann, you're not saying what I want to hear

Do you suck? Anyway, back to reality—he is AWFUL. It’s not his mean old man comments—it’s his lack of writing skills. His reasoning is idiotic, no doubt….but it’s his inability to say anything important that we don’t already know that gets me. If he has such inside information, where is it?

by SteelerStuckintheSouth on Aug 18, 2009 2:56 PM EDT up reply actions

Ed cracks me up

burg2burgh: Will Ben remain undefeated in Ohio after this season?

Ed Bouchette: There is no reason to believe he will not, since the Buckeyes are not on the sked.

I watched the Browns preseason game with all of my Brown-fan buddies in Columbus. Rough, rough night.

by yrro on Aug 17, 2009 3:39 PM EDT reply actions

HFS!!

Milkshake – I thought I was the only one that felt that way about Buchette. He is the reason I stopped reading anything on Post Gazette and now am firmly a SCI and BTSC follower. Why does the guy have a chat with Steelers fans and then belittle their questions? Because it makes him feel important.

If you want an interactive and unpretencious (sp?) chat on camp updaes, recommend you consider the SCI TV chats with Jim Wexell. (I have no monetary stake in this.) He does them every MWF around 1730 eastern time. If you log in live, you can ask questions and he’ll ACTUALLY ANSWER THEM without being a sarcastic SOB. If you miss it live, you can watch the replays. Heads up, there is a membership/subscription cost for SCI, but this is a good inside camp info dump.

"Hard work beats talent, when talent doesn't work hard." - Hines Ward

by warftr5 on Aug 17, 2009 3:41 PM EDT reply actions

Probably not a surprise

But I love the way Ed handles his chats. Cracks me up. After the Steelers lost their first game last year, and lots of people were overreacting as is their wont, i wrote to Ed on the chat, Hey Ed since the Steelers lost, should all the coaches be fired and the players be cut? And he wrote, Either that or play for the first pick in the draft.

by worldtrip on Aug 17, 2009 3:52 PM EDT reply actions

his sarcasm makes me laugh,too

it’s his apparent hatred for his job that turns me off. stop complaining and let someone else who would love to do it, do it. it goes back to an underlying assumption i have that if you are going to do something, do it well and with as much grace as you can, or get out of it.

i actually love his sarcasm and irony. i just hate his professional boredom.

...die trying
http://www.agentorangerecords.blogspot.com

by agentorange on Aug 17, 2009 4:04 PM EDT up reply actions

nice distinction

Now I know why I find myself alternately laughing and frowning whenever I read Bouchette.

Bill Beeelichick proved that in America it’s okay to cheat, as long as you cheat your way to the top. – Eric Cartman

by Alba on Aug 17, 2009 4:39 PM EDT up reply actions

To be honest,

Bouchette seems to me to be a throwback, and perhaps a Luddite as well. He seems to really hate having to address a bunch of fans (some of whom deserve every bit of sarcasm he can generate) in this type of forum. On the other hand, the baseball guys do a good job with their blog and Dejan Kovacevic is unfailingly polite (still often funny) in his chats. The disparity may be a comfort-level thing, or Bouchette may really feel resentment – toward the fans or the media he’s been asked to use.

My heros have always been Steelers...

by wozzle on Aug 17, 2009 4:18 PM EDT reply actions

"Bouchette may really feel resentment – toward the fans"

someone asked him about his red sox cap and he said something like “maybe I should wear a bruins cap instead” or something like that. I REALLY don’t appreciate that while I’m trying to read about the Steelers. Boston is like the center of hell to a real Steelers fan. He’s real close to saying he roots for the patriots, and if that’s the case, professionalism or not, he needs to be fired. Just keep it to yourself buddy.

"It was an attrition football game and you know we like that."

by showtime on Aug 17, 2009 6:15 PM EDT up reply actions

LOL

by worldtrip on Aug 17, 2009 6:54 PM EDT up reply actions

Douchette

by throwtoheath on Aug 17, 2009 4:34 PM EDT reply actions

+100

Nice

by SteelerStuckintheSouth on Aug 17, 2009 8:06 PM EDT up reply actions

Can Steelers Nation take over MIA?

Just ordered my tickets for the Steelers-Dolphins game New Year’s weekend in Miami (lower-level end zone seats, and you know this, MAN!). As my boy Fogell said in the movie SuperBad, “I think I got a Boner!”

Ooops, apology issued for the inappropriate language.

by datruth4life on Aug 17, 2009 4:34 PM EDT reply actions

McLovin!!

“Can we shoot at it?”
“I don’t know, can you?”

by SteelerStuckintheSouth on Aug 17, 2009 8:07 PM EDT up reply actions

Great but different on Steelers Training Camp

Here it is:

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/story/12074189

by datruth4life on Aug 17, 2009 5:13 PM EDT reply actions

very interesting article

not quite sure what to make of it but thanks for sharing

by schnifin on Aug 17, 2009 6:38 PM EDT up reply actions

Thanks truth

Interesting story. Just another example of how Tomlin is a unique individual who will do things his way.

by steeler.lifer on Aug 17, 2009 6:58 PM EDT up reply actions

great link

That is a slant I have not even been close to seeing.
Thank you for sharing.

Some respect to: Dwight White, who wore 78, was an original member of the Steel Curtain, and the first Steeler to score points in a Super Bowl. He scored 2 as a safety, when he sacked Fran Tarkenton of the Vikings in Super Bowl IV. White was in the hospital with pneumonia for most of the week prior to that game, lost 20 lbs, and was not expected to play. He died in 2008.

by LongTimeSteelersFan on Aug 17, 2009 7:11 PM EDT reply actions

I don’t really see why you bashed Big Ed? I’ve read so many articles of people that give you solely facts that it’s refreshing to hear from him. I prefer all his sarcasm over somebody with no sense of humor.

by PITT3639 on Aug 17, 2009 7:47 PM EDT reply actions

Just to make my point clear, I actually enjoy Ed’s work and think he is definitely the most connected of all the the beat reporters (better then even wexell in my opinion). But he has a very dry and sarcastic tone in his chats. It is quite amusing and I usually try to make it for the chats if I can.

I'll drink your Milkshake, I'll drink it up!

by Frank Mineo (DYMS) on Aug 18, 2009 9:18 AM EDT reply actions

A sucker for punishment?

Willie Colon doesn’t get flagged because he has long arms; he gets flagged because he sucks. - cliff harris is still a punk!

by steelguy99 on Aug 18, 2009 10:00 AM EDT up reply actions

exactly…every week I go into the chat hoping to be blown away, knowing full well what the outcome of the chat will be….I am rarely ever satisfied…

I guess I am like an abused spouse always going to back to ~~Ike Turner~~, Ed Bouchette for more.

I'll drink your Milkshake, I'll drink it up!

by Frank Mineo (DYMS) on Aug 18, 2009 10:09 AM EDT up reply actions

I found this amusing

I didn’t start reading the online Steelers community until late in last season, so when I was looking through the post-game heroes site and found these comments from the start of the season:

http://www.postgameheroes.com/?p=3629#comments

I found it hilarious, given the current fan feelings :) There’s one in there about Tomlin being all talk and no action that I found especially good.

So I’m curious, how many games into the season before we start sounding like that again, do you think? Any bets?

by yrro on Aug 18, 2009 12:13 PM EDT reply actions

That game is still painful

The Eagles’ game was the low point of the season and I can’t really laugh at any of the responses to that debacle. Many of us had predicted the offense would struggle before the 08 season began and that game demonstrated why: a good defense and great defensive coach totally exposed a bad line and an unprepared offensive coordinator. It’s amazing Ben survived the pounding he took that day with only a bad hand after being stepped on. However, without that game the Steelers and especially Tomlin perhaps don’t realize that some things had to change. Maybe the defense doesn’t realize that it really is all on them to carry the team. The team did make changes to their basic pass protection schemes especially in regards to interior blitzes and eventually those changes resulted in improved pass protection later in the year. But if the Titans sack Ben eight times in the season opener and knock him out of the game with an injury, limit the Steelers to six points and 150 yards of offense, then I think you’re going to see much the same kind of response, if not significantly worse.

by steeler.lifer on Aug 18, 2009 12:49 PM EDT up reply actions