The Steelers are 2-0 but, for the second year in a row, they travel to another NFC city where they’ve found difficulty emerging with Week-3 wins. Last year in Philly was disastrous, so the prospect of this happening again this year in Chicago has my black-and-gold brain careening out if control.
As always, I pass the ravings on to you.
But first, I must brew an ale of apology to those I offended in last week's offering. So a mug of penance goes out to and for the following foibles:
- Making you relive Tom Cruise's idiotic couch trip on Oprah in 2003
- The trials and trubulations of Steven Johnson
- The Steve Miller Band
- Infecting your brain with "Runaround" by Blues Traveler and not referring to John Popper as a harmonica master
- Vernon Haynes
- Cuba Gooding Jr./ Rod Tidwell
- Mark Mosley
And now another hopelessly riveting edition of Random Thoughts From a Black-and-Gold Mind:
- Yes, the Steelers haven't won in Chicago for 22 years and are 1-11 lifetime against the Bears. But these aren't the same Steelers and, sure as a Chicago-style pizza is thick, these aren't the Bears of Halas or Ditka either. John Fox has a record of 4-17 as the head man in Chi-town. If Pittsburgh is a true Super Bowl contender, the Steelers need to channel 1961 Del Shannon, 1984 Bon Jovi or 2011 Kanye West. Anyway you spin it, it needs to be a runaway...a run-run-run-run-runaway.
- Listening to BTSC's flagship podcast The Standard is the Standard the other day, I heard Jeff and Lance quip about the Steelers needing to stop the Bears running game by labeling them the law firm of Howard and Cohen. There was actually a lawyer named Howard Cohen that made it big in the wide world of sports—better known as an attorney named Howard Cosell.
- As for the real Howard (Jordan) and Cohen (Tarik), they are Chicago's best bet to provide the biggest spark on offense. But even Cosell's toupee looked more believable than the Bears’ rushing attack, which only achieved 20 yards last week versus Tampa.
- The Bears are more depleted at wide receiver than Forrest Gump after a cross-country run. Making his Windy City debut this week is a Steeltown defector named Markus Wheaton. Wheaton is a deep threat and he’ll test the Steelers’ secondary. But Wheaton has never been accused of styling his game after the legendary 1971 Rolling Stones album, Sticky Fingers. He’s been more like Snoop Dogg and Pharrell...Drop It Like It's Hot.
- Bud Dupree's Hingle McCringleberry dance got him flagged for a sexually suggestive celebration. Dupree obviously will never be invited as a guest on Dancing With the Stars. His thrusts were so ridiculous, he’ll probably never be recruited for adult cinema either.
- The legend of Home Ben vs. Road Ben continues to the point that fantasy football gurus always recommend No. 7 as a home start and one to avoid on the road. While I'm fine with Roethlisberger's Wizard of Oz motto of "there's no place like home," I'd like him to put on his Nipsey Russell from The Wiz and "Ease on Down the Road." Ben would certainly benefit from a big game in Chicago.
- The disappearance of Deebo from action against Minnesota was curious to some, but it isn't really too disconcerting. Many thought that T.J. Watt's injury would lead to all of the action going to Harrison, but it seemed like Mike Tomlin was trying to evaluate Anthony Chickillo in an expanded role on Sunday in a game that was never really in question. Harrison is saying all the right things this week and Tomlin assured the media that Harrison will be needed and used accordingly in 2017. A fresh Deebo down the stretch is a good idea, but I also expect lots of No. 92 this weekend.
- The greatest victory for the Steelers over the Bears came in 1970. The star that day was Dan Rooney, who defeated Ed McCaskey for the rights to Terry Bradshaw. To think that the Steelers dynasty and life as we know it in Steelers Nation came down to the actual toss of a coin.
- The greatest in-game moment in Steelers-Bears history can be summed up in one image...Enough Said.
And finally...
- I wonder what Najeh Davenport is doing these days.
Until next time, the reference to The Rolling Stones and Sticky Fingers makes me think of one of my favorite songs "Wild Horses", but this weekend's trek to Chicago has me humming "Can't You Hear Me Knocking?"—another great song from that LP. So heed the warning of these lyrics, Windy City peeps...
Hear me ringing big bell tolls
Hear me singing soft and low
I've been begging on my knees
I've been kickin', help me please
Hear me prowlin'
I'm gonna take you down
Hear me growlin'
Yeah, I've got flatted feet now, now, now, now
Hear me howlin'
And all, all around your street now
Hear me knockin'
And all, all around your town
Take that for what it's worth and Go Steelers!