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[IAmtheFMan]

I suspect it'll be like every other Steeler game, except the Charger one, it'll be close. But, hate to say it, I expect them to lose. Granted, Lewis teams have generally choked it away to the Steelers. But this one is different. Bengals have been clicking and winning while the Steelers have looked confused and scattered. Then again, there's always the chance that the Steelers win....and then lose to the Browns. That wouldn't shock me either.

I wouldn't count out the Bengals ability to lose. The Bengals (and us Bengals fans in general) have a psychological hump when it comes to the Steelers. I hope things change, but after a while, it just becomes kinda status quo.

 

[brentech]

So we really arent getting rid of crosby? Im scared for the playoffs now. That was my only worry.

He's had his problems, but that really isn't the biggest thing to worry about. He's been missing kicks that plenty of guys miss. Granted, he's missed a lot more, but he could pull out of it as well.

Bring someone else in and they immediately feel pressure to not miss anything and it's in their heads too...just ride Crosby out and make the change at season's end if needed.

 

[Greg]

So we really arent getting rid of crosby? Im scared for the playoffs now. That was my only worry.

more chances at 7 points!

 

[Buckethead]

 

[Plasticine]

It sure as fuck looks better than getting blown the fuck out by the Chargers.

Wonder who is going to pay Jennings and Wallace next year? I wouldn't mind getting Jennings for cheap to replace Wallace but that is about as likely as Sanchez being a starting qb in the NFL in 2 years or Tammy having a penis.

 

[mastershake]

cutlers favorite target will still be GB db's

 

[Spectral Glider]

I wouldn't count out the Bengals ability to lose. The Bengals (and us Bengals fans in general) have a psychological hump when it comes to the Steelers. I hope things change, but after a while, it just becomes kinda status quo.

Yeah, and the Chargers have never won in Pittsburgh during the regular season. And the Pats* never lost at home during December and this and that and the other thing that happened in the past. I get it, but none of it has a bearing on the next slate of games.

 

[Mihael Mello Keehl]

He's had his problems, but that really isn't the biggest thing to worry about. He's been missing kicks that plenty of guys miss. Granted, he's missed a lot more, but he could pull out of it as well.

Bring someone else in and they immediately feel pressure to not miss anything and it's in their heads too...just ride Crosby out and make the change at season's end if needed.

Yea but he made them last year..simple 42 yarder goes in for everyone else.

edit: What is the biggest worry then?

more chances at 7 points!

Well thats a bright side. But that means we getting no 3rd down conversions.

 

[brentech]

Yea but he made them last year..simple 42 yarder goes in for everyone else.

edit: What is the biggest worry then?


Well thats a bright side. But that means we getting no 3rd down conversions.

Rodgers getting sacked and taking Crosby out of simple FG range.


42 yards does seem like a range that most are made at, but kickers still miss it weekly. Crosby has just been more consistent with his misses.
Not saying it's not an issue, but the team didn't have to rely on him as often last year because the offense was clicking better. Offense has to stop shooting itself and relying on Crosby to make longer kicks.

 

[Smokey]

Yea but he made them last year..simple 42 yarder goes in for everyone else.

edit: What is the biggest worry then?


Well thats a bright side. But that means we getting no 3rd down conversions.

Have you met Texans' kicker Shayne Graham

 

[Owzers]

Sucks Tebow isn't getting a shot starting against the Chargers, hope his career isn't over after this Jets debacle. McElroy's highlights against the cardinals was getting a personal foul called against the defense after getting hit when running out of bounds and throwing a completion to a guy who had an entire half of the end zone to himself. It will be interesting to see what McElroy can do under other circumstances.

 

[DeaconKnowledge]

Yeah, and the Chargers have never won in Pittsburgh during the regular season. And the Pats* never lost at home during December and this and that and the other thing that happened in the past. I get it, but none of it has a bearing on the next slate of games.

What was the last "guaranteed win" the Steelers won?

 

[TheLegendary]

I think McCarthy is getting into the squicken/stat nerd line of thinking and taking it to its logical conclusion; who needs a kicker at all in this day and age? We should be going for it on 4th down every damn play anyway. All we need is a guy for kickoffs. He's already done a bunch of trickeration on special teams which those crazy stat nerds subscribe to as well. We tried to do a trick play on the punt which was within our own red zone and while we were up for God's sake; who knows what other crazy shit we'll be doing this year?

Who knew under that bulky, jockish exterior was such a progressive thinking man's coach?

Spoiler

or more likely listening to the nerdy stat guy in the office above him

 

[Link]

Sucks Tebow isn't getting a shot starting against the Chargers, hope his career isn't over after this Jets debacle. McElroy's highlights against the cardinals was getting a personal foul called against the defense after getting hit when running out of bounds and throwing a completion to a guy who had an entire half of the end zone to himself. It will be interesting to see what McElroy can do under other circumstances.

Not that I think McElroy's gonna set the world on fire, but I'm sure practicing with the first team all week will help. And anything is better than Sanchez.

 

[chuckddd]

Sucks Tebow isn't getting a shot starting against the Chargers, hope his career isn't over after this Jets debacle. McElroy's highlights against the cardinals was getting a personal foul called against the defense after getting hit when running out of bounds and throwing a completion to a guy who had an entire half of the end zone to himself. It will be interesting to see what McElroy can do under other circumstances.

Tebow's gone after the season. At this point, you play McElroy to see if he has anything. And to keep the fans from storming the field and disemboweling Sanchez.

 

[OriginofHysteria]

Watch out Brady, the new king of the AFC East is about to emerge.

 

[WedgeX]

A Lions roundup of local opinions on coaching and management:

Detroit Free Press
Jamie Samuelsen

I have a 54-year-old friend who calls me every single time the Lions lose. He doesn’t say hello. He doesn’t yell and scream. He just calmly and glumly tells me that he’s been watching the same product for all his 54 years.

Sunday, as the Lions handed another game over to another lame opponent, my six-year old son screamed at the TV that he was done with the Lions and would never watch them again.

Ah, the circle of life.

...

Head coach Jim Schwartz? Contract extension or no contract extension, he has overseen a team in regression that looked lackadaisical against the Cardinals. The Lions looked like they assumed they could just show up and win. They couldn’t.

GM Martin Mayhew? Sure, he engineered a three-year transformation from an 0-16 season to a 10-6 playoff team. But what about his draft failings? And what about the fact that the Lions' three best players – Johnson, Matthew Stafford and Ndamukong Suh -- are all here because of the Matt Millen era and the resulting top two draft picks? It scares me to let Mayhew oversee another draft board after what happened in each of the past two drafts.

Drew Sharp

The Detroit Lions have gone from 10 wins to 10 losses in one season with basically the same roster. Should such a dramatic regression weaken Jim Schwartz's job security?

Yes. I once thought that he should automatically return next season regardless of how they finished. Give him the opportunity to learn from the mistakes committed this season. But this effort against a terrible Arizona team with a sixth-round rookie starting quarterback was inexcusable.

The Lions didn't look prepared or interested. Either the players stopped caring or stopped listening. Either way, it's an indictment of the coaching staff.

I doubt the Fords would opt for such action, but the ugliness of this loss should force a serious evaluation of the current coaching staff.

Detroit News
Bob Wojnowski

Someone has to stand up and loudly proclaim time frames are changing, that patiently waiting for the stink to dissipate from the Matt Millen era no longer is acceptable. Last year's playoff spot bought general manager Martin Mayhew and coach Jim Schwartz some time, but not much, not after this collapse.

One more year — that's all I'd give this regime to show sustainable improvement. Mayhew and Schwartz are linked, whether they like it or not, and it's amazing we're even discussing their job security. Schwartz's contract extension (for an unannounced length) makes a change unlikely, and perhaps untimely. But if the danger signs persist, it's a consideration. Schwartz's record in his fourth season: 22-40.

...

This is the most unbalanced team in the NFL, including the line-heavy defense with the shattered secondary. Without a consistent running game, Stafford probably will set a record for attempts, and the offense no longer catches opponents off guard. You saw the Cardinals line up two defenders directly across from Johnson, destroying his big-play capability.

Johnson is a fantastic talent setting all sorts of records, and is on pace to better Jerry Rice's season mark for yards. He's threatening to become Barry Sanders, a singular superstar whose impact can be minimized by defenses. For all Johnson's yardage, he has five touchdowns.

The Lions have been bitten this season by arrogance and complacency, and bitten hard. Everything gained a year ago has been squandered, and now we're back where we started, not sure if they have the right people to fix the mess.

Josh Katzenstein

Stafford is good, and it's a good sign that he's willing to take blame for such a lopsided loss.

With a loss this bad, everyone deserves blame — management, coaches and players.

But when the coaches write the wrong script, nobody wants to watch the brutal ending.

A whole article from Chris McClosky defending Schwartz and Mayhew. Prior to Sunday.

mlive
Anwar Richardson

Detroit Lions coach Jim Schwartz lost more than just a game against the Arizona Cardinals this past Sunday.

Schwartz has officially lost control of his team.

Technically, you can say Schwartz started losing his grip this past offseason.

...

-- Schwartz's inability to develop Matthew Stafford was evident as the quarterback threw for 246 yards, three interceptions (two returned for touchdowns) and had zero touchdowns (37.6 passer rating). Stafford's delay of game penalty in the fourth quarter was not only a bad mental error, but negated Kris Durham's touchdown reception. Stafford's error led to Arizona defensive back Greg Toler's 102-yard interception return for a touchdown.

-- Schwartz's defensive line was supposed to be one of the league's best this season. While Ndamukong Suh had one sack and four quarterback hits, defensive ends Cliff Avril and Kyle Vanden Bosch were quiet against Arizona, and nobody else stepped up.

-- Schwartz was unable to find one receiver who could step up with the attention Calvin Johnson received on Sunday. Durham had one reception for 14 yards, while Brian Robiskie had one reception for nine yards.

-- Schwartz's team was penalized seven times for 63 yards, and three of them were offsides penalties. Those are mental errors that should have been solved by now.

Justin Rogers

COACHING: F
The Cardinals came into this game on a nine-game losing streak and suffered a 58-0 loss to the Seattle Seahawks the week before. Many wondered if Arizona had quit on its season and coach Ken Whisenhunt, but at the end of the game, it appeared as if the Lions were the ones who quit.

The Cardinals came out with an aggressive plan to stop Johnson, and although the NFL's best wide receiver finished with 121 yards, the Lions weren't able to find a way to maximize all the other mismatches on the field.

I probably just put this together to make myself feel better.

 

[Talon]

Cowboy's senior VP and general counsel Alec Scheiner will become the Cleveland Brown's president. I imagine it'll be similar to a Rich McKay situation where he's only in charge of the business end of things.

 

[Mihael Mello Keehl]

Rodgers getting sacked and taking Crosby out of simple FG range.


42 yards does seem like a range that most are made at, but kickers still miss it weekly. Crosby has just been more consistent with his misses.
Not saying it's not an issue, but the team didn't have to rely on him as often last year because the offense was clicking better. Offense has to stop shooting itself and relying on Crosby to make longer kicks.

I guess..if the game is coming down to a field goal like last years reg season game against the giants I would be worried.

 

[Spectral Glider]

What was the last "guaranteed win" the Steelers won?

I'd say Raven playoff game of '10.

 

[squicken]

Brady says they gave game away

We kind of gave it to them at that point,” Brady said, via the Boston Herald. ”We didn’t do anything on offense, and we didn’t put up the kind of fight that I wish we would have been able to.

 

[Narag]

I'd say Raven playoff game of '10.

Colts game last year! It was close though!

 

[Miguel]

Go Texans!

never ever posting again in the OT or gaming forum. This place is not the same.

Back into obscurity I go. I am not Matrix's alternate account

 

[cdyhybrid]

Brady says they gave game away

No one beats the Pats straight up. The only way the Pats lose is if they beat themselves!

 

[Striker]

Brady with the Clay Matthews line of logic.

 

[TheLegendary]

Brady with the Clay Matthews line of logic.

No wonder Brady's balls are missing

 

[Rorschach]

Back into obscurity I go. I am not Matrix's alternate account

He is yours?

 

[darkside31337]

Tebow's gone after the season. At this point, you play McElroy to see if he has anything. And to keep the fans from storming the field and disemboweling Sanchez.

You know who else should be gone after this season? Rex Ryan himself.

He shouldn't even be the one making the call about who the starting QB is this week. He shouldn't even be the head coach right now but theres some kind of possibility some team is stupid enough to trade a pick for him so I guess hes worth keeping till the offseason.

 

[Bowser]

Well, we had an injured offensive line (meaning a non-existent running game and no pass blocking), a QB coming off a 3 week injury break, injuries to secondary and no depth behind it. And the Chargers do have talent despite sucking. It's a recipe for losing.

lol, the Panthers were down to their 3rd string C, 3rd string RG, and have a rookie at LG. These are the players we started on defense:

Lineman
DT - Andre Neblett
DT - Nate Chandler

Secondary
SS - DJ Campbell - 7th round rookie
FS - Charles Godfrey - Playing with a bad back, natural position SS
RCB - Josh Thomas - 3rd year player (5th round pick that was cut by Cowboys)
LCB - Captain Munnerlyn - 2009 7th round pick, 5'7", naturally a nickel corner
Nickel CB - James Dockery - 2nd year undrafted rookie free agent

We sacked Rivers 6 times, forced him into 4 fumbles, and were up 31-0 midway through the 3rd quarter. We held the Chargers to ~160 total yards. And this was AT San Diego.

No excuses.

 

[Futurevoid]

Brady says they gave game away

Ah, my favorite league wide excuse.

By the way, the Browns released Dimitri Patterson recently and the Dolphins picked him up:

Adam Schefter @AdamSchefter

Dolphins claimed former Browns CB Dimitri Patterson on waivers.

 

[Link]

You know who else should be gone after this season? Rex Ryan himself.

He shouldn't even be the one making the call about who the starting QB is this week. He shouldn't even be the head coach right now but theres some kind of possibility some team is stupid enough to trade a pick for him so I guess hes worth keeping till the offseason.

I don't think Rex needs to go, to be honest. I think he's been stuck with Sanchez and he knows it, so he's had to maneuver around it. If the team can get even a competent quarterback, and an OC that isn't a complete idiot with no idea how to get good play out of a QB, they could be a good team.

That's not to say Rex won't get fired anyway.

 

[bluemax]

Skittle are a PED confirmed.

 

[bob_arctor]

You know who else should be gone after this season? Rex Ryan himself.

He shouldn't even be the one making the call about who the starting QB is this week. He shouldn't even be the head coach right now but theres some kind of possibility some team is stupid enough to trade a pick for him so I guess hes worth keeping till the offseason.

I'd keep him for the sake of stability and that he somehow managed to have the team play hard despite the certain ineptitude of his BFF Sanchez. His loyalty to him was obviously ridiculous but its not enough to fire him imo. I do wish that he would come out and say with brutal honesty what hot trash we are though, especially Sanchez. That's the thing that really pisses me off about Rex. He's Mr. Straight Talk except for when it comes to his own team. Then it's all sunshine and puppies. His press conference last night was a perfect example. As far as his coaching--well, we were somehow in the playoff talk until just last night. That has to count in his favor. The flip side is wondering would we have won more games simply by benching Sanchez much earlier in the season and going McElroy, a decision Rex wanted no part of obviously.

 

[darkside31337]

I'd keep him for the sake of stability and that he somehow managed to have the team play hard despite the certain ineptitude of his BFF Sanchez. His loyalty to him was obviously ridiculous but its not enough to fire him imo. I do wish that he would come out and say with brutal honesty what hot trash we are though, especially Sanchez. That's the thing that really pisses me off about Rex. He's Mr. Straight Talk except for when it comes to his own team. Then it's all sunshine and puppies. His press conference last night was a perfect example. As far as his coaching--well, we were somehow in the playoff talk until just last night. That has to count in his favor. The flip side is wondering would we have won more games simply by benching Sanchez much earlier in the season and going McElroy, a decision Rex wanted no part of obviously.

I agree with this.

He chose to hitch his wagon to Sanchez for god knows whatever reasons. A lot of the blame falls on Tanny who should obviously be fired given his ineptitude. But Ryan was the one coddling his ass even when Sanchez regressed more and more. The worst part about last night was that somehow it was a shock that Sanchez shit the bed. His play individually over the past 2 weeks was -still- terrible (as it has been the entire season and most of his Jets career) but he got a free pass because the Jets somehow managed to pull a win out of their ass.

Think the Jets are going to be in rebuild mode next year. I can't see them in anything but that kind of scenario really. Don't think Ryan is the right guy at all for that situation for a lot of different reasons.

 

[cdyhybrid]

Skittle are a PED confirmed.

Cheatin' Pete!

 

[Futurevoid]

Kenny Phillips on the Giants inconsistencies:

"We can't figure out why one week we come out and we have that fire in our eyes and the next week not so much," he said on @987espnNy. "It's not that we're not practicing hard. It's not that guys (are) not buying into it. But for some reason, since I've been here the last over four or five years, that's just how it's been. Up and down, up and down. I hate to say it. I think a lot of the guys have gotten used to it. And we win when we have to. When we don't have to, we kind of just go out there flat."

They can't figure it out but then says "when we don't have to win we just don't care". Hmmmm. Makes a ton of sense there, Kenny!

 

[DUFFMCWALIN]

Brady says they gave game away

This is what I was mad about the other night but I just wasn't clear about it.

 

[Cagey]

Kenny Phillips on the Giants inconsistencies:



They can't figure it out but then says "when we don't have to win we just don't care. Makes a ton of sense there, Kenny!

I want to hate my team so much for admitting that horribly lazy, slacker attitude, but then I realize I had that same thought process in high school, college, and law school, so...

 

[Jake Tower]

Go Texans!

never ever posting again in the OT or gaming forum. This place is not the same.

What happened? Did you get pinched?

 

[TheLegendary]

I'd keep him for the sake of stability and that he somehow managed to have the team play hard despite the certain ineptitude of his BFF Sanchez. His loyalty to him was obviously ridiculous but its not enough to fire him imo. I do wish that he would come out and say with brutal honesty what hot trash we are though, especially Sanchez. That's the thing that really pisses me off about Rex. He's Mr. Straight Talk except for when it comes to his own team. Then it's all sunshine and puppies. His press conference last night was a perfect example. As far as his coaching--well, we were somehow in the playoff talk until just last night. That has to count in his favor. The flip side is wondering would we have won more games simply by benching Sanchez much earlier in the season and going McElroy, a decision Rex wanted no part of obviously.

Good points. Does the "hard hitting" NY media ever ask him a question like that?

 

[NihonTiger90]

A Lions roundup of local opinions on coaching and management:

Detroit Free Press
Jamie Samuelsen

Drew Sharp


Detroit News
Bob Wojnowski

Josh Katzenstein


A whole article from Chris McClosky defending Schwartz and Mayhew. Prior to Sunday.

mlive
Anwar Richardson

Justin Rogers


I probably just put this together to make myself feel better.

If it makes you feel any better, it's all got to go. Schwartz, Mayhew, Fatfuck, that thug Suh all need to be gone. Trade them, fire them, whatever.

Time to start rebuilding again with a competent QB who isn't an abysmal failure and a defense that wants to play football.

 

[OriginofHysteria]

You know who else should be gone after this season? Rex Ryan himself.

He shouldn't even be the one making the call about who the starting QB is this week. He shouldn't even be the head coach right now but theres some kind of possibility some team is stupid enough to trade a pick for him so I guess hes worth keeping till the offseason.

Lol no way Rex Ryan should go. Did you know how atrocious our defense was before Ryan came in? He gave that defense an identity and he put them on the map. The man is a defensive genius.

What the Jets should do first off is just get rid of Tannenbaum and convince the new GM to keep Rex as head coach. The second thing is to hire an OC that calls all the offensive plays and handles all the offensive personnel. Rex Ryan can stick with the other HC duties.

 

[Ninja Scooter]

Lol no way Rex Ryan should go. Did you know how atrocious our defense was before Ryan came in? He gave that defense an identity and he put them on the map. The man is a defensive genius.

What the Jets should do first off is just get rid of Tannenbaum and convince the new GM to keep Rex as head coach. The second thing is to hire an OC that calls all the offensive plays and handles all the offensive personnel. Rex Ryan can stick with the other HC duties.

Jets should hire Gruden's little brother away from Cincinatti as OC.

 

[squicken]

Good points. Does the "hard hitting" NY media ever ask him a question like that?

they kept asking him about Tebow today and he wouldn't give a straight answer. I hope someone gets the truth out of those guys as to why he was even brought in and what the plan was. they wasted a roster spot all year. should have just had mcelroy as the backup

 

[OriginofHysteria]

Jets should hire Gruden's little brother away from Cincinatti as OC.

I'd be down for that, I'd even be down for Norv Turner taking the OC job after he gets canned from San Diego.

 

[harSon]

lol, the Panthers were down to their 3rd string C, 3rd string RG, and have a rookie at LG. These are the players we started on defense:

Lineman
DT - Andre Neblett
DT - Nate Chandler

Secondary
SS - DJ Campbell - 7th round rookie
FS - Charles Godfrey - Playing with a bad back, natural position SS
RCB - Josh Thomas - 3rd year player (5th round pick that was cut by Cowboys)
LCB - Captain Munnerlyn - 2009 7th round pick, 5'7", naturally a nickel corner
Nickel CB - James Dockery - 2nd year undrafted rookie free agent

We sacked Rivers 6 times, forced him into 4 fumbles, and were up 31-0 midway through the 3rd quarter. We held the Chargers to ~160 total yards. And this was AT San Diego.

No excuses.

And? Our starting offensive line is notoriously mediocre, so when you're down to injured players forced to come back before they're ready, rookies, 3rd string/practice squad players who couldn't manage to beat out mediocre players for a higher position anchoring your line.. and they rarely if ever get to play together consistently... it's going to suck.

And you can't make direct comparisons. Not all team situations are the same. Our defense this year has relied on a sound secondary due to our inability to get pressure on the QB, so when you take away our ability to cover receivers due to injury and the defense maintains it's inability to pressure the QB, then obviously it's going to get picked apart.

Plus you had a healthy Cam Newton who's been playing consistently well for the past few weeks, while we had a QB fresh off (and probably rushed from) an injury that sidelined him the previous three weeks.

You also have a 9th ranked running attack to lean on, while ours is in the bottom 5.

We should have definitely won the game, no question, but when you're heading into a game with that type of situation, then it's not all that surprising if you don't.

 

[chuckddd]

they kept asking him about Tebow today and he wouldn't give a straight answer. I hope someone gets the truth out of those guys as to why he was even brought in and what the plan was. they wasted a roster spot all year. should have just had mcelroy as the backup

The plan was to be the talk of espin the entire off-season. Mission accomplished.

 

[jakncoke]

McElroy starting a week late...who am I kidding it is about 8 weeks late.

Poor Tebow

 

[eznark]

And? Our starting offensive line is notoriously mediocre, so when you're down to injured players forced to come back before they're ready, rookies, 3rd string/practice squad players who couldn't manage to beat out mediocre players for a higher position anchoring your line.. and they rarely if ever get to play together consistently... it's going to suck.

And you can't make direct comparisons. Not all team situations are the same. Our defense this year has relied on a sound secondary due to our inability to get pressure on the QB, so when you take away our ability to cover receivers due to injury and the defense maintains it's inability to pressure the QB, then obviously it's going to get picked apart.

Plus you had a healthy Cam Newton who's been playing consistently well for the past few weeks, while we had a QB fresh off (and probably rushed from) an injury that sidelined him the previous three weeks.

You also have a 9th ranked running attack to lean on, while ours is in the bottom 5.

We should have definitely won the game, no question, but when you're heading into a game with that type of situation, then it's not all that surprising if you don't.

Do you ever man up or is there always a long list if excuses?

 

[bob_arctor]

The plan was to be the talk of espn the entire off-season. Mission accomplished.

That's the simple truth. There is just no other way to interpret the move. The Giants had just won the SB, owning NYC even more than usual. Meanwhile we imploded in the ugliest way possible with the Santonio debacle in Miami, missed the playoffs, and Tebow's the hot ticket with his run in Denver. A disgusting and cynical ploy.