Stat of the Day

This from Ray Fittipaldo of the PittsburghPost-Gazette: "Here is why the Steelers should stay committed to the running game in the stretch run. The 39 plays the Tennessee Titans ran were the fewest for an NFL team in three years, according to the NFL Network."

Gerry Dulac gives us a heads-up

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Gerry Dulac has posted a portion of his PG+ article on sulia.com, and he wants us to know that the Steelers are looking beyond the obvious names.

How far beyond the obvious?  Try Arthur Brown, ILB, Kansas State (#36 in Mike Mayock's top 100) and Bjoern Werner, DE, Florida State (#26 on that same list).

We respect all the Steelers' beat writers, and are fairly certain that they are far more knowledgeable than us, but if the team is to take an inside linebacker at that point in the draft then why not take Kevin Minter out of LSU?

Steelers fan question of the day

This from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette PG+, addressed to the inimitable Ed Bouchette:
"Hey, Ed. Remember that time when the whole team was healthy and all our 1st-stringers started? Me neither."

And according to Jason LaCanfora the Steelers are working out Mike Kafka (who finished the 2012 preseason with a QB rating of 23.1) and Brian Hoyer (who served as Tom Brady's backup for three seasons), with the intention of signing one, or the other, as the backup quarterback.

Writing worth paying for

There is a reason I love Ed Bouchette, and pay to read what he writes.  On PG+, the pay-to-view companion to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Mr. Bouchette posted an inspired piece following Sunday's Steelers game that is absolutely worth a look (everyone can get one page view for free ~ just clear the cookies on your browser). 

I especially love this description of the day one Steelers running back had:  "Those of you who predicted Jonathan Dwyer would run for 107 yards, please email me. No, come knock on my door because I want to see you say it with a straight face. That included a 76-yard run through a hole bigger than my garage door."
It's a great effort, and worth your time.

Steelers @ Houston: The aftermath

No group has emotional swings like those of us who cheer for the Steelers; and at the rate the team is going we may all be at our wits ends before the bye week.

We were looking through sundry item, and The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's weekly "Steelers Report Card," always done very capably by Gerry Dulac, is a postgame must.  This week Mr. Dulac gives the offensive line an "F" ~ no surprise there ~ and in doing so states that "[c]ritics of LT Jonathan Scott might want to see him back in the lineup after this; Trai Essex gave up at least two sacks as the Texans kept bringing pressure from the left side. OLB Mario Williams had two of the five sacks, including one against RT Marcus Gilbert."

The only issue we take with this assessment is that, by focusing on the two backups who started yesterday, it fails to call into account the miserable performances by the starters who did start.  Yes, the offensive line is a until, and missing two starters was bound to have a negative impact.  But Chris Kemoeatu was beaten badly for three out of four quarters; and the unnecessary roughness call against Maurkice Pouncy, coming at the end of a 14-yard run that put the Steelers' offense at the Houston six yard line with just over a minute to play in the first half, effectively killed what had the looks of a touchdown drive.

As Mr. Dulac undoubtedly knows, the problem with the Steelers' offensive line runs much deeper than some underperforming backups;  and is a problem that may take multiple seasons to truly address.

Peek at PG+

I am a big fan of PG+, the premium site offered by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The cost is minimal, and readers get to enjoy the unvarnished wit of Ed Bouchette (amongst a lot of other things) which makes it worth the money.

Since it is a pay site I try not to quote directly too often, but this line has to be shared because I thought the same thing during the game, and so did you:

"Does Michael Oher get special dispensation by the officials for false starts because he was the subject of a hit movie?"