Why Pittsburgh Should have Sat Roethlisberger

Monday night's showdown featured two of the top defenses in the league, and two playoff-bound squads.

In the previous week's 14-3 victory over Cleveland, Pittsburgh's starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger suffered a high ankle sprain on his left leg. He was listed as questionable and named a game-time decision the week leading up to the San Fran road game.

About an hour before kick-off, it was announced Roethlisberger would, in fact, start the game.

Now, I can certainly understand why head coach Mike Tomlin made the decision to start him, don't get me wrong. With Baltimore's devastating loss to San Diego the night before, Pittsburgh had a chance to take the outright division lead with a hard-fought victory over the West-winning Niners.

So yes, Roethlisberger would give the Steelers their best shot at moving the ball down the field and putting points on the board. But if you had gotten to take a look at Ben during pre-game warm-ups, there was no way you could've received a positive vibe.

The pre-game show, ESPN's Monday Night Countdown, showed the viewers a few glances of Roethlisberger warming up, throwing some balls, and he could not move laterally without wincing in pain. If you aren't familiar with Roethlisberger's playing style then you may not think it's too big of a deal, but it is.

He somehow comes out and plays fantastic while beat up on several occasions, but when he has to stand still in the pocket and can't avoid a 300-pound lineman from slamming him from the turf: you have a huge problem on his hands.

Not only did Pittsburgh fail to get in to the end zone (lost to SF 20-3), but Roethlisberger single-handedly allowed San Francisco to win this game. Ben threw 3 interceptions and fumbled the ball away once to give the offense four total turnovers. He was not accurate, many of his 44 pass attempts were errant, and he was beat up by SF's front 7 all night long (8 QB hits, 9 PDs, 3 sacks).

Without All Pro backer Patrick Willis in the lineup, SF's linebackers still managed to rough Ben's day up and force him in to those turnovers.

Again, Ben's successful because he can move around, avoid the rush, and make plays outside of the pocket. He uses his large frame and nimbleness (for his size, at least) to his advantage and because of that he is able to hold on to the ball longer and let his receivers get open.

Minus his mobility, it's much tougher for Ben to make plays. I'm not saying that Charlie Batch is a mobile quarterback, but if he had been in the game Pittsburgh could have opened the passing game up a little more.

San Francisco was well-aware that Pittsburgh will struggle in the pass game with Ben not at 100%, so they keyed in on the run game and shut them down. The top rushing defense in the game (1,001 yards, 0 TD, 3.3 YPC), San Francisco didn't have much trouble limiting Rashard Mendenhall and Co., stopping the PIT rushing attack to 84 yards on just 19 carries.

Playing from behind a majority of the game, Roethlisberger was forced to throw the ball 44 times (completed 25 of those for 330 yards). Sure, Roethlisberger's statline looks decent because of the yardage he put up, but that's solely the result of having to pass nearly 75% of the time.

Bottom line: Pittsburgh wasn't able to finish drives on offense, turned the ball over four times and SF scored 13 points off those turnovers. San Francisco looks like the team to beat in the NFL right now, playing solid on all ends: capable rushing attack, offense that doesn't turn the ball over often and smash-mouth, shutdown defense.

There was no reason for Roethlisberger to start that game in his condition (considering they have already clinched a playoff spot), let alone remain in the game late in the fourth quarter after his third INT of the game. There have been reported rumors that he could sit the rest of the regular season. Whether or not they are true, let's just hope he doesn't hurt his ankle anymore than it already is.

Photo credit: AP Photo/Paul Sakuma (both)

Packers Champions Again; MVP Rodgers Leads the Pack to Fourth Super Bowl Victory

Stepping out of the lurking shadows of a legend in Green Bay, the 27-year old Aaron Rodgers led his Packers to its fourth Super Bowl title. In the franchise's first appearance since falling to Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway and his Denver Broncos in 1998, the Packers wasted no time in taking full advantage of this opportunity in Dallas.

After barley squeezing in to the postseason (10-6) as the sixth seed in the NFC, the one-time Pro Bowl quarterback took hold of his opposition and steered Green Bay to three straight road playoff games by scoring a combined total of 90 points against Philadelphia, Atlanta and Chicago.

Rodgers, in his four postseason games (including the Super Bowl), became just the second quarterback to throw for over 1,000 yards in a single postseason.

Rodgers won the Super Bowl MVP award after the team's 31-25 victory by going 24 for 39 pass attempts, 304 yards and three touchdowns. But it was really Green Bay's top-tier defense whom stepped its game up and led head coach Mike McCarthy to the six-point victory against Pittsburgh.

It wasn't AP Defensive Player of the Year winner Troy Polamalu who made the biggest impact, rather DPOY runner-up Clay Matthews and his clan who made the big plays. Matthews recorded three tackles and forced a costly Rashard Mendenhall fumble.

Defensive back Nick Collins' 37-yard interception returned for a touchdown in the opening quarter of play seemed to set the tempo for Green Bay's defense, putting them up 14-0. (Note: Teams with an interception returned for a touchdown in the Super Bowl are 11-0).

It wasn't until late in the second quarter when the Steelers finally showed signs of life. Down 21-3, two-time Super Bowl champion quarterback Ben Roethlisberger completed a 77-yard drive with a touchdown toss to veteran wideout and former Super Bowl MVP (XL) Hines Ward from eight yards out.

Despite being downright dominated in the first half, Pittsburgh's offense came back out in the second half and outscored Green Bay 15-10, but the early offensive woes were too much to overcome. Roethlisberger finished the game with two INTs and Mendenhall's lost fumble gave them a grand total of three turnovers. All three of those turnovers were turned in to Green Bay touchdowns.

On Sunday the Packers showed the nation that you can win championships with not just great defense (obviously, because "defense wins championships), but also that an effective pass game can do more damage than a running game. Pittsburgh dominated the ground with 126 yards and a touchdown compared to Green Bay's 50 yards and no touchdowns. Making Green Bay one dimensional hasn't worked all season long, why should Super Bowl Sunday be any different?

Rodgers has been very patient over the last five seasons, including three years of warming the bench up for Favre. This championship was certainly much deserved as he brings the Lombardi trophy back to Titletown, USA. Also known as The Frozen Tundra in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

No "Stairway to Seven" will be played in Pittsburgh as Mike Tomlin's crew will be known as Sixburgh for at least another year.

**Packers Capture Fourth Super Bowl title in franchise history; Rodgers Becomes Third Different Green Bay Quarterback with a SB Ring**

("Editor's Note:" The Green Bay loss drops my postseason picks record to 7-4, unfortunately).

Photo credit

Aaron Rodgers: Kevin Terrell/NFL

Packers: Mark J. Rebilas-US PRESSWIRE

Hines Ward: Kevin Terrell/NFL

Lombardi trophy: Gary A. Vasquez/NFL

Arrival Day for Super Bowl Teams

Sadly, it's been nearly two weeks since I have posted, but today is a big day for football.

One day after the league's top players competed in the Pro Bowl (NFL's version of the All-Star game) in Honolulu, Hawaii, the two Super Bowl teams have arrived in Dallas and will begin the longest six days of their lives.

For veterans such as Ben Roethlisberger, Hines Ward and Troy Polamalu this will be their third Super Bowl appearance, so they have had this anxious feeling a couple of times already. As for Green Bay, a majority of Packers are first-timers and had to take it all in--taking pictures and videos with cell phones and cameras as they exited the plane earlier today.

With my two Conference Championship game picks correctly predicted, I improved my playoff record to 7-3 (WC: 3-1, Div: 2-2, Conf: 2-0).

We are poised for a fantastic showdown between two of the most balanced teams in the league. Pittsburgh's Troy Polamalu and James Harrison and Green Bay's Clay Matthews and Charles Woodson lead the two top five defenses in to Dallas for the February 6 matchup.

Elite quarterbacks Ben Roethlisberger and Aaron Rodgers are both highly successful playoff signal callers. Roethlisberger's 10-2 record shows experience, while Rodgers' 3-1 record shows how great his three-game playoff stretch this season has been.

Because of Rodgers, Green Bay has already forgotten about the legendary Brett Favre, who handed the Pack their last Super Bowl championship following the 1996 season. Because of Roethlisberger, it seems as though the city of Pittsburgh has put Ben's past behind them and has given him their full support. After all, winning cures everything.

It's obvious that both teams have the talent and ability to win this game, so it may end up being experience that prevails in this game. This is Pittsburgh head coach Mike Tomlin's second Super Bowl, and Green Bay head coach Mike McCarthy's first. Green Bay, in fact, has just two players with Super Bowl experience: Charles Woodson and Ryan Picket. Pittsburgh has 25.

Either way, should be a great game on Sunday. My game prediction will be coming later this week.

Photo credit

Ben Roethlisberger: Matthew Emmons-U.S. Presswire
Aaron Rodgers: Jeff Hanisch-U.S. Presswire

Richard Seymour, You Sir, Are a Disgrace to the National Football League

While a Patriot, defensive end Richard Seymour was always a player I respected. He was always a guy who I saw as a hard-worker who did what it takes to win games for his team. His 227 tackles and 39 sacks in eight seasons with the Patriots is proof of his hard work and a salute to his solid NFL career.

Now a Raider since last season, Seymour has recorded 60 tackles and 8.5 sacks in his 25 games in Oakland.

Unfortunately, all respect I had for him is gone after watching his unsportsmanlike display in yesterday's ugly 35-3 loss to the 7-3 Pittsburgh Steelers.

After Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to rookie wideout Emmanuel Sanders he went up behind Seymour and appeared to say something to him. Seymour then turned around and threw an open-hand "punch" at Roethlisberger, knocking him to the ground. The officials went on to eject him from the game.

Now, of course, Roethlisberger isn't quite innocent in this incident as we see him clearly saying something to him to provoke the punch, but that does not mean Seymour shouldn't get in trouble. Goodell fined him $25,000 today, but I think the punch certainly warrants a suspension of at least one game. There's absolutely no excuse for a 31-year old man to punch another player on the football field. Wasn't he ever taught not to let your emotions get the best of you, especially on the field? Kids are told that by their youth football coaches all the time, why can't a grown man understand this concept?

Unacceptable.

And what makes it even worse is, after further research, it has come to my attention that this is not the first time he's been fined for unnecessary roughness after the whistle. Last December he was ejected and fined $10,000 for hitting Cleveland's running back Jerome Harrison after the play was dead. One thing is for sure, Seymour doesn't like the AFC North too much.

Photo Credit

Richard Seymour: AP Photo/Keith Srakocic

MNF Live Blog/Game Notes: Pittsburgh Travels to Cincinnati

The Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals face off in this fierce AFC North division battle. The 5-2 Steelers are looking to join the 6-2 Baltimore Ravens atop the division while Carson Palmer and his 2-5 Bengals are just trying to stay in the playoff hunt.

*Cincinnati fumbles the opening kickoff, forced by rookie wideout Emmanuel Sanders, and the Steelers take advantage of the short field as Rashard Mendenhall takes it in from one yard out.

*Less than ten minutes later veteran kicker Jeff Reed extends the early lead to 10 with a 25-yard field goal.

*Fast fact: Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is 11-2 in his career in Ohio (6-1, 5-1 @ Browns/Bengals).

*Update after opening quarter: Cincinnati has run the ball with Benson nine times already (41 yards), with only four pass attempts from Carson Palmer. Good to see the Bengals are not panicking despite the slow start.

*Special team miscues are the only difference in this game so far, but they may have made up for those as they just downed a punt inside Pittsburgh's two-yard line.

*Isaac Redman, Pittsburgh's short yardage back, starts this drive off with a run up the middle. Interesting stat from coach Jon Gruden: Cincinnati has allowed the most scoring drives of 80-plus yards this season.

*Something to watch out for throughout the remainder of the game is Terrell Owens, who was rolled up on while blocking during Cincinnati's last offensive drive. He looks to be a little shaken but stayed in the game. Not too serious, but no reason why you shouldn't keep an eye out.

*Despite his costly fumble last Sunday night against the Saints, tight end Heath Miller has been very reliable throughout his career and may be one of Roethlisberger's most underrated targets coming off the line.

*Another injury to Pittsburgh's offensive line, it's rookie center Maurkice Pouncey this time as we take another injury timeout. Big Ben has already had to shake off quite a few defenders to avoid any and all sack opportunities for Cincy's defense. This could prove costly for the Steelers' offensive attack.

*Any more injuries to the Steelers' line and they may have to use a backup defensive lineman as Big Ben's center.

*Hines Ward's streak of games with a reception has been extended to 186, just four behind Marvin Harrison's 190, and almost a hundred behind Jerry Rice's 274.

*Costly fumble for the Steelers, giving Cincinnati it's first scoring opportunity. This will be important for the Bengals. If they don't take advantage they may be in for some trouble later on.

*Palmer-T.O. connection cuts the Steelers lead to just three, 10-7 after the extra point. Both touchdowns have been the result of costly turnovers...Terrell Owens now has three receptions for 49 yards and a score in about a quarter and a half of play. The touchdown is No. 150 for Owens, just three shy of Randy Moss's 153.

*With eight minutes remaining in the second quarter, both Pouncey and Chris Kemoeatu continue to be out of the game. Pouncey had to go to the locker room while Kemoeatu is sitting on the sideline attempting to get taped up. Stay tuned for more injury updates when I get them.

*Owens has quickly become Palmer's go-to guy this season as he makes yet another catch, his fourth of the evening. Ochocinco has attracted more defenders, giving Owens, the future Hall of Famer, plenty of open looks thus far.

*Palmer looking like a rookie out there with that interception, throwing in to triple coverage on third down. That now gives Pittsburgh two first half turnovers and Big Ben gets the ball at about midfield with plenty of time to work with to try and add to the lead before the half.

*Hines Ward's 83 career touchdown (second on franchise's all-time list behind HOFer Franco Harris) comes with just over two minutes remaining. Despite recent struggles in the red zone this season, Roethlisberger finds Mr. Reliable for a short 8-yard touchdown to extend the lead back to 10 points.

*Mike Wallace has made a couple of nice grabs tonight, but that last drop was very costly. Pittsburgh is forced to attempt a 53-yard field goal. Jeff Reed, a pretty reliable veteran kicker, drills it, tying his career-high.

*Halftime score: Steelers 20, Bengals 7. Pittsburgh will receive the ball to start the second half, coming up in about 10 minutes.

**Cincinnati's pressure finally gets to Roethlisberger as he tries to avoid the rush. Robert Geathers records Cincy's first sack of the night as they force the 3&out on the opening drive of the second half.

**Relatively quiet so far tonight (five tackles, two for loss), James Harrison is shaken up on the field, forcing another injury timeout. When the game resumes Cincinnati will be facing fourth down, giving Pittsburgh the ball back.

**Both teams have exchanged punts throughout the third quarter, with the defenses dominated on both sides of the ball. About two and a half minutes to play in the quarter and the score is still 20-7. For Pittsburgh, James Farrior, James Harrison and Lamarr Woodley have all recorded sacks on Palmer as Pittsburgh gets the ball back once again.

**If Mendenhall can put the ball in the end zone during this drive, they could put the game away despite having a full quarter left to play. Terrell Owens seems to be the only Bengal still playing hard. Even Carson seems to have given up all hope...this game is a must-win for Cincy and it doesn't look like they want it at all. Shameful, really.

**End of quarter three, scoreless quarter. Just two penalties apiece throughout the game, and almost all of the statistical categories (except the score, of course) seem to be relatively even. If Cincinnati can get a defensive stop and get their heads back in the game they could turn it around. They have to want it for this to work, though.

**You can erase that whole last statement. Pittsburgh uses trickery (WR option pass from Randle El to Mike Wallace) for a long 39-yard touchdown pass, taking advantage of the injury to Cincy's Chris Crocker, who came out of the game after suffering an injury in the third quarter. 27-7 Pittsburgh, 14:50 remaining in the game.

**Owens is putting on a clinic for Pittsburgh's secondary as he makes his second touchdown catch of the night (151st of his prolonged career), which also happened to be his eighth catch of the game, giving him 118 yards through the air. Pittsburgh needs to establish the run game this drive in order to run out some clock...27-14 with just over 13 minutes to play.

**Another opportunity for Cincinnati to take advantage of as safety Roy Williams picks off Roethlisberger after an errant misses tight end Heath Miller. And, to top it all off, there was yet another injury timeout for Isaac Redman (turns out he's ok) and a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Flozell Adams. Palmer has a shot at turning this thing around.

**Oh my, a late pass interference call made against Ike Taylor as he was covering Owens in the end zone. Cincinnati gets the ball at the one. Looks like I spoke too soon with the "not many penalties" statement.

**Benson punches it in from one yard out, Newgent kicks the extra point throught the uprights...27-21 with under 10 to play. Boy have the tables turned in the past four minutes of play. Looks for a fantastic finish in this game.

**Looks like one of my above statements was jinxed once again. The "usually pretty reliable veteran" kicker Jeff Reed missed from 46 yards out and his 2010 struggles continue (sixth miss this season, most of which have come at very bad times).

**The missed field goal gives Cincinnati solid field position to start as we hit the two minute warning..

**Cincinnati put together a solid-looking drive, but it sputtered a bit with a 10-yard holding penalty and a couple of dropped passes. Pittsburgh's defense held up in the end as Cincinnati turned the ball over on downs and Roethlisberger kneeled the ball a couple of times.

---Pittsburgh survives late scare to improve to 6-2, tied with Baltimore atop division (Baltimore holds head-to-head tiebreaker), while Cincinnati drops to 2-6. Hope you enjoyed following the action here on my blog. Come back next week for more live blog action!

At 3-0, Roethlisberger-less Steelers Sit atop Power Rankings

Heading in to week four, the Pittsburgh Steelers, playing with its fourth string quarterback Charlie Batch, are one of the three undefeated teams remaining. What may be even more surprising may be who they beat, and how they won.

It's clear that Pittsburgh's "Steel Curtain" defense of old is back in action with the return of safety Troy Polamalu lurking the defensive backfield. Dick LeBeau's defense is ranked No. 1 in scoring, with just 11 points per game allowed, and fourth in the league in sacks.

Two of the team's three games were against possible playoff contenders, Atlanta and Tennessee, and the third, Tampa Bay, has gotten off to a surprising 2-1 start. Just two touchdowns allowed on defense and a week three blowout against the Bucs is what has the nation convinced that Blitzburgh is back in 2010.

With one last game without the suspended Ben Roethlisberger under center (Sunday v.s. 2-1 Baltimore), the Steelers have a shot at starting the season with a 4-0 record. And with Baltimore running back Ray Rice banged up, Pittsburgh shouldn't have much trouble keeping the Ravens one dimensional, meaning another victory in the 'W' column.

Photo Credit: AP Photo/Chris O'Meara

Suspension for Big Ben?

It is still uncertain whether or not the Pittsburgh Steeler quarterback will be suspended to start the 2010 regular season, though all signs seem to be pointing in that direction.

The NFL has stated that the announcement is likely to be made after the draft at the earliest, and even the Rooney's seem to think a suspension is in place for their star quarterback.

The punishment seems inevitable at this point. Although there weren't any criminal charges against him, the memo Commissioner Goodell sent to teams last week is a clue of what's coming for the 6-foot-5, 240 pound signal caller. In the statement, Goodell said:

"The Policy makes clear that NFL and club personnel must do more than simply avoid criminal behavior. We must conduct ourselves in a way that 'is responsible, that promotes the values upon which the league is based, and is lawful."

Basically, what he is saying is that he doesn't care if you are found guilty of it or not, you're gonna be punished. Note to players: watch out for who you hang out with. People are going to be out to get you more than ever.

If nothing else, I think Goodell punishes Ben to show that he doesn't hand out special treatment to any certain player. Goodell has done a nice job at handling trouble-makers so far.

Big Ben gets a 2-4 game suspension to start the season. Put your money on it.