header image 1

Steelers Hangover: So Much for 16-0 (or, Go Get Yourself Some Cheap Sunglasses)

September 28th, 2009 · Steelers

Just one month ago, as the summer rolled on and the ‘Burgh was still basking in the glow of two incredible championships, long-time Pittsburgh Post-Gazette columnist Bob Smizik tempted fate by lamenting that the Steelers were “so good they’re boring.”

Back then, it seemed like the weather would never turn and the city’s collective cerveza buzz would never fade.

But on Monday morning, September 28, 2009, Pittsburghers were awakened by the sound of a chill wind tapping a naked, brown tree branch against their window. Welcome back to reality, Steelers fans. The heartburn. The pillow punching. The berating of the deaf television. A Super Bowl will make you forget what it’s really like to be an NFL fan.

While the previous weekend’s ill-fated trip to the windy city was written off as a fluke, Sunday’s shocking 23-20 loss in Cincinnati was a reality check for Steelers Nation, and especially for the punch-drunk media members who predicted a near perfect season.

Recently Updated22Congrats, on winning your Super Bowl, Cincinnati! We’d come join you in celebration, but your city makes Cleveland look like Barbados. Plus, we kind of had this G-20 thing, so…

Just a few weeks removed from being untouchable juggernauts, the 1-2 Steelers are now bracing for a potential must-win game against the frisky and revenge-minded San Diego Chargers. If the Ravens take down the Patriots this Sunday afternoon, the Steelers will walk into Heinz Field for Sunday Night Football staring up at a three-game deficit in the AFC North.

With the Ravens’ Joe Flacco looking like the real deal Hollyfield, throwing for 839 yards and six touchdowns in his first three games, the Steelers can’t afford to give Baltimore that kind of cushion.

So much for boredom.

In the NFL, the line between success and failure is wafer thin. Take wide receiver Limas Sweed, for example. By all accounts, the second-year receiver worked his tail off this spring to make up for a disheartening rookie season, and was one of the Steelers’ most impressive players in the pre-season, fighting through contact to come down with balls over the middle – an area of the field where he had previously sprouted alligator arms.

On Sunday, the path of Sweed’s career changed in an instant. If he had held onto his game-changing dropped touchdown pass for just one more second, Steelers fans would be trumpeting his transformation from zero to hero from high atop Mt. Washington.

Instead, I saw Sweed’s number 14 jersey on a Fayette County goat this morning. Fitting, since Sweed may very well lose his starting job to old Shaun McDonald.

Coach Mike Tomlin now has to make a tough decision. With the swift and sure handed Mike Wallace proving that he can host play 60 minutes by racking up 7 receptions for 102 yards in only his third NFL game, the Steelers already have the big play threat that Sweed once promised. (Kudos to Wallace for using his blazing speed as a decoy to get cushion from defenders, grabbing easy first downs)

On the flip side, if Tomlin yanks the 6”4 Sweed from the lineup, the Steelers won’t have a starting wide receiver over six feet tall. The Steelers have a wealth of possession receivers, but no big target. That could prove to be a problem in goal line situations when space is at a premium and the only place to go is up.

Desktop1With Sweed out of the equation, there won’t be a fade in sight.

It’s easy to blame Sweed for this loss, but it was only one play. Like last week in Chicago, the Steelers defense had plenty of opportunities to slam the door on a lackluster offense, but instead let a skittish quarterback loiter in the pocket like an amateur Anarchist in Lawrenceville.

The hogs on the Steelers’ offensive line held up their end of the bargain, letting up only one sack, but the defense could only manage two on Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer, who at this point in his career is as spry as an overfed English Mastiff.

Recently Updated23Say what?

This whole debacle, like the Chicago game, was not lost because of coaching mistakes (Tomlin’s decision to go for it on 4th and 4 in the first half), or miscommunications (Holmes turning left instead of right on Roethlisberger’s pick-six) or even missed field goals (Reed’s string of hook-shots that would make Doctor J blush). Nope. Both of these games were lost in the trenches.

Cedric Benson’s 23-yard scamper to bring the Bengals back into the game was resisted only by James Farrior’s pinky finger. Fill-in safety Tyrone Carter’s pursuit angle on the play will undoubtedly cause some spittle to fly in the film room, and compared to Sweed’s drop, is actually more concerning with Troy Polamalu out another few weeks. The Steelers have depth at receiver, but the cupboard is bare at safety.

While the media outlets will nearly burn out their LCD bulbs replaying Sweed’s Herculean blunder, the single image that should stick in the craniums of Steelers fans happened on the final drive of the game.

With game on the line, the Bengals faced a 4th and 10 from the Pittsburgh 15. Despite all the gaffes that came before that play, the Steelers had a chance to win the game if they could dig deep for one more play and get pressure on Palmer. As the teams broke their respective huddles, CBS cut to a close-up of linebacker James Harrison.

You didn’t need a plasma screen or Jim Nantz to smarmily to tell you what would happen next. You could see it in Harrison’s exhausted eyes.

Winning one NFL game, let alone a Super Bowl, takes an unbelievable amount of sacrifice. As the Steelers search within themselves to rekindle the wild-eyed fire and perseverance that carried them to their sixth Super Bowl, perhaps the dreary autumn clouds looming over Pittsburgh will help fans truly appreciate just how good we had it in the sun.

When your teacher calls you up to the blackboard to correct a mistake in front of the whole class, it seems like you’ll never get another A+. When the phone stops ringing at work, it seems like you’ll never make another sale. When you strike out at a South Side bar, it seems like you’ll never get another number. Maybe that’s why we love football in this town. Redemption is always just six days around the corner.

And remember, seasons are long. With Roethlisberger playing the best football of his career and master motivator Tomlin greeting the Steelers at practice on Tuesday, the sun will shine again soon.

Screen Captures17So keep your shades on, Pittsburgh

Share on Facebook

→ 10 CommentsTags:

Steelers’ White Collar Offense Could Use Some Elbow Grease

September 21st, 2009 · Steelers

Apologies in advance, but this week’s Steelers Hangover is rated NC-17.

Pardon us, but after watching the Steelers lose 17-14 in Chicago, Pulling No Punches has its mind in the gutter…because the Steelers’ backfield looked a bit naked and exposed.

One loss and suddenly every talk radio caller is wondering where their beloved hard-nosed, bare-knuckle, Smash Mouth Football has gone. Most of the consternation is aimed in the direction of Willie Parker, who, in the first two games, has pranced and danced apprehensively behind his blockers like Michael Flatley, Lord of the Dance.

My Pictures8Hit the hole, Willie.

But anxious Steelers fans need to see the forest from the trees. Let’s not look at what is there (Parker and his backfield buddies), but rather what’s missing.

In 2007, newly arrived coach Mike Tomlin brought a fresh perspective to the Steel City. Most of his changes helped to modernize an offensive philosophy that was stuck in the Cold War era, but bringing over the “single back” offense from his former employer, the Minnesota Vikings, Tomlin tossed out the staple ofPittsburgh Smash Mouth Football – the fullback.

Remember the fullback? Squat, stocky, built like a weeble wobble. From Rocky Bleier to Merrill Hoge to Dan Kreider, the Steelers had always employed an obstinate, ill-humored fullback, or “blocking back,” since the 1970s glory days. That all changed when Tomlin brought offensive coordinator Bruce Arians into the fold. Arians hates fullbacks like I hate parking in the South Side.

My Pictures7Duquesne University needs to start offering a class called Park Like a Human Being 101

In principle, the move was made to give quarterback Ben Roethlisberger an additional downfield receiving threat by swapping out a slow, fumble-fingered fullback for a more versatile tight end or wide receiver.

But you can’t smash mouths without a proper battering ram, and since the fullback was phased out in 2007, the Steelers’ ground game has lost its consistency – its oomph, especially in crucial short yardage situations.

Picasa 3 9212009 64023 PMThis is what you look like when the Steelers have a 3rd and short.

Proponents of the single back offense argue that the extra tight end on the line of scrimmage aids pass protection and guards Roethlisberger’s ever-vulnerable blind side. However, the statistics from last season show an insignificant increase in protection.

Roethlisberger was sacked only two more times out of single tight end sets (15) than double tight end sets (13). In fact, his completion percentage was better in 2008 out of single tight end formations compared to double tight end formations: 61% versus 56%. His yards per pass average was also slightly better with only one tight end.

More importantly, by playing without a blocking back to catch the leaks that seep through the offensive line, not to mention open up holes that aren’t thereinitially (like Kreider used to), the Steelers have been flaccid and predictable when they need just another yard or two to extend drives.

Recently Updated20Forget a yellow pill, the best medicine for the Steelers’ impotence on third and short is to bring out the fullback in key situations.

Sunday’s loss to the Bears is a prime example. The game turned not on kicker Jeff Reed’s two field goal misses, but on failed third down conversions in crunch time. While the Steelers had to respect the Bears’ running game on third down, Chicago was able to sick the dogs on Roethlisberger without worrying about a quick handoff burning them up the middle.

Two third downs failures came back to haunt the Steelers.

The first missed opportunity came early in the second half on a 3rd and short near midfield. With just a single yard to gain, Roethlisberger lined up in the Shotgun like he was playing touch football in Lawrenceville. Shockingly, he was sacked, which ended a nice drive and let the Bears hang around a little too long, like an annoying friend.

Recently Updated17Hey dude, mind if I crash on your couch until I decide whether I want to play Frisbee or kick around a beach ball? Oh, and I ate some of your chips. Hope it’s cool.

Yet again, on the Steelers’ last possession of the game, Arians wasn’t confident that his running game could get him six feet – enough to salt away the game and get Reed some much needed cushion on a wet, muddy field. Pick up a few steps, and it’s game over.

But on 3rd and 2 from the Chicago 25, Roethlisberger again dropped back to pass, failing to connect downfield with Santonio Holmes, leading to Reed’s missed 43-yarder and an all-inclusive trip to the Heartbreak Hotel.

In 2008, the Steelers made something out of nothing time and time again. They were Copperfield. But in 2009, they’re Criss Angel. The illusion of Three Yards and a Cloud of Dust, Pittsburgh Steeler Football with a capital F, is waning.

In order to win close games, the Steelers don’t necessarily need to grind out every third down between the tackles, but they need to make their opponents at least think they can. Right now, no defense in the NFL is buying a Steelers play-action fake on third and short. Pittsburgh’s blue collar football identity has gone the way of the fullback, and well, the blue collar itself. It’s becoming extinct. Even for an incredibly deep and talented team like the Steelers, that is a legitimate concern.

Mark it down: 230-pound rookie fullback Frank “The Tank” Summers will see more of the field in the coming weeks, and the Steelers will have more success on the ground.

Recently Updated19Let me hear you, Pittsburgh: “Frank the Tank! Frank the Tank!”

Share on Facebook

→ 4 CommentsTags:·

Steelers Hangover Week 1: 13 Real Points, 0 Style Points, and a Win

September 11th, 2009 · Steelers

Welcome to the premier edition of the Steelers Hangover. Have a seat, take an aspirin, and let’s quietly reflect on the Sunday Thursday that was in the NFL.

Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin has a thing for catch phrases. Throughout the pre-season, Tomlin preached a minimalist philosophy.

“We don’t care about style points,” he kept telling the media.

Boy, I’ll say.

Aside from Stefan “Little Bit” Logan’s tantalizing opening kickoff return, the Steelers were far from stylish in their 13-10 Week 1 victory over the Tennessee Titans. Pittsburgh’s running game was $7 Wal-Mart jeans and their pass protection was 80s bangs.

The nationally televised kickoff bash will undoubtedly send both teams spiraling down the fabled “Power Rankings” on the hyper-reactionary mainstream sports web sites, not to mention downgrade their respective “contender” statuses the minds of America’s ADD-riddled football fans, but don’t be fooled. This was a tight, tactical, hard-nosed game featuring two elite AFC defenses.

 Picasa 3 9112009 13829 PM

This is the NFL, not Dancing with the Stars.

Style points be darned, the Steelers won the game and Titans running back LenDale White went trotting back to Tennessee without a Terrible Towel to trounce on. Mr. White, who tipped-toed for a whopping 28 yards on Thursday, did not keep his promise.

“If there is a towel in the stands, I will stomp on it,” White promised reporters before the game. “I don’t care who gets mad.”

Well, Mr. White, like they say in Congress…

 Screen Captures8
“You lie!”

The Steelers snatched victory from the jaws of defeat because the defense was handing out Federal-sized bailouts all night long. The dominance of the defense, both last night and last season, was underlined in big, bold Sharpie marker by the ludicrous pass interference call on Troy Polamalu in the second quarter. In the last five years, the NFL has done everything in its power to favor wide receivers, as last night’s phantom call is evidence of. And yet in 2008, the Steelers defense allowed the fewest yards per play in the last three decades.

Unreal.

 My Pictures5-1The Steelers/Titans officiating crew was doing its best “distracted pro wrestling referee” impression last night.

Before I get tipsy off all this whine…on to the premier edition of The Steelers Hangover Awards!

Double Yoi! Play of the Week
The first-ever Double Yoi! Play of the Week goes to the Heinz Field PA crew, who boldly waited to unleash the legendary Styx “Renegade” montage until the twilight of the fourth quarter, when the Steelers defense desperately needed to come up with a stop. Casey Hampton reacted like he just found a treasure trove of Chicken McNuggets.

With just a few muffled percussions, Heinz Field was transformed from a public library into a raucous 12th man. If the Director of Rock (I made that up) would have jumped the gun and pulled out Styx at the beginning of the fourth quarter, as per usual, the Steelers would be 0-1. Believe it.

Collages10

The Fail Dog Display of Ineptitude of the Week
The Display of Ineptitude of the Week, inspired by FailDogs.com, goes out to the heavily inebriated gentleman in the Kevin Greene jersey who sat behind me in peanut heaven at Heinz Field last night.

With the Steelers driving deep into Titans territory, the man publicly lamented the Steelers’ running strategy.

“Here we go again,” he screamed. “(Offensive coordinator) Arians couldn’t score in the Red Zone if his (bleepin’) life depended on it.”

And so on.

It’s common knowledge among Steelers fans that the team cannot score touchdowns in the red zone, and naturally Arians is the culprit. Great logic. The only problem is that it’s entirely untrue. It’s Steelers Nation’s own little “Death Panels for Granny.”

Actually, the Steelers were seventh best in the league in red zone efficiency in 2008. So, sorry, Mr. Drunkasaurus Rex, but you are the recipient of the premier Fail Dog Display of Ineptitude of the Week award.

 Screen Captures13

What Did We Learn This Week, Children?
We learned that an intangible little miracle called “chemistry” doesn’t make your offensive line any better in one off-season. We also learned that Santonio Holmes is ready to pick up right where he left off, literally, after he grabbed a quiet 131 yards and one touchdown against a very astute Titans secondary (Holmes had exactly the same statistics in last year’s Super Bowl. Spooky.)

Thanks to Hines Ward’s bizarre fumble, we even learned that if you give Ben Roethlisberger (33-for-43, 363 yards, 1TD) two do-or-die drives, he’ll lead his team down the field on both of them, no questions asked (thank you and drive home safely).  

Finally, in just a quarter and a half, we learned that Troy Polamalu is unequivocally the best open-field tackler in the NFL. Forget the one-handed interception. His back-to-back tackles on the Titans’ first drive were super human. His closing speed is more than insane. It’s Usain.

Unfortunately, we were quickly reminded that Polamalu does, in fact, put his pants on one leg at a time when he was knocked out of the game with a flukey knee injury. His sprained medial collateral will keep him out 3-6 weeks – emphasis on the six.

Consequently, we learned that the Madden curse is still as real as ever (which makes sense, because Willie Parker looked like he was running against the “All-Madden” defense on Xbox).

But as unbelievable as it may seem, the most important thing that we learned on Thursday night is that the Steelers defense is so stacked that it can manhandle last season’s best regular season team – even with the league’s most dynamic, full-bodied safety on the sidelines.

So relax, Pittsburgh. It might not always be pretty, but you are watching something truly beautiful.

Now on to Chicago.

Share on Facebook

→ 3 CommentsTags:··

You Stay Classy, Pitt Fans

September 8th, 2009 · Uncategorized

This season’s marketing slogan for Pitt football is “My City. My Panthers.”

Someone must have forgot to tell the boo birds at Heinz Field this past weekend to have a little parochial pride.

The fans weren’t booing the team, who routed The Sisters of the Poor, I mean Youngstown State 38-3 in the season opener. Large pockets of haters in the 48,000-strong crowd pointed their verbal barbs at one man – quarterback Bill Stull.

Nearly every time Stull sauntered out onto the field, he was accompanied by the standard Kordellian chorus of disapproval that all struggling Pittsburgh quarterbacks have come to know even in their dreams. But particularly sloshed fans also filled in the silences with one-liners that were aggressively vile and deeply personal. And they certainly can’t be replicated here.

What’s more concerning is that the boos came raining down in the midst of a solid game by Stull’s standards – 11-for-16 for 123 yards and two, count ‘em two touchdowns. That’s what the experts call game management.

Recently Updated27
Remember me? Not a game manager. Not even a game middle manager.

Come on, Pitt fans. This is your quarterback.

Stull is not some prep school transplant from California, he’s a local boy. Like Dan Marino, the Seton La-Salle grad was born in Pittsburgh and conquered the fields of the WPIAL before wearing the blue and gold. Unfortunately, Stull’s career has been marked by injuries and far from reminiscent of Dan the Man’s tenure in Oakland.

Stull’s meltdown in last year’s 3-0 Sun Bowl loss to Oregon State was preposterously epic. His 7-for-24, 52-yard, one interception performance was ripe for a YouTube montage, complete with a medley of cartoon sound effects – Zoinks! Whoop! Clonk!

After Stull stepped on that garden rake, Pitt fans tried to throw him under a PAT bus, but it was late, as usual. So instead they took to the message boards and talk radio airwaves to spew their hack-tooey tirades against the quarterback.

Collages10
It’s easier to catch the H1N1 than to catch the 61A out of Oakland

Often, the voices on the other end of the line didn’t offer any gravitas – instead opting to fan the flames. Mark Madden branded Stull – who sports studded earrings and a highly questionable, non-ironic, non-playoff beard –  “the Mt. Lebanon gangster,” among other things, and insinuated that his teammates are tired of his prima donna attitude.

In a recent column, Madden suggested that Stull is fair game for the harsh criticism because he is “providing a service in exchange for a valuable commodity, a college education.”

Soft argument from the purported “super genius.”

Yes, Stull is enjoying a tuition-less education because of his athletic prowess, but nothing in this world is really free. College football is a full-time job. D-1 football players sacrifice an average of 40 hours or more per week for their sport.  While most college students nurse weekday hangovers with hazy Maury Povich marathons, Stull is putting in extra work.

After hours of practice, weight room reps, film study, flights, and (wait for it) media engagements, Stull still has to sit down in the classroom next to some of his harshest critics. Think the jeers fade after he leaves Heinz Field? He has to hear it in the halls, in the cafeteria, at parties.

“If you think the critics are tough on me, you should see how I am on myself,” Stull said. “You can’t say anything worse than I say to myself.”

Hear that, haters? Stull knows that he has underperformed. He doesn’t need fellow students, alumni and talk show hosts sniping at him after every game. Welcome to the new age of cathartic self-loathing. Instead of rooting for the local kid, you can almost hear the undercurrent of “Why wasn’t it me (or my kid)?” in every pot shot.

Boo birds have been around since they figured out how to lace up pigskin, but the mud being slung at Stull’s character and the verbal insults hurled toward his family members –who sit in the stands at every game – is a new kind of dirty.

It may be Your City. Your Panthers. But that ain’t your momma’, so please shut your mouth and enjoy the game.

Share on Facebook

→ 3 CommentsTags:

Steelers Season Preview Part Two: Pittsburgh Fast to Forget About Willie

September 3rd, 2009 · Steelers

Pittsburgh, for all its rich history and culture, is quick to proclaim “new eras.”

As the upcoming G-20 Summit is evidence of, the innate ability of Pittsburghers to embrace change has helped the city escape the choke of mill soot and Iron City hangovers of yore for a blue sky future of service economy nerdery and Hofbrauhaus happy hours.

 Recently Updated20
A South Side bartender wouldn’t be caught dead carrying a beer-amid in the 70s. Welcome to the New World Order.

Economically, new eras are great. In sports, they don’t always work out as planned.

Case in point: the Rashard Mendenhall era.

Like the Terry “Put In” Hanratty era of the 1970s, the Tim “Woops” Worley era of the early 90s, and the Kendrell “Don’t Call Me Boo” Bell era of the 2000s, the Rashard Mendenhall era was born of hype and hyperbole. Before he had even played an NFL pre-season game, many in Steelers Nation couldn’t wait to anoint Mendenhall as the next Adrian Peterson – an explosive, shifty runner destined to take the NFL by storm.

Judging solely from Mendenhall’s 214-yard performance against the vaunted USC defense in the 2008 Rose Bowl, there was certainly cause for delirium. Alas, after the Steelers drafted Mendenhall in the first round in 2008, Pittsburghers rummaged through their garages to find a shovel for the burial of Willie Parker, their decidedly over-the-hill two-time Pro Bowler.

Such is life in the ‘Burgh. One minute you’re Donny Iris, the next you’re Donny Osmond.

 Recently Updated18
“I resent that.”

Now, just one year after the Mendenhall era was postponed in its infancy by a bone-crunching Ray Lewis hit that placed the rookie running back on injured reserve, Steelers fans are already wondering aloud if the former Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year is a bust.

To be fair, it’s not Mendenhall’s fault that Lewis separated his shoulder. Injuries happen. But the way he has shuddered at impending contact and gone down to the turf at first resistance during the pre-season is cause for concern. Behind the Steelers’ beleaguered offensive line, you need to be able to fight through contact, because if last season is any indication, running lanes will be tighter than distressed jeans on a Bloomfield hipster.

Recently Updated24 
And boy, that’s tight.

So if Mendenhall isn’t ready to emerge as a reliable option in 2009, who will shoulder the other half of Willie Parker’s workload?

Here’s an idea: How about Willie Parker?

And just as you nearly spill Rolling Rock all over your keyboard trying to e-mail Pulling No Punches with the salient point that “Parker broke down in the middle of last season,” it is here that PNP says to you: Precisely.

Coach Mike Tomlin’s 2007 promise that the team would “ride Willie until the wheels fall off” turned out to be a prophecy. In back-to-back years, 2006 and 2007, Parker was given over 300 carries, the consensus “tipping point” for the durability of NFL running backs. Predictably, the undersized 5”10, 210 pound party-bus broke down last season and was sidelined for five regular season games.

But while Parker did flounder after returning from his knee injury in the second half of the season, his 146-yard, two touchdown jaunt through the San Diego Chargers defense in the AFC Divisional Playoffs is proof-positive that his race is far from run.

Recently Updated25
Ready to throw the dirt on Willie? Not so fast. They thought pro wrestling’s infamous Undertaker was buried alive, too. Parker will be back with purple gloves on in 2009.

If there is one quality Parker has shown in spades, it’s resiliency. This is a man who was effectively benched for the final three years of his college career at the University of North Carolina, who clawed his way onto an NFL team as an undrafted free agent, and who – in the span of one year - went from fourth-string tackling dummy at the Steelers’ South Side practice facility to scampering for the longest rushing touchdown in Super Bowl history.

Last year’s disappointing season may have been a blessing in disguise for Fast Willie, because his injury reduced his workload to a light 210 carries. Fully healthy, Parker is a very effective running back.

Not convinced? Very well then, let’s get studious and look at some statistics.

 Recently Updated23
The proof is in the pudding pops.

Over the past four seasons, Willie Parker has rushed for 4,808 yards, averaging 4.3 yards per carry. On the ground, he has outperformed puffed up, Nike-sponsored peers like Clinton Portis and Steven Jackson. Jackson, two years Parker’s junior, has rushed for 200 less yards on roughly the same amount of carries. And 90 of his yards came from the greatest commercial in the history of the Western world.

Portis, considered a top 10 back, has gained 4,788 yards over the same span, but saw more carries than Parker. He averaged 4.2 yards per carry.

While Portis and Jackson pose bigger threats catching passes out of the backfield, it’s an erroneous point because the Steelers have always utilized a specialty third down running back this decade – from the sneakily productive Verron Haynes to the mercurial Mewelde Moore.

“Waltzing” Mewelde has passing situations covered. What the Steelers need is a capable runner for frigid late December games in the muck and the mire of Heinz Field when they will be forced to rely on ground-and-pound football. If Steelers fans are going into 2009 with doubts that Parker is the man for the job, the glint of his two Super Bowl rings should shine some light on the conundrum.

 Recently Updated22
Shield your eyes, Baltimore.

If you’re still restless, just ask yourself, “How would I feel if Clinton Portis was the Steelers running back?” As a pure runner, Parker is actually more efficient.

Of course, all of this casually ignores the elephant in the room – the dreaded Red Zone. Over the past decade, the Steelers have vacillated from quirky to infuriating when they are knocking on their opponents’ doorstep. The last 10 yards always seem the hardest. Last season, offensive coordinator Bruce Arians seemed to have found an answer to the Red Zone dilemma by abandoning the traditional Pittsburgh dogma of “pack the hogs in tight and pound the ball in” for more spread out, unpredictable philosophy.

The Red Zone is where the versatile Mendenhall can make an immediate impact in 2009. In fact, he has the opportunity to become a touchdown thief on par with Jerome Bettis. But first, he needs to learn a lesson or two from his predecessor about resiliency and toughness.

The emerging crop of Mendenhall doubters like to point out that the former Fighting Illini star only had one great season in college, where he ran for over 1,000 yards. That’s true, and maybe in the end he will go the way of “Woops” Worley and countless other busts, but if I was Willie Parker, I would sit down next to the 22-year-old, put my arm around him and say…

“Know how many 1,000 yard seasons I had in college? Zero. Now start running like you’ve got bills to pay.”

Do you think Willie Parker is past his prime? How do you think Rashard Mendenhall looks in pre-season? We want to hear from Steelers Nation in the Comments section.

Share on Facebook

→ 11 CommentsTags:···