Steelers Week 14, Reflections (Part 1)

Ah, that sucks. The season is over.  We looked so good in weeks 8-12, and today we just looked (sounded, I heard this one on the radio) very very bad.  Especially our defense.  What the heck happened to the Defense?!  A warm weather team, in the snow, and the defense just give up play after play.  It's why we lost the first 4.

1. We're a Steelers team with a cruddy running game and pathetic defense.  How terrible is that?


2. I think that we'll now find out all the stories rumored about the season may be true. 


3. Ironically, I don't think Haley is as much the problem as Tomlin.  He just seems really unprofessional.  And I *know* the Rooneys won't fire him.  But they probbaly should.
4. Aditi Kinkhabwala on twitter reported at 5:10 pm:  Ben Roethlisberger asked why Steelers didn't run as much in the second half. Says, "No idea. Coach Haley's over there. You can ask him." So I ask: Why is Aditi following the team?  Why are the NFL Network guys all over Roethlisberger?  Why is the NFL gonna dock us a draft pick?   There's something freaky here.  Is it because of Clark?  Are they focusing on his team?  Is he the leak??


5.  Note, the whole quote:

   “No idea. Coach Haley’s over there. You can probably ask him. Whether it’s scheme, I don’t know. There was no particular reason. We just tried to move the ball, and I thought we did a good job passing it there, too.”

   So I really think that he actually angry at the press asking him nonsense but the horde will twist it to a Haley-Ben Battle.


6. And I know every fan complains about the refs.  But I watched every game last year and it wasn't like this.  The officiating this year is dreadful for every team, this is also true.  But in the Steelers games we almost NEVER see the calls going our way and an insane number going the other way.   It's confounding.  If I cared about our chances, if we still had a shot, I'd try to go back and chronicle it, but why bother.   We're not 5-8 because of the calls mainly because good teams overcome most of those.  But as today showed, we're just not good enough, and it's in all 3 phases... but mainly the defense.  Gevalt.


7. At the beginning of the year, I was upset that the Steelers were playing only at night because that meant I had to be depressed and sleep deprived.  Now that we play, and lose, at the 1pm, I'm depressed and miss the afternoon games.


8. I mean, I expected we'd lose one of these 3 to make it to the playoffs, but that was to be against the Packers.  We couldn't lose this one.  We're not mathematically out, sure, but we shouldn't have lost this one IF WE WERE GOOD.  But somehow the defense gave up.  I don't know why, but they just do.


9. I couldn't watch any of the later games.  I'm too depressed.


10. Howeover, I will still try to watch the Steelers in future weeks.  They occassionaly make a nice play, and that's fun to see.  


11. That's what I think makes a real fan.  I like watching them win, even when the games don't matter.  So if they win any of the last 3, it'll be fun!  And if they lose, then it doesn't matter, and it may even be better for our draft position.  So it's a win-win.  In a filthy depressing way.

What's next? THE DRAFT.  My view, right now, is that aside from Tight End, the draft should all be defense.