Don't sleep on Dallas

[Oviedo]

They are playing for pride and still have one of the best RBs in the game and we have a depleted defensive line. They will want to control the clock and keep our offense off the field. They also have the talented WRs who if they get one or two plays can take it to the house

IMO we have to get the lead early and force them to play catch up

[hawaiiansteel]

current line has the Steelers favored by 13.5

[feltdizz]

I usually don’t do this but.. ain’t no way we should lose to Dallas.

Now, I just watched Tampa struggle with the Giants so anything is possible but I would be surprised if we lost that game.

I will say, it’s the Cowboys and we are the only team they will get up for this year.

[NorthCoast]

Just rewatched PIT-BAL game. I have to say Mr Buggs had a very good second half. He just needs more playing time and he could excel.
DAL OL is JV. I don't care who the Steelers put out there, there's no reason they shouldn't manhandle them all day long.
Pride may keep them in the game early but it won't last 60 minutes.

[Steel Maniac]

34-10 Steelers

[Oviedo]

Not sure it matters if they start Cooper Rush or Ben Denucci. Cowboys will only win if they have a dominant running day

[hawaiiansteel]

Not sure it matters if they start Cooper Rush or Ben Denucci. Cowboys will only win if they have a dominant running day

Ezekiel Elliott hasn't reached 100 yards in any game this season.

[Ghost]

DiNucci was 21-of-40 for 180 yards in Sunday night’s loss and Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said on 105.3 The Fan Tuesday that facing the Eagles was “frankly more than he could handle.” I read multiple articles saying DiNucci was completely overwhelmed by the speed of the game. Their other option is to bring up a guy who could not initially beat out the guy who could not handle live action.

This would be a horrible loss with no excuses. Dallas is a bad team with a 3rd or 4th string QB.

[Oviedo]

DiNucci was 21-of-40 for 180 yards in Sunday night’s loss and Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said on 105.3 The Fan Tuesday that facing the Eagles was “frankly more than he could handle.” I read multiple articles saying DiNucci was completely overwhelmed by the speed of the game. Their other option is to bring up a guy who could not initially beat out the guy who could not handle live action.

This would be a horrible loss with no excuses. Dallas is a bad team with a 3rd or 4th string QB.

Makes you recognize what a great job Tomlin did last year with what he didn't have. While for whatever perverse reasons some will never appreciate him as a coach, it is situations like this that you can see how lucky we are to have him.

[steeler_george]

They suck...

no D

no QB

[hawaiiansteel]

Makes you recognize what a great job Tomlin did last year with what he didn't have. While for whatever perverse reasons some will never appreciate him as a coach, it is situations like this that you can see how lucky we are to have him.

I thought last year's 8-8 season was Tomlin's finest job of coaching.

however, some will only look at that we didn't win the Super Bowl so he should be fired.

[feltdizz]

I thought last year's 8-8 season was Tomlin's finest job of coaching.

however, some will only look at that we didn't win the Super Bowl so he should be fired.

indeed. Some used the losing streak at the end to bash him but even being in a position to make the playoffs was proof Tomlin and company did a great job.

It was ugly but it worked given what we were working with last year.

Look at NE without a few key players. Straight trash and the coach is making excuses.

[NJ-STEELER]

after 2 wins on the road vs. undefeated team, this could be the classic let down game.

but dallass is so bad i think we handle them anyway

[Buzz]

Game will be uncomfortably close, but we'll pull away in the end

Steelers 27
Cowboys 19

[NorthCoast]

Steelers can play their 2nd string across the board and still beat Dallas.

[flippy]

I thought last year's 8-8 season was Tomlin's finest job of coaching.

however, some will only look at that we didn't win the Super Bowl so he should be fired.

I don’t think some hate Tomlin to the level you think they do. I sense frustration when we underperform vs expectations.

And on the flip side of last season, I think people overrated Tomlin for an 8-8 season because many expected nothing without Ben.

Tomlin’s neither as good or bad as most say. And having listened to Tomlin enough times, I tend to think he’d agree with that. I think Tomlin is pretty calm, cool, and collected. He’s a rock that consistently performs like we would expect him to. And players respond to him because he’s consistent and a player’s coach.

His success is determined by the quality of players and coaches around him. He seems to do better when surrounded by quality. I don’t see him as a play calling guru or a guy that quickly adapts. He often goes back to what he knows and tries to simplify football and much like many Steeler coaches before him, you know what to expect and he’s going to try and beat you straight up with his strengths.

A lot of times he’s a slow starter. He’s bad at clock management. He’s struggled in the playoffs. He’s struggled preparing his team for teams he should beat. His unleashing of hell is a running joke. And he’s slow to change wether it’s an ineffective Oline or DBs or punters.

But he deals well with adversity. And he gets a lot out of guys others may not.

I don’t know where he lands on talent evaluation, but I think he likes to gamble and it’s why we end up reaching more sometimes. Sometimes it works out. Other times it doesn’t.

Overall he’s sound. I think he’s one of the best leaders in the NFL. I like the guy a ton. And I totally get why some love him while he drives others nuts.

I think it’s ok to get frustrated with people you like/love. Just ask any married person. Everything is a shade of gray.

[whisper]

indeed. Some used the losing streak at the end to bash him but even being in a position to make the playoffs was proof Tomlin and company did a great job.

It was ugly but it worked given what we were working with last year.

Look at NE without a few key players. Straight trash and the coach is making excuses.

A "few key players?" The had 8 opt out from covid just for starters, and they lost the GOAT QB in the history of the NFL. They should go 0-16.

[fordfixer]

Steelers 2 Cowboys 0

[feltdizz]

A "few key players?" The had 8 opt out from covid just for starters, and they lost the GOAT QB in the history of the NFL. They should go 0-16.

No sympathy. They lost Brady, we lost Ben last year. We also lost AB due to craziness, Tuitt, Conner, Dionte, JuJu, Mason, Nix, etc for stretches last year.

Billicheat blames their lack of depth on their aggressive cap spending.

The real issue is they got away with paying players on the cheap at a lot of positions and without Brady these guys look pedestrian. Hell, last year part of the reason the faded down the stretch is their lack of talent on offense.

But how many other head coaches use this excuse when losing? He needs to suck it up and take his lumps.

Nothing last forever.

[hawaiiansteel]

I don’t think some hate Tomlin to the level you think they do.

just look at Steel Maniac's sig.

we're 7-0 and he still wants Tomlin fired.

[Steel Maniac]

I don’t think some hate Tomlin to the level you think they do. I sense frustration when we underperform vs expectations.

And on the flip side of last season, I think people overrated Tomlin for an 8-8 season because many expected nothing without Ben.

Tomlin’s neither as good or bad as most say. And having listened to Tomlin enough times, I tend to think he’d agree with that. I think Tomlin is pretty calm, cool, and collected. He’s a rock that consistently performs like we would expect him to. And players respond to him because he’s consistent and a player’s coach.

His success is determined by the quality of players and coaches around him. He seems to do better when surrounded by quality. I don’t see him as a play calling guru or a guy that quickly adapts. He often goes back to what he knows and tries to simplify football and much like many Steeler coaches before him, you know what to expect and he’s going to try and beat you straight up with his strengths.

A lot of times he’s a slow starter. He’s bad at clock management. He’s struggled in the playoffs. He’s struggled preparing his team for teams he should beat. His unleashing of hell is a running joke. And he’s slow to change wether it’s an ineffective Oline or DBs or punters.

But he deals well with adversity. And he gets a lot out of guys others may not.

I don’t know where he lands on talent evaluation, but I think he likes to gamble and it’s why we end up reaching more sometimes. Sometimes it works out. Other times it doesn’t.

Overall he’s sound. I think he’s one of the best leaders in the NFL. I like the guy a ton. And I totally get why some love him while he drives others nuts.

I think it’s ok to get frustrated with people you like/love. Just ask any married person. Everything is a shade of gray.

Thank you Flippy; You’ve stated it perfectly.

[hawaiiansteel]

Thank you Flippy; You’ve stated it perfectly.

nice sig, we're 7-0 and you still want Tomlin fired :roll:

[Northern_Blitz]

I don’t think some hate Tomlin to the level you think they do. I sense frustration when we underperform vs expectations.

And on the flip side of last season, I think people overrated Tomlin for an 8-8 season because many expected nothing without Ben.

Tomlin’s neither as good or bad as most say. And having listened to Tomlin enough times, I tend to think he’d agree with that. I think Tomlin is pretty calm, cool, and collected. He’s a rock that consistently performs like we would expect him to. And players respond to him because he’s consistent and a player’s coach.

His success is determined by the quality of players and coaches around him. He seems to do better when surrounded by quality. I don’t see him as a play calling guru or a guy that quickly adapts. He often goes back to what he knows and tries to simplify football and much like many Steeler coaches before him, you know what to expect and he’s going to try and beat you straight up with his strengths.

A lot of times he’s a slow starter. He’s bad at clock management. He’s struggled in the playoffs. He’s struggled preparing his team for teams he should beat. His unleashing of hell is a running joke. And he’s slow to change wether it’s an ineffective Oline or DBs or punters.

But he deals well with adversity. And he gets a lot out of guys others may not.

I don’t know where he lands on talent evaluation, but I think he likes to gamble and it’s why we end up reaching more sometimes. Sometimes it works out. Other times it doesn’t.

Overall he’s sound. I think he’s one of the best leaders in the NFL. I like the guy a ton. And I totally get why some love him while he drives others nuts.

I think it’s ok to get frustrated with people you like/love. Just ask any married person. Everything is a shade of gray.

It's funny.

My fantasy football league started to do automated recaps after every game a few year ago.

And the theme is usually about how certain players "underperformed" or "overperformed" based on their projected points.

It's worded as if that's about the player.

But it's really about the model that predicted the outcome.

If the team exceeded or didn't meet our expectations, I tend to believe that the problem is our expectations and not the team / players.

I think this is especially true in our case because we've had such insane long term success and we had very good fantasy football players with the Killer Bs. That second part means that I think a lot of people over rated our talent because we had very good skill players.

And the problem with our expectations could be (i) we think the Steelers are too good / bad or (ii) we think their opponents are too good / bad.

[NorthCoast]

How does one explain the fact that certain teams draft high year after year but continually remain as bottom dwellers? Coaching matters as much as talent. How that talent is being used was clearly demonstrated in last weekend's game. Put the talent in the wrong places and it's a fail and vice versa.

[flippy]

It's funny.

My fantasy football league started to do automated recaps after every game a few year ago.

And the theme is usually about how certain players "underperformed" or "overperformed" based on their projected points.

It's worded as if that's about the player.

But it's really about the model that predicted the outcome.

If the team exceeded or didn't meet our expectations, I tend to believe that the problem is our expectations and not the team / players.

I think this is especially true in our case because we've had such insane long term success and we had very good fantasy football players with the Killer Bs. That second part means that I think a lot of people over rated our talent because we had very good skill players.

And the problem with our expectations could be (i) we think the Steelers are too good / bad or (ii) we think their opponents are too good / bad.

Good example/point.

I would take it a step further and suggest most fans are going to have high expectations for their team. Otherwise, why be a committed fan? All the fun in life is in the anticipation.

Since fans are going to overrate their team, when the team wins, it’s often not good enough. And when we lose, it’s a slap in the face of your expectations. Thus it’s more natural for a super fan base that you would find on a team message board is going to be over the top negative reactions regularly.

That said, where I generally see it differently is that I think the reactions are gut reactions to mismatched expectations. But people generally aren’t negative.

This is a great whole microcosm of our lives and society more broadly. And usually what we perceive on the surface is usually the complete opposite and flipped upside down.

[Oviedo]

I don’t think some hate Tomlin to the level you think they do. I sense frustration when we underperform vs expectations.

And on the flip side of last season, I think people overrated Tomlin for an 8-8 season because many expected nothing without Ben.

Tomlin’s neither as good or bad as most say. And having listened to Tomlin enough times, I tend to think he’d agree with that. I think Tomlin is pretty calm, cool, and collected. He’s a rock that consistently performs like we would expect him to. And players respond to him because he’s consistent and a player’s coach.

His success is determined by the quality of players and coaches around him. He seems to do better when surrounded by quality. I don’t see him as a play calling guru or a guy that quickly adapts. He often goes back to what he knows and tries to simplify football and much like many Steeler coaches before him, you know what to expect and he’s going to try and beat you straight up with his strengths.

A lot of times he’s a slow starter. He’s bad at clock management. He’s struggled in the playoffs. He’s struggled preparing his team for teams he should beat. His unleashing of hell is a running joke. And he’s slow to change wether it’s an ineffective Oline or DBs or punters.

But he deals well with adversity. And he gets a lot out of guys others may not.

I don’t know where he lands on talent evaluation, but I think he likes to gamble and it’s why we end up reaching more sometimes. Sometimes it works out. Other times it doesn’t.

Overall he’s sound. I think he’s one of the best leaders in the NFL. I like the guy a ton. And I totally get why some love him while he drives others nuts.

I think it’s ok to get frustrated with people you like/love. Just ask any married person. Everything is a shade of gray.

I disagree. If you don't think there are several posters who hate Tomlin no matter what he does you're not wanting to see it. The expectations for Tomlin have been unrealistic from Day 1. By any realistic metric he has been a top 5 coach in the NFL over the past 15 year. "Unleashing hell" is on;y a running joke to those who hate him. It was an attempt to motivate his team and instill in them the task ahead. No other coach who said that would get the minority of haters continually pointing that out. If Tomlin would go 16-0 this regular season there would be those who complain. The goalposts for Tomlin are always moving.

[Shawn]

current line has the Steelers favored by 13.5 Makes sense. I was about to call O on his nonsense. I was going to say 2 TDs. They are a one dimensional O. They won't be able to score on our D with us being able to focus on Elliot.

[Northern_Blitz]

How does one explain the fact that certain teams draft high year after year but continually remain as bottom dwellers? Coaching matters as much as talent. How that talent is being used was clearly demonstrated in last weekend's game. Put the talent in the wrong places and it's a fail and vice versa.

I think there are 2 main reasons teams are consistently poor.

1. It's hard to get a good QB, so teams like the Bills cycled through lots of QBs since Kelly and didn't do very well for a long time. Now they have what looks to be a pretty good QB and they're doing fairly well (especially since another team in their division just lost an elite QB and is in the tank this year).

Roster construction extends beyond just QB. Teams with bad management do things like bringing in big name UFAs to sell tickets even though they won't ever live up to their contracts. Other teams (Bengals) refuse to spend to the cap to build a good team.


2. I think coaching is kind of like the relationship between income and happiness. Income is super important for happiness until you reach a certain threshold (usually I've seen this reported at ~ $75k / household). And you see diminishing returns after that.

Maybe the Browns coach last year was so bad that he was below that threshold and brought the team way below expectations. But even this year, I think we're seeing that the expectations aren't in line with reality. I think a big part of this is that assumptions about the talent of a team are mostly based on the FF value of their skill players (since FF is such a huge part of NFL fandom these days). Their true talent doesn't seem to be in line with projections like this (maybe mostly because Baker isn't as good as people thought he was going to be?)

[hawaiiansteel]

I disagree. If you don't think there are several posters who hate Tomlin no matter what he does you're not wanting to see it.

for proof just look at Steel Maniac's sig.

we're 7-0 and he still wants Tomlin fired.

[Steel Maniac]

How does one explain the fact that certain teams draft high year after year but continually remain as bottom dwellers? Coaching matters as much as talent. How that talent is being used was clearly demonstrated in last weekend's game. Put the talent in the wrong places and it's a fail and vice versa.

I agree with you; Coaching is as important as talent. When the Pats beat the Rams in the Super Bowl a couple of years ago was another example of that. Rams were the most talented team; Pats had the better coaches.

[steeler_fan_in_t.o.]

But it's really about the model that predicted the outcome.

If the team exceeded or didn't meet our expectations, I tend to believe that the problem is our expectations and not the team / players.

Or, to put it into the theme of the day.....

When an election does not go according to the polls, the talking heads will tell you how a candidate out-performed expectations but it is really more about how badly out-of-touch the pollsters are.

[Captain Lemming]

I agree with you; Coaching is as important as talent. When the Pats beat the Rams in the Super Bowl a couple of years ago was another example of that. Rams were the most talented team; Pats had the better coaches.

As I always say you need the "right" talent.
The Pats were more talented in the areas that count.

The team with the better QB and secondary won.
The biggest contribution BB made to that with was aquiring Gilmore years earlier.
Given an average secondary and the Rams destroy the Pats.

[Captain Lemming]

I agree with you; Coaching is as important as talent.

7-0...equal parts coaching and talent? Come on say it.

THAT would be a nice sig. :)

[hawaiiansteel]

7-0...equal parts coaching and talent? Come on say it.

THAT would be a nice sig. :)

GREAT sig!!!!!!! ;)

[BURGH86STEEL]

I agree with you; Coaching is as important as talent. When the Pats beat the Rams in the Super Bowl a couple of years ago was another example of that. Rams were the most talented team; Pats had the better coaches.I am not sure why people like to create this narrative the one team is simply more talented than another team? It's not really about how talented a team is or is not. It boils down to how well a team plays and executes.

The difference in that game was that Tom Brady made the plays that Goff did not. Goff missed on the opportunities he had and as a result the Rams loss the game.

[Northern_Blitz]

Or, to put it into the theme of the day.....

When an election does not go according to the polls, the talking heads will tell you how a candidate out-performed expectations but it is really more about how badly out-of-touch the pollsters are.

That though crossed my mind while writing that post.

How pollsters don't get held accountable for doing terribly is beyond me.

Seems pretty clear that there's a lot of bias that creeps into their methods.

And that would be OK if the biases were evenly distributed because we could get something that looked "true" by averaging all the polls a la Real Clear Politics or Fivethirtyeight.

But I think averaging only strengthens confirmation bias when everyone leans in the same direction.

[Northern_Blitz]

7-0...equal parts coaching and talent? Come on say it.

THAT would be a nice sig. :)

https://media2.giphy.com/media/3ohc172JJbbmUfVxhS/giphy.gif

(it's the new Boom)

[Northern_Blitz]

https://media2.giphy.com/media/3ohc172JJbbmUfVxhS/giphy.gif

(it's the new Boom)

This one's good too, but I wanted one that said "checkmate"

https://media2.giphy.com/media/iCZyBnPBLr0dy/giphy.gif?cid=ecf05e47439rdye1ajevz73nezs92dzo5ptt onj3dpgnhi2g&rid=giphy.gif

[NJ-STEELER]

I don’t think some hate Tomlin to the level you think they do. I sense frustration when we underperform vs expectations.

And on the flip side of last season, I think people overrated Tomlin for an 8-8 season because many expected nothing without Ben.

Tomlin’s neither as good or bad as most say. And having listened to Tomlin enough times, I tend to think he’d agree with that. I think Tomlin is pretty calm, cool, and collected. He’s a rock that consistently performs like we would expect him to. And players respond to him because he’s consistent and a player’s coach.

His success is determined by the quality of players and coaches around him. He seems to do better when surrounded by quality. I don’t see him as a play calling guru or a guy that quickly adapts. He often goes back to what he knows and tries to simplify football and much like many Steeler coaches before him, you know what to expect and he’s going to try and beat you straight up with his strengths.

A lot of times he’s a slow starter. He’s bad at clock management. He’s struggled in the playoffs. He’s struggled preparing his team for teams he should beat. His unleashing of hell is a running joke. And he’s slow to change wether it’s an ineffective Oline or DBs or punters.

But he deals well with adversity. And he gets a lot out of guys others may not.

I don’t know where he lands on talent evaluation, but I think he likes to gamble and it’s why we end up reaching more sometimes. Sometimes it works out. Other times it doesn’t.

Overall he’s sound. I think he’s one of the best leaders in the NFL. I like the guy a ton. And I totally get why some love him while he drives others nuts.

I think it’s ok to get frustrated with people you like/love. Just ask any married person. Everything is a shade of gray.
pretty good assessment

I've gotten on him for some of the things you stated, buy i've also defended him on others.

some can actually have an open mind and do both

[NorthCoast]

Or, to put it into the theme of the day.....

When an election does not go according to the polls, the talking heads will tell you how a candidate out-performed expectations but it is really more about how badly out-of-touch the pollsters are.

I read a funny line today about the election and polling; "polling has lost its useful in the same manner as phrenology"..... (I had to look up phrenology to get the analogy)

[Captain Lemming]

I am not sure why people like to create this narrative the one team is simply more talented than another team? It's not really about how talented a team is or is not. It boils down to how well a team plays and executes.

The difference in that game was that Tom Brady made the plays that Goff did not. Goff missed on the opportunities he had and as a result the Rams loss the game.

Better QB MAKES plays.
Better secondary PREVENTS QB from making plays.

[Captain Lemming]

Or, to put it into the theme of the day.....

When an election does not go according to the polls, the talking heads will tell you how a candidate out-performed expectations but it is really more about how badly out-of-touch the pollsters are.

No a "pollster" looks at "polls". I would suggest that people who don't trust government are more wary of being polled. If a percentage of people (say 5 percent) refuse the offer to be polled, a pollsters numbers are massively skewed.

Any idea of bias in polling is silly. If a pollster favors one side he is best served to show his side as being behind, so as to incentivize his side to turn out. Faulty polling leads to complacency on the side that appears to have a lead.

[NorthCoast]

I am not sure why people like to create this narrative the one team is simply more talented than another team? It's not really about how talented a team is or is not. It boils down to how well a team plays and executes.

The difference in that game was that Tom Brady made the plays that Goff did not. Goff missed on the opportunities he had and as a result the Rams loss the game. I can agree all teams have talent. But we've heard it often enough from players, coaches, and talking heads what separates the great players from the talented players is consistency. The Aaron Donalds, TJ Watts, Aaron Rodgers, Tom Bradys are far and away more consistent than their peers. To some degree it is coachable but it seems there is an innate mindset that they want and can win on every play not just a few splash plays here and there. We can all hate AB for what he became, but he was the ultimate in consistency and a great WR.

[NorthCoast]

No a "pollster" looks at "polls". I would suggest that people who don't trust government are more wary of being polled. If a percentage of people (say 5 percent) refuse the offer to be polled, a pollsters numbers are massively skewed.

Any idea of bias in polling is silly. If a pollster favors one side he is best served to show his side as being behind, so as to incentivize his side to turn out. Faulty polling leads to complacency on the side that appears to have a lead.Yea, the polling companies are now blaming the pollees for their failures.... what a joke. Their methods clearly are outdated. Random phone calls to random people doesn't work.

[steeler_fan_in_t.o.]

No a "pollster" looks at "polls". I would suggest that people who don't trust government are more wary of being polled. If a percentage of people (say 5 percent) refuse the offer to be polled, a pollsters numbers are massively skewed.

Any idea of bias in polling is silly. If a pollster favors one side he is best served to show his side as being behind, so as to incentivize his side to turn out. Faulty polling leads to complacency on the side that appears to have a lead.

That simply becomes another factor for a pollster to build in to the model. I don't know how they have to account for it, but I do know that after how off they have been since 2016, the answer is not to simply report then numbers they receive.

[Buzz]

Yea, the polling companies are now blaming the pollees for their failures.... what a joke. Their methods clearly are outdated. Random phone calls to random people doesn't work.

I think by this year many of them knew their methods were off. How can anyone believe that CNN was doing honest polling when they had Biden up by 17 a few days ago in one of the neck and neck battleground states? According to the preponderance of polls, it should have been a Biden landslide. To me, seems more likely that those media outlets were trying to influence the vote than they were trying to report the news.

Political bias and corruption permeate the news media and social media companies. Really hard to believe anything they tell us. When you have the government continually lying and the media continually lying, don't be surprised when your country unravels.

[NorthCoast]

I think by this year many of them knew their methods were off. How can anyone believe that CNN was doing honest polling when they had Biden up by 17 a few days ago in one of the neck and neck battleground states? According to the preponderance of polls, it should have been a Biden landslide. To me, seems more likely that those media outlets were trying to influence the vote than they were trying to report the news.

Political bias and corruption permeate the news media and social media companies. Really hard to believe anything they tell us. When you have the government continually lying and the media continually lying, don't be surprised when your country unravels.Agreed. If you saw the movie "Network" you can understand that they no longer report the news, they create it. I actually turn to Reuters as a semi-independent source. They are not immune but they are a whole lot more balanced than garbage on domestic outlets.

[whisper]

Agreed. If you saw the movie "Network" you can understand that they no longer report the news, they create it. I actually turn to Reuters as a semi-independent source. They are not immune but they are a whole lot more balanced than garbage on domestic outlets.

Isn't Reuters also owned by the Rothschilds as well? They own the AP.

[BURGH86STEEL]

Better QB MAKES plays.
Better secondary PREVENTS QB from making plays.
Well what was the main factor why the Giants were able to defeat Brady 2 times in the SB? IMO the main factor was pressure up front. Pass defense doesn't boil down to how well the secondary plays. LB performance plays a role in pass defense. Pressure up front plays a role in pass defense. Bottom line is that defensive units must function as one unit to have success.

[BURGH86STEEL]

I can agree all teams have talent. But we've heard it often enough from players, coaches, and talking heads what separates the great players from the talented players is consistency. The Aaron Donalds, TJ Watts, Aaron Rodgers, Tom Bradys are far and away more consistent than their peers. To some degree it is coachable but it seems there is an innate mindset that they want and can win on every play not just a few splash plays here and there. We can all hate AB for what he became, but he was the ultimate in consistency and a great WR.
I agree that the factor that separates players careers is the consistency at which they play at a high level. That being said, players that have lesser careers can have great games, seasons, playoff games ect. At times, other players or units performance can contribute to a players' success.

People get all bent out of shape about Bortles winning vs the Steelers in 2017. Bortles made some plays. There were also several factors that contributed to the success that Bortles had in the game. Jags defense, run game, Ben giving the ball away early, ect.

Teabow made a good throw to close out the game vs the Steelers in OT. The narrative seem to become that Tebow had a great game to defeat the Steelers. As a result, Tomlin sucks. Players that make it into the NFL can play and make plays.
Looking at Nick Foles play today you wonder how he was able to have a good enough season in Philly to help the Eagles win the SB vs the Pats. Eli Manning helped defeat the Pats 2 times in the SB. Manning's career wasn't close to the career Brady had with the Pats. Football is the ultimate team game. Players can have success within structure of the team.

It doesn't matter how great a career a player has in a one game situation. What matters is how well that player performs in a one game situation. I remember in 1995 that Seau wrecked the Steelers offensive game plan. He didn't have near the level of success wrecking the 49ners game plan in the SB.

The Cowboys have players on both sides of the ball that could give the Steelers some problems. The Steelers could lose the game if they don't play well enough and make mistakes. I don't expect the Steelers to lose vs the Boys but it wouldn't surprise me if they loss.

[NorthCoast]

I agree that the factor that separates players careers is the consistency at which they play at a high level. That being said, players that have lesser careers can have great games, seasons, playoff games ect. At times, other players or units performance can contribute to a players' success.

People get all bent out of shape about Bortles winning vs the Steelers in 2017. Bortles made some plays. There were also several factors that contributed to the success that Bortles had in the game. Jags defense, run game, Ben giving the ball away early, ect.

Teabow made a good throw to close out the game vs the Steelers in OT. The narrative seem to become that Tebow had a great game to defeat the Steelers. As a result, Tomlin sucks. Players that make it into the NFL can play and make plays.
Looking at Nick Foles play today you wonder how he was able to have a good enough season in Philly to help the Eagles win the SB vs the Pats. Eli Manning helped defeat the Pats 2 times in the SB. Manning's career wasn't close to the career Brady had with the Pats. Football is the ultimate team game. Players can have success within structure of the team.

It doesn't matter how great a career a player has in a one game situation. What matters is how well that player performs in a one game situation. I remember in 1995 that Seau wrecked the Steelers offensive game plan. He didn't have near the level of success wrecking the 49ners game plan in the SB.

The Cowboys have players on both sides of the ball that could give the Steelers some problems. The Steelers could lose the game if they don't play well enough and make mistakes. I don't expect the Steelers to lose vs the Boys but it wouldn't surprise me if they loss.It would shock the hell out of me if they lost. It would mean failure at multiple levels against a team that has multiple weaknesses. Unless Roethlisberger loses his mind I don't see it.

[BURGH86STEEL]

It would shock the hell out of me if they lost. It would mean failure at multiple levels against a team that has multiple weaknesses. Unless Roethlisberger loses his mind I don't see it.
I watched the Steelers lose to an expansion team the Steelers dominated statistically. I watched the 17-0 Pats lose to the 9-7 regular season Giants in the SB. Ish happens in sports.

[BURGH86STEEL]

Just read that Zeke has hamstring issue. That could make life a little easier for the Steelers.

[fordfixer]

I almost changed my normal Prediction to
Steelers 3 Cowboys 0,
but I didn’t want to seem too overconfident.

[hawaiiansteel]

I almost changed my normal Prediction to
Steelers 3 Cowboys 0,
but I didn’t want to seem too overconfident.

lol...better to stay humble ;)

[fordfixer]

lol...better to stay humble ;)
My thoughts exactly ;)

[Captain Lemming]

I think by this year many of them knew their methods were off. How can anyone believe that CNN was doing honest polling when they had Biden up by 17 a few days ago in one of the neck and neck battleground states? According to the preponderance of polls, it should have been a Biden landslide. To me, seems more likely that those media outlets were trying to influence the vote than they were trying to report the news.

Political bias and corruption permeate the news media and social media companies. Really hard to believe anything they tell us. When you have the government continually lying and the media continually lying, don't be surprised when your country unravels.

People simply cannot see how silly these conspiracies are. Logic people, logic.

How does having someone up by 17 "influence" a vote in his favor? Being favored is a disincentive to getting maximum turnout. He doesn't need "my" vote if it is inconvenient for me.

If a network wanted manipulate numbers to help a candidate they would have them down by a point.

If the true numbers say it is really close, inflating either candidates numbers artificially would be the best way to HURT him not help him.