I posted this on the other board, but here goes.

[Djfan]

I am aware that I am not the most followed poster here, but many of you know me well enough to know that I am a huge believer in this team, and Tomlin, and Ben. That is just an attempt to establish the fact that I am not a negative kind of guy.

So, here's my confession. I just don't see us winning in NE. Our defense has the habit of giving the "LeBeau Cushion" to the receivers, and NE has the short pass game down to an art. I bet Bellicheat drools when he sees us on the schedule.

That being said, I think we CAN win if we bring our A game in all three phases, which has been a bit suspect of an idea lately.

Lastly, I would LOVE to come here and eat crow after a Steelers win.

I posted it here because I wanted D's input, too.

Your turn.

[AngryAsian]

Re: I posted this on the other board, but here goes.

Dj, I think most of us here on this board approach our obsession with the same "careful optimism" that you've just posted. Some boards have labeled us kool-aide drinkers... so be it. I think that posts like the one you just made shows that we here are very objective when it comes to our teams strengths and weaknesses. I agree with your sentiments. After seeing what Cassel and company did to Miami's 3-4, it should merit concern for all who follow the Black and Gold good guys.

On the flipside, Miami's D is not even near the calibre of our defense. There is a reason we bolster the number rated defense in the league. I think that our pass rush will present a lot of problems for the cheats* and I think that this team won't rack up the yardage that they did in Miami. That being said, I too am concerned about the "cushion" we seem to give some opponents. My fear is the other side of the ball. If Ben and company can't get it going early to give our D a little breathing space, it could be a very long afternoon for us. The 4:00 time slot also is a concern (I think we are 1-3 when playing this time slot).... it has not been good to us this season.

We need to get to Cassel early so he doesn't get comfortable. The key to stopping their offense is nullifying the efficacy of Kevin Faulk coming out of the backfield and Wes Welker in the slot. They throw a lot of stunt screens out to those two and provide great blocking to chunk off significant yards after the catch. This of course opens up the deep threat that Moss brings, as was shown with his 3 TD explosion yesterday. Stop Faulk/Welker and we stop their ability to move the sticks.

Great post and I share your concern.

[Iron Shiek]

Re: I posted this on the other board, but here goes.

Its all good DJ! We really aren't the kool aid drinkers we are made out to be by some. You are entitled to share your opinion...especially when you back it up with some sound logic...which you did in my mind.

I don't have a good feeling either, but I imagine we get some serious pressure on Cassel and see how he handles it...our D is not the Jets and Dolphins...you don't get to be number 1 across the board on D by luck. So lets see some sound coverage and heavy pressure and rattle that "high schooler". 400 yards two weeks in a row...not a third my friend!

[costanza2k1]

Re: I posted this on the other board, but here goes.

I don't have a good feeling about this game either, I have sneaky suspicion that they still have a lot of 'extra' tape on us in their vaults. It's just creepy. If we win it will be like a playoff win for me.

[Jooser]

Re: I posted this on the other board, but here goes.

I got your back on this one D. As I stated in another post, I don't feel great about this game either. I think that our D does give alot of cushion and that the short passing game neutralizes our pass rush. Case in point is the Colts game. We got to Manning rarely because we were too concerned with stopping the short, quick passing game than blitzing the QB. When we did blitz we had marginal success because it left the back open in the flats and Manning would just dump it off to the flats or throw the ball away. I think this will be the cheats* game plan as well with the occasional long pass to Moss, either hoping for a quick strike or a pass interference call with Moss pushing off and fighting for the ball.

[Jigawatts]

Re: I posted this on the other board, but here goes.

DJ, I share your concern and was going to post something similar.

New England seems to be our "unicorn" (reference Gone in 60 Seconds).

A mythical creature that we just can't capture. We need to play the perfect game
to beat them.

Cassel worries me. We seem to let "green" quarterbacks have our way with us. I don't
know why. Maybe because they're not over thinking and just going out and playing football.
Cassel has proven to be a capable NFL QB, so I'm hoping in this case he's good enough
to over analyze our D and not react.

I wouldn't be surprised if we lost. I wouldn't be surprised if we won. This contest could
go either way. Any other team we play, I expect the Steelers to come out on top, no
matter how good they are. But the Pats could be 3-7 and I'd still be concerned.

I'd love to be wrong and I hope the black and gold beat the shit out of them.
Nothing would please me more than to see their fans filing out of the stadium at
the beginning of the fourth quarter.

[RuthlessBurgher]

Re: I posted this on the other board, but here goes.

Vegas currently has New England as a one point favorite, so I think many folks would agree with the "wouldn't be surprised if we lost...wouldn't be surprised if we won" sentiment.

[papillon]

Re: I posted this on the other board, but here goes.

I always go into every Steeler game with the belief that they are going to win the game regardless of their record and opponent. That belief doesn't waiver until the clock goes to 0:00 and the Steelers have less points than the other team.

There's no reason for the Steelers to lose this game with the exception of the huge brain cramps that plagued them in the Giants and Colts games. Even with the offense ranked as low as they are, other teams simply can't rely on the Steelers to screw it up. There are play makers on our offense and that makes them dangerous regardless of the ranking by whatever bureau or process has them ranked dead last in the league.

Good luck preparing for them as if they are the worst offense in the league.

Pappy

[RKSteel]

Re: I posted this on the other board, but here goes.

I also expect the Steelers to win every game. Plus, the way the Steeler defense is playing, the Patriots better worry about them. This one could get ugly for the Patriots. They have beaten up on the weak teams and haven't faced a D like Pittsburgh's.

After Cassel watches game tape of this defense, he will be checking his closet everynight for the Steelers Defense.

HERE WE GO STEELERS, HERE WE GO!

[Iron Shiek]

Re: I posted this on the other board, but here goes.

DJ, I share your concern and was going to post something similar.

New England seems to be our "unicorn" (reference Gone in 60 Seconds).

A mythical creature that we just can't capture. We need to play the perfect game
to beat them.

Cassel worries me. We seem to let "green" quarterbacks have our way with us. I don't
know why. Maybe because they're not over thinking and just going out and playing football.
Cassel has proven to be a capable NFL QB, so I'm hoping in this case he's good enough
to over analyze our D and not react.

I wouldn't be surprised if we lost. I wouldn't be surprised if we won. This contest could
go either way. Any other team we play, I expect the Steelers to come out on top, no
matter how good they are. But the Pats could be 3-7 and I'd still be concerned.

I'd love to be wrong and I hope the black and gold beat the shit out of them.
Nothing would please me more than to see their fans filing out of the stadium at
the beginning of the fourth quarter.

Dam right Jiga. And we'll be callin the cheaters Eleanor as we're b!tch slappin them all over the field. We may get to the win all beat up and broke down and fallin apart...but by god we are gonna win!

[Ghost]

Re: I posted this on the other board, but here goes.

A. Smith guaranteed a win so nothing to worry about...

[Steeler Mafia]

Re: I posted this on the other board, but here goes.

Although I am worried about this game, I am not as worried as many of you here. Here is why. Miami only put single coverage on Moss all day. You cannot do that with this type of a receiver. Moss showed us all why with 125 yds and 3 tds. Welker is the one that makes me worry. He puts up big numbers and does it quietly if you are not watching out for him. Yesterday his numbers were 8 catches for 120 yds. The Steelers D has more Talent to defend the middle of the field and slot receivers. If we can keep the cap on Moss, look to apply pressure to Cassel, and take away his security blanket in Welker, we should do fine in this game. We already know that *NE cannot run the ball.

[stlrz d]

Re: I posted this on the other board, but here goes.

Thanks for the compliment DJ!

I have a bit of a queasiness in my gut going into this one as well. Our D is what helps me keep it down. The Pasterisks haven't seen anything like it yet.

I can see this game going either way, but it will be close regardless of which way it goes, imo.

Keep in mind, the Pasterisks are missing two key components that always give us trouble...and they only get one of them back next season. Tom Brady and Asante Samuel. I really feel Asante not being there is HUGE for us! I actually think the lack of Asante is bigger than the lack of Brady against us.

Brady gets the ball out quicker than Cassel. That gives our rush a bit more time to get to him. LeBeau's D will give up the short passes between the 20s, but we have the best Red Zone defense. Giving up those short passes drives me nuts too, but we at least don't give them up nearly as much where it really counts!

This game could turn out like the 2005 playoff game against the Colts. We come out on fire and get a good lead, they fight back but we win a tight one in the end.

[Djfan]

Re: I posted this on the other board, but here goes.

Thanks for the compliment DJ!

You're more than welcome, Sir! We disagree on politics, but it's all Steelers love for the next four years!!

[MeetJoeGreene]

Re: I posted this on the other board, but here goes.

DJ, I share your concern and was going to post something similar.

New England seems to be our "unicorn" (reference Gone in 60 Seconds).

A mythical creature that we just can't capture. We need to play the perfect game
to beat them.
Well put. It drives me friggin crazy. Of course, we sometimes do beat them in the regular season and lose in the playoffs. Lets hope we beat them in the regular season and they don't make the playoffs.

Cassel worries me. We seem to let "green" quarterbacks have our way with us. I don't
know why.
Another good point. We should be able to shut them down and we sometimes give them "career" days. Problem is cassel had 400 yards last week, so a career day for him would be devastating.

Maybe because they're not over thinking and just going out and playing football.
Cassel has proven to be a capable NFL QB, so I'm hoping in this case he's good enough
to over analyze our D and not react.

I wouldn't be surprised if we lost. I wouldn't be surprised if we won. This contest could
go either way. Any other team we play, I expect the Steelers to come out on top, no
matter how good they are. But the Pats could be 3-7 and I'd still be concerned.
Me too.I'd love to be wrong and I hope the black and gold beat the shit out of them.
Nothing would please me more than to see their fans filing out of the stadium at
the beginning of the fourth quarter.