SB Nation - Najeh Davenport

Butch Davis Talks About Recruiting Portis, Moss, and Sean Taylor (Part II)

KevinE — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 07:21:26 -0000

In Part I in of our conversation with Coach Butch Davis, I really got a feel for how coaches can relate to players and be effective. Coach Davis happened to recruit 3 players during his tenure in Miami, which have become DEAR to Redskins Nation: Clinton Portis, Santana Moss and Sean Taylor.

HH: Can you talk about recruiting Clinton Portis? What was his personality like back then?

Clinton was an unbelievable story. The tape we were watching on Clinton we were actually watching the Quarterback on his football team. Late one Monday night early in the season it was like the first of September, it was Clinton's Senior year. The game by accident we picked up to watch the quarterback, Clinton was absolutely spectacular. Kickoff returns for touchdowns. Everytime he touched the ball. I remember one particular sequence he scored a touchdown... it was a long run, a 67-yard run and there was a penalty and they brought it back. They handed him the ball the very next play, and he did exactly the same thing. It was like immediately, "Get on the phone. Find out who this guy is. Do we have any kind of opportunity to recruit him?" We were fortunate with him being right there in Gainesville. For whatever reason, the Univ of Florida wasn't interested. We went full out trying to recruit him. He was a great player in college and a phenomenal player on the next level.

HH: And Santana Moss?

Santana was a totally different story. He was the biggest secret maybe in the country. We all knew in South Florida what a phenomenal kid that he was. Charismatic. Great personality. He had outstanding track times. He played with a great high school football team at Carol City, but they hardly ever threw the ball. This stat won't be 100% accurate, but he had something like 8-10-12-15 catches. Like maybe one a game. He was in a 3-point stance and blocking down field. Talking about somebody flying totally under the radar. Immediately when he got on our football team, we knew that he was special. He was a difference maker. He might be the most electrifying punt returner that I've certainly ever had the opportunity to be around. There were so many ways he could hurt a defense. Stretch em deep. Great hands. Run after catches. Electrifying. You could do all the reverses with him. We were blessed to have both of those kids on our football team.

HH: You left there right as Sean Taylor was getting there. Were you involved at all in recruiting him?

When I recruited Sean, my son went to the same school as Sean. So, I was over at Gulliver a lot picking up my son and wathing him practice. I'll never forget the year we recruited Sean, he scored 5 TDs in the championship game as the RB. That was one of the things [people don't realize in games]. They see an interception by Sean Taylor in college and the NFL and they didn't realize they just threw the ball up to one of the country's best RBs. At the time we had Willis Maghee, Clinton Portis, Najeh Davenport. We had a host of RBs..it was just more prudent to put him at safety.

HH: When I interviewed Coach Larry Coker on the phone, he had mentioned he recruited Sean.

Well, I was the head coach when Sean was there. I left the week before they all signed. Kellon Winslow Jr, Antrel Rolle. All those guys. That was quite a class.

HH: Man...I bet that 2001 Miami team could have beat the bottom third of the NFL that year.

I don't know about that but they were pretty gifted. When you go to training camp if you would, please say hello to Clinton and Santana, I'd appreciate it.

OK, so the 2001 Miami roster, which won the National Championship, included: Willis McGahee, Najeh Davenport, Andre Johnson, Antrel Rolle, Ed Reed, Sean Taylor, Clinton Portis, Philip Buchanon, Frank Gore, Rocky McIntosh, Vince Wilfork, Bryant McKinnie, Kellen Winslow, Jeremy Shockey, and Jerome McDougle. Ken Dorsey was the QB for this championship team, but wow, what a squad.

Arizona Cardinals Training Camp Coverage: The Battle for Kick and Punt Returner

Hawkwind — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 19:25:06 -0000

More photos » by Matt York - AP

"This is how fast I was moving when Patrick Willis caught me in overtime." (AP Photo/Matt York)

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In the weeks and even month leading up to Arizona Cardinals training camp 2009, it looked as if there would be a fierce battle for the team's kick returner job. With the incumbent starter, J.J. Arrington, departing via free agency over the summer, most expected some combination of rookies to battle for the job and ultimately a roster spot, but that's not how the competition has played out so far. Through the first weekend of camp, four days and six practices, Steve Breaston has emerged as not only the front runner at punt returner but also at kick returner, a job that he reliquished early last season after struggling. Head Coach Ken Whisenhunt has almost gone as far as saying that both jobs are Breaston's lose rather than a job that is truly up for grabs. The one thing that seems to seperate Breaston from other guys like Antrel Rolle, LaRod Stephens-Howling or Michael Ray Garvin is Breaston's ability to hold onto the ball. In two seasons that have included 75 punt returns and 95 kick returns, he has yet to fumble the football. That's quite rare for a position most often manned by diminiutive players (35 different players fumbled the ball just last year on either a kick or punt return). Are Breaston's sure hands enough to win him both jobs and is that the best situation for the team? We'll take a look at each candidate.

Steve Breaston: Breaston was a fifth round pick in 2007, not because he was a great reciever but instead because he was a gifted returner. He averaged over 12 yards per punt return and 28.1 yards per kickoff return as a senior at Michigan and his skills instantly translated to the NFL. During the 2007 season, he was tenth in the league with a punt return average of 9.4 (minimum 20 returns) and only Devin Hester had more return yardage. His production as a returner fell off though in 2008 as his role with the offense increased. His punt return average fell to 7.2 and his kickoff average, which wasn't great to begin with, fell from 22.4 to 20.2. Breaston's strength has always been as a punt returner, which is my most fans thought that there would be an open competition at kick returner, but you've got wonder how his return production will be effected by his ever increasing role in the offense. If you travel back to Whiz's days in Pittsburgh you can find times when the Steelers were plagued by return men who couldn't hold onto the ball though and with having such a productive offense he might choose a sure handed returner over a less reliable but more dymanic one.

Antrel Rolle: Rolle's a wild card in this scene because his play making ability with the ball in his hands in undeniable, but his unpredictability throws a dark cloud over the entire situation. Not only is Rolle invaluable to the defense as the starting, and only experienced, free safety, but the team has also seem him badly twist an ankle during his only punt return during preseason last year. Whiz and special teams coach Kevin Spencer have hinted at the notion that Rolle could be a 'situational' punt returner when Breaston is winded or even when a big return is needed. Whiz has seen the not-so-sure handed Santonio Holmes in a similar role during his time in Pittsburgh. Rolle was a dangerous punt returner during his time at Miami and I wouldn't be surprised at all to see him back fielding a punt once or twice this coming season.

LaRod Stephens-Howling: LSH wasn't considered a return specialist during his time at the University of Pittsbugh but once he was drafted it was assumed by many that he'd at least compete at one of the return spots. He's got the straight line speed and shiftiness, as well as the size, to excel in a return role but so far his exposure seems to limited to kick return. His speed makes him comparable to Arrington, who was an improvement in the kick return department last season, but his inexperience at the position might not instill the confidence that the coaching staff is looking for in a sure-handed returner.

Michael Ray Garvin: MRG, a world class sprinter, has more than enough speed to excel as a kick returner and he made a name for himself at Florida State in that role. He averaged more than 30 yards per kick returner as a senior and finished the season with the second most all purpose yards on the entire team. Garvin might end up being the most dynamic kick returner on the team but he'll have to be considerably better than his competition because special teams are the only way that he helps the Cardinals in 2009.

----------------------------------------------------

There are other names who could get a shot at the kick return spot, including Chris Wells and Jason Wright but that might not be a long term solution. Still though, Whiz was with the Steelers when they had 245 pound backup running back Najeh Davenport returning kicks so anything is a possibility. In the end, I'm not sure that there is a long term solution right now. LSH and MRG may have a future in that role but Whiz seems to be taking the conservative route with Breaston considering that he knows exactly what to expect from him. With an offense capable of scoring from anywhere on the field, a yard or four on a return might be worth that risk. Is Breaston the best option or would you prefer a more dynamic returner? Does this eliminate the chances of LSH or MRG making the roster?

Top Ten Regular Season Games of Ben Roethlisberger's Career: #8 - Week 6, 2006 - Pittsburgh 45, Kansas City 7

Blitzburgh — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 01:52:45 -0000

We continue our look at the best regular season games of Ben Roethlisberger's young career with my selection for #8...

2006 Week 6 - Pittsburgh 45, Kansas City 7

Ben Roethlisberger's statistics: 16 of 19 (84.2%), 238 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs, 153.8 QB Rating

Some thoughts and notes about the game after the jump.

Top Ten Games Countdown:

#9) - Pittsburgh 41 St. Louis 24 - Week 16, 2007
#10) - Pittsburgh 38 New Orleans 31 - Week 10, 2006

Similar to what I wrote in my #10 game later in the 2006 season, this game was one that Ben Roethlisberger needed to have considering how his 2006 season started. Big Ben had not yet thrown a touchdown pass in his first three games back from his motorcycle injury and the Steelers were sitting at 1-3 and squarely behind the 8-ball one quarter of the way through the year. Ironically enough, by beating Kansas City that afternoon, the Steelers would have made it to the playoffs in 2006 had they won just one more game - like that game in Oakland where the Steelers defense limited the Raiders to fewer than 100 yards of total offense but managed to still lose thanks to four Roethlisberger interceptions. The Chiefs somehow snuck in to the #6 and final seed in the AFC Playoffs that year by finishing 9-7. Denver choked and the Chiefs snuck in the back door only to be dusted by Peyton Manning and the Colts in the opening round.

Anyway, the afternoon started out nicely for Big Ben. After a 2 yarder to Hines Ward, Roethlisberger connected with Santonio Holmes on a 50 yard bomb that eventually set up a Willie Parker touchdown run from 3 yards out. Heinz Field was rocking early and often.

After exchanging punts (two of them from KC), Pittsburgh got the ball back at their own 42 yard line with just under two minutes to play in the 1st quarter. Ken Whisenhunt then dialed up this 1st down play after an 11 yard run from Parker to start the drive.

Pumpfake #1.

Pumpfake #2.

The linebacker frozen by play-action is now waaaay behind the play, with the Chiefs safety doing his best to get back in position. Big Ben unloads the ball at just the right time to find Nate Washington wide open in the seam - and before the Chiefs defender would have a chance to lay the wood..ala Ryan Clark.

You're looking at one of four broken tackles during Washington's tenure in Pittsburgh. Washington kept his balance on the play and took it to the house for a 47-yard touchdown and a 14-0 Steelers lead.

After the Steelers defense forced an immediate 3-and-out, the Steelers leaned on Willie Parker on their next touchdown drive. The Steelers started at their own 20 but nine plays later, the Steelers took a 21-0 lead early in the 2nd quarter. Big Ben was 2-of-2 on the drive with 35 yards and both completions came on 3rd down. Willie Parker did the rest, carrying the rock six times for 51 yards and a TD.

The game then got ugly and was all but decided before halftime when Big Ben found Hines Ward for a 13-yard touchdown. The pitch and catch - which was far too easy to execute - came after a 48-yard run by Najeh Davenport. Here was the touchdown to Ward.

The Steelers would tack on two more touchdowns after intermission, including a 30-yard pick-six of rookie quarterback Brodie Croyle. But really this one was all but over by halftime. The lone highlight really of the 2nd half, besides the interception return, was Bill Cowher throwing the red flag with exquisite form.

Sorry, I had to. Cowher maybe gets a little less love than he deserves as a result of Mike Tomlin's amazing start in Pittsburgh, but c'mon. It's The Chin! We love him and always will! (The challenge resulted in 7 points for Pittsburgh btw).

For the first time in the 2006 season, Ben Roethlisberger was decisive and smart with the football that week against the Chiefs. He was extremely accurate, missing on only three passes and finally looked a bit less skittish in the pocket than he had to start the season following his calamity of errors and bad luck health and injury wise.

Top Ten Regular Season Games of Ben Roethlisberger's Career: #9 - Week 16, 2007 - Pittsburgh 41, St. Louis 24

Blitzburgh — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 11:07:21 -0000

We continue our look back at the ten best regular season games of Ben Roethlisberger's career by going back to the second to last week of the season in 2007, Mike Tomlin's first year coaching the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers were 9-5 heading in to the Thursday night road contest against the punchless Rams. The Steelers could not clinch a playoff berth that evening, but only because they were playing on Thursday and the rest of the league would not be taking the field until the following weekend (or Monday). Nevertheless, the game was extremely important for Big Ben and the team collectively.

Firstly, it was the evening that Hall of Fame running back Marshall Faulk's number would be retired and the home crowd in St. Louis was amped up, despite their Rams sporting just a 3-11 record heading in to the contest. Pittsburgh was also coming off consecutive losses and the surprising Cleveland Browns had tied them atop the AFC North at 9-5 heading in to that week's action. Big Ben had not thrown an intereception in two weeks, but he had also not played very well against either New England or Jacksonville - particularly in the second half of the Pats game and for most all of the Jags game before leading a late charge that proved to be too little too late. Let's see how Big Ben and the Steelers responded in what I believe was the #9 regular season game of his career.

2007 Week 16: Pittsburgh 42 - St. Louis 24

Ben Roethlisberger's statistics: 16 of 20 (80%), 261 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs, 158.3 QB Rating

As you likely noticed, this game was the second game in 2007 that Roethlisberger posted a perfect quarterback rating of 158.3 (the other time being against the Ravens on Monday Night Football). He got things going early and often, hitting Santonio Holmes for an 83 yard pitch and catch on the offense's first snap of the game. For those who questions Ben's ability to throw the deep ball, I'd say go back through some of the tape of his career and it's quite obvious that he's been far more successful than futile at throwing deep.

On the game's next play, Willie Parker would be lost for the season with a gruesome leg injury. Parker was leading the NFL in rushing yards heading in to that week, and considering what Najeh Dookie Davenport did that night against the hapless Rams defense, it's not unfair to assert that Parker could have won a rushing crown that year with a huge game. Anyway, seveeral short plays later, Big Ben found Nate Washington for a 17-yard touchdown on a flag pattern that was atrociously defended. A very nice throw nevertheless from Big Ben.

The Rams would counter with a 6 play 59 yard scoring drive of their own to level it at 7-7. Roethlisberger and the Steelers would then march all the way down to the St. Louis 4 yard line before having to settle for a Jeff Reed field goal. Big Ben was sacked twice on the drive, but he was able to convert a huge 3rd-and-18 by finding Hines Ward for 19 yards and a fresh set of downs.

Steelers fans officially got nervous when St. Louis proceeded to score another touchdown on their next drive. For the second conseucitve kickoff and for who knows how many times for the course of the entire year, Pittsburgh's special teams let them down, as the Rams took the kickoff near or past midfield once more. Four plays later and the Rams had taken a 14-10 lead early in the second quarter.

Pittsburgh then regained the lead with yet another well thrown deep ball by Big Ben. The touchdown recipeint was again Nate Washington, who shook off some hand checking at the line of scrimmage to get a step on his defender.

Big Ben would do the rest, dropping the ball perfectly in to Washington's arms.

St Louis was called for pass interference on the play but no matter, touchdown Pittsburgh. 17-14. The Steelers then took command of the game before the half behind some strong running from Najeh Davenport and a fairly elementary but still impressive throw by Big Ben. Here we first see Ben getting flushed from the pocket, while Davenport begins to release from the backfield and in to his designed route.

It was a well designed play by Arians that saw all of Pittsburgh's pass catchers flood to the left side, leaving only Najeh leaking out to the right side of the field. Davenport had a step on his man but it required a precise throw that would hit not-so-fleet-of-foot Najeh in stride.

Perfect throw and Najeh was able to do the rest. 24-14 Pittsburgh.

The Steelers would then take a 14 point lead on their opening drive of the second half. Davenport again was key, but Ben was patient and precise on the series, completing all four of his pass attempts and hitting four different receivers in the process. Davenport would score from one yard out behind the lead block of Chris Kemoeatu and Pittsburgh again was up by two scores, 31-17.

Pittsburgh iced it with a 51 yard interception return for a score by Ike Taylor. Had the Steelers defense not been so sloppy that evening, the game would likely not have been nearly as close as it was. Big Ben and the Steelers racked up 425 yards of total offense despite being sacked four times for 34 lost yards. Three Steelers had receptions of 30+ yards (Washington, Holmes, Davenport) and Big Ben was 4-of-5 for 55 yards and 1 TD on 3rd down.

As we all know, it was not quite time for Mike Tomlin's squad to in 2007 but Week 16 was an important night for Pittsburgh just to have even made the playoffs. It was also a night where Big Ben continued to demonstrate that he was more than capable of taking the big play when it was presented to him while still being careful and patient with the football at other times.

For his perfect quarterback rating in a game that ultimately proved to be a playoff clinching win, Big Ben's 16-of-20 and 3 TD performance against the Rams in 2007 goes down as the 9th best regular season game in his already very accomplished young career.

#10) Pittsburgh 38 - New Orleans 31 (2006, Week 10)

Thursday Packer Hits: Davenport, Tauscher, and Colin Cole

Brandon — Thu, 21 May 2009 12:00:21 -0000

More photos » by Matt York - AP

7 months ago: Arizona Cardinals' Deuce Lutui (76) throws a weighted ball during drills at football minicamp, Friday, May 1, 2009 at the team's training facility in Tempe, Ariz. . At rear from left; Cardinals' Herman Johnson (67), Ben Claxton (62), Carlton Medder (66) and Mike Gandy (69). (AP Photo/Matt York)

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If you try to steal the 1970 Impala owned by ex-Packer RB Najeh Davenport, then you better expect a high speed chase.
I was looking at the Packers' current roster and noted three things. First, with 80 players signed, there are very few unassigned numbers. Second, DE Jeremy Thompson, who was the only player GM Ted Thompson had ever traded up for, until he traded up for LB Clay Matthews last month, is now officially listed as an outside linebacker. And third, unsigned RT Mark Tauscher is still listed on the roster.
The money Seattle gave ex-Packer DT Colin Cole back in March is still indefensible. But the really sad part for Seattle is that they appear to be building their entire defense around stopping the run, with Cole as the anchor. Do they know that the Packers' run defense was awful last season with Cole? While not entirely his fault, he sure wasn't part of the solution in Green Bay either. With Cole "anchoring" the run defense, and SS Brian Russell doing the same damage in the secondary, Seattle is on my short list for the 2010 No. 1 overall pick.
Some former QB got out of prison.
There is a lot of chaos surrounding the reigning NFC champs. First, they've got to overcome the Super Bowl Curse. The good news is they still have six games against San Francisco, St. Louis, and Seattle on the schedule. Second, in the last month, they've released nearly every significant free agent they've signed in the last couple seasons. And third, they're dealing with holdouts by two star players; WR Anquan Boldin and DT Darnell Dockett.

Najeh Davenport: Player, Model, CITIZEN'S ARRESTOR AND ONE-MAN VEHICULAR PROTECTION REVENGE UNIT

The Great Barstoolio — Wed, 20 May 2009 14:59:33 -0000

Jeez, thugs of Pittsburgh. If you're gonna steal a car, make sure it doesn't belong to a dump truck.

BM Hero and infamous Hurricane Najeh Davenport was chilling at home in Pittsburgh, with his car idling outside. Not just any car, mind you, but the 1970 Impala for which he worked all summer for at 15, just to save $500 to buy a place to have sex.

He's since spruced it up a little, so it appeared a bit too tempting for one Rodney Terrell Green -- who hopped in and sped off and paid no mind to at least four parked cars on the escape route.

Davenport wasn't having any of that, though, and hoped in an SUV to pursue the thief (are ALL his cars just sitting around idling?). He chased Green into a Foodland parking lot, where he "stopped him" on foot and detained him until police arrived.

How did he stop him? Fists? Tackle? No.

It was blue steel.

Najeh Davenport Looks to Sign With Balls Models, Inspires Baby-naming Horrorshow

The Great Barstoolio — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 18:56:22 -0000

Where do Hurricanes go when their NFL careers are coming to a close? Nearly every time, the funniest possible place. Like ESPN! I present to you the Model Mayhem (whatever that is) account of one Najeh Davenport, without comment, except: I LOVE THIS PROGRAM SO MUCH.

But Najeh's new career ambitions led me, as we Real Journalists are wont to do, to Wiki him for the lastest updates. Once there, the heavens opened, trumpets sounded, and I learned that Najeh's full name is actually

Najeh Trenadious Monté Davenport.

Goddamn.

EDSBS' Orson Swindle and I came up with a few suggestions for parents who, having just given birth to a future Miami running back, might be struggling over what exactly to name their child. Here's a few favorites:

-Tarranchulus Berry
-Bicycling Treestump
-D’D'Deadrick Simmons
-Lo’Mayne Noodul
-Exeter Nooseman Mooseberry
-Bizkit Seepage Cromartie
-Facebook Holmes
-Babaghanoush Treereaper
-Pee Pee Beaxjangles
-Anklette Digiorno Jackson
-Ford Taurus Explosion

Yeah, it sort of spiraled from there.Go get the rest over at Orson's.

A Thorough Analysis Of the Steelers Tendencies on 3rd and Short

Blitzburgh — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 23:34:03 -0000

I had to investigate the Pittsburgh Steelers tendencies on 3rd and short yardage situations. It seemed to me that we threw the ball ALL the time on 3rd and short, but I wasn't entirely positive. So it was a bit tedious, but I went through the play-by-plays of every game this season and charted what we did each time we faced a 3rd down with 2-4 yards to go. Why did I selected 2-4 yards? Well, I thought it was the appropriate range. Even the most passy happy teams run on 3rd and 1 first of all. And while I think an occassional run should be sprinkled in on 3rd and 5-6 type situations, I think we all generally agree that that's a passing down.

But in the 2-4 yard range, we're basically just needing to get our very modest season average of about 3.5 yards per carry to get a new fresh set of downs. I tried to summarize all the data both in the headers and in a table below so no need to make any sort of calculations for yourself. I did that, and when you see what Bruce Arians has been up to on 3rd and short this year, you may just grow some even stronger opinions about the way our offense has been managed in certain regards and at certain times this year.

WEEK 1 (1 run, 3 passes):

3-4-HOU46(9:09) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger scrambles right end pushed ob at HST 29 for 17 yards (Z.Diles).

3-3-HOU22(7:10) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short middle to S.Holmes to HST 13 for 9 yards (J.Reeves).

3-2-PIT39(3:07) B.Roethlisberger sacked at PIT 27 for -12 yards (M.Williams).

3-2-PIT28(6:15) W.Parker right tackle to PIT 32 for 4 yards (CC.Brown, Z.Diles).

WEEK 2 (0 runs, 3 passes)

3-4-PIT25(12:04) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short right to S.Holmes pushed ob at PIT 41 for 16 yards (E.Wright) [M.Adams].

3-2-PIT49(10:18) B.Roethlisberger sacked at PIT 40 for -9 yards (sack split by C.Williams and N.Sorensen).

3-4-CLE30(8:11) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass incomplete short left to S.Holmes (E.Wright) [S.Rogers].

WEEK 3 (0 runs, 4 passes)

3-4-PHI45(6:38) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short left to H.Ward to PHI 39 for 6 yards (L.Sheppard).

3-4-PIT39(7:49) (Shotgun)
PENALTY on PHI-M.Patterson, Defensive Delay of Game, 5 yards, enforced at PIT 39 - No Play. (Shotgun = about to pass)

3-3-PHI49(6:00) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger sacked at PIT 45 for -6 yards (J.Parker). FUMBLES (J.Parker) [J.Parker], RECOVERED by PHI-B.Bunkley at PIT 45. B.Bunkley to PIT 45 for no gain (H.Miller).

3-2-PHI13(1:08) (Shotgun) B.Leftwich sacked at PHI 22 for -9 yards (sack split by D.Howard and D.Klecko).

WEEK 4 (0 runs, 3 passes)

3-2-BAL47(10:24) B.Roethlisberger pass short middle to N.Washington to BLT 35 for 12 yards (C.Ivy).

3-4-BAL38(4:17) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short middle to S.Holmes for 38 yards, TOUCHDOWN.

3-3-PIT37(2:51) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short left to M.Moore to PIT 43 for 6 yards (B.Scott).

WEEK 5 (0 runs, 2 passes)

3-3-JAC20(12:49) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass incomplete deep right to M.Moore.

3-3-PIT43(4:40) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short left to N.Washington to JAX 45 for 12 yards (B.Williams).
PENALTY on PIT-N.Washington, Unsportsmanlike Conduct, 15 yards, enforced between downs.

WEEK 7 (1 run, 2 passes)

3-3-CIN3(:51) B.Roethlisberger pass incomplete short right to H.Miller.

3-2-CIN44(10:02) B.Roethlisberger pass short right to M.Moore to CIN 44 for no gain (J.Joseph). FUMBLES (J.Joseph), ball out of bounds at CIN 45.

3-3-CIN13(8:36) M.Moore left end for 13 yards, TOUCHDOWN.

WEEK 8 (0 runs, 2 passes)

3-2-PIT48(8:07) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short middle intended for N.Washington INTERCEPTED by B.Kehl (J.Butler) at NYG 39. B.Kehl to PIT 44 for 17 yards (G.Russell). Penalty on PIT-L.Sweed, Offensive Offside, declined.

3-2-NYG36(1:06) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger sacked at NYG 45 for -9 yards (M.Kiwanuka).

WEEK 9 (0 runs, 5 passes)

3-2-PIT40(12:58) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass incomplete short middle to M.Moore (L.Fletcher).

3-2-WAS16(8:52) B.Roethlisberger sacked at WAS 17 for -1 yards (D.Evans).

3-4-PIT40(4:46) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass incomplete short middle to H.Ward (F.Smoot, L.Fletcher).

3-4-PIT40(:24) (Shotgun) B.Leftwich pass short right to M.Moore to WAS 47 for 13 yards (C.Rogers).

(2:45) (Shotgun) B.Leftwich sacked at PIT 27 for -5 yards (sack split by D.Evans and R.McIntosh).
PENALTY on PIT, Illegal Formation, 5 yards, enforced at PIT 32 - No Play. Six men on the line

WEEK 10 (0 runs, 7 passes)

3-2-IND42(11:41) B.Roethlisberger pass deep right to S.Holmes to IND 19 for 23 yards (A.Bethea).

3-2-PIT16(1:30) B.Roethlisberger pass deep left intended for S.Holmes INTERCEPTED by K.Ratliff at PIT 32. K.Ratliff to PIT 30 for 2 yards (S.McHugh).

3-4-PIT46(6:44) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short right to M.Moore to IND 48 for 6 yards (M.Bullitt, T.Jennings).

3-2-PIT49(14:19) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass deep middle to H.Ward to IND 34 for 17 yards (F.Keiaho).

3-2-IND26(12:15) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short right to N.Washington to IND 20 for 6 yards (K.Ratliff).

3-4-PIT34(4:51) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short middle intended for S.Holmes INTERCEPTED by T.Jennings at PIT 38. T.Jennings to PIT 32 for 6 yards (B.Roethlisberger).

3-3-PIT34(2:22) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short middle to M.Spaeth to PIT 44 for 10 yards (M.Bullitt).

WEEK 11 (1 runs, 3 passes)

3-2-PIT29(12:18) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short right to M.Moore to PIT 33 for 4 yards (S.Cooper).

3-2-SD49(:42) (No Huddle, Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass short middle to H.Ward to SD 42 for 7 yards (E.Weddle).

3-4-SD22(:11) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass deep left to S.Holmes to SD 3 for 19 yards (A.Cromartie).

3-4-SD4(:21) W.Parker left tackle for 4 yards, TOUCHDOWN NULLIFIED by Penalty. PENALTY on PIT-S.McHugh, Offensive Holding, 10 yards, enforced at SD 4 - No Play.

WEEK 12 (0 runs, 4 passes)

3-3-CIN19(2:00) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass incomplete short middle to S.Holmes (Da.Jones).

3-4-PIT29(12:02) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger scrambles up the middle to PIT 35 for 6 yards (R.Jeanty, D.Blackstock).

3-2-CIN20(8:30) (Shotgun) B.Roethlisberger pass incomplete short left to H.Ward. COVERAGE BY #29 HALL

3-3-CIN8(2:22) B.Roethlisberger scrambles left guard for 8 yards, TOUCHDOWN.

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**Pittsburgh Steelers on 3rd and 2 - 3rd and 4**
Total Opportunities	Total Runs	Total Passes	1st Down % Running	1st Down % Passing	Sacks
41	3	38	100%	54%	7

Conclusions:

1) We can all agree to disagree about what's the best general offensive philosophy to deploy based on or personnel and what tends to work these days in the league, but I contend wholeheartedly that we are doing ourselves a huuuge disservice by not forcing opposing teams to keep things honest at all. We all know that these coaches have access to every last bit of data out there, so we can all agree that opposing defensive coordinators know this. There's enough data now that defenses know we're throwing. Period. That's a huge disadvantage. We may not have the ideal line or power running back to lean on too heavily in these types of situations, but 7% is not nearly enough balance in those situations.

2) It's largely irrelevant because there's not enough data points in the running game to make any worthwhile conclusions, but my guess is you too noticed that we had some good fortune on those very few instances when we ran it. Just saying!

3) And finally, 3 of Ben's 11 INTs have come in these 38 pass attempts. We have thrown the ball 334 times so you do the math. 27% of Ben's picks have come on just 11% of his passes. That's not a tell all fact necessarily, but knowing what we do about our defense, this is a very easy way for us to improve our chances of winning close games in December and January. It doesn't require us to change our identity either. We can still be a 30-35 throw / 28-32 carry type of offense and still shift things around a bit to better disguise what we are trying to do. And at worse, the evidence suggests we'd at least hold on to the ball more carefully.