SB Nation User Blog: steelerark

Pirates Fans?

steelerark — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 16:05:33 -0000

It is a really boring time right now for Steeler fans this time of year as usual. You can only take a hundred or so mock drafts before you get kind of worn out on them, so I was curious to know how many of you are Pirates fans? I know this is a football blog, and I know that alot of you are not 'Burg fans so much as just Steeler fans. I grew up just outside of Pittsburgh, and unfortunately, love the Pirates as well as the Pens. So, how many of you out there like the team? I was wondering if anyone local is keeping up with the team and how they are looking. It's impossible to tell out here in the Midsouth.

Also, if you are a Pirates fan, check out this article. It will hurt.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=gallo/080910&sportCat=mlb

Galloway?

steelerark — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 15:51:09 -0000

We had our very first free agent sighting today, as Joey Galloway came to visit.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09068/954275-100.stm

This kind of reminds me of Terrence Mathis coming in in the 2002 season. I'm not sure how I would feel about this if he were to sign here. He wasn't productive last year, mainly due to injuries, but had over 1000 yds in 2007. Any thoughts out there?

Best super bowl era franchise

steelerark — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 22:46:52 -0000

I have gotten into a heated debate with a cowboys fan today about who is the greatest franchise since the Super Bowls began. I maintained it was a no brainer with us having won 6 rings and a .857 winning in the big games. He tried to say that they have been to more Super Bowls and have more playoff and regular season wins. Well, I did some digging and found this site ...

http://pweb.jps.net/~fos/nfl/post1969nfl.html

Turns out, good ole Pittsburgh is the winningest team in the NFL since the Super Bowls began, 60%!. We also have the most division and conference championships. Woot! I thought you guys might want to know that site, give you some statistical ammo in a debate. Interesting note, we have allowed the fewest points since then as well. Defense baby.

We stole the Super Bowl

steelerark — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 17:27:45 -0000

Yes Steelers fans, we stole it. We were not the best team. As a recent Miami fan pointed out, we just couldn't make the grade in '08. Well, I am here to give you the true champion in the NFL. The definitive winner of the past season. The coup de grace of the gridiron if you will. Through much deliberation and research, I have come up with the premiere team in the NFL...

Using a recent Miami fan's logic, I had to go about trying to find out who was jobbed out of a championship by the Pittsburgh Stealers, Squeelers, etc. I reasoned that it must logically go by who beat whom in the regular season. I know, I know, you are amazed at my deductive powers. Well, take a gander at this -

Atlanta def. Detroit
Tampa def. Atlanta
Oakland def. Tampa
New Orleans def. Oakland
Denver def. New Orleans
Kansas City def. Denver
New England def. Kansas City (probably by cheating)
San Diego def. New England (VCR was broken - N.E.'s AV guy was subsequently fired)
Buffalo def. San Diego
Miami def. Buffalo
Houston def. Miami
Indy def. Houston
Tennessee def. Indy
N.Y. Jets def. Tennessee
San Fransisco def. N.Y. Jets
Seattle def. San Fran
Arizona def. Seattle
Minnesota def. Arizona
Green Bay def. Minnesota
Jacksonville def. Green Bay
Chicago def. Jacksonville
Carolina def. Chicago
N.Y. Giants def. Carolina
Cleveland def. N.Y. Giants
Baltimore def. Cleveland
Pittsburgh def. Baltimore (three times!)
Philadelphia def. Pittsburgh
Washington def. Philadelphia
Cincinatti def. Washington
Dallas def. Cincinatti
St. Louis def. Dallas

So there you have it folks. Your 2008 champions - the St. Louis Rams! Congrats Rams fans.

Perspective

steelerark — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 17:05:45 -0000

I must say, I have been shocked at all of the negativity that has come to this site lately. It seems like after every loss, there is nothing but predictions of doom, complete with wailing and gnashing of teeth.

Why is this loss all on Ben? Because of those picks? Were they returned for TDs? No. Was Ben out there on defense afterward? Wasn't there another team out there on the field that was trying to win as well? Ben did not lose this game, <em>the team</em> lost this game. Ben does not look himself, I agree. He could stand to sit a game or two to heal, I agree as well. But to 'blame' our 6-3 record on Ben is ridiculous and irresponsible. And by the way, if someone had told you at the start of the season that we would be 6-3 and 3-0 in our division at this point, with the schedule that we have, all of you would have said 'Great!'.

A little proof for you. And let me throw in a post before the season started where everyone gushes about Ben. It's funny how just three losses later, so many are ready to throw him under a bus and start a guy who struggled to even find work this year.

Who cares if the Ravens are 6-3? They have a tough stretch coming up, like we do. Let's all get some perspective and realize that we are playing tough teams out there, and that so far, we have only 3 losses. Its not like we came into this season expecting to win every game.

Ben is totally overrated...

steelerark — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 19:48:31 -0000

ben roethlisberger is overrated. how overrated is he? he is overrated. dont let that 49-20 record fool you. he can barely throw a ball downfield. he cant win big games. forget beating the 1,2,3 seeds in 2005. forget beating unbeaten philly and new england in 2004. forget posting a perfect passer rating 3 times. he is overrated. bring in leftwich. we haven't had a qb this bad since bubby brister. where is my shift key?

Whew, it's hard to write like that. Seriously though, I love stats. I love to find 'em, read 'em and share 'em. I also love having Big Ben as our qb. Almost as much as my man-crush for Hines. So, why not combine two of my loves?

Ben's career stat line...

56 games started, 1,016 completions out of 1,616 attempts for 13,032 yds and a 62.9 completion %. 94 TDs, 61 Ints, for a 91.7 career rating. He's also rushed 168 times for 545 yds and 8 TDs. He currently holds a 49-20 record, with a 5-2 playoff record. Curious how that stacks up against other black-n-gold passers?

1st in rating, comp %, and yds per attempt (8.06), 2nd in TDs and 300 yd games(5), 3rd in wins(44) and yds. 4th in completions and attempts. Oh, and second in Superbowl wins. All on a run-oriented team.

He holds several NFL records...

Most wins by a rookie - 13. Highest passer rating by a rookie - 98.1. Highest comp % by a rook - 62.9%. Youngest qb to win a SB. Second qb ever to have 3 perfect games(Peyton Manning). And just to put that stat in perspective, since 1973 only 34 qbs have ever even had a perfect game, and only 5 qbs have ever had more than one in their entire careers. Ben already has three.

His steeler records are literally too numerous to mention them all, but to highlight a few...

.710 win %
62.9 comp %
32 TDs in one season
91.7 passer rating - career
85.1 rating - postseason
3 perfect games
8.06 yds per attempt
5.85 td% - career
104.1 rating - season

I could go on and list things like most 400+ games, most seasons over 3000 yds, highest rating as a rookie, 15 consecutive games with a TD, most TDs in one game, highest postseason comp %, blah blah blah.

Care to argue any of these stats? Sure, Ben makes mistakes. But so did Marino, Favre and even Bradshaw. Who doesn't? It's idiotic to start throwing Ben under the bus just because he has a bad game or two. And to get one thing straight, 3 of those ints on sunday were not his fault. 2 were tipped by the receiver and one was a desperation heave. I know that beerman is bozo, but I'm willing to bet there are others here that have their doubts. No player is ever going to play lights out, year after year. Even Marino had a rough year or two. remember how antsy Bronco fans were getting before Elway won his two rings?

I guess it comes down to which you would rather have. A guy who makes mistakes but wins and is steadily improving, steadily getter better after already winning a superbowl. Because that's what Ben does. He wins. Or rather, we win with him. Or would you rather go back to struggling with guys like Bubby Brister, Kordell Steward, Neil O'Donnell, Mike Tomczak, Kent Graham, Mark Malone, Tommy Maddux? Seriously, we have not had a franchise guy under center since Terry. Ben is making Romo money and a ridiculously better body of work. So there it is. Lemme have it. Sorry for the length.

I'm curious...

steelerark — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 16:04:32 -0000

I'd like to know what everyone else thinks about this. I haven't heard much talk about it yet, but this play really bothered me.

I was very upset after we went for iton 4th and 5 in the 4th quarter. The score was 14-9 and there was, if I remember correctly, about 12 minutes left in the game. Why? Why go for it there? Aside from that first drive, the offense had been struggling all game to get into some sort of a rhythm. We were up by five and if you kick there, we are up by eight, a two score or two point conversion lead. We have a kicker who is at 100% on the year. We were at the 30. Why? Let him kick a 47 yarder. Why trust an offense that had been struggling the majority of the game instead of a sure thing, or at least as close to one as we have on our team. That play changed the entire complexion of the second half. Ben threw a pick, and the momentum completely shifted in their favor. Its not like we were burning up the field on offense. After that play, we did not have one single 1st down for the rest of the game. As I said in an earlier post, this was the first decision that Tomlin made that just flat out infuriated me. I am a huge fan of his, so I'm not jumpin off his wagon, just hated the call. Any comments?

By the way, here is my report on my adoptee, Nate Washington. Nate had 1 catch for 65 yds that went for a TD. Great catch and throw. He also had another beautiful catch that was called back on a very frustrating Colon hold. On the negative side, Nate had three drops, one of which he tipped into the hands of Giant Bryan Kehl. In his defense, he was hit hard on the catch. However, Ben hit him square in the chest, and guys get hit over the middle in this league and hold on to the ball every sunday in this league. He should have caught it.

Hey BBV!

steelerark — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 15:57:46 -0000

Hey folks. I just wanted to log on to the site and talk a bit about how great you guys have been on our site. ETVal and cjmulrain(did I spell them right?) have been great reps for your site on behindthesteelcurtain, and I just wanted to come on and let you guys know. Sorry to go all kumbyah on you. As a steeler fan living in Arkansas, its been hard to find a site to go to that doesn't have idiots posting constantly and ranting and raving. SBN has given me that with BTSC, and its great to get to know fans of other teams. The debate over the Ben vs. Eli conversation was fun, and the way Giants fans have been has made me like the team a little bit more. I can't wait for the game this weekend. I heard there was an idiotic steeler fan on here, and I'm sorry for that. Good luck, but I hope the Giants lose!

The Whole Hines Ward Thing...

steelerark — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 05:29:46 -0000

Bumped.

steelerark is just about as old school as it comes on BTSC, though newer readers might not know it with all the nice developments in his personal and professional life lately. He's a great big picture guy, a great loyal Pittsburgh sports fan, and most likely very similar to some good friend of yours. Just a down to earth, chill guy. I am pleased he found time to weigh in on his favorite player, Hines Ward, and the bigger picture he sees developing behind the scenes as it relates to Hines. Jump on in with your two cents. - Blitz-

I have been closely following this story for some time now, even before this last week's developments. I believe that this whole situation with Hines this season has brought to light something that is very troubling to me. It seems that the league is slowly and methodically trying to turn this league into a politically correct product. They seem to be taking a sport known for its violence, hard-hitting and ruggedness and turn it into something entirely different. As Polamolu might put it, a pansy league.

I know that with time, all things change. This is not my father's league. My dad watched guys like Lambert, Mean Joe, Butkus and Lott. Guys like Tatum and Alzado who actually sought guys out to hurt them and looked to cause as much pain as possible. I'm sure Maryrose can whip out several stories about guys like that. But that league is dead to us. And that's okay. I know that stuff like that had to change after seeing what happened to guys like Mike Webster in their old age. (Read what happened to Ted Johnson during his time with the Pats, one more reason to hate Belichick) That makes sense. What bothers me is two-fold: the inconsistencies and the general shift toward correct 'behavior'. Namely, the fines. We all know by now how much Hines has been fined this year, twice for unspecified "unnecessary roughness". He did get an explanation on one of them, a slap to a helmet after a play was over. What bothers me most about the fines and Hines getting labeled a dirty player is the whole hypocrisy of it. I posted some links in an earlier post about this, but in case you missed them...

Here's Ed Reed, an avid Hines hater who has been decleated twice by 86.

Here’s Chinedum Ndukwe, the Bengal LB who complained about the Rivers injury to the media, in college.

It bothers me that offensive players (namely Hines, since I don't know of too many other receivers that hit like him) are seemingly held to a different standard than defensive players. In the PG today, we learned that the league will consider hits like the one Hines put on display Sunday illegal in the offseason. How? Will they require an offensive player to hit a guy only if he's looking? Will they have to yell out a warning? On the flip side, defenders constantly knock guys out of the game. Know what Ray Lewis said immediately after knocking Mendenhall out of the game? "The force was freaking incredible," Patrick quotes Lewis about the tackle. "After the play, I wasn't screaming, 'He's hurt.' I was screaming, 'He's done. Cripes I hate the Ravens.

Where is the consistency in crap like this? I read somewhere that maybe the stuff that Hines is getting fined for is all a subtle way to soften teams up for an 18 game schedule. That might hold water if only defensive guys weren't getting away with the exact same kind of stuff. The league still puts out a 'Greatest Hits' video every year. We hear guys like Kwoog come on and complain that Hines is a dirty player. How is this hit by your beloved Browns any different Kwoog? Hines is called a 'blind side' guy. Huh? Um, how many times a game do you see a quarterback get blindsided? If it's a Steeler game you're watching, probably several times. Hines is labeled as dirty, but defenders taking out receivers in the same way get praised.

As for the shift toward behavior, sure. I'm all for fining guys or suspending guys that continually get into trouble with the law or use drugs. That's just weeding out idiots. Any guy like Matt Jones that is gonna risk all that they have gained to do a few lines of coke deserve to get suspended. But, where did it start to turn that guys can't celebrate a TD in any way but maybe joyfully clapping their hands? It is unbelievable how the celebration fines have gotten way out of control. Is it solely because of TO and Bozo Cinco? I can't stand either guy, but if they want to pull a sharpie out or grab some pom poms, who cares? I have to admit, its entertaining and amusing. Read this article by Joel Hammond, a blogger at pigskinpodcast.com. Most recently, Chris Johnson of the Titans was fined 15 grand for banging on some drums in their pep band. (They have a pep band?!?) It's getting crazy. I know that the celebrations are getting more elaborate and planned out in advance. My question is, who cares? Who is it hurting? Are they going to start fining a kicker for jumping into his teammates arms after a game-winning kick? I like what Hammond says in his podcast. Its not about the refs and the league officials. It's about the fans and unfortunately, things like these instances are proving that this sport is more and more a business and not about us.

I'd like to hear everyone's thoughts about all this, the celebrations and the fines for Ward. I especially would like to hear from some of the non-Steeler fans who read this site to chime in. I know some of the more vocal ones have been silent, with the Cowboys, Browns and Jags struggling. But I know you guys are still out there lurking, waiting in the shadows for the Steelers to take a nosedive like in the Eagles game. Lemme have it.

Has anyone else seen Troy's commercial?

steelerark — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 22:38:18 -0000

Man, I always thought last year's Nike commercial with Tomlinson and Merriman was pretty sweet, but they have put a new one out this year that, at least from my biased point of view, is even better. Has anyone seen it? It shows Troy and LT in a timeline of the two of them growing up, from peewee to their USC/TCU days. Then at the end, they meet in a game and a tackle. Its pretty frickin sweet and its awesome to see Troy getting some ad time. Its great, because in the ad, he makes the tackle and just pops up to head back to the huddle like usual. The thing I love about Troy is his work ethic. The guy just plays football. No flash celebrations, no screaming or taunting for making a tackle. Sure, he gets hyped up every now and then and shows emotion rarely. But this guy is all Steeler.