OK - Why Has It All Come Apart

[HometownGal]

Originally Posted by GoSlash27

HometownGal,
Werd! The Steelers have owned every decade of my existence except for the '80s. Definitely better than I have any right to expect.

Even if we bomb this season....so what? There's always next year and the year after that....and the decade after that (remember the '80s? ) but the die-hard fans will always still be here and a little losing every now 'n' then builds character.

Having said that, I'd rather see 'em winning than building character, so a little constructive criticism (as opposed to throwing a tantrum) can be a good thing.

Nothing wrong with a little constructive criticism, Go, but what I've seen around here since last night doesn't fit my definition of "constructive" - more like destructive. Different strokes for different folks on what they define as constructive, I suppose.

Psssst - I wasn't throwing a tantrum - I was simply stating my opinion. If you really want to see tantrums, please refer to the Game Day thread. Whether I agree or disagree with anyone's opinion around here, they are more than entitled to express them and I respect those opinions.

[SteelerFanInCA]

Originally Posted by HometownGal

Great post Hoss and I'm with you hon!

Reading some of the comments in the game day thread earlier this morning made me want to heave. Some of you call yourselves Steelers fans? Throwing in your TT's just 4 games into the season???? Calling for Cowher's head???? Wanting to shatter Ben's confidence when he is trying to get it back and put in Batch???? I also noted that many of you don't come around unless the Steelers are in trouble during a game - what the hell is that all about? Nevermind - the answer is pretty clear.

Blind optimism my ass. It's called faith in and loyalty to an organization and team I have loved for over 40 years, a team I have experienced the highs and lows with and a team that has given me season upon season of excitement, surprises and fulfillment. If we were in Week 12 or 13, I could possibly understand some of the comments, but for God's sake - we're FOUR games into the season and some of you want to throw in the towel and declare this season over - do you even realize how ridiculous that sounds????

I also am not blind to the problems that the team is experiencing, but as I've said in other threads, they are fixable. There are 12 weeks of football remaining (3/4 of the season) and I'm going to continue to believe that this team will get it together. When adversity stared them in the face last season, they believed enough in themselves and each other to put their noses to the grindstone and do whatever it took to win 8 straight en route to the Super Bowl. If they don't travel the same path this season for whatever reason, sure I'll be somewhat disappointed, but I'm still going to be standing there right beside them and looking forward to next season as I've done in the past. Steelers fans have become spoiled, plain and simple.

Great post. I'm right there with you HTG. You tell them girl!!!

[Btrice]

Originally Posted by HometownGal

Anti-realism? LMAO!!!!! Mmmmkay. Reading some of your very own comments last night in the game thread shows a bit of contradiction to what you state above, Btrice.

Nothing is or should be obvious to me or any other knowledgeable football fan only FOUR weeks into a season. Being a "hometown" gal most of my life, I know all too well what Pittsburgh fans, especially when it comes to the Steelers, "expect" from their team and I've always felt it was totally unrealistic and unfair. No team, whether it be a professional football club, hockey team, baseball or basketball team, is going to have a winning season every single year or play up to potential every single game, but yet some of you expect nothing less. All pro sports franchises have highs and lows but the true test of a team's character is how they handle the highs and resolve the lows. Only 4 weeks into a 16 game season, I'd think it's fair to suffice that this team has more than ample time to resolve its "lows", work on its problem areas and at the very minimum, make this season at least somewhat respectable.

As for your comment that I have an "I'm a better fan than you" attitude, I'm not going to elaborate on it but I will say this. Those who have come to know me here know all too well what a totally ridiculous statement that is. I am an optimist regarding life in general, as well as towards the teams I love and am loyal to - I focus on the positives instead of dwelling on the negatives. The Rooneys and Cowher have rarely let us down in the past and I'm going to continue to believe that they will come up with the right recipe to turn the team back in the right direction.

P.S. As far as "paying attention to Bill Cowher on the sidelines" - I'm too engrossed in paying attention to the the game itself to watch our HC's mannerisms and animations on the sidelines or lack thereof.

I don't think ANYTHING I said last night completely contradicts what I said this morning, except maybe the fact I am being a little harder on the O-line than I was last night. I blamed coaching last night, I blame coaching this morning. I said Ben wasn't scrambling last night, I say Ben didn't scramble this morning. Please cite posts where I am contradicting myself.

Ok so you do agree that most fans in Pitt react this way, you just dont agree with the type of reactioni itself, that is fine. You have to understand that probably 50+% of the folks on this board grew up in the waning Noll years and saw their parents react this way so they probably are going to have the same type of alignment when it comes to what they expect out of a team. I DONT expect us to win every year and I could care less if we do, I just like watching "Steelers football", and last night was not "Steelers football". "Steelers football" to me is playing that emulates the blue collar work ethic of W-PA and the Tri-state area. If last night was a blowout from the opening kickoff that is one thing, but the level of play we displayed in the opening 25 minutes of game time compared to what happened afterwards show that somebody was not working hard.

That is very nice that you have built up such a repore amongst your net-friends (and I am not using that term as derogatory, in this day and age net-friends can be an important extension of your real life network) but the point still is that you came on and disparaged others for not sharing in your overly optimistic view of life. So you should expect a little retort to that from people like me, who could care less about making net friends and who is not optimistic about the near-term future of this team. Many of the people making comments that the season is over are using a bit of hyperbole, but the importance of large-arc momentum is just as important as in-game momentum.

And as for not watching Cowher, unless you are at the game, the camera tends to show either the sideline OR the game, not both, so unless you are dividing your time between the game and something else, its a little hard to miss when they cut to Cowher.

[HometownGal]

Originally Posted by Btrice

I don't think ANYTHING I said last night completely contradicts what I said this morning, except maybe the fact I am being a little harder on the O-line than I was last night. I blamed coaching last night, I blame coaching this morning. I said Ben wasn't scrambling last night, I say Ben didn't scramble this morning. Please cite posts where I am contradicting myself.

Ok so you do agree that most fans in Pitt react this way, you just dont agree with the type of reactioni itself, that is fine. You have to understand that probably 50+% of the folks on this board grew up in the waning Noll years and saw their parents react this way so they probably are going to have the same type of alignment when it comes to what they expect out of a team. I DONT expect us to win every year and I could care less if we do, I just like watching "Steelers football", and last night was not "Steelers football". "Steelers football" to me is playing that emulates the blue collar work ethic of W-PA and the Tri-state area. If last night was a blowout from the opening kickoff that is one thing, but the level of play we displayed in the opening 25 minutes of game time compared to what happened afterwards show that somebody was not working hard.

That is very nice that you have built up such a repore amongst your net-friends (and I am not using that term as derogatory, in this day and age net-friends can be an important extension of your real life network) but the point still is that you came on and disparaged others for not sharing in your overly optimistic view of life. So you should expect a little retort to that from people like me, who could care less about making net friends and who is not optimistic about the near-term future of this team. Many of the people making comments that the season is over are using a bit of hyperbole, but the importance of large-arc momentum is just as important as in-game momentum.

And as for not watching Cowher, unless you are at the game, the camera tends to show either the sideline OR the game, not both, so unless you are dividing your time between the game and something else, its a little hard to miss when they cut to Cowher.

I'm not going to go back through that entire thread and cut and paste all of your contradictions - you seem like an intelligent person and I think you know what and where those contradictions are. Look - I'm not here to bash you or anyone else - that isn't my style and when all is said and done, whether we agree or disagree on any particular issue, we're all Steelers fans and I hope fighting for the same cause.

Yer darn tootin' I disparaged others for what I view as fair-weatherdom, which by your own admission, is typical of some past and present fans, and I will not apologize for it. While I am admittedly an optimistic person by nature (and damned proud of it), let me make it perfectly clear that I do not expect others to mirror my positive outlook on the book of life, as I realize that everyone's inner makeup is different, but I do expect a little more positive energy from Steelers fans in general, quite frankly. The Steelers organization as a whole has exhibited nothing but class over their long tenure in the league and I would think (and hope) that their fans would choose to exhibit the same. That being said, however, I also find it extremely pathetic to read all of the destructive criticisms being made because the Steelers are off to a slow start and have hit a bump in the road. Being a Steelers fan for a good number of years, I have experienced the team's downfalls in the 80's and early 90's after our dynasty years and before the Bill Cowher era. While I realize that quite a few of the present-day Steelers "fans" may not have experienced those ups and downs, I find it hard to fathom how anyone who calls themselves a fan of the black and gold can, in good conscience, jump for joy last season when the Steelers made their almost unbelievable run, but be so quick to turn on the very team that they claim to support and allege themselves to in a season that is still so very young.

Your comments on "net friends" have nothing to do wth the topic at hand, so I'm not going to address them other than to remind you that you made what I deemed to be an inaccurate statement in your initial response and I responded with a simple fact. You chose to elaborate on that simple fact and I'm choosing to get back to the topic at hand.

Finally - again - I could give a rat's behind how Cowher reacts on the sidelines - his gameplan (and that of his coaches/coords) and the successful execution of it by the team are what I am focusing on during a game. Sure I've seen the amination over the years, but I really don't pay much attention to it other than the sheer joy and satisfaction I clearly saw on Cowher's face as the clock ticked down at Ford Field last February and when he hoisted up that Lombardi trophy and so proudly handed it to Mr. Rooney.

In closing, I will freely admit that I'm not overly thrilled with the way the team as a whole has played thus far this season, but I am not going to join the boo bird brigade that is rapidly forming. Instead - I am going to keep a positive attitude that this team is going to work diligently to right its wrongs and revert to the mindset they developed in the last 8 games last season and catapulted them into the Super Bowl - one game at a time.

[Preacher]

Here is what I know.

We are 1-3.

We have had off-season issues with our coach, our first round draft pick, our quarterback, our top LB.

We now have a passing game that is missing... granted, just by a few inches at times, but still missing.

We are no longer able to truly pound the ball up the middle, as a result, we are no longer able to shorten the clock in the second half.

Those are the negatives.

The positives are that:

This team is STILL owned by the Roonies... therefore this won't be a long term situation, nor will this team make stupid acquirements and trades for team destroying personalities.

Cowher is still the coach. 1-3 Just may put the hunger and anger back in him!

Davenport looked decent last night.

Ben is hitting the shorter passes, but not the longer ones, or threading the needle. Whatever the issue is.. he was having a harder time hitting shorter passes before, so he IS progressing.

Santonio Holmes seems to be running his routes MUCH better. He will be a deep threat when the passing game gets on track.

Has it came apart? Yeah. It sure has. No one on this team (except for the owners) was ready for everything that came at them in the offseason. Coach even recognized that it was detrimental... everyone was congratulating them, even through training camp.

However, discussing when it came apart... is not anathema to being a fan. It is a fact that they have come apart over the first 4 weeks of this season.

HOWEVER... that does not mean that I think they cannot have a winning season. Heck, with a little help, they may still make the playoffs and if they are in the playoffs... well... we all know what we can do from the sixth seed.

BUT THINGS MUST TURN AROUND QUICKLY!

[Haiku_Dirtt]

Originally Posted by Atlanta Dan

Hard to see any silver lining here - this is currently not a good team.

Channeling Sheba, is it due to:

1. The QB hits his sophomore slump 1 year late;

2. Cowher retired 1 year too late; or

3. After all the near misses this team lost all motivaton after it finally won it all?

IMHO this season is over - the '76 Steelers made the playoffs after a 1-4 start but this is not the '76 Steelers

The one constant that I'm seeing is that when Ben starts this year we lose. Lloyd's of London will insure the Steelers if their franchise QB acts like the adolescent that he not paid to be, becomes a 'crash dummy' millions and millions of dollars at risk.

But like I said when HELMET-GATE was the main topic KEY MAN INSURANCE will never undue the damage.

[stgo]

I am not so sure if the accident changes BEN esstentially in his decision making. Of course, he is not playing as well as he used to. But I saw him getting slightly better in these 3 loses. Let us see how he plays in next few games.

The steelers team did not play well either. We all know that as part of a game, problems always occur, be it in offense, defense, or special team. Last year, the team is good enough to overcome bad field postions, turnovers during a game. But this year, it is just killing us whenever problems happen. We are unable to take advantage of opponents' turnovers, overcome our own turnovers.

Originally Posted by Man_Of_Steel

Big Ben is certainly not the same QB and it looks like it's going to take him a long time to get back into it.

[caseydog]

Like others here, I'm not seeing doom yet. This is the same basic team that won it all last year after almost not going to the playoffs.

However, I too have noticed that Cowher is not looking as fired up this year.

I also am not seeing Ben play with the kind of spontaneous heroics he showed last year -- the "get it done whatever way you can" kind of play.

And, as good a Willie Parker is, you can't run him up the middle like the Bus. Get the ball to him where there is room to show off his explosive speed.

Mostly, though, the offense is not "clicking". Mistakes, dropped balls, missed blocks.

You can be a great tem, but if you turn the ball over 5 times in a game, as in Cincinnati, you are going to get in a hole that's hard to get out of.

I know they CAN get to the playoffs again. But they are going to need to make some changes to their tactics and work their arses off to get their groove back.

g

[Btrice]

Originally Posted by HometownGal

I'm not going to go back through that entire thread and cut and paste all of your contradictions - you seem like an intelligent person and I think you know what and where those contradictions are. Look - I'm not here to bash you or anyone else - that isn't my style and when all is said and done, whether we agree or disagree on any particular issue, we're all Steelers fans and I hope fighting for the same cause.

Yer darn tootin' I disparaged others for what I view as fair-weatherdom, which by your own admission, is typical of some past and present fans, and I will not apologize for it. While I am admittedly an optimistic person by nature (and damned proud of it), let me make it perfectly clear that I do not expect others to mirror my positive outlook on the book of life, as I realize that everyone's inner makeup is different, but I do expect a little more positive energy from Steelers fans in general, quite frankly. The Steelers organization as a whole has exhibited nothing but class over their long tenure in the league and I would think (and hope) that their fans would choose to exhibit the same. That being said, however, I also find it extremely pathetic to read all of the destructive criticisms being made because the Steelers are off to a slow start and have hit a bump in the road. Being a Steelers fan for a good number of years, I have experienced the team's downfalls in the 80's and early 90's after our dynasty years and before the Bill Cowher era. While I realize that quite a few of the present-day Steelers "fans" may not have experienced those ups and downs, I find it hard to fathom how anyone who calls themselves a fan of the black and gold can, in good conscience, jump for joy last season when the Steelers made their almost unbelievable run, but be so quick to turn on the very team that they claim to support and allege themselves to in a season that is still so very young.

Your comments on "net friends" have nothing to do wth the topic at hand, so I'm not going to address them other than to remind you that you made what I deemed to be an inaccurate statement in your initial response and I responded with a simple fact. You chose to elaborate on that simple fact and I'm choosing to get back to the topic at hand.

Finally - again - I could give a rat's behind how Cowher reacts on the sidelines - his gameplan (and that of his coaches/coords) and the successful execution of it by the team are what I am focusing on during a game. Sure I've seen the amination over the years, but I really don't pay much attention to it other than the sheer joy and satisfaction I clearly saw on Cowher's face as the clock ticked down at Ford Field last February and when he hoisted up that Lombardi trophy and so proudly handed it to Mr. Rooney.

In closing, I will freely admit that I'm not overly thrilled with the way the team as a whole has played thus far this season, but I am not going to join the boo bird brigade that is rapidly forming. Instead - I am going to keep a positive attitude that this team is going to work diligently to right its wrongs and revert to the mindset they developed in the last 8 games last season and catapulted them into the Super Bowl - one game at a time.

Actually I don't know where those contradictions are, otherwise I wouldn't have asked you to post up what YOU think they were/are. At least give one example even if it is paraphrased, otherwise dont call me out on it in the first place. I have NO trouble admitting I am wrong, so if you do find a blatant contradiction I WILL fess up to it, unless my comment was taken out of context.

Well if you wont apologize (which I never asked you to) for generalizing people who post criticism based on a small sample set, then as I said you have to deal with people who are going to generalize right back.

I wasn't on here last season, otherwise you wouldn't characterize me as someone who "jumped for joy" last year. Personally I was relieved we won the SB more than anything. I was tired of coming so close for so many years. I think we squeaked by and got lucky in the Superbowl. I have never been a HUGE Ben fan, nor thought he was a spectacular QB. I have always been a Steeler Defense fan, and my criticism of LeBeau comes from his changing tactics midway through a game to a weaker set of formations/rushes. My criticism of Cowher comes from the fact that I DO pay attention to him on the sidelines.

I'm always prepared for the worst and that has gotten me pretty damn far in my relatively short life. I've always thought optimism is for the weak, but to each their own.

Actually my comment on net friends did have something to do with the topic because you pointed to your reputation here as backup for your argument, which was unnecessary but whatever.

How did I make an innaccurate statement? I did not generalize ALL optimistic people as doing so blindy, I was stating that there existed a mirror image of the "fair weather fan." I might have missed it but I don't believe you posted before that post of mine so I could not have been characterizing you.

Well unless you have some examples of the contradictions for me, I think this poor horse has been through enough beatings.

[LarryNJ]

I don't think the season is over.

My thoughts on Why has it all come apart?

Special teams have been terrible. Field position is so key in winning the game. Our return game sucks. Fumbles, 3 or 4 yard punt returns and 20 kick off returns aren't going to cut it. This needs to be fixed somehow some way. Special teams can give a team a huge spark as we seen lastnight on the Chargers 50yd return.

O line-running game I'm not sure what they got going on but they aren't blowing many people off of the ball. I think we'll see them get it together and Davenport will become a bigger part of the running game. Get the running game rolling and the passing game will follow.

9-3 the rest of the season. We need to sweep the Ravens, which a split is more likely, sweep the Browns and beat the Bengals the last game.