Week 14 Quick Hits: No Need for Panic in Pittsburgh

mesaSteeler · 12-14-2009, 09:43 PM

Week 14 Quick Hits: No Need for Panic in Pittsburghh
By ANDY BENOIT

Andy Benoit is the founder of NFLTouchdown.com.
Pittsburgh Steelers
http://fifthdown.blogs.nytimes.com/

A question many are starting to ask is: Should there be changes in Pittsburgh?

The short answer seems to be, No.

The NFL Network shared a startling statistic Thursday night: When Cleveland went up, 13-0, midway through the second quarter, it was the first time this season that Pittsburgh had trailed by more than 7 points. How remarkable is this? The last team not to fall behind by 7 at any point through the first 12 games in a season was the 1998 Denver Broncos.

There’s no doubt the Steelers have struggled in 2009. With Troy Polamalu out of the lineup, Pittsburgh’s defense – particularly the secondary – has been inconsistent and prone to mental errors. Offensively, a lot of the pass protection blunders that hurt the team early last year have reappeared. But above all else, sloppy special teams – mainly a kick coverage unit that, according to data crunched by Football Outsiders, is the worst this decade – has been the Achilles’ heel.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Sunday that special-teams coach Bob Ligashesky could be fired at the end of the season. Ligashesky’s removal would be the team’s first coaching change since Tomlin took over.

The Steelers have the league’s ninth-ranked offense and fourth-ranked defense. Their problems have been special teams, a minus-five turnover differential and poor execution late in fourth quarters. All are fixable problems. One could argue that the Steelers are a very good team that just happens to be 6-7.

(Rest of the article is not about the Steelers. - mesa)

Psyychoward86 · 12-14-2009, 10:10 PM

i remember an article about the Two Things that Mike Tomlin improved in Pittsburgh: pass defense and special teams coverage. What happened

mulldog24 · 12-15-2009, 12:31 AM

I agree with this article for the most part, we just need to focus a little more in the absence of our injured players and play better special teams.

12-14-2009, 09:43 PM	#1
mesaSteeler A Son of Martha Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Mesa, Arizona Posts: 7,976 Gender: Male Member Number: 10438 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Week 14 Quick Hits: No Need for Panic in Pittsburgh Week 14 Quick Hits: No Need for Panic in Pittsburghh By ANDY BENOIT Andy Benoit is the founder of NFLTouchdown.com. Pittsburgh Steelers http://fifthdown.blogs.nytimes.com/ A question many are starting to ask is: Should there be changes in Pittsburgh? The short answer seems to be, No. The NFL Network shared a startling statistic Thursday night: When Cleveland went up, 13-0, midway through the second quarter, it was the first time this season that Pittsburgh had trailed by more than 7 points. How remarkable is this? The last team not to fall behind by 7 at any point through the first 12 games in a season was the 1998 Denver Broncos. There’s no doubt the Steelers have struggled in 2009. With Troy Polamalu out of the lineup, Pittsburgh’s defense – particularly the secondary – has been inconsistent and prone to mental errors. Offensively, a lot of the pass protection blunders that hurt the team early last year have reappeared. But above all else, sloppy special teams – mainly a kick coverage unit that, according to data crunched by Football Outsiders, is the worst this decade – has been the Achilles’ heel. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Sunday that special-teams coach Bob Ligashesky could be fired at the end of the season. Ligashesky’s removal would be the team’s first coaching change since Tomlin took over. The Steelers have the league’s ninth-ranked offense and fourth-ranked defense. Their problems have been special teams, a minus-five turnover differential and poor execution late in fourth quarters. All are fixable problems. One could argue that the Steelers are a very good team that just happens to be 6-7. (Rest of the article is not about the Steelers. - mesa)

12-14-2009, 10:10 PM	#2
Psyychoward86 Living Legend Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Wisconsin Posts: 3,463 Gender: Male Member Number: 10772 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Week 14 Quick Hits: No Need for Panic in Pittsburg i remember an article about the Two Things that Mike Tomlin improved in Pittsburgh: pass defense and special teams coverage. What happened

12-15-2009, 12:31 AM	#3
mulldog24 Starter Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 439 Member Number: 13119 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Week 14 Quick Hits: No Need for Panic in Pittsburgh I agree with this article for the most part, we just need to focus a little more in the absence of our injured players and play better special teams.

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