Steelers, Ravens on a collision course

[mesaSteeler]

(Mods feel free to move this if you wish. It could in either of two existing threads. I'll let you choose if you want to move it. - mesa)

View From The Press Box
http://blog.triblive.com/view-from-t...ss+Box+Blog%29
Steelers, Ravens on a collision course
January 2nd, 2011

CLEVELAND --

Wow, talk about taking care of business.

The Steelers blasted the Browns, 41-9, today, putting them on track for a third game this season against the Ravens.

The Steelers get a first-round bye as the No. 2 seed in the AFC playoffs, meaning they will play the Ravens, Chiefs or Colts in the divisional round of the playoffs.

That will take place Jan. 15 in a 4:30 p.m. game at Heinz Field.

With the Patriots entrenched as the No. 1 seed the Steelers will play the higher seed of the two teams that advance in the first-round games.

And it would not be an upset if both wild-card teams beat the division winners at home.

The Ravens play the Chiefs in Kansas City where the latter is 7-1 this season but has been one of the NFL’s surprise teams -- and one that may still be a year or two away.

Only a dubious play call or a great play made by Steelers strong safety Troy Polamalu, depending on your vantage point, prevented the Ravens from going 13-3 this season and entering the AFC playoffs as the No. 2 seeds instead of the No. 5 seed.

They will probably be favored against the Chiefs.

The Jets may also be favored to beat the Colts in Indianapolis.

The Fighting Mannings won the AFC South -– or were at least the last one standing in that division by the end of the regular season –- and any team that has Peyton Manning at quarterback has a fighting chance.

But I like the Jets in that game and think the Ravens beat the Chiefs.

If that scenario transpires the NFL has its dream Final Four, at least in the AFC, with division rivals playing one another in both games.

The Jets, incidentally, are the only team the Steelers can’t face in the playoffs until the AFC championship game.

My best-case scenario for the Steelers is the Ravens beating the Chiefs and the Colts knocking out the Jets.

That would put Baltimore in New England for the divisional round of the playoffs, and I think the Ravens are a team that can match up with the Patriots –- and yes, beat them.

If that happens -- and the Steelers beat the Colts -- that would set up a rematch of the 2008 AFC title game at Heinz Field.

That game turned out to be a classic.

It would be fun to see what happens if the two rivals meet again with nothing less than a trip to the Super Bowl on the line.

[bobby jr]

OK I previously said I wouldn't post unless the Ravens and Steelers met in the playoffs. As this matchup now appears it may be in the offing, a post has been started on this subject, I think it's fair for me to respond at this time, in order to have time to discuss it before the event occurrs.

I have no problem with the Steelers winning, but they have to earn it. Let's face it, their last trip to the Super Bowl they had perhaps the easist post season schedule of all time. They had a first round bye, then a home game against a .500 team (San Diego), they had the AFC Championship game at home against the Ravens (the only good team they faced in the post season), then they played the Super Bowl against a 9-7 AZ team which had outscored the opposition by 1 point over the regular season.

No such easy route will exist for the Steelers this year. They get the first round bye (based upon divisional records, which I don't really understand being used as tiebreaker, the Ravens have the same overall record). There are no easy marks in the playoffs this year, no .500 teams (except for Seattle and they won't be in the Super Bowl).

If the Steelers and Ravens meet, Joe Flacco is no longer a rookie, and he already led the team to a game winning dramatic last minute TD to win in Heinz Field this year.

And most likely the Steelers will have to go to NE to play the AFC Championship game. I cannot help but notice on this forum that many Steeler fans seem to want to avoid that fate.

[jacksolomon]

Originally Posted by bobby jr

They get the first round bye (based upon divisional records, which I don't really understand being used as tiebreaker, the Ravens have the same overall record).

Pretty much the same principle that allowed the Ravens to go to the playoffs last year while the Steelers went to the golf course, despite having identical W/L records. Deal with it.

Originally Posted by bobby jr

If the Steelers and Ravens meet, Joe Flacco is no longer a rookie, and he already led the team to a game winning dramatic last minute TD to win in Heinz Field this year..

And we beat the Ravens in Baltimore with the mighty Flacco at the helm. What's your point? It's also a safe bet we won't be starting Charlie Batch this time around either.

[SteelCityMom]

[steelerchad]

Originally Posted by bobby jr

OK I previously said I wouldn't post unless the Ravens and Steelers met in the playoffs. As this matchup now appears it may be in the offing, a post has been started on this subject, I think it's fair for me to respond at this time, in order to have time to discuss it before the event occurrs.

I have no problem with the Steelers winning, but they have to earn it. Let's face it, their last trip to the Super Bowl they had perhaps the easist post season schedule of all time. They had a first round bye, then a home game against a .500 team (San Diego), they had the AFC Championship game at home against the Ravens (the only good team they faced in the post season), then they played the Super Bowl against a 9-7 AZ team which had outscored the opposition by 1 point over the regular season.

No such easy route will exist for the Steelers this year. They get the first round bye (based upon divisional records, which I don't really understand being used as tiebreaker, the Ravens have the same overall record). There are no easy marks in the playoffs this year, no .500 teams (except for Seattle and they won't be in the Super Bowl).

If the Steelers and Ravens meet, Joe Flacco is no longer a rookie, and he already led the team to a game winning dramatic last minute TD to win in Heinz Field this year.

And most likely the Steelers will have to go to NE to play the AFC Championship game. I cannot help but notice on this forum that many Steeler fans seem to want to avoid that fate.

what tie-breaker would you like to see implemented? strentgth of victory? still Steelers. Point differential? still Steelers. I know you like point totals since you pointed that out as an important factor in the Ravens being better that the Steelers in a previous post. How about a coin flip or an arm wrestling match? maybe the Ravens could win that tie-breaker. Just deal with your 5th seed and take care of KC, then come visit your big brother at Heinz Field to get your spanking.

The Steelers offense is starting to click while the Ravens is starting to stink. I like this possible match up more now than ever. I like it even better at Heinz Field.

[bobby jr]

Originally Posted by steelerchad

what tie-breaker would you like to see implemented? strentgth of victory? still Steelers. Point differential? still Steelers. I know you like point totals since you pointed that out as an important factor in the Ravens being better that the Steelers in a previous post. How about a coin flip or an arm wrestling match? maybe the Ravens could win that tie-breaker. Just deal with your 5th seed and take care of KC, then come visit your big brother at Heinz Field to get your spanking.

The Steelers offense is starting to click while the Ravens is starting to stink. I like this possible match up more now than ever. I like it even better at Heinz Field.

Well I just don't see how divisional play makes that much difference. Some of these NFL divisions aren't any good anyway like the NFC West. So Seattle gets rewarded for beating lousy teams with losing records, and they get a home playoff game against a New Orleans team which finished with a record 4 games ahead of Seattle.


Similarly, The Ravens will be at a disadvantage the whole playoffs , And Pittsburgh with exactly the same record as the Ravens gets treated as a number two seed with a first round bye and then home games unless they face the Patriots. just because we lost to Cincinnati once, why is that game so important that it should make that much of a difference.

It is true the Steelers would have come out ahead on points scored VS given up,
because Cleveland didn't even put up a fight.

I think the most fair method would be to put all the teams into two leagues AFC and NFC then seed them according to overall record.

[jacksolomon]

Originally Posted by bobby jr

Well I just don't see how divisional play makes that much difference. Some of these NFL divisions aren't any good anyway like the NFC West. So Seattle gets rewarded for beating lousy teams with losing records, and they get a home playoff game against a New Orleans team which finished with a record 4 games ahead of Seattle.


Similarly, The Ravens will be at a disadvantage the whole playoffs , And Pittsburgh with exactly the same record as the Ravens gets treated as a number two seed with a first round bye and then home games unless they face the Patriots. just because we lost to Cincinnati once, why is that game so important that it should make that much of a difference.

It is true the Steelers would have come out ahead on points scored VS given up,
because Cleveland didn't even put up a fight.

I think the most fair method would be to put all the teams into two leagues AFC and NFC then seed them according to overall record.

Did you say that last year when the Steelers missed the playoffs with a 9-7 record and the Ravens got a wild card berth with the same record? Again, deal with it.

[steelcity1974]

Originally Posted by bobby jr

Well I just don't see how divisional play makes that much difference. Some of these NFL divisions aren't any good anyway like the NFC West. So Seattle gets rewarded for beating lousy teams with losing records, and they get a home playoff game against a New Orleans team which finished with a record 4 games ahead of Seattle.


Similarly, The Ravens will be at a disadvantage the whole playoffs , And Pittsburgh with exactly the same record as the Ravens gets treated as a number two seed with a first round bye and then home games unless they face the Patriots. just because we lost to Cincinnati once, why is that game so important that it should make that much of a difference.

It is true the Steelers would have come out ahead on points scored VS given up,
because Cleveland didn't even put up a fight.

I think the most fair method would be to put all the teams into two leagues AFC and NFC then seed them according to overall record.

Is your real name John Harbaugh?

[Atlanta Dan]

Originally Posted by bobby jr

Well I just don't see how divisional play makes that much difference. Some of these NFL divisions aren't any good anyway like the NFC West. So Seattle gets rewarded for beating lousy teams with losing records, and they get a home playoff game against a New Orleans team which finished with a record 4 games ahead of Seattle.


Similarly, The Ravens will be at a disadvantage the whole playoffs , And Pittsburgh with exactly the same record as the Ravens gets treated as a number two seed with a first round bye and then home games unless they face the Patriots. just because we lost to Cincinnati once, why is that game so important that it should make that much of a difference.

It is true the Steelers would have come out ahead on points scored VS given up,
because Cleveland didn't even put up a fight.

I think the most fair method would be to put all the teams into two leagues AFC and NFC then seed them according to overall record.

And maybe making a first down should require a team to gain 9 or 12 yards rather than 10 - but it doesn't

Steelers took care of business within the division by sweeping the Bengals & Browns and the Ravens didn't - emphasizing the division record actually makes some sense, since everyone in the division plays the other division teams twice, as opposed to the inequality of strength of schedule for games played outside the division

And unlike the new rules on tackling there was no "increased emphasis" by Goodell starting in October on division records as a tiebreaker - teams have the same records sometimes and you are not going to get a playoff to break the tie in football - Steelers hve lost out on tiebreakers in the past; now it is the Ravens turn

Bottom line is the Ravens squandered the benefit of beating the Steelers at Heinz without Roethlisberger by coughing up a lead at home in the rematch inside of 4 minutes to go - now they can deal with the consequences

[steelerchad]

Originally Posted by bobby jr

Well I just don't see how divisional play makes that much difference. Some of these NFL divisions aren't any good anyway like the NFC West. So Seattle gets rewarded for beating lousy teams with losing records, and they get a home playoff game against a New Orleans team which finished with a record 4 games ahead of Seattle.


Similarly, The Ravens will be at a disadvantage the whole playoffs , And Pittsburgh with exactly the same record as the Ravens gets treated as a number two seed with a first round bye and then home games unless they face the Patriots. just because we lost to Cincinnati once, why is that game so important that it should make that much of a difference.

It is true the Steelers would have come out ahead on points scored VS given up,
because Cleveland didn't even put up a fight.

I think the most fair method would be to put all the teams into two leagues AFC and NFC then seed them according to overall record.

It makes sense because that's how it is and teams know going in that a divisional loss is more important. So if you plan on winning a tie-breaker, don't lose a division game. As far as points go. Yea the Steelers have it over the Ravens and by a pretty wide margin. Steelers-scored more, gave up less and + 56 points vs. the Ravens.
Pats are 1st in net points in the AFC, Steelers are 2nd , Ravens are 4th. Pretty much goes in line with the seedings. 12-4 is a good season for the Ravens, the Ravens are a good team. But once again the Steelers are just a little better, which has been the case for most of the Ravens existence. Hope we get a rubber match in 2 weeks to settle all this without having to guess based on points or who beat who. Line up and see who's better in January. I think I know, I just want to find out for sure.

AFC North Team W L T Pct PF PA Net Pts
z- Pittsburgh Steelers 12 4 0 .750 375 232 143
y- Baltimore Ravens 12 4 0 .750 357 270 87