The AFC Playoff picture got a bit tighter this weekend as Houston, Miami, Jacksonville and Pittsburgh all lost, while Denver, Baltimore, New York and Tennessee won. Below is a look at 6 teams that have the best shots at the 2 Wild Card spots with 5 weeks to go. Only Cleveland has been officially eliminated from playoff contention at this point and Indianapolis is the only team to clinch so far, so keep that in mind. AFC Standings 1 Indianapolis 11-0 2 Cincinnati 8-3 3 San Diego 8-3 4 New England 7-3 5 Denver 7-4 6 Jacksonville 6-5 Still alive 7 Baltimore 6-5 8 Pittsburgh 6-5 9 Miami Read more [...]

The only good thing that came out of the Sunday night loss to the Baltimore Ravens is that we truly know now what we have in the 2008 5th round draft pick, Dennis Dixon. Dixon overcame incredible odds of limited practice time and playing a division rival on the road in front of a national television audience and actually gave the team a chance to win. Dixon's performance was in no way perfect, in fact it showed many flaws in his mechanics as the game got into the second half. This was to be expected though. What Dixon did show was ability and strong nerves, two things you need as a basis to be Read more [...]

The biggest concern I have right now following the loss to the Ravens is the potential loss of the Steelers locker room. The interview Hines Ward gave to Bob Costas was a questionable one. Ward was clearly frustrated during the interview and said so after the game. Ward wants to win, but could have said so with different words. Costas is a master at getting people to say things they don't want to say, it is his job. We do not know how Ward was prepped before the interview as well. What we do know is that it clearly appeared as if Ward threw Ben Roethlisberger under the bus. Ward claimed after Read more [...]

Oh my God, did I just type, Fire Dick LeBeau? Sounds silly as it looks, doesn't it? The Bruce Arians haters were in full force after last nights loss to Baltimore. Now I am no Bruce Arians apologist by any stretch of the imagination, but he and number 3 quarterback Dennis Dixon delivered the game on a silver platter to the defense with 6:32 left in the game. Going into the game if you were told you could fast forward to the 4th quarter and have a 17-14 lead with just 6:32 left, every last member of Steeler Nation would have taken it. What the casual Steeler fan does not understand is that Read more [...]

Steelers number 3 quarterback Dennis Dixon played above and beyond expectations, but in the end it was the Steelers vaunted defense that ended up being the Achilles heel in a 20-17 overtime loss to Baltimore Ravens on Sunday night in Baltimore. Ravens kicker Billy Cundiff made 29 yard field goal in overtime to send the Steelers to 6-5 on the season. Dixon put the Steelers ahead 17-14 with 6:32 left in the game as he ran around right end for 24 yards on a gadget play and the Steelers turned the game over to their defense. On a 3rd and 22 from the Ravens own 29 on the next possession, quarterback Read more [...]

Below are my picks for the week 12 games around the NFL. You get what you pay for them. 10-5 in week 11 & 98-60 overall. Indianapolis Colts 27 Houston Texans 23 Cincinnati Bengals 27 Cleveland Browns 13 Minnesota Vikings 20 Chicago Bears 14 Philadelphia Eagles 31 Washington Redskins 17 Buffalo Bills 20 Miami Dolphins 16 Arizona Cardinals 20 Tennessee Titans 17 Seattle Seahawks 21 St. Louis Rams 10 Atlanta Falcons 27 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 13 New York Jets 17 Carolina Panthers 14 San Francisco 49ers 24 Jacksonville Jaguars 21 San Diego Chargers 34 Kansas City Chiefs 13 Baltimore Read more [...]

Having your #3 quarterback make his 1st career start on the road versus a division rival is not usually a recipe for success. Such will be the case for the Steelers as they visit the Ravens on Sunday night. Dennis Dixon, the Steelers 2008 5th round draft pick, will start with starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger sidelined with post concussion headaches. For the Steelers to win this game, they will need to be near perfect in all facets of the game. On offense, the Steelers will look to run Rashard Mendenhall early and often and create manageable 3rd down distances for Dixon. Look for Dixon Read more [...]

Below are seven matchups or things to look for on Sunday night as the Steelers take on the Baltimore Ravens. Don't Make Dixon Have To Win It - Dennis Dixon will make his first start as Ben Roethlisberger will be the emergency number 3 quarterback. The Steelers can not expect to put Dixon in a position to win the game. Any mistakes on either side of the ball will be maginfied. Rush Hard - This is a game that will be on all on the offensive line and Rashard Mendenhall from an offensive standpoint. The line wants to run more and Sunday night they should get their wish. 100 plus yard game for Read more [...]

This weeks tea leaves are very murky as far as game day inactives versus the Ravens on Sunday night go. The news than Ben Roethlisberger will likely be out has thrown everything out of whack. If indeed Roethlisberger is sidelined, he still likely will be designated the inactive #3 QB, but would never see the field in any situation. Troy Polamalu, Chris Kemoeatu and Charlie Batch are all out as well and will be inactive. Tony Hills will likely get his first game day helmet of the season with Kemo down, while Kraig Urbik will likely remain inactive. With Travis Kirschke claiming to be ready to play, Read more [...]

Nobody wanted the defining moment for Dennis Dixon to come this way or this soon, but on Sunday night versus the division rival Baltimore Ravens, it will happen. The Steelers organization and fans will know exactly what they do or do not have in the 2008, 5th round draft pick. Dixon will be asked to win a near must win game on the road with limited preparation, a scaled down playbook and nearly no regular in game season experience. What happens on Sunday night will decide if Dixon is indeed the number 2 quarterback going forward. It could prevent the Steelers from having to sign a veteran journey Read more [...]

While it would be advisable for the Steelers to run the table, they still could lose 1 or even 2 games and get in as a Wild Card. At worst a split with the Ravens would be advisable with the only other loss coming to the Packers. Based on the other teams in the race and who they play, 10-6 could get the Steelers in. A win Sunday night at Baltimore, would put the Ravens in a very tough hole as well, but not out of it. Below are the 6 teams in the race for 2 spots and the teams remaining schedules. Steelers (6-4) @Ravens Raiders @Browns Packers Ravens @Dolphins A Read more [...]

The loss to the Chiefs put a damper on the Steelers chances of winning the division. The Raiders helped with beating the Bengals later in the day, but the Steelers remain 2 full games out with 6 remaining. At this point the Steelers are looking to make the playoffs as a Wild Card. Besides the point that they for the most part control their own destiny if they win out, they have allies in the form of the Indianapolis Colts and the New England Patriots. The Colts have games left with Houston, Denver and Jacksonville, while the Patriots have Miami, Jacksonville and Houston left to play. The Steelers Read more [...]

The Good: Ben Roethlisberger spread the ball around to 8 different pass receivers and completed 32 of 42 passes for 398 yards. Rashard Mendenhall had 116 total yards on the day and ran hard. He also saved a touchdown on the interception return that resulted in only 3 points instead of 7. Hines Ward had 10 catches for 128 yards and one touchdown. He also delivered a crushing block in the game to free Heath Miller. LaMarr Woodley had 2 sacks on the day. The Bad: Heath Miller had 7 catches, but should of had 8 as he had one bounce of his hands and was intercepted by Andy Studebaker. Mike Read more [...]

Should the Steelers miss the playoffs this season by one game, today is the game you will be able to point to as the dagger in the heart. The Steelers gave up a 61 yard completion to receiver Chris Chambers in overtime to set up a game winning 22 yard field goal by Ryan Succop and the Chiefs beat the Steelers 27-24. The loss drops the Steelers to 6-4 on the season. The game got off to an ominous but familiar start as Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles returned the opening kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown. The touchdown return is the fourth this season that the Steelers have allowed. This after Read more [...]

Below are my picks for the week 11 games around the NFL. You get what you pay for them. 6-8 in week 10 & 88-55 overall. Detroit Lions, 24 Cleveland Browns 13 Buffalo Bills 27 Jacksonville Jaguars 24 Pittsburgh Steelers 38 Kansas City Chiefs 3 Indianapolis Colts 24 Baltimore Ravens 20 New York Giants 28 Atlanta Falcons 16 Green Bay Packers 20 San Francisco 49ers 17 Minnesota Vikings 30 Seattle Seahawks 20 Dallas Cowboys 23 Washington Redskins 13 New Orleans Saints 27 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 10 Arizona Cardinals 38 St. Louis Rams 24 New York Jets 20 New England Patriots 17 Cincinnati Read more [...]

If there was every a time that the Steelers needed an easy game, this is it. The Steelers are coming off of a depressing 18-12 loss to the Bengals and look to take out their frustrations versus the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday. The Steelers will be without strong safety Troy Polamalu for the 5th game this season, as Polamalu strained his PCL last week in the loss. Also sidelined once again is defensive end Travis Kirschke, but Nick Eason and rookie Ziggy Hood have been filling in admirable in his absence. The Steelers #1 rush defense will look to bottle up Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles Read more [...]

Below are seven matchups or things to look for on Sunday as the Steelers take on the Kansas City Chiefs. Find The Rhythm - It was quite obvious that the Steelers offense seemed out of sync last Sunday versus the Bengals. This week is the perfect week to get everyone back in rhythm to get ready to face the Ravens. Santonio Holmes and Ben Roethlisberger seem to be on different pages at times as of late. Special Teams Fix Part IV - This is getting quite disturbing. The latest attempt at fixing the kick coverage was to activate linebacker Donovan Woods from the practice squad and release linebacker Read more [...]

This weeks tea leaves are a little clearer as far as game day inactives versus the Chiefs on Sunday. The first 5 on the list are for sure: Dennis Dixon, Kraig Urbik, Tony Hills, Troy Polamalu and Travis Kirschke. Polamalu and Kirschke have been ruled out with injuries. Ra'Shon Harris seems to becoming a weekly here for the time being and Shaun McDonald is as well. The only real question mark is if Carey Davis is healthy enough to play special teams. If he is, Keiwan Ratliff could be inactive, but I think Davis will be given another week to rest his hamstring. Check back here for the OFFICIAL Read more [...]

Below are the stats and rankings for both the Steelers offense and defense through week 10 of the 2009 season. 2009 Week 11 Steelers Offense & Defense Rankings Steelers Offense Stat Rank Yards / Game 364.7 9 Yards / Play 5.84 5 Rushing Yards / Game 111.3 17 Rushing Yards / Play 4.32 15 Passing Yards / Game 253.3 8 Passing Yards / Play 7.52 7 Interception Rate 2.64% 15 Sacks / Pass Attempt 8.91% 26 First Downs / Game 20.7 5t Punt Return Avg 7.6 20 Kickoff Return Avg 24.7 7 Field Goals Made 81.25% 17 3rd Read more [...]

The further along Mike Tomlin gets in his coaching career, the better he gets with coaching outside of the lines. While he certainly has no love for media, he certainly knows how to use them to his advantage. Two former head coaches were effective in successfully using the media to their advantage, those two coaches were Bill Parcells and Chuck Noll. While there is not a ton of footage to watch from Noll like there is of Parcells, Noll was a master at sending messages through the media to his players to get some points across. He did this quite a bit with the "Blonde Bomber", Terry Bradshaw. All Read more [...]