If You See This Man, Buy Him A Beer...

So the picture...yeaaaaahhhhhhh...You guys out there may not know him, but this man's name is Drew and you'd never tell from the picture, but he's a Steeler fan (and also a good friend). Drew's heading across the country right now, making stops in Ohio, Illinois, Missouri and god knows where else. Apparently yesterday he stopped off in Bengal country to talk some trash, maybe race Ocho Cinco and obviously desecrate a Carson Palmer jersey. No real reason for posting this other than it made me laugh. Still, if you see him, buy him an 'Ahrn or two.

Anyways, so yeah, we had a preseason game this Saturday, huh? Sidenote - this airing games after they've been played thing is really not working for me, sorry NFL Network. What I want to know is what else was worth showing at 5:30PM on Saturday that wasn't Steelers v. Packers? Needless to say by the time I went to watch the game at the bar on Sunday, I already knew how it had turned out (thanks to the non-stop barrage of news, particularly sports news these days). But despite all that, and the fact that I had seen probably the most notable play of the game, I wanted to go check out how we fared overall.

The one thing I want to point out in particular is Special Teams. They certainly were "special," weren't they? Last week Jeff Reed misses a field goal, this week he has an extra point blocked, even though I keep hearing reports out of Latrobe that he's nailing like 15 in a row, some from like 55 yards out. I guess this isn't a huge concern just yet, but seriously, the kicking game should be a pretty sure thing. There will be no excuse for missing field goals and extra points during the regular season. The good news is that having that extra point blocked didn't stop Jeff Reed from partying that night...we call that dedication folks...AND on the bright side (yet again), Sepulveda looked superb. The one kick I think we all particularly liked was the one that sailed 50+ yards and bounced right around the Packers 15 and out of bounds, like he planned it perfectly. This dude is gonna be a great asset...'nuff said.

Other than that, I admit, I was kind of in and out when watching, but here's a few more "quick" thoughts (because yes, it was a pre-season game and no sense dwelling too much on the minutiae):

• Marvel Smith looked worrisome at left tackle. We all saw the two plays in a row. Najeh stuffed on the first, Ben blindsided on the second, forcing a fumble. But it's not like Max Starks is a viable option either (though he is sporting a sick "do" these days, hat tip - JJ Cooper). So it would seem time to start entertaining other possibilities seeing as how Ben's gonna need a lot of protection if we're throwing the ball THAT much this season.


• Tomlin may have lost his 1st game at Heinz Field, but you know who else lost their 1st preseason game at home? Bill Cowher...AND Chuck Noll. So not like we were worried anyways, but just further reassurance that Tomlin is still solid as Steel. Maybe the problem was he was wearing Khakis and not his normal all black, Darth Vader look.


• The starting defense has been pretty damn Nasty thus far in preseason. Is this all because of LaMarr Woodley? Probably not, but from what I'm reading, his success may lead to him seeing more playing time than expected, particularly on passing downs. Not bad for a rook.


• Both Santonio and Walter Young had 40+ yard receptions. Obviously I'm more excited about the Santonio play, but we'll have to keep an eye on Walter Young as added firepower for this "new look" offense...PS - supposedly this weekend we'll see Big Ben for at least a quarter AND get more of a glimpse at this no-huddle offense business...preseason excitement is mounting!(see also links below)


• Najeh Davenport is STILL not doing much to prove his value in short yardage situations. Of course, neither is Kevan Barlow, and we all know Verron Haynes just isn't healthy enough for that yet. So what then? Well as it seems so far, having Carey Davis and Gary Russell may prove to be more of a blessing than we originally thought. Davis definitely has shown, in my opinion, that he's ready for that role or any other role we're able to give him. Though his action as a tailback was limited this past weekend, the weekend before, he showed both an ability to run between the tackles and gain significant yardage to the outside. Still evaluating, but I can dig it. Russell on the other hand, was given the keys on 2nd and short a couple of times on Saturday, and converted on both. So, as Jim Wexell says, maybe we should try him in 3rd and short situations...duh!

I think that about does it for my reflections on last weekend. Hopefully like I mentioned, this weekend we will start to really see what kind of game the Steelers are going to bring, with Ben likely to play more than a series, and Willie Parker (see below) penciled in to play. One thing to definitely watch is who we trot out to play left tackle this week and how they play.

But now that this discussion is through, check out the links below for interesting news of the past couple days. Oh, and don't forget - if you live in the mid-west, keep an eye out for Drew, he'll probably be thirsty and ready to chug a beer with you. Cheers!

These Scream Read Me:

• Looks like we shall see the preseason debut of one Fast William Parker soon...
• For that matter, Big Ben may play at least a quarter this coming weekend...Oh yeah, and his hand's ok...bad news for the 'Skins!
• Madden '08 is now available...and the people rejoiced!
• Steely McHandjob responds to all you homophobic assholes...god, why do you all have to be so mean...
• Oh and by the way, Steely even "penetrated" his way into the Daily Collegian...must be a hot button campus issue...
• Good news for Pitt, Pat Bostick has resurfaced and is ready to play some foosball.
• Bad news for Pitt, he's got one less standout to throw the ball to.
• Good news for Penn State - Now that Posluszny is gone, Dan Connor is ready to play big brother in Happy Valley...