Happy Birthday, Ben Roethlisberger...

27 years ago today, in the year of our lord 1982, a son was born unto Steeler nation.

And though he didn't know it yet, this boy would one day bring joy and glory to the hearts of Steelers fans young and old. Well, technically two days. I mean, I guess you could say many days. Whatever, not really important.

Yes, my friends. Today is Big Ben's 27th birthday.

Things he's accomplished so far - dated hot actresses and some hot chick golfer, won TWO Super Bowls, went to a Pro Bowl, got an 8 year, $102 million contract to play football, and of course has been the subject of countless OFTOT photoshops.

I'll bet that last one is his crowning achievement.

So Ben, how old are you, again?

That many, huh? Wow, you're a big boy now.

Anyways, since I've got nothing better, here's a sampling of some of the photoshops that Ben or his head have been party to over the last couple of years (pun intended, by the way).























And then, of course, the piece-de-resistance...

Happy Birthday, big guy! Now, go get yourself some birthday PF Chang's.

I know how much you love that shit.

xoxoxoxoxoxo,

- Cotter

PS - You should definitely watch this...

Rock out with your cock out, man. That's what it's all about.


Obligatory Footer - If you haven't already, become a fan of OFTOT on Facebook, join the blog network and follow me on Twitter. Or don't. Your choice, really.

Pop Quiz...

Kerry Collins

OR

Ben Roethlisberger

Who ya got?

...and I'm not talking about in beer pong...
PS - one down, two to fail go!

Mark It, Dude!

YES!

Press play...

What To Do About Benjamin...

Image mostly for entertainment purposes...mostly.

Ok, yes, Tec wrote about this yesterday. But I didn't. And I wanted to give it some thought over here on this corner of the world wide interwebs as well.

So here's the latest on Big Ben's little shoulder problem - An MRI revealed that Big Ben's shoulder sitch "is very similar [to his previous one], but it is not the same as it has been." Alright, well that sounds nice. But what if there was plenty of damage to begin with? I mean, Ben has been taking a pretty royal ass beating. Something like 26 times he's already been sacked? And he did under throw our receivers at least a few times in the 1st half of Monday's game. Maybe it was more injured than he and anybody else thought?

I don't really know the answer. Only one man does. And we know that man is awfully courageous, having already played through injuries ably many times in his relatively young career. But I'm just throwing it out there.

In any case, to facilitate a proper discussion of this topic, I've put together 5 reasons why Ben should play and 5 reasons why Ben should sit. Feel free to give them a look and let us all know what you think in the comments. Savvy?

Reasons Why Ben Should Play
1. He actually knows the Offense...as much as anyone can know a Bruce Arians schema.
2. The Colts Defense...it's not really that good.
3. We don't want him to start thinking he can get away with being injured.
4. You just don't mess with a man's flow, his rhythm. Nahmeen?
5. Well, he did get hit by a car, and had his appendix removed before the 2006 season...and still played 15 of the 16 games.

Reasons Why Ben Should Sit
1. A QB's throwing shoulder tends to be pretty important.
2. He may just need to slow it down a little bit and watch Byron Leftwich work.
3. I hear Sansmokio's got an herbal remedy for that shoulder. And Cheetos.
4. Heath Miller's going to need a friend.
5. If he's going to miss a game, I'd rather it sooner than later, when we'll really need him.

Oh, and for what it's worth, Benny Boy says he promises "to do better."

The question is, on which side of the fence do you fall?

...that's what she said.

Big Ben is better than Brady Quinn...

After the motorcycle accident, appendectomy, and concussion, Ben Roethlisberger's 2006 season was in essence, a mess. Immediately, everyone (including some Steelers fans...you know you are out there) began questioning Big Ben's ability to be a top-notch quarterback.

Sure, Ben came out of the gates fast, leading the Steelers to the AFC championship his rookie season, and following up with a big fat Super Bowl ring his second season. But critics continued to point to the team around him for these results. These same critics had a field day with Ben's 2006 season - when he threw 23 interceptions, and the Steelers ended with an 8-8 record, failing to make the playoffs.

Prior to the 2007 season, Bill Cowher retires. Mike Tomlin takes over, and promotes former wide receivers coach, Bruce Arians, to offensive coordinator. Arians, former quarterback coach of Peyton Manning, began talking openly about allowing Roethlisberger to take more control of the play calling. Thoughts ran through Steelers fans' minds..."Is Arians serious?" "How many interceptions will Ben throw now?" "What about the running game?" "Are the Steelers going to try to be like the Indianapolis Colts?"

But 2007 saw Big Ben emerge as a top-tier quarterback, to the tune of 32 touchdown passes, a 104.1 passer rating (behind only Tom Brady), and led the Steelers back to the playoffs. All of this while getting sacked 47 times.

Explosive offensive weapons like Santonio Holmes, Heath Miller, Willie Parker, Hines Ward, Rashard Mendenhall, Limas Sweed, and I'll even lump in Nate Washington and Matt Spaeth, now give Big Ben a complete arsenal. These weapons will create a lot of match-up problems for opposing defenses. This is where Ben's Roethlisberger's ability to diagnose defensive formations and effectively call audibles will ultimately determine how explosive the Steelers offense will be in 2008.

Ben's critics are awfully quiet these days, their attention has shifted to the Steelers offensive line, and rightly so. But enough of my man crush on Roethlisberger, what do you guys think? Will Big Ben throw up larger numbers in '08? Will the Steelers go back to running the ball more? Will the offensive line improve? Do you believe in aliens?

OTHER EXAMPLES OF OFTOT'S MAN-LOVE FOR BEN:
Kneel Before Ben...
Something To Believe In...

How Much?? Wait, You Mean the PITTSBURGH Steelers?

"This is about being a Pittsburgh Steeler for as long as I can be...I don't want to go anywhere."

- Ben Roethlisberger

You know what guys? That's the last god damn time I allow those clowns over at law school to assign something to be due when some crazy shit like that shit that happened yesterday is going to happen. (Huh?)

Jesus, man. Of all days, I had to have an appellate brief due yesterday?! Go figure. In case you're wondering what the hell I'm babbling about - I had an appellate brief due yesterday...And I spent the better part of the day working on it. Thus I was left with far too little time for the things that really matter - like eating. And working. And blogging about Big Ben's new contract and the Steelers signing a new RB. You know, the necessities.

So yeah, I'm playing catch up right now.

First things first - Sunday, March 2, 2008 was Big Ben Roethlisberger's 26th birthday. Monday, March 3, 2008 the Steelers gave him the best birthday present this side of a young asian prostitute Kristin Bell, Rachel Hunter, a jacuzzi full of vanilla pudding and a snorkel. That's right, $102 million new reasons to smile, approximately 36 million of which are guaranteed (that's a lot of reasons, dude).

The deal, which also came with a $25 million dollar signing bonus, locks Ben up for the next eight years and makes the Louisiana Purchase look like child's play. So congratulations to Ben! Dude, you now make a shitload of cash. Not as much as me. But you know, they weren't about to give you "blogging" money or anything...maybe someday though. So in conclusion, maybe now we can also replace the gelatinous mass that is Sean Mahan and consequently protect the $102 million investment we just made. Sounds so simple, doesn't it...

Second, the Steelers surprised us all by actually participating in free agency signing former Vikings third string RB/PR, Mewelde Moore. From what I can tell, and what little I remember of seeing him play, he seems like a poor man's Willie Parker. 5'11", 209 lbs., career average of just about 5 yards per carry. Fair enough. But he also should be pretty good at returning punts and/or kicks. And by "should be pretty good," of course I mean should be able to catch the ball when it is punted and or kicked to him...fingers crossed.

Finally, in other free agency news - OFTOT understands that the Browns are trying to arrange a visit for Clark Haggans...Ok. And also, the Cardinals just signed Tuman...Ok...Is it just me, or is it patently obvious that a couple of NFL franchises really really really want to be like the Steelers?

Nah, I must be imagining things...

Thoughts, Steeler Nation?

PS - Happy Birthday Cotter's Sister!!!

REFERENCE MATERIAL:
Big Ben Joins the $100 Million Club [Tribune-Review]
Steelers Need to Protect Their Investment In Big Ben [Fox Sports]
Steelers Sign Running Back [Post-Gazette]
Steelers Sign Mewelde Moore to 3 Year Deal [Associated Press]

Kneel Before Ben...

"After reflecting on the Steelers season, it's evident that Ben Roethlisberger is a mediocre quarterback at best."
- "Steelers fan" in letter to Tribune-Review

Ok, so far this offseason I've heard (loudly and clearly) - fire Bruce Arians, fire Mike Tomlin, and where's my Primanti's sandwich (err...maybe that was just me). But until Tuesday, I had yet to hear anything quite like the quote above (from a "fan" that is)...which I mostly attribute to the fact that only 7-8% of the state of Pennsylvania is addicted to crack, and it's mostly Philadelphia anyhow (read: Eagles fans).

Honestly, Big Ben - a MEDIOCRE quarterback? 32 TDs (11 INTs), 3154 yards, a 65% completion percentage, an average of 8 yards per attempt, and a Pro Bowl spot. Yeah, that Ben Roethlisberger is one awful QB. Let me tell you this - if you think Big Ben is mediocre, try being a Vikings fan, or a Bears fan, or a Falcons fan. The numbers speak for themselves. Sure, he holds the ball too long on occasion. But on some of those occasions, he holds the ball in order to make a play (conjure memory of infamous shovel pass to Willie Parker)! And yes, we're all a bit (just an itty bit...) disappointed by his performance in the 1st half of the Wild Card game vs. Jacksonville. But if not for his arm, that game would've been well out of reach by the half way mark.

As for that other "fire everyone" shite:

Anyone who wants Tomlin ran out of town after a year like this - get your head out of your ass. You don't fire a coach who as a rookie leads his team to a 10-6 record, topping the division, in a year that plagued some of his best players with very serious injuries. I'm thinking I'm not the only one who subscribes to that kind of philosophy...

Arians? Well, look, all I'm gonna say is this - anyone who wants to talk about what he did in Cleveland and say that historic perspective has any bearing on the future, let me point out that while in Cleveland his guy was Tim Couch. Tim Couch! Who was surrounded by essentially no running back and flanked by Dennis Northcut and Quincy Morgan...not what I'd call an All Star cast. And by the way, the criticism of this guy was so bad after our loss that even his Wikipedia page has a section on the subject. I'm not saying he's perfect. I'm not even saying he is a long term solution. I am just saying that he and Ken Anderson had an obvious positive influence on Big Ben. So let's give him a little more time to see if he can't avoid making the same mistakes next season.

Me? I guess I decided to re-enter the Steelers fan blogosphere preaching the same thing as when I went on brief hiatus -- one year does not a career make. Mike Tomlin, Bruce Arians, and most of all BEN ROETHLISBERGER will all be back next season. The best we can hope for is to build on the teams successes, eliminate some of the team's mistakes, and god dammit - draft a lineman in the 1st round! Then a couple more of those, a tall/fast receiver, a kick returner who can field AND run the ball back, a solid free safety, a pass rushing Defensive end, a blocking fullback, a thunder to Willie Parker's lightning, and we should be good. I mean, should be cake, right?

So ummm, my question is - Does anyone actually think Big Ben is no more than a mediocre QB??? Do you think he's better when simply playing not to lose the game for us??? Would you prefer Tommy Maddox??? [PS - If so, be sure to ship your medication directly to me...I wouldn't mind that kind of lunacy once in a while...]

REFERENCE MATERIAL:
Get a Grip, Nation [Post-Gazette]
Big Ben on Faneca, Contract, 2008 Wishlist [Post-Gazette]
Big Ben Says 1st Year Under Tomlin Proof NFL Trends Are Not Passing Steelers By [Post-Gazette]
Roethlisberger Wants to Stick With Steelers [Tribune-Review]
Steelers Need to Shake Up Coaching Staff [Tribune-Review]
Something To Believe In [One For The Other Thumb]

Happy Thanksgiving You Turkeys!!!

While we all enjoy some turkey and stuffing today, the Steelers are thinking about eating some Dolphin on Monday night. But on this day of Thanks, Steeler fans have an awful lot to be thankful for. So as you sit down around the table this afternoon/evening, be sure you remember to thank god for the following:

HEAD COACH MIKE TOMLIN -
7-3 Record, One Excellent Pair of Shades, Numerous Quotables


BIG BEN GODSEND -
23 Touchdowns, 2215 Yards Passing, Many Many Badass Stiff Arms


JAMES SILVERBACK HARRISON -
54 Tackles, 7.5 Sacks, One Insatiable Appetite for Opposing QBs


and of course...

STEELY MCBEAM -
Manly Chin, Stylish Overalls, The Butt of Many Many Gay Jokes


Happy Thanksgiving friends! Here's to hoping your Turkey Day is filled with family, fun, and feasting. Oh yeah, and football. Be blessed.

Cheers!

This Wednesday's PSA Brought To You By Bruce Arians...

"You always open yourself up for criticism and evaluation when you are unsuccessful. We don’t worry about that element of it. We focus on winning, because when you win you don’t have those questions."

- Mike Tomlin

Ok, we've had a couple of days now to rid ourselves of some of the sting from Sunday's embarrassment. Hopefully everyone has begun to put it behind them and focus their attention on Monday's game against Miami. But whether you have or not, I've got a hot button issue I'd like to discuss with you all this morning - Bruce Arians. Specifically, I've noticed a lot of buzz this season, mostly after the three losses (can't imagine why), suggesting that when things go wrong, it's all Bruce Arians' fault...So what I'm trying to figure out is - is this true?

CAVEAT: Let me make sure I say this upfront - I personally am not sold on Arians as this teams "Offensive Guru." Nonetheless, I'm hesitant to blame all of the offensive woes on him, for reasons I will discuss below...

In terms of offensive play calling, Arians is certainly the natural person to blame. And from a broader perspective, everyone wants to hold someone culpable when things go wrong, so who better than a guy who is not the untouchable Head Coach, nor Pittsburgh's defensive darling Dick LeBeau? But are we blaming him more because we NEED someone to blame? Or because he legitimately made all the wrong decisions?

Let's talk about one of the grossly understated positives that Arians offers - his rapport with Big Ben. After The Whis left it became abundantly clear to all of us that he and Big Ben had not exactly been famous friends. From what I gathered, Ben didn't appreciate being dictated to and thought he should have had more of a say in what plays did/did not get called. So in this vein, as soon as Arians took over back in May, he told Ben - "This is not my offense. From now on this is your offense."

Accordingly, under Arians, Ben now participates fully in the game planning, attending sessions on Mondays and Tuesdays and is encouraged to tweak the plans as he sees fit. A copy of the final draft is even faxed to Ben's house on Tuesday evenings. This all has helped amount to a great dynamic between the two, which in my opinion is essential to the team's success. Even more importantly though, it has vaulted Big Ben into a position as leader of the team. With The Bus and Peezy gone, the only voice left in the locker room is Ben's, which in turn makes him more responsible for how the team fares. And it's showing...

Also, Arians is a former QB (Virginia Tech), and was Peyton Manning's 1^st NFL QB coach in Indy from '98-'00. So his knowledge of the position and how to approach coaching it is relatively credible. Of course, on the flipside - more recently he was responsible for holding the Cleveland Browns offensive reins from '01-'03 before joining the Steelers, a job which could certainly be picked out as evidence of his inadequacy. Especially considering he was FIRED after two seasons...But really, what Offensive Coordinator could have been successful with Tim Couch (and no one else)?

Overall, Arians' approach with Big Ben has clearly helped the young QB mature. Through 10 games, Ben has already eclipsed most of the numbers he put up in his 1^st three seasons - tossing the rock for 2215 yards, 23 TDs, and holding the 2^nd spot in the league in terms of QB rating (behind only Tom Brady). So I don't know that any of us have much room to complain about Arians' impact on Ben and the Offense in the grand scheme.

One could definitely point to Ben and the receivers (as some of the best and brightest in Steelers blogging have - See Related Reads) for some of the sacks suffered against the Jets Sunday, but to be completely honest, I think the miserable Offensive Line should be brought to bear the brunt of our overarching frustrations. They consistently let even the worst of Defenses get to Big Ben, and in fact have allowed him to be sacked 30 times and hurried innumerably more. I've mentioned the sack factor before, but let me reiterate again - after Sunday's 7 Jet sack extravaganza, only one QB in the league has been knocked down more - Jon Kitna in Detroit (who only has 13 TDs, but 11 INTs). In fact, half of that 30 total came solely from three games - Arizona (4), Denver (4), and the Jets (7). This has become such a detriment that Tomlin has even made it the #1 priority for improvement. Bottom line - It's tough to be effective either running or throwing the football when you have no blocking or protection. Maybe if our Offensive Line Coach spent more time coaching and less time watching/forwarding internet porn, we could show some progress in this area...just saying.

So what do you all think? Is Arians doing an ok job? Should we be worried about his viability long term? Is he helping improve the offense or impeding our success? Love to hear your thoughts...

PS - I know it's extremely hard to see, but that poster above reads:

"Remember, a good defense is essential to winning in football. The same is true when it comes to preventing unplanned pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases."

Bruce Arians is so publicly conscious.

RELATED READS:
Sacks Leave Steelers Offense Sunk [Fanhouse]
Can the Steelers protect their quarterback? [Post-Gazette]
Can Faneca Help This Struggling Offensive Line? [Behind The Steel Curtain]
Offensive Line and Special Teams Amount to Fatal Flaws [DC Steeler Nation]
What We Learned, Jets [NFL From The Sidelines]

Color Me Impressed - Big Ben Gets Media Lovin'...

Not to beat a dead horse or anything, but I'm just going to throw this on the fire regarding the "no respect" for Big Ben thing...[not to mention severely increase my use of colloquialisms...]

CBS Sportsline has a feature running today that has "NFL experts" Pete Prisco and Clark Judge sharing their feelings on a number of random NFL issues, the first of which is "Who would you take right now: Ben Roethlisberger or Tony Romo?"

Wait wait, no, it's good!

Both Judge and Prisco say right now, they'd take Big Ben. Both point to Ben as more of a model QB than Romo, who they seem to regard as the Brian Westbrook of QBs. And both point out that he's proven he can win big games for the Steelers, namely that little Super Bowl XL thing. Even further, both say they like his arm strength over Romo's. Prisco even goes so far as to say that Ben "looks like a tackle back there playing quarterback." Ok man...whatever you say. Linebacker maybe...Anyways.

I think Judge summarized the mentality of most Ben enthusiasts well when he said -

"I know what I have in Big Ben. What I have is someone who's accurate, who can win, who has a cannon for a right arm and who, lately, has shown an uncanny knack for escaping the pressure."

Congratulations Judge, way to get the net...

Moral of this story = Dudes at CBS are significantly more in touch with reality than dudes at Sports Illustrated. I hate you Dr. Z...

Faceoff: Ben or Tony? [CBSSportsline]
Ben Roethlisberger = Rodney Dangerfield [Mondesi's House]
Ben Roethlisberger Gets No Respect [Fanhouse]
Big Ben Is Best Of Week In AFC [Post-Gazette]

Ben Roethlisberger Is The Rain King...

It wasn't the prettiest thing I've ever seen, but a win is a win. And this one means just a little something more - that at 7-2, the Steelers have a full 2 game lead in the AFC North. In otherwords, today we separated the men from the Browns. Plus, the Bungles pulled off a win against the Ravens. So I'd say all is pretty much right with the world.

Yes, there were a lot of negatives. Two kick returns totaling 190 yards and basically two TDs¹ and a costly pick deep in our own territory, which promptly turned into 7 points. But after netting 0 TDs in the 1^st half, despite 172 yards of offense, the Steelers came out in the 2^nd half and showed all the doubters that we are not just a team that plays from ahead. AND Big Ben showed everyone that sometimes you've gotta run 30 yards for a score yourself. Do what you have to do to win. That's the measure of a champion, and Big Ben (Godsend) sure did it today.

Some of the other men who contributed memorable moments (in no particular order):

• Tyrone Carter -- Really liked that hurting you put on Kellen Winslow Jr. He and probably most of the Browns fans will try and find a way to make that seem dirty. But the only thing dirty about it was Winslow's jersey after he got up. Way to make an impression on the game buddy, cause we know you didn't do shit on special teams. Still waiting for this hit to show up on Youtube...


• Anthony "Sandman" Smith -- Good stop on Jamal Lewis down near the goal line. Like I said on Friday, if we were to be successful, it was important not to let Jamal Lewis pound the ball in. Plus, I saw you sneak in on a couple other plays. 5 total tackles for the game, not too shabby. And by the way, that visor is like, so hot right now...


• "Face Me" Ike Taylor -- Braylon Edwards stat line today = 1 catch, 16 yards...and yes, 1 TD. Considering the guy averages 5.25 receptions a game and about 92 yards, with 9 TDs, I'd say 1 catch for 16 yards reflects some pretty solid coverage...


• James "Silverback" Harrison -- Only 3 tackles on the game, but one big ass forced fumble (not to mention other one that wasn't recovered). It's ok man, you played the game of your life on Monday. I ain't gonna fault you for having less steam only 6 days later...(please note the sarcasm)


• Brett Keisel -- Knocking down a Horse Balls pass on a big 3^rd down, bravo. Way to use those fundamentals. I'll bet your high school coach would be proud. Goal for next week - try and get a sack...actually, that goes for you and the rest of the defense. See below...


• Hines "Psycho" Ward -- Let the Browns fans talk all they want about you being a dirty player. If dirty means 7 catches for 81 yards, a TD and a 2 point conversion, then I don't want you to be clean. You do what you gotta do brotha'...


• Heath. Miller. Touchdown. -- Clearly Big Ben reads One For The Other Thumb, because on Friday, when I said get the ball to Heath Miller, he clearly took note. 5 catches, including a stellar TD grab for the go-ahead score in the 4th, and 71 yards receiving. Unsung offensive hero? Just might be...


• Sir Fast William Everette Parker -- Not as dominant a performance as we usually can expect when FWP gets 25 carries, but 105 yards beats the shit out of 42 yards. We can't win 'em without the run, and FWP IS the Pittsburgh running game. PS - this marked FWP's 19th career 100+ yard game² (his 6^th this season) and gave him 768 yards on the year³.


• Wings to Go --Yes, I'd also like to thank Wings to Go for providing some much needed nourishment about mid-way through the 3^rd quarter. Too bad I ordered it at the beginning of the 2^nd quarter...a whole hour and 15 minutes earlier. Note to self - Wings to go = bunch of dicks, probably Giants fans...

But like I said earlier, this day belonged to Big Ben. In this, a bounceback year, he's continued game after game to show us all why he is a championship caliber quarterback. Ben went 23/34 today, for 278 yards and 2 TDs (we're not talking about that INT anymore), improving his QB rating on the season to 111.9 ⁴. Through 9 games, Ben has thrown for 1742 yards and 20 TDs, despite being sacked 19 times. He has emerged ladies and gentleman, and not just as a QB, but as a leader. Not much has really been made of Ben's leadership this year, but if you read SI, like I do, you would have read about how Ben is intimately involved in the offensive game plan, runs the offense virtually by his lonesome, and has become THE voice in the locker room. He's carried us to 7-2 thus far, and I have little doubt that he can lead us to a strong finish and likely a division title.

That all said, I don't need to tell you again that this was not a flawless performance for the team. I won't spend a whole lot of space here expounding on our shortcomings today, but I will say this:

1. Special Teams has GOT to improve. What happened today was an embarrassment⁵. Joshua Cribbs is no slouch, but we have consistently shit the bed on kick coverage this season, and this is the last thing you want to drag an otherwise spotless team down. Tomlin, bring out the taser. I don't care what you do, but get these guys in line for Christ's sake. Sort it out.


2. 0 Sacks, guys? 0? Silverback had 3.5 himself on Monday night and not one of you can register 1 today? Against a Browns line that was missing one of it's key starting guards? To be fair, we did a much better job in the 2^nd half. But otherwise, we looked like we were going to let Horse Balls have his way with us. I applaud the respect LeBeau & Co. showed the "new look" Browns. But I'm sure I wasn't the only one that noticed a marked difference between the Defensive dominance in the 2^nd half and the less than whelming 1^st half. Bring the pressure. Bring the heat. Bring the pain...


3. Take a guess at what else I'm going to say here...Yep, Offensive Line play. It was pretty much shite again today, as Kendall Simmons and his band of merry men let the Browns D (if you can call it that) sack Ben 4 times, and hurry him many others. I don't care how good Ben is at avoiding the rush, and we all know he's a beast, if you're not out there protecting him, what are you doing? Listen, even Horse Balls has only been sacked 8 times on the season, but yet Ben's been sacked 19 times? In fact, if numbers do it for you - Ben's the only QB besides the inimitable Damon Huard (sarcasm is thick today) and David Garrard, the injured (yes, I could do better, oh well), to have been sacked more than 15 times. I don't know what else to say?

So yeah, it was a sloppy win. But that doesn't mean we were totally inept. I applaud the effort today. A year ago, that 1^st half performance would have pretty much doomed us to a loss, but not this year.

Next week, let's try to accentuate the positive, and minimize our opponent's kick return yardage, shall we? Thanks. And PS - For the Browns fans who wanna talk shit about how dirty the Steelers are - I noticed a certain Sean Jones put what I saw to be a late hit on Willie Parker out of bounds. Don't think I'm not paying attention to this now. Call us classless again.

GAME RECAPS:
[Behind The Steel Curtain]
[DC Steeler Nation]
[Die Hard Steel]
[Joey Porter's Pit Bulls]
[Pittsburgh Sports and Mini Ponies]
[The Blitzburgh Report]

[Associated Press]
[Post-Gazette]
[Tribune-Review]
[New York Times]
[ESPN]
[SteelCityInsider]
[Yahoo! Sports]
[SI.com]

FOOTNOTES:
¹ -- One legitimate run back for a score and one that set up a whopping 3 yard drive for a Lawrence Vickers score
² -- See FWP Career Stats
³ -- 2^nd in the league right now
⁴ -- Yes, this is a bullshit statistic but if it puts Ben 2nd only to Tom Brady, you bet I'm gonna mention it
⁵ -- I saw you Andre Frazier. Way to whiff on that TD return...

Help Big Ben Help The Kids...

Well hello friends, how are you? It's been a couple days, huh? You might have noticed the lack of participation on my part over the last few days. This is because unfortunately, as of yet, One For The Other Thumb ain't exactly a paying job. So you know, I have like, a real job...or something. One in which they asked me to attend some really stimulating and excitement driven corporate training. And since they leave me little choice short of allowing them not to sign my pay checks, I gladly obliged. But that's over now...hopefully.

Anyways, there actually was a purpose to this post, besides serving as my own personal therapy session...And that is to implore you all to go and vote for Big Ben Godsend as Fed Ex's Air Player of the Week for Week 9. Last week, if you'll remember, I posted a similar plea regarding Fast William Everrett Parker - Willie ended up winning, and Fed Ex gave the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh a cool $5K. This week, do the right thing again and give the kids the money. Don't let these children grow up to become Ravens fans...

If not for them, do it just so Tony Romo doesn't get it. I hate Tony Romo...

Big Ben for Fed Ex Air Player of Week 9 [VOTE]