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]

Ladies and Gentlemen, Meet Your Homecoming Queen - James "Silverback" Harrison...

"We look at it as we have been scheduled for their homecoming."
- Brian Billick

Big Ben. James Harrison...PERIOD! Ok, no, that's not all, but it easily could be.

Godsend - 13/16, 209 yards, 5 TDs
Silverback - 3 Forced Fumbles (1 Recovered), 1 Interception, 3.5 Sacks, 9 Tackles¹

Consequently, today marks the 1^st day of the official One For The Other Thumb - "Vote Silverback for Pro Bowl" campaign. If you watched that game last night, heard about it, or are reading about it right now, you're aware that few of our defenders deserve it more. Steeler fans, get your shit together and VOTE ASAP.

Now, I'll be honest, due to a number of unfortunate circumstances including, but not limited to, a legal research final/ass raping and my car getting booted (but not towed thankfully), I missed about 95% of the 1st half. All I know is - I walked by the bar at approximately 9:15 after the Steelers had just scored to go up 14-0. By the time I got into my apartment, the score had ballooned to 35-7. What happened? I didn't really much care. The point was the Steelers were asserting themselves over the Ravens with efficiency. What I learned later was that there had been 2 fumbles, an interception and 3 more scores for Big Ben and the boys. Needless to say I didn't ask any more questions. I just sat back and enjoyed the rest of the show...not that there was much action after the half or anything...

So fortunately (or un depending on your preference) for you guys, beyond that, I don't have much to say. The Steelers did everything I would have asked them to do. But for good measure, because what would a One For The Other Thumb post be without bullet points, my game highlights (don't get too excited, it's nothing analytical):

• All 5 feet 11 inches and 225 pounds of Jeff Reed talking shit to 6'8", 286 pound heavyweight, Trevor Pryce after a field goal. Steeler fans, Jeff Reed has marbles...of Steel...

AND


• Mel Blount calling the Ravens performance "embarrassing." Plus, Michele Tafoya consequently pleasuring his ego for a bit talking about how the league changed a number of rules because of Blount's physical style of play. I was actually hoping Blount would put some pads on and take a run at McNair for old times sake...but you know, only room for so much dominance in one night. PS Mel Blount is a cowboy, get it straight.

AND


• James Harrison steamrolling Ed Reed, forcing a fumble that went flying through the air such that you didn't even know what happened. Silverback Attack and a half!

AND


• Hines Ward LEVELING not one but TWO Ravens All Pros - Bart Scott and Ed Reed. Hope you like the way that turf tastes ED! The hit Hines planted on Reed was comparable to Anthony Smith's lickin' on TJ Houshmansacklicker last week. If Reed has balls of Steel, Hines' scrotum is solid gold...I mean balls are gold plated...maybe too much talk about balls at this point. Let's stop there.

With that, bring on the Brownies! I'll have plenty more on that later tomorrow night or Wednesday. So as usual, let the commenting commence. Give me all your thoughts - Silverback? Big Ben? San Antonio? Mike Tomlin looks a lot like Omar Epps? Why do the Steelers have an ambiguously gay mascot but no cheerleaders? I'll take all comers...

FOOTNOTE:
¹ Good enough for an NFL record - 1st player to record 3.5 sacks, 1 INT and 1 fumble recovery.

Game Recaps:
[Post-Gazette]
[Tribune-Review]
[Associated Press]

Say Goodnight! - Anthony Smith Is The Sandman...

"Receivers better account for him. His name is getting out there. The film being put out there in the league, receivers see it and they know they better be thinking about it when they go across the middle."
- Larry Foote

Morning Stiller fans! Since we have the luxury of a Sunday off, I thought I'd give yinz something fun to chew on in the form of a profile of the hottest Steeler this side of the Allegheny, Anthony "Sandman" Smith (hey, Merriman already has "lights out," what do you want...). In just one and a half short years with the Steelers, the Free Safety out of Syracuse has made his impact more than felt. Just ask any receiver who has faced him...most recently the glitz and glamour tandem of Ocho Cinco and TJ Howsmyponytail...er Houshmanzadeh (see below for visuals¹). But where did this monster come from?

Oddly enough, Smith is product of Ohio, just like a couple of other young Steelers we know. Hailing from Hubbard, a town just east of Youngstown and not far from the Pennsylvania border, Smith attended Hubbard High School, where he gathered All State honors his Junior year, and All Midwest Region honors his Senior year as a standout offensive/defensive back. From there, he departed for Syracuse, to become one of the best football players the school had ever seen (²).

At Syracuse, Smith was originally a back up running back, but not long into his freshman season, the coaching staff realized his true calling and moved him to free safety. Beginning with his sophomore season, Smith became a starter, and the rest is school history. In his 3 years as a starting Safety, Smith was responsible for 293 tackles and 14 interceptions, putting him 3rd in line among the school's all-time leaders. Plus, he nabbed a school record six blocked kicks and recorded 3 sacks, 4 forced fumbles, 5 fumble recoveries (1 returned for a touchdown), and 2 kicks returned for touchdowns. Basically, the man did it all and more in 46 games (³).

Smith was then drafted by the Steelers with their 2nd overall pick, in the 3rd round of the 2006 NFL draft, behind fellow native Ohioan Santonio Holmes. Smith played in all 16 games in 2006, recording a total of 15 tackles (a number he's already eclipsed through 7 games this season) and 2 interceptions. In his first career start last December against Cleveland, Smith recorded 2 solo tackles, 2 passes defended and his 1st career INT, merely foreshadowing his ability. Over the next 3 games as a starter, he recorded 9 more solo tackles, 2 passes defended, 3 Special Teams tackles, and yet another INT. So naturally, we all kind of assumed he'd be the starter come 2007. But then, September rolled around, and he was not.

Undiscouraged, Smith started this season as a backup, but still saw a decent amount of playing time over the first 4 games. And while he has only started TWO games this season (Week 5 against the Seachickens for an injured Polamalu and Week 8 against the Bungles, for injured Ryan Clark), he is impressively 5th in total tackles with 23 solo and just 3 assisted. The guys ahead of him in tackles: James Harrison, Ike Taylor, James Farrior, and Larry Foote. All full time starters. In fact, if you notice, Smith has more tackles than Polamalu (1 more that is), though Polamalu did miss a game and a half. But guys, Smith has only started TWO GAMES! PLUS, oh yeah, he's got a forced fumble and interception under his belt as well...

Like Troy Polamalu - soft spoken off the field, an untamed beast on, at only 5'11" and 192 pounds, Smith packs a punch with Greg Lloyd-esque force. The man plays to win, and plays with intensity, making no qualms about his physical style. When asked recently about said physicality, Smith asserted:

"Once I get on the field you can't tell me anything. I'm trying to hit everything."

So Derrick Mason, Demetrious Williams, Todd Heap, Steve McNair - watch your backs and say your prayers, 'cause the Sandman is coming.

Good. Night.

REFERENCE MATERIALS
¹Make 'em say uuuuuggggghhhhhhh...


Show me that greeeelllll now Chad...



²Anthony Smith Bio [Steelers.com]
³Anthony Smith College Bio [SUathletics.com]

Smith's style of play makes receivers pay [Post-Gazette]
Steelers' Smith showcases intensity [Tribune-Review]
Steelers Anthony Smith might be hard to bench [Beaver County Times]

Hide Your Valuables...Here Come The Ravens....

"The ability to stay singularly focused on what’s in front of you is what’s going to define you in terms of greatness...Stay focused on where you are. Appreciate the journey. If you do that, and do a good enough job of it, then it will take you where you want to go."

- Mike Tomlin

And as they say, "it's on like Donkey Kong." Now that we've had a chance to take a look at where the Ravens are on either side of the ball (not to mention in the Special Teams and female emotional support categories), it's only fitting that we have this little chat about what the Steelers need to do to address the challenges Baltimore presents...besides keeping that hefty Ravens roster of felons from causing any permanent damage to the 'Burgh, that goes without saying.

So let's get right down to it.

OFFENSE
How do you move the ball on a team that looks like you do on Defense? Easy, know thyself. Plus, Baltimore has plenty of consistent tendencies that we should have picked up on by now. Basically, they're going to blitz, then blitz some more to try and knock Ben down, thus preventing him from making a play. So to combat this, the Steelers have to...

• Have a diverse game plan: Unfortunately, this appears to be a foreign concept to Bruce Arians...and also, ummm...did he say Ed Reed is better than Troy Polamalu? Mental note: Next time you see Bruce Arians, kick his ass. Anywho...If the Ravens want to bring pressure, the Steelers need to make like Pittsburgh West did against US, and play small ball. Swing passes, quick slants. Speed. But with an equal mixture of run and pass. Keep them on their toes. Eventually it will either A. Wear them down or B. Force them to drop into coverage and allow FWP the breathing room he needs to have a big game. Which leads me to my next point...


• Offensive line must not fold like lawn chair: You know, I was actually going to title this post "Kendall Simmons, You've Been Warned...," but then DC Steeler Nation beat me to it. Nonetheless - Absolutely, hands down, no doubt about it, the #1 thing to watch on Monday is how that sorry excuse for an offensive line plays. Specifically the right side of the line...Kendall Simmons, ahem ahem. The Steelers have yet to run into a Defense as good or as relentless as the Ravens, and one thing is for sure - If those assholes up front don't hold their blocks, we won't be running the ball too much and Ben is going to spend the whole game scrambling in and around the pocket in a desperate attempt to make a play (ala many other times this season). This simply can't happen against the Ravens. Offensive Line must be strong like bull...case closed.


• Heath. Miller. Touchdown: That's right, what better way to mix things up than getting the tight ends involved? We certainly have done this already this season and it should not stop now. Two tight end sets should be used, not only for blocking reasons, but also as quick reads for Ben. The more we hit Miller and Spaeth, the more the Ravens have to account for them when they're on the field and the less attention they can pay to Hines Ward and Santonio Holmes on the outside. Get Heath Miller and Matt Spaeth into the mix, Arians!


• Stay away from Ed Reed: Final thought. Big Ben, this one's for you. If you see Ed Reed in coverage, and he probably won't be alone (see Dre Bly and/or Adrian Wilson), do not force the ball into a bad spot. We still can not afford to turn the ball over. Plain. and. simple....offensive keys, done.

DEFENSE
Heeeeeee'sssss baaaaaaaaccccckkkkkk...Yep, Steeler Assassin Steve McNair is expected to play Monday night. Greeaaaaaattttt...So to go along with the artful legwork of Willis McGahee, Baltimore may have a little more threatening passing offense than one might have previously thought. This just adds another dimension to the preparation Mike Tomlin was all too happy to assure us would happen this week. With that, the Steelers have to...

• Play the run: I cannot stress this enough. Unlike some of the other teams we've faced that have a little more balance in their offense, the Ravens best offensive weapon is halfback Willis McGahee, and to a lesser degree fullback Musa Smith. As I may have mentioned once or twice yesterday, McGahee is the leagues #3 rusher. He's not having 200 yard games, but week in and week out he's registering enough yards to allow the Ravens to move the ball. Shut him down and the options begin to get dicey...let me explain...


• Cover Derrick Mason: Because frankly, who else is there for McNair to throw to? So far in 2007, Mason has grabbed 56 of Steve McNair's 103 completed passes for 529 yards. No other Ravens receiver has caught more than 20...including Todd Heap. Mason may be the NFL equivalent of 65 years old, but he's a Hines Ward type - catch anything you throw his way, and the Steelers must make sure they contain him. No rocket science here, just cover...Ike Taylor, I'm looking in your direction.


• Blitz the shit out of them: Most of the time my mantra is - there ain't nothing wrong with a little bump and grind...er pressure on the QB. And this week I feel the same way. With less to worry about on the outside, the Steelers should have the pleasure of being able to bring a decent amount of large men to chase down "Air" McNair. Don't shy away from it early, LeBeau. Let the feeling take you. But in all seriousness, if we're going to do this, we better start early. Because if the Ravens start to get the offense going, it'll be a hell of a lot harder to get to McNair. The one thing to be aware of is the Ravens should have the mammoth Jonathan Ogden back at left tackle this week. Watch out for his sumo leg drop, I hear it's killer.

SPECIAL TEAMS
I'm sorry I even have to include this. But with the way our special teams have been covering kicks, I'd be remiss if I did not. One simple job - don't let them run back our kicks for large chunks of yardage. You have one job, don't screw it up. No penalties either. There's nothing worse than penalties on special teams...except maybe untimely turnovers...

INJURY REPORT
For the Steelers, it looks like Superman, Anthony Smith will be starting in place of Ryan Clark yet again this week, which is pretty darn awesome. However, Aaron Smith and Jerame Tuman did not practice this week. So all signs point to them not playing on Monday. No Smith = no good.

Conversely, Brian Billick, Head Swinging Dick over at the Ravens camp, has decreed that all players listed as questionable will play on Monday except possibly Tood Heap and Chris McAllister. This includes McNair and Ogden(as mentioned), as well as Adam Terry, Trevor Pryce, Samari Rolle, and Mike Flynn. And when Brian Billick speaks, you better damn well listen...

So that does it for this week's "keys" to victory, Stiller fans. Keep in mind, there are many other things we also need to be doing this Monday...mainly the usual - control the clock, control the game, save the cheerleader, save the world BS. But the aforementioned are just a few things I think in particular we'd be apt to keep in mind.

And just because I enjoyed it, I'll leave you with what the Ravens "Mad Backer" Bart Scott had to say about Big Ben --

"I remember my first game on Monday Night Football, Halloween [in 2005]. I came through and he kind of stiff-armed me and got the ball off anyway.”

Big Ben - 6'5", 240 pounds
Mad Backer - 6'2", 240 pounds

Use me.

Brian Billick Is One Smug Son Of A Bitch...

"What will dominate our thoughts is our preparation...Together we all eat."
- Mike Tomlin

Monday night, it's set. Ravens-Steelers, the 3rd bitter division rivalry game for the Steelers in 2007, but certainly not 3rd in importance.

In many ways I think while most Steeler fans hate the Ravens with a passion, they can also respect them on some level. The 2 teams play a similar style of football, and every time they meet, it's a dogfight. As Ravens linebacker Bart Scott puts it:

"You’re going to get your money’s worth, because both teams are going to stand in the middle of the ring and go toe to toe....we’re built the same and we have the same philosophy. We try to impose our physical will on each other. Whoever is left standing at the end, after all the power blows, is usually the team that wins.”

In the recent past - 2003, 2004, and 2005 - we have split our 2 annual games with the Ravens, each year 1 win, 1 loss. 2006, however, was an anomaly (as we all probably remember), in which the Ravens OWNED the Steelers, outscoring us 58-7 en route to victories of 27-0 and 31-7...and leaving a bitter taste in all our mouths. Nonetheless, I'm pretty sure they know this year it won't be that easy.

The story of the 2007 Ravens has been kind of muddled. After going 13-3 last season, winning the AFC North by approximately 1,000 games, and having the kind of season to write home about, they promptly shit the bed in the 1st round of the AFC playoffs, lost Adalius Thomas and Jamal Lewis to free agency and started out the 2007 campaign 4-3 - including division losses to Cincy and Cleveland, as well as their most recent conference loss to Buffalo. What's more, their 4 wins came only against NFC teams - the Cardinals (Pittsburgh West), 49ers, Rams, and Jets (yes I know the Jets are AFC, that was a joke...).

The Ravens will come into Pittsburgh on Monday boasting a less than impressive 1-3 record on the road, while the Steelers are 3-0 at Heinz Field. Plus, Baltimore has scored just 124 offensive points thus far this season(26th out of 32 teams), while the Steelers have scored 184 (6th out of 32)...but that we shall leave for tomorrow. For now I will just provide a little perspective as to how the Ravens look on either side of the ball. You know, so we can proverbially size ourselves up...and shit...

Yeah, I don't know what's wrong with me either...let's just get to the breakdown:

OFFENSE

The Ravens passing offense (if you wanna call it that) is ranked 29th in TDs, 31st in Yards Per Passing Attempt, and 7th in Interceptions...which pretty much explains why Ray Lewis would criticize Head Coach and assmaster Brian Billick for not running the ball in a crucial situation against Buffalo...However, Kyle Boller's been filling in at QB for the past couple weeks, as McNair has been hurt. So those offensive stats/rankings...adjust those in your brain to remove the collateral damage of a marginal, underachieving QB. Still, what these numbers hint at is, unlike our most recent division kill Cincy, we've got a whole different animal headed our way Monday...and his name is Willis McGahee.

McGahee is 3rd in the NFL in overall yardage this season, right behind FWP with 639 yards on 146 rushes (For you math majors that's an avg. of 4.4 per carry), and has accounted for 2 of the Ravens 8 total offensive TDs, or 25% of their scoring (if you prefer to think of it this way). Point being - stop Willis McGahee and make them beat you through the air...right? Well maybe not...

Just one problem with that - Steve McNair. The man is what's known as a Steeler killer, and he's hoping to be healthy enough by Monday to continue in that role. He may be getting a little long in the tooth, but McNair has somehow always had the Steelers number. In fact, 5 out of the last 6 games against a Steve McNair team, whether it be the Ravens or the Titans, the Steelers have allowed 27 points or more. So, just because they've been successful principally with the run, don't think we don't have to worry about the Steve McNair special.

DEFENSE

Take a guess at what I'm going to say here...Yep, that's right, the Ravens have a stout Defense that features such familiar names as Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Chris McAllister, Bart Scott, and Terrell Suggs, among others. These guys, and their compadres, have combined to allow opponents an aggregate 1959 yards so far this season, which is good enough to rank them 2nd in the NFL.

However, the overall story here, just like in Pittsburgh, is the Run D. Allowing just 2 rushing TDs, and giving up an average of just under 3 yards per carry, the Ravens know their shit when it comes to the run. Through 7 games, they've only allowed 503 yards on the ground, or an average of 72 yards per game. Pretty solid numbers I'd say.

So what about the pass defense? Well, they ain't exactly a sieve either. The Ravens have allowed 8 passing TDs thus far, and have picked opposing QBs a total of 10 times in 7 games. Still, we have to keep in mind their opponents. Besides the Bengals and maybe the Cardinals (Pittsburgh West), the Ravens really have yet to see an offense, let alone a passing offense, that was even remotely decent.

Moral of this story - moving the ball on the Ravens, not quite as easy as the Bengals, Browns, Bills, 49ers, or Seahawks. Big Ben, FWP, Tomlin, Arians and friends better be ready with their A-game. Fingers crossed.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Not sure if this warrants it's own discussion here, but there are certainly a couple of aspects of the Ravens Special Teams game that we should discuss. First, since BJ Sams is out of action for the entire 2007 season with a torn ACL, the Ravens have a new return man, Yamon Figurs. Nice name...what is that anyway? French? Anyways, Figurs has a return average of about 30 yards and his long this season was 61 yards. Decent numbers, just a little something to keep in mind.

As for the other aspect of the special teams game -- The fossil Matt Stover, still the only Raven who was at one time a Cleveland Brown, has been characteristically solid, going 18 for 21 this year in field goals. His 3 misses came from the 41-49 yard range, so the key is to keep the Ravens out of the 40 yards and below region. Force those old bones to try an uncomfortably long one if you have to allow 3 points. Better yet, just don't even let them get into our territory. How about that for a strategy? After all, he is still one of the most accurate kickers in NFL history...

There you have it. All you wanted to know about the 2007 Ravens and more. Hopefully tomorrow I'll have some sort of "keys to victory" post locked and loaded. So stay at your computer screen and keep hitting refresh till it appears then promptly read and comment. 'Til tomorrow...

Oh yeah, they also have cheerleaders:

Ravens Stats [Pro-Football-Reference]
More Ravens Stats [ESPN]

We'll Always Have The Memories....

"I don't like too many people I compete against when I am competing...I expect it to be heated and it definitely will be in terms of the hatred and things of that nature."

- Mike Tomlin

So much bullshit news...so little time. What's a man to do?

By the way - you may have notice a moderate decrease in the length and volume of posts this week...this is by design. I apologize for not being able to really dig into any substantive analysis of the Ravens, but never you fret your purty little heads...Thursday ye shall have that which ye crave.

For now, enjoy these hot Steelers news items of the week:

• Ricardo Colclough - don't let the door hit you in the ass! As my esteemed fellow Steelers blog guru Christmas Ape over at DC Steeler Nation so eloquently put it, "An Historic Wrong Has Been Righted." Hopefully in time we can all forget the disappointment of watching a 2nd round draft pick struggle at Cornerback...struggle at returning kicks...struggle at life (probably, but I can't back that up factually). But for now all that matters is he is no longer sucking the life out of a roster spot. Instead the Steelers re-signed Anthony Madison. Upgrade? I think a traffic cone in the secondary would've been an upgrade. Bravo Kevin Colbert.


• For those of you who already own the Hines Ward underwear and collectible 50 cent piece, I give you the Hines Ward Limited Edition Cell Phone. Honestly, how long do you think Cricket Wireless was sitting on that announcement just waiting for Hines to deliver a monster game? Apparently just long enough. Buyer's beware, this phone comes with what I'm sure is the least annoying ring tone ever featuring Hines' voice saying "Yo, it's Hines Ward. Your phone’s ringing. Do you want to catch it or do you want it to go to voicemail?" I prefer Rich Boy's "Throw Some D's On..." myself, just saying...But a portion of the proceeds do go to charity so I suppose I shouldn't be a total cynic. If you want to buy this, I'll let it slide.


• Oh, Big Ben's elusiveness frazzles defenses, huh? Well maybe he wouldn't have to be so god damn elusive if our line knew anything about protecting the QB. Yeah, I know, Ben has moved well and shook guys off like whoa THIS SEASON. But let me call your attention to that lick Bart Scott put on Ben last season (see clip below if you're daring). Reminder Steeler fans - this problem has not been resolved. Nonetheless, yes, Ben is a monster. I can't wait to watch him stiff arm Ray Lewis like a bitch.


• Last but certainly not least, please go immediately to Die Hard Steel and read Coolong's post about Bill Belichick, the "evil genius," running up the score, and being a total dickwad in general, all in the name of motivating his team. If you haven't read it, punch yourself in the face right now. And for the record, I still maintain that Belichick knows where Bin Laden is hiding and just won't tell anyone to be an asshole.

Cheers friends, hope you enjoyed the hot lunch...I mean hot links...more tomorrow. Be sure to see the post below and vote for Willie Parker as this week's FedEx Ground Player of the Week.

And remember - "always be closing."