Well, we won. And that's what matters. And Charlie Batch threw not one, not two, but three touchdown passes. Which was something that I was not expecting. And the Dolphins are in serious, serious trouble this year if they continue to play as badly as they did on Thursday. Serious trouble.
First of all, Culpepper looked more like the guy that had started 3 games in the last five years. He looked hesitant, lost, and threw a few too many 48' sliders to wide open receivers on third down. And, he threw a couple of decidedly idiotic picks. And was generally ineffective. And, even though he attempted 38,158 passes, he only ended up with 262 yards and 100 of those were on plays where our secondary experienced a gigantic brain fart.
Really, take away the two big plays by Wes Welker (how many dumbasses are going to add him to their fantasy teams on Tuesday?) and the big play by Booker and what did the Dolphins do? Answer: They rushed for 38 yards and committed two turnovers. And their defense is old. And slow. And small. And completely overmatched. And no amount of gameplanning on the part of Nick Saban is going to cure that. Young players (like what Bellichick has had to work with the last couple of years) are at least fast and teachable. Zach Thomas has never had to learn anything. He's just been able to read, react, and close. How many times did he look like a lost rookie without the benefit of speed and youth on his side during Thursday's game? Five times by my count. The most damning of which was the long touchdown to Heath Miller.
And, really, how many members of Miami's secondary could you pick out of a line-up? Just terrible. It's Will Allen and a bunch of dudes that are hoping no one notices they suck.
I will, however, say this in their defense: The offense will get better. I didn't know until I watched the game that the Dolphins are still running Scott Linehan's offense. Yes, that Scott Linehan. The one who got the head coaching job in St. Louis. Mularky is calling plays from someone else's offense. I can therefore understand that it didn't look as though they had a plan or any idea how to call the right play in the right situation on Thursday. It's like trying to walk using someone else's body. Not good. But, they will adjust. That just takes time. Next year (probably by mid-season), they'll be on the same page. They'll still be trying to dig themselves out of the giant hole their defense dug them, but they'll be explosive.
Now for the Steelers. We won. That's great. It's good to get a win at home with your back-up QB against a team many have picked to win a division in your conference (however misguided they might be). We overcome the mental lapses (about as kind as I can phrase that) on defense (Booker and Welker's can-and-runs for 100 yards), special teams (pretty much every play on special teams, but especially the long punt return), and offense (most notably the botched snap at the one). And, since we won and he threw three TDs, I can forgive Charlie for the goal line snafu. Really, I can. Especially since he's not starting the next game for us. If he were, I'd be nervous. Once we get the regular starter taking snaps from the regular center, all that will be worked out. Really don't have anything bad to say about the offense.
Don't have anything really bad to say about the defense, either. There were the mental lapses, but they did hold a very talented Miami offense to 17 points. They mixed things up, brought a lot of pressure, and closed the game out when they needed to. It's just that, moving forward, we can't have those brain farts against good teams. The Patriots would've won that game. As would the Jaguars. Or any team with a half decent defense and the good sense to remember to cover Heath Miller. And not throw the ball right to Joey Porter.
And the special teams need to get their act together. It's the first game of the season, so these lapses and mistakes are to be expected. They just need to get fixed. Soon. Before other teams are no longer committing the same type of mistakes and they make us pay for it. From about game 4 on, can't be doing that stuff. Not at all. And especially in the playoffs.
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