Well, I guess I should have clarified my "What the Steelers Need to Do to Make the Playoffs" post. See, they needed to win out. And that didn't happen. What did happen was that they got their asses handed to them by the hated Ravens. And that blows.
I actually didn't watch the game, which ended up being a good thing. On top of that, I lost my Fantasy Football Super Bowl. It was a disappointing Christmas on many levels.
But, seriously, I can't understand why people are so down on the Steelers this year. I must've heard the question, "Why do the Steelers suck this year?" a hundred times this season. They're 7-8, probably going to finish 7-9 and the best they can hope for is to break even at 8-8. And they're not making the playoffs. Even though that's disappointing after last season (and really, who expected a repeat performance of last year's magical run?), it's still not terrible. It's still not as bad as they were in the 80s. And nowhere near as bad as they were for forty frickin' years before the great teams of the 70s rolled around.
It breaks down to this: The Steelers are 71-39-1 in this century. And they won a Super Bowl, three division titles, went to the AFC Championship game three times, and are generally considered to be one of the best teams of the decade. Regardless of what happened this year, we still have a great young quarterback, an exciting young running back, a defense that will always be at least solid, and talented receivers.
We'll have all that stuff next year. The question will be whether or not Cowher is still coaching and whether or not the outside linebackers and the offensive line can rebound from a pretty horrible year.
With the salary cap and the talent level in the NFL the way it is, there isn't too much that separates the Chargers and, say, the Raiders. Ultimately, it comes down to execution, turnovers, and coaching.
Tackling sucked for the Steelers this year, they were minus-415 in the turnover ratio, and Cowher was a shadow of his former self. Porter and Haggans didn't rush the passer well at all, the offensive line lost a great deal of its toughness and general intelligence, and the secondary got exposed for what it is: average. It's no worse this year than it was last year, it's just that the linebackers and the defensive line weren't getting pressure on the quarterback. In our defense, we spend all our money on the linebackers and the nose tackle and try to get by as well as we can with whatever we can afford in the secondary.
The last 8 games of last season, the pass rush covered up the deficiencies in the secondary very well. This season, it didn't. The last 8 games of last season, the offensive line dominated the line of scrimmage and set the tempo for the game. This season, it didn't.
But, I really don't think you can pin this season on the defense. They were stuck with a short field for most of the year because of turnovers and poor special teams play. At some point, you knew they'd have to deflate. I guess that point was in the Baltimore game. And, if you decide to watch the Cincinnati game, you'll see more of the same.
I'll still take a Super Bowl and 32 games over .500 for the decade. Think of those poor bastards in Detroit and Arizona.
And be thankful.
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