Trouble brewing for Steelers?

[polamalubeast]

1. I can’t help but think that the Steelers’ season will be dictated by two storylines, neither of which will make the Pittsburgh crazies very happy. One is, can QB Ben Roethlisberger stay healthy? He’s already been slowed by a gimpy ankle and, ho hum, he’s got a torn rotator cuff on his throwing shoulder. And from the way it sounded, his offensive line will be a work in progress. Starting two rookies is good for the future, scary for the present, even if the rookies are highly touted like David DeCastro and Mike Adams. And losing a starting fullback like David Johnson will not help OC Todd Haley run the ball. I’m expecting daily updates on how Big Ben is feeling, even knowing that few can tolerate as much or play with more pain than he can. Every player has a shelf life, but it’s mindboggling what he puts himself through. Though, I guess if Brett Favre can play until he’s 63, so can Big Ben. If he can stay upright, the Steelers will be good. If this troubling trend of nagging stuff continues… well, they won’t be. The second issue? Again, the age and speed of this defense. Five players are over 30, and the youth hasn’t quite taken over. Naysayers in 2011 (I was one of them) were shown up last year when the Steelers made the playoffs before getting Tebowed. But the same questions are there. It’s not just that they are on the old side, because they have tried to get younger. It’s also about whether they can match up with slot receivers and tight ends without going to nickel. Will Pittsburgh be fast enough? We shall see.


http://blogs.nfl.com/2012/08/12/nine-really-random-things-and-whatever-else-is-going-on-around-the-nfl-11/?module=HP11_content_stream

[Edman]

The "Old" Defense shut down the Eagles' First-Teamers in the first preseason game. Philly didn't put up their points until the scrubs came in.

[zulater]

The "Old" Defense shut down the Eagles' First-Teamers in the first preseason game. Philly didn't put up their points until the scrubs came in.

Yeah, funny how no one outside of Pittsburgh and Philly seemed to notice that.

[SteelerFanInStl]

I saw that this morning and just had to laugh.

[GBMelBlount]

I guess as a writer you can't just say that "the keys for the Steelers this year are injuries and how well the new starters perform."

[fansince'76]

Tried and true formula: Diss Steelers = piss Steelers fans off = more website hits!

Works every time.

[SteelerEmpire]

I just hope we don't have too many injuries in the starting line up, the "depth" of this team is very suspect... "especially" in the secondary. But it's just the 1st pre-season game, hopefully they can dust their cobwebs off.

[tube517]

0-16 easily

Sent from my ICS Thrive

[vasteeler]

:coffee:our first two drives we held the ball for 16+ mins. even with a shaky line and the first team defense looked dominant

[Count Steeler]

Bird cage material.

[gosteelers]

The o-line will be alright, first game nerves and jitters. I still cant see why all the love for "whiff" johnson cant block,seems lost when he is on the field, i shuddered everytime he took the field last year, a missed block was coming up somewhere. The correct johnson will now play at fb.the defense will again smother opposing teams, with additions here and there this year, meaning the young guys will fill in and play like vets. Mistakes will happen, even with veteran players, but i think the steelers will be winners as usual!

[SteelGhost]

Nope, we are "brewing" a 7th Lombardi :chuckle:

[steelerdiva]

Tried and true formula: Diss Steelers = piss Steelers fans off = more website hits!

Works every time.

There ya go.

[steelers_switzerland]

wow...

who is ian rapaport? sapp's little puppy?