5 THINGS THE STEELERS MUST DO TO BEAT THE BUCCANEERS

The Steelers vs. the Buccaneers. Two teams that have won their first 2 games. The Steelers have relied on defense to win their first two games and got an assist from the Special Teams and Antonio Brown in game 2. The Buccaneers have relied on a young team to get to 2-0. Last week their defense came up with 3 turnovers and 4 sacks to outlast the Carolina Panthers and their second year quarterback has played up to the team’s expectations.

5. Steelers vs. the Tampa Bay heat, not the Miami Heat, the Tampa Bay Heat

In week 2 the Steelers needed all the linemen they could muster to fend of the Tennessee heat. They shuttled them in and out the whole game. They had to released Byron Leftwich for a game in order to sign an additional lineman in Steve McClendon, who recovered a fumble when he was in. That was worth one week’s pay. With the aging Steelers defensive line they’ll need to do more of the same to keep the Offensive and Defensive Line fresh the whole game. It did not help that Trai Essex is out this week. Get the Gatorade and Ivs ready.

4. Keep Josh Freeman in check

The Bucs 2nd year quarterback is Josh Freeman, out of the hotbed of quarterbacks, Kansas State. Is he a future star or just another in a long line of wannabe quarterbacks for the Bucs, sorry Byron. He is 6-6, strong armed and hard to bring down guy that has had a knack for escaping some tackles in the backfield. Sound like someone the Steelers are familiar with in (and out) of their lineup. Like Ben(gave it away didn’t I) Freeman needs to be contained in the pocket. If he’s able to escape the pass rush by shuffling to his right or left a few steps he could be able to find another youngster Mike Williams streaking down the field. So, James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley need to wrap him up if they get their hands on him. He may be 2-0 this year, but he hasn’t met up with the Steelers Defense yet. 1st and 2nd year guys don’t typically perform too well against Dick Lebeau’s defense. It’s hard to throw a pass while lying on your back.

3. Charlie Batch needs to be productive

The Steelers are down to the last option that they had planned to use going into the season, Charlie Batch. Luckily, Batch is an experienced NFL quarterback. He is talented, and has proven he can win games. The only thing that has hurt his chances of starting is his inability to stay healthy when he gets a chance, broken collarbone last time when Ben wrecked his motorcycle. So, this is Charlie’s chance to stay healthy and prove he can run this offense. He doesn’t need to throw for 400 yards and 5 touchdowns, he just needs to hit some key passes here and there and get a touchdown or 2, and avoid the interceptions. He is more than capable of doing that.

2. Rashard Mendenhall
Do you think the Steelers gameplan for today includes Rashard Mendenhall and smashmouth running. I do. Charlie needs to be effective but Rashard needs to move the chains consistently. The Buccaneers will most likely try to make Batch win the game by stacking the line. The good thing is stopping the run is not their strength. Mendenhall will get his carries today and he needs to continue to get the tough yards.

1. Defense, Defense, Defense

Until Ben returns, it is going to be up to the defense to keep the team in the game. They appear to know that and seem to have taken it upon themselves to do just that. LaMarr Woodley and James Harrison have easily become the top outside linebacker combination in the league and Lawrence Timmons has become a linebacker on a mission this year. He is making all the tackles he’s supposed to make and making plays nobody expected him to make. Chris Johnson appeared stunned several times when Timmons came out of nowhere to put a hit on him. The secondary was much better last week until they went into the prevent defense. They made the big play on Nate Washington in the end zone when they needed it. Troy is Troy, ‘nuff said.

Another great victory for the Steelers on the Titans home Turf

The Pittsburgh Sports Buzz tonight revolves around the happenings in Tennessee. The game got off to an unusual start for the Steelers. Something happened that Steelers fans have not been accustomed to, a kickoff return for a touchdown. Mewelde Moore received the kickoff and Antonion Brown doubled back to receive a handoff. Brown ran around the kick coverage team and burnt past the last line of uh-defense, the kicker, and it was off to the races. We’ll even forgive the little showboating, while crossing the goal line. The last Steeler to attempt that was Anthony Smith and he received a severe tongue lashing from Dick Lebeau afterwards. Something tells me Hines Ward might have a word of advice for Mr. Brown. That return turned out to be the only TD for the Steelers, but not the only score.

In the pregame article, “5 things the Steelers must do to beat the Titans”, the Steelers succeeded in holding Chris Brown under 100 yards, way under. Early in the game Brown looked as if he would continue his string of 100 yard games, picking up several yards each play. But, the Steeler defense had other ideas. On several occasions during the game Brown was met with force. On one attempt Brown attempted to cut back only to hit the brick wall also known as James Harrison. He was hit hard time after time and the camera caught him a couple times trying to shake free the cobwebs. It would not be a surprise if we find out that he suffered a concussion during the game.

Another key to the game was to keep Vince Young in the pocket. This turned out to be prophetic, for Vince did remain in the pocket most of the day and was unsuccessful in providing any spark for the Titans. The one drive that looked as if it would lead to a score, Troy Polamalu intercepted a Young pass in the end zone. Throw in another Young interception by LaMarr Woodley and some fumbles and Young was replaced early in the 4th quarter in favor of Kerry Collins. Collins made his share of mistakes with a Bryant McFadden interception and a forced fumble but at the end all he did was make the last few minutes interesting, but he was not the difference.

The third key to the game was the Steelers backups must step up. Looks like defense didn’t miss a beat with Chris Hoke starting in the middle. Larry Foote stepped in for James Farrior after he was shaken up. Jonathan Scott did not provide the protection of Max Starks, which led to the Steelers relying on the running game and Rashard Mendenhall for much of the second half. This might have annoyed the Steeler faithful, but getting your last quarterback injured would not have been a good idea. The Titans offense wasn’t moving the ball against the Steelers defense, so why not run the ball and the clock. Not to mention the Titans were very generous today, and could not resist giving the ball back to the Steelers.

Key number 4 was consistency from Rashard Mendenhall. Mendenhall did not have that 50 yard run today, but he did have one 20 yarder and he was held to 69 yards on 23 carries. Once again, the defense expected the run with Dennis Dixon at QB. The Titans stacked the line and really 69 yards was not bad under the circumstances. The Steelers barely threw in the second half, preferring to hand off to Mendenhall to eat up the clock.

Key number 5 was the continued development of Dennis Dixon. This went out the door early in the second quarter when Dixon injured a knee on a rollout to the left. Charlie Batch came in to replace him and did a great job of handing off to Rashard.

5 Things the Steelers must do to beat the Titans

The Steelers made it through week 1 in the 2010 season with a win and are now
1-0. But now they must travel to Tennesse to take on the Titans, a team that is
always a challenge for the Steelers. Here are 5 things they must do to remain
unbeaten.

5. Continued improvement by Dennis Dixon
Dixon made his second start in the NFL against Atlanta and his inexperience showed. He threw one interception and nearly threw a couple others. Fortunately the Falcon defense couldn't make the plays. Dixon did have his good moments too. He threw a perfect pass to Mike Wallace for a long completion, not an easy thing to do since Wallace can outrun most throws. Dixon was known as an accurate passer in college and hit 18 of 26 passes in this game. He should continue to improve with additional time with the first team offense allowing him to get in sync with his receivers more. Look for the Titans to stack the line until DD proves he can beat them with his passing. He must play better in this game to beat the Titans in their home.

4. More consistent play from Rashard Mendenhall
Because the Falcons did not believe that Dennis Dixon could beat them with his arm, they stacked the line and challenged him to do it. Because of this Mendenhall was tackled for losses several times. Maybe this will be the season Mendenhall becomes the runner they thought he would be when they drafted him, but he must avoid all those negative yardage plays. If he did not have the game winner against Atlanta, most would have probably considered that an average to below average performance for him. Mendenhall needs to turn some of those
negative yardage plays into gains for the Steelers to be on the winning side at the end of this game.

3. Backups will have to step up
Max Starks left the Atlanta game with what most thought was a high ankle sprain. This is an injury that most players and fans have come to realize can cost the player several games while trying to heal. Casey Hampton also left the game with a hamstring injury. If that is not given proper time to heal hamstring injuries will come back throughout the season. Behind these 2 players on the depth chart are Chris Hoke for Hampton and Jonathan Scott for Starks.
These two have to step up and provide quality play for the Steelers to win. Hoke must plug the hole and keep the rushing defense from giving up big plays by Chris Johnson. Scott must keep the Titans defense from attacking Dixon, something he didn't do well against the Falcons. If he is not able to do what is needed there may be some major shifting of the offensive line going on. The prognosis is good for Starks though since it was just a normal ankle sprain and not the dreaded high ankle sprain. He may be back by the next game. Hampton will be week to week. Backups, in general, need to step up for the Steelers to continue winning.

2. Keep Vince Young in the pocket
Vince Young is not the most accurate passer in the league. His feet and his running back are his weapons. The Steelers must keep him in the pocket and keep him from improvising to win this game. The more he throws the better the chances the Steelers have.

1. Hold Chris Johnson under 100 yards
It is no secret in the NFL that Chris Johnson is probably the elite running back in the league. If there's any doubt just remember the 2,000 yard club. He is one of the few members of this club. Also, remember if you're a member of this club your career is not long after this accomplishment. So, it is also no secret to Titans opponents what their game plan is, run, run, run. If the Steelers can stop Chris Johnson their chances to win this game are very good. The good news is this is the strength of the Steelers. Look for Johnson to be around 75 yards by the end of the game.

Steelers Rule!!!!!

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HOW MANY WINS

Stop by the site and cast your vote. I'm saying 10-11. Let me know how many you think. Leave a comment and tell me why if you get a chance.

WHO GETS THE CREDIT FOR THE ATLANTA GAME - The Answer

Who deserves the credit for the Atlanta Game? The answer is the Defense, with honorable mention going to Rashard Mendenhall.

The defense kept the team in the game the whole time holding the Atlanta Rushing game in check and keeping the pressure on Matt Ryan so he couldn't look too far downfield.

Top performers were Woodley, Harrison, and Timmons. It looked like Harrison might have ended it late in the game with the rumble for a touchdown off the fumble, remind you of another Harrison return, but it was called back. There are a lot of stars on this team, but Woodley and Harrison are important cogs in the machine.



1-o without Ben, 3 to go. Next up: at Tennessee

WHO GETS CREDIT FOR THE ATLANTA GAME - Coaches?

The team seemed well prepared for this game. There were no major blunders for the first game of the season and the minor problems should be ironed in practice in the next week or so. Tomlin seemingly made the right choice in going with Dixon over Batch. The new special teams coach Al Everest hopefully has them performing consistently, we'll see when the Browns come to town. I think everyone knows why. Dixon seemed to be prepared. I think some of those near interceptions he threw were caused by first start jitters and a few starts will clear those up. The coaches also did a good job of realizing the out patterns weren't working and changing Dixon's target area more to the area between the hash marks.

It was a good start for coaches. There are some challenges coming up with the possibility of injuries to Max Starks and Casey Hampton. Coaching will need to step up along with the replacements.