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Game Balls, Game Goats & FU's......................Week 17.....................@ Ratbirds

Shane Falco said:
Great Game by offense and defense. Hats off to Pat Meyer who made this offensive line good. He got them working as a unit and turned them around. I would like to see upgrades at LT and LG, but for now, good job.
And dare I say jt, Matt Canada. He crafted a good game plan for once and it worked. The ground game against the birds was outstanding. This is a difficult team to run against yet he stuck to the run and didn’t get too cute. He called a very good smash mouth game. I would like to see an improvement next season at OC as everyone else, but for this game, he gets a game ball.

GOAT- Danny Smith and his special teams.
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In the first drive on that 3rd and short when little heyward went in motion from right to left for a possible jet sweep similar to the one that iced last game but the ball went to little Watt (who was at the H-Back) from left to right for the dive I knew that there was hope for Canada, at least for this particular game. The Ravens D took the bait completely, hook, line and sinker.
 
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I’ve been a huge Kenny supporter since we drafted him. I loved the pick and think he will not disappoint our great Steelernation.
I kept telling everyone to just give it time and let Kenny mature and grow into this and he is right before our eyes.
I wish that Kenny could have taken first team reps in the summer but given the circumstances of how Tomlin inserted him in cold in the Jets game, he’s come a long way.
This game experience will be invaluable to Kenny’s learning experience and a full summer of training camp, hopefully a new OC, better LT and LG, Cal Austin, and another WR weapon, I’m very encouraged for next season.
 
Up until the last drive, Pickett was 10 of 21 for 104 yards. He impressed me on the last drive, really for the first time this year. Last weeks GW drive was dump offs to Najee and Muth. Last night's was clutch, with big time throws and, I thought, a lot of poise. I wonder who called the plays on that drive. Canada and Tomlin need to remove the remedial QB offensive scheme, and let this kid play.

They got the defensive scheme half right last night. The rats run the ball and throw to the tight end. We stacked the line to stop the run, but forgot about Andrews most of the time. He had 9 catches on 9 targets for 100 yards. The rest of the rats had 5 catches total.

Our kickoff coverage is a disaster. I don't know if Boz just sometimes can't get the KO into the end zone, or if they call for a short kick. If it's the latter, Boz really needs to ignore the call and say, "Whoops, oh well. Touchback."

A lot of Watt bashing in the game thread. I didn't know he was solely responsible for his entire half of the field on running plays.

Both RBs looked great. They both ran hard and fought for extra yards. The line is starting to open some holes. We still need to replace 3/5 of them, but they are getting better at run-blocking.

Collinsworth had obviously never heard of Spillane before. He thought he was a special teams player.
 
Game Balls:
Najee Harris - Best game as a Steeler. Brought the physicality and attitude of classic Steeler teams.
Kenny Pickett - Played better than the numbers suggested. Made several big-time throws on the GW drive.
Offensive line - the pass protection may have been spotty, but they were overall dominant run blocking.
Jaylen Warren - Made plays every time he touched the ball.
2nd Half Defense - They didn't allow a lot of points in the first half, but they couldn't stop Baltimore. That changed in the second half because of terrific team defense and adjustments. Good job by the staff and players.
Robert Spillane - He may not have made the splash plays we saw from the defensive stars, but he was the best and most consistent defender all night.

Not a game ball, but shout out to Steven Sims for a huge catch on the final drive as well as having his feet in position to stay in bounds if the pass went to him instead of Najee.

Game Goats:
Danny Smith - Quit calling the short kickoff.
 
Thanks again Chicoman, this is usually the best thread every week.

I'll give a game ball to Tomlin and Austin for their defensive scheme last night, defense has been underachieving all year, but balled out last night.

Canada must go, Pickett looks like a winner, but his stats put him at the bottom of the league, we need a OC who will develop and unleash our young guys on offense, Canada is NOT that guy
 
BLITZ said:
At the beginning of the game I think it was Collensworthless that said something to the effect of if you are looking for a shootout this isn't the game for you.

Last nights game was old school Steeler football. Run Run. pass occasionally and play defense. Extremely enjoyable.
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Definitely an enjoyable watch. Except that crazy *** Cam penalty. But my dislike for the rats always heighten watching Hairball.
 
Litos said:
In the first drive on that 3rd and short when little heyward went in motion from right to left for a possible jet sweep similar to the one that iced last game but the ball went to little Watt (who was at the H-Back) from left to right for the dive I knew that there was hope for Canada, at least for this particular game. The Ravens D took the bait completely, hook, line and sinker.
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On the Watt run, the C and two G's shoved the Rats defensive line 3 yards back, making it an easy conversion. The run blocking last night was excellent. Kudos to the Steelers for hiring Pat Meyer as OL coach.
 
madinsomniac said:
I will give a big FU out to Harbaugh for having a punchable face… I am giddy he lost just because he is him…
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My wife sent me the best text last night:

"Both Harbaughs lost this weekend!"

It was a great weekend to hate Harbaughs!!

Some under the radar performances that we need to appreciate.

PH3 had some monster kicks. On a night when we need him the most, he came to play. His sideline punt was freakin perfect! No punt returns last night, all KRs...

Derek Watt coming into his own in short yardage. I think we can't afford him and his replacement is already on the roster (Conner), but I like the way he runs the ball with power and intensity.

KP on QB sneaks. We are now expecting to convert 3rd and 4th and shorts with a QB that ins't afraid to do whatever it takes for a yard. You don't know how much this killed me watching Big Ben never wanting the easy conversion. At least KP has the balls and ability to pull it off. Also love how calm he was when he had to move to avoid the pass rush and delivered excellent throws downfield when he got some space.

Simms. He was being targeted a lot, and didn't wilt. Also had a tough job fielding punts with no room for returns. Clutch performance.

O-Line. Harbaugh's post game presser's biggest quote was "They Flipped the Script" (from the previous matchup) and the oline controlled the LOS. Was it all Cambell being out? IDK, that D is stacked and it helped, but they were moving mountains last night.

Tomlin, Canada & Austin. Tomlin managed the game masterfully, and the last drive at 4min forced the Ravens to burn all of their TOs. Canada's commitment to the run kept this game close, controlled the time of possession, and did something the Ravens never expected. Control the LOS with the run. Austin, his ability to recognize that the personnel that they had last time they met the Ravens, wasn't good enough. Robinson started, Spillaine never came off the field, and Bush didn't get a snap until the 3rd QTR. KZ, Pierre all getting quality snaps. This is a D that couldn't stop the Ravens when we knew they were running 3 weeks ago, to become a D that gave the Ravens fits in the run game, and was stout in short yardage. If you guys think they can't coach, you missed a great adjustment from game to game to deliver us a win on the road last night.
 
Not sure if it's been discussed anywhere but I at least want to throw out an acknowledgment to Sims. That catch on the game-winning drive was big league. He has earned a spot on this team with his play. Gunner needs to go after this season. Bring on Austin and either a FA or a draft pick and our WR room is set for next year. We need someone to man the slot. Sims could be that guy if Austin or a FA/draft pick doesn't work out there.
 
slashsteel said:
I think the D performance and victory masks that Canada's offense still struggled to produce TDs. I loved the win but there is still some obvious issues there.
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I agree and yet disagree. The Ravens defense is one of the better defenses in the league and one of the hardest to score against. I don’t fault Canada for that. The fact that he was able to come up with a smash mouth run game last night and have Najee run over them is something that is creditworthy. They got the w so in essence, good game plan
 
Hah, the Ravens game thread is worth reading. Some frequent comments:
  • The HC is living off his one SB win years ago
  • The OC sucks
  • The defense is overrated and can't make a big stop
  • The owners need to clean house and start over
Huh, sounds familiar.
 
Shane Falco said:
I agree and yet disagree. The Ravens defense is one of the better defenses in the league and one of the hardest to score against. I don’t fault Canada for that. The fact that he was able to come up with a smash mouth run game last night and have Najee run over them is something that is creditworthy. They got the w so in essence, good game plan
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So going by this measurement his game plans suck 50 percent of the time. Which won't get you to where your team ultimately desires to go. Watt and company make this idea sound better than what it really is. You won't win a lot of games consistently scoring under 20 points a game. We saw how silly the team looked playing the better passing teams.
 
Steeltime said:
Hah, the Ravens game thread is worth reading. Some frequent comments:
  • The HC is living off his one SB win years ago
  • The OC sucks
  • The defense is overrated and can't make a big stop
  • The owners need to clean house and start over
Huh, sounds familiar.
Click to expand...
But are their fans far off? I think they are handcuffed with a RB playing QB. Nothing I have seen has changed this opinion. Not sure I am on board with their D being overrated but the rest...
 
Steeltime said:
Hah, the Ravens game thread is worth reading. Some frequent comments:
  • The HC is living off his one SB win years ago
  • The OC sucks
  • The defense is overrated and can't make a big stop
  • The owners need to clean house and start over
Huh, sounds familiar.
Click to expand...
I thought you were outlining us.
 
slashsteel said:
So going by this measurement his game plans suck 50 percent of the time. Which won't get you to where your team ultimately desires to go. Watt and company make this idea sound better than what it really is. You won't win a lot of games consistently scoring under 20 points a game. We saw how silly the team looked playing the better passing teams.
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I wouldn’t say 50 percent. I would say higher percentage of a horrible game plan. He beat a playoff caliber defense. If the Steelers squeak into the playoffs, his offense won’t be good enough to run with those big dogs. For this game-I’m giving him (Canada) credit where credit is due.
 
Shane Falco said:
I wouldn’t say 50 percent. I would say higher percentage of a horrible game plan. He beat a playoff caliber defense. If the Steelers squeak into the playoffs, his offense won’t be good enough to run with those big dogs. For this game-I’m giving him (Canada) credit where credit is due.
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I can give him credit when deserved sure. But he remains the weakest link. That is like giving herpes credit for not having active lesions. Soon or a later... bad happenings.
 
Steeltime said:
Hah, the Ravens game thread is worth reading. Some frequent comments:
  • The HC is living off his one SB win years ago
  • The OC sucks
  • The defense is overrated and can't make a big stop
  • The owners need to clean house and start over
Huh, sounds familiar.
Click to expand...
Yeah i was browsing the 24/7 forum last night… it gave me chuckles to no end…

The Browns board locked its best stuff behind a paywall so i browse Dawgtalkers more, and Gobengals is just full of the least knowledgeable jackass fans in the entire group of active division messageboards … 24/7 is probably the best division rival messageboard out there…

:
(Every single game we needed yesterday including ours all the major close plays were called against the team we needed to win, the jets only had 2 penalty calls against them… the pats had a forced fumble taken away from them incorrectly)
The buffoons on the bengal boards: ThE NfL izz TrYing to Gettt The Steelers in the PlAyoFfs…WhAaaaa… I NEED MoAr METHhhh
 
madinsomniac said:
(Every single game we needed yesterday including ours all the major close plays were called against the team we needed to win, the jets only had 2 penalty calls against them… the pats had a forced fumble taken away from them incorrectly)
The buffoons on the bengal boards: ThE NfL izz TrYing to Gettt The Steelers in the PlAyoFfs…WhAaaaa… I NEED MoAr METHhhh
Click to expand...

That is hilarious. I'm guessing this was also a popular sentiment:

"wAhH, thE rEfs LeT hAyWoRd sTaY iN thE gAmE afTeR PuncHinG a GuY!"
 
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