Tomlin Gets Fined 100K

Hey All,

Today there was a bit of breaking news, and that was Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin was fined $100,000 for his sideline "interference" on thanksgiving night. Now I would have to say that this fine is a bit obsessive. I get fining him, I get that what he did, wheater it was intentional or not, was wrong, but what I don't get is the price of the fine. It's a bit much if you ask me. There is no way that this infraction is worth 100K. 

The big argument in this is that he interfered with the Ravens return man. Now I've watched this from every angle possible, and no matter if Tomlin was in the way or not, Jones was getting caught. It's not like he was 5 yards ahead of the coverage team and could have walked into the end zone. There was a defender right on his heals, and closing pretty quick. 

What blows my mine about this is that there was a ref right there, and he called nothing, NOTHING! If the ref does his job and throws the flag, we wouldn't be talking about this right now. We would be finding something else to be decusing. But no, here we are talking about a ridiculous fine to an already struggling team. 

Another thing that could be added later on is that the NFL is thinking of taking away a draft pick. This would infuriate everyone in Pittsburgh and anyone who is a fan of Pittsburgh. The team needs help, and taking away a draft pick over this, is wrong on so many levels. This would just be showing how much of bullies the NFL can be. A fine is punishment enough. There is no need to punish the organization for a mistake that the coach made. Now I know that some would say that he is the face of the organization, being the coach but he wasn't doing the on purpose. He said so in his press conference after the fine was given. 

Yes, I know everyone will say that how didn't he know? Well in the heat of a game, and Tomlin watching the big screen, I can see where it could be easy to lose where you're at on the field. Now that's a stretch I know, but still 100K and a draft pick, way to kick a team when they're down. 

I really hope that the NFL thinks before they act on the draft pick. That wouldn't be right and make them look really bad. I think that the right thing will be done, no matter what the outcome. I just hope they think about this in fairness. 

Until next time,

You keep doing what you do, and I'll keep you up to date with everything sports 

Steelers vs Ravens

Hey All,

Last night, Sunday November 18th, the Steelers took on the Ravens in one of the best football rivalries in game today.

When these two teams come together to play one another, it's nothing less than a heavy weight bought that last 15 rounds. Last night was no different. The only difference was, there was no Ben Roethlisberger. The Steelers star QB was out with a shoulder injury as well as a rib injury.

In his place the Steelers went with back up QB Byron Leftwhich, instead of Charlie Batch. Batch as been labeled the 3rd string QB rather than the back up as he's been for many years. Both QB's are long time veterans of the league, and more than capable to replace Ben. That being said, lets talk about the game.

The game got off to a rocky start for the Steelers WR Mike Wallace in the first quarter. Just minutes into the game the speedy receiver fumbled and gave the Ravens an chance to jump out early, had the Steelers not recovered the fumble. After that Leftwhich wanted to try and air it out, and drew a pass interference call putting the Steelers in great field position. The very next play, Bryon Leftwhich takes off after a busted play and took the ball 32 yards for the first touchdown of the game. This was also the longest rush of Leftwhich's career. The Steelers D would hold the Ravens on their first possession, and that would be the tail of the take for the rest of this game. The next Steelers possession tragedy would strike again for Wallace, as he fumbles again but this time the Ravens were able to recover the fumble. On the Ravens next Offensive possession they were only able to get a field goal out of the drive, making the score 7-3 in favor of the Steelers. The rest of the game would be like this, a defensive game. The Steelers would go 3 and out of the next possession, and would make the biggest mistake of the game. The Steelers would kick to dangerous return make Jacobi Jones, who would take the kick 63 yards for the only touchdown of the game making the score 10-7 in favor of the Ravens. This would be how the quarter would end.

The second quarter would have little to no excitement, but would have a lot of things go wrong for the Ravens. The Ravens would loss their main Tight End Denis Pitta, who would leave the game with a concussion. There would be no offense from either team in this quarter at all. The only other scoring chance would come from the Ravens, and it would be a missed field goal from 41 yards. This would be the end of the half with the score 10-7 Ravens.

In the second half, it would be the same thing that went on in the first half, NO OFFENSE. Neither team would be able to produce any type of offense at all. There would only be two more scores and they would both be field goals one from the Ravens from 39 yards, and the other from the Steelers Shaun Suisham from 22 yards out. The only other action that happened in this half, was an interception from Leftwhich, but other than that, nothing.

My take on this game would have to be that the Steelers blew this game. They gave it away. It was clear to everyone who could see, that Bryon Leftwhich was hurt, and in pain throughout the game. He hurt himself when he scored the only offensive touchdown of the game. He tripped and fell awkwardly in the end zone. He instantly reached up and grabbed his shoulder. If I was the coach, I would have had the medical staff check him out completely and make sure that he was okay to return to the game. They have a capable back up to him in Charlie Batch, so why no bring him in and make sure that Leftwhich could finish the game, yet that did not happen. Why it didn't happen? I have no idea. This was the dumbest thing that the Steelers could have done in this game. Leftwhich was missing throws that he is able to make, winsing in pain after every throw, and not willing to run the ball at all. Given, he was taking so many shots in this game. The line didn't protect him at all. If they would have been able to give him a little more time, he may have made some throws, and not get hit as much.

All in all, it doesn't matter how much I bitch about this game. The Steelers lost, and that's that. Can't take it back, can't have a do over for this game, and they fell 2 games back from the Ravens in the Division. They only thing that they can do, is wait 2 weeks until they play them again in Baltimore. This would be a rematch of the heavy weight bought that we saw Sunday night. The only thing I think that can save the Steelers chances to win this game would be to get Ben healthy and have him play instead of Leftwhich or Batch.

Until next time,
You keep doing what you do, and I'll keep you up to date with everything sports.

Wallace Reports

Hey All,

Last week, word on the street had Steelers wide receiver Mike Wallace showing up over the weekend to sign his $2.7 million restricted free-agent tender. It didn't happen Saturday, Sunday or Monday either. But CBSSports.com's Jason La Canfora confirms that Wallace reported to the Steelers' facility Tuesday morning.

Wallace, the team's 2009 third-round pick, missed offseason workouts, training camp and the first three preseason games because he was looking for a long-term deal. While the specifics of what he wanted and what the Steelers offered are unknown, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review's Mark Kaboly wrote earlier this month that Wallace turned down a five-year, $50 million offer from the organization.

General manager Kevin Colbert subsequently announced that the team wouldn't negotiate with Wallace until he showed up to sign his tender and then the Steelers promptly signed wide receiver Antonio Brown to a six-year, $43 million extension. Ultimately, Wallace's absence doesn't affect him or the Steelers in the short run. Yes, he's new to Todd Haley's offense, but even if he can't master the playbook (he reportedly picked up a copy this summer), by simply being on the field running go-routes every play will affect how opponents try to defend the Steelers. We're guessing it won't come to that. Partly because Wallace is a veteran who had little trouble as a rookie adjusting to Pittsburgh's offense (he caught 39 passes for 756 yards with six touchdowns). But also because of something former NFL tight end Anthony Becht tweeted Monday:

Good to know RE: Wallace. RT @anthony_becht I learned Haley's O in 7 days, just matter of how smart guy is. Plus assume Ben sent him things

Days after the 2008 draft, when the Steelers loaded up on skill position players at the expense of the offensive line, coach Mike Tomlin said that there were two ways to stifle a pass rush: with pass blockers and with an explosive offense. For years, he seemed content to go with the latter. Then, in April, the Steelers drafted guard David DeCastro and tackle Mike Adams in the first two rounds. DeCastro suffered a serious knee injury in Pittsburgh's last preseason game and could miss the regular season; and Adams isn't ready to be a starter.

In the meantime, Wallace's return means that the Steelers will again feature an explosive offense while it tries to mask any shortcomings along the o-line. (Though, to be fair, Pittsburgh could have five future Hall of Famers protecting Big Ben and he'd still take unnecessary hits. That's how he rolls.)

I personally am glad to see Wallace back in the Steelers organization. He is one the the key receivers on that team, and one of Ben's favorite targets. I can't wait to see how the season turns out, and what Pittsburgh does.

Until next time,
You keep doing what you do, and I'll keep you up to date with everything sports.