Crash Landing?

Steelers fans at a loss about 5 losses
Once-super team's demise perplexes city
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
By Chico Harlan, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Those arriving at Pittsburgh International Airport walk past twinned, life-sized statues of Franco Harris and George Washington, emblems of Steelers Nation and the nation itself -- positioned as symbolic equals. Which leads to one easy interpretation: People here like their football team, almost as much as they dislike its current 2-5 record.
Anybody dropped into the region yesterday, for instance, discovered a population still trying (with ugly results) to swallow the aftertaste of Sunday's 20-13 Steelers' loss against Oakland. Talk-show callers breathed fire about the quarterback, the coach and the penalties. Fan message board topics ranged from the disturbing ("Thank God for Vicodin") to the very disturbing ("Bring back Tommy Maddox"). Dejection blanketed even the celebratory moments.
"Well, we just had a birthday party for somebody in our office," said the Rev. Jim Farnan, a priest and a Diocese of Pittsburgh education director. "We had these black and gold cupcakes. And it actually brought down the celebration. Everybody looked at the cupcakes with a sigh."
Just nine months removed from Pittsburgh's Super Bowl victory, few fans expected the team's momentum to so quickly reverse. The Steelers returned most key components. They opened the season with a win. And even after the ensuing slump, they at least had the fortune of a date with the moribund Raiders, a team chronically undone by interceptions and penalties.
So Sunday, Ben Roethlisberger threw four interceptions. The Steelers committed six penalties, and several undisciplined personal fouls. Pittsburgh, not the Raiders, looked like one of football's poorest teams -- closer to a high draft pick than a playoff spot.
Fans talked yesterday about a team that kept beating itself. But really, it was the fans who'd taken a beating.
"One of those typical Mondays after a loss -- no bounce in your step," said Chris Binaut, president of the Steelers fan club Baltimore chapter.
"It's a shame, because it's such a beautiful day otherwise, but there's a big black cloud that rolled in from Oakland," said Jeff Verscharen, of Eighty Four, voted in January by VisitPittsburgh as Steeler Nation's biggest fan.
Few fans, even stuck in the gloom, dismissed the Steelers' chances for a turnaround. By trade, they rationalize long-shot odds. Last season, the Steelers overcame a 7-5 start ... which will only require a five-game winning streak to match ... which will require victories in the next two games against Denver and New Orleans, with a combined 10-4 record. Indeed, Pittsburghers might shift full focus to football in late April, but they won't shift full focus to hockey in late October.
Many spent yesterday trying to diagnose the problems. Mr. Binaut received e-mails from friends suggesting a quarterback change. Mr. Verscharen plotted out the team's schedule, realizing remaining games against division frontrunners Baltimore and Cincinnati enabled the Steelers a chance to catch up. Father Farnan, in jest, thought back to the quiet blessing he'd performed earlier this year during a wedding reception at Heinz Field. Those prayers paled in comparison to his actions a year earlier, when he'd recited "Salve Regina" over the PA system and asked the Lord to look out for the team.
"They have stretches where they just play brilliantly," said Ron Vergerio, a die-hard from Springdale. "I don't think it's a question of talent. I don't think it's schematic. It's really hard to put a finger on the problem."
Of course Mr. Vergerio meant that figuratively, because were he to point blame at any of the players, he could simply consult his left arm, tattooed with images of Mr. Roethlisberger, James Farrior, Hines Ward and Troy Polamalu. (Ten years of earlier body art had covered his chest with images of the '70s stars.)
Among those players, Mr. Roethlisberger faces the greatest scrutiny. This season, he's thrown 11 interceptions, already matching the total from his 2004 rookie season. He's been twice-concussed, and now merely cussed.
Now, some hope a flawed team can suddenly become flawless, led by its talented quarterback. The wider mass has focused, in the short term, on more modest hopes -- say, breaking out of that last-place tie with the Cleveland Browns. For retired Steelers' broadcasting legend Myron Cope, that distinction alone prompts another comparison with American history.
The Thursday before the Oakland loss, Mr. Cope had been reading a book by author Dan Jenkins. As a writer himself, Mr. Cope already thought about the narrative trajectory of the Steelers' season. He realized its ugly course, and thought of words like "crash" and "downfall." But Thursday night, while reading, Mr. Cope determined that Pittsburgh would lose Sunday's game. The parallel between Steeler Nation and the nation itself was, for Mr. Cope, too stark to ignore.
"What popped into my head was the stock market crash of 1929," Mr. Cope said. "I'm a child of the Depression, and if you are one, you never forget it. So Dan Jenkins, low and behold -- he gives the date."
October 29.
Same as Sunday's date.
"So I call this another great crash," Mr. Cope continued, "because they lost to this lousy, stinking team ... I had the conviction this would happen, an extrasensory perception. But I took not one bit of pleasure, I'll emphasize, in watching them. Because today I'm in an awful mood."
(Chico Harlan can be reached at aharlan@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1227. )

A Woeful Start!

Season turning into a Super hangover for Steelers
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
By Ed Bouchette, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Defensive end Aaron Smith, as frustrated as any Steelers fan, groped for a solution Sunday moments after his team slinked to its lowest point of the season at 2-5.
"We have to change something," he said. "Something's got to change."
They will change into their home black uniforms Sunday against Denver; that is a start for a team winless in four games on the road this season. Heinz Field will never look so good to them. But, as they proved in a debacle against Cincinnati in the season's third game, they can throw victories away at home just as easily as they can on the road.
The only change coach Bill Cowher is likely to be interested in is better play from a team that in three of its five games has dominated its foes on offense and defense only to lose because of turnovers or bad special teams performances.
"We play well and we just don't win the game," said receiver Cedrick Wilson. "It's real tough. Hopefully, we can get it together. We still have a long season ahead of us. We're not out until they say we are, and they haven't said so."
Yet the Steelers are on their way to perhaps the biggest Super Bowl hangover yet. Their 2-5 start ties for the second-worst record after seven games by a defending Super Bowl champion in the game's 40 years. Only the 1-6 start by the 1987 New York Giants was worse. Those Giants, though, played in a strike season in which three early games were played by replacement players. The Giants of '87, who finished 6-9, get an asterisk.
If the Steelers don't win soon, they could go down as the biggest loser for a defending Super Bowl champion.
The other Super Bowl teams that started like the Steelers 2-5 finished this way: the '81 Raiders 7-9, the '82 49ers 3-6 (another strike season), and the '99 Broncos 6-10.
At 7-5 last season, the Steelers' playoff hopes were in critical condition. At 2-5, it might not be worth even talking about. They would have to win nine in a row to equal their 11-5 record of 2005, go 8-1 to finish 10-6 and have a reasonable shot at making the playoffs, or 7-2 and hope that 9-7 squeezes them in.
"We just have to get some wins," said linebacker Clark Haggans. "We need to get them in a hurry, too."
The abyss might be too deep already. No team in Steelers history started with as few as two victories in its first seven games and went on to make the playoffs. They were 2-5, then 2-6 in 2003 and finished 6-10. They were 1-6, then 2-10 in 1988 and ended 5-11. They started 1-6 in 1986 and ended 6-10. They were 1-6 and finished 1-13 in 1969.
Including this season, they are the worst seven-game starts under Chuck Noll and Bill Cowher since Noll took over in 1969.
"I never thought we'd be in this position, but it's the position we're in," said defensive end Brett Keisel. "What would shock me is if we don't fight our way out of this somehow. That would shock me.
"Everyone needs to look in the mirror and see what they need to do better to help this team win."
But that has been a standing order for the past month, or ever since they slipped to 1-2 after losing to Cincinnati. They've tried all the psychic gymnastics to pull them out of their dive and yet they keep losing.
"We've been trying a lot of things, you know?" Keisel said. "It just doesn't seem like the ball is bouncing our way right now. We just have to keep fighting."
Hines Ward mentioned the bouncing of the ball as well, as if the Steelers are getting paid back this season for what they accomplished over their past two.
"Last year, all the balls were bouncing our way," Ward said. "This year we're not getting the same bounces. We have to find a way to adjust and keep fighting and hopefully they will."
Interceptions, though, don't bounce, and Ben Roethlisberger already has thrown as many in his six games as all of last season -- 11. The team's 18 turnovers in seven games are just three fewer than they had in 16 last season.
Their turnovers are up, their yards on the ground down and their special teams have turned terrible. If the bounces aren't going their way, it might not be the product of luck as it is just plain poor play.
"We're still in our Super Bowl reign," rookie receiver Santonio Holmes said. "We can't let down because of our record. We have to keep fighting every week."
Perhaps he meant Super Bowl pain.
11 defending Super Bowl champions have failed to make the playoffs and with a 2-5 record, the Steelers seem like they could join that group.
Year.....Defending Super Bowl.....Record through.....Final
.....champion.....first 7 games.....record
1987.....New York Giants (XXI).....1-6.....6-9
1981.....Oakland Raiders (XV).....2-5.....7-9
1982.....San Francisco 49ers (XVI).....2-5.....3-6
1999.....Denver Broncos (XXXIII).....2-5.....6-10
2006.....Steelers (XL).....2-5.....?
2002.....New England Patriots (XXXVI).....3-4.....9-7
1968.....Green Bay Packers (II).....3-3-1.....6-7-1
1970.....Kansas City Chiefs (IV).....3-3-1.....7-5-2
1980.....Steelers (XIV).....4-3.....9-7
1988.....Washington Redskins (XXII).....4-3.....7-9
1991.....New York Giants (XXV).....4-3.....8-8
2003.....Tampa Bay Buccaneers (XXXVII).....4-3.....7-9
(Ed Bouchette can be reached at ebouchette@post-gazette.com. )

The World Wide Web!

It is amazing what you can find online. I was doing a google search for something related to the Steelers and came across a series of very interesting pictures. I do not know if I was shocked, amazed, jealous, or what to think about this. These were apparently taken last January during our playoff run. Check this out and let me know what you think...

http://deadspin.com/sports/nfl/its-good-to-be-big-ben-151809.php

http://www.deadspin.com/sports/nfl/the-steelers-know-their-bread-and-butter-205425.php

Happy Halloween!

Clinton Cable from Odenton, Md sent me this pic of what his families Halloween Pumpkin looks like this year. Clinton is originally from Somerset, PA. Thanks for the great pic Clinton!

Here we go Steelers, here we go...

Steelers Bars

Yesterday Anita and I had planned on going to our little neighborhood bar instead of traveling into the downtown area to watch the game. I know from the past that they had the NFL Sunday ticket. I made a call around 3:30PM, and much to my dismay, found out that they no longer have the NFL Sunday Ticket. This put me into scramble mode. In looking around the web, I was aware that there are designated Steelers bars in the area, so we decided to go to the closest one. We wound up at a place called The Loft in Essex. Here is the link to their site:

http://www.psfcobnorth.com/index.htm

You can take a look their site and check them out. It was a good crowd all decked out in black and gold. They had the "Terrible Grill" outside for tailgating purposes, Iron City and Rolling Rock served ice cold, and cranked up the "Steelers Polka" when Willie Parker finally scored a touchdown for us.

There are several bars in the Baltimore area which are linked together as a fan club. Here is the link to their "Pittsburgh Steelers Fan Club Of Baltimore" web site:

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/steelerfan/psfcob_website.html

In the first pic you will see Miss Anita standing beside a huge Iron City sign welcoming all Steelers fans. The second pic is of the Terribe Grill, and the last three are just of the people there cheering on their Steelers.

Whos Will Cover Randy Moss?

McFadden, new to Steelers' secondary, challenged by Moss

By The Associated Press
Sunday, October 29, 2006

Bryant McFadden hadn't been on Florida State's campus for more than a day when he began hearing Randy Moss stories.
Moss, the Oakland Raiders receiver who will go against McFadden and the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, had a short but eventful stay with the Seminoles without playing in a game. That didn't mean he left without creating lasting impression, as McFadden found out.
"They used to call him '14.' That was his nickname because every time he practiced he guaranteed 14 points," said McFadden, a Seminoles defensive back from 2001-04.
As McFadden learned from the other defensive backs, Moss often kept that promise in practice.
"They have a bunch of tall tales about him when he was there that kind of followed him," McFadden said. "When I got there everybody was still talking about him."
Just as the Steelers (2-4) are talking about Moss, a player they consider to be one of the most difficult-to-defend players they'll face this season. They discount Moss' routine statistics — he is only 13th in the AFC with 24 catches — and speak of him with the same respect that McFadden's former Florida State teammates do.
Moss was recruited by Notre Dame, but had his scholarship revoked in 1995 after receiving a 30-day jail sentence for a racially motivated fight at his West Virginia high school.
He transferred to Florida State but had to sit out his first season, then had his scholarship taken away for testing positive for marijuana. He landed at Marshall, where he had a remarkable 55 touchdown passes in his first two seasons.
The Steelers know that any time Moss is on the field, he can easily be good for 14, or even 21 — the number of points Atlanta tight end Alge Crumpler effectively produced against them last weekend in the Falcons' 41-38 overtime victory. Moss had his best game of the season that day, with seven catches for 129 yards and a touchdown against Arizona.
"You've got to make sure you've got a lot of people around him," McFadden said. "He's still one of the best in the NFL."
McFadden, a second-round draft pick in 2005, wants the responsibility of trying to shut down Moss in what has become a more important game to the Super Bowl champions than they might have imagined before they lost four of five games.
McFadden started the last two games because Deshea Townsend was bothered by a sore hamstring, though Townsend played in both games. Townsend signed an $8 million, four-year contract in March, yet there is no indication he will return to the lineup Sunday.
Coach Bill Cowher is hinting McFadden and right guard Chris Kemoeatu will start after getting more playing time recently due to injuries. Kemoeatu split time last week with Kendall Simmons, who was out the game before with an ankle burn.
"It was an opportunity both those guys seized," Cowher said of McFadden and Kemoeatu.
"I was just trying to fill in and be dependable. I think I did a couple of positive things," McFadden said. "There's a long way to go. It's still a learning process. ... We are trying to compete and make each other better because the more competition we have in that unit the better we can be."
How is McFadden doing?
"I thought Bryant did OK," Cowher said. "We'll see how that goes this week."
"I'm my toughest critic," McFadden said. "I had a pick against Kansas City, a couple of pass breakups, just trying to be where I need to be. I always try to set a high standard and be a difference-maker and do something that stands out, whether it's something big or small. I'm still pushing to be consistent."
So are the Raiders, who were winless before beating Arizona 22-9.
Oakland (1-5) has the potential to be dangerous offensively with receivers Moss and Jerry Porter together again.
Porter (140 receptions, 14 TDs the last two seasons) was suspended Oct. 15 for insubordination after being kicked out of practice by coach Art Shell. He returned to practice Wednesday when his four-game suspension was cut in half.

More Ex-Steelers To The HOF?

Ex-Steelers nominated for football hall of fame
Friday, October 27, 2006
By Ed Bouchette, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Four former Steelers players, one of their coaches and a legendary scout, are among the 111 nominees announced today for the Pro Football Hall of Fame's next class.
Safety Carnell Lake is among the nominees in their first year of eligibility, five years after they last played. Two of his former teammates, center Dermontti Dawson and linebacker Kevin Greene, are also nominated again.
Safety Donnie Shell has been nominated as a candidate many times since he last played in 1987.
Newly nominated for the 2007 class are former Steelers head coach Buddy Parker and scout Bill Nunn, who helped find much of the talent that fueled their Super Bowl teams of the 1970s and still works for them on a part-time basis.
The nominees also include four former Pitt players who went on to star in the NFL, offensive linemen Russ Grimm, now the Steelers assistant head coach, Jim Covert and Mark Stepnoski, and linebacker Rickey Jackson. Former Penn State guard Steve Wisniewski joins Stepnoski as nominees in their first year of eligibility.
Former NFL head coach Chuck Knox, a native of Sewickley, was nominated again.
Hall of Fame selectors will choose 25 candidates from the 111 nominees, then pick 15 as finalists. They will join two senior finalists for a Feb. 3 vote that will choose the Class of 2007 that will include between three and six inductees.

You Have To Be Kidding!

Rooney hit with $25,000 penalty
NFL takes action after critique of refs
Saturday, October 28, 2006
By Gerry Dulac and Ed Bouchette, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Steelers chairman Dan Rooney was fined $25,000 by the NFL yesterday for comments he made about the officiating Sunday in the overtime loss in Atlanta.
Rooney was upset because wide receiver Nate Washington was called for a false-start penalty when the Steelers were hurrying to spike the ball with eight seconds remaining in regulation. The penalty also requires an automatic 10-second runoff, which deprived the Steelers of attempting a winning 51-yard field goal.
"These officials should be ashamed of themselves," Rooney said after the game. "That last call, you don't call that kind of call."
Meantime, a league spokesman said Falcons defensive end Chauncey Davis, who delivered the hit to the head that knocked Ben Roethlisberger from the game with a concussion, was not fined.
Rooney's punishment means the Steelers were assessed $40,000 in fines from the Falcons' game. Washington, Hines Ward and Santonio Holmes were each fined $5,000 for their part in an excessive celebration penalty after Washington's 10-yard touchdown catch.

Fastest Man In The NFL?

Ward runs scared, is hard to catch
Friday, October 27, 2006By Gerry Dulac, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette


When he made it to the Pro Bowl last season, Atlanta cornerback DeAngelo Hall won a competition for the "NFL's Fastest Man." Not surprising.
When he was at Virginia Tech, Hall was timed on an indoor track at 4.15 seconds in the 40-yard dash, a record at a school whose football roster once included Michael Vick.
"That means I must run a 4.13," said Hines Ward, laughing.
It was Hall who was chasing Ward all over the field Sunday at the Georgia Dome when Ward had eight catches and set career highs with 171 yards and three touchdowns.
But, more significantly, it was Hall who was losing ground to Ward on a 70-yard touchdown catch in which the four-time Pro Bowl receiver outran Hall and cornerback Jason Webster to the end zone.
And he did it with only one shoe.
"The whole speed thing, to me, is overrated," Ward said. "I'm the only receiver since I've been here to take a skinny route all the way and I've done it twice. I did it last year against New England and I did it this year against supposedly the fastest man in the league. I like to call it running
scared. When you're running scared, it's not based on 40 time."
The reference was to his 85-yard catch-and-run for a touchdown in the 23-20 loss last year to the Patriots, the longest reception in Heinz Field history.
But this was more impressive because Ward, after catching the ball near the Atlanta 40, came out of his right shoe and still outran his pursuers before diving to the pylon.
"I may not be the fastest guy, but I'm fast enough if I catch a skinny and somebody is chasing me, I'm still going to try to do whatever it takes to score," Ward said. "To do it with one shoe, I'm not that slow."
Ward's performance in the Georgia Dome was personal satisfaction because he grew up and lives in Forest Park, Ga., approximately three miles from Atlanta, and went to the University of Georgia. Ward had to get 52 tickets to the game for family and friends.
But it ended in extreme disappointment when the Steelers blew leads of 17-7, 24-21 and 31-28 before losing to the Falcons in overtime, 41-38.
"This was a special game," Ward said. "I circled it. I prepared myself. I wanted to make sure, of any game this year, that this game was very big for me, having so many tickets [to get], having so many family and friends. To go back home after winning the Super Bowl, me growing up a Falcons fan, the Falcons were the team that passed me by [in the draft] ... there was a little animosity toward the organization then.
"But it's disappointing we lost the game. That's really what counted. I really wanted to beat the Falcons. I had a great performance, but it means nothing if you don't win the game. That's the bottom line in this business. It kind of took away from the emotional part of it."
And now Ward and the Steelers (2-4) have to regroup, forget about what happened in Atlanta, and get ready for the Oakland Raiders (1-5), where Ward won't be the most famous -- or fastest -- receiver on the field.
The distinction belongs to Randy Moss, the only receiver in NFL history to have more than 1,000 yards receiving in each of his first six years in the league. Ward, though, has more catches (26) than Moss (24), more receiving yards (378-351) and leads the AFC with five touchdown catches.
In addition, 11 of his 26 catches have come on third down, the best percentage (42.3) in the AFC.
"The passing game takes time," Ward said. "The other guys are starting to gain confidence and are playing football. The receivers and quarterback, we go hand in hand. Santonio [Holmes] is starting to come around and evolving, getting more comfortable in the offense; Nate [Washington] is starting to do that. Even Sean [Morey] came in and got a catch.
"There's really a sense of urgency now because, yes, we are 2-4. The little things, the attention to detail, we have to concentrate on and continue to go out and work hard."
Ward's three touchdown catches against the Falcons raised his career total to 57, leaving him just six shy of tying John Stallworth for the most in team history (63). He has caught four in the past two games -- two each from Ben Roethlisberger and Charlie Batch -- and is confident that will continue against the Raiders, no matter which player is at quarterback.
"We don't design our offense around one person," Ward said. "We have our offense, and whatever guy is running that off, we expect him to run it just as well as the next man, and Charlie has done that. We don't change our offense predicated on Ben or Charlie. Both are expected to run the same offense."
(Gerry Dulac can be reached at gdulac@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1466. )

Brock-Star

Brock-Star is better known as Brock Bowman. He is the son of Brent & Carissa Bowman of Baltimore, MD. In the pics enlosed you will see where his aunt Candace Grubb and myself are doing our best to raise Brock in an appropriate manner. In other words, as a "Steelers fan"! Canadce is originally from Cumberland, MD but now resides in Monroeville, PA. These pics were taken last Sunday while watching the Steelers/Falcons game at the Bowman residence in Canton. BTW, Momma & Big Papi love the Ravens!

Gameball

I normally do not award a gameball(s) in the event of a loss. I am going to make an exception for this past Sunday. Hines Ward grew up in the state of Georgia, attended the University of Georgia, and finally came back to his home state for the first time as a pro. He answered the bell! Hines finished the afternoon with eight receptions for 171 yards and a touchdown. His only blemish on the day was that he dropped a ball on the same play that Ben got hurt. Hines could not have done any better. Monster day for one of our leaders!

The Nation...

Da Bungles

This was just too funny to include with the pics of this past weeks Steelers/Falcons game with the rest of the Steeler Nation in attendance at the Georgia Dome. Here is a random fan in the crowd making fun of the Bungles off field problems. I had to bring attention to this.

Team...

Steelers @ Falcons

Redskins Nation

What the heck am I doing posting Redskins stuff on here? I visited my cousin Matt Hetrick two weeks ago who grew up in Middletown, MD but now resides in Ocean Beach in San Diego. He grew up as part of that I-270 corridor who are all Redskins fans. Yes, unfortunately some of my family are Redskins fans... LOL! We went out to watch football games on that Sunday, and we first went to a place called Winstons which is a huge Redskins hangout. Matt explained to me that there are a ton of East Coast transplants on the West Coast, and all you had to do was to look to find a place to watch your favorite team with fellow fans. I thought this was pretty cool. Most of us now live away from the Pittsburgh region, so we all know about what it is like to have to go somewhere that has the NFL Sunday Ticket to watch football. This place was packed with people from Maryland and Virginia who all live in San Diego now. Whenever the Redskins would score, they had a DJ who would play "Hail to the Redskins" which is the Redskins fight song. The first pic is of my cousin Matt standing outside Winstons, and the last two are of the crowd inside.

Big Ben On Cover Of Men's Health

The Immaculate RecoveryBen Roethlisberger will never yield -- not to onrushing traffic, evidently, or to health scares. Pittsburgh's precocious QB knows what to do when thrown for a loss: Come back with all you've got.By: Jeff O'Connell


The most violent sack of Ben Roethlisberger's brief, spectacular career cost him 25 pounds in 2 weeks. With no helmet to protect him, the "new face of the Pittsburgh Steelers" vaulted from his motorcycle, face-planted into an onrushing 1996 Chrysler New Yorker, broke his jaw, lost some teeth, fractured bones in his face, suffered a concussion, and was rushed by paramedics to a hospital, where five titanium plates were installed in his face. Twelve weeks later came the surprise blitz of an about-to-explode appendix. As weight-loss strategies go, they worked, but they sucked.

In between health emergencies, I joined the 24-year-old quarterback as he worked the leg press during the Steelers' training camp. It was less than 3 months after the accident, and the only noticeable difference wrought by the wreck was a body that seemed more streamlined than before. Later that day, out on the practice field at Pittsburgh's UPMC Sports Performance Complex, Roethlisberger seemed lighter of foot, and his passes zipped through the soup-thick humidity with no loss of airspeed. "In terms of arm strength, he's the same guy coming back this camp as I've always known," says second-year tight end Heath Miller.

"I wanted to lose weight this off-season, but obviously I didn't want to lose it that way," says Big Ben, still worthy of his nickname at 6'5", in the high 230s, down from 250. "But all the weight I'm putting on now is weight-room weight. I feel like my body is where I want to be right now."

Subtract another 3 inches of appendix, and he's dialed in.

Etching his name in history
Roethlisberger is the toast of football-crazy Pittsburgh, complete with the inevitable eponymous sandwich, courtesy of a local bar. Fans embrace Roethlisberger because he wins -- it's that simple. So far, when Big Ben has lined up behind center, the Steelers have prevailed nearly 90 percent of the time, and in February, he guided the franchise to its fifth Super Bowl win. But the makings of legend came when they played the favored Indianapolis Colts, a game in which Roethlisberger was credited with what Steelers diehards now call the Immaculate Tackle, hearkening back to Franco Harris's ricochet reception in the 1972 playoffs. This time, myth and man came together with 1:20 remaining and the Steelers clinging to a 21-18 lead, when running back Jerome Bettis fumbled 1 yard from the Colts' end zone. Nick Harper, a cornerback, scooped up the loose ball and sprinted downfield, only to have Roethlisberger, of all players, trip him up just past midfield. The Colts missed a field goal that would have sent the game into overtime, and Pittsburgh moved on to the conference finals, where they beat the Broncos.

In less than 6 months, Roethlisberger went from being on top of the world to nearly being 6 feet under. The accident wasn't his fault: The Chrysler driver failed to yield. Yet because he was riding without a helmet (which is legal in Pennsylvania), people wondered: His line body-guards him as if he were a head of state, so how could he have been so reckless off the field? In games, of course, a QB balances risk against conservatism every time he drops back and makes his reads. And during Roethlisberger's pro career, a willingness to gamble has been a signature. As he says, "I take my life and put it on the football field, and I take the football field and put it in my life."

So how did he make it back so fast? Adding to Roethlisberger's preternatural self-confidence -- "Once the doc said I was going to be okay, there was no doubt in my mind I'd be back on the field," he says -- was the knowledge that he was in great shape before the accident, meaning he took only five steps back instead of 10. (And in his world, a balky appendix is just a stutter step.) "He was the first player here for our off-season lifting program, 3 weeks after the Super Bowl, and he was on a mission," says Steelers strength-and-conditioning coach Chet Fuhrman. "Usually you find quarterbacks on the golf course then." Roethlisberger is also more athletic than most QBs. "He's phenomenal at every sport he tries," says Marcel Pastoor, an assistant trainer for the Steelers. "He's just a genetic freak."

What's more, Roethlisberger's face bore the brunt of the collision, largely sparing his body. Along with downing the calories and protein his body needed for recovery and repair, he was in the gym training 2 weeks after the accident, using light weights and high repetitions to help build muscle fast. (The only things doctors asked him to avoid initially were movements that involved jumping up and down; he's cleared to resume celebratory movements in the playoffs next year.) Reestablishing core stability was essential, requiring a lot of hip, back, and ab work three times a week. Shoulder work was key for a signal-caller on the mend, too.

So the kid who went 15-1 his first year and won a Super Bowl the next for an encore is back, having met a whole new set of challenges. Look out, NFL: It's no accident that Big Ben may now be better than ever.

Fine Art...

This was submitted by a local artist named JD.

A Pittsburgh Diary...

Jessica Hardesty from Wilmington, NC forwarded me this funny joke this past week. I hope you get a laugh out of it as well.

2 diary entries of a married couple from Pittsburgh:

HER DIARY

Tonight I thought he was acting weird. We had made plans to meet at a bar to have a drink. I was shopping with my friends all day long, so I thought he was upset at the fact that I was a bit late, but he made no comment. Conversation wasn't flowing so I suggested that we go somewhere quiet so we could talk. He agreed but he kept quiet and absent. I asked him what was wrong; he said nothing. I asked him if it was my fault that he was upset. He said it had nothing to do with me and not to worry. On the way home I told him that I loved him, he simply smiled and kept driving. I can't explain his behavior; I don't know why he didn't say I love you too. When we got home I felt as if I had lost him, as if he wanted nothing to do with me anymore. He just sat there and watched TV. He seemed distant and absent. Finally, I decided to go to bed.. About 10 minutes later he came to bed, and to my surprise he responded to my caress and we made love, but I still felt that he was distracted and his thoughts were somewhere else. He fell asleep - I cried. I don't know what to do. I'm almost sure that his thoughts are with someone else. My life is a disaster.

HIS DIARY

Today, the Steelers lost, but at least I got laid.
Here we go Steelers!

Goin' Old School

Qualcomm Stadium

I went and visited my cousin Matt in San Diego two weeks ago. Here I am outside of Qualcomm Stadium where the Chargers play. The first pic is of the old owner Jack Murphy and his dog. This stadium used to be called the "The Murph" before current ownership sold the naming rights and it became "Qualcomm". Check out me giving the Bolts a big "thumbs down"! I was still a little sore from losing to them a week ago at this same field. Just my opinion, but this stadium is not half as attractive as our cathedral known as Heinz Field!

January 20th, 1980

This was the day in which our Steelers won their fourth Super Bowl. It is the first Super Bowl that I can actually remember watching and understanding what was going on. I remember John Stallworth's back breaking touchdown catch, and I remember Terry Bradshaw running off the field with only his index finger raised to the heavens. Who knew that it would be 26 more years before we would celebrate our fifth ring? We had just won four Super Bowls in a span of six years, and we were on top of the football universe. I was lucky enough to check out the site of this event last week while I was in California. Here I am standing in front of the world famous Rose Bowl located in Pasadena, CA showing my pride!

Gameballs

No debate here. Big Ben looked like he did during the AFC playoffs last year, and Troy played his most complete game of the year. Ben finished 16-19 for 238 yards and two touchdowns, and Troy had nine solo tackles with one assist and an interception.

Ward Graces The Cover Of SI

Sorry for the delay. Hines was on the cover of Sports Illustrated following our loss to the Bungles.

Here We Go Steelers, Here We Go!

We Love Our Steelers!