Steelers Nation Week Two Newsletter 9/13/05

Steelers Nation Week Two Newsletter

Are you still riding high from the weekend? I trust that you all enjoyed it as much as I did. I went to work on Monday morning and received congratulatory words from everyone on how well my boys looked. The only thing that made it better was the fact that I work in Baltimore and everyone was grumpy about their Ravens getting beat on Sunday Night Football. I sent this newsletter last week not really knowing what the response would be. I had a little fun in putting my thoughts in print and hopefully you got a laugh at reading it as well. The bottom line is that I would like to get everyone excited about our team and share with friends and family about how we are enjoying our team this season. This is Steelers Nation! I received some very welcomed feedback and contributions this past week. Thank you for sending things in. Please send me your thoughts and pics about you and your Steelers. Once again, if you do not wish to receive this e-mail, or if you are receiving this in error, please reply by saying “Dave P blows Kordell” to stop receiving future newsletters.

Willie, Willie, Willie…
And we are not talking about Wilver Dornell Stargell either! You know who we are talking about. Willie Parker. This was the best opening day for a running back in franchise history! Willie finished the afternoon off with 22 carries for 161 yards and a touchdown through basically three quarters of work. I wrote last week that I looked for Willie Parker to run the ball well, but I did not expect this. I sent out the newsletter last Tuesday and thought about Parker for the rest of the week. What I decided was that he may be too small to run between the tackles in our offense over the long haul. What I was amazed at was how well he ran through the middle of the Titans interior and then showed that speed once he got into the open. My main question is going to be his durability. Can he last a season in the NFL running like this with his frame? Remember how ineffective Amos Zeroue was once he was inserted as the starting back? Cowher said in press conference that he does not see any reason to change anything after the way Willie played on Sunday. Here is what I see happening… Scenario one would be Staley taking over the starting role again with Parker being the third down scat back and Bettis playing in short yardage and in goal line situations. This scenario would play out until the turf turns sloppy and defenses are banged up in November. We would then hand the keys to the Bus and see if he has enough in the tank to get us to Detroit. Scenario two is Staley and Parker would share the primary duties during the early season and attempt to get us into November for Jerome to take over. We would then use the Bus in the same fashion as scenario one. The bottom line in Parker’s Sunday performance is that Vernon Hayes is now on the bench. He has lost his job as the third down back. He could probably start on several NFL teams right now. His injuries over the last several years have moved him down on our depth chart and plans for the future. Look for him to possibly play and stand out on special teams.

Big Ben and the Offense…
Who was the asshole who questioned the way our offense looked in the preseason? Oh, that was me. Oops! What did Big Ben do on Sunday? He finished 9-11 for 218 yards, two touchdowns, and a perfect QB rating of 158.3. (Has anyone seriously looked at how they figure out the QB rating? Way too confusing! It would be like trying to figure out how many beers “Pod” would consume if you leave him in a beer warehouse for a weekend. Impossible to compute. ???) All I know is that Ben played very well on Sunday, showed poise in the pocket, and delivered the ball with touch to our receivers. I guess all we needed was some motivation and a game plan; I will eat my words from last week. Randel El stepped up and played well, and we actually made an attempt to throw to the TE position. That is unheard of now days. BTW, where is Eric Green anyways? Last Tuesday I reported that Lee Mays was injured, and later the same day we released him and picked up veteran Quincy Morgan off waivers. He will play as the fourth receiver, but will probably have little impact unless there are injuries in front of him. Hats off to rookie and first round draft pick Heath Miller in catching his first career touchdown pass. Who gets the game ball? Willie or Big Ben? We will give it Willie with hopefully many more to come in a Steelers uniform.

Ike Taylor gets a game ball…
Taylor recorded seven solo tackles, two assists, and recovered a fumble. We award our game ball to Ike Taylor for his performance. Troy and Ricardo Colclough both had picks and Farrior and Joey Porter both forced fumbles. What gives with Troy’s hair? He normally has it at least pulled back in a ponytail? If I was Cowher, I would make him do something about it. Just my two cents! On the Titans first possession they took the ball and marched right down the field before most of the fans at Heinz Field could even find their seats. I was just sitting their scratching my head. I guess we were not settled into the game yet or it was first game jitters. They simply shut down the Titans the rest of day. When they needed a big play or turnover to stop a drive or prevent a score, someone simply stepped up. James Farrior played big once again even though the stat sheet does not show it. He and Troy are the heart and soul of the defense. (…and Casey is the gut of the defense. Sorry Casey, I could not resist.)

AFC North
Pittsburgh 1-0 @ Houston 1:00PM, Bungles 1-0 vs. Vikings, Da Brownies 0-1 @ the Pack, & Baltimore 0-1 @ Titans. The Texans got banged around and beat up pretty good against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday 22-7. Look for this to be a rebound game against us. We go on the road for the first time this season and play a team on paper we should roll. I think we will win, but it will be closer than I would like. Get your terrible towels ready! Here we go Steelers, here we go…

This weeks Pics…
“Enemy Territory” & “Tailgating Ravens Style” both come from this past Sunday here in Baltimore. Anita and I went to Brent (originally from Cumberland, MD and grew up being a Terry Bradshaw fan when he was younger. I think he must have fallen away from the black and gold during the Mark Malone days. LOL!!! He has since become a big Ravens and Ray Lewis fan.) and Carisa Bowman’s house in Canton to watch the Steelers game. We got a call at the start of the 4:00 games that some friends were tailgating over at the stadium. We walked from their house over to the stadium to where all the Ravens fans were preparing to play the Colts that night. In case you are not aware of it, Baltimore fans hate us like we do da’ Brownies. I took the Big Ben jersey off and decided just to wing it with a hat and t shirt showing my loyalty. Brent is in the #52 Ray Lewis Jersey.

“So you think you are a Fan?” was sent in from Brent Bowman. This is something he found online. This guy is a die hard Steelers fan! It questions my devotion and almost makes me think that I am just a casual fan. Check it out.

“Newest Steelers Fan” was sent by Dave Podlaszewski (originally from Peters Township but now living in Salisbury, MD.) This is actually the best of the five pics. This is the newest addition to the Steelers Nation. Brooke Podlaszewski and proud papa Dave. Congrats to Dave and Amy.

“Parker-Training Camp 2005” was taken by me of Willie Parker when Brian and I were in Latrobe earlier this summer.

I wish you all a good week. Please send pics, ideas, or e-mail addresses for future newsletters. Question of the week. We play at one this week. Get your towels ready….Here we go Steelers, here we go…