Love him or hate the guy, Ben Roethlisberger is a warrior. In his first 7 seasons he has made the playoffs 5 times. At the young age of 27 Big Ben is playing a week from Sunday with a chance to win yet another Super Bowl. He is as good as any quarterback when it comes to keeping a play alive. What is even scarier from an opposing defense standpoint is that even when you blitz him, the first guy to get to him usually can not bring him down alone, which leaves a defense very vulnerable to a big play. He is going for his third super bowl at the young age of 27!!! That would tie him for the lead among active quarterbacks. Despite harsh sexual assault accusations, he has managed to concentrate on the game of football, and being a young leader on a veteran, championship-caliber team.
Mike Tomlin is one of the very few head coaches in the league that is loved by many and hated by nobody. If people knew his track record his reputation would only be enhanced. He started his career as the defensive backs coach with one of the greatest defenses I have ever witnessed. The 2002 Tampa Bay Bucks, who would win the super bowl the following year. Later he became the Vikings defensive coordinator in his first year making them the sixth best defensive in the league. Finally he was hired as the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers after Bill Cowher decided to take a hiatus from coaching. In his first year with the Steelers they ranked number 1 in overall defense. I expect Mike Tomlin will be the coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers for a very long time, and along with Big Ben, will have the opportunity to set some Super Bowl records in the process.
In my opinion a football team is a big puzzle. It consists of pieces in which can be made with all shapes and sizes, which can be measured in both quantitative and qualitative terms. The Pittsburgh Steelers are 7-1 this year on the road. Besides talent, to be successful on the road your team needs to have the “intangibles”. These qualities are difficult to describe, but are universal to the common football fan. The Steelers display these qualities as well as anyone. When both teams are traveling a pretty similar distance, you can count on many sports betting enthusiasts (who will all out during the super bowl) using these two factors to predict the outcome. These qualities combined with the stellar coaching of Mike Tomlin, and fearless play of Big Ben, it is no surprise to me that the Steelers are playing one week from Sunday, for another Super Bowl.
On a final note, you can count on seeing a relentless Steelers crowd in Arlington Texas next Sunday. There are not many professional teams in the world that travel better then the black and yellow, blue-collar, Steelers fans. In my opinion, if Troy Polamalu can make an early big defensive play, the Steelers fans will get loud, and have a great chance of winning yet another Super Bowl.
Good stuff Kyle. I think a great offseason article for us can be "The 2004 Draft Revisited." Between Eli, Big Ben and Rivers, so much to look back on after 6 years. Not to mentions Larry Fitzgerals and everything that happened with Sean Taylor.
ReplyDeleteThe more portly Big Ben gets the better he seems to play. You can't say enough about the way Ben plays when it counts. He could not have gone to a more perfect team in that draft that was suited for the way he plays.
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to get too carried away with a 7-1 away record that featured only 2 playoff teams. One being an overrated, inconsistent Ravens squad that nearly lost to the bills and the loss coming to a good Saints team. Including the playoffs, the Steelers were 4-4 against fellow Playoff teams and the Packers were 6-3.
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