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To Know 'Em is To Hate 'Em
Article by McMillen & Wife If I hear one more pointy-headed media-type spew the NFL's latest mindless cliche´, "The Ravens have their swagger back," I'm going to vomit. Swagger? More like STAGGER. The Baltimore Ravens are a disgraceful franchise that represents everything that is wrong with pro sports today. They're an over-rated, utterly classless team comprised of alleged murderers (Ray Lewis), thieves (Art Modell), big mouths (Shannon Sharpe), gargantuan egos (Brian Billick) and undulating bellies (Siragusa) who talk a far better game than they play. For those of you nervously wringing your hands with worry over the upcoming game vs. the Ravens, do me a favor... develop a backbone, stop jumping at the sight of your own shadow and answer this simple question: are you jittery because you actually believe the Ravens are the better team, or are you simply concerned that the Steelers might come out flat and beat themselves? Obviously, the latter what's got you worried, so wipe those beads of sweat off your brow and rest easy, peeps. After nearly a month of playing relatively meaningless football against relatively meaningless teams (the Lions, Bungles, Browns--- not to mention a bye), the Steelers finally get to suit up for a game they will have ZERO trouble getting fired up to play. And not just because it 's the playoffs... The "bad blood" between these two teams has been well documented. This isn't just the usual contempt that familiarity breeds between division rivals... it's bitter hatred. We're talking Israelis vs. Palestinians kind of hate here, folks. That hatred is just the kind of motivating medicine the doctor ordered for the Steelers. Rest assured, Pittsburgh is gonna be PLENTY ready for this game. Billick will have that smug smirk smacked off his face by midway through the 3rd quarter.
I took a peek at the game tapes from the last two games Steelers/Ravens games, and two things became crystal clear: the Ravens don't have an offense that can even begin to handle the overwhelming speed and power of Pittsburgh's #1-rated defense, and Baltimore's vaunted defense doesn't know what to do about Kordell Stewart. Translation? This is an impossible matchup for Baltimore. Sure, the Ravens handled the Dolphins, but Miami was their veritable dream opponent: a weak, unproductive offense with a weak, unproductive QB and ZERO running game combined with a limping, demoralized defense. Quite a contrast to the talented, healthy, rested and totally balanced Steelers. Does anyone think Baltimore will pile up over 200 yards of rushing against Pittsburgh considering that they managed just 99 yards in the previous two games COMBINED? Not in this lifetime, friends. Conversely, Miami managed just 46 yards on the ground last week. Hell, Kordell Stewart will run for more yards than that, let alone Bettis and Zereoue and Fu. Sorry, Ravens fans, your team is going to get overwhelmed. Since I brought it up, here are the numbers from the previous two Steelers/Ravens games: Game 1: Total Yds: Steelers 348, Ravens 183 1st Downs: Steelers 21, Ravens 10 3rd down conversions: Steelers 5/17, Ravens 1/11 Rushing Yards: Steelers 123, Ravens 41 Passing Yards: Steelers 225, Ravens 142 Time of Possession: Steelers 35:31, Ravens 24:29 Game 2: Total Yds: Steelers 476, Ravens 207 1st Downs: Steelers 22, Ravens 15 3rd down conversions: Steelers 9/15, Ravens 6/13 Rushing Yards: Steelers 158, Ravens 58 Passing Yards: Steelers 318, Ravens 149 Time of Possession: Steelers 41:05, Ravens 18:55 Obviously, stats don't tell the whole story. After all, four missed field goals by Kris Brown cost us the first game in spite of our dominance. Nonetheless, looking over these stats simply reinforces my assertion that the Steelers will have this game all but put away well before the final peroid begins. Expect another huge game from Stewart, Burress, and Ward. Hines may not come out of this with big receiving numbers, but I guarantee you that the entire Ravens secondary is focused him, particularly Rod Woodson, who has been his whipping boy in the last two games. The Ravens have to be just as concerned about Stewart's legs as they do his arm, and that's what makes them relatively easy pickin's in my book. Baltimore is outstanding against inside runs, and against most running teams, that'll get the job done. But the Ravens simply can't account for Stewart, who will be almost as much a part of the running game as Bettis. That kind of threat losens them up all over the place. Passing gets easier, especially rollouts. Running up the middle gets easier. And play-action becomes deadly. As long as the enigmatic Plaxico Burress doesn't let any more perfect passes slip through his hands to a waiting defender, a circus catch or two should be enough to break Baltimore's back. The Ravens simply don't have any comparable threats on offense. They have no running game and an immobile QB with a confidence problem (both internally and from his teammates). Sharpe and Ismail are decent players, but they're not enough to compensate for Baltimore's other glaring offensive deficiencies, especially against the best defense in the league. Gildon and Von Oelhoffen terrorized Grbac in the Sunday Night game, and he'll be under similar pressure this week. Pittsburgh OWNED the Ravens defensively. You can point to the 21 points Baltimore scored, but know this: the Ravens didn't have one sustained drive. Their scoring drives all started beyond their own 40 as the result of outstanding kick returns, and their final TD came courtesy of a questionable 4th and 10 defensive holding call that gave them a first and goal at the Steeler 5 with 1:26 remaining. A word about Jerome Bettis: the Bus will be fine. I don't know if he'll get his hundred yards since I expect "Fu" to get the lion's share of the carries late in the game when the Steelers are running down the clock, but this will be a nice tune-up for Bettis for the AFC Championship game. Lastly, the return of Amos Zereoue makes the Steelers' rushing attack virtually unstoppable. Famous Amos was devastating the last time these two teams played, and he could make a bigger impact yardage-wise than Bettis. The only chink in our armor has been the special teams. Obviously, Brown has been miserable (5 missed FGs in last two games), and Jermaine Lewis just about ripped us a new one with his kick returns in the last game (as mentioned previously, Baltimore started 4 drives beyond their 40 as a result of poor kick coverage). The solutions to these problems are obvious, but difficult to achieve... don't let Lewis touch the stinkin' ball, and get Mularkey's offense to score TD's instead of forcing Brown to attempt FG's. The bottom line: I just don't see the Ravens being able to slow us down much in this one, bruthas and sistas. Prepare for the celebration!. Tims's Prediction: 23-13 Sandy's Prediction: 24-10 See 'yins after the game, bruthas & sistas! Tim McMillen Webmaster, McMillen & Wife |
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I have my crew coming over today as I have had every Sunday this season. We are as dedicated as they come. We fill the room with massive amouts of memorabilia from mugs to helmets to a 76' autographed Super Bowl ball (it is passed and rubbed on those oh so imprtant situations!) Let us know your favorite pregame and game rituals. ARE YOU A DIE HARD FAN LIKE YOU SHOULD BE?? If your a Black and Gold fan, I know your are. Keep the responses coming throughout the game as we will be checking in between quarters and most likely after the big plays and hits. HERE WE GO STEELERS, HERE WE GO---PITTSBURGHS' GOIN TO THE SUU-UUPER BOWL!!!!!! Pavo Silk Baltimore is a crime riddled city ... STD capital of the country ... football team full of brainless thugs ... arrogant coach with a bad toupee. It's time to put the Ravens out of their misery. Ravens, Super Bowl Champs? Thus quote the Steelers ... nevermore! Go back to Baltiwhore, the STD capital of the world. By the way, let me know where you post your prediction for the Steelers-New England game next week. I could use some more laughs. After doing a complete analysis of all pertinent information, including The Theory of Momentum, I am releasing, at no charge, my Ravens-Steelers prediction. Baltimore 53 Pittsburgh 5 The Steeler's scores will come on a late 2nd quarter field goal, and a last play of the game, deliberate safety by Baltimore, called by Billick, just for giggles. Lewis and company will intimidate, rattle, disorient, and otherwise screw up the Steeler offense, and Elvis will play a heady game, throwing 6 touchdown passes, all to Shannon Sharpe. The Steeler fans will have totally vacated Ketchup Place midway the 3rd quarter. If there are enough requests, I will post my analysis of the Ravens-Raiders AFC championship game next week. Out. One thing I keep hearing as to why to watch for a Ravens upset is this: "well, the Steelers played their best game of the season against the Ravens and only won 26-21." To which I respond: could it be that the Ravens also played THEIR best game of the season in that game? Sure they got dominated statistically, but think about this: 1) They almost certainly got more pressure on Kordell than they got on virtually any QB this season. The fact that he eluded their grasp a lot does not change the fact that they were able to get to him often on blitzes. They barely touched Jay Fiedler last week in comparison. If they give Kordell as much time to throw this Sunday as they gave Fiedler last Sunday, it's lights out. 2) They scored 3 TDs against Pittsburgh. Granted, those TDs came after incredible field position, but they still put the ball in the zone three times. You know how many OTHER times the Ravens scored 3 TDs in one game this season? Twice, and one of them was against the Colts sieve of a defense. What are the odds they'll find the gold paint three times on Sunday? Not all that good. The fact is that I've NEVER seen the Ravens get to the QB the way they did against the Steelers this season, and I've NEVER seen them as efficient in the red zone as they were against the Steelers, and it still wasn't good enough. Maybe that's why the team was so dejected after the game. I'm not big on predictions, but I think the Steelers can dominate this one they way they dominated the last one. I'll be thinking of you all when I'm at Heinz Field for the game (you heard me right) cheering myself hoarse. GO STEELERS! Here we are in the here and now. Climbing the latter and taking on all who dare. The Ravin' lunatics dare share the fild with the most quietly respected team in the NFL. All good people are Steeler pride fans at heart no matter what team their loyalty goes with. You just cant help but notice the level of honor the team holds. Here they are with their sarcastic comments, and hateful attitudes, trying to justify their being in the presence of greatness. Think about it, it must be hard to know another team can beat you up and down the field and still support your loser team with all this demeaning banter. Knowing full well that you should not even be this far in the playoffs because of your lack of game, not to mention your foolish behavior. Go Steelers and beat the pants off this overrated paper champion.Our hopes and dreams are with you on this day. Good luck and kick the s___ out of this loudmouth parasite. Steelers 28 Baltimore 6 KILL THE RAVENS!!!!! GO KICK THAT ASS PITTSBURGH!!! Steelers FOREVER, Nat Second great post. I couldn't agree more. I keep trying to tell everyone that the Ravens haven't done anything. If the media attention, messages and urinating on the opponents field is what the Ravens need to get up for the game so be it. I hate to tell them The Steelers are going to rub their noses in it. The Steelers will have no trouble getting up for this game. Hell I was so stoked for the last game you would have thought I was going to play. The Ravens could barley get up to beat the Vikings when their playoff lives depended on it. Bye Bye Black Bird!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Amidst all the talk about the rusty Steelers and their rusty running back and poor special teams and rattled kicker and not-on-a-hot-streak-anymore QB and suspect secondary and non-genius coach and playoff inexperience, why is it that the Ravens are assumed to be ready to play a complete, perfect game? Listen, people, if you think that there is no doubt in the minds of the Ravens as to their ability to take the Steelers down, you really need to be reminded: THE STEELERS MADE RAY LEWIS CRY. It was the Ravens, not the Steelers, who, after a week of crowing about taking the win at Heinz (and sweeping the statistical pasting and physical beating they took along with it under the rug) and asserting that they were ready to re-establish themselves as the alpha dog in the AFC Central, got thrashed and urinated on in their own house and had to walk away with their tails between their legs in a dazed fog of utter grinch bewilderment: How could it be? They won without Bettis. Tore through us like rags. They won without Bradshaw, Lambert and Hollywood Bags. That’s right, Rat-birds, you got bitch-slapped all over the field after getting all pumped up to do your worst. And in the end, when the huge ugly truth of your inadequacy could be ignored no longer, your big bad emotional leader flopped down in a heap and cried, Whoville-style, BOOO HOOOOOOOOOO. Will the Ravens arrive totally demoralized? No. Will they not make any plays at all? No. Will they start to get a bit queasy when the Steelers make plays? Absolutely. After that, it won't take long for a nasty case of deja-vu to set in. The Ravens already know who the better team is. They’re just hoping against hope that those Steelers don’t show up. - Tom Hayes Look at some of the ridiculous names around the league and tell me you don't understand where I'm coming from. Where's the tradition? The Baltimore Ravens? The RAVENS??????? What the hell does a raven (raisin, shitbird, craven) have to do with Baltimore? What does a PANTHER have to do with North Carolina? (oh yeah, they put the shape of the states NC and SC into a computer and it spit out a few animal drawings that would match, that's how they got their name.) Tennessee Titans? Please help me here. Isn't there anything more historic in Tennessee to name your team after? How many Jaguars have you seen in FLA? Not the fans, I mean the animal. Where is the tradition or loyalty with these teams? Truth be told there are only a few NFL team with tradition. I'd say Chicago, Green Bay, Cleveland (yes I hate them too, but they've got loyal fans.....albeit overly rowdy and destructive ones) and maybe Philadelphia......(more overly rowdy and destructive fans). Pittsburgh has something special and always will as long as the Steelers are in town. I've only been to one game in my lifetime, and I don't know why in the hell I was unlucky enough to pick the "coin-toss" game. Well, that's the way it is for the working man, I guess. I'm in Michigan now, and although I'm not a steelworker, I work with hot steel every day. I'm in the UAW and I bust my ass trying to make sure you get good parts for your cars. I've only been to Pittsburgh once in my life. I flew through there a couple of years ago. I was held up in a snowstorm and had to spend the night. When the people at the hotel saw my Black and Gold, they treated me like family. Same goes for the cab driver. If I could find a job in Pittsburgh, I'd live there. Any offers for a hard working man? This game Sunday. It's all about Tradition. God, I hate Modell. These guys talk like they've won 10 Super Bowls, but have one ring. I don't get it. It seems that the ones that talk the most aren't former Steelers. What has Rod or Carnell said? Not much, discounting that thing between Rod and Hines. I've already spoken my thoughts on the game. If you haven't seen it, just go down below to PROPHECY. Tim and Sandy pretty much echoed my thoughts. I've been watching the last game vs the Raisins over and over. My belief is that Amos is the key. Really, oh yeah....that's right he came from WVU and I'm from WV. But seriously, he's just the kind of change of pace we need against these guys. Get him on the outside and they're gonna have a world of trouble. I'll leave you with MY pick. Steelers 42, Raisins 9. HERE WE GO STEELERS!!!! HERE WE GO!!!!! Everyone in the class raises their hand, except one very smart little girl. The teacher looks at the girl with surprise and says, "Janie, why didn't you raise your hand?" "Because I'm not a Ravens fan," she replied. The teacher, still shocked, asked, "Well, if you are not a Ravens fan, then who are you a fan of?" "I am a Steelers fan , and proud of it," Janie replied. The teacher could not believe her ears. "Janie, why are you a Steelers fan?" "Because my mom is a Steelers fan, and my dad is a Steelers fan, so I'm a Steelers fan too!" "Well," said the teacher in an obviously annoyed tone, "that is no reason for you to be a Steelers fan. You don't have to be just like your parents all of the time. What if your Mom was a moron and your dad was a moron, what would you be then?" "Then," Janie smiled, "We'd be Ravens fans." That very thought makes me laugh, if they can get their swagger back from barely beating a vikings team that didn't even want to play the game and the worst playoff team in recent memory in Miami then fine, but these guys haven't done anything. They think they can run the ball now, well I'm here to squash the rumors, a guy I post with on another board did a little analysis, the Vikes are 28th against the run, and Miami's average rush yardage allowed per game since their DE got hurt is not 17th but 27th. SO in other words I could run against these guys with a decent OL. They still an't stop our passing game (who thought we'd be saying that at the beginning of the year) The first game Ward chewed them up, so they doubled him and then Burress chewed them up, they could try doubling both but that leaves the doors open for the running game, it's pick your posion fellas and the Ravens don't have the antidote. Neither Miami or the Vikes can really rush the passer, that's why Elvis looked decent. He gets flustered period easily and facing the leagues #1 pass rush he should be leaving the building oh say early second quarter. We have proven we can run on the Ravens, we have proven we can pass on the Ravens. This game will not be close, If we have to punt this game punt it out of bounds, and let Kris boom them deep on kickoffs, our coverage was much improved after we did that. Bottom line Pitt 31 Birdies 7 By Tom Parrotte Portland, Oregon As I sit writing this at 6AM on Monday morning, I am readying my self for the weeklong deluge we Steeler fans will have to endure. We will hear the words "swagger", "old formula", and "championship confidence" thrown around like the dough at your favorite pizzeria. Don’t buy it for a second. If a solid win over the Miami Dolphins was the sure sign that a team was going to the SuperBowl, then the Jets and 49ers would be packing for the Big Easy. Miami is not that good. They were one-third dimensional all season. The ‘Fins never established any kind of running threat, and their passing game relied heavily on big plays to the wideouts, never moving the ball steadily on a down to down basis. Baltimore is excellent at taking away the run, but they didn’t have to. If you leave any defense with the sole responsibility of only covering medium to deep plays, they will more often than not be successful. A great defense like Baltimore’s certainly will. Offensively, much will be made about the Raven’s new commitment to the run. Folks, the Dolphins were like a siv against the run all season. Curtis Martin (twice), Marshall Faulk, Garrison Hearst, Antowain Smith, etc lit Miami up. We all know the Dolphin’s M.O. Great in September brushed aside in January. Was anyone really surprised? Pittsburgh physically and soundly defeated this team twice, and has a 1-1 record to show for it. They are not afraid of Baltimore, they know they can run and pass on the Ravens. Moreover, they will stop Baltimore’s running game and force Elvis Grbac to beat them. We know that will end badly for them. It will probably make Vinnie’s performance in the ’94 Divisional playoffs look sharp and Units-like. Finally, the swagger. Remember the week leading up the December 16 Sunday night game? Baltimore had their bye and two weeks to prepare for their biggest game of the season. The talked and talked. Everybody was speaking of swagger then, too. What happened? The Steelers kicked their ass. We’ll see it again on Sunday. I know I’m right on this black and gold brothers and sisters. Since the Poe jokes (except for the one in the title) are getting stale, let me close with Shakespeare by saying that the Baltimore Ravens are "…sound and fury. Signifying nothing." Anyway, enough said. Let's let OUR BOYS do the talking on the field Sunday.... I GOT A FEEEEEELIN... Thanks! DWSmith HERE WE GO STEELERS... HERE WE GO .... BMP BMP By Hunter S. Thompson Watching the Baltimore Ravens play football is like watching scum freeze on the eyeballs of a jackass, or being stuck for six hours in an elevator with Dick Cheney on speed. The Ravens will pounce on you and gnaw you to death, which can take eight or nine days. The Raven is a queer and dangerous bird, far worse than the Crow. A pack of crows can destroy an owl or an eagle, but a single boss Raven will attack a whole gang of crows and rip the lungs out of its leaders. Most crows would rather commit suicide than go head-to-head with a boss raven. You bet. So what does this tell us about this week's playoff games? Almost nothing, now that I mention it -- except that Pittsburgh beat the snot out of the Ravens (at home) about a month ago. The score was 26-21, but the beating was far worse, so we can only hope that the Steelers can do it again, and knock this horrible salt-water Tarbaby out of the playoffs as soon as possible, so they can't dull out the rest of the season. Betting on a Baltimore game is like betting on a three-hour sumo-wrestling bout. It is wrong for the Game. There is talk of Jerome Bettis playing for the Steelers this week -- and if that happens, Pittsburgh should win by seven. I will bet on this, but not heavily. The Ravens are evil and I fear them. Can they perform well enough against our very hungry secondary? NOOOOOOOO! Is our running game going to exploit their line? Is Siragusa a chubby boy? YESSSSSSSSSSSS! Edmon, I feel your pain. Living in Nebraska, there is RARELY any press published about the Steelers that make it to the local papers, and the national news on the boob toob (TV) only talk about the Steelers when they are playing a "contender" opponent. Yes, the attention is on the (current) champions: The Raisins. As it should be. They have begun this march to the SuperBowl as they did last year. They lost their division. They won their first playoff game. Big deal. They won't win in Pittsburgh. GO STEELERS!!!! When we played The Vikings..........That was gonna be a guage to see how good we where........We won, and all they could say was that we played well, but the real test will be the Jets! So the Jets came and went with a loss straped to their ass, and once again!..........They are playing well but the Ravens should give them a good game, This is the real test! So once again we go into Baltimore and destroy the champs!!!!!!!! now WE are the team to beat! Am i right? no way! a loss to The Bengals and all the talk is back around the Ravens! They win in Miami and all I'm still hearing is Ravens.....Ravens.....RAVENS!!!!!!! whats gonna happen is...............we will win this week and then! we will be the underdogs again gainst the Rams if we go to the big dance! I cant stand it! Is it me? or am i crazy? Do the Steelers get no credit at all? Is everyone against us? someone tell me whats up! Sorry man!...............I'm just a little tired of all the lack of respect! Had to vent.........thanx for listening...... GO PITT!!!! Hatched In Cleveland Swamp & Maryland Field They Schmooze. Modellian Profiles, With Poor Yellow Bruise. Edgar, Never, Never, Wrote Of A Snide Purple Crow. Vain, Vain Beak, Shrill Squawks They Do Sow. With Greedy Wings Flapping & Small Beady eyes Silly Bird, Silly Bird, Peruse Over Mills, Misreading Our Fair Pittsburgh Skies. But When Slain, Of Foul, Fowl Recipe, Our Steelers Won't Partake. Thou Feathered Ass, Taxidermies & Mounted, WE DOMINATE ! T. Coleman Peasant, STEELER (Domi)NATION #2 - Don't be afraid of Elvis.....enough said. #3 - Score TD's in the Red Zone....Brownie has proven he's capable of being all over the place........ #4 - Win the turnover battle and stay healthy! #5 - Come out swinging and don't let those M--- F--- bigmouths from Bulletmore pysch you out!!! GO STEELERS----See everyone this weekend. (By the way, where's the happening night spot Saturday night???? GO STEELERS!!!!!!!!!!!! BETTIS WILL RUMBLE AMOS WILL FLY THE DIRTY RATBIRDS WILL DIE DIE DIE. THAT OLD SAYING TO BE THE MAN YOU GOT TO BEAT THE MAN ,WELL I THINK THE PITTSBURGH STEELERS CAN , THIS IS THE BEST TEAM THE STEELERS HAVE HAD SINCE THE 70,S ONE FOR THE THUMB STEELERS WILL WIN THERE AINT NO DOUBT SO YENZ BETTER GET READY TO PARTY ALL THE WAY TO THE BIG DANCE , IM JUST SO PUMPED UP GO KORDELL MAKE US PROUD COME ON DEFENSE SHUT EM DOWN, THE ENCLINE SAYS DEFENSE ON IT BRINGS A TEAR TO MY EYES IT REMINDS ME OF OUR GLORY DAYS PITTSBURGH IS MAGICAL RIGHT NOW , LETS GET IT DONE GO STEELERS! STEELERS 34 RATBIRDS 10 On the other hand, if we win, can you imagine how SWEET it will be!!! HERE WE GO STEELERS, HERE WE GO!!!!!!!!!! As I look at it: The Browns-Steelers rivalry is like a good college rivalry. The Browns-Ravens rivalry is more like hating the scum that raped and killed your sister, then got away with it in court due to a technicality. (There must be more to that deal Modell made with Satan than we realize.) Ravens Success is yet another example of good things happening to horrible people. God sighed a deep sigh of satisfaction and proudly pointed downwards through the clouds "Look Michael, see what I've made..." Archangel Michael looked puzzled and said, "What is it?" "It's a planet," replied God, "and I've put LIFE on it. I'm going to call it Earth and it's going to be a great place of balance." "Balance?" inquired Michael, still confused. God explained, pointing to different parts of Earth, "For example, Northern Europe will be a place of great opportunity and wealth while Southern Europe is going to be poor." God continued, pointing to different countries. "This one will be extremely hot and arid while this one will be very cold and covered in ice." The Archangel, impressed by God's work, then pointed to a place. "What's that?" "Ah," said God. "That's Pittsburgh, the most glorious place on Earth. There are beautiful lakes, rivers, streams and an exquisite Golden Triangle where three great rivers meet. The people of Pittsburgh are intelligent and humorous and they're going to be found traveling the world. They'll be extremely sociable, hard-working and high-achieving, and they will be known throughout the world as diplomats and carriers of peace. I'm also going to give them an undefeatable football team who will be admired and feared by all who come across them." Michael gasped in wonder and admiration but then proclaimed, "What about balance, God? You said there would be BALANCE!" God replied, "Wait until you see the loud-mouth jagoffs I'm putting next to them in Baltimore" HERE WE GO STEELERS .... HERE WE GO!!!! I suspect that any bad taste in the Ravens' mouths is more likely to be based on having to look in the mirror after dressing themselves in those ridiculous purple uniforms. There is not much analysis needed on this game - the Steelers are clearly the better team this year, and if they remember to show up, they will win the battle on both sides of the line of scrimmage, and beat up this bunch of thugs. Even the Steelers continued suspect special teams play will not leave enough of an opening for the Ravens to defend their title. It is good for the Steelers and their confidence to play and beat the best teams on their way to the Super Bowl. Did anyone not think that going into the playoffs, the teams most likely to challenge the Steelers were/are the Ravens and New England (the Steelers next opponent)? So I predict a 20-17 Ravens win.....But not to worry Steeler fans...you overachieved this season and gave you all hope for the future.....lol The Ravens playe decent today on defense. They were helped out immensley by an inept Miami offense. The Raven's offense put on it's usual sub-par performance. Helped out by turnovers. The Vikings game was a laugher, 4th string, new to the team, rookie QB and the Raven's still struggled against them. Bauman would have ripped them apart. Their defense looked pathetic. ANfd te offense had trouble scoring against a defense just hoping not to get hurt before vacation. I can tell you have already bought into the media hype surrounding the "swagger ' that is supposedly back and how the Ravens are peaking now. Good, believe it, I hope the Raven's really blieve it. It's media-hype B.S that has surrounded them all year. The swagger is merely arrogance combined with the "genius" of the likes of Lewis and Sharp. It most like;y won't be 42-3. But the Steelers have every reason to man-handle these wanks on Sunday. D-FENCE! D-FENCE! D-FENCE!!!!!!!! CAN YA FEEL IT BROTHAS AND SISTAS?!? I GOT A FEELIN' PITTSBURGH'S GOIN' TO THE SUPER BOWL!!!! (Let's just take care of these pesky raven bastards) Kordell is the SOUL QB IN THE LEAGUE who had over 350 total yrds on the Ravens D. Unlike immobile Jay Fiedler or Rich Gannon, who are vulnerable to the Raven's DL, Kordell knows when to bolt out of the pocket and go the distance. Bettis and Amos are both in Healthy, and the Ravens have never been able to stop the change-up. All-Pro Gaurd, Alan Faneca is the only Gaurd in the Conference who shuts down Tony Siragusa WITHOUT using a Double-Team. The Raven's DL is good, but the Steeler's OL is better, featuring The All-Pro Faneca, and Two Pro Bowl Alternates: Jeff Hartings at Center, and Wayne Gandy at LT. Also, Ray Lewis may be the only defensive player to have any impact on stopping the Steelers. Even then, he has to worry about Dan Kreider knocking him down. At the Raven's Secondary, you have good tacklers. But they're ineffecive against the best blocking WR's in the league. Hines Ward can catch AND give DB's concussions. And don't expect Chris McAlister to be able to reach above the 6'5" Plaxico Burress, who ALWAYS creates the HUGE mismatch in the endzone. On the other side of the ball, the Ravens Offense deeply relies on its strong up-the-middle rushing. But the 3-4 defensive scheme was BUILT to stop an up-the-middle run. Casey Hampton, backed up by Earl Holmes (third straight 100+ tckl season) and Kendrell Bell (Defensive ROY) will stop ANY running attack in the league. Look what they did to Terry Allen last time. Hey, if Bell can knock Jerome Bettis 3YRDS BACK in camp, he sure can do it to a smaller RB. Also, Ogden is a strength-LT. He doesn't have the speed, and usually doesn't need it, facing other DE's in a 4-3 system. But in a 3-4, he's up against the speedy OLB Jason Gildon(Pro-Bowler, 12.5 sacks). And don't expect the Ravens to win in the passing game. Even if the Secondary is the weakest part of the Steeler's D, it's still 3rd best in the league. And speed-oriented Chad Scott can match up with Speed-oriented Quadry Ishmael. Lee Flowers and Brent Alexander in the backfield create another INT threat. And finaly, Dishea Townshend's been racking up INTs recently. Expect that trend to continue when they summon him on nickle-forms. Steeler 27, Ravens 16. I want 42-3 next Sunday!!!! I felt in other quasi-successful seasons the teams were playing somewhat over their heads on emotion and hype. This year the team has been much more measured emotionally and has instead relied on talent and skill to amass their record. Because of this team's sound basis, I believe that they will be able to confidently rise to the occasion in this post-season, rather than wilting in either the championship game or the Super Bowl. And for what it's worth, if that happens, I will be the first to acknowledge and credit Cowher for how he has improved himself as a coach and for the masterful job he has done of managing all aspects of his team through this season. Of course as Dennis Miller says - I could be wrong! I'll never trust football experts again. That said, I do have great confidence in this team and will be bitterly disappointed and genuinely surprised if they do not represent the AFC in the Superbowl. Once there, who knows? The NFC certainly has several interesting candidates and I too would worry about the high-octane Rams. However, to aid our cause I’ve been planning a secret defensive scheme for Tim Lewis to employ. Check it out: Tim devises a blitz to cause a “sudden” meeting between Kendrell Bell and Kurt Warner. The loopy Warner proceeds to throw approximately 50% of his subsequent passes to Steelers. Obviously, the sooner this “meeting” can be arranged, the better. I personally would suggest pregame warmup time! - Tom H. Anxiously awaiting our first game... maybe i should be alone? of course we might just win big?.....hmmmm. hope is a dangerous thing. i've been hoping for 22 years now.....could this be the year????? As for the Steelers in the Superbowl. I would much rather see them against someone else besides the Rams. But if they do play em, I have all the faith in the world that they can pull out the win. I just don't trust Warner And Faulk! Lets just say they are very capable! You get the idea! I think the Packers or Bears against the Steelers would be a classic battle! to bad it wasn't outdoors! Oh well, what can you do? So how bout a little feed back from the best fans in the country and the world! GO PITT~!!! Thanx, Edmon <<< Back to Mac & Wife's
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