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Emotion Will Play Pivotal Role in Physical Game vs. Titans Article by McMillen & Wife It's been a long time since the Steelers have beaten the Titans. My wife and I attended that game in 1997. Those were different times, to be sure. The game was played at Three Rivers Stadium, Greg Lloyd still wore the black and gold, Kordell Stewart was the toast of the town, and our website was several months away from existance. Stewart was without question the player of the game that day, scoring 3 TDs and moving the Steelers up and down the field at will with nearly flawless passing. Perhaps the most memorable play that day was Mr. Lloyd's rumblin', stumblin', bumblin' fumble recovery that he ran down the near sideline to set up a score as the Steelers won going away, 37-24. Yes, the times have changed. It's hard to conceive of the Steelers racking up 37 points these days, and few would now call Stewart a "pinpoint passer". But as was the case in 1997, I suspect that Kordell's performance will be the deciding factor in this game. Why do I think that? Glad you asked...
That's certainly not to say we won't be able to run against these guys. To the contrary, I expect Bettis to have another huge Monday Night performance. Will I be surprised if the Bus doesn't at least get near the century mark? Yes. But will the game be won by Bettis alone? No way. And that's where Stewart comes in. As was the case with the Chief's, Kordell's legs will be troublesome to the Titans. But I think this week, Stewart will also create problems for the opponent with his arm. Expect some deep passes by Stewart early in the game. These passes won't just be the usual empty threats designed to help clear the way for Bettis, folks... we're gonna finally see a deep TD pass, maybe even to Burress! How do I know? Simple... the Titans' secondary is a shambles. An injury to Samari Rolle may force rookie CB Andre Dyson into action again this week. Compound that with a foot injury to FS Blaine Bishop, and you've got a recipe for disaster of Titanic proportions (pardon the lousy pun). Tennessee's secondary was in complete disarray last week against the winless Lions. Charlie Batch toasted them for 3 TDs and well over 300 yards, with the aid of ZERO running game, I might add. Am I saying this be a Steelers pass-fest? No way... Kordell omce again won't have over 200 yards. But we WILL see Mularkey's offense open up more than we have so far this season. The opportunity for big pass plays should be there, and a well-timed, well-thrown bomb by Stewart would seriously demoralize the Titans, opening the floodgates for Bettis. That's why I view Stewart as the key. Emotion will play a tremendous role in this game, and if the Steelers hit a long one, Tennessee might just come apart at the seams. The Titans are still an outstanding team... correction... an ELITE team, in spite of their current struggles. As someone who picked them to win the Super Bowl this preseason, I'll be shocked if they're not in the playoffs come January. But right now, in spite of their 2-game winning streak, they're down. WAAAY down. The Steelers, on the other hand, are flying as high as a kite. Pittsburgh already has the emotional edge, and anyone who knows football knows that winning the battle of emotion often means winning the game. Defensively, I can't help but like our chances. Eddie George has owned us at times in the past, but George is having a horrendous year, averaging just 2.7 yards a carry (290 yards on 106 attempts). Eddie is still Eddie... he's a truly great running back... but I don't expect his break-out game to come against the top-rated rush defense in the NFL. For his part, Steve McNair has been utterly abysmal. I'm too lazy to look up his numbers, but suffice it to say he's one of the lowest rated QBs in the league (yes, even lower than Kordell Stewart). In all honesty, I fear his elusiveness in the pocket more than his arm, because the Titans appear to have few receiving threats other than their outstanding TE, Frank Wychek. Kevin Dyson has been a problem for us in the past, but he's only managed 13 catches this season. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh's intense, swarming, emotional defense is loaded with players that seem intent on playing together in Hawaii (at the very least). Pittsburgh's front seven has been nothing short of phenominal in stopping the run, not to mention piling up ten sacks last week. They are playing amazing ball right now. Our secondary has also been fantastic over the last month, with both CB's Washington and Scott playing at All-Pro levels. So can the Titans possibly beat the Steelers? Straight up, at this point in the season, I would say no. But the STEELERS can beat the Steelers. Pittsburgh has commited more turnovers than they've forced over the last several weeks, and against an elite opponent (even a struggling one) like Tennessee, losing the turnover battle could be fatal. If Pittsburgh protects the ball and can force McNair into a mistake or two, they should win. Tims's Prediction: 24-13 Sandy's Prediction: 17-10 See 'ya after the game, bruthas & sistas! Tim McMillen Webmaster, McMillen & Wife |
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The titans ARE winning on a streak. The first three games may not tell the true story about the titans. We're relying on uncertainty to win out the game. Tennessee was one of the few teams whose 8-man box can actually contain Bettis. THis forces the passing game (as been said many times in pregame features). THAT's the uncertainty. WE win if the passing game can get somewhere. We lose if the passing game stays the way it currently is. And it don't seem like Burress is gonna all of a sudden morph into Herman Moore of early days. Even IF the 8-man box leaves a 1 on 1 coverage, can Kordell throw? ANd IF Kordell can throw, can the WR's Catch? It's a mystery that hasn't been tested yet this season. Ward is proven, but he may be the ONLY one proven. I bet, if we were to win this game, someone would step up who hasn't ever stepped up before. As for the defense *pssshhhh* not much to worry about besides Mcnair's dandy legs. Our OL can hold their DL like they did to Sapp's crew. SO it's all up to the passing game to prove something they haven't. I'm gonna predict an "up in the air" game. My prediction goes with the success of the passing game. If you can tell by the 1st quarter our WR's are flopping, we lose. If there's a little bit of spark on passing game, we win. Prediction for MNF Eddie George = Eddie Joke (still aint Iowa Ed!) Steve McNugget ... Put some Heinz on that ! Stuff the "JOKE", cover the QB draws/runs, TEs & screens and it should be a romp. Please Bill no prevent/soft zone D and, if you get a chance, bust Kneel O'Dollar's Ass again! TITanS D; Check the Freak.He is a good player. Kevin Carter is a FRAUD! Check out St. Louis last drive in the Super Bowl, if you have it, and tell me if he didn't try to tackle his own team mate not mention standing around while plays were still on. Bust this Lame in the mouth for 3 quarters and he will fold like a 300# paper doll in the 4th Q. Samari Rolle (Ester's Boy?) is gimpy. Exploit Dat' Gap! Steelers: 45 Flaming T's: 0 Tommy ps where's Flee & Jules? We are going to run right at Kearse and he won't be able to stop us, they don't have Kenny Holmes anymore so the other side should be there too. We always (almost) contain George, and now he is banged up and we are a LOT faster on D, Eddie won't be a factor. Mcnair has NO WRS to speak of, and Wycheck is really their only threat, well the other tight end as well Kennings? but it we can contain Gonzalez we can contain Wycheck. The ONLY way I can see us losing this game is if we A). don;t come to play which will NOT happen on the first MNF game EVER at Heinz Field or B). we have a series of catastrophic turnovers, which I'm not especially worried about, especiially if rolle doesn't play. Our O needs to take another step forward this week, how about eliminating the fumbles (Kordell, Amos and Hartings) in opponents terrioty. I'd be happy with that. I think this game has the potential to be a rbeak out game for Plax, they do have a weak secondary, what I don't want to see is anohter long ball to Plax yet. I want to see him get a TD on the slant that Stew has been connecting with hi consistantly over the past 2 1/2 games and once he has that confidence go for the deep ball. Overall, I say this game DOES make a statement Steelers 28 - 6 Kordell 1 passing TD 1 rushing the D has one and Amos gets one. <<< Back to Mac & Wife's
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