Say It Ain't So Skippy

The beloved wild-man kicker for our Pittsburgh Steelers, Jeff "Skippy" Reed, was evidently arrested at 2:50 AM at a Sheetz. What do you suppose the chances are that alcohol was somehow involved in all of this? Probably somewhere between 99.9% and 99.99% would be my guess.

Apparently Skippy damaged an empty towel dispenser and "used profane language towards a Sheetz employee stating that there were no towels in the restroom."

I mean I hate an empty towel dispenser as much as the next guy, but that's why most places put those inferior hot air dryers in there. But if I was Jeff Reed I suppose I'd be opposed to subjecting myself to such depths as well.

I guess we shouldn't be at all surprised by this development, right? I mean if I told that a Steeler was arrested at 3 AM at a Sheetz for that sort of a crime, Reed would have had to been your first guess, right? I mean, Santonio is the obvious first guess if its a real crime given his issues, but Tone wouldn't be caught dead committing such a lame offense. It takes a special type of person to be arrested for vandalizing a Sheetz, and given Jeff's infamous penchant for partying and just being genuinely outrageous this just seems to fit too perfectly.

What I really want to know is exactly what he did to damage this thing. Aren't those things usually pretty solid? He had to have kicked it, right? I can't imagine him getting enough power into his arms to be able to break one of those things, so it had to be his massive legs that did the damage, right?

Whatever the case, one thing's for sure: We have the most interesting and entertaining kicker in football, maybe even in NFL history.

Recapping the AFC Conference Steel(er) Cage Match

As promised, some thoughts and links from what was essentially a no-holds-barred, steel cage match last night on the frozen tundra of Heinz Field.

Some Links:
-ESPN is doing an all-day chat thing over at their site. Not worth reading up on all the different parts of the chat, as it would take all day, but it's worth it if you have a few interesting questions you'd like the "experts" at the WWL to answer.

-The Professor, John Clayton, puts together the big questions of this Super Bowl for right now. As always, its good stuff by Clayton.

-James Walker tells the critics of Ben Roethlisberger to shut their collective yaps. And yes, that includes the many yinzers who spent large portions of this season screaming at him to get rid of the ball. Does he drive people (including myself) crazy at times? Absolutely. But this is who he is, and the best one-word description of him as a football player is: Winner. And that's fine by me. Peyton and Tom can have their records, I'll take Roethlisberger any day of the week.

-Peter King's MMQB, a must-read no matter what football team you like, spends a good deal of the column discussing the Steelers-Ravens game.

-As always, Mondesi's House does a great job breaking down the game.

-Gene Collier writes about Heinz Field no longer be an AFC Championship curse. This had definitely gone through my mind more than once before the game, but it's a different situation with our new coach, Mike Tomlin, I suppose. Ron Cook says that, despite the stats that claim otherwise, the title of best defense in football was on the line last night, and the Steelers proved once and for all they are the best D in the league.

Random Thoughts
-I don't think I have ever seen a more physical game with players who just no regard whatsoever for their own personal well-being. Just ridiculous. Thank god they give the teams a bye week before the Super Bowl, because there is no way this Steeler team would be ready if they had to play again in six days. I mean, Ryan Clark's entire body probably feels like he was in a severe traffic accident yesterday, Hines Ward probably can't do much more than jog, Mewelde Moore is iffy and anything that hurts his quickness pretty much negates any value he has, the offensive and defensive lines were hitting all day long, and of course, Ben Roethlisberger took his usual lumps, including what I thought was a definite late hit from Haruki Nakamura that I couldn't believe wasn't flagged.

-I liked that Bruce Arians tried very hard to establish the run early on, but I thought that he stuck to it a little too long. Parker was unable to get anything going against that stout Baltimore defense, and I think we would have been better served giving Mewelde a few more snaps early in the game and sending a few short passes his way. Worst case they are equally as effective, getting 2 or 3 yards a pop, and best case Mewelde catches one in some space and is able to make a play or two.

-Ben Roethlisberger just does it. That's all there is too it. He wins games, he plays smart when he has to, and he's going to his second Super Bowl with a 7-2 playoff record at the age of 26. Just an amazing job yet again by our franchise QB. Right now, I'd take him ahead of any QB in football, and I really mean that. Think about it: Who knows what is going to happen with Tom Brady's knee? He may never be the same. Peyton Manning came on real strong at the end of the season, but Ben has already had much more postseason success than Manning and doesn't require 30+ passes per game to get in a rhythm at the end of a game like Peyton. Phillip Rivers put together a great season, but has leadership and character issues and his game record pales in comparison. Eli looked a little too much like the old Eli down the stretch, and I'm still not sold on him. Kurt Warner, in my opinion, has been the beneficiary of having two of the best receiving corps in recent NFL history at his disposal with the current Zona group and the Greatest Show on Turf group with the Rams. Plus, he's old. Drew Brees can sling it as well as anyone, but I can't take him seriously until he picks up a few January W's. He can keep his 5000 yard, video-game offense season, thanks but no thanks.

-Troy Polamalu vs. Ed Reed just got a whole lot more interesting. I know I said yesterday that I thought Reed was ahead of Polamalu as a safety and was one of the best in league history, but I found myself now thinking I may have underestimated our spectacular number 43. Polamalu was the best player on the field yesterday, while Reed pretty much disappeared for large chunks of the game. I guess that might have something to do with the play of the respective QB's, but I think this debate is very much alive and well.

-I don't know that I've ever seen a game quite like the one Limas Sweed had yesterday. Sweed, of course, was headed for infamy after dropping a sure-fire TD that Roethlisberger delivered precisely into his hands. He did end up hauling in a pair of passes by the end, and didn't make anymore awful mistakes. He also leveled a Hines Ward-esque block on unsuspecting Corey Ivy, knocking him clear into next week. Just a weird game for him, and I pray that Hines Ward is 100% healthy and that Limas doesn't have to set foot on the field against Arizona.

-Dick LeBeau continues to prove he's the best defensive coordinator in all of football. All we heard in the first two rounds and all through the regular season was that Joe Flacco was Joe Cool, that he was unflappable, and made plays in the biggest moments because you couldn't get into his head. Yeaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh so much for that thought process, eh? Flacco was definitely flappable yesterday and LeBeau flapped him again and again. Big sacks, two bad interceptions, the last one pretty much sealing the game for the Steelers. Don't get me wrong, I like Flacco a lot and think he could definitely develop into Roethlisberger Lite and be a very good QB in the NFL, but somehow everyone forgot that he didn't do anything against the Steelers in the regular season and is still a rookie QB in the playoffs. And LeBeau knew just how to rattle his cage.

-That said, I will be VERY interested to see LeBeau's game plan against the Cardinals and Kurt Warner. Warner is notoriously great at taking advantage of blitzing teams and getting the ball out in a hurry. That's not to say that I think LeBeau will abandon the blitz, as that would never happen in a billion years, but I do think some of the more exotic schemes, like bringing Polamalu and Timmons may be put on hold.

-I'm happy for the Cards and for Ken Whiz, Russ Grimm, Larry Fitz, and Gerry Hayes, but for the next 13 days, they are public enemy number 1 in my book. My old Larry Fitzgerald Pitt jersey? It's been removed from my closet where it sat next to the likes of Ben Roethlisberger, Troy Polamalu, Sidney Crosby, and Willie Stargell and shoved underneath my bed where it won't see the light of day again until February 2nd.
-Too many Super Bowls lately have come down to last minute scoring drives, and after watching Jeff Reed yesterday at the Heinz Field tundra, I have the fullest confidence in him to have a big game if necessary in Super Bowl XLIII.

-I was pleased, shocked, elated, and surprised to see the refs call a holding call yesterday in favor of James Harrison. Of course, he was held a minimum 15-20 times yesterday and only one was called, but at least its a start.

-Another nice day for the Steelers' secondary yesterday. Ike Taylor, Bryant McFadden, Deshea Townsend, and William Gay played extremely well from their cornerback spots, and I think it mostly goes without saying that Polamalu, Clark, and Ty Carter did a super job at safety. Just a great performance all around. And that is huge for the Steelers because the Cardinals offense will revolve around Larry Fitzgerald and Kurt Warner. If the Steelers can contain Fitz (there is no stopping the guy) the Cards offense is not going to be able to hang in the game.

-People have been talking a lot about the Whisenhunt connection and how it gives him an advantage because of how well he knows the Steelers personnel and all... but do you really think that doesn't go the other way, too? Mike Tomlin may not know Whiz, but Dick LeBeau worked against Whisenhunt's offense in practice countless times and, as Whisenhunt openly admits, LeBeau more than once helped him adjust to defensive schemes. Do we really think LeBeau doesn't know every wrinkle of Whiz's offense. And do we really think the Steelers aren't fully aware of countless Whisenhunt gadget plays. I see this intimate knowledge being a wash in the end.

-The Steelers O-Line had some issues with Baltimore pass rush and did take some penalties (looking squarely at Chris Kemoeautu and his incredibly stupid personal foul), but they handled that Ravens rush pretty darn well I thought. Sure they couldn't open up holes for an ant to even run through, but no one can do that against the Ravens. You can't blame them too much for that, and they managed to buy Ben at least some time. And the Cardinals D, however well they may be playing right now, is no Ravens squad.

-I expect to see another crowd heavy in Steelers support down in Tampa Bay. Florida has so many transplants or retirees from Pittsburgh it's downright absurd. This might be even more Steeler heavy than the Detroit Super Bowl XL crowd of 3 years ago. And considering the game is against the Cardinals, who probably have one of the least-established fan bases in the sport, and we could be looking at like a 85/15 or 90/10 split for this puppy. Tampa Bay will be turned into Terrible Towel city. Should be exciting.

Steelers-Chargers Preview

YOU'RE GOING DOWN SAN DIEGO!

The playoffs officially kick off for our beloved Steelers tomorrow at 4:45 at Heinz Field against the late-charging San Diego Chargers. The Chargers are among the hottest teams in football these days, and though I didn't believe in the Chargers for much of the season, I officially became worried about them last week when they knocked off the Colts. What follows is a breakdown of the key matchups in the rematch of the first 11-10 game in NFL history (even though it wasn't really 11-10):The Chargers Offensive Line vs. Dick LeBeau's blitz schemes
The Chargers offensive line put together a nice season this year against blitzing defenses, giving up just 25 sacks all year while guarding the mostly stationary Phillip Rivers. To his credit, Rivers has become quite good at quickly getting rid of the ball while under pressure and not doing the Ben Roethlisberger thing where he puts himself in more danger. In the game earlier this game, the Chargers gave up just 2 sacks to the Steelers line, but Rivers was under consistent pressure. Also, one of those sacks went for a safety for the Steelers. Expect Dick LeBeau to turn up the heat very early on with James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley coming consistently from the outside, and using speed demons like Troy Polamalu and Lawrence Timmons to try to bring pressure from different angles. If the Steelers are able to get after Rivers, it will go a long way toward knocking the Chargers QB out of a rhythm.
Phillip Rivers vs. Troy Polamalu
Expect Troy to be in all his shifting, pre-snap movement glory in this one, doing his best to confuse and confound Phil Rivers and the Chargers offense. Few players in the NFL can wreak as much havoc or getting in someone's head as much as Polamalu. To Rivers' credit, though, he was very, very good this season, and became a better QB than I ever thought he could really be. How Rivers makes adjustments to Polamalu and how he runs the Chargers offense with Troy quarterbacking the D will be of the utmost importance to this game.

Darren Sproles vs. The Steelers Tacklers
Expect Sproles to get the ball in a variety of ways, returning kicks, catching passes in the flat, screen passes, shovel passes, and of course just good old fashioned handoffs. How the Steelers contain this guy will be worth watching. He is your typical scat back type player, and no matter what kind of defense you are, these guys can hurt you at any time. I expect Sproles to be held mostly in check, especially when he's running the ball, but I'm also worried about the possibility of him springing 1 or 2 big plays that could end up sinking the Steelers. The Steelers typically do a spectacular job of containing dangerous players like Sproles, but after watching him last week against the Colts, I think he might be one of the most dangerous players the Steelers have faced all season, and given LT's struggles against the Steelers, his groin injury may be the best thing to ever happen to the Chargers.

Ben Roethlisberger vs. His Concussion
There's no question that one of the ultimate X factors in this game is the status of Ben Roethlisberger after suffering a concussion in Week 17. The history of QB's coming back from concussions after just a couple weeks is...well let's just say it's none too encouraging. Especially when this is the third concussion of their career, as it is with Large Benjamin. Keep a close eye on Roethlisberger's play early on to get an idea of how he is responding to the after effects of the concussion.Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers O-Line vs. The Chargers pass rush
Ben is legendary for his insistence on not throwing the pass away and keeping plays alive. Unfortunately, this often leads to too many sacks, some nasty hits on Ben, and the occassional interception. For the Steelers to win this game, we can't have any big mistakes by Roethlisberger, and given the severity of his concussion, let's hope he's also quick to throw the ball away if he is under pressure to avoid any unnecessary hits. As for the O-Line, they have come under serious fire this season, and will need to really step it up in this game and in any other playoff games the Steelers are in this year if this team is going to have any chance to make a Super Bowl run. The team's best offensive lineman this year has been far and away Max Starks, which speaks for just how weird and disappointing a season it has been considering Starks wasn't even a starter at the season's beginining.

Willie Parker vs. The Chargers Front 7
In their game earlier this season, Parker had one of his best games of the season. With Ben likely to not be operating at 100%, the Steelers would be much better off if Parker can put together another productive day.

The Kickers vs. Heinz Field
The toughest place to kick in the entire NFL figures to be at the height of its power Sunday afternoon in the frigid January weather with the howling Ohio River wind. Jeff Reed has been solid this season, and has just about mastered the ability to kick in these sorts of nasty conditions. This could be a tremendous advantage for Pittsburgh as Reed, with Adam Vinatieri now kicking indoors most weeks, has become probably the best cold-weather kicker in the NFL. San Diego has a very good kicker of their own in Nate Kaeding, but he did miss a field goal at Heinz earlier this season.

Mike Scifres vs. Mitch Berger
Probably the matchup that terrifies me the most. After one of the greatest days you will ever see a punter have last week against Indy, Scifres gives the Chargers defense a tremendous weapon that could just about level the playing field between the two defensive squads. Let's hope the Heinz Field wind somehow neutralizes Scifres and that Berger can at least be competent for the Steelers.The Pick: I can't imagine this one being a high-scoring affair. Both defenses figure to keep the opposing offenses in check for much of the game. And this is only helped by game-time conditions that are expected to be at 25 degrees with winds of 10+ MPH. I think the two squads keep it close for much of the game, and in a season full of them already, I think Ben Roethlisberger, concussion and all, leads the Steelers on a late drive for the win. Steelers 17-14.

The Weekend Recap

It was a very lively Sunday evening down at Heinz Field for me, and after coming back from the Big Mustard Bottle on the North Shore to my drafty Oakland apartment, it took me the better part of Sunday evening to thaw myself out, hence why you are getting a Weekend Recap at on a Monday afternoon, instead, of you, at the end of the day Sunday like I hope to do.

For anyone else who was in attendance, I think you hopefully more than understand where I am coming from though, as I was in no condition to do anything but spend 30 minutes in a scalding hot shower and the rest of the night curled under roughly 300 blankets.

But believe me when I tell you, it was more than worth it to say that I was there for the first 11-10 final tally in the long history of the National Football League. And to say I was there for truly remarkable performances from Willie Parker, James Harrison, Troy Polamalu, and Hines Ward, and to also say I was there for one of the weirdest, most random, yet coolest snow storms in Pittsburgh history.

So, without further ado, here are the quick hits from the weekend that was in the Burgh:
-As is always the case when it comes to us residence near The Confluence, the weekend is made or broken by our beloved Steelers, and though the game kept us on pins and needles for 3 solid hours, our black and gold warriors once again game through victorious in a truly strange game that had to leave a smile on your face. The defense continues to enforce its will upon their opposition, and two players in particular, James Harrison and Troy Polamalu, have to be considered among the best defenders in all of football right now. Both made spectacular plays yesterday, Harrison with a game-altering safety of Phillip Rivers and Troy with an unreal interception that, from my distant view at Heinz, looked like an impossible pick. And of course, there is Troy's controversial fumble return for a TD that was negated, which is all the talk today because of the gambling implications.

-I can't for the life of me understand how the refs could go under the hood to look at the fumble, call it a fumble and a Steeler TD, and then decide, without any logical reason behind it, that it wasn't a TD. A truly strange moment if I have ever seen one, and one that rightly deserved the numerous articles and thousands of jokes surfacing on the 'net today.

-Large Benjamin still looks awfully achy to me out there. He was clearly laboring on any throw that went beyond 15-20 yards downfield, and it was surprising that Willie Parker had as much success as he did running the ball when the safeties were not playing far from the line.

-This is a truly bizarre NFL season, and with no offensive skill player really emerging with big statistical numbers to gain serious consideration for the NFL MVP Award, I am throwing my full support behind the one and only Silverback, James Harrison. Harrison is one nasty, nasty individual on the football field and that mean streak carries over to the rest of the defense when they line up together. Add that to the fact that he has the pretty, shiny statistics that voters lover to see (he's on pace for about 100 tackles and a jaw-dropping 19 sacks). Not to mention the Steelers Defense has statistically been either the best or very close to the best all season long, the Steelers are almost certainly headed to the post-season, and the way that they defense single-handedly won that game and has kept them in several games this season, and I think that we have ourselves a legitimate case for MVP on our hands.

-It was very cool to see Skippy Reed get another game winner as the clock ran out last night. He has been one of the best kickers in football the past couple seasons (and should have been a Pro Bowler last season), and knocking in game winners are often what gets kickers notice in this league.

-Hines Ward may have lost a step or two and doesn't force any team to bring safety help in to stop him the way we see opposing teams do with Santonio on occassion, but that guy is an absolute warrior and was the focal point of that offense yesterday.

-I've said it before (though probably not on here) and I'll say it again: I will never buy Phillip Rivers as a franchise quarterback, and will forever be grateful that the Chargers wanted him over Big Ben back in the 04 draft when they instructed the G-Men to take him instead of Ben to complete the Eli Manning trade. I'm not saying he's not talented, and he can certainly be a complimentary QB and lead talented teams into the postseason like he did a year ago, but I don't think he has that extra gear like Roethlisberger and Eli Manning have shown where they can lift their team from a good playoff one to a great championship one, and he certainly won't ever be on the same stratosphere as all-time greats like Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, and Brett Favre.

-The Penguins continued their recent hot streak in playing from behind with a big 5-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres that was a much closer game then that score might indicate. To me, it seems like Geno Malkin is playing the best all-around hockey of his career right now, even better than the way he played last spring after Sid went out with an injury. He is an offensive force right now, and is the best player on the planet.

-Right now, the top two point scorers in hockey are a Penguin and a Capital, which should surprise absolutely no one who even remotely follows hockey. What should surprise them is that those two scorers are Geno and Alexander Semin.

-There are early reports this morning that the Flower, Marc-Andre Fleury, is injured. The injury is not yet known, he is day-to-day, and will miss the Minnesota game. Dany Sabourin has been excellent in relief so far this season, and I'm not concerned as long as this is a very short-term loss.

-The Darryl Sydor trade is a little strange in my opinion. I'm not the least bit surprised that he was dealt, and he has clearly wanted it for months, and he earned it after playing the good soldier for so long. But the return is what puzzles me. The man the Pens received in return, Phillipe Boucher, is only slightly younger than Sydor (35 to Darryl's 36), makes the exact same amount of money (2.5 million for this year, UFA afterward) and contributes nothing offensively. The only difference is he is a righty. So why do this deal? I mean you have to think that Boucher is just going to sit like Sydor did, and when Whitters and Gonch return, he is REALLY going to sit then. I assumed they'd keep Sydor til January or February then deal Sydor for a throwaway prospect to clear cap space for a trade where they acquire a top 2 line winger. Ray Shero, you know I hate to doubt you, because very often you end up being right, but I'm not too sure about this little maneuver.

-The win this past Saturday by the Cincinnati Bearcats sets up the biggest game of the Dave Wannstedt era this coming Saturday evening between said Bearcats and our Panthers. A full preview will be coming your way on Friday. I haven't even formulated any thoughts on this one yet other then some serious giddiness for my Panthers, as Cincinnati, while a tough and very resilient foe, looks to be a very beatable opponent, even though the game is on their turf. A W there puts there Panthers firmly in the driver's seat for the Big East crown, and sets up what would then be the new biggest game of the Dave Wannstedt Era.

Until next time folks...

Steelers Live Blog for MNF!

8:27 Here we go Steeler fanatics, my first live blog in my revival of the Three River Sports Blog. The game is just about to get underway, and I'll be coming at you with the Live Blog of my evening watching the game in my apartment with some of my thoughts and (hopefully) humorous anecdotes on tonight's festivities. The ESPN "Experts" pick slightly in favor of the Steelers, with 48 of their in-house panelists favoring the Steelers and 47 with the 'Skins. Just kidding of course, it was actually 4-3 Steelers but approximately 12 different people spoke on ESPN in some sort of panel fashion. I will never understand why they hire so many different people. Just baffling. Oh, and by the way, Chris Berman just reminded us for approximately the 59th time in the last half hour that his interviews with Barack Obama and John McCain will be airing at half-time.

8:32 Thankfully, we have a very solid crew doing our announcing. I truly enjoy the MNF booth of Tirico, Jaws, and Kornheiser. Tirico pointedly mentions that the NFC East has been a house of horrors for the Steelers, Kornheiser pointedly makes observations about Ben Roethlisberger being the breaking-the-mold guy from the traditional Steelers image, and Jaws pointedly mentions that Redskins blitz like no one's business and Ben could take another beating this evening. Just a very pointed start, apparently.

8:39 Say did you know that there is an election tomorrow? Apparently there is, as Kornheiser and Tirico have spent the vast majority of their pregame talk with weird little tidbits about elections from the past, a weird little history of the Redskins for the candidates, all while poor Jaws sat quietly. The wheels are hurtling off of a promising booth in a hurry. I'm not sure I'm prepared for 214 different Tony Kornheiser/ election jokes tonight. Guys, seriously, I have to get up at 8:00 AM tomorrow, can we get this thing moving? I was promised an 8:30 start.

8:41 Finally! Kickoff! And it's an onside kickoff? Uhmm... what the hell Mike Tomlin? Are we really in full-on desperation mode before the game even starts?

8:45 The defense does their job and only gives up 9 yards to force a 3 and out and a pu... oh wait that's right, we tried a friggin' onside kick and the Skins are in good enough field position to kick a field goal. 3-zip Washington. This one's squarely on you there, Tomlin.

8:49 Oh boy, Large Benjamin throws a pick after his pass at the line is batted, and Max Starks, apparently under the impression that the ball is an icky vegetable, does his best to avoid touching it, only to have it bounce off his clumsy self and get picked. Ugh.

8:51 The Steelers defense very, very quickly forces another three and out and a pu... whoops my bad again, this time the offense screws them as the Skins are already in field goal range a second time and take a 6-0 lead. This one's on you Large Benjamin and even Larger Max Starks

8:59 Critical third down for the Stillers, and a backbreaker of a sack on 'berger as the Skins bring the damn house and take down the Large One as he tried to escape pressure and ended up running right the hell into it.

9:02 Definitely no 3 and out for the Steelers D on this drive, as Portis goes off for 22 yards, apparently the longest run of the season against the Steelers D. I think everyone missed that damn tackle.

9:04 Two interesting headlines just ran by the bottom of my screen... hold on while I double check what I just saw. Yup, the Brownies are starting Brady Quinn this weekend. In a game that takes place in 3 days. So he gets short rest to start for the first time in his career. Nothing like putting your hopeful franchise QB in a position to potentially fail miserably. The other headline? Well it's a little deceiving. I could have sworn ESPN's crawl thingy said Matt Schaub had a torn MCL and will only miss 2-4 weeks, an annoucement that nearly made my jaw hit the floor, as those are usually season ending. However, ESPN's website says it's only an MCL injury and the 2-4 weeks injury number is correct. How about a little consistency folks?

9:07 As mentioned, for the first time all night, the Steelers don't force a 3 and out... and get their first punt of the evening. Seems like we may be in for a weird one. Let's see what the Big 'berger can do out there.

9:11 Two drops for Santonio already. I thought about a few different jokes here, but none could live up to the hype. Give me time, though, I'll get a good one before the night's up.

9:13 Mitch Berger's second gawd-awful punt of the night. Mike Tirico mentions that Mitch Berger has not one, but TWO injured hamstrings. Uhmmm....maybe we should have looked into getting a new punter for this week. I mean I have buddies that can kick it more than the 28 yards Berger just pooched out. Tony Kornheiser wisely points out that having two injured hamstrings means that Berger (not Big Ben 'berger, Mitch Berger) has 100% of his hamstrings injured. Good call.

9:19 Nate Washington drops a pass! Since when does that happen? Mitch Berger out to punt, and after Mike Tirico makes a "hamstrung" joke, Berger puts together a serviceable 40 yard punt. At least we're not losing yards on our punts this week.

9:24 We just had a Jason and James sandwich, with the Jameses Farrior and Harrison being the bread and Jason Campbell being our meat. Ouch.

9:25 Good news, Santonio Holmes hangs onto the ball, ending his dropsies streak of two balls and one dooby into the ash tray when the 5-0 showed up.

9:25 Okay, so that wasn't exactly a good Santonio joke. Don't worry, it's still coming. I have faith.

9:28 Yet another atrocious punt by Mitch Berger. I've got to believe that Jeff Reed could probably punt the ball further than this bum right now. Now, if the Steelers are at the Redskins 35 and need to pin the Skins at the goal line, Berger is their man. I mean they can just tell him to go in their and kick it as hard as possible and they should be good.

9:31 Large Benjamin's numbers thus far: 1/9 9 yards. I hope you're not relying on him for a W in fantasy this week.

9:40 You need a 3rd down conversion, you go to Hines Ward. I'm not sure how we (especially the coaches) haven't learned this yet. The guy is just downright tough and a real horse out there.

9:43 Strangely, the Redskins aren't fooled by Roethlisberger's 8 different pump fakes and as he tries to escape on a crucial third down... he gets sacked... again... despite having ample time... again. Still, Jeff Reed drills a field goal, and this sucker is 6-3 and the Steelers offense finally developed a pulse.

9:51 Ron Jaworski refers to Ben Roethlisberger only as "Ben" four times in about 20 seconds, a trend that has become increasingly common for announcers to drop our beloved number 7's last name. Not sure why or how this happened.

9:52 YIKES! Near pick for Ben, and Slick Willie (not sure if he's fast but he is Slick right now) rips off a nice little run and is having a nice night with 10 carries for 45 yards despite a little gimpiness when he walks off the field.

9:54 Remember what I said about going to Hines Ward on 3rd down? Yeahhhhhhhhhh, maybe that was a misprint as he gets absolutely lit up and drops a crucial third down pass. Mitch Berger is carted onto the field to punt and is carted back off.

9:56 HUGE SPECIAL TEAMS PLAY!!!! Andre Frazier storms in and blocks a punt as Mike "Miss Cleo" Tirico says the words "maybe we'll need to see a big special teams play" and Ike Taylor bumbles over it immediately after and William Gay ends up with it as the Steelers have a golden opportunity.

9;57 Sensing the importance of the moment, getting-smaller-by-the-moment Benjamin is promptly sacked as we head to 2 minute warning.

9:59 Okay here's a question for you: How are they still making Transporter movies? I have absolutely no recollection of the first one being released, I heard the second one was terrible and did rather mediocrely (is that a word?) at the box office. And can we officially end the Jason Statham as a leading man movement? Hey, I like the guy as a supporting badass (like in the Italian Job) but he's no star. And what's up with him always being involved in driving? Talk about a bizarre typecast. I half-expected him to be in the new The Fast and the Furious movie.

10:02 Direct quote from yours truly- "TOU-OHHHHHHHHhhhhh...." I thought Hinesy had it, but he was literally millimeters away, if not micrometers. Steelers should just have Ben fall forward on this one.

10:06 TOUCHDOWN!!! Ben uses his infamously large stature to surge into the end zone and just like that, despite a miserable start to the game, the Steelers are up 10-6 as we near the half, very encouraging last several minutes for a team that clearly got off to possibly the worst start that they could have imagined.

10:09 Okay folks we've reached the half and managed to set the game of football back 40 years in the process. I'm not blogging the half, as I need to focus both on this presidential interview nonsense and on some finance homework. Back in a bit.

10:23 Aaaaand we're back. Aaaand Mickey Tafoya is reporting that Ben is injured and is in the locker room getting X-rays and that Byron Leftwich will open the second half. Roethlisberger is infamous for exaggerating injuries on the field, but it's incredibly rare when he misses time due to injury, so you know this must be semi-serious. We'll see.

10:25 One other update: Not surprisingly, the halftime interviews were lame and pointless and told us absolutely nothing about the candidates except that they are both infinitely more intelligent then our current president.

10:26 Roethlisberger is bak on the side line, no helmet on or anything though. We'll see what happens....

10:27 The Dump Truck (Najeh Davenport, emphasis on the first word) enters the game and gets a 3rd and 1 conversion. Also, Heath Miller is injured. By the way, they tossed it to Tafoya for an update on Roethlisberger and she gave us nothing.

10:28 Byron Leftwich tosses a gorgeous pass to Nate Washington for 50 yards. Huge play for the Steelers.

10:29 Tafoya now reports that Ben's right shoulder is the injury and that he is questionable. He has the backwards cap on though, so I wouldn't hold my breath.

10:29 I hate to keep blogging so frequently, but Tony Kornheiser just made a vague reference to the Bengals being a Super Bowl contender prior the season. It's worth noting that this must be the most insane statement of the season.

10:31 TOUCHDOWN STEELERS!!!! Slick Willie Parker from a yard out. This guy looks real good today, and Byron does a real nice job managing things. And by the way, 'berger's shoulder is being held almost like it is in a sling. Not such a good sign.

10:32 Uhmm.... Jeff Reed just missed a PAT! Quick, sign Conor Lee!!! He never misses!

10:37 It's been open season on Jason Campbell tonight. LaMarr Woodley is absolutely untouched and obliterates poor Campbell for the Steelers' 5th sack of the night.

10:46 The one thing you've got to love about Tony Kornheiser: Just when you hear the subject of a mildly inappropriate joke being discussed, the Korn man comes through with the obligatory joke you'd make with your friends. Just delightful. In this case, it was Mike Singletary's struggle to stay fully clothed.

10:50 A pick by Deshea Townsend! Jason Campbell's first I-N-T of the season. Of course, Townsend promptly fumbles it, and while he does recover, a potential question (though I don't see the validity) is raised by Jaws as to whether or not it was a pick. We'll see.

10:52 Yep the Skins are going to challenge it. It really, really looks to me like Deshea Towsend has it. Jaws doesn't think so but Deshea does the old "football move" and I'd be stunned (and very pissed) if this sucker gets overturned.

10:55 Take THAT Jaws! Townsend's pick is upheld, Steeler ball! They could make things awfully tough on the skins with a nice long scoring drive here.

10:58 Michelle Tafoya claims to have a "source" that told her Ben felt his shoulder pop out in the first half. I wonder if this is the same soure that butchered Roethlisberger's injury report when NBC came to town and had all sorts of false injury info for Messrs. Michaels and MAdden.

11:00 Another nice third down conversion for the righty Leftwich, that's two in a row in this drive.

11:06 Tony Kornheiser makes another mention of the Steelers fans there, as if this somehow surprises him. Hey Tony, the Steelers fans travel better than anyone. Yet this is roughly his 30th reference of the evening.

11:08 Apparently Leftwich is a little banged up after getting lit up a few moments ago, but he's not leaving the field it appears. Nonetheless, Dennis Dixon is warming up. It'd be interesting to see him out there to see what he can do.

11:09 TOUCHDOWN!!!! Byron Leftwich to Santonio Holmes and the Steelers are on an absolute roll right now. Jeff Reed's PAT is good this time and it's 23-6 Steelers and they have now scored all 23 unanswered by the suddenly hapless Redskins.

11:17 James Farrior gets docked for the helmet-to-helmet hit on Jason Campbell and you can be darn sure that he will be having a little something deducted from his paycheck this week for that one.

11:23 Jason Campbell gets in for a touchdown, but call me skeptical. I think I'd challenge it, as it appeared as though he was pushed down before the goal line and stumbled into the end zone.

11:23 Yep, Tomlin challenges.

11:26 Yep, it's overturned

11:28 The Redskins are going to go for it here on fourth down from the 1 yard line and.... it's stopped! They tried a weird play action pass to... a defensive tackle??? What? Naturally when the game is on the line on offense you want to throw it to an awkward overweight defender with no experience catching the ball. That's right, ignore your steady and reliable tight end and your league leading running back to throw to a defensive tackle. That's the NFL in 2008 for you. Always overthinking things.

11:31 Woah Willie! Slick Willie nearly gets safetied in the end zone.

11:33 Mitch Berger's hamstrings collapse underneath him as he attempts to punt. I think someone needs to take poor Mitch out back and shoot him just to put the guy out of his misery.

11:37 On another fourth down, the Redskins bizarrely refuse to kick a field goal even though it would have gotten them within two scores and they could have tried the onside kick. Instead, they go for it, and Lawrence Timmons comes up with a big sack. And MAN is that guy fast. He runs like a defensive back, and is going to be one heck of a weapon when he finally takes Larry Foote's job.

11:44 Two minutes until we lock up that first NFC East W.

11:50 And that will do it from my apartment and from Washington. I hope you enjoyed our festivities this evening, and don't forget folks, it's imperative that you vote tomorrow.