Steelers 38, Buccaneers 13
Beatdown! It's nice to watch a beatdown again. The Steelers just pounded this one out of the Bucs. Tampa's got a young quarterback named Josh Freeman who a lot of people are comparing (on-field, fortunately) to Ben Roethlisberger. He had a couple of Ben-like moments, but Pittsburgh is a bad, bad defense to face down as a second-year quarterback.
--Man, Charlie Batch, also looking like Big Ben out there. (At least after his first throw, which fluttered right to a Tampa linebacker at the Steelers' 30.) All he does is throw three TD passes, including two deep quick strikes to Mike Wallace, plus he breaks out a gutsy 20+ yard run on a third down at one point, and he sneaks over a 4th-and-1 too. Looked way better than a breakable last resort: capable, in control, able to throw the ball with some zip. Just a great game for Charlie Batch. I assume this one gives him the next start against Baltimore next week, regardless of Leftwich's knee. Hopefully he can stand tall against an opponent capable of bringing a pass rush.
--The game was virtually done at halftime, 28 to 6. The reason to keep watching turned out to be Brett Keisel catching a tipped pass and rolling 80 yards into the end zone with it. For one thing, it's hilariously awesome when a 32-year-old defensive end busts out that kind of play. For another, Keisel looked like a little boy at Christmas afterwards, which is pretty great considering he also looks like a lumberjack.
--Troy got some amused camera coverage by "intercepting" an out-of-bounds Josh Freeman pass at the Steelers sideline, after he'd exited the game in the 4th quarter. Made a nifty little grab up high for it, too. The man likes intercepting things in his free time, too.
--It wasn't the most important contribution on the day, but Willie Gay looked good when he was in on the action, especially in streaking past a blocker and bringing down Freeman for a 9-yard sack. (Well played, Dick LeBeau, well played.) Ike Taylor let a Christmas ham of an interception clang off both his forearms, in other cornerback news.
--Pittsburgh Bucs do rather better than the Tampa ones today, too.
Maddie thought she'd be flying today but her trip was picked up by another flight attendant, and she's got a very appealing willingness to do the Steelers bar thing with me. I did my best to explain how football is played, but of course it mostly washes out to "guys crunching into each other," punctuated by the occasional big exciting play. She's happy when she sees me happy, which is very sweet, and hey, she got to learn early on how great Brett Keisel is. Which is a very satisfying lesson to teach, as you know, for a Steelers fan.
--Man, Charlie Batch, also looking like Big Ben out there. (At least after his first throw, which fluttered right to a Tampa linebacker at the Steelers' 30.) All he does is throw three TD passes, including two deep quick strikes to Mike Wallace, plus he breaks out a gutsy 20+ yard run on a third down at one point, and he sneaks over a 4th-and-1 too. Looked way better than a breakable last resort: capable, in control, able to throw the ball with some zip. Just a great game for Charlie Batch. I assume this one gives him the next start against Baltimore next week, regardless of Leftwich's knee. Hopefully he can stand tall against an opponent capable of bringing a pass rush.
--The game was virtually done at halftime, 28 to 6. The reason to keep watching turned out to be Brett Keisel catching a tipped pass and rolling 80 yards into the end zone with it. For one thing, it's hilariously awesome when a 32-year-old defensive end busts out that kind of play. For another, Keisel looked like a little boy at Christmas afterwards, which is pretty great considering he also looks like a lumberjack.
--Troy got some amused camera coverage by "intercepting" an out-of-bounds Josh Freeman pass at the Steelers sideline, after he'd exited the game in the 4th quarter. Made a nifty little grab up high for it, too. The man likes intercepting things in his free time, too.
--It wasn't the most important contribution on the day, but Willie Gay looked good when he was in on the action, especially in streaking past a blocker and bringing down Freeman for a 9-yard sack. (Well played, Dick LeBeau, well played.) Ike Taylor let a Christmas ham of an interception clang off both his forearms, in other cornerback news.
--Pittsburgh Bucs do rather better than the Tampa ones today, too.
Maddie thought she'd be flying today but her trip was picked up by another flight attendant, and she's got a very appealing willingness to do the Steelers bar thing with me. I did my best to explain how football is played, but of course it mostly washes out to "guys crunching into each other," punctuated by the occasional big exciting play. She's happy when she sees me happy, which is very sweet, and hey, she got to learn early on how great Brett Keisel is. Which is a very satisfying lesson to teach, as you know, for a Steelers fan.
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