Charlie Batch’s Moment in the Sun

When I think about the greatest wins in recent Steeler history, excluding championships of course, almost every one of them is against the Baltimore Ravens.

There is nothing more fulfilling for a sports fan than a critical victory over a hated rival. Check that…a despised rival. With all due respect (or lack thereof) to New England, Dallas, Cincinnati and Cleveland there is simply no Steelers’ opponent that generates the visceral hatred of the Ravens. And I would have said that before my wife and I endured three horrific hours of emotional debauchery at M&T Stadium last September.

Think about those Steeler victories that make you pound your chest with pride at being part of the Steeler Nation. They are ALMOST ALWAYS against the Rat Birds and frequently in Baltimore. Remember the 92 yard drive and last second Santonio touchdown in 2008? How about the Polamalu strip sack of Flacco in 2010? There are also two recent classics at Heinz Field, the 2008 AFC Championship game and the 2010 divisional playoff comeback victory

“Greatest wins” of course is an extremely subjective measurement. So I use extremely unscientific qualifications for such a designation. How stressed am I during the game? How many times do I throw objects (thank you Limas Sweed) or bang my head off solid objects? How much am I dancing around my condo, pumping my fists and screaming (much to the dismay of Chicago’s West Loop) after the victory?

My wife (and Mike Tomlin) likes to say “a win is a win.” Statistically she is 100% right. And yet there are some wins that are just bigger, that just mean more.

Well we can officially add classic victory in Baltimore to the list.

This one will be remembered as “the Charlie Batch” game. The night the Steelers staggered in to Baltimore and pulled out a phenomenal, season saving victory over the Rat Birds. They did so not only without their star quarterback but with their third stringer as recently as two weeks ago. They did it with a QB who much of Steeler national irrationally and over zealously wrote off after last week’s ugly loss.

The only thing better than this highly improbable victory is the redemption story that came with it. Charlie Batch may never end up in Canton but he’s truly one of the classiest professionals to ever wear the black and gold. The man is the ultimate team player and the prototypical “Pittsburgh guy.” He has not played a lot during his Steeler career but with the notable exception of last weekend has almost always played well when called upon. He deserved MUCH better than to have his Steeler career end on that debacle in Cleveland.

I’m a Steeler fan which means I root for the logo more than I do the names on the back of the jersey. And yet I’ll be the first to admit I’m almost as happy for Batch as I am for the black and gold as a whole.

Let me start off by saying that I don’t think Batch should be the team’s number 3 QB. There is zero doubt in my mind that he gives the Steelers a better chance to win then Byron Leftwich. I made this point repeatedly at Heinz Field two weeks ago as Leftwich limped and gimped through a disappointing loss. I endorsed Batch to be the starter during Ben’s suspension two years ago and have never backed off my contention that he should be the number 2 QB. I simply do not get the coaching staff’s infatuation with Lord Byron whose throwing wind-up is an eerie combination of Major Harris and Bugs Bunny.

That said, Batch was the third quarterback. That means for the better part of eleven weeks he did not take a meaningful snap in practice. In today’s NFL the back-up QB rarely gets practice reps let alone the third QB. So after eleven weeks of inactivity Batch has to start in Cleveland. The Steelers employ a conservative game plan and the team’s running backs respond by fumbling an incredible six time. Let me say that again…six times. On top of which Batch had a 30 plus yard completion to Heath Miller early in the second half of that game that was wiped out by a holding penalty.

I’m not saying Batch played great against the Browns, he clearly did not. At the same time, the overreaction from fans and media was staggering. Batch plays one subpar game, with all the obstacles I noted above and suddenly he is washed up and done? I’m sorry but that’s not a fair evaluation. My honest opinion is that if the Steelers simply hold on to the ball against the Browns they win that game easily and Batch is not being bitch slapped by Rodney Harrison on national TV.

Regardless, it is what it is. The team played awful and Batch was part of it. It was a game they needed very much to win and did not. It was a truly ugly loss in every way.

Of course one of the reasons we considered it a must win game was we all assumed that a victory in Baltimore without Big Ben would be impossible. If the last two weeks, and for that matter this entire bizarre Steeler season has taught us anything it’s that nothing is a given in the NFL. I’ve always thought the “any given Sunday” mantra was a little hokey and overplayed. At the same time I will not deny that at this level, crazy things can and do happen.

I doubt even the most optimistic Steeler fan would have predicted this outcome before kick-off, or even at half-time.

The Steelers simply would not have prevailed without Batch’s strong performance. It was pretty obvious that Baltimore was playing 8 in the box all night to shut down the run. Cleveland did the same thing last week. The Steelers right now do not have elite running backs. Neither Dwyer nor Redman is good enough to succeed consistently driving head on in to eight man fronts.

This game changed when the coaches took the handcuffs of Batch and let him throw the ball. And to their credit they continued to show confidence even when he made a few obviously bad throws. Yes the overthrow of Wallace in the end zone was awful. So were about ten of Drew Brees’ throws on Thursday night in Atlanta. If Ryan Lindley is your third string QB maybe you bail on throwing; with Charlie Batch you let him make plays.

And that’s exactly what he did.

Batch was far from the only reason the Steelers won this game. I could easily devote an entire blog to the brilliant work of the coaching staff and the strong performances of James Harrison, Heath Miller, the offensive line and the defensive backs. Shaun Suisham deserves a major tip of the cap for yet another clutch kicking performance. I could also lament the latest implosion by Emmanuel Sanders and the continued disappointing efforts from Mike Wallace and Drew Butler.

Alas, those are stories for another day or another blog. To me the story of this game first and foremost was Charlie Batch.

This was his defining performance in a Steeler uniform, one we should never forget. It could not have come at a bigger time, could not have happened to a better guy. The victory provided some desperately needed confidence and momentum to a struggling team. And while their playoff hopes likely rest on the Cincinnati rematch, the game provided some critical breathing room.

With father time advancing and Big Ben hopefully returning this very well might be Charlie Batch’s final appearance as a Steeler. If so it was one heck of a curtain call; a deserving swan song for a true class act.

Steelers’ Offense Sticks it to New England, Just as Planned

There truly are not many feelings in sports better than sticking it to the New England Patriots.

There is a smug arrogance about that Pats that defies description.  It permeats virtually every player and coach in the organization.  The trail of arrogance and ego starts with their condescending, know it all head coach and filters down through their condescending pretty boy quarterback. I respect Bill Belichick’s success as a coach. I respect Tom Brady’s brilliance on the field. And I truly cannot stand either one of them.

They don’t inspire quite the visceral hatred of say the Baltimore Ravens, but they’re definitely a close second.

Even as I know that next week’s game with Baltimore is the most important of the season, I’m downright giddy about yesterday’s result. They don’t hand out the Lombardi trophy in late October mind you but understand this; there are moments in sports truly worth savoring that do not involving winning a championship.

Yes it’s childish, yes it’s petty, yes it’s vindictive. So be it. Watching Brady and Belicheat slump off the field in defeat is worth a little premature celebration. Especially knowing how this victory was accomplished.

For the first time in a decade, the Steelers clearly and unequivocally out schemed, out coached, and out played the Patriots with Brady behind center.

The Steelers’ performance was eerily reminiscent of their playoff victory in Indianapolis in January 2006. That was the last time the Black and Gold went so out of character in a victory. It was also the last time they so thoroughly out played and out coached an elite opponent.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are built first and foremost with defense. They hire defensive minded head coaches and focus the greater percentage of their cap space and draft choices on the defensive side of the ball. The defense dictates games and the offense plays an important but often complimentary role. That’s Pittsburgh Steeler football and it has been for four decades.

Well, four decades with a few notable exceptions, such as yesterday.

Yesterday the Pittsburgh Steelers changed their identity, by necessity. It was the offense that dictated and controlled the game. Not only that, they did it almost entirely by throwing the football. The Steelers controlled the entire game with a high percentage passing attack that ground up yards and clock with equal proficiency.

In so doing, they exposed the obvious weakness of the New England defense, its inability to stop the pass. And they took out New England’s greatest strength, Brady’s pinpoint passing. I don’t care how good a QB Giselle’s husband may be, he can’t win football games standing on the sideline.

This is my 32nd year of watching Pittsburgh Steeler football and I cannot ever remember a game plan like this for a full game. Even that famous game in Indy where the Steelers went airborne for 30 minutes and then settled back in to running in the second half. More than that, the Steeler defense that day dictated the game to Peyton Manning. Yesterday’s defensive performance was solid, but very much complimentary.

To be clear, I’m not dismissing the defense in any way. This was bar none the best game plan Dick Lebeau has ever engineered against Brady. The Steelers got in the face of his wide receivers and did not allow Mr. Bundchen the easy completions of prior years. That’s a tribute to Ike Taylor, Troy Polamalu and a secondary that is considerably improved in 2011.

It’s also a credit to the substantially improved defensive line play, a wake up from Lamar Woodley, and a much needed shuffling out of aging players in the last four weeks.

On merit alone, the Steelers finally stopped Brady; finally stopped him from exploiting the obvious mismatch he presents to the typical Lebeau scheme. In so doing they validated a group that has been shockingly steady this season while rarely imposing its will on opponents.

At the same time, I cannot fathom this much success if Brady had the ball for 30 minutes instead of 20, especially given Woodley’s 4th quarter injury. We saw this on New England’s last touchdown drive where Brady went right back to slicing the Steeler D. Ask yourself this question. If Brady gets the ball back with two minutes left and at least one time out, are you confident in a Steeler win?

Simply put, the most effective scheme the Steelers used to stop Brady was to keep him on the sidelines gnashing his teeth. There is nothing wrong with that. As noted above, its brilliant total football strategy and solid execution, lead part and parcel by Ben Roethlisberger.

I continue to fight the dreaded and ignorant “game manager” characterization of Big Ben. I’ve come to resent even more those who say, “It’s not pretty but he finds a way to win.” Both labels unfairly demean the accomplishments of one of the truly great and truly under-appreciated quarterbacks of this generation.

On Sunday, Ben was brilliant and effective, and everything else his critics claim he cannot be. Excepting one truly awful interception, he played a tremendous football game. The Steelers ran a New England offensive game plan against New England. It worked because Big Ben out played Brady and made it work. Somehow I don’t see this game plan with Neil O’Donnell, Kordell Stewart or Phillip Rivers behind center.

He did not do it alone of course. He was helped by and offensive line that has improved ten-fold in the last four games. It’s amazing what a difference Max Starks has made since his return. He was helped by a young core of receivers that has matured brilliantly before our eyes. And let’s not forget Heath Miller whose great start today was reminiscent of that playoff game in Indy. Miller’s best effort of the year, hands down.

At the same time, kudos to Mike Tomlin for clearly out coaching Belicheat. Credit to the far too often maligned Bruce Arians for putting in place a great game plan. It’s not easy for a leopard to change its spots but the Steelers did it with shocking ease on Sunday.

Sadly we get less than a week to savor this victory. As great as this game was, Sunday night’s battle with the Ravens is the game of the season, a true must win. As is so often the case, this game will dictate the Steelers ultimate post season path. A victory makes home field advantage and a first round bye a realistic course. A loss almost certainly requires the arduous wild card route in January.

It seems almost unfair for the Steelers to run this schedule gauntlet; to face their two most hated rivals in back to back games. Not to mention the surprisingly improved Bungles before the bye.

Such is life. If there is one team in sports that can overcome this it’s the Pittsburgh Steelers. The standard is the standard as coach Tomlin says, regardless of the opponent(s). Beyond that, the Steelers should be pretty frosted about their horrific performance on opening day against Baltimore. Avenging that embarrassment should bring added levels of motivation, focus, and determination to a team that does not lack these traits to begin with.

For now, let’s savor a tremendous victory; one that showcased the talent, heart, and brilliance of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Let’s enjoy truly sticking it to Brady and Belicheat for once. The Ravens can wait…at least a few days.

HERE WE GO STEELERS, HERE WE GO !!!

Coaches Coach, Players Play, Fans Complain

Sometimes I wonder who has the tougher job, Barack Obama or Bruce Arians. Yes Obama has to deal with the daily challenges of being leader of the free world. Is that any harder than dealing with the angry Steeler Nation that blames Arians for every play that does not result in a Steeler touchdown?

Okay, that might be a bit over the top but I think the point has been made. I have to go all the way to the White House to find a high ranking executive getting more criticism than Arians. Thankfully there are no midterm elections for NFL assistant coaches.

As I often do, let me clarify a few points here before I go any further.

First, this blog is not and will not be Arians’ personal advocate. My position on him remains that he is neither the best nor the worst offensive coordinator in the NFL. I would not put him in the top ten or the bottom ten. He’s somewhere in that middle 22 of guys that were good enough to earn these rare positions but are effectively interchangeable.

Second, I’m not suggesting Arians is alone in this plight. Quite the contrary. I’m not sure there is a worse job in sports than being an offensive coordinator in the NFL. That includes being a head coach in the NFL (a subject for another blog), although just barely. Take a read through blogs in Chicago, Green Bay, Miami, and Dallas if you don’t believe me. Their OC’s take the same beat down. The only difference of course is that the Steelers tend to win more than those teams.

There are three reasons that plays fail in the NFL; the offense does not execute, the defense flat out stops it, or it was a bad call. I will not attempt to assign arbitrary percentages to this but I’m guessing choice number three is the least frequent reason; and the number one choice of most fans. It’s just so easy to look at any play that fails and say a different call would have worked better.

Keep this in mind. If it were so easy to move the ball in the NFL, they would not give you three plays to go just ten yards. It’s the NFL, not the Arena league.

Here is a question that Bob Smizik often poses in his blog. Why is it that when Dick Lebeau’s Steeler defense smoothers an offense, fans call it great defense, but whenever the Steeler offense scores less than 24 points its because Arians is an idiot?

I don’t agree with every call Arians’ makes. In fact, I disagree with a lot of them. That being said, I try to look at it logically. First, I don’t think I would agree with every call that any offensive coordinator would make. And second, much as I would like to believe otherwise, I doubt I would do any better.

Keep in mind that the Steelers biggest problem offensively is not Arians, it’s a mediocre offensive line. That’s been the problem for the last three years. Football games are won in the trenches and the Steelers are just not good enough in that area. The problem is that it’s hard for fans to see that. Anyone can tell that Arizona’s offense went in the tank after Kurt Warner started his dancing career. Offensive line play is far more subtle, and just as critical.

But I digress.

The age old question in football is what is more important, play calling or execution. Both are important. That being said if you accept the notion that the Steelers’ play calling is at least competent by NFL standards, and I believe it is, then you have to take a look at the players on the field. That’s ultimately what determines the success or failure of an offense no matter how much the arm chair QB nation thinks otherwise.

Let’s take a look at Sunday night’s loss to New Orleans. The Steelers lost and scored less than 24 points so Arian’s is being annihilated by a large contingent of the fan base. Here’s my take on the situation.

1) Failure to score on first and down from the 1 yard line

This is abysmal. The idea that an NFL team can not move the football ½ yard in three plays is unacceptable. In case you have not noticed, this has been going on for three years. I remain amazed that the Steelers won the Super Bowl a few years back in spite of being completely inept in short yardage offense. Say goodbye to four points right there.

This problem is directly attributable to the offensive line. Keep in mind that five plus running backs have struggled in short yardage behind this line. Last year Arians tried to compensate by throwing more in these situations. He got blasted for it by fans, media, and Art Rooney Jr. This year they’ve gone back to trying to run. And again he’s being blasted.

I personally would like to see the Steelers consider a play action pass or QB sneak on at least one play. That being said, there is no guarantee those plays would have succeeded. What is guaranteed is that whatever way the Steelers offense failed in that situation, Arians would get most of the blame. Keep in mind that the Saints also failed in goal line and they did pass on several plays.

2) Jeff Reed Misses a FG

In other news, Tuesday was a bad day for democrats, Jordan Staal is having a rough year and Cookie Monster likes..oh you get it.

Look, I don’t expect Reed to make every kick and 51 yards is a long attempt. In a vacuum, I could handle one miss. The problem is that Reed has been missing from all over the place this year. And this was in a dome.

Mike Tomlin has been criticized a lot this year for trying long kicks with Reed right before half time. The argument is that if (or when) he misses those kicks it puts the defense in a bad position. That’s a loser’s lament. Reed is supposed to be one of the best kickers in football. Not withstanding his warped perspective on his measly $2 Million contract, Reed is paid to make those kicks. It’s not Tomlin’s fault he continues to fail. My guess is that Tomlin is at the end of his rope with Reed which means he may very well start bailing on him beyond 45 yards.

3) Emmanuel Sanders Converts to Defensive Back

I realize the Steelers defensive backs have been shaky the last two years. Maybe Sanders figures he has a better shot to play there than at WR. I’m not sure William Gay has made a defensive play all year as good as the one Sanders made on Heinz Ward on 4th and 4.

Tomlin is taking a lot of abuse for going for it in that situation. Not from me. It’s good aggressive coaching. It’s a coach who believes in his defense and his quarterback and is taking a calculated risk. If you want a coach who never takes chances or always goes by the book, I assure you Dave Wannstedt will be available in a few years.

Is Tomlin at fault for the decision? Is Arians at fault for the call? Or is Sanders at fault for stepping in front of a well thrown ball that Ward probably would have taken for a touchdown? I say the latter and there goes another 3 to 7 points.

4) Heath Miller fumbles

I’m not bagging on Miller who is one of the Steelers most reliable players. That being said, ball security is paramount when you are driving late in the game. I said the same thing about Ben’s fumble in Miami, you just can’t let that happen there. I’m guessing Heath agrees with me since he James Harrisoned himself in the cranium after the play. Notwithstanding all my Reed criticism above, that’s at least 3 and maybe 7 points lost, at a very key time in the game.

If the Steelers execute those four situations above, they likely pick up somewhere between 13 and 21 points...and win the game. All of those plays were there to be made, as were many others the offense failed to execute.

I’m not blindly absolving the Arians and the coaches; they play their part in any loss. Successful teams win because of a combination of three factors; 1) The organization brings in the right personnel 2) The coaches put players in a position to succeed and 3) The players execute properly. Bad teams usually lose for the same three reasons. And while I admit that any one phase if bad enough can destroy the other two, I just don’t see it on a team that’s gone 39 and 20 and won a Super Bowl with this coaching staff.

If you really hate Arian’s, ask yourself who would be better. Bear fans hailed Mike Martz as a genius when he arrived. Instead his offense has proved a poor fit for a team with a bad offensive line and a head case QB. No matter how much Steeler fans don’t want to believe it, Arians’ offense works to the talent of the players we have. Alan Faneca is gone and Jerome Bettis retired.

To repeat, I neither love nor hate Arians. In the long run, I don’t care if he stays or goes. All I know is this, I would not want to be his replacement.