Steelers Morning Huddle 10/26/2013
By Kim Myers
Huddle up!
Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
In the NFL you have to have a short-term memory, for the most part. You can’t take what happened last week with you into this week. The Steelers are saying all the right things when it comes to trying to keep the momentum of their back-to-back wins going and avoid falling again out in Oakland on Sunday afternoon. Only time will tell. Here’s what’s being said about your Pittsburgh Steelers around the block.
Brett Keisel on facing Oakland
Teresa Varley of the Steelers website had a one-on-one with DE Brett Keisel about the Steelers upcoming matchup against the Oakland Raiders. Keisel talked about everything from when he used to watch Terrelle Pryor as a Jeannette High School football star to how to avoid the same issues the Steelers ran into last year against the Raiders. When he was asked about how they plan to deal with the Raiders fans in the “Black Hole”, Keisel pointed out how Tomlin educated the team on the history between the two teams.
"“It’s like Halloween out there every week. Coach (Mike) Tomlin showed us the history of the series going back to the 70s. There is a deep rivalry there, especially back in the day how competitive those two teams were. It’s a tough place to play with a great history. It’s one of those things you have to relish and go get a win.” – Brett Keisel"
Ryan Clark on disappointing Steeler Nation
For those that thought Ryan Clark was going to take anyone’s suggestion to keep his mouth shut for the remainder of the season, you’re sadly mistaken. The man is a talker and he’s going to keep it going regardless of the impact. However, after hearing his podcast with MMQB’s Peter King, I can appreciate how Clark owned up to the disappointment the team has been to the fans so far for the season and how the expectations here in Pittsburgh are so high because the fans care so much. He was asked what it was like in the city of Pittsburgh with the Steelers at 0-4.
"“Tough. We were embarrassed.” –Ryan Clark"
When he was asked what makes the city of Pittsburgh different as a football city he said,
"“The loyalty of the fans is unparalleled.” – Ryan Clark"
I appreciate Clark’s kind words about the fan-base and that he at least “gets it”. I also appreciate the fact that there are no more bye weeks for him to spend up at ESPN causing more problems with his comments.
Double Coverage
The ESPN bloggers for both the Steelers and Raiders had a chat about Sunday’s game and covered the predictable topics such as Terrelle Pryor’s Pittsburgh connection, and the history of the two rivals going back to the 70s, but they also covered the keys for each team to win the game. Both writers seem to agree that the winner of the turnover battle will be the winner of the game on Sunday. The Steelers’ turnover ratio is at an undesirable -10 right now and the Raiders are even with their turnovers. The Steelers might have the edge in the turnover department with the veteran defense going against a first-year starting quarterback. They were able to get their first turnovers of the season against a rookie quarterback in Geno Smith. Hopefully Terrelle Pryor is just as, if not more, generous.
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