Pittsburgh Steelers Sick Turnaround Great In Win: Instant Reaction
The Pittsburgh Steelers desperately needed more than a win on Monday Night Football against the Houston Texans. They needed a solid win. A win that would give them much more to build on than just a slight climb in the standings. It didn’t appear that would happen during the first fifteen minutes of football, but the entire team – not just one side of the ball – turned things around and sent the heir to the NFL MVP packing out of Pittsburgh with a loss, and the Steelers continued their Monday Night winning streak.
As previously stated, the first quarter was simply abysmal by the Steelers. The defense was porous in the run defense. Arian Foster ran for 75 yards in the first quarter. The offense had little in the way of answers when they had the ball. Resume the #FireHaley’s. Resume the same gnashing of teeth. And, all for good reason, too. It kind of made you want to puke. But then something magical happened….
The Steelers were down late in the second quarter 13-0, and it looked like it was going to be another long night for the Steelers and Steeler Nation. Then out of nowhere, while the Steelers were on defense, Lawrence Timmons did something that may have changed the entire evening at Heinz Field. He puked all over the field and stayed in the game. The Texans failed on their third down conversion. When that snap was over and the players trotted off, Timmons puked again. All over himself. It was like Timmons’ vomit would become elixir for this defense.
The Steelers defense would bear down and begin to stop the running game. They applied pressure to a Ryan Fitzpatrick who continually struggles to be accurate when under pressure. The Texans started to go three and out. And then it happened. The offense scored. They scored 24 unanswered points to end the half. Talk about the tables being turned. When it looked like the Steelers were about to break under the foot of JJ Watt and the Texans, this team flipped this game on its head. The momentum made a monumental shift in a matter of 2:56. People were confused. It was bedlam on Twitter.
Oct 20, 2014; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (7) throws a pass against the Houston Texans at Heinz Field. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
The defense looked like a glimpse of itself from back in 2008. They swallowed up ball carriers. They caused splash plays at the most opportune time. They caused three turnovers. Three. In one game! Were these the same guys that allowed Brian Hoyer big passes to TE’s over the middle? Now, let’s not get too dreamy here. They did allow the Texans to come back late (as usual). There’s no such thing as ‘garbage time’ for this team, and the Texans came back within 7 after a late score. I have to note, however, that Cortez Allen continues to be awful. When Willie Gay outperforms you, you know you are not having a good night. Guy continues to play far off the receiver, gets lost, and sucks at tackling. Cordell “Adderall” Allen, needs to find his way and fast or he might have to start focusing on the bench instead of on the field.
Most importantly tonight – a few things. The young guys were called upon and stepped up. NT rookie Daniel McCullers had such a solid night. He took up space, he pushed guys around, and allowed his teammates opportunities to fill in the gaps (though that didn’t always happen). In fact. McCullers pushed one of the best centers in the league back five whole yards on a pass rush. Brice McCain also had a solid night in coverage. He broke up a couple passes and was able to secure the ball carrier after the catch. Mike Adams (you might want to sit down for this) even had a good night. After a couple injuries on the line, Adams was called upon and actually did very well. We didn’t hear his name all night, which was a very VERY good thing.
A few other surprises tonight. The play calling was decent for a change. The biggest head scratcher of the evening was a no-go on a 4th and inches. The Steelers have tried this hard count BS for years, and it never works. Teams are expecting it, and most defenses are disciplined enough to not fall for it. The Steelers took a delay of game, when they should have just let Ben Roethlisberger take the snap and fall forward the few inches he needed. Todd Haley is not off the hook. The red zone was better than the Steelers’ base line, but still sub par in comparison to the rest of the league.
Le’Veon Bell is magical and just plain fun to watch. Starting to really love this kid. He runs hard but with finesse (the good kind, not the Cowher kind). He can break ankles with his agile cuts, but he always lowers his shoulder and falls forward. I never see this guy run out of bounds without making someone pay. And, this kid isn’t supposed to be a bruiser. Such good things ahead for him and this running games.
Antonio Brown continued showing the world why he is a Top 5 receiver. He continues to run great routes. He has great moves. If you missed his cutback on that 3rd and 16 late in the 4th quarter, shame on you for six weeks. I’m keeping this game on my DVR simply to watch that over and over again. Oh yeah, and he had a TD pass (to Lance Moore) for that little cherry on top.
Here is where I mention that Darrius Heyward-Bey made a critical catch on a key 3rd down when the offense was pinned back in its own zone. Crazy town, I know.
Yeah, he’s in.
Finally, it must be mentioned how much the refs sucked – The holding by the Texans O-line all during first half that was never called. Watt went low on Ben, not called. Watt tackled Ben late in 4th quarter on deep pass to AB, never called. On the same play, AB was in bounds on attempted TD catch too but called out. Luckily, Ben wasn’t hurt on those, and the non-TD call didn’t break the Steelers back.
Feel good about this win Nation. The see-saw Steelers are in full force. What will we see next week? We’ll soon find out.