Steelers vs. Bengals: Tomlin Monday

With a holiday towards the end of the week Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin held his usual Tuesday-presser on Monday afternoon. He reviewed the victory over the Kansas City Chiefs, updated injury statuses, previewed the upcoming game against the Bengals and answered questions.

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Tomlin explained that the team came away with the victory on Sunday by winning the battle of the red zone against the Chiefs. The Chiefs came into the game with the NFL’s No. 1 red zone defense as well as the league’s No. 2 red zone offense. The Steelers were able to take care of the Chiefs on both sides of the ball in the red zone.

"“Red zone defense was going to be big, because we acknowledged that Kansas City has a great red zone defense and that points could be difficult for our offense down there when the field got short. We challenged our defense to match their success rate in that area. Obviously, they did, and they did so emphatically.” – Mike Tomlin"

The Steelers offense was able to convert two of their four trips to the red zone into touchdowns on Sunday while the Steelers defense held the Chiefs to 0-4 in their red zone trips. Tomlin lauded the defense for their ability to stop the Chiefs, and described that those stops lifted the team, so to speak, to the victory.

"“I thought it went beyond the stops. The nature of some of the stops were significant and were a shot in the arm from an emotional standpoint. The Chiefs had a nice field goal fake and got a new set of downs down there, and the guys stood up and defended that round again. We caused a fumble on a hustle play by Stephon Tuitt, and that was big. The fourth-down stop before the half as well. The manner in which some of these stops were made were emotional lifts for us, and we were able to ride the wave as a football team.” – Mike Tomlin"

Tomlin said that the team got out of the game relatively healthy. Vince Williams has an ankle injury and Kelvin Beachum has a lower back injury that might limit them but both will be monitored in practice this week. The players being evaluated for potential returns from injury this week include Ike Taylor, Troy Polamalu, and Matt Spaeth.

As far as previewing the Bengals, Tomlin noted that the fact that the teams just played each other two weeks ago means there’s a lot of familiarity there. On both sides of the ball. It’s got the makings for a huge AFC North showdown.

"“It’s the same for us as it is for them. We are familiar with them because we play them a lot. They’re familiar with us. We are recently familiar with them from a matchup standpoint, but so are they. It’s significant ball. It’s a big game for both teams. From that standpoint and perspective, the playing field is level.” – Mike Tomlin"

Tomlin noted the challenges the Steelers will face up against the Bengals offense including Jeremy Hill and A.J. Green. The last time the Steelers played the Bengals, Green racked up 200+ receiving yards but the Steelers were still able to leave with the win. It would be a better plan to try and limit his impact on the game this time around. On the defensive side of the ball, the Steelers need to be concerned with Rey Maualuga and Geno Atkins.

It was another week for the Steelers to receive a horribly awful call from the referees and Mike Tomlin still isn’t taking the bait to complain about the refs. This time it was a taunting penalty called on William Gay for striking a pose directed at Lawrence Timmons following a third-down stop made by the linebacker. He clearly wasn’t pleased with the call but realizes there are bigger things at hand than bitching about the awful refs.

"“I’m not going to waste my time placing calls to New York asking for clarification on stuff I know the answer to.” – Mike Tomlin"

I thought the Steelers did an excellent job not keeping the negativity of that call on their shoulders. Sure it gave the Chiefs a fresh set of downs and advanced them 15 yards, but the Steelers defense stood tall and kept them out of the end zone on that drive. The Chiefs kicked a 43-yard field goal to cut into the Steelers’ lead 17-9.

Tomlin was also asked about James Harrison’s performance and if that reminded him of James’ younger years. Harrison played like a man on a mission on Sunday, recording seven tackles and 1 ½ sacks. He completely dominated last year’s first pick in the draft; tackle Eric Fisher, the entire game.

"“You have to remember the mid-2000s and the type of animal he was. I’ll take the guy that played yesterday. James plays with a great deal of emotion and desire. He’s got a great football character. Obviously he’s got a lot of talent, but he’s got 37-year old talent as opposed to late 20-year old talent like he used to have and there’s a difference.” – Mike Tomlin"

Obviously Count = 11

You can listen to Tomlin’s entire presser right here.

Here we go Steelers! Here we go!

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