Should auld acquaintance be forgot, And days o' auld lang syne.

Lyrics aside, I still don’t like the Cleveland Browns.  And I’m sure the Browns haven’t forgotten the beating handed to them by the Pittsburgh Steelers way back in week six.  Well, except for Joshua Cribbs and Mohamed Massaquoi, who probably don’t remember much from that game thanks to James Harrison.  I’m sure Silverback will be more than happy to renew acquaintances if either should be dumb enough to venture in to his part of the field.

You’ll have to forgive me if this Know Thy Enemy is shorter than usual as I’m still a bit exhausted from New Year’s.  No, I wasn’t drinking like a college girl in Milledgeville.  I was late, got stuck in traffic, then had to run up nine flights of stairs just to make sure I got to the party in time to be with my girl when the clock struck midnight.  That damn “Dice” song is still stuck in my head.

There’s not much to say anyway.  After we destroyed the Brownies, figuratively and literally, they went on to defeat the Saints and Patriots in back-to-back weeks.  Yes, Cleveland beat two of the four teams we’ve lost to this year.  And they narrowly missed beating the Jets the week after all that.  But they’ve lost their last three in a row, two of which (Bills and Bengals) were very winnable games, so they may be up-and-coming but they’re not quite there yet.

STEELERS DEFENSE vs. BROWNS OFFENSE

The Browns seem to have found a keeper at quarterback with rookie Colt McCoy.  He was the man behind center for those big wins and despite pretty unimpressive season numbers (5 TDs/6 INTs 1,400 yards in a half season’s worth of work), he’s shown enough to earn the starting job next season.  With a few more weapons at his disposal, he should prove to be a more than adequate signal caller.

Peyton Hillis has been the breakout star for the Browns this season.  The Browns’ recent struggles can be traced to his missing time due to injury.  To get an idea how huge Hillis is to Cleveland’s offense, not only is he the team’s leading rusher (10th overall in the NFL) but he’s the team’s second leading receiver.  P-Hill hasn’t practiced this week due to his sore ribs but with this being the team’s final game of the year, it is expected he’ll be out there on Sunday.

The Steelers defense will greet him with a rush defense seeking to set one of the best marks in NFL history.  They’re currently allowing a meager 64 rush yards per game.  The next best D is allowing 90.  If the Steelers can keep that mark under 65 for the season, they’ll be only the third team in the last thirty-five years to accomplish that goal.

Troy Polamalu practiced on Friday and is listed as questionable.  The Steelers are saying he’s “50-50″ but Troy sounds more optimistic than that.  Reading between the lines, it sounds like he’s pushing to play while they’re reluctant to risk him getting hurt on the eve of the playoffs.  I would play him since a first round bye is absolutely crucial to making any kind of run but the second we open up any kind of lead, he should go right back to the bench.

STEELERS OFFENSE vs. BROWNS DEFENSE

The Browns rank a notch above the Steelers in pass defense while they’re near the bottom against the run.  They also have the fourth fewest total sacks in the NFL.  Despite all this, they’re allowing only a smidge under 20 points a game which is better than the Chargers, Jets, Eagles, Patriots, or Giants.  So while they give up plays, they’ve clearly mastered the philosophy of “bend but do not break.”

Ben Roethlisberger has quietly put together a very nice season.  In addition to throwing for 3,000 yards, his 15/5 TD-INT ratio is a career best.  If not for the four missed games due to the unfair unwarranted unjustified suspension, he would’ve hit the 20 TDs/4,000 yards mark for a second consecutive season.  When you factor in the patchwork line, crippling injuries, and the officials out to get him, one might argue this has been the finest season of his career.

Rashard Mendenhall and Mike Wallace have done their part by contributing 1,000 yard seasons to the Steelers cause.  Hines Ward is sitting at 710 so barring some sort of crazy shootout, he’s not going to add another 1,000 yard season to his Hall of Fame credentials.  I’ll have more to say about Hines after the season is over in February but for now I’ll simply leave it at this.  While he’s clearly not the centerpiece of the passing game nor is he even the team’s second best option anymore (Heath Miller deserves that honor), I believe his heart and experience are not only key in big games but contribute to our young receivers coming along so quickly.

Josh Cribbs has not returned a punt or kick for a touchdown this season.  If the Steelers don’t allow any cheap points, I think they’ll be more than able to take care of business on Sunday.  To put this game’s importance in perspective, if the Steelers lose, they can fall from the second seed all the way to the sixth.  However, as I’ve said throughout the season, this team clearly learned from last year’s mistakes and never takes anything for granted.  Good news for the Steelers, not so good for the Browns.

Why I'm Glad I Didn't Go To Notre Dame

If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, the Pittsburgh Steelers will be blushing when they face the Carolina Panthers.  What?  Know Thy Enemy on Thursday?  Must be an NFL Network special event for those of us in the Steel City and the five other places which get that channel!

Anyway, Panthers owner Jerry Richardson has long admired Dan Rooney and his attempts at molding the Kitty Kats in the Black and Gold’s image go as far back as when they hired our defensive coordinator, Dom Capers, as the franchise’s first head coach.  Current coach John Fox was a secondary coach for both the Steelers and Pitt so you see the pattern continuing to this day.  In fact, if Richardson wasn’t such a cheapskate, I’m pretty sure Bill Cowher would have been more than happy to take over when Fox is shown the door after the season.

This has been a rough season for the first expansion franchise of the modern era to reach the Super Bowl.  The Panthers let some key personnel go after last season, resulting in a 2-12 record and massive rebuilding project for their next coach.  The low point of the Steelers miserable season last year was definitely the Thursday debacle against the Cleveland Browns.  However, this year’s squad seems to have learned their lessons, taking no games for granted and winning the games they should win.

STEELERS DEFENSE vs. PANTHERS OFFENSE

Carolina’s primary offensive weapons are in the running game.  Jonathan Stewart and second year man Mike Goodson make for a potent ground attack.  When the Panthers, currently ranked dead last in total offense, manage any sort of threat, it’s usually due to their running backs.  That’s the good news.

Good because the Steelers continue to put up some historic numbers in run defense.  They’re average per game rose by two yards after last week.  However, the #2 ranked team rose by five which means Blitzburgh’s average is a whopping 26 yards per game less than the next best unit.  Absolutely astounding.

If the Panthers can’t run, and the outlook is hardly positive, the game will be put in the hands of rookie QB Jimmy Clausen.  If the NFL is a quarterback driven league, the Panthers have a Volvo sitting in the garage.  Clausen has 1300 yards to his credit but only 2 touchdown passes against 7 interceptions.  It appears Jimmy won’t figure into Carolina’s future plans as the Andrew Luck Watch seems to be in full effect down in Charlotte.

The Steelers will be playing without Troy Polmalu for the second straight game. Troy has said he’s feeling much better and he very well may be on the field for the season finale against Cleveland.  I don’t believe in taking any opponent lightly but I have to agree with the idea of resting him for another week.  The defense didn’t play terribly against the Jets, they just didn’t get that one big play Troy always seems to provide.

If Ike Taylor can’t keep a lid on Steve Smith while guys like James Harrison or Lawrence Timmons make a couple plays against Clausen and that inept offense, they’re not as good as we think they are.

STEELERS OFFENSE vs. PANTHERS DEFENSE

Emotional leader Jon Beason has moved from MLB to OLB to replace Thomas Davis as Penn Stater Dan Conner went to the middle until he was lost for the season.  The Panthers lost even more pass rush when they allowed Julius Peppers to escape to the Bears during the off-season.  Although his replacement, fourth year pro Charles Johnson, has registered 9.5 sacks.  Despite Johnson’s solid play, the team is still in the bottom third of the league in total sacks.

Last week, our much maligned offensive line kept Ben relatively clean in the face of the Jets hellacious blitz packages.  There may be another change as Trai Essex is rumored to be taking over at LT for human pylon Jonathan Scott.  Scott was the bozo whose blocking “technique” of falling flat on his face led to the crucial safety late in the game.  He’s been various shades of awful since taking over for Max Starks so a switch to Essex would be more than justified.

The Panthers actually have a fairly decent defense, 12th overall in total yardage.  If there is a strength, it’s their secondary.  Perhaps their biggest playmaker is safety Charles Godfrey, who has five picks this year.  Corners Richard Marshall and the awesomely named Captain Munnerlyn have three each for what is the eighth best pass defense in the league.  Their weakness is in run defense, where they’ve replaced three of last year’s starting front four leading to a bottom ten standing and over 126 yards per game given up.

Heath Miller has been cleared of all concussion related symptoms so he should be good to go.  I’m sure Ben Roethlisberger will be happy to have his safety blanket back.  Emmanuel Sanders had a bit of a break out game last week so in addition to Hines and Mike Wallace, we should have all hands on deck.  Despite my analysis above, we may need to throw more than the match-up would dictate because Rashard Mendenhall tweaked his shoulder against the Jets which probably explains why Mewelde Moore got that ill-fated draw in the end zone instead of Mendy.

Of course, I prefer my explanation:  Bruce Arians is a dumbass.

The Steelers are pretty much where you want to be this time of year.  Sure, it would be nice to have everything clinched but the Colts have done that how many times with nothing to show for it?  We have our destiny in our hands.  Win out and the second seed and first round bye are ours no matter what anybody else does.  Not much more you could ask for than that.

Although the Pittsburgh Steelers play the Miami Dolphins tomorrow, their actual enemies are the list of teams blocking their path to a Wild Card playoff berth.  And to be even more technical, their enemy isn’t so much the teams ahead of them in the standings but the teams they are going to play.  If more teams follow the disgraceful example of the Indianapolis Colts and purposely tank games in order to “rest their starters,” our playoff hopes quickly go from slim to none.  So before we worry about the Fins, let’s take a look at what needs to happen tomorrow:

1) Steelers win and Houston loses or ties and New York Jets lose or tie.

2) Steelers win and Houston loses or ties and Baltimore loses or ties.

3) Steelers win and New York Jets lose or tie and Baltimore loses or ties and Denver loses or tie.

Mister Woodley already made his thoughts known on what he thinks other teams are going to do.  The Ratbirds travel out to Oakland while the Broncos have the Chiefs.  Assuming those teams win, our best hope is for scenario number one.  Displaying the class and dignity absent from the Colts, Bill Belichick has told Tom Brady that he is going to start against Houston.  I can’t believe I just typed that.  The Jets play the Bengals on Sunday night and Ochocinco has been talking trash on Twitter all week indicating the starters are also expected to play in that game.  The problem is both New England and Cincy are locked into the #3 and #4 seeds so regardless of what happens, neither team can earn a first round bye which means how long the starters play is anybody’s guess.

Of course, all these what ifs are pointless unless the Steelers take care of their own business against the Dolphins.  The Fins were basically eliminated from the race last week so they’re mostly playing the role of spoiler here.  The 1-15 Dolphins of 2007 probably weren’t that bad while the 11-5 team of last year probably wasn’t that good.  The 2009 team likely lies somewhere in between.

Offensively, they made great strides last season thanks to solid QB play from Chad Pennington and RB Ronnie Brown‘s exploits running the Wildcat.  Both players were lost to injury earlier in the season so the offense has had to change a bit.  Thanks to a resurgent Ricky Williams, they are still one of the top rushing teams in the NFL.  Former #1 overall pick Jake Long anchors a solid offensive line and former WVU Mountaineer Pat White provides a new twist to the Wildcat.  QB-of-the-future Chad Henne has come on as of late although this is still for all intents and purposes his rookie season.  He’s a stronger thrower than noodle-armed Pennington and has good instincts although their WR corps is pretty weak.  Basically, don’t let the Wildcat beat you and your chances of winning the game are pretty good.

Which is my one big concern this week.  Last week, the Steelers were gashed in the running game.  The loss of Aaron Smith and the abject failure of Lawrence Timmons as a run stopping LB finally reared its ugly head.  Also, the Wildcat is a formation which does very well against a pursuing type defense where players fly toward the ball and leave their gaps.  The Steelers fit that tendency to a tee.  I hate to remind people of this but recall the debacle in Cleveland a few weeks back where Josh Cribbs killed the Steelers running out of the Wildcat.  If the D can stay in their lanes and play a disciplined game, even our horrific secondary should be able to contain the Dolphins offense.

Defensively, Miami managed to hold nine opponents to 17 points or less last year, primarily due to a superb run defense.  Woodland Hills alum (and Dancing With The Stars champion) Jason “Twinkle Toes” Taylor returned after a one year vacation in Washington to shore up the pass rush while old friend Joey Porter continues to play at a high level.  Recognizing a weakness in their secondary, they used their first two draft picks on CBs Vontae Davis and Sean Smith.   Rookie CBs tend to struggle early on and thus Miami currently ranks near the bottom of the league in pass defense.

Which is obviously going music to the ears of newly elected Team MVP Ben Roethlisberger and the rest of the offense.  Even though Hines Ward is playing on two sprained hamstrings, he’ll suit up because the man is a warrior.  And the passing game still has plenty of  weapons regardless of his effectivenesss.  I’m most impressed by Steelers Rookie of the Year, Mike Wallace, who is quickly emerging as future star.  If Ben learns to air out the ball instead of underthrowing Wallace every damn time, we could be treated to a whole bunch of 40+ yard TDs for years to come.

Finally, a sad note.  Troy Polamalu had targeted this game for his return.  Although he has practiced in a limited fashion all week, all indications are he will not play.  Actually, I’m happy for that.   Not that I wouldn’t love to see #43 flying all over the field.  In practical terms, this game means nothing.   If the Steelers win and don’t get help, Troy rushed himself back for no reason.  If the Steelers win and manage to sneak into the playoffs, I’d rather have Troy back for that game than this one.

Let’s just hope there is one more game left to play after this week.