Gospel 10...Play That Funky Music White Boy

The Steelers are a team who are failing to meet their potential this season. I was absolutely shocked with the home loss to the Bengals…To be completely honest I should not have been shocked. The bad fortune started November 14^th in a church in South Carolina (I know what your thinking what was your fat ass doing in a church FC) I was at a wedding and the preacher is doing his thing…Then all of sudden he reaches for something…Jesus Christ please tell me that’s not what I think it is…This bastard pulls out a terrible towel and starts waving it…The Football Gods were not happy…Hence the Steelers loss. I know I should have taken out the preacher…I should have taken his knees like Brady Quinn on Terrell Suggs…I failed to strike…The bad Juju last Sunday was FC’s fault…I promise every member of Steelers nation this…Next time I see a holy man with the Terrible Towel…His ass is getting drilled.

 

-39 of Santonio Holmes 43 catches have gone for first downs this season.

-Chiefs quarterbacks have combined to post a 5.68-yard per attempt average this season....27th in the NFL

-The Steelers have not lost to a team that finished the season with a losing record since 2007...The Chiefs have not beat a team that finished the season with a winning record since 2007.

-Chiefs Punter Dustin Colquitt leads the NFL with 27 punts inside the 20-yard line.

-The Steelers are 9-4 all time in Kansas City

-Pittsburgh ranks first in total defense in the AFC and third in the NFL by allowing just 277.4 yards per game

 

 

The Chiefs will play their Super Bowl this Sunday at Arrowhead Field…The Steelers have to be ready for a Chiefs team that will try anything to win. The Chiefs defense has talent on paper…The players don’t fit the scheme…A majority of the Chiefs starters are holdovers from a 43 Cover 2 defense. I believe the Steelers will dominate the line of scrimmage in the run game…The Steelers have favorable matchups against the interior of the Chiefs defense…I expect Bruce Arians to attempt to jump start this passing game…What I’m trying to convey is this…The run game will once again be there and Arians will insist on throwing the ball…Posters will be quick to complain…The Steelers have struggled to pick up vanilla defensive fronts; they also struggled to complete passes against vanilla coverage’s…The Steelers offense is somewhere between solid and shitty on any given Sunday…I believe the term “balance” is abused by the media…Most offenses are seeking consistency…At this point the Steelers have zero consistency. The only way an offense can become more consistent is game action…Arians is willing to take his lumps in October and November so he can have success in January and February. The reason the Steelers have nothing to hang their hat on is simple…Some games the offensive line is dominant…Other games they stink…Some games the receivers make plays on every ball in the air…Other games they can’t beat coverage or catch the ball. Players are failing to win matchups… People are far to quick to blame Bruce Arians…Arians has his warts…He shares some of the blame…Tomlin and the position coaches share some of the blame. I honestly believe the Steelers offense was poorly prepared for several games this season. When a team is constantly searching for answers to the same problems you have major communication and coaching breakdowns. When you get past the coaching issues…Players have to make plays. Ben will lead this offense to Valhalla or to the Porta-John…Ben was off Sunday…It happens… Ben is money when the game is for all the marbles.

 

The good news…The Steelers offense has plenty of weapons.

 

I believe the Steelers can control the line of scrimmage against the Chiefs. Max Starks draws former lottery pick Glenn Dorsey in the run game. Dorsey is a quick explosive penetrating player who is best suited for a 1 gap defensive tackle role. Starks is going to have to play with a proper pad level to maintain leverage against Dorsey in the run game…I expect Starks to wall off Dorsey which will limit his penetration and keep Dorsey away from the ball carrier in the run game. Starks will draw former Penn St Nittany Lion Tamba Hali in pass pro. Hali is best suited for left defensive end in a 4-3 front…Hali has zero finesse to his pass rush game…He is a pure power rusher…I expect Starks to absorb Hali’s initial rush move and engulf him…I expect Starks to have a quiet afternoon which is always a good thing for an offensive linemen. Steelers guards Chris Kemoeatu and Trai Essex will be forced to help Steelers center Justin Hartwig with Chiefs nose tackle Ron Edwards…Edwards is not very stout at the point of attack…I expect the Steelers guards to punch down on a quick double team then immediately move to the 2^nd level to pick off the Chiefs undersized under skilled inside linebackers Demario Williams and Corey Mays. I believe the Steelers should be able to run the ball at will against the Chiefs…I expect the Steelers to dominate the interior front 7 matchups in the run game. Chris Kemoeatu will have his hands full with Glenn Dorsey and Wallace Gilberry rushing the passer…Both players have the quickness and leverage to dominate Kemo in pass pro. Kemo has to keep his pad level in check and he must maintain his balance. Trai Essex will draw Tyson Jackson and Gilberry rushing the passer…Jackson is a player the staff members at this board were high on…Jackson is still learning the NFL game…The talent is there…The toolbox is not there yet. I expect Essex to hold up his end of the deal in pass pro against Jackson. Willie Colon and Tyson Jackson should be a helluva matchup in the run game…I actually favor Jackson in this matchup. Jackson is the type of a player that gives Colon fits in the run game...Jackson is a long athletic powerful man with a great first step and sudden power…I believe Jackson will beat Colon off the ball allowing him to control the leverage battle at the line of scrimmage… The First lowest inside principle controls line play…The First person off the ball who is lowest and gets his hands inside first wins 95% of the battles. Willie Colon will also have his hands full with Mike Vrabel rushing the passer…Vrabel is nowhere near the player he once was for the Steelers or Pats…Vrabel still has the ability to set up a tackle rushing the passer…Vrabel beats blocks with skill and understanding of the game…He sets up a tackle for 1 thing and drops another…Willie Colon is the key player for the Steelers this week across the offensive line…I really love the other line matchups from a Steelers perspective.

 

The Chiefs back 7 is not real talented…They play the game hard. The Chiefs will be forced to double team Santonio Holmes…Brandon Carr is a decent corner…He doesn’t have the agility or quickness to stay with Holmes on vertical routes. Holmes has to become a premier game breaker…Holmes has all the talent in the world…Holmes biggest problem…He believes he is a game breaker already…Game breakers make great plays when the game is on the line…Holmes allowed a great play to squeeze through his hands against the Bengals…Game breakers catch balls deflected or not. Hines Ward will eat up soft coverage…He will find all the open spaces in zone coverage’s…Hines Ward can be taken out of the game by quality man bump coverage…Ward can no longer get away with physically abusing corners in coverage the referees are looking for the dirtiest player in the NFL to cheat…Chiefs corner Brandon Flowers will draw Ward in coverage…Flowers is limited athletically…His strength is bump coverage and passing off the receiver…I expect Hines Ward to have a bounce back game this week…Ward was abused against the Bengals last week…Ward will find a way to make some plays this week. The Steelers passing game has a few issues…Ward’s limited athleticism is magnified by a tight end who can’t beat coverage…Heath Miller played like a piece of shit against the Bengals…You didn’t mis-read…That’s not a typo…Heath Miller is the most over paid starter in the NFL now that JaMarcus Russell has been benched by the Raiders. Miller can’t block, Miller can’t run, Miller is a quagmire…Miller’s inability to challenge coverage schemes allows teams to pack the zones tight…Miller was not only shut down by backers in coverage…Robert Geathers and Demato Peko Bengals defensive linemen ran stride for stride with Miller in man coverage…That’s losing football and unacceptable…Heath Miller was a hindrance in the Bengals game. I expect Heath Miller and Matt Spaeth to be dominated in the run game this week by Mike Vrabel and Tamba Hali…My hope is simple…The Steelers show some 4 wide receiver sets. Mike Wallace is a zone coverage nightmare…The Chiefs will have no answer for Wallace…The Chiefs like to roll an extra safety in the nickel and dime formations…No way that will work this week. I spoke of consistency earlier…Limas Sweed has showed the ability to consistently beat coverage…I believe the plays Sweed makes in November and December could make this offense lethal in January and February...Most people are going to claim Miller is kept in for blitz pickup…That would be false…Miller is only kept in when the defense brings more than 5…The Steelers have trusted Starks and Colon on island a ton this year…Both players have earned that trust. I’m not saying Heath Miller doesn’t have value to this offense…Heath Miller has limited athletic ability…He is not a fit for the progression of this offense…He doesn’t have the ability to pull coverage away from the wide receivers. The Chiefs safeties have played above expectations this year…Mike Brown was the AFC player of the week…DeJuan Morgan is a player I really liked coming out of college…Both struggle to consistently make plays on the ball…I believe the Steelers can expose this defensive back 7 vertically in the passing game. I hope the Steelers use inferior opponents as test subjects for this offense…The Steelers need the full arsenal of weapons if they want to win another Super Bowl.

 

Ben is Ben…He is human…He had a shitty game. I will take him over any quarterback in the NFL. Mendy looks for real to me…He still makes mistakes…Mendy shows signs of improvement every week…He will be one of the main reasons this team repeats as Super Bowl Champions. DJ Johnson is the classic fullback many posters were yearning for…He has to earn Ben’s confidence in the passing game…I believe Johnson could be a weapon in this offense.

 

All is not lost Steelers faithful…The Steelers never win easy or pretty…This team has to give us a sweat.

 

The Chiefs offense was ugly before Dwayne Bowe fired up his drug test and Larry Johnson called Todd Haley a golfer…The Chiefs have a few talented players left on the roster…I just don’t see many on the offensive side of the ball. I expect the Chiefs to attempt to spread out the Steelers and hit ball control safe routes…3-5 Step drops to get the ball out of Cassell’s hands. The Chiefs will mix in Jamaal Charles in the run game; the Chiefs hope will be they can spread out the Steelers creating running lanes. Haley did a nice job of scheming against the Steelers defense when he was with the Cardinals…I don’t see a Larry Fitzgerald Anquan Boldin or Stevie Breaston on the Chiefs roster…Matt Cassell is no Kurt Warner. I expect the Steelers to dominate the line of scrimmage…Slowly inch the defensive backs up in coverage taking away the ball control routes…By the mid point of the 2^nd quarter Cassell will remember this defense from last year…He will mentally shut it down and the Steelers will run away with the game.

 

Chiefs left tackle Branden Albert has struggled in pass protection…He has given up 9 sacks on the season…Some of Albert’s struggles come from indecisive quarterback play…I believe Albert could be a pro bowl left guard…He really struggles in space with his footwork on the edge…James Harrison will abuse Albert at times…Like I posted earlier…I expect the Chiefs to attempt to utilize a quick passing game…Harrison maybe quiet early…He will finish with at least 2 sacks. Albert is a very good run blocking left tackle…His footwork and balance in the run game are textbook…He struggles with power ends in the run game…Brett Kiesel has played lights out football the past 3 games…I expect Kiesel to control his gap against Albert…I don’t see either player dominating. Kiesel draws Brian Waters in pass pro…Waters is a former tight end with elite movement skills…Waters still has the ability to anchor against power…I expect Kiesel to give Waters some problems from a length standpoint…I don’t expect much from Kiesel rushing the passer this week…Waters is still one of the better guards in the league. In the run game Waters along with right guard Andy Alleman will be forced to help Chiefs center Rudy Niswanger with Casey Hampton…Unlike the Steelers guards I expect the Chiefs guards to be forced to help with Hampton for an extended period of time which will allow Timmons and Farrior to freely flow to the ball. Ziggy Hood/ Nick Eason draw Andy Alleman in pass pro…Alleman is a bit of a mystery to me…He was cut by the Saints after being a 3^rd round pick in 2007…He signed with the Dolphins in 08 where he started 2 games and played pretty well…Cut again signed with the Chiefs started the past 2 games and has played pretty well. Ziggy Hood will continue to improve with the number of snaps he sees…Hood does a great job of collapsing the pocket. Eason has been a stalwart replacing Smith and Kierschke…I expect Kierschke and Troy to miss this weeks game. Nick Eason and Ryan O’Callaghan should be a war in the run game. O’Callaghan was one of the best right tackles I saw in college football prior to his shoulder injury…Things never worked out in New England and O’Callaghan jumped at the chance to play in KC. O’Callaghan has done a great job in pass pro so far this season…Lamar Woodley is a streaky rusher…Wood seems to be heating up…I expect the rush to improve as the game gets into the 2^nd half.

 

The Chiefs tight ends are physical…They can’t block the Steelers outside linebackers…Sean Ryan and Leonard Pope couldn’t block Harrison and Woodley with baseball bats. Sean Ryan maybe the most reliable Chiefs receiving threat this week. I don’t expect the Steelers to miss Troy this week….I have faith in Lil Evil Carter to make plays for this defense. Lawrence Timmons needs to locate the ball in the air quicker…I understand he is still transitioning to linebacker…Timmons is on the verge of great things in coverage. James Farrior’s age is finally showing…The reaction time is the first thing to go…Potsie was a driving force of this defense…When the snow begins to fall Farrior steps up his game(field conditions make things equal). My only fear is Jamal Charles in the passing game…Charles can beat any backer or safety in coverage…The Steelers must account for Charles in the passing game at all times…He is the lone game breaker on this offense.

 

Ike Taylor will draw Lance Long in coverage…Ike will shut him down…Ike has shown continued improvement the past 3 weeks…Palmer flat out told Johnson he couldn’t beat Taylor…Your not getting open Chad.Willie Gay is the latest Steelers whipping boy for the fans…Gay is not very physical…He is a quality cover corner…My issue with Gay is he doesn’t trust his athletic ability…He continues to play with hesitation instead of trusting his read…Gay has left 3 balls on the turf the past 3 games…I expect Gay to pick off a few passes over the next 4-5 games…Gay will draw Bobby Wade who I did not know was still in this league until last week…The Chiefs new secret weapon is Chris Chambers…Who has had some success against the Steelers in the past…Chambers won’t get a free release against the Steelers…The Steelers will chuck him with a corner or a backer knocking him off his route making him useless. Deshea Townsend refuses to age…He will still get beat in coverage...Only when the receiver runs a perfect route. Ryan Clark and Lil Evil will patrol the deep half…They will seek and destroy.

 

The Steelers defense has played lights out this season…They have deserved a better fate.

 

The Steelers kick coverage team sucks. Punt coverage is good. Kicking game is decent. I give the Chiefs the advantage in all aspects of the special teams.

 

Steelers 34

Chiefs 6