Monday Evening Quarterback - Week Thirteen

A Tale of Two Teams

I'm hesitant to even write about this topic for fear that my treatment of the subject will doom my other Pittsburgh sports love for the remainder of the season.  If Sidney Crosby blows out his knee tomorrow night, it's all my fault.

One of the most interesting things about the Year of Champions was the close camaraderie between Pittsburgh's championship teams last year.  From Max Talbot becoming a full-on Steeler fan to Casey Hampton sitting at center ice to Ray Shero and Kevin Colbert cheering each other on, the Penguins/Steelers crossover was something to behold.

Two young coaches brought trophies back to Pittsburgh, and their shared early success made it seem like it would be nothing but roses for a decade for both squads.

Now, months later, one team is still at the top of their game, while the other team has taken an embarrassing nosedive off of a tall cliff.

So what's the difference between these two teams and these two coaches?

INJURIES

The Steelers' season took a hit in the first quarter of their first game, when Alge Crumpler landed on Troy Polamalu's knee during a field goal attempt.  The Steelers' defense has never truly recovered.  The Steelers have also suffered other injuries.   Willie Parker went down with turf toe.  Aaron Smith went on IR with a shoulder injury.  Ben Roethlisberger took a knee to the head that likely cost the Steelers two games.

However, the Steelers' injuries pale in comparison to what the Penguins have overcome.  They've lost 111 man games through this season, and at one point had 5 of their top 6 defensemen out at the same time.

The Steelers haven't been able to come up with solutions to deal with their injuries.  Tyrone Carter has failed miserably at the strong safety position.  While the Steelers have been pretty good against the run, they're starting to show some wear and tear among what's left of their defensive line.

Meanwhile, except for one particularly empty stretch where the team was not only missing a ton of defensemen and some key forwards but also Evgeni Malkin, the Penguins have received tough, timely play from their replacement players.

Martin Skoula was brought in to be the 7th defenseman, but has proved to be much more than that, capable of playing every role from power play goal-scoring assassin with his radar-guided wrist shot to a capable penalty killer.

Minor league call ups Deryk Engelland and Ben Lovejoy were more than solid, they actually helped the team win a few games with their efficient play.  They proved that they could be trusted in the future.

Even late-bloomer Mark Letestu made the most of his minutes when Crosby sat with a groin injury, making great plays and winning the faceoff that allowed the Penguins to steal a point against the Blackhawks.

Now, the Penguins are 100% healthy - everyone is back.  When all of those players went down, conventional wisdom dictated that if they just stayed in the mix they'd be able to make a push when they got well.  Instead, they're tied for second in the league in points, sitting with the best teams in the NHL atop the standings despite dealing with almost comical adversity on the injury front.

The bonus to all of this is that with a contracted schedule, the Penguins will have a bunch of players who got to rest their bodies while the team still won games.  This should pay off in the playoffs.

The Steelers could never find the right mix of replacements when injuries happened, which speaks not only to their lack of depth in certain positions but also to the lack of adjustments made by the coaches.  Dick Lebeau is the greatest defensive mind in football history.  Even he didn't have an answer for the loss of Troy.

MOTIVATION

The Steelers have dropped games to some of the worst teams in the league, with the loss to the Cleveland Browns being just about the worst loss of the decade for this team.

Even worse, the lack of effort at certain points this season has been stunning, as well as the lack of attention to detail.  We heard a lot of quotes about how tough it is to defend a title, how every team has a chance to win its Super Bowl by beating the defending champs.  It turns out that most of that talk was empty.  The players quit, the locker room fractured and the Steelers went into a tailspin.

The Penguins have laid a few stinkers this season, starting with a listless shutout loss to the Phoenix Coyotes in their 3rd game of the year.  But that's about the only game where effort has been even a small issue.

In fact, there have been multiple losses by the Penguins where you simply had to praise their effort despite the result.  The aforementioned overtime loss to the Blackhawks is the perfect example.  A hot goalie kept the Penguins from scoring until late, but the Penguins put it all out there, even in a loss.

Head Coach Dan Bylsma has made sure that there hasn't been a championship hangover, though he's had help from his best players, and perhaps that's what the Steelers are missing.

THE FACE OF THE FRANCHISE

Ben Roethlisberger is the youngest quarterback ever to win a Super Bowl.  I believe his work ethic has improved as he's gotten older.  I don't believe that he got fat and happy during the offseason, but he's not the guy that teammates take their cues from as far as preparation and work ethic.

Sidney Crosby is the youngest captain ever to win a Stanley Cup.  He not only didn't get fat and happy this offseason, he worked his tail off to get even better, and it's showing.

Despite being one of the top players in the league from the day he stepped on the ice, Sidney Crosby has never scored 40 goals in a season.  This offseason (which amounted to about 3 months of actual time off), Crosby worked tediously to improve his shot, switching sticks in the process to the new-fangled composite sticks that limit feel but improve power.  He has harnessed that power, and is currently tied for third in the league in goals with 20, which puts him on pace for a 50 goal season.  He also worked hard at faceoffs, another weakness of his in the past.  He has improved from a 51% success rate to 57%, which puts him 10th in league right among some guys who are faceoff specialists and not much else.

Ben could learn from Crosby.  Being the best is never enough.  It's Ben himself who once said "if you're not getting better, you're getting worse."  Crosby lives that motto.  Ben, I'm not so sure.  I don't lay the blame of this season at Ben's feet.  But if he worked like Crosby, maybe others on the team would take the hint.  Maybe it's not enough to watch film at home on your off day.  Maybe it's about making your presence known at the facility so that teammates don't just know that  you're working, they see that you're working.

SOME SIMILARITIES

The one weakness that the Penguins have right now is their anemic power play, which is at the very bottom of the league standings.  This is baffling considering the excess of skilled players they possess.

This is where the same debate rages with the fan bases of both teams - is Mike Yeo (assistant coach and power play coordinator) to blame for his system, or are the players to blame for their lack of execution?  Yeo even has his own website dedicated to his dismissal, ala offensive coordinator Bruce Arians.

I see some similarities.  Some of the scheme stuff is questionable, but even despite those weaknesses in scheme the players are not making plays.  Penguins winger Bill Guerin has had numerous back door chances with an open net on the power play, and hasn't converted.  The Steelers have had wide open receivers in the end zone, but have been victimized by drops, sacks or picks. 

Much like Ben holds the ball too long waiting for the big play, the Penguins have a group mindset where they hold the puck too long and won't shoot, waiting for the perfect play.  Just like Ben, there are times when that patience pays off.  Is it wise to coach special players to do the simple things when they're capable of the spectacular?

In both cases, execution has been the biggest culprit but the scheme/playcalling hasn't forced the players out of bad habits, and there's a sense that the proper demands haven't been made of the players to change what they do.

The Penguins and Steelers are very similar teams.  Both have superstar talent on the front lines.  Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby are the two best players in hockey, and Ben Roethlisberger and Troy Polamalu are two of the best players in the NFL.

Both teams have scrimped at other positions to accommodate their superstars under the cap.  The Steelers have an offensive line that has improved their cohesion but still lacks talent.  The Penguins have wingers who play hard but aren't high-quality snipers and/or danglers who can make a ton of plays on their own.  Each team knows that these manageable weaknesses can become fatal weaknesses without much warning.

I believe that motivation is an overrated concept in coaching.  Players have to want to play, and no pregame speech or pep talk will change that.

I believe that the Penguins' players are simply more driven at this point in time.  Perhaps it's because so many of them suffered through some pitiful seasons before reaching the heights that they've reached.  The Steelers' current roster has a few guys who have experienced lows like 2003, but the great majority of them have barely seen any adversity in a Steelers' uniform, and those who have lived only through 2006, a season that fans write off as a bad year caused by nothing more than Ben Roethlisberger's motorcycle accident.

I'm hoping for two things.

One, that the Steelers' current struggles are a vivid reminder to this year's Penguins that nothing can be taken for granted.  I believe that they know this without the object lesson across the river, but it's a long season full of ups and downs.  Effort wins games, and the Penguins have had no shortage of effort.

Two, that the Steelers' current struggles make some of the members of that team re-think their attitude, re-think the idea that every game is a five star matchup simply because they're in it.  The Steelers needed to become a squad full of skilled grinders, as willing to muck it up in the corners as they are willing to take a breakaway pass behind the defense. 

Instead, they've mostly stood at the blueline waiting for the breakout pass while their teammates struggle to clear the zone, and a possible repeat has been all but mathematically iced.

FURIOUS FIVE

1.  Colts

They're the best the AFC has to offer, which is kind of sad.  They've struggled with some mediocre teams lately but remain undefeated.

2.  Saints

They haven't had a pretty last few weeks either, but they're also undefeated.  I believe they're a one and done playoff team.

3.  Vikings

They've got the championship formula, they're the most complete team in the league.  I believe that Brett Favre is destined to right some playoff failures this January, and I expect him to retire once and for all on the podium in Miami.

4.  Philadelphia Eagles

Their offense is really picking up steam now that Jason Peters is healthy and Leonard "Meat Cleaver" Weaver is getting a lot of touches.  He brings incredible versatility to the fullback position.

5.  New England Patriots

Somehow, someway, CBS and Roger Goodell will find a way to right what's wrong with this team.

AWARDS

The awards section has been cancelled.

QUOTABLE

"I like the fight in the group."

- Mike Tomlin, who apparently is coaching a different team than the one I'm watching.

STATS, STAT

25-40

The combined records of the teams responsible for the current 5 game losing streak.

MAKING THE ROUNDS

1.  If Keenan Lewis doesn't dress and if Tyler Grisham plays ahead of Limas Sweed from here on out, my opinion of Mike Tomlin might change dramatically.

2.  The OL felt left out - they had been pretty good up until the Cleveland game, but apparently were jealous of all the other failed units on the team and decided to join the club.  Pathetic efforts by Willie Colon and Justin Hartwig.

3.  The question isn't what positions should the Steelers draft, it's whether there's any position that the Steelers shouldn't draft.

4.  I'm not in favor of sea change with this team.  They need to inject new life into the roster and coaching staff, but this team is neither as bad as they've been or as good as they thought they were heading into this season.  Making drastic changes could set this franchise back for years, and I don't think that's a good idea with Ben and Troy entering their primes.  I'm not suggesting that they stay the course, but I am suggesting that they don't blow everything up just for the sake of placating a fan base that is as disappointed as its ever been.

5.  Play spoiler, Steelers, and take it seriously.  You have the chance to help keep your final three opponents out of the playoffs.  You need to take the misery you're experiencing and share it with the Packers, Ravens and Dolphins.  I'm far more interested in re-building this team's psyche than I am in getting the highest draft pick possible.

IN THE CROSSHAIRS

Mike Tomlin

It only took 5 games for the world to turn on you.  How will you respond?