by Anonymous Logician, Copyright September 23, 2007, all rights reserved. 870 views
I had to put up with some hate this September. I'm a true Steelers fan, which means I stick with them in plenty and in want, and last year was truly painful. With the approach of this year and the installation of new coach Mike Tomlin, critics were unsure how Big Ben and the offense would perform. Now, three weeks later, the haters are getting quiet. Even granting that Week One's trouncing of the Browns wasn't much to boast about, Pittsburgh is off to a great start. Week Two saw a solid spanking of Buffalo (much to the chagrin of one buddy I work with), and now the Steelers have added a 37-16 win over the 49ers.
And as far as Roethlisberger? He's not quite as flashy as the young rookie who went undefeated on '04 or won the Super Bowl in '05, but he's clearly recovered from last year's disaster. Motorcyle accidents aside, Ben made some bad calls last year and allowed himself to get rattled. This year he's spreading the ball around and making good decisions; he's no Brady or Peyton Manning, but then they have more years in the league.
The Steelers' real offensive star right now is RB Willie Parker. All three games have been 100-yard-plus for him, and his performance really put the hurt on Buffalo last week. But what else would you expect from the league-leading rusher? And with Ward looking as good as ever and Heath Miller stepping it up, things are definitely looking positive.
We have a good shot at the AFC North, but the real problem will be facing Indy and/or New England in the postseason. Both of these teams look unstoppable. Maybe they are. At any rate, as much as I hate the Pats (even more so given recent revelations of cheating), I have to admit that they are a talent-loaded, powerful team–and that the Brady-Moss combination (403 yrds so far) is probably the NFL's deadliest.
So how does a Steelers fan come off Week Three? Impressed, but still worried about the two AFC giants. Time will tell what hopes a Pittsburgh fan has for another ring.
But either way, I'll still be here.