I apologize again to anyone who may have been following along.  Things have been difficult for my family, and even though I've still been following the NFL and especially the Steelers, I haven't been in the mood for blogging.  I took some time to go over posts from the last few weeks, and you've all had some insightful comments.  Hello again, and I hope you have all been well.

The most common talk about the Steelers right now has got to be how fortunate the team has been to have their bye week right now.  The first five weeks proved absolutely brutal -- of course, that seems to be going around the NFL this year, with Week Six claiming Cowboys QB Tony Romo among others.   Willie Parker will be returning and fresh, backed up by Najeh Davenport and Mewelde Moore, and our ground game should punish the poor Bengals, who look to be anticipating more getting out of this season with their stripes still on their helmets than actually winning games.

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Just in time to disappoint Steelers fans worldwide for the Bengals game, Willie Parker stepped in a hole and aggravated his sprained MCL.  Some details at http://www.fannation.com/truth_and_rumors/view/74034 for the curious.

If Parker does not play on Sunday the duty will once again fall on Mewelde Moore, whose 99-yard performance in Jacksonville proved, to me at least, that he's got the goods. I hope Willie recovers soon and avoids any more holes, but I'm not too terribly worried.

Continue reading "Quick Shot: Hole 1, Willie Parker 0"

Mewelde Moore hit the end zone twice and Byron Leftwich even got into the act as the Steelers turn the Bengals into creamed kitty, 38-10.  Speaking of hitting, Ryan Fitzpatrick hit the turf seven times thanks to the efforts of LaMarr Woodley, James Harrison, Lawrence Timmons and James Farrior, while for the first time this season Ben Rothlisberger was not sacked at all.

Moore had a 120 yard rushing day with two touchdowns on the ground.  He also added 14 receiving yards and another touchdown on five catches.  At this point, I have to ask -- if Willie Parker does come back from his close encounter with a hole in time to face the Giants next weekend, would it be worth it to put him in as the starter over Moore, who has had two fantasic games?  I have nothing but respect for Parker and want to see him back on the field, but Moore has delivered in the starting role, and I'm not so sure it would be wise to take him out and put in a guy who hasn't played in a month.  I say give Moore the start against New York, and if Parker is healthy, have him ready to play in the secondary slot.  Put Najeh Davenport or Gary Russell in the third-string role.  At this point, I don't think we're going to miss Rashard Mendenhall.  I think we could afford to trade him in the offseason after he heals.

Continue reading "Willie Who?"

As reported by KDKA, Santonio Holmes will be facing misdemeanor possession charges after police allegedly found marijuana "blunts" in his car.  Holmes has been deactivated and will not play Sunday against the Giants.

Holmes has been Roethlisberger's favorite target for the past few games.  So I have to wonder what this is going to do to the passing attack.  Hines Ward is the natural choice for primary receiver, at least in my mind, but if the offense had been shifting toward Holmes, is it going to be difficult putting the ball back in Ward's hands?

Still no word on whether Willie Parker will play on Sunday.  At this point I'm going to anticipate seeing Mewelde Moore continuing as the main RB, backed up by Najeh Davenport.  I think Moore will turn in another solid performance against the Giants, so I'm not terribly concerned.  Better for Parker to get healthy.  We have plenty of other tough teams to face.

Continue reading "Holmes facing charges; no word on Parker; Polamalu pushing it"

And there you have it, folks, the final from Heinz Field: New York 21, Pittsburgh 14.

I've only got a few things to say here.  First off, the Steelers' offense should be ashamed of themselves.  Second, the Steelers' defense are heroes and the offense should buy them all dinner.  Third, Mike Tomlin has a lot of butts to kick, chief among them Ben Roethlisberger's.  The Steelers should have had that game, and they lost because only half the team showed up.

Next week: the Washington Redskins at FedEx Field.  So far, the NFC East has Pittsburgh's number.  Will the trend continue?

Continue reading "Steelers' Offense Hands Win To Giants"