Ok, Let's Start The Serious Football Talk

[jw7]

My post count isn't high enough for the board to allow me to put up links

Too funny. 5 more posts and you can link. We'll be here.

I think this is what you are referring to: Linky

 

[hotmagma]

I think the key to this game is simple:


make the Steelers go long fields for their points. That means no cheap special teams scores, no turnovers deep or returned for scores, no 75 yard tds. I realize its much easier said than done.

If that is the case, I dont think Pittsburgh scores more than 17 points -- and I really like the Cardinals prospects in that case.

Uhm. What you just suggested is that the Steelers run a long, methodical, ball control offense to chew up the clock?

And this favors the Cardinals how?

 

[hotmagma]

IMO opinion the keys to the game are simple.

Score early and keep putting them in a catch up mode.
Stop the run.
Time of possesion.
Turn overs
Special teams.

If we win 4 out of these 5 we will win the super bowl parade coming down central.

GBR
40

I don't mean to come across rude, but your statement could be considered a virtual "Bill of Rights" for winning nearly any football game. It is like saying "we can win this game if we score more points than the other team."

 

[Perfectionist]

Great Thread.
4. A HUGE key to this game will be stopping Pittsburg on 3rd down. The Steelers run the rock, and run it well, but they also have a lot of 3rd down situations. Everytime I see the Steelers, they are most successful passing out of a bunch formation. The Cardinal used to run it a lot when Denny Green was here. Stopping the bunch formation will be a key in this game for the Cardinals.

I think this is the big key to Cardinals winning. I think they will make the commitment to stop the run (as they have done this whole playoff run) and so Steelers will face many 3rd downs. It is how the Cards handle these third downs that will tell the results of this game. If we go to the three man rush and give Roethlisberger all day to throw it will not be pretty for the Cards. But if they bring the heat and stay disciplined downfield, the Cards will win this game.

 

[LukesDad88]

I think this is the big key to Cardinals winning. I think they will make the commitment to stop the run (as they have done this whole playoff run) and so Steelers will face many 3rd downs. It is how the Cards handle these third downs that will tell the results of this game. If we go to the three man rush and give Roethlisberger all day to throw it will not be pretty for the Cards. But if they bring the heat and stay disciplined downfield, the Cards will win this game.

Nope, strongly disagree with you there. As odd as it sounds, that's when Ben can be at his best. That's when things break down and it becomes Sandlot football. Your best bet on third down is to rush three and drop into some exotic coverages. That's where he'll make his biggest mistakes.

 

[Perfectionist]

Nope, strongly disagree with you there. As odd as it sounds, that's when Ben can be at his best. That's when things break down and it becomes Sandlot football. Your best bet on third down is to rush three and drop into some exotic coverages. That's where he'll make his biggest mistakes.

When the Cards have not put pressure on the opposing qb, they have been torn up. I would rather create a couple of turnovers and risk a big play, but just watching Ben carve us up because we didn't pressure him is unexceptable.

 

[MrYeahBut]

When the Cards rush only 3 I want to close my eyes and not watch

 

[Trophytown]

i agree with Donald on two thing. First,we will score. We have scored on everyone except that snow game. This week will be no different. I tried telling that to Eagle fans last week and they thought i was crazy by the Giants couldn't score . Secondly, the due theory works. Right before Akers lined up for his 2nd FG i said he's due to miss,result,wide right,no good.

Due theory............? Perhaps Warner is due for his occasional poor game ? No ? Perhaps Fitz is due to come back to earth ? No ?

Due theory............*shrugs

This game and the outcome hinges on ball control, turnovers(mistakes) and special teams. THOSE 3 elements will dictate who wins on Sunday. Not sure about any "due" theory. If there were due theories neither of these teams would likely be here. Either you execute strategy or you dont.

 

[Doc Cardinal]

That's fine because we run like old people have sex: not too well and not too often.

Jeff....you're killin me....and I'll be usin that line more than once in the next few days when people ask me about MY Cardinals. They've already asked me about the Boldin/Haley thing and if Wilson's 66 inch you tube jump was bogus.

I'm just happy to be here. I've skipped many a super bowl because I just didn't like the teams. If there was an underdog I liked then I rooted for them and watched the game....like last year. Well this year me thinks I have an underdog to root for.

 

[Trophytown]

Lots of folks, even lots of players really dont understand how chaotic the zone blitz scheme that LeBeau incoporates complicates things for offensive lineman and quarterbacks. Warner is successful when he gets his timing down. QB's like to get what is called that "rythmn". The zone blitz confuses you because you dont know who's coming.......you dont know where its coming from or if its even coming at all. The athleticism of the LB's and D lineman make the scheme LeBeau incoporate very successful. Offensive linemen (presnap) will recognize personnel and "mark" the protection. What happens next is what gets confusing. The O-linemans assignment gets muddled because his man immediately drops into coverage, replaced by a safety shooting in from NT position or the flanks--perhaps there is no one left for the lineman to block as the defense overloads one side of the line. This is why its possible with just 3 to 4 rushers to present problems for the pass protection. The personnel that drop in coverage takes away those angles the QB wants with his quick reads or his hot reads that were designated presnap. With routes compromised with an extra defender in coverage and pressure ensuing from the confusion faced by the protection unit, it can become chaotic, especially for a QB whose success is predicated on quick releases and timing. Warners a smart QB.......very intelligent and if he somehow overcomes this chaos he indeed deserves to be the Superbowl MVP.

 

[Cbus cardsfan]

Due theory............? Perhaps Warner is due for his occasional poor game ? No ? Perhaps Fitz is due to come back to earth ? No ?

Due theory............*shrugs

This game and the outcome hinges on ball control, turnovers(mistakes) and special teams. THOSE 3 elements will dictate who wins on Sunday. Not sure about any "due" theory. If there were due theories neither of these teams would likely be here. Either you execute strategy or you dont.

i forgot there were steeler fans here. The due theory was sarcasm.

 

[Stout]

Uhm. What you just suggested is that the Steelers run a long, methodical, ball control offense to chew up the clock?

And this favors the Cardinals how?

You aren't grasping the concept. We want to force them into having to do that to win. Meaning putting the Steelers into bad field position, and forcing them to drive the length of the field. Of course, that gives us plenty of time and real estate to force them to fail. Tell me how that WOULDN'T favor the Cards?

 

[Stout]

I just want to comment on one point; Why is there such a perception that Ben gets rattled? The guy is a flat out gamer. He does take some chances that do not always pay off, but rattled is just not accurate. Chad Pennington gets rattled, Delhomme gets rattled, Ben takes chances and there is a big difference.

Because when the Steelers run game fails and Ben is forced to do it on his own, teams key on him and fluster him into huge mistakes, ala the Tennessee game. If you can't run, your offense is going to have a ton of problems. Ben is sack and fumble prone.

 

[Trophytown]

Because when the Steelers run game fails and Ben is forced to do it on his own, teams key on him and fluster him into huge mistakes, ala the Tennessee game. If you can't run, your offense is going to have a ton of problems. Ben is sack and fumble prone.

You didnt see the Baltimore game (2nd contest) or the Dallas game ? Steelers were without their pro bowl back for a significant part of the season and as a result their running game suffered but Ben has been able to put this team on his back and more times than not he's come out victorious.

He has a great defense to lean on which gives him a much larger cushion for errors.

 

[RugbyMuffin]

You didnt see the Baltimore game (2nd contest) or the Dallas game ? Steelers were without their pro bowl back for a significant part of the season and as a result their running game suffered but Ben has been able to put this team on his back and more times than not he's come out victorious.

He has a great defense to lean on which gives him a much larger cushion for errors.

DRC vs. Santonio Holmes

There is your match up.

The sleeper match up is Sweed vs Fransisco

 

[Stout]

You didnt see the Baltimore game (2nd contest) or the Dallas game ? Steelers were without their pro bowl back for a significant part of the season and as a result their running game suffered but Ben has been able to put this team on his back and more times than not he's come out victorious.

He has a great defense to lean on which gives him a much larger cushion for errors.

Oh, he can do it...at times...no doubt. Odds are stacked against your offense, though, if our defense plays the run the way it has thus far in the postseason. More times than not, when asked to do it all, Big Ben makes plenty of errors.

 

[Cheesebeef]

You didnt see the Baltimore game (2nd contest) or the Dallas game ? Steelers were without their pro bowl back for a significant part of the season and as a result their running game suffered but Ben has been able to put this team on his back and more times than not he's come out victorious.

I saw those games and I can only hope Ben put the team on his back again for a whopping 13 points.

I like Ben - I was fuming when we didn't draft him and I think he's the best QB out of the 2004 class, if he has a game against us like he did against Baltimore and Dallas, y'all are screwed. 13 points ain't gonna cut it against us. That might have worked against the offensively challenged rookie-led Ravens or the mentally challenged Cowboys, but it's not gonna work against a 3 time Super Bowl QB, two-time MVP, one time Super Bowl MVP.

 

[Trophytown]

Oh, he can do it...at times...no doubt. Odds are stacked against your offense, though, if our defense plays the run the way it has thus far in the postseason. More times than not, when asked to do it all, Big Ben makes plenty of errors.

IF.........IF your defense.......

Sigh...........you guys are sounding like broken records........we've heard this same crap from Baltimore, Charger fans..........it goes on and on......

Listen, and understand...........we've played against THE second most impressive and physical defense in football in the modern era. That would be the Ravens. With Ngata, Scott, Suggs, Ray Ray and Reed youre gonna get snapped or jolted because they bring the attributes necessary to incorporate a very physical and initimidating brand of defense. We beat these guys 3 times......THREE times. And theyve got many more playmakers on that unit than the Cardinals. We've faced 7 of the leagues top defenses and out of those 7 we were without top RB Parker.

So while Ben makes errors he's hardly cost this team wins. 12-4 is pretty good with your main guy in the backfield missing almost a 3rd of the season. Theres nothing the Cards are gonna bring that we havent seen or experienced this season. It doesnt get any tougher (to execute offensively) than Baltimore, especially on the road and Ben nicely orchestrated a 92 yrd drive in the closing minutes of that game. In a hostile Ravens environment. How many QB's can say theyve done that against that unit ?

Knock the guy all you want, but he wins..........

 

[Trophytown]

I saw those games and I can only hope Ben put the team on his back again for a whopping 13 points.

I like Ben - I was fuming when we didn't draft him and I think he's the best QB out of the 2004 class, if he has a game against us like he did against Baltimore and Dallas, y'all are screwed. 13 points ain't gonna cut it against us. That might have worked against the offensively challenged rookie-led Ravens or the mentally challenged Cowboys, but it's not gonna work against a 3 time Super Bowl QB, two-time MVP, one time Super Bowl MVP.

IF..........

I got an if'er for you.....digest this: IF Kurt plays the way he played vs NE or the Giants, what chance do "y'all" have against the Steelers ? Seriously..........

And i keep hearing about this fantastic offense.......my gawd.......why would you win only 9 games with an offense that is so spectacular. Yeah, ill give you that Warner and Fitz are hot right now and have done well the last 3-4 games. But if this offense is as potent as some of u all make it out to be, what happened to the other 6-7 wins you were shorted ? You speak as if the Cards are gonna march up and down Pittsburgh with the greatest of ease.

 

[Stout]

IF.........IF your defense.......

Sigh...........you guys are sounding like broken records........we've heard this same crap from Baltimore, Charger fans..........it goes on and on......

Listen, and understand...........we've played against THE second most impressive and physical defense in football in the modern era. That would be the Ravens. With Ngata, Scott, Suggs, Ray Ray and Reed youre gonna get snapped or jolted because they bring the attributes necessary to incorporate a very physical and initimidating brand of defense. We beat these guys 3 times......THREE times. And theyve got many more playmakers on that unit than the Cardinals. We've faced 7 of the leagues top defenses and out of those 7 we were without top RB Parker.

So while Ben makes errors he's hardly cost this team wins. 12-4 is pretty good with your main guy in the backfield missing almost a 3rd of the season. Theres nothing the Cards are gonna bring that we havent seen or experienced this season. It doesnt get any tougher (to execute offensively) than Baltimore, especially on the road and Ben nicely orchestrated a 92 yrd drive in the closing minutes of that game. In a hostile Ravens environment. How many QB's can say theyve done that against that unit ?

Knock the guy all you want, but he wins..........

Yeah, you're right. My bad. Why should we think we have any chance in this game? I mean, your superior football knowledge clearly has beaten any logic that we have that says we have any kind of chance in this game. Your team is filled with gods and we are mere mortals. How dare we suggest otherwise.

What a tool.

Blah blah blah, our accomplishments, blah blah blah. So what? We've played against the 2nd and 3rd ranked rushing offenses, and neither one gained 100 TOTAL yards. So, yeah, I really don't give a damn who you've played. Have you figured this postseason thing out yet? It doesn't matter what happened in the regular season; you guys couldn't run the ball and we had somewhat of a hard time stopping the run. Now, you guys have found a running game, and we're flat-out stopping the run. Makes for a great matchup as far as I'm concerned. But you can keep flapping your internet gums about how you guys are so superior in the matchup. I can only hope the Steelers feel the same way.

 

[Stout]

IF..........

I got an if'er for you.....digest this: IF Kurt plays the way he played vs NE or the Giants, what chance do "y'all" have against the Steelers ? Seriously..........

And i keep hearing about this fantastic offense.......my gawd.......why would you win only 9 games with an offense that is so spectacular. Yeah, ill give you that Warner and Fitz are hot right now and have done well the last 3-4 games. But if this offense is as potent as some of u all make it out to be, what happened to the other 6-7 wins you were shorted ? You speak as if the Cards are gonna march up and down Pittsburgh with the greatest of ease.

LOL Can you be any more of an abrasive fan? Can you represent your team any worse?

Well, you clearly don't want to do your research, but since I know this stuff about my team off the top of my head, I'll clue you in; you're in desperate need of one. Yes, we have a killer offense. During the regular season, our defense sometimes failed to show up, and we sometimes played like overall crap, mostly once we had the division in hand. Yep, that's right, we mailed it in once we were pretty much clinched. Even still, our offense put up the points. We only had 3 games in which we didn't score at least 20 points. Obviously, we've managed to change our mindset and momentum. Even still, even in most of the games we lost, our offense put up huge games. You want Kurt to play the way he did against the Giants? He had a down game, but do you really want us to put up 29 points on you?

And finally, no, we are not stupid enough to think we'll walk up and down the field on you guys. We're just tired of hearing how we have no shot of doing much offensively. Keep thinking that. We keep hearing how Fitz will be completely shut down. Keep thinking that. Now, get back to me when you're tired of typing like an arrogant, drunken Steelers fan.

 

[Cheesebeef]

IF..........

I got an if'er for you.....digest this: IF Kurt plays the way he played vs NE or the Giants, what chance do "y'all" have against the Steelers ? Seriously..........

seriously what? correct me if I'm wrong, but YOU brought up two pretty mediocre games as proof that Ben can put you on your back. I was just responding to that. And, seriously, a) I don't think we're gonna be playing in a driving blizzard in Tampa and b) if Kurt plays against you like he played against the Giants, you're going to lose as he led us to 29 points that day... seriously. if you're going to get your panties in a bunch because you said something stupid and then the stupid thing you said was taken apart, I suggest you can back and watch some old SI Super Bowl Dvds or your Beta copy of Gung Ho to pump yourself back up in your love of everything Pittsburg.

And i keep hearing about this fantastic offense.......my gawd.......why would you win only 9 games with an offense that is so spectacular. Yeah, ill give you that Warner and Fitz are hot right now and have done well the last 3-4 games. But if this offense is as potent as some of u all make it out to be, what happened to the other 6-7 wins you were shorted ?

the other 6-7 wins we were shorted? That would make us 16-0. Do they not teach math up in Pittsburg? Is anyone saying the Cardinals are the greatest team of all time because that's what your ridiculous argument projects upon us above. I mean, really, 6-7 wins shorted? Is that why y'all are "blue collar" types because they don't' teach things like remedial math in Pittsburg so y'all just ain't smart enough to get jobs that would make you upper class? And the reason we only won 9 games is because our D is incredibly up and down... and in the second half of the season, it was just down, especially against teams with good offenses. We won't have to face that problem in Tampa though.

 

[LukesDad88]

DRC vs. Santonio Holmes

There is your match up.

The sleeper match up is Sweed vs Fransisco

If Ward's able to go at all, I don't think you see Sweed this game. The guy I'm curious to see is Nate Washington and how he does.

OTOH, Sweed did come back strong after that drop last week. A huge block, and a clutch catch for a first down. I saw a replay where Ward caught Sweed trying to make a B-Line towards the locker room before half-time and ripped him a new one. After that, Sweed came back strong. That dropped pass could either be his doom as a professional football player or a turning point in his career. It will be interesting to see.

 

[cardsfanmd]

C'mon guys TrophyClown is a bandwagon tool. There is no sense in argueing with her. The other Steeler fans here have actually been intelligent and willing to listen. I am trying my best not to let it give them all a bad name.

I love the talk that Willie Parker will run all over us. We played the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd running offenses this year (Giants, Falcons, Panthers) and NONE of them gained 100yds. Lets do this already.

 

[cardsfanmd]

The guy I'm curious to see is Nate Washington and how he does.

I agree, this is the guy that has me the most worried on your entire team. I really think he is the only reason we could lose this game.