Week 2 Review

Welcome to the Pittsburgh Psycho Ward. Aptly named after Super Bowl XL MVP Hines Ward, and the mentality he displays on the field.

That said, we will not be a strictly Steelers oriented blog. We'll incorporate all Pittsburgh sports, national sports headlines, maybe a little entertainment and music here and there, as well as some other odds and ends. We had hoped to be up and running prior to the kickoff of the 2008 NFL season so that we could bring you predictions, but given all thats already happened in the first two weeks, it's probably good for our sake that we were not. We care based in the Washington, DC area, so we dont have all the resources that someone directly in the city of Pittsburgh would have, but we believe that helps make us a little more well rounded. Besides, the magic of DirecTV and the internet help keep us as informed as we need to be. Hope you enjoy!

Now, let's get right into it.

Yesterday I took in the Redskins - Saints game. If it weren't for that little soiree in Denver, then this would have gotten my vote for game of the week. After week one, I never expected the Redskins to be able to put up enough points to hang with the Saints. I think maybe I overrated the Saints a little bit. Granted they've played against tough D's in Tampa Bay and Washington, but it doesn't appear to me that the offense is clicking quite yet. Deuce McAllister played a little bit yesterday, which helped, but I think the loss of Colston will really set them back a bit. They don't have another guy with his size that they can trust on a 3rd and 6 or 7 type play (and don't tell me Mr. Enigmatic, Jeremy Shockey is that guy). They'll rely on wing passes to Reggie or deep balls to Devery Henderson more than strategic, prolonged drives.

The game started with the Skins pretty much dominating the stat sheets. Only problem was they had little to show for it. They drove 48 yards on their first drive, 50 on their second, and started their 3rd drive at the Saints 27 yard line after an interception, yet only had a 6-0 lead to show for it. An Antwaan Randle El fumble on a punt return breathed some life into the Saints, who scored 6 plays later to go up 7-6. Two more nice drives by the Redskins resulted in only 3 more points, after Shaun Suisham missed a field goal attempt after a bad hold attempt by Durant Brooks, then connected later on a 35 yarder. The Saints responded by driving 58 yards in the final :57 of the first half to get a field goal and go up 10-9 heading into the break. The Redskins got a huge first quarter from rookie Safety Chris Horton, who recovered a fumble and intercepted a pass in the first quarter alone. Horton only started because typical starter Reed Doughty was out with a stomach ailment. I know you're not supposed to lose a job to an injury (or illness, as it were), but it'd be tough for the Skins to take Horton out after that performance.

The Saints got the ball to start the second half, after deferring the decision after the coin toss. They drove 80 yards down the field on that opening drive, and took a 17-9 lead when Drew Brees hit Robert Meachem for a 19 yard touchdown. The Fox analysts, myself, and seeimingly many Skins fans, we're beginning to get the sense that the Redskins missed opportunities in the first half would come back to haunt them. However, the Redskins quickly responded with an 84 yard drive of their own, capped by a 9 yard Clinton Portis TD run. The Skins opted to go for 2, which I applaud. Brian Billick chimed in from the fox booth that it was the wrong call. You can look at it both ways...if you get it, of course you're tied and right back where you want to be. If you miss, then they go and score a TD, it's now a 2 score game. My opinion is that you might not get another chance to get down the field, take the opportunity while you can. Well, the Redskins did not convert, and shortly after, the Saint did score when the aforementioned Reggie Bush returned a bad Durant Brooks punt 56 yards to put the Saints up 24-15 heading into the 4th quarter. A 15 minute span which would belong to the Redskins. The Redskins officially drove 82 yards on their first possesion of the 4th quarter, but it was more like 94, after the Saints D sacked Jason Campbell back to the Washington 6 yard line on the first play of the drive. Campbell responded with passes to Chris Cooley for 22, and later Santana Moss for 25. Clinton Portis scored his 2nd TD of the game to bring the Skins back within 2. Campbell went 5-5 for 82 yards on the drive. New Orleans responded by trying to play ball control. Rather than trying to throw for a first down then wind some time off the clock, they mostly tried to run it up the gut and take 40 seconds off the clock each play. The Redskins defense had none of it. A 3 and out for the Saints and punt later, the Redskins took the ball back, down 2, with 3:29 remaining. They would only need 10 of those seconds. Campbell again connected with Santana Moss on a 67 yard TD pass. The most impressive part of the play may have been Antwaan Randle El's leapfrog over Moss in celebration. Campbell exploited a mismatch with a rookie DB on Moss, stepped away from a pass rusher who was picked up nicely by the fullback, and gunned the eventual game winner to Moss. The Saints got the ball back with 3:14 remaining, and were attempting to drive to get a winning score, when Chris Horton came up with his 2nd pick of the game, sealing the deal for the Redskins.

Postgame Thoughts:

• The Redskins won the turnover battle 3-1, but were outscored 7-6 in points off those turnovers. In my opinion the story of the game was the discrepancy in the Rookie DB's. Chris Horton had a game that any DB would kill for, with 2 interceptions and a fumble recovery, and held the Saints receivers pretty much in check all day. Saints rookie Tracy Porter, playing for the injured Randall Gay, on the other hand, was abused by Santana Moss all day, to the tune of 164 receiving yards and the game winning TD.

• Sedrick Ellis is a difference maker. He'll be an anchor for that Saints defense for years to come. He held out for a few weeks at the beginning of camp, but has come in and performed well through the first two weeks. He'll create space for Will Smith and Charles Grant, and take the Casey Hampton approach of tying up 2 O linemen to free up the linebackers to make plays. He looks like a nice pickup for a Saints defense that has struggled over the years.
  

• I must say, the Redskins D has been pretty good, despite a lot of the scrutiny heard after the first game. They held the Giants to nothing after about halfway through the 2nd quarter, really only allowed the Saints, albeit undermanned, to two sustained drives, coming on the last drive of the first half, and the first drive of the second half. They scored a TD after Randle El's fumble gave them the ball at the Washington 29, and another on a punt return.
  

• Player of the game: It would be easy to pick Jason Campbell or Santana Moss here, but my vote goes to Chris Horton. Any time a rookie gets his first start, the opponents look to pick on him. Especially a veteran QB like Brees. Horton responded with 2 interceptions and a fumble recovery. Two of which led to points, the other sealing the victory in the 4th quarter.
  

• Goat of the game: Durant Brooks: Flubbed a hold, had 2 bad punts, one of which was returned for a touchdown...Somewhere Derrick Frost is smiling.

STEELERS @ BROWNS:
Ugh. I texted a friend of mine at the outset stating that it must be a prerequisite for any nationally televised Steeler game to have terrible weather (remember the Dolphins game last season)...Effects of Hurricane Ike (not Taylor) were felt up in Ohio, with wind gusts up to 50 MPH and rain off and on throughout the game. That contributed to there being VERY little flow to this game. It seemed like every 5 minutes there would be another break in the action and Heroes promo. The first half was riddled with 3 and outs on both sides. Braylon Edwards continued to have his early season case of the dropsies, as he dropped what would have been 2 critical 3rd down conversions. The Steeler defense continued to look good, not allowing anything to Jamal Lewis, but also not getting much of a pass rush on Derek Anderson. During the broadcast, Al and John mentioned that Derek Anderson was the least sacked QB last season, a credit to the Browns offensive line (anchored by Gaithersburg High School alum Hank Fraley). I would not have guessed that the Browns line was that great, but apparantley they are...who knew? The Steelers put up the first points in an otherwise dreary game with 6:25 left in the first half. A drive that covered 70 yards over six and a half minutes following a Bryant McFadden inteception of Derek Anderson. The drive was kept alive when Shaun Smith had Roethlisberger sacked, but was guilty of a facemask penalty, giving the Steelers an automatic first down. The Steelers nearly self destructed later that drive, when faced with a 4th and 1 inside Cleveland territory, Roethlisberger hurried the team to the line and forced the Browns to jump offsides. However, Coach Tomlin was granted a timeout just before the Cleveland player jumped, thus nullifying the play. Alls well that ends well though, as Willie Parker took the insuing handoff 13 yards following great blocks by Chris Kemoeatu and Heath Miller. Three plays later, Big Ben found Hines Ward in the middle of the end zone to put the Steelers up 7-0. Hines celebrated by turning his back to the vaunted Dawg Pound and kicking grass up to them. He stated that he "was just marking his territory". This is precisely why we all love Hines and other teams fans can't stand him. The Browns came back and were within range to put some poijnts on the board prior to halftime, but poor clock management in the last minute of the half led to the Browns needing to rush to get plays off. The Browns tried to run a quick pass to the end zone with :08 left, thinking they would either get the TD, or it would go incomplete and they could set up a field goal attempt. These thoughts were denied by Troy Polamalu's 2nd interception of the season, when he jumped the route and left the Browns with nothing after a 74 yard drive eating up the last 6:20 of the half.

The only other Steeler points of the game came following a 48 yard pass from Ben to Santonio Holmes on 1st down after a Cleveland punt. The Steelers didnt muster much more after that, and were left with a Jeff Reed FG attempt from 48 with the unpredictable winds. Reed made it look like an extra point, and put the Steelers up 10. The Browns were able to get 2 FG's on the board after that, including one kicked with under 3:30 to play, much to the chagrin of the Cleveland faithful. The Steelers were able to get one first down, on a nice pass play to Heath Miller, which I was thrilled by. You'll remember, that in the playoff game against the Jaguars last year, the Steelers had a very similar situation. Up one score, roughly 3 minutes to play, and they tried to run the ball three times, even though Jacksonville had all 3 time outs. We all know the end result of that one (Still think at LEAST 3 Steelers were held on Garrard's scramble, but thats neither here nor there...). That first down helped burn the remainder of Cleveland's time outs, and while the Browns did get the ball back at the end of the game, it was with :26 left rather than just under 3 minutes. A 2nd down sack of Derek Anderson sealed the game as the final seconds ticked off before the Browns could line up and get another play off. The Steelers move to 2-0, Browns to 0-2, as it is, was, and always SHOULD be. The Steelers also have taken over the all time series lead for the first time, 56-55. This is mostly attributed to the Steelers being awful prior to 1972, and the Browns being a juggernaut during the same time period.

Postgame Thoughts:

• Player of the Game: I have to give it to the O Line. No one was overly spectacular, but Ben had time when he needed it, Willie had space, and his 2nd 100 yard game of the season, and the Steelers were able to keep Cleveland's big offseason acquisition, Shaun Rogers, relatively in check.
  

• Goat of the Game: Derek Anderson: Poor game management, poor clock management, tried to force throws that weren't there, costing his team points on one occasion and giving the Steelers points on another. In a 4 point game, that's all the difference you need.
  

• It's always fun to watch the Steelers beat the Browns. It's cute when they think they have a contender. There just seems to be something about going to the Browns that makes a person regress in their development. Remember, Bill Belichick, widely regarded as the biggest genius in football, couldn't win there. Granted, I was scared of them too coming into this season, but they look to have a lot of work to do. They still need a lot of help on defense, especially in the defensive backfield.

• Michael Phelps took in the game from a suite. I wonder how a Baltimore guy was received in a Cleveland box...?

• Speaking of which....Is it possible that Braylon Edwards should have been focusing more on catching passes over the offseason than swimming with Michael Phelps? BAD case of the dropsies for #17 so far.
  

• Rivalry? What Rivalry?: The Steelers have now won 10 in a row over the Browns.
  

• Ben Roethlisberger is 10-0 in games played as a pro in his home state of Ohio.
  The offensive line has looked pretty good, I must say. I still am not a huge fan of Kendall Simmons, but you can't complain with the time Roethlisberger had on most of his pass attempts, and Willie running for over 100 for the second consecutive week. We know that Sean Mahan was a popular whipping boy for last years O line struggles, does the performance by Hartwig thus far prove us right? I would be inclined to say yes. I definitely like Chris Kemoeatu, who was sportin the dreds last night. You would never see Troy with those. By the way...what ever happened to that new rule they were supposed to institue that forced players to cut their hair if it came down out of their helmet?

• It's funny to try to hear Al Michaels and John Madden try to pronounce Kemoeatu. (Its Kay-Moy-ah-tu, by the way)
  

• Hopefully Brett Keisel's injury is minor and he'll be ready to go next week in Philly. Remember how far the defense fell after losing Aaron Smith last season?
  

• The Special Teams have been worlds above what they were last year. Coverage has been great, and they've faced two top return men in Andre Davis and Josh Cribbs.
  

• Troy looks like the Troy of 05/06, already with 2 picks already this season. Hines says he's completely healthy for the first time in years. It's shown, with 3 TD catches in the first 2 games.
  

• Surprised by the relative abscence of LaMarr Woodley's name last night. Definitely not the impact on the game he had a week ago.
  

AROUND THE LEAGUE:

• What a missed call by the refs in the Denver - San Diego game. Obvious to anyone that the ball comes out of Cutler's hand as he's going back. I mean, I won't complain because it makes the Chargers 0-2, and got me over 8 more fantasy points (Thank you Eddie Royal) as a result...but if I were a Chargers fan right now, I'd figure the fix is in. Denver however, looks to be a contender. 2-0, 2 games up on SD. Eddie Royal becoming an instant contributor is scary, as they already have Brandon Marshall (who blew up yesterday too, by the way...18 catches for 166) and Brandon Stokley, ever dangerous out of the slot. I hate Mike Shanahan, but what a BALLSY call to go for 2 at home in that situation. The call went to the rookie WR too. Trusting your youg QB to throw to a rookie WR with the game on the line. Good work sir.

• Charger fans...unfortunately these are they types of things that seem to ONLY happen to Norv.
  

• Is Darren McFadden this years Adrian Peterson? 164 yards yesterday, and with Fargas' injury, will probably get more carries over the next few weeks. Question is, do the Raiders have anyone to throw the ball to so that defenses won't be able to just key on DMac?
  

• Is Larry Johnson this year's Shaun Alexander? 96 yards in 2 games. 2.8 YPC. 0 TD. Again, teams are probably keying on him, as they're happy to put the game in the hands of Brodie Croyle, Tyler Thigpen, or Damon Huard, but much like Shaun, he's lost a lot of O Linemen, and his fullback. Will be interesting to see if he can recover.
  

• Detroit...ugh. Took the lead, 25-24 with 7:41 to play. Still managed to lose by 23. That's prety unprecedented. haha.
  

• Indy still isn't clicking, but it looks like Marvin Harrison is slowly passing the torch to Anthony Gonzalez.
  

• For those of you who think that Tom Brady will fully recover from his torn ACL and MCL, I offer you two words: Carson Palmer. He's definitely been a shell of his former self since going down with a similar injury in January 06. I wouldn't doubt Brady at all, but Palmer seems to have a similar work ethic and desire, but hasnt had much of the results after the knee surgery. Maybe it's his lack of a supermodel girlfriend...
  

• The Cardiac Cats are back! Carolina comes back again to beat the Bears 20-17. They're now 2-0 and were without Steve Smith for either of the first two games. He'll be back for week three, which should only help Jake Delhomme and the rest of the Panthers offense.
  

• Jacksonville's lost their identity. It's tough to overcome the loss of just one starting offensive lineman, let alone three. Especially if your offensive game plan revolves around a power running scheme.
  

• I said to myself last week that the winner of the Arizona-San Francisco game would win the NFC West. Both won yesterday, moving the Cardinals to 2-0, 49ers to 1-1, Seahawks to 0-2, and the Rams to...well, the Rams will be irrelevant. Until Hasselbeck gets some receivers back from injury, Holmgren's swan song in the Emerald City may not be a very sweet one.
  

• On that note, poor Seattle. it rains all the time, Starbucks is closing stores nationwide, Apple is rapidly overtaking Microsoft, the Sonics just skipped town, the Mariners have the worst record in baseball, University of Washington gets screwed by that celebration penalty in the BYU game, and now the Seahwaks start off 0-2.
  

• Didn't catch a lot of the Pats-Jets game...but I know I'm still pissed that I took Wes Welker as my first WR in my fantasy league. What does it say about my competition thus far when I have Welker and Carson Palmer and am still 2-0.
  

TONIGHT:
We saw last night how Cleveland's offense has sputtered. So does that mean that Dallas' D isn't as good as they looked last week? We know the Rams are terrible, so does that mean that Philly's O isn't as good as they looked? Something's gotta give. I see where the Eagles are contemplating having Asante Samuel shadow T.O. all game, which would make for a great matchup...but what about the rest of the boys O? I think I have to give the edge to the Cowboys, mainly because the Eagles are still without Kevin Curtis, and probably Reggie Brown. I do think the Eagles will cover the 7 though...Dallas: 27 Philly: 21.