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The Steelers unveiled throwback jerseys they will wear this season to celebrate their 80th anniversary (the franchise began playing in the NFL in 1933). The team’s official Twitter account shared photos of running back Isaac Redman modeling the jersey, and I must say, they are hideous. They would definitely be right up there with the Broncos on our list of worst throwback jerseys ever.
Here are a few more photos of the uniforms:
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Anyone who puts a lot of stock into momentum leading up to the NFL playoffs likely won’t be giving the Broncos any kind of shot to beat the Steelers this weekend. Denver has lost its last three games, including an embarrassing offensive performance and a 7-3 loss against the Chiefs last weekend. Very few would argue that they are a better team than the Steelers, but Denver gets to play at home and we have seen much stranger things happen in the NFL playoffs (see: 2010 Seattle Seahawks). Broncos fans, however, do not seem very confident heading into the Wild Card round.
According to a poll taken by FOX 31 in Denver, 73 percent of the people in Denver believe Tim Tebow and company will lose to Pittsburgh this weekend. The voting is now closed with 840 people having responded. Obviously that does not represent the entire population of Broncos fans, but it is a fairly decent indication of the toll the last three weeks have taken on their confidence.
The Broncos may need a little extra assistance from Jesus if they want to advance deeper into the playoffs, but where there’s a will there’s a way. We certainly know Tebow isn’t lacking in the will category. Head coach John Fox is also hoping Broncos fans will do their part and hold onto their tickets.
“We’ve got unique fans here,” Fox said. “I would encourage all of them to keep their seats and not sell them to Pittsburgh fans.”
Denver will need an edge from the home crowd and will need Tebow to be on his game. If the game were in Pittsburgh, I’d be predicting a rout. Since I fully expect Mile High to bring the noise, the Broncos have a shot.
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This has truly been a strange year in the NFL. Granted, every year is strange in the world of professional football. We have teams that start out smoking hot and finish the season 6-10. We have others that start out 1-4 and scratch and claw their way into the playoffs. This season, however, seems to be more of a mystery than ever — particularly in the AFC. The Packers are the clear-cut favorite to win the NFC and the Super Bowl at this point, but what about the rest? With the AFC up for grabs, here’s a look at the teams that are in the hunt. We start with the least likely to play in Indianapolis on Feb. 5 and end with the most.
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When disaster strikes and a legend’s career goes up in flames, it’s only natural to wonder what could have been. What if someone had stopped Jerry Sandusky as soon as they heard about what he was allegedly doing? What if Joe Paterno reported Sandusky to the police instead of only informing those who he worked under? What if Paterno retired years ago, like many expected he would? Better yet, what if Paterno became the coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers over 30 years ago and never became a Penn State icon?
On Thursday, Shutdown Corner passed along an interesting blurb from the book, “Pittsburgh Steelers: The Complete Illustrated History.” According to page 71 of the publication, Paterno was offered the Steelers head coaching job in 1969 — three years after he became the coach at Penn State. Despite being offered a $70,000 salary when he was only making $20,000 at Penn State, Paterno declined.
“It was an awful lot of money, a fantastic offer. I’d never dreamed of making that much money. Then I started thinking about what I wanted to do. I had put some things out of whack. I haven’t done the job I set out to do at Penn State.”
After Paterno turned them down, the Rooney family offered the job to one of Don Shula’s Baltimore assistants named Chuck Noll. As you may know, Noll went on to win more than a couple games for Pittsburgh and define the Steelers franchise. Ah, what could have been.
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The Baltimore Ravens took it to the Pittsburgh Steelers 35-7 in Sunday’s opener. Joe Flacco threw for three touchdowns in the game which marked his first time beating Ben Roethlisberger head-to-head. Things were going so well for the Ravens that after they scored to make it 27-7, they pulled out a trick play on their extra-point attempt.
Taking a page out of the Les Miles playbook, holder Sam Koch fielded the snap and ran through a beautiful hole opened up by his blockers. The conversion made it 29-7 and Baltimore added two more field goals to make it 35-7. It was a brilliant play and it was executed to perfection. But why did the Ravens waste it during a game they were winning by a wide margin? Why not save it for a later game when they really needed it?
Not only was the timing questionable, but the play also made enemies in Pittsburgh (as if the rivalry wasn’t already strong enough).
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The Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens have one of the best rivalries in the NFL. The teams have been two of the best franchises in the NFL the past 10+ years, they play extremely competitive games, and their games feature tons of hitting. Remember the broken nose the Ravens gave Ben Roethlisberger last year? That picture defines the rivalry.
Only Steelers safety safety Ryan Clark feels differently.
In an interview with 93.7 The Fan in Pittsburgh, Clark said the Ravens haven’t beaten the Steelers enough to make it a rivalry. Here’s the transcription from Sports Radio Interviews via Ravens Insider and Pro Football Talk:
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The Pittsburgh Steelers went 12-4 during the regular season, losing only to the Ravens, Saints, Patriots, and Jets. They allowed the fewest points per game in the league, and their rush defense was one of the best all time. With a defense so strong, how could the Steelers be beat? As we found out this season, it wasn’t by trying to run on them, but rather by spreading them out and throwing.
It was this observation that led both Doc and Del to pick the Packers to win the Super Bowl, and the game played out as we expected. The Packers opened up the game throwing, then they continued to throw, and they threw even more. Green Bay attempted 39 passes while rushing just 11 times (78% passes). They gained 304 yards in the air and 52 on the ground (85% of their yards through the air), showing that their plan was to throw (specifically to Jordy Nelson) on Pittsburgh.
Like we pointed out during our predictions, we figured the Packers would follow the model started by the Saints and Patriots during the regular season. On Halloween, the Saints beat the Steelers 20-10. Drew Brees went 34/44 for 305 yards, two touchdowns, and a pick in that game. New Orleans ran it 18 times for just 32 yards, meaning they passed 71% of the time and gained 90% of their yards in the air.
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