Last night's game versus the hated Ravens wasn't for the faint of heart. You knew this after the first play of the game when Andre Frazier had to leave on a stretcher. We here at Classicgangonly wish the best for Andre and for a speedy recovery.
UPDATE: According to the Post-Gazette, Frazier is alright and could play this Sunday against Jacksonville.
Now onto the game. The first half wasn't too much to write home about. The offense shall we say was anemic. The team shall we say was anemic. Whatever was said in the locker room at the half finally seemed to work.
The offense, under a no-huddle approach, finally came alive. Holy hell it only took six quarters for Arians/Tomlin to finally make adjustments but they worked. Big Ben hit Santonio Holmes from 38 yards out to bring it to a 3 point game. On the ensuing possession LaMarr Woodley recovered a fumble to give the Steelers a 17-13 lead. A Jeff Reed field goal gave the Steelers a touchdown lead with nine minutes left in the fourth quarter.
Joe Flacco (more on him in a bit) led the Ravens down field and on a LeRon McClain (why he didn't carry the ball more is beyond me) two yard touchdown the game was all knotted up at 20-20.
Big Ben's amazing pass to Merwelde Moore set up a Jeff Reed field goal to win it.
Now for some game thoughts.
The reason I titled this a win or not is because Rashard Mendenhall (broken shoulder) and Kendall Simmons (ruptured achilles) are done for the year. Simmons might have been the steadiest player on a very very shaky offensive line. Mendenhall, this year's first round pick, was drafted as an insurance policy to Willie Parker and is very physically gifted player.
Where do they go from here?
According to the Post-Gazette, Najeh "Dump" Davenport is coming back after a thorough tire kicking and Gary Russell is being promoted from the practice squad. Obviously, we saw what happened last year when Davenport was the main man. Russell is a tough runner from what I've seen in the pre-season and Merwelde Moore held his own last night. Hopefully these guys can hold the fort till Willie gets healthy.
Now what worries me is the Steelers now have to travel to Jacksonville. After a very physical battle against the Ravens and on a short week, they have to face the equally as physical Jaguars. I just hope everyone makes it out in one piece (more on this game later in the week).
Joe Flacco actually looks like he can end Baltimore's quarterback black hole. Granted he looked like a rookie at times but after tonight's game he showed me he might actually be able to play. While he's starting for the Ravens, Tyler Palko is working out for the Broncos. Sort of strange how these things work out. I'm lead to believe that Palko was the "Chosen One" and Flacco probably wasn't given a fair shake at Pitt. Unless Flacco was a late-bloomer, I could be wrong on this but it's just a hunch.
In closing, it was real nice to see the team come together and finally make the offensive adjustments that were necessary. However, in the coming weeks it looks like Ben will have to carry the offense on his own.
So was it a win? Taking control of the division is a win. Aside from the injuries, I would say it is just to see that piece of shit Ray Lewis look like this:
