Tuesday, October 17, 2006

Come on Steeler fans, don't break out the bubbly just yet

You had to love that execution, didn't ya ??

Offense, defense, special teams (OK, OK, couple of muffs).

Ben, with all the time in the world, throwing on target to wide-open wide receivers.

Parker and Davenport running through gaping holes.

Larry Johnson might as well have taken the day off, he had absolutely nowhere to run.

Even the beleaguered pass defense had a good day, until of course they played prevent defense for the entire second half of the game.

But, let's be honest Steeler fans, not all is well just yet.

Having Kansas City coming into town with the Steelers at 1-3 was probably the most fortunate scheduling advantage they could have asked for. That defense was so lousy, you could have thrown Tyler Palko and Pitt out there.

But combine the Steelers' win with the overrated Ravens' and Bungles' losses, and we've got a whole new ballgame. One game of separation with 11 games to go is a piece of cake.

In my view, the REAL test is going to come this week in Atlanta. We all remember the '02 game, don't we ?? Steelers blow a 17 point lead in the second half, only to have the game end in a tie, after Plaxico caught the Hail Mary and was downed on the 1 yard line.

This game, with Atlanta playing at home, on turf with Michael Vick running his ass off, is potentially an extreme TRAP game.

Win in Atlanta, in Oakland, then home to Denver and New Orleans, before away games at Cleveland and Baltimore, and the Steelers could easily be 7-3 or 8-3 in 6 weeks.

But if they fall back with those same demons rearing their ugly heads, they could be 6-5 or 5-6.

One thing's for sure, if they play like they did against K.C., they'll once again become a very tough team to beat.

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