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All you can do is all you can do

September 13, 2002 by Steel Phantom

All you can do is all you can do:

All you can do is all you can do:

 

Tuesday morning, the Steelers must surely have awoken in a strange new world.� Touted winter-long as champs by the bright boys who work the betting lines, Monday�s beating near Beantown sharply illuminated their structural limitations, on both sides of the ball.� What is far worse, and what could kill their 2002 one-for-the thumb baby in its cradle, is that the Steelers primary strengths may have become entirely irrelevant.

 

You know I�m talking defense.� The Steelers used the 2001 draft to recast their D-side personnel in the image of the great 3-4 units of �94-�95.� You can�t play that set without a stud over center and, in Hampton, the Steelers got a replica of Joel Steed in his prime.� You�ve got to be able to the rush the passer; that takes at least (4) in any set and, in the 3-4 that surely means (1) ILB has to be able get home.� Last year, K-Bell did what Chad Brown accomplished in �94 and, last year, Pittsburgh�s defense returned to the top.

 

That was then, this isn�t.� We all saw the Pats test the Steeler base for about quarter before conceding there and moving to the flag-football style of play that effectively dissected Tim Lewis�s charges.� You want a laugh?� Check out the most recent edition of Steelers Digest where Coach Lewis, asked of his side�s weaknesses, replied, �I don�t see any.�� Well, Charlie Weis did; hell, the Bengals did too, last December.�� Given the Steelers struggles with 3rd through 5th receivers both in the Queen City and in Foxboro, you�ve got to wonder why any team would bother with any other mode of attack.� If its (5) wide from here in, then the Steelers base strength will mean little and Coach Lewis�s (purported) retort will have all the relevancy of, say, the Franco-side Master of Arms at Aigencourt assuring his lord, �Sire, we have the finest crossbow artistes in all of creation.� ��

 

When the Raiders come in Sunday, the Steelers will have to deal with a very good football team.� Closer to home, they�ll have to deal with their own self-doubt, the kind of general psychological bruising that must follow the fall they took from pre-season Lord of the AFC to Week One�s ass clown.� Win or lose, this game should tell us a lot about our team�s character.� If they play hard, fast and aggressively, fine; if they regurgitate Monday�s slop, well, you might want to lay in a quantity of the harder stuff to go with that liquid Iron. ��

 

I�ll leave it to others to do an exhaustive, position-by-position analysis.� Focusing simply on a few factors arising in Week One:

 

When the Raiders have the ball:� Traditionally, Oakland has yoked a power running attack to a vertical passing game with both dependent on a huge, bruising O-line.� �Some things have changed, Gannon doesn�t have a big arm and the aging Raider WR don�t have deep speed; some things have stayed the same, their line is huge and they�ve got a nice stable of RB.� Last week, Oakland just annihilated the S�Hawks rushing for 221 and passing for 202 while ringing up 31 points with 34:51 TOP.� Very strong, then again Seattle was crippled up front on both sides of the ball.� Missing (2) starting O-linemen, they couldn�t establish a ground game; light upfront on the D-side, they couldn�t deal with that big Raider O-line.� �The Raiders ran wild against Seattle but that means little this for Sunday; then again, the Pat-schema may obtain again.� To win, the Steelers will have to deal with:

 

  1. Complementary receivers:� The Steelers did okay against the Pats top two WR; in that game, Hines Ward had numbers matching the combined output of Patten and Troy Brown.� The Steelers didn�t deal effectively with 3-4 WR Branch and Hayes or, for that matter, with TE Fauria and Cleland.� The Raiders top two are WR Jerry Rice and Tim Brown; last week, they had (6) catches between them while four Raider RB combined for (11) including (1) TD.� �The Raiders have only (3) WR healthy and no proven TE.� However, with Garner in the slot, they can develop a serious multi-receiver threat.

 

  1. Charlie Garner is just the kind of cutback multi-dimensional RB that has given the Steelers fits.� One of the LB will have to shadow this man, I�m guessing Steelers will try Foote and settle on Farrior so to send Porter at Gannon.

 

  1. Rich Gannon passed for over 300 yards the last time he faced the Steelers.� In that game, Pittsburgh brought no pressure, if they do so again, we can expect the same result.� The Steelers won in December of 2000 because they established their run game, not because they stopped the Raiders offense.

 

When the Steelers have the ball:� The last Raider tilt was when Kordell Stewart reclaimed his position as a team leader.� Or so it was then written; the next week, doubt emerged as the Steelers were savagely whipped in the Meadowlands.� Of course, that edition finished out strong against the then-crippled Redskins and moribund Bolts and subsequently, Kordell did rise to dizzying heights in 2001 before crashing at the close.� Evidently, he�s still on the deck; last week, our QB had the kind of Bambi meets Godzilla look so familiar from the bad old days of �98-�99.� Combine that with a suspect run game, (5) opening turnovers and its clear that the offense will be seeking redemption this Sunday.� To that end:

 

  1. Run at the edges:� The Steelers ran at will against the Raiders in 2000.� Since then, Oakland has replaced (6) players on their Front 7.� Sam Adams is the big name with the big girth in the middle but Adams is about 360# and questionable for Sunday.� John Parella is ready though; Parella is a stay-at-home, steady stuffer; this man led the Bolt unit that effectively stopped the same 2000 Steeler run game that had just trampled the x-Raiders.� Add 1st round rookie MLB Nap Harris and the Raiders figure to be tough in the center.� However, they�re light on the edges especially at RDE where antique Trace Armstrong rotates with DeLaurence Grant.� The Steelers ran successfully behind Gandy and Faneca last season; that�s their best shot this week too.

 

  1. Throw down the middle:� The Raiders are strong on the corners with Charles Woodson, Troy James and 1st round nickel Philip Buchanon.� However, they can be had in the middle.� While MLB Nap Harris is a force against the run, he is highly inexperienced in coverage.� SS Derrick Gibson is a downhill type and a great athlete but no kind cover guy.� FS Rod Woodson is just too old to play.�

 

  1. �Take care of the ball: (-4) in the takeaway department; �nuff said.

 

Outlook:

 

Better to face the ancient Raiders late when the season has taken its toll than early-on.� The Steelers are coming off a short week; generally, they�ve played poorly in that scenario.� I believe the Raiders will come out throwing and, with Garner in slot, move at will against the Steelers dime.� If the Raiders get up, they�ll pound it with Wheatley so to seal the deal.� The latest line has the Steelers +4; I�d take the points. ��

 

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