CHARGERS WEEK: Look Back, Look Ahead.....

CHARGER WEEK:� LOOK BACK, LOOK AHEAD�

I guess I�m just slow to kick my various ailments.� PEIS (Post-Euphoric Immersion Syndrome) hung with me all off-season, even into September.� Last week, I was lamenting the onset of WTFWWMINS (What the Fuck is Wrong With ME�I�m Not Suicidal).�

This week�.I�m more upset than at the same time as last week about our lost to the GOP (Gang of Pussies) Bengals�.the SF (Shitty Fuckin�) Bengals.� Why?� Here�s why.� I watched the NE Patsies tear the Bengals limb from limb.� I rooted for the Patsies, as we needed a Bengals loss�.probably the first time I�ve done so in this millennium.� People said to me, �I can�t believe you�re rooting for the Pats.�� My response was, �Don�t get me wrong�I still despise these mother-fuckers�..just have to have them beat the Bungals.�� Pats did what we should have done�what we were doing�..run the ball down their fuckin� throats.� To me�.the biggest play of our loss to the Bengals was still our foolhardy decision to throw from 1^st & goal at the 6, up 7-0 to begin 2Q when we were running the ball at will�.all fell apart from there, though we still should have beaten them.

And�.lest anyone believe that Knucklehead Cowher can hold a candle to Belichick�..Belichick pounds the ball despite having a rookie at an OT spot.� Belichick holds the Bengals to 13 despite having a ragtag secondary, including the likes of Charred Scott, and Artrell Hawkins, late of the Monesson Greyhounds (BTW�..Belichick�s dad, Steve, the Navy coach, was born in Monesson).� Lots of good players from that part of the Mon Valley�..I bet Belichick could have taken Donora�s Arnie Galiffa, and shut down the shitty Bengals.

One thing you can be sure of with my articles is their digressive nature.� Okay, first digression.� Nobody gets named �Arnie� anymore�.do they?� Famous Arnie�s�.Latrobe�s own Arnie Palmer.� Then there was Arnold Ziffel, the pig on Green Acres.� We had a teacher at Swissvale High�.name was Mr. Arnold�.no joke�guy looked like a pig�.called him Arnold Ziffel.� Nor more Arnies though.

On the female side�no one names their little girls Frances anymore.� Famous Frances�s�.remember �Dirty Dancing,��.Patrick Swayze�s dance partner, then lover�Baby�.Swayze told Baby�s dad, whose name escapes me, but now is on Law & Order, partnered with a guy, whose name also escapes me, but played a gaybo in Rent��No one puts Baby in a corner.�� Baby�s name�..Frances!!� My mom had an Aunt Frances�..typical, mega-fat Italian lady from East Liberty�.dressed in black�..visited her periodically, boring-ass place to go for a kid.

I remember a girl in school, Francine Capasso�not Frances.� Pretty girl, sat right in front of me in 6^th grade.� Our teacher, Mrs. Siler, sometimes had us do stretching.� Had us bend over, touch our toes.� Francine bent over�..OMG!!!� Whenever Mrs. Siler asked us to suggest stretches, my hand was up�.�How �bout we touch out toes, Mrs.Siler.�� Sixth-grade, I was still a fat enough kid that there was no way I could even touch my fuckin� toes�..could bend though, and stare straight ahead!!

Wow�.things you think of watching the Pats demolish the Bengals.� Ron Borges from the Boston Globe is a great football writer.� Here�s an excerpt from his column yesterday.� �The Patriots� defense has a habit of dismantling an offense a bit at a time, slowly squeezing the life out of it until the pressure begins to mount and it implodes, victims of its own forced missteps.��and���They did some things differently, but it�s too complicated to try and explain it,� Palmer said, a statement one could hardly quarrel with since he was unable to explain it to his teammates when it counted most � when the game was being contested.�

Belichick�..Cowher�.no contest�.but none of you are surprised, I�m sure, with this assessment.

This week�s game�.we�ll win�.�cause Schottenheimer outCowhers Cowher.� Or is it that Cowher doesn�t� quite outSchotteheimer Schotteheimer.� Cowher�s fond of saying, �Keep it close�.win it in the 4^th quarter.�� As much as this philosophy drives me crazy�.as much as it may �cause us to keep games unnecessarily close, it generally works (..though it didn�t last week).

Schottenheimer�s mantra, by contrast should be, �Keep it close�lose it in the 4^th quarter.�� Happens to him all the time�.the guy consistently loses games he should win.

Okay�.this week�.close game, get ready to trail for much of it.� This game though, my Stiller brother and sisters, will be the return of the Messianic Ben, the one we now and love.� Ben will lead the Steelers on a late drive to win.� The biggest difference in this game�.we have Ben, SD has an untested Phillip Rivers.� Funny�.writing this, I�m thinking of Ben as the wily and savvy vet, Rivers as the untested youngster.� Was just now, I remembered that Rivers was drafted ahead of Ben!!!�

Look for our D to harass Rivers all game, kick LT�s ass pretty good�..give up some throws though.� Will be touch sledding for us against SD, but Ben will get the passing game going.

Also, of note, will be the indomitable presence of Steeler fans at Qualcomm.� Damn�.wish I could be there for it.� The Irrespressible Still it will be there with her Orange County Organisms.� Believe ChiTraderRob is making the trip.� Is Fres going�..fresh off his Trivia victory?� What about the unheard of SacoSteel��he can bring his terriers�..do #2 all over the Qualcomm lot for good luck

Steelers-20 Bolts-16