Dateline September 10, 2009
It's Opening Night for the 2009 NFL season and the defending Super Bowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers open at home in the Steel City against the rival Tennessee Titans in a rematch of week 16 from 2008 when bad blood began to boil with the taunting and towel stomping by the victorious Titans. We're all fired up and ready to go, let's see what happens!
Clemson makes some noise on their next series driving into Tech territory but stalling out at the 38. Coach Dabo Swinney can't make his mind up whether to go for it on 4th and 5, ultimately settling on trying to run the field goal team onto the field but the play clock is expiring, timeout Tigers. Coming out of the timeout the field goal team trots back out on the field as Chris Fowler informs us that junior Richard Jackson has never made a kick from this distance before, direct snap to Jackson who punts the ball directly to Jarrard Tarrant. Tarrant runs through four Clemson cover men and joins his convoy down the left sideline for an 85 yard punt return, 14-0.
Which brings us to…
7:18 PM Junior cornerback Marcus Gilchrist from Clemson makes a great diving pick in his own end zone, but wait… INT overturned! It's now fourth down and Tech's kicker Scott Blair has never made anything over 40 yards, Paul Johnson rushes his field goal team on the field to attempt a 51 yarder. In the anything you can do I can do better department, direct snap to Blair who is going to punt, NO! Demaryius Thomas was split wide and unaccounted for, Blair lofts the ball to Thomas for a 34 yard touchdown and this one's over.
7:26 ESPN just gave us the "what's happening now" cut-in and all I can say is Allen Iverson looks REAL excited to be a Memphis Grizzly. Now he can teach Conley how to take too many shots and ruin the offense, this should pan out well for all parties.
7:27 Fowler notes scout from 22 NFL teams in attendance, where are the other 10 teams? I know its ACC football but really? 10 teams decided there was no one on either team to send a scout too. Mel Kiper's hair just had a coronary.
7:32 Just flipped over to NBC again, thankfully the Peas are gone but it looks like Al Michaels spent some time with the Hair Club for Men this offseason. His scalp is either on steroids or that's a rug
7:33 Anthony Allen the transfer from Louisville, has filled out Tech's backfield nicely with Jonathan Dwyer, just ripped off a great run and picked up some help from Nesbitt downfield who stuck his nose in the dirt and was pushing the scrum forward.
7:35 Fowler wants to know if you're Clemson should you make a stand on defense? Um Chris, you're down 21-0 and you've been thoroughly outplayed in all aspects of the game, now would be a great time to make a stand otherwise you can start getting the backups loose.
7:36 Omar Epps, oops Mike Tomlin, just did a pregame interview with Andrea Kramer. Really didn't learn too much from that exchange other than some reference to the Steelers teams of the '70s and how that is how Epps wants his team to approach this season.
7:38 Why is the screen not shaking the way it was during the entire first half of Cutler's return to Mile High? Did we already witness the most emotional fan game of the season? I say yes; although the energy at Heinz Field is more jubilation than pure hatred, let's see what happens in week 8 when the Vikings travel to Lambeau.
7:45 Redshirt freshman QB Kyle Parker hits Spiller on a wheel route for a 63 yard touchdown. Clemson has joined the party about a quarter too late, the score is 24-7 Tech and we're going to need to see a lot more Spiller if this is going to turn into a game.
7:49 First play for the Titans Chris Johnson gets tackled by about 18 Steelers on that play, are they excited about defending that title or what? Two plays later Troy Polamalu reads the play from 14 yards deep and hammers like a cheetah in fast forward all over Chris Johnson.
7:53 Roethlisberger just gets done doing a triple axle by getting sacked as Collinsworth points out that Trai Essex the new starter at right guard gets beaten worse than the Big Bass Drum (it's from Purdue, look it up).
7:56 Polamalu just picked up a 15 yd. unnecessary roughness penalty on a spectacularly patient run by Johnson as he was stopped on the front side. Great vision to see fast flow by the Steelers and get to the back side, although that 4.28 40 speed doesn't hurt either.
7:59 Steelers corner Randall Gay thanks Rod Bironas for missing a 27 yard FG, leaving Bironas looking like he wants to cry because the school bully stole his lunch money.
8:02 Thus far the Titans are not missing Albert Haynesworth one bit, and the Steelers rebuilt offensive line looks like an absolute sieve.
8:05 NBC has a cool new graphic showing that Polamalu closed 14 yards in 1.8 seconds when he cut down Johnson on the first series. On an unrelated note Bo Scaife continues to rack up catches, he now has three in the last two drives. The Titans TE situation with the robust Scaife and always plump Alge Crumpler is oddly reminiscent of the Jermaine Wiggins era times two.
8:09 Polamalu makes a disgusting one handed falling backward interception on the Pittsburgh 5 yard line and is building a solid case for NFL Defensive player of the year only 13:22 into the season. It looks like Polamalu is taking the 2008 showboating from Chris Johnson and Terrible Towel stomp from "Patron" White a little personally.
8:16 I didn't catch what this ad was for, but it shows Hank Baskett falling backward in slow motion in the end zone which leads to the question did Baskett catch it? I don't know but my roommate Devan points out that he caught Kendra Wilkinson, yes, yes he did.
8:23 Roethlisberger hits Heath Miller for a first down. There has been a tight end renaissance over the last couple years, and we're witnessing that tonight with the play of Miller and Scaife. These young guys have Tony Gonzalez to thank for being the pioneer of the TE position. Gonzo provided the blueprint for how to use your TE to create matchup nightmares in the passing game.
Here are the young tight ends in the league you would be thrilled to have on your team: Antonio Gates, Jason Witten, Anthony Fasano, John Carlson, Visanthe Shiancoe, Kellen Winslow, the Flying Millers (Zach & Heath), Owen Daniels, Greg Olsen, and Dustin Keller.
8:29 Daniel Sepulveda, looking a little too ripped for a punter, the last time a punter looked like that was Todd Sauerbrun and I think we know how that turned out for the Panthers doctor who supplied those steroids.
8:31 Cool/creepy Adrian Peterson black and white commercial with no words, just him owning an entire team followed by a coach who looks like the anti-Childress throwing his headset and then Peterson looking like a reptile in the locker room after peeling his gear off, which matches the Nike padding he's wearing. Not sure what to think.
8:39 Polamalu picks up his second personal foul of the night for tackling Scaife by the facemask. Meanwhile two plays later James Farrior drills Gage in the face with his forearms, which should have been a penalty for hitting a defenseless receiver, instead the Titans line up for a field goal and Bironas' kick is blocked from 31 yards out! My fantasy defense comes through to keep the donut up on the scoreboard.
8:41 NBC comes back from commercial and shows the replay of Polamalu getting squashed while trying to pick up the blocked FG, so much for Defensive player of the year and the hopes that I will win my fantasy league based on defense this year.
8:46 Just flipped back to the Clemson - Georgia Tech game to James Otto who is from the state of
Doesn't look like much has happened since we last checked in. At least Clemson is threatening to score and get this down to a 2 possession game. Wait, false start on the Tigers, back that thing up. Is it possible? Yes, Clemson gets on the board to whittle it down to a 10 point lead. Ok enough of this ACC thrill fest, moving back to the big boys.
8:53 Shot of a dejected Polamalu limping over to the stairs down to the locker room. Did we just witness the defensive equivalent of Tom Brady from last year? The scene is eerily familiar. Does any defensive player mean more to his team than Polamalu? Can Tyrone Carter fill in like Matt Cassel? Let's see how the Steel responds.
8:55 Kenny Britt, the rookie from
9:05 Roethlisberger throws the ball Happy Gilmore style into the end zone where it is tipped and Cortland Finnegan comes up with it and returns it while we get to watch a bunch of offensive lineman bust their tails while trying to stop Finnegan from putting the Titans up seven going into the half. Good entertainment all the way around.
9:07 An ad for the new Leno show leads my roommate Scott to ask who retires and comes back with a better job, to which my other roommate Ian responds 'Brett Favre'. I'd call that fair. My roommate Ian has also been obsessed with fantasy football team names for the past month, mainly related to Michael Vick, Steve McNair, and Brett Favre. I'd have to say "Favre Dollar Footlong" is my favorite, and the rest are too offensive.
9:10 Bored at the half I Google the proper spelling of Sepulveda and get a link to a YouTube video of Sepulveda destroying some poor punt returner while Seppy was the punter at Baylor. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FhCgLeuO0I
9:17 It looks like Clemson has clawed their way back into the game GT punts giving the Tigers a chance to take the lead if they can score a touchdown again. Meanwhile Spiller is gashing the Tech defense; this is what he and James Davis were supposed to do last year. Side note: Listening to the broadcast how can anyone take Jesse Palmer seriously? I mean he was on the bachelor, how did that not end his career?
9:22 And we're back from the half, Collinsworth just showed a beautiful scoop block by Kevin Mawae, the 38 year old center for the Titans who looks like Quasimodo and wears a giant elbow brace. Great analysis by Collinsworth, something we haven't seen in years from John Madden.
This reminds me, I watched a couple of preseason games with the new Monday Night Football crew and I am giddy about the additions of Collinsworth (NBC) and Gruden (ESPN) as analysts, both have made insightful points and haven't screamed BAM! Or overused the telestrater yet.
9:24 Fumble! Bo Scaife fumbles as he hyperextends his knee, so much for the Madden curse, thus far the running diary has taken down Polamalu, Scaife, and I just popped over to ESPN and yes, Tech has given up 24 straight points and is tied at home to unranked Clemson.
9:30 The Surrogate looks like a terrible combination of the Matrix and I Robot only with an aging Bruce Willis; this just made me think of the Vikings with Brett Favre at the helm this year. The Purple have a combination of a great defense and a flashy playmaking offense with an aging star running the show. Hopefully the Vikings season doesn't end up the same way this movie will… tanking worse than Gigli.
9:33 Lamarr Woodley's return from dehydration coupled with James Harrison remembering that he is the reigning Defensive Player of the Year last year have the Steel Curtain back on track.
9:36 Richard Jackson, Clemson's former ineligible kicker, just booted one from 53 yards out to put Clemson on top by 3. So to recap, a guy who Dabo didn't trust to make a 55 yarder that lead to a pooch punt that was returned for a touchdown in the first quarter just drilled a 53 yarder for the lead. Even more ridiculous is the fact that a kicker was suspended for academics, has this happened ever before?
9:38 Back to NBC, the Steelers line has solidified itself after a tumultuous first quarter and a half, at least in the passing game. The run game is another story, not much movement up front and we can see it in Fast Willie Parker's line 13 rushes for 19 yards at this point.
9:42 Flip to ESPN, not only has Clemson figured out how to defend Tech's lethal option attack, they appear to have figured out that wearing down Josh Nesbitt is smarter than continually letting him option to his bruising backs.
9:45 Clemson's 'D' couldn't quite stay perfect in the second half though as Josh Nesbitt led a 12 play, 69 yard drive capped by a Scott Blair 34 yard field goal. We're knotted up at 27-27 with 5:40 to go in the game, and headed for an exciting finish despite Dabo Swinney's attempts to lose the game.
9:51 Huge, controversial, holding penalty bringing back a long pass to Jacoby Ford that would've put Clemson in scoring position with just over three minutes left. Parker fires incomplete on third down and the Tigers are forced to punt giving Tech the ball back with 2:52 to play.
9:54 On 3rd and 11, Nesbitt completes only his third pass of the night but it’s a huge 39 yard completion to Thomas setting the Tech offense up on the Clemson 27, right on the edge of Blair's FG range. 3 yard run by Nesbitt and a timeout, ok back to the NFL.
9:59 Bironas puts one through the uprights from 45 yards out to ease the Titans ahead 10-7 with under nine minutes left in the fourth. Can the 'Burgh get its' offense on track or will the defensive stalemate continue? Don't want to miss the ending of the Tech-Clemson game.
10:00 Tech trying to decide what to do on 4th and 1 with a kicker who is 0-7 over 40 yards in his career from the 20 and he hits! The Jackets are back up three with :57 left on the clock. The white-out is going crazy right now; who knew people could get this jazzed up about an ACC game not involving
10:07 After a short kick by Blair and a 10 yard return to the 30 by Ford, Parker misfires twice. 3rd and 10 Parker hangs in and goes deep while getting sandwiched by two Clemson defenders, the ball is knocked down. 4th down umbrella coverage Parker's pass incomplete to Spiller and Clemson will not pull off the upset. At least they showed they could overcome adversity in a hostile environment, but if I'm a Clemson fan I'd be worried about BC coming into
10:09 Alright, back to the NFL. Roethlisberger gets floored by an unblocked Jevon Kearse, the
10:15 After the Mewelde Moore show leaves
10:21 Kerry Collins has 29 game-winning drives, 3rd most among active QBs, who knew? Collins complete to Justin Gage for a first down, who is having a huge game for being Justin Gage. Two straight throw-aways by Collins, the last one looked like a screen turns out it was a complete jail break by the Steelers. Collins overshoots Gage and Tyrone Carter almost knocks out his own teammate out. Pola-who?
10:29 Coming out of a timeout Roethlisberger hits Ward over the middle and Michael Griffin strips him from behind at the six and we're going the other way! Ward is beside himself, as he should be, he just cost the Steelers the game with the equivalent of a PAT staring Jeff Reed in the face had he just gotten down instead of plowing for the end zone.
10:32 Collinsworth and Michaels working out the clock situation as PIT might have a chance to get a free kick at the end of the game. This might be the most pointless rule in the league, why should a game ever be decided by a free kick!?
10:34 Another sneak by Collins and we're headed to OT. On to the coin flip, which has been the topic of much controversy over the past year or so, it seems like another unjust way to end the game. Chris and Al like the NFL rule, I think it should be changed. "Five says tails, it's heads" alright the Men of Steel get to start with the ball and Hines has a chance for redemption.
10:41 Great protection, the four man rush is not getting there, Ben goes to Ward for another first down. Next, even more protection and Ben hits Miller for eight yards, he has eight catches for 63 yards. Mewelde Moore plows ahead for the first down; meanwhile Ward just introduced himself to Vincent Fuller. Its clear Ward is still miffed about the fumble and Fuller just found out the hard way.
10:44 2nd and 9 Roethlisberger to Ward for eight, bringing up 3rd and short. It's been tough sledding all night for the Steelers trying to run in short yardage. Roethlisberger to Holmes on a perfect three step slant for a first down as he easily beat man coverage. You can't draw it up any better than that.
10:46 Ben just escaped the grasp of Tony Brown and got taken down by Kyle Vanden Bosch as he let the ball fly. Mike Wallace, of 60 Minutes, no he's the rookie from Ole Miss comes up with a huge catch putting the Steelers in field goal range.
That is the kind of play that Favre would have pulled off about five years ago, Big Ben is proving tonight that he is the real deal. He has now led a drive to tie the game late in the fourth and a drive that will win the game in OT.
10:48
Two absolutely exciting games tonight, we learned a lot and you couldn't ask for a better start to the NFL season. Alright, I'm exhausted it was fun while it lasted.