United Nations

By Mike Batista

Steelahs.com patriarch

September 17, 2007

Maybe I’m too tough on the Steelers.

I was nervous about the season opener in Cleveland, and they won big. I was nervous about Sunday’s home opener against the Buffalo Bills, and they won 26-3.

If the Steelers were playing a team of jockeys, I’d still be nervous. That’s what you get when you cross a Steelers fan with a Red Sox fan.

Those of you who don’t know me, I’m a Boston fan for all pro sports except football. So the negativity of being a Red Sox fan seeps into my psyche as a Steelers fan.

Now I’m going to have to go off on a Red Sox tangent here. I know most Steelers fans don’t give a shit about the Red Sox, but maybe you should. Because of the sorry state of the Pirates, Pittsburgh fans should be allowed to adopt another Major League Baseball team as their favorite. I recommend the Red Sox.

If you don’t want to give up on the Pirates, my hat’s off to you. Actually, I used to have a Pirates hat. In the summer of 1981, I played on the Pirates in the Boys Club baseball league in Pawtucket, R.I. My dad bought me one of those old-school Pirates caps from the late 1970s, the ones with the flat top and black stripes that went all the way around. Of course, I didn’t have any Stargell stars on mine. Anyway, if you’re not interested in applying for dual citizenship in Steelers Nation and Red Sox Nation, skip the next seven paragraphs and pick up the column from there.

Obviously, it's hard to catch the Red Sox on TV behind enemy lines here in New York. Sometime during the summer, I saw that the Red Sox were playing the Yankees Sept. 16 on the Sunday night game on ESPN. That meant I'd watch the Steelers during the day, and enjoy the rare treat of watching Red Sox at night. I couldn’t wait. Thanks to the Steelers, the day started out fine, but the Red Sox ruined my night with a 4-3 loss to the Yankees. David Ortiz popped out with the bases loaded to end the game.

Yeah, I know. The Red Sox are still 4½ games ahead of the Yankees in the AL East, but they can’t beat the Yankees, and that makes me wonder if they’re good enough to win the World Series, even though they have the best record in baseball.

And I know I shouldn’t be bitching since the Red Sox finally won their long awaited world championship in 2004. But they have a chance to win another one and shut up the “You won one World Series in 86 years” people.

The Red Sox probably wouldn’t have gone so long between world championships if it weren’t for events like Bucky Dent’s home run in the 1978 single-game playoff at Fenway Park to decide the American League East. Dent, who choked up on his bat (who does that anymore?), hit a pop fly that the wind carried over the Green Monster. The Yankees went on to win the game and the World Series. In 1986, the Sox were one strike away from finally winning the championship in Game 6 of the World Series against the Mets. But the Mets came back and eventually won when Mookie Wilson’s ground ball went through Bill Buckner’s legs. Then they won Game 7. In 2003, the Yankees’ Aaron Boone, who like Dent 25 years earlier couldn’t hit for shit, whacked a game-winning home run in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series to beat the Red Sox. That’s why citizens of Red Sox Nation are so grumpy, and I don’t think one World Series win will be enough to change the culture. It’s going to take a Red Sox dynasty. Maybe a batboy should point a camera toward the other dugout during games and steal some signs. Then they’d win three World Series in four years and be just like the Patriots.

Like the Red Sox, the Steelers recently ended a long wait and won a championship.

Like the Red Sox, the Steelers’ wait was made longer by a series of chokes and heartbreaks, like Tim McKyer’s blown coverage against the Chargers in the 1994 AFC championship game. Like Kordell Stewart’s two interceptions in the end zone against the Broncos in the 1997 AFC championship game. Like the two special teams blunders against the Patriots in the 2001 AFC championship game. Like Titans kicker Joe Nedney’s acting debut in a 2002 AFC divisional playoff game. Like Bill Cowher’s decision to settle for a field goal on fourth-and-goal with the Steelers down by 14 to the Patriots in the fourth quarter of the 2004 AFC championship game. At least the Red Sox’ heartache was spread out over 86 years. Before the Steelers won their fifth Super Bowl, their fans’ frustration was like Red Sox fans’ frustration on speed.

So, if you’re a Pirates fan who wants to jump ship, come on board with Red Sox Nation. Then maybe you’ll understand why I found things to complain about during the Steelers’ beating of the Bills on Sunday.

Pirates faithful, welcome back. I thought the Bills would be a dangerous opponent for the Steelers for a couple of reasons. First, they just might have the best special teams in the NFL, and special teams have traditionally been an Achilles’ heel for the Steelers. Also, I thought the Bills would rally around teammate Kevin Everett, who suffered a life-threatening spinal cord injury last week.

The Steelers dominated statistically but couldn’t put the ball in the end zone in the first half. They led 12-0 at halftime on four Jeff Reed field goals. That bothered me. The way they piled on the field goals reminded me of the Steeler teams of the mid-90s. They had great defenses, but on offense, all they could do was run the ball, and they didn’t have Jerome Bettis yet to finish the job in goal-line situations. So they killed teams softly with field goals, and maybe a defensive touchdown.

Now, the Steelers can do more on offense than run the ball. They have a quarterback who has the potential to be among the NFL’s top five in Ben Roethlisberger. They certainly used him Sunday. Of his 34 passes, 29 came in the first half. Because of their huge time-of-possession advantage, Roethlisberger was able to throw all those passes in the first half while Willie Parker gained 70 yards on 13 carries. He finished with 126 yards on 23 carries.

The Bills’ special teams prowess set up their only score of the game, which came on the opening drive of the second half. Terrence McGee returned the opening kickoff 63 yards to the Steelers’ 32 (Lawrence Timmons made the tackle on that, by the way. He’ll be fine). Ryan Lindell’s 24-yard field goal put the Bills on the board.

Later in the third quarter, the Steelers finally found the end zone. Matt Spaeth caught a 1-yard pass from Roethlisberger for his second touchdown of the season. It makes the Steelers’ decision to have 6,000 tight ends seem a little smarter. It’ll help in goal-line situations.

That touchdown was set up by Roethlisberger’s 27-yard pass to Santonio Holmes, which brought them to the Bills’ 5 with 6:01 left in the third. That was the first time I raised my hand for a high-five with other Steelers fans. I didn’t think the Steelers’ performance was worthy until then. But that’s just me.

Yes, it took the Steelers a while to find the end zone, but they still scored points. On the other side of the ball, they’ve given up just 10 points this season. I should come to terms with the fact that this is a pretty good Steelers team. Last week, I pointed out that the Steelers also started out 1-0 last year before their season went south. This week, I’m going to say that the Steelers’ 2-0 record is reminiscent of their 2-0 record two years ago. Like 2005, they started the season with two convincing wins over mediocre teams. They opened ’05 with a 34-7 win over the Titans at home and a 27-7 win at Houston. Four-and-a-half months later, they were Super Bowl champions.

But it’s still early, and I stand by my assertion that September isn’t as easy as it looks for the Steelers. Next week they host the 49ers, my pick as this year’s “out of nowhere” team in the NFL. So far, that prediction looks good. They’re 2-0, winning two close games. They’re heading in the right direction.

And so are the Steelers.

The Red Sox? Well, that’s another story.