So I’m a little late on this week’s recap … I’ve had shit to do. Despite having Hines Ward, Santonio Holmes, Troy Polamalu, and Casey Hampton on the bench, the Steelers shut out the Seahawks this past Sunday. The game was scoreless towards the end of the first half, until Ben connected with the unstoppable Heath Miller for a touchdown with less than two minutes to go. After halftime the boys got the ball moving, with Willie Parking coming up with his 4th 100-yd. game of the season. Najeh Davenport which seemed like an odd pickup a year ago, is proving his worth adding a pair of touchdowns on the day. He’s a great complement to Willie, because when Najeh comes in the defense is not going to get a breather. Najeh can make plays past the line of scrimmage just as he does in the backfield.

The Steelers improve to 4-1 on the season, and return after the bye for a Sunday Night game at Denver. After which they have three straight divisional games, with one being a Monday night against Baltimore. Overall they are meeting and in some ways exceeding my expectations. The secondary is actually covering AND hitting, special teams is vastly improved, and most importantly … Ben is back to his Super Bowl form.

The Steelers got hammered by the Cardinals in a 21-14 on Sunday. The Cards Head Coach, Ken Whisenhunt (former Steelers Offensive Coordinator) totally shut down Willie Parker and applied some serious pressure to Big Ben. The Steelers had a lot stacked against them, Hines Ward was out, Polomalu went out early … oh and the fact that Whisenhunt knows everything about the players he once guided to a Super Bowl XL victory. Insider knowledge much? Well some of the Steelers feel that way as well:

“I think coach Whis knew some of the weak points of our offense,” said wide receiver Santonio Holmes, whose two TD catches meant he wasn’t one of those deficiencies. “He was sending guys left and right, bringing pressure as much as he could to try to disrupt our offense. They did a pretty good job of it.”

So my prediction for a 5-0 start was slightly over anxious, but hey that’s what fans are for right? If the boys had to drop one, it my as well be to the Cardinals. Next week we have a re-match of Super Bowl XL as the Seattle Seahawks come to the ‘Burgh. There’s certaintly some bad blood for Mike Holmgren and crew so it ought to be a good one.

My prediction, a close one: Steelers 28, Seahawks 23

37-16. The Steelers absolutely dominated the 49ers yesterday. There isn’t much analysis to do here, so I won’t waste your time. That’s why you have the likes of the Post-Gazette and Yahoo Sports. I’m not about to make wild predictions about post-season play, as the boys truly haven’t been tested yet. One thing you can be sure of is that Mike Tomlin is the Shaft of the NFL. Can you dig it?

Next Week: Steelers 42, Arizona 17

In the only NFL news worth noting, the Pittsburgh Steelers routed the Buffalo Bills by a score of 26-3. In doing so, they notched their 500th franchise victory while sporting their new throwback uniforms. They missed some key scoring opportunities in the first half, but that didn’t stop it from being a one-sided game.

The Steelers have a relatively easy schedule in the first half of the season, without another division match up until Week 8. All I know is that Head Coach Mike Tomlin is one intimidating dude on the sidelines. The official in the picture below is doing his best not to make eye contact for fear of a Shaft-esque beating.

Next week: Steelers at home against the 49ers, I say the black & gold improve to 3-0 by a score of 34-10

The football season is nigh, and so is Jeff Reed’s unit. The ever partying Pittsburgh Steelers kicker and his donkey never cease to entertain the legions of drunken Alleghenian women that call the great Pittsburgh area home.

More Jeff Reed goodness can be found over at Deadspin, which is where I drew this truly fantastic image from. Granted this is no where as good as the one of his shaven dong, but it has filled my need for NFL mule for the day.

As a lifelong Steelers fan, today I hang my head in shame. The mascot that was unveiled several months ago in honor of the Steelers 75th Anniversary now has a name … Steely McBeam. No I’m not making that up. Why do we now have a mascot with a name that belongs in porn? How could the front office sit around a table and think that was a great idea. The same folks who approved this attrociuos name must be the same ones who greenlit Daddy Day Camp (currently holding a 2% freshness rating at Rotten Tomatoes)

This is absolute horse shit. We haven’t had a mascot for decades but poof … we have one all of a sudden and he’s gayer than San Diego Chicken. The Steeler Nation is in a state of mourning, specifically for an organization that had been so unique in remaining true to the elements of the game and not the making that extra buck. A sad day indeed.

I get amped for football season just as much as the next guy, but it’s really here. I don’t consider the season as official until the Black & Gold suits up for their first preseason game. Last night in Canton, Ohio the Steelers appeared to be in Mid-Season form under the guidance of new Head Coach Mike Tomlin. They looked 100x better than last preseason, when Big Ben was coming off of a near fatal car accident. The Steelers ended up with nearly 414yds of total offense in their 20-7 victory over the New Orleans Saints. What’s even better, the great Drew Brees had no completions. none. zippy. nada. Tighten up your sphincters folks, because the Steelers will rule some ass this season.

My Prediction: Steelers go 12-4 clinch AFC North

This past NFL season was a tumultuous one for Steelers fans like myself. Coming off an improbable and record setting season resulting in the Superbowl XL victory, finishing at 8-8 was certainly a let down. They were decimated by the Bengals (despite all of their legal issues) and the Ravens. It was a down turn in what some political scientists may call a ‘dynastic cycle’. I realized around Week 11 that the writing was on the wall for Bill Cowher. His family was moving to N.C., the Steelers were far from money, and he was looking a little tired on the sidelines.

My football upbringing was solely focused on the Steelers. The first season that I actually remembered watching some games on TV was 1992, specifically Troy Aikman corn-holing the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXVII. Flash forward 4 years, and the Pittsburgh Steelers are matched up against the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl XXX. A great matchup on paper, until the douch-like play of Steeler’s QB Neil O’Donnell. That team was sick, Yancey Thigpen, Bam Morris, Rod Woodson, Levon Kirkland, oh and Kordell ‘Slash’ Stewart’.

Well, my digression has lead me to the latest that the Steelers have announced their new head coach, Mike Tomlin. After 15 years of “The Chin”, change is going to be hard for the Steeler Nation. I grow weary of this whole black coach thing, the guy has the credentials and has run one of the most effective defensive schemes in the NFL. He wasn’t the obvious choice, but I think he’s got what it takes to get Big Ben & Co. back on track.

A point of contention for Steeler’s fans (other than that whole black thing, because Kordell didn’t last long) is that Tomlin runs the 4-3 defense, whereas Dick LeBeau has been running the 3-4 (which is often imitated) for God knows how long. Another tidbit of good news is that Lebeau will remain the Defensive Coordinator … for at least this upcoming season. We’ll see how this works out, I imagine Tomlin will be wanting to draft a top flight corner this spring, or heck maybe even go after someone in free agency.