Steelers Crushed in More Ways Than One

The Steelers were unable to get anything going offensively in Philadelphia today, resulting in a disappointing 15-6 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. To add insult to injury, Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was sacked 8 times (not counting the times he was manhandled to the ground after making it back across the line of scrimmage) and left the game before the end of the fourth quarter with an injury to his throwing hand. I sure would hate to be him having to get out of bed this morning! I can't imagine how he must be hurting.

Troy Palomalu, of course, played brilliantly - as did pretty much all of the Steelers defense. They limited the Eagles to 15 points, 16 first downs, and 260 yards which should have been more than enough. But great defense alone does not win a game. You need points to do that. The Steelers offensive line, however, was seriously outplayed. Neither the coaches or players could adjust to the defensive schemes of the Eagles. I can't remember a game in recent memory where the Steelers were so physically dominated. Roethlisberger completed only 13 of 25 passes for 131 yards, and the running game was limited to 19 carries for a whopping total of 33 yards - this following two 100-yard games for Steelers running back Willie Parker. Backup quarterback Byron Leftwich managed to breath a little life into the game when he came in for Ben late in the fourth quarter, but the puzzling decision of Coach Mike Tomlin to go for the touchdown on fourth and 10, rather than taking the pretty much guaranteed field goal ended that. Tackle Willie Colon summed it up well, "This game was a butt kicking. It really was.”

As we try to forget the disappointing game, Ben's injured right hand is now on everyone's mind. X-rays taken during the game showed no broken bones, but Coach Mike Tomlin said the hand will be examined further tomorrow.