Monday morning sports recap - Week #16

Steelers: Ended their season with a typical loss.

Ben - He didn't like the hiring of Todd Haley. I blame him for refusing to be the bigger man, but Tomlin should have nipped all of that in the bud long ago. Ben hasn't looked like he cared about Steelers football for the past two games, let alone the past few years. Charlie Batch would have played with more heart today.

Defense - Can't fault them. Kudos to the player of the game - Cortez Allen.

Odd calls - Both coaches made strange calls on 4th down and none of them worked. Not the best game from either team.

Injuries - So tired of these. Someone should work hard at conditioning these guys in the off season as well as during the season. But that too is a poor excuse because you have got to plan for that sort of thing. Be prepared. Where is the heart that we use to have when things went south? We use to rally and make things happen. Hope that heart comes back.

Off season - Well should be interesting. I bet we lose quite a few guys, including Polamalu, because we can't afford to pay these guys who keep getting hurt. Cut Wallace loose.  He doesn't want to be here.  Some of the older guys will be gone.  Have to rework this team because it isn't working.  I'll have to not whine when we lose guys I love, but they didn't work together well this year.  We have got to get our heart back.  This organization is too good.

Immaculate reception - All week Pittsburgh and the Steelers have celebrated the 1972 catch by Franco Harris that still causes Raiders fans to come unglued. The team, along with Harris and several teammates, dedicated a monument in the spot of the old Three Rivers Stadium where the reception was made that pushed the Steelers further into the playoffs and toward their first Super Bowl win. Terry Bradshaw did a nice piece on Fox's Pre-game show. Too bad this Steelers team couldn't have honored that 40th anniversary.


Other:

Cincinnati / Indianapolis - Both teams clinched the AFC wildcard spots for the playoffs. I'll be rooting for the Colts.

Houston - The Texans let the Minnesota Vikings run all over them and then had to watch as their main running back, Arian Foster, went into the locker room during the third quarter.  So much for home field advantage during the playoffs.  Foster is reported to have an irregular heartbeat and it is being downplayed, but the meltdown that the Texans had is more disturbing to the fans who booed the team yesterday.  Personally, I wouldn't worry too much about it.  The team is in.  These last two games are chump change despite getting home field advantage.  We all know teams relax and stretch during these weeks.  What matters is how they play come playoffs.

Seattle - I should have gone with them.  I knew when they played the Steelers that this team had something, especially with their defense.  For the third week in a row they stomped on their opponent racking up major points.  The Seahawks could have scored more than 50 points, but according to Yahoo Sports Blog, Morning Rush, coach Pete Carroll said the team had more class than that.  Hmmm...since when?  But maybe Carroll knew it was Jim Harbaugh's birthday and didn't want to hurt him too deeply.

Rookie of the year - For the past few weeks all I've heard is RGIII and Andrew Luck, with Luck a head by a smidgen, but I've said all along that I believe Seattle's Russell Wilson is the rookie that should be on the podium.  He's the one on the team that no one thought or talked about.  He's the one that is now on the team that has turned heads and turned itself around.  He is the rookie that has thrown the most passes, 25, only one pass behind the leader Peyton Manning who threw 26 as a rookie.  I think he is a strong contender and doesn't belong in the third spot behind the other two.

Oakland/Carolina game - It got a bit heated after the Panthers injured Raiders quarterback Carson Palmer.  According to defensive lineman Tommy Kelly the Raiders made it their mission to go after Panthers quarterback Cam Newton.  First of all, what a stupid thing to say publicly after all of the Bounty Gate with the New Orleans Saints.  But secondly, that is the sort of thing I'm talking about with the Steelers.  Here is a team that got motivated when the other team took down and injured a player.  That would piss me off too and make me want to fight, fight, fight and win, win, win.  Going after Newton is the defense's job.  Unfortunately, they got a little too excited and rough, as the Raiders are known to do, and they drew some stupid fouls for pushing down on Newton while trying to stand.  But the fact that they got motivated is what is missing with the Steelers offense.  Get fired up when the other team attacks you, for heaven's sake!  (Although let's not try to kill people that is not what I'm saying here)

Teams - Some teams had to win and some did just that; Minnesota, Washington, Seattle while other teams didn't; Steelers, Giants.  Watch for those teams to be the leaders in the playoffs because they have the drive.  Remember the Giants last year?  No one thought them a contender when they made the playoffs.