NFL Monday morning recap week 6

Steelers: At my retreat, my phone kept me abreast. I enjoyed coming home to watch a win on my DVR.

• But boy, did they do the inevitable, letting the Bengals tie the game with a 48-second, five-play for a 55-yard drive before halftime.
• Yikes! I know that Big Ben finished the game with 369 yards, one touchdown, and no interceptions, but he had significant issues in the first half. He was so lucky he didn't have at least three picks with some of his throws. Apparently, the rainy mist in Cincinnati made catching a problem, but I don't think that was something Ben could claim. He's got to rethink those oopsie passes that he tends to throw when cornered. With the time the line gave him in the first half, he really had no excuses that I could see (from my spot on the couch).
• The first half was tame by Cincinnati/Pittsburgh game standards with some jawing between players and a little pushing and shoving. Of course, Vontaze Burfict was right in the thick of any small skirmish the camera homed in on. One week back from his suspension of four games and the man is yucking it up and poking the bear. Not surprised, of course. The man is heavily mentioned in my feed through the years, and it isn't for being a Boy Scout. 
• David DeCastro had a monstrous block on Vontaze Burfict that enabled James Conner to run it in for Pittsburgh's first score. That's the kind of play I love to see guys get because it shows fortitude and an eye for the game. Just good football.
• Ryan Shazier returned to the scene of his injury almost a year to the date. He also visited the hospital where he was taken and treated after that injury. Always a tear-jerker to see him walking, but this had to be pretty emotional for him.
• What's with pizza companies and the ripping up of things? My nephew was in a Papa Johns commercial where he ripped his shirt in excitement, and now Pizza Hut has an ad where a couple of Steelers fans watch their daughter tear up the pizza box after a great play. I mean, what? I only want to rip things when my team sucks, and it certainly doesn't relate to pizza.
• I need CBS's cameraman to stop focusing each week on the Steelers Special Teams coach Danny Smith who favors several sticks of pink bubblegum at one time. He is one of those gum chewers who does so open-mouthed, and that pink wad is truly disgusting hanging out over his lips. I mean, it's slightly better than watching a tobacco user spit, but no matter, I'm sure his mother taught him better than that. Especially on national television.
• And speaking of CBS, not a fan of Dan Fouts and Ian Eagle, who called the game. Both their voices were too monotone, only rising in tone when they thought some arguing might be happening on the field. It was as if they were hoping for some major drama and were disappointed that there wasn't any. I did enjoy Evan Washburn on the sidelines. "And guys, a quick weather update, still misting but best describe it as 9change in voice inflection) irritating."
• Cincinnati's A.J. Green is as fun to watch as Antonio Brown. He's got an athletism with that long, lean body that allows him to make some spectacular catches.
• I really love Vance McDonald, the Steelers tight end who tacklers seem to underestimate. He can stretch that big body to catch passes, but his barreling through tacklers, spinning and shoving, and stiff-arming is like poetry in motion.
• JuJu Smith-Schuster's incredible catch reaching around Cincinnati's Dennard's neck, using the helmet to hold on to the ball? WOW. That should make ESPN's top ten plays. Freakin' awesome. Not so much for Dennard, I'm sure. His neck might be a bit sore today.
• Odd no-call on what I called a James Connor touchdown in the third quarter. He hit the turf and rolled into the end zone. Uh, no one touched him when he went down, so turning into the endzone for a T.D. was frankly a touchdown. Unfortunately, I don't have a direct line to Mike Tomlin to let him know to throw the challenge flag. He might want to look into that.
• Thought that crossed my mind: Steelers James Connor has definitely taken advantage of Bell's absence. If you want your shot, you've got to step up, and Connor has done that.
• Boy, the media loves the A.B. wifi soundbite, and naturally, it was discussed yesterday, especially since Ben wasn't hitting Brown, but then with fifteen seconds left, Ben hit A.B. for the win. Thank goodness the media will have something to talk about tomorrow.
• After the game, there was some trash talk and shoving between the two teams who had surprisingly been mild all things considered since it was these two. Notice how Mike Tomlin spied it and took off running to pull his guys out of the friction and tell the Bengals players to back off. Missing? Bengals coach Marvin Lewis who truly has no control over these guys. I'm thankful the game was just good football without the other nonsense.

Other:

• Ah, London. I forgot about those games. This was the week and nothing like picking the two farthest teams from England to fly across the pond. 
• Atlanta and Tampa, the worst defenses in the league, and guess what? They didn't show up yesterday, letting both offenses to slug it out until one came out the winner. Just like I predicted, it wasn't Tampa despite their tricky trick hot potato play at the end. You won't convince me that it was practiced. That thing was pure desperation, and it almost worked. And had it worked, it would have been all we would've seen for the rest of the season, don't you know.
• I got a big kick out of Scott Hanson on the NFL Redzone channel who stated as he pulled away from the split-screen of two teams to focus on the Vikings/Cardinals game. "Vikings rush game has been almost non-existent this year..." The next play, the Vikings Murray took the ball and rushed twenty-one yards right into the end zone. Whoop. Back to Scott, who then remarked, "And the Cardinals have one of the worst rushing defenses in the NFL." Uh, huh, Scott. Way to work a save.
• The split-screen for the Redzone is always a challenge, but never more so than when I had to watch Alex Smith, now quarterback for the Redskins on one screen, and Kirk Cousins now quarterback for the Vikings on the other. What? Then it went to show Cousins throwing an interception, faded away, and then we saw Smith throwing an interception. Craziness. Good thing it was week 6, or I might have thought I was losing my mind.
• Andrew Luck throws the ball almost 50 times a game? Who is their play-caller? A youngster that doesn't remember the good old days of rushing? Yikes. Have we forgotten he had an arm injury in the past?
• And speaking of Luck, why the continuation of the beard thing? That's so over, Andrew. Move on.
• No flag on the hit on the Raiders Amari Cooper by the Seahawks Brad McDougald. Cooper was carted off the field and into the locker room. What? The refs were watching Derek Carr instead? Making sure there wasn't a late hit on the quarterback that they missed a massive helmet to helmet hit? Oh, NFL, I'm just shaking my head.
• And seriously? Poor Derek Carr is getting his ass kicked each week by his own worthless O line. John Gruden's foray back into football isn't going as well as it did in his own mind.
• The Bear's uniforms are too close to the Broncos. The Bucs uniforms are too close to the Falcons. How the hell do the quarterbacks keep track?