No Super Bowl hangover ... Steelers weak in the trenches

Yes, the Steelers are 2-2 and the season is not lost, at least not yet. But most experts and fans will agree that record is misleading, because Pittsburgh was thoroughly and physically dominated by the two decent (not great) opponents it faced in Baltimore and Houston, and tallied its two wins against horrible squads that truly would have trouble scoring on the ridiculously good University of Alabama defense this fall.

Surprising to all, the 2011 Steelers appear to be nowhere near a Super Bowl caliber-squad and probably only have a decent shot at the postseason, because of a very favorable schedule, and the presence of a franchise quarterback in Ben Roethlisberger (assuming they can somehow keep him off injured reserve) and the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year in Troy Polamalu, assuming he can stay healthy.

While Roethlisberger was horrendous in a week-1 loss at Baltimore and Polamalu has uncharacteristically missed some tackles, those two stalwarts join receiver Mike Wallace (seems to get 100 yards every game and is now a true No. 1 WR) and corner Ike Taylor (yielded just 7 catches for 56 yards in 4 games despite covering opponent’s top WR in single-coverage each week) as the only four of the Steelers’ many above-average players who have played anywhere near their expected level this fall.

The rest of the team’s key players have under-achieved or been downright pathetic
http://www.steelerslounge.com/2011/10/super-bowl-hangover-sadly-2011-steelers-weak-trenches/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=super-bowl-hangover-sadly-2011-steelers-weak-trenches
--------------------------------



I agree with the assessment on Mike and Ike. (see what I did there?)
But I have to disagree on Ben and Troy. Troy was completely absent the first two games. He decided to show up in the last two games. Let's hope he keeps it up. As far as Ben, yeah, a lot of his struggles can be blamed on the O-line, but he's made plenty of mistakes himself ... poor throws leading to interceptions and fumbles. I find the fumbles infuriating. It's one thing if a QB doesn't see the hit coming and the ball gets stripped. But just about every time he has fumbled, Ben saw the hit coming and just doesn't protect the football.