Steelers @ chiefs: Divisional Round Weekend: Game Day Thread

stlrtruck wrote:

I'm worried about our defense facing Tyreek Hill who they didn't face in the week 4 game.  He will be the X-Factor in this game

Our defense did face Tyreek Hill in the Week 4 game. He was targeted 7 times and had 5 receptions for 24 yards, including 1 TD.

http://prod.static.steelers.clubs.nfl.com/assets/docs/2016/game-stats/10022016_Gamebook_vs_chiefs.pdf

El-Gonzo Jackson wrote:

solardave wrote:

Everyone seems to be more worried about our offense. Remember the first we didn't have Shazier or DuPree in. We have been stopping the run better lately. I think whoever controls the line of scrimmage wins this game. Bell is going to have to run well and that means guys like JJ and Nix plus an extra Olineman will have to set the pace blocking. I think JJ has become a pretty good blocker.

We can not give up TDs on kickoffs or punts and we have to tackle.

We stopped Kelce last game and I think we can do that again.

If we can jump out early and shut the crowd up we can beat these guys. If we let them get ramped up it'll be a long day.

I think you mean to reference defense, because you then mention Shazier or Dupree.  The more I look at the linemen up front to control the LOS like you say, the more I am encouraged.

Offensively, the Steelers have 5 healthy O linemen, who really protected Ben and stayed on their blocks last week.  Add the blockers like Johnson, Nix, Hubbard and I think the Steelers O line can handle the Chiefs who really have Poe, a 2nd round rookie in Chris Jones and ??

Defensively, the Chiefs have 2 good OT's in Fischer and Schwartz and a decent interior line, but of them I think Duvernay-Tardiff is better than Fulton and neither are pro bowlers.  The Chiefs O line is as good, if not slightly inferior to the Dolphins IMO.  I think the Steelers front 7 can match up well there too.

the threats the Chiefs have IMO, is the quick passing of Smith, some good weapons in the pass game of Kelce, Maclin, Hill and the threat of Smith running with the football.  Home field advantage for the Chiefs is big, their secondary is good, but front 7 beat up and the Steelers should run on them.  The Chiefs quick passing game can hurt the Steelers and not letting Tyreek Hill get big plays is something that needs to be done.  Gonna be a tough test that goes either way IMO.

Good breakdown Gonz.

One key match-up defensively to keep an eye on is James Harrison vs Eric Fisher. I think Fisher is average at best (allowed 6 sacks and 10 penalties this year). Harrison had 3 QB hurries and 1 hit, with no sacks in the first match-up. But that was in limited duty and he'll have an entire game to make another big left tackle feel little.

Honestly, KC is only marginally better than Miami and I'll say that's because Special Teams and they are healthier than the Dolphins were. Is Hill better than Stills as a WR? I don't think so. Hill's a great talent, but he's still a rookie and Stills has killed us in the past. Is Maclin as good as Landry? I don't think so. KC does have a more dangerous TE. But Miami had the better O-Line (even without Mike Pouncey) and a superior RB.

Defensively, KC's secondary is more opportunistic and maybe a little better than Miami. But their run defense is only better than Miami's by a fraction of the stat. So the better KC secondary isn't going to mean much when they are trying to come up to tackle Bell several plays in a row.

ST is what concerns me the most as well as just playing on the road, which the Steelers tend to make things closer than they should be.

From Bob Holtzman at ESPN:

Quote :

Sunday's forecast in Kansas City is ugly (a mix of ice, snow, sleet and freezing rain), but I don't expect it to have a big impact on the game. Before this season began the Chiefs installed heaters under the field at Arrowhead that keep the playing surface right around 50 degrees. It may get a little muddy with the heaters melting the ice, but without much wind, the weather really shouldn't be a factor.

LambertWardSteel wrote:

From Bob Holtzman at ESPN:

Quote :

Sunday's forecast in Kansas City is ugly (a mix of ice, snow, sleet and freezing rain), but I don't expect it to have a big impact on the game.  Before this season began the Chiefs installed heaters under the field at Arrowhead that keep the playing surface right around 50 degrees.  It may get a little muddy with the heaters melting the ice, but without much wind, the weather really shouldn't be a factor.

Either way, I hope Le'Veon will keep the defense on their heels. With our offensive line's premier run blocking lately and Bell's elusiveness, we should be able to control the time of possession which is key for every game.

This is playing about as perfect as it can be. 70/30, from what I have read and seen on TV have the Chiefs beating the Steelers. If the Steelers win, NO ONE will be picking them to beat the Patriots****. As you all know, the Steelers are one of the worst front-runners in sports history. After Noll's 70's Steelers, the Steelers have been one of the worst at being ahead in line and covering big spreads on betting lines.

So, with all this, this is all setting up in the Steelers favor. I would say the next time the Steelers are favorite in a game will be next year, that includes the Super Bowl.

Game is being moved up to 8:20 EST

http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/18468530/nfl-pushes-back-pittsburgh-steelers-kansas-city-chiefs-start-cites-weather-forecast

I don't know about all of you, but I am not happy about this time change. It is what it is though...

"Weather has affected Sunday's slate of NFL Divisional Round games.

The league has pushed back the start time for Sunday's Steelers-Chiefs game in Kansas City from 1:05 p.m. EST to 8:20 p.m. EST due to public safety concerns, the league announced Friday."

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000773767/article/steelerschiefs-start-time-changed-due-to-weather

OX1947 wrote:

Game is being moved up to 8:20 EST

http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/18468530/nfl-pushes-back-pittsburgh-steelers-kansas-city-chiefs-start-cites-weather-forecast

You beat me to it. I didn't realize you posted this already. I am not excited about the change, but no excuses, right?

Jazzo wrote:

I don't know about all of you, but I am not happy about this time change. It is what it is though...

"Weather has affected Sunday's slate of NFL Divisional Round games.

The league has pushed back the start time for Sunday's Steelers-Chiefs game in Kansas City from 1:05 p.m. EST to 8:20 p.m. EST due to public safety concerns, the league announced Friday."

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000773767/article/steelerschiefs-start-time-changed-due-to-weather

So there are public safety concerns about people driving to and from the game in daylight because of icing but not after sundown?  Got it.

FWIW the KC forecast is for a changeover to just rain Sunday night as temps hang around 32 degrees

https://weather.com/weather/5day/l/USMO0460:1:US

https://weather.com/weather/alerts/localalerts/l/USMO0460:1:US?phenomena=IS&significance=W&areaid=MOZ037&office=KEAX&etn=0001

NBC presumably heartbroken it will get a playoff game in prime time and need to preempt Dateline and The Apprentice (maybe the executive producer for The Apprentice will share his thoughts about that on Twitter)

Sabotage, subterfuge, collusion, common sense, or savvy business move.... no matter the reason, I don't like it.

I wanted to play in the most adverse conditions possible....we have Leveon Bell and AB to move us through through the muck.

Yeah, I would think it would be safer in daylight and not evening darkness and cold, but what do I know about weather.

Smells like a desire to get better ratings on a primetime game.

Maybe they want to see if the weather will pass? It's Sunday. There is no primetime on Sunday. It's a weekend. People are home all day and evening.

kirklandrules wrote:

One key match-up defensively to keep an eye on is James Harrison vs Eric Fisher. I think Fisher is average at best (allowed 6 sacks and 10 penalties this year). Harrison had 3 QB hurries and 1 hit, with no sacks in the first match-up. But that was in limited duty and he'll have an entire game to make another big left tackle feel little.



ST is what concerns me the most as well as just playing on the road, which the Steelers tend to make things closer than they should be.

Yeah, Fisher might have some issue with Deebo, but it might only be on 5 plays like you reference above. I think the ball will come out of Smiths hands fast again, but I think the Steelers can slow down the Chiefs run, so maybe they only get 13 points on offense. ST is the concern and Ben playing mediocre on the road is the biggest problem like you mention.

OX1947 wrote:

Maybe they want to see if the weather will pass? It's Sunday. There is no primetime on Sunday. It's a weekend. People are home all day and evening.

Yeah, but something tells me ratings are better for Sunday nights than Sunday afternoon games. Maybe its legit weather like you say, but either way both teams have to play in it.

Makes me very unhappy.

If this was regular season I wouldn't even watch it.

They better freakin' win.

Atlanta Dan wrote:

So there are public safety concerns about people driving to and from the game in daylight because of icing but not after sundown?  Got it.

FWIW the KC forecast is for a changeover to just rain Sunday night as temps hang around 32 degrees

Since it is about the safety of the fans getting to the stadium safe for the game, then I am now all for it. I know that I hate driving in freezing rain/ice and worry sick if any of my family members attempt to drive in that shit.

El-Gonzo Jackson wrote:

Yeah, I would think it would be safer in daylight and not evening darkness and cold, but what do I know about weather.

Smells like a desire to get better ratings on a primetime game.

Given how it has handled CTE and concussions I am not buying in to the NFL giving a rip about anyone's safety - I am cynical enough to believe the NFL and the Chiefs were more concerned about holding a playoff game before a half empty stadium

As far as ratings, the NFL sells its product to CBS, Fox and ABC/ESPN too - who gets the primetime playoff games is rotated and those networks are not going to be thrilled about NBC getting a ratings windfall Sunday night

WVABE wrote:

Makes me very unhappy.

If this was regular season I wouldn't even watch it.

They better freakin' win.

I don't understand

The thing I don't like is nighttime crowds generally seem to be louder and more boisterous. I always prefer big home games at night for this reason. Hopefully Steelers can score early and often to take the crowd out.

kan_t wrote:

The Steelers would get killed by the Chiefs if the special team keeps playing like that.

Another key battle is Shazier and Timmons against Kelce. You shut him down and the Steelers win.

They actually used Justin Gilbert to cover Kelce in Week 4, and it worked quite well. Kelce was held to 23yds receiving and a TD, and the TD came with something like 7 seconds left in the game (garbage time).

I feel pretty good about our chances. As long as we play sound, and capitalize on any mistakes the Chiefs make without making any of our own, we can win this game. I won't go so far as to say we're going to blow the Chiefs out, I think that'd be foolish, as the Chiefs made a lot of mistakes back in Week 4 and left a lot of points on the board in doing so.

schillah wrote:

WVABE wrote:

Makes me very unhappy.

If this was regular season I wouldn't even watch it.

They better freakin' win.

I don't understand

I don't watch night games. I record them and watch the next day.
Don't like being a zombie at work the next day.

WVABE wrote:

schillah wrote:

WVABE wrote:

Makes me very unhappy.

If this was regular season I wouldn't even watch it.

They better freakin' win.

I don't understand

I don't watch night games. I record them and watch the next day.
Don't like being a zombie at work the next day.

Thats one of the dumbest things Ive ever heard....I like the move, I like night games better and we fare rather well in prime time, as we did so against the Chiefs in week 4

The change is ideal for me. 6pm UK she's around, kids getting school stuff ready etc. Later KO everyones in bed, I'm off Monday to recover.

I always hated not being able to watch late games because of work the next day so I quit my job. Now I watch them in my van down by the river.

Seriously I think we should play better late. The crowd will be louder because they have all day to drink it up at the tailgate parties. I'm just hoping we shut them up by scoring early and often.

Still considering going to the game but I guess the roads are supposed to be pretty bad as far as ice goes tonight. Wife doesn't want me to go, but I've never been to a playoff game.