Preseason Game #2 - 8/21 @ NYG

[Robotman]

Big Blue feat. Dumbface.

[jonzr]

It'll be live on the NFLN!

BAM!

[LambertsFrontTeeth]

Word is that Dumb Face's widdle head is ouchied.  Might not play against us. Too bad.  I'd love to see us bruise him up in the first two series.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AsLLV0m2C4TO04MpZ3Fm7Y5DubYF?slug=ap-giants-manning

[Finnegans Wake]

Points to The Toe for taking a shot and sporting the blood like a man.

He's a little less of a puss for it.

[TwistedLemon]

Taylor ejected for throwing blows.....less than 2 minutes into a preseason game.  GENIUS

[SCacalaki]

Wrote up something good and the computer ate it....

Synopsis:

Ben is a douche but a great QB.  Hurry back Ben

Lefty ran a poor O with 50 seconds left in the 1st half.  Maybe it was Arians fault too but a pass plan on 2nd down, use last TO and a MelMoore run for no gain on 3rd was brutal.  Lefty redeemed himself with the pass to Wallace, who seems to always come back to Ben's deep throws.

Dixon needs to get on the field somehow, some way during the regular season.  He made something outta nothin' on a run play that looked like it was planned to go to the Tank.

It's only a matter of weeks for Pouncey.  I think he has the starter's job by Week 1.

Worilds didn't show me much last night, though I appreciated he dropped in to coverage more fluidly than I expected.

All corners were brutal...BMac especially. Lewis had a moment or two last night but there wasn't much to cheer for with the CBs.

STs coverage looked good.  After a nice first KO (brought back by a penalty), Sep didn't look great from the KOs I saw...though I may have missed one or two.

Despite being a preaseaon game, Ike is an idiot.  That's a young group that needs leadership.  Farrior nor Aaron Smith would be that type of role model.

[leighclay]

Dixon needs to get on the field somehow, some way during the regular season.  He made something outta nothin' on a run play that looked like it was planned to go to the Tank.

It's only a matter of weeks for Pouncey.  I think he has the starter's job by Week 1.

Very impressed with Pouncey.  Think I heard that his future (probably starting) position depends on Flozell.  Does he suck so much that we need Pouncey more there.  From what I saw last night, yes.

DD looked awesome.  Very impressed with his poise and awareness.  Gary Coleman may have a battle on his hands.

And yes, hurry back Ben.

Danny - I did like most of his kick-offs, at least as much as I ever did Skippy's.  Plus he can lay somebody out when coverage is not so good.  Very unlike Skippy...

[otismalibu]

Someone needs to tell Ben that drunk chicks dig the long ball. Club up, FFS. He does so many things well, I guess I can't fault him too much. Once, when he scrambled to his left, I was thinking he might have been taken down in that same situation last year. Maybe not, but I'm glad he's dropped some beer fat.

Someone on here said that BFL's windup seems even slower. I think they may be right. His scramble was amusing to watch. He almost blew out an ankle just getting up quick. Nice long ball, though.

Robopunter only got one to the EZ, that I saw. Not any better than drunk Jeff, except he can actually tackle. I'd use him just for that. With Reed & Logan on kickoffs last year, it was 9 against 11 every time.

Looks like it will be another season of 15 yards to move the chains and only 2 downs to use to get there.

[SCacalaki]

Looks like it will be another season of 15 yards to move the chains and only 2 downs to use to get there.

This.  At least until Ben gets back.

Heath royally sucked blocking Tuck on the ARE reverse (or was it an end-around?).  I guess Heath figured that Tuck would come from the outside.

[msdmnr2002]

Not a lot else to say... Ben's biggest weakness is deep ball, and doesn't seem to have improved.  I think it's partly a function of him holding the ball so long.  WRs get too deep before he decides to throw it, plus just doesn't have that zip.  BFL, on the other hand...that was a friggin rocket, and dead on the money.

Despite said TD, Dixon looked better overall IMO.  Plus with our pass protection got to have some mobility back there.

Glad to see refs are in midseason form.  saw about 4-5 calls/no calls go against us.  Flozell doesn't get that holding call if he's blocking Harrison apparently, because we see that every week go unnoticed.  Robo gets his jersey ripped off and still makes tackle.  Two bogus calls in EZ against the rising superstar WR for Giants (*eye roll*)

Like what I'm seeing in the WR group. 

Mendenhall's career may be good, but I'm afraid it will be relatively short.  Never seems to avoid a hit.

[aj_law]

One thing I've taken away from the first two early preseason games...Pittsburgh seems to have better backups than most.

*sigh*

:nervous:

Again, Dennis Dixon needs to start.

[pensodyssey]

Thoughts from having seen the game live:

re: kickoffs.  Sepulveda kicks the ball higher than Reed does.  The hang time on his KO's is sick, which should make up for the fact that as noted, they still drop at the 5 or 10.  He absolutely beat that blocker up to make the tackle too. 

re: Ben and the deep ball.  We've been noticing these underthrows for years now, and the poster who noted that he waits until the receivers are too deep probably has a point.  But I still think it's his release point, which looks to my naked and untrained eye more like 60 degrees than the optimal 45. 

re: Flozell.  Horrible.  I lost count of the number of Giants that he either ran past or allowed to run past him.  I think he thought he was still assigned to block Harry Carson and couldn't find him.

re:  Worilds.  I actually thought he did ok, though we were walking out during the 4th quarter.  Very fast, first point of comparison is Timmons.  Who, by the way, played pretty well in run support.


re: QBs.  Fact of the matter is we simply won't know what we have in Dixon until Tomlin starts him.  Leftwich played like shit until the deep ball. 

[otismalibu]

re: kickoffs.  Sepulveda kicks the ball higher than Reed does.

I hadn't really noticed...or wasn't paying close enough attention, but my buddy said the exact same thing after watching the game.

[pensodyssey]

re: kickoffs.  Sepulveda kicks the ball higher than Reed does.

I hadn't really noticed...or wasn't paying close enough attention, but my buddy said the exact same thing after watching the game.

You can really tell when you're sitting in the upperdeack and the kicks almost reach eye level.

[otismalibu]

I was just amazed how far he could kick it with the wrong foot.

[Big Virgil]

The D wasn't all that great vs the the Giants 1st stringers with their 3rd string QB.  Any other starter would have carved them up.  I know there's no game planning, etc. but not all that great, IMO.

The O looked less than optimistic against a decent D.  Arians running his "trick plays" (those are trick plays for that vanilla idiot) that they obviously practiced once, didn't give the O a chance to put together a decent drive.  I think the rook WR's show a lot of promise.  I think they are a good compliment to Ward, Wallace, and ARE.

Leftwitch is a little slow, so I'm guessing the TD was his 3 step, but took as long as a 5 stepper.  He dropped back, and launched to hit him in stride.  For Ben, or anyone else, if they drop and look at Wallace as the 3rd or 4th option, there is no way they can get to him on the run.  Can't see what isn't on TV, but Wallace needs to run some "outs" or post routes.  He can beat any CB 1 on 1 , and doesn't need much of a move to beat the S.

I'll be checking it out in more detail next Sunday in Denver!!!

[pensodyssey]

The D wasn't all that great vs the the Giants 1st stringers with their 3rd string QB.  Any other starter would have carved them up.  I know there's no game planning, etc. but not all that great, IMO.

The defense was unbelievably bland.  Nothing that I saw by way of stunts or blitzes besides Harrison or Woodley coming off the edge, and I thought they still got good het on the QB (except on the one TD drive they had).

I think when you see these guys live, BV, you'll be pretty amped at what the D can do once d*** unleashes hell. 

[Big Virgil]

I will be all liquored up and reday to see hell unleashed.

I know Tomlin needs to see more of Dixon and Lefty in action but I'd also like to see Ben and starters for more than one or two series.

[SCacalaki]

Anyone hoping to add to the 2010 Steelers Reunion, don't count on Ty Carter or Carey Davis.  Both signed by the 'Skins.

[Big Virgil]

Thank goodness, Carter is gone.  I can't stand watching that little gangster.  If he could do anything worthwhile, he might be worth having, and then he would actually have something to jump around about, but that just ain't the case.

[aj_law]

He absolutely beat that blocker up to make the tackle too. 

We had a few friends over and the game was on in the background.  I looked up to see the returner make a cut and hit some open space.  "Uh, oh...Uh, OH!!"  I then saw Robo fending off that blocker with one arm and forcing him towards the sideline.  Nice.  Good form tackling too.  My buddy's like, "was that the punter??"  I responded, "Hell yeah, that's the benefit of having a football player at kicker/punter."

Sep just looks like a natural player.  Safety looks like it would be a nice fit.  It would save a roster spot...

[Big Virgil]

Plus, Sep was gettin mugged on that play by the blocker.  I'm guessing a good NY mugging is all the same on the street or on the field.

[pensodyssey]

Plus, Sep was gettin mugged on that play by the blocker.  I'm guessing a good NY mugging is all the same on the street or on the field.

I wouldn't know.  I've certainly never been mugged...