Football
It is a game of skill, endurance, passion, and intensity.
99% of the players in the NFL have the first trait. If they didn't, they would not have been drafted. The other 3 traits are acquired by the proper coaching, team leadership, and the internal desire to win.
The 98 Steelers were a team loaded with talent, good coaching, and veteran leadership. The question was never if they could make the playoffs, but rather how far they could go once January came.
Sunday at Three Rivers Stadium, there was a team with its back to the wall for the fourth consecutive week. This time they were to play a team that had lost 9 straight games. They had the incentive of an earlier loss to atone for, as well as the slim hopes of a playoff berth in the balance. An early week, players only meeting had aired out all bad feelings of the previous weeks ineptitude. If ever a team was ready for the challenge of an NFL battle in the trenches, this team was it.
Passion and intensity has a cruel way of changing the best laid of plans. On this particular Sunday, the Cincinatti Bengals had more of the desired traits than the Pittsburgh Steelers. Somehow they figured their miserable season could somehow be salvaged by having a season sweep of the once mighty Steelers. It was obviously more incentive than the Steelers had. Theirs was only a chance at post season play.
This was a game in which the Bengals gave the Steelers every opportunity to win. There were fumbles, interceptions, botched punt returns, and missed field goals. The problem was the Steelers didn't have the passion, intensity or endurance to make it count. The skill level was there. The desire wasn't.
As it turned out, none of it mattered. The Patriots upset the 49ers, thereby eliminating the Steelers from playing in January.
Now the team must go into Jacksonville and somehow try to act like they want to be there. When this game was scheduled, the whole world thought it would have major playoff implications. The Jaguars held up their part of the bargain, the Steelers did not.
A part of me hopes the Steelers lose next week so that our position in the draft is better. The other part hopes that we win, so we can leave the season with a false sense of accomplishment such as the Bengals have. Whatever happens, this team has to prepare to enter the free agent market with their sight set on a breakaway receiver. The future of this team depends on it.
There was one thing that annoyed me today, and that was the benching of Kordell Stewart. I believe Cowher did it just as a statement as to who is in charge. Kordell is the future of this team, and he has to be able to get his confidence back. He can't do that on the bench. He can only get it back by rolling out of the pocket. Come to think of it, I don't think he did that all year!
