Three plays into Baltimore's opening drive, Dewayne Washington has his first interception. Moments later, Kordell Stewart runs for the teams first score. It appears the old Browns will give the same amount of fight as the new ones did. This is going to be easy! Maybe another shutout!
The best thing that could happen to the Steelers on this day, was that it wasn't easy.
The team had to contend with early injuries to Lee Flowers, Chris Oldham, Alan Faneca, and Chris Conrad. Despite these injuries, the Steelers never lost their focus, and battled hard all day.
Any time you enter a hostile environment on the road, and leave with a check mark in the win column, you've done good. The Steelers have done this 2 weeks in a row. I know it wasn't exactly Jacksonville, and Tennessee, but it was still against 2 division opponents. It gets the blood flowing again, and starts making a fan believe his team is ready for something special.
Last year, the Steelers would have found a way to lose this game. After Kris Brown kicked his second field goal of the day to increase the Steeler lead to 20-13, it appeared the victory was assured. But a rare lapse by the Defense allowed the Ravens to march down the field for the tying score. Last years rendition would have lost all composure, and given up.
This years rendition had Will Blackwell returning the ensuing kickoff to the 50 yard line. Kordell Stewart's accurate passes to Courtney Hawkins, and Troy Edwards set up a Kris Brown chip shot for the win. The joy and jubilation that the players and coaches felt as the ball went through the uprights, was shared by every Steeler fan across the country. Every member of the Steelers organization could feel the monkey slipping off of their collective backs. Sure, it's only 2 wins, but they were division road wins. These are character building wins that will only help your team down the road.
The confidence a victory like this brings to a team is immense. The veterans remember the collapses against Cincinnati, and Tennessee last year. Not to mention the debacle in Detroit, and the brutal performance against Tampa Bay. The difference between this year, and last, can be directly attributed to the hiring of Kevin Gilbride. Look at the mess Ray Sherman has the Vikings in this year. I never figured one man could sabotage a whole team, but obviously, he has the talent to do just that. With his departure, this team is showing unpredictability that has defensive coordinators scrambling. The return of Slash to his '97 form was one of Gilbride's main objectives. So far, it is mission accomplished.
The ability of Richard Huntley to hold onto the ball hasn't hurt either. In fact, the whole team is holding onto the ball. The Steelers are the only team in the NFL without a turnover. That is a sign of discipline, and focus. Even Dewayne Washington is holding onto the ball when he gets a chance. The coaches and the players seem to be on the same page. That gives everyone optimism that this will be one very successful season.
Even the so called experts are starting to give the Steelers some respect. The same Power Rankings that had them ranked as low as 18th, now have them ranked in the top 10. I wonder if all those publications that predicted another 7-9 season for the Steelers would like to change their minds. Considering the Steelers play the Browns and the Ravens one more time, and at Three Rivers, add on 2 more victories. They should be more than prepared to exact revenge on the lowly Bengals. 2 more victories. A split with Tennessee would put them at 7 wins for the season. Therefore, the experts figure they will lose every other game.
I predict that the Seahawks will be no match for the Steelers on Sunday, and come Monday morning, the experts will be singing the praises of Pittsburgh, and they will be saying that Holmgren can't get it done without Favre.
The real reason will be because Pittsburgh is a much more improved team than anyone would have thought. They had a great draft, hired some great coaches, signed some quality free agents, and have been relatively free from the injury bug.
Bring on the Jags. It's time to recapture our crown!
by Steelergil (Sept.21, 99)