Tag: Ben Roethlisberger (Page 8 of 34)

      Mendenhall powers the Steelers back to the Super Bowl

      January 23, 2011 /
      Pittsburgh Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall (L) embraces New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez (R) after the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the New York Jets 24-19 in the AFC Championship game at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, 23 January 2011. The Steelers will go on to face the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl XLV on 06 February 2011 in Arlington, Texas. EPA/JUSTIN LANE fotoglif933714

      Here are five quick-hit observations on the Steelers’ 24-19 win over the Jets in the AFC Championship Game on Sunday.

      1. Mendenhall ran like he was mad at the ground.
      I’m not sure I’ve ever seen Rashard Mendenhall run with more determination than he did Sunday night. He shredded the Jets for 95 rushing yards in the first half and finished with 121 yards on 27 carries and one touchdown. He also caught two passes for 32 yards and would have scored on one of those receptions had he stayed on his feet. He now has three touchdowns this postseason and has provided the Steelers’ offense with balance. Against the Jets, he rarely went down on first contact and he flashed terrific speed on a 35-yard jaunt in the first half. No running back has ever rushed for more yards against the Jets since Rex Ryan took over as head coach in 2009. Mendenhall set the tone for Pittsburgh’s win.

      2. Bruce Arians shows some stones.
      Pittsburgh fans have had a roller coaster relationship with offensive coordinator Bruce Arians over the years, but they had to have loved his gutsy 3rd and 6 pass call with less than two minutes remaining. How many times do teams run the ball in that situation, get stopped, punt and then have to rely on their defense to close out the game? Arians knows he has a great defense so if the clock is stopped because of an incompletion, so what? But thanks to Ben Roethlisberger’s 14-yard competition to Antonio Brown (how big has this kid been the last two weeks?), the Steelers were able to pick up a first down and run the rest of the clock out. They didn’t even give the Jets an opportunity to win. Great call.

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      External Sports, NFL

      Ravens’ second half collapse leads to Steelers’ victory

      January 15, 2011 /
      Baltimore Ravens’ quarterback Joe Flacco (5) is sacked by James Harrison (92) of the Pittsburgh Steelers during the second half of their AFC Divisional NFL playoff football game in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, January 15, 2011. REUTERS/Jason Cohn (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL)

      Here are five quick-hit thoughts on the Steelers’ 31-24 victory over the Ravens in the NFL Divisional Round.

      1. Ravens pick a horrible time to play their worst football.
      Baltimore’s second half collapse in this game was one of the worst I have ever seen. They did such a great job building all of this momentum in the first half only to give it right back on their first offensive possession in the third quarter. The Ravens took a two-touchdown lead into the second half but quickly allowed Pittsburgh back into the game with sloppy play. From Ray Rice and Joe Flacco’s fumbles to two huge drops by Anquan Boldin and T.J. Houshmandzadeh at the end of the game, the Ravens saved their worst for the most important game of the year. That said…

      2. …what a great job by the Steelers to capitalize on Baltimore’s mistakes.
      You have to hand it to the Steelers: they always seem to make plays when it matters most. When Rice fumbled at the start of the third quarter, they turned the gift into seven points. When the defense picked off Flacco, they again put the ball into the end zone. When Boldin dropped that key pass on third down late in the game, Ben Roethlisberger hit Antonio Brown on an improbable 58-yard pass to set up the eventual game-winning touchdown. Pittsburgh played a horrible first half, but it didn’t matter in the end. Because when the other shoe eventually dropped, the Steelers took full advantage.

      3. Flacco must elevate his game in the playoffs.
      In his third year, Joe Flacco has done some great things. You can tell he “gets it” and that he’s going to be a very good player for a long time. But if the Ravens want to win anything of any substance, he has to elevate his game when they get to the playoffs. He only threw for 125 yards and while he did have one touchdown, his fumble and interception in the second half proved costly. Granted, if Boldin catches that ball at the goal line on third down or Houshmandzadeh doesn’t drop that fourth down pass, maybe I’m signing Flacco’s praises right now. But those two drops don’t excuse Flacco’s lackluster play in the second half.

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      External Sports, NFL

      Eight key players to watch in the NFL Divisional Round

      January 14, 2011 /

      This series is brought to you by T.G.I Fridays®, encouraging you to Rush in and Tackle their new Game Time Menu!

      It’s the playoffs, where team matters more than individual players. But there are several key players that hold their team’s hopes in their hands this weekend and we’ve listed eight of them (one for each team) below.

      In no particular order…

      1. Terrell Suggs, Ravens
      The Ravens have been waiting for this guy to return to form and he finally has. Suggs looks hungry, motivated and determined to get the Ravens to a Super Bowl. If Baltimore’s front seven is able to take away Rashard Mendenhall and force the Steelers to be one-dimensional this Saturday, then Suggs needs to get after Ben Roethlisberger. Mike Wallace is a true homerun threat and can score from anywhere on the field, so Suggs and Co. can’t give Big Ben time to throw. Getting pressure on the quarterback is always vital in football, especially in the postseason where one or two plays can decide the outcome of a game.

      2. Troy Polamalu, Steelers
      I realize this is an obvious one but I don’t care: Polamalu is the key to whether or not the Steelers will be playing in the Super Bowl in a couple of weeks. He’s vital to their defense because when he’s not on the field, it’s a completely different unit. When the Steelers and Ravens met in Pittsburgh late in the season, it was his forced fumble of Joe Flacco that set up Pittsburgh’s offense to score the eventual game-winning touchdown. He’s a playmaker in every sense of the word but he’s also been battling an Achilles/ankle injury so he’s not 100 percent. If he’s able to fly around the field and create havoc like he normally does, then Baltimore will have a tough time moving the ball this weekend.

      3. James Starks (Packers)
      The football world is now enamored with this young man – and for good reason. The past two games, Starks has given Green Bay something it’s been searching for all year: balance. The Packers have already proven that they can win when Aaron Rodgers has to throw the ball but it’s much tougher on a defense when they can’t sit back in coverage on most downs. In the first meeting between the Packers and Falcons, Atlanta didn’t have to respect the run. But after Starks rushed for 123 yards on 23 carries last weekend against the Eagles, the Falcons may not have the luxury of dropping extra defenders into coverage.

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      External Sports, NFL

      Five Questions Ravens vs. Steelers

      January 12, 2011 /
      Pittsburgh Steelers’ quarterback Ben Roethlisberger talks to Baltimore Ravens’ quarterback Joe Flacco after the Steelers defeated the Ravens 13-10 at M & T Bank Stadium in Baltimore on December 5, 2010. UPI/Kevin Dietsch

      Matchup: Ravens (13-4) @ Steelers (12-4)
      Kickoff: 4:30PM ET, Saturday

      1. Can Polamalu stay healthy?
      When Troy Polamalu intercepted at least one pass during a game this year, the Steelers were 6-0. I could go on about how important he is to Pittsburgh’s defense but I don’t need to – everyone knows how vital he is to the Steelers’ success. He’s been battling an Achilles/ankle injury for the past month and he didn’t practice all last week. He’ll be held out of early practices this week too, as the Steelers want to limit the risk of further injury. He’s not going to miss a playoff game, but can he make it all four quarters of what should be the most physical battle of the year?

      2. Can the Steelers’ O-Line hold up?
      Just because Pittsburgh scored 68 points in its final two games doesn’t mean that its concerns along the offensive line have disappeared. (Plus, those 68 points were collectively scored on Carolina and Cleveland.) Baltimore has a superior defensive line, led by tackle Haloti Ngata and while Ben Roethlisberger usually does a great job of holding up against pressure, no quarterback wants to throw with defenders in his face. The Steelers’ O-line will be tested this Saturday.

      3. Can the Ravens slow Mike Wallace?
      The Ravens have allowed an average of 10.2 yards per competition through the air this season, which ranks them eighth in the league. They generally don’t give up big plays but if there were ever a homerun threat they needed to be weary of this weekend, it’s Mike Wallace. The second-year pro is averaging 21.0 yards per catch this season, so he’s doing most of his damage downfield. In the season finale against Cleveland, Wallace only caught three passes but they went for 105 yards and one touchdown (off a 56-yard bomb from Big Ben). The Ravens held Kansas City wideout Dwayne Bowe to zero catches last weekend, but can they have similar success against Wallace?

      4. Can the Steelers protect the ball?
      Pittsburgh hasn’t turned the ball over much this season. In fact, the Steelers are second to only the Patriots in turnovers per game at +1.1. But the Ravens defense is playing at a Super Bowl level right now and in the past two games, they’ve forced 10 turnovers (five fumbles and five interceptions) and have held their opponents to 14 total points. It goes without saying that teams usually don’t win when they lose the turnover battle, but it may be especially true this Saturday in Pittsburgh. The Steelers can’t give Baltimore extra opportunities.

      5. Can the Ravens avoid a collapse?
      In back to back games in early December, the Ravens had dominated this same Steelers team for three quarters before Pittsburgh mounted a comeback in the fourth. A week later in Houston, the Ravens needed a Josh Wilson pick-six in overtime to beat the Texans after they coughed up a three-touchdown lead early in the third quarter. The Ravens also blew a lead in Atlanta when they were up with 22 seconds remaining and gave up a late Roddy White touchdown to lose. Baltimore is one of the hottest teams in the league and a legit Super Bowl contender but neither side of the ball can get complacent this Saturday. Given what’s at stake and whom they’re playing, chances are they won’t but they can’t forget what happened last time these two teams met.

      External Sports, NFL

      Heart Pumping Moments: Win a Copy of EA Sports Active 2

      December 27, 2010 /

      “This series is powered by EA Sports Active 2: The complete at-home digital trainer”

      The Scores Report has teamed up with EA Sports to discuss the best Heart Pumping Moments in sports. We thought it would be fun to take a look at the most heart-pumping Super Bowl moments from the 2000s. If you would like to share your most Heart Pumping Moments, leave them in the comments section and we’ll pick five readers to receive a copy of EA Sports Active 2 for the system of your choice! (Check out the rules and requirements at the bottom of this post.)

      On to the heart-pumping Super Bowl moments of the 2000s!

      1. David Tyree’s “helmet catch.”
      Is there a better Super Bowl moment in the past decade than David Tyree’s “helmet catch?” Super Bowl XLII will best be remembered as one of the best upsets in the history of the NFL. The Patriots were looking to become only the second team in league history to finish the season undefeated and all that stood in their way was a Giants team that had been inconsistent before making the playoffs. The Giants were heavy underdogs coming into the game, but their pass rush stifled Tom Brady and held the explosive New England offense to only 14 points. Down 14-10 with only 1:15 remaining in the game, the Giants faced a 3rd-and-5 at their own 44. Eli Manning took the snap from shotgun and immediately had defensive linemen Richard Seymour, Jarvis Green and Adalius Thomas in his face. Thomas grabbed Manning by the shoulder while Seymour had the back of his jersey. Somehow Manning escaped the sack, scrambled backwards and then heaved a desperation pass downfield towards Tyree at the 34-yard line. Tyree, who had to adjust his route because of the Patriots’ pressure, caught the ball with both hands but safety Rodney Harrison had swiped his other arm. Amazingly, Tyree was able to secure possession of the ball with one hand by pressing it against the top of his helmet as both players fell to the ground. Given the situation, it was easily the play of the decade. It netted 32 yards and four players later, Manning hit Plaxico Burress for a touchdown to eventually give the Giants a 17-14 victory. Remarkable.

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      External Sports, NFL, Super Bowl

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