Against the Ravens - January 18, 2009

I found the Ravens game to be entertaining enough to watch; it, thankfully, ended up being a higher scoring outing than expected. However, I couldn't resist drawing comparisons between our offense and that of the Titans the week before: we somehow allowed the Ravens' more inefficient offense (Flacco's poor QB rating evinced that he might not be the rookie phenom people were making him out to be and clearly needs more experience, I believe) to remain within reach in the race to put up points on the board. Thank goodness our D stepped up to the turf again when the offense was failing to produce easy field goals on every possession; hats off to Polamalu's well-timed INT, of course. I have a nervous feeling about the Cards matchup; the sports media and Vegas oddmakers seem to be placing the Cards in quite the underdog position. I feel leery that Whisenhunt and Grimm will be quite prepared for our offensive playcalling or at least could make pretty accurate predictions. Rest assured they will certainly feel the fire in the belly to show up their former employer. I expect that Tomlin will avoid trick play-calling in favor of more direct smash-mouth play from the offense in light of a few plays which did not turn out so well during the Ravens game. An intriguing match-up, I'm expecting...and we're lucky that the Ravens were not quite the offensive powerhouse of a team that I believe the Cards might prove to be...

To quote from "This Is Spinal Tap":
Derek Smalls: We're lucky.
David St. Hubbins: Yeah.
Derek Smalls: I mean, people should be envying us, you know.
David St. Hubbins: I envy us.
Derek Smalls: Yeah.
David St. Hubbins: I do.
Derek Smalls: Me too.

Here we go Stillers! :)

Against San Diego - January 11, 2009

To quote Venkman in Ghostbusters: "We came. We saw. We kicked its ass!" A slow start, but it was a pleasant surprise to see the o-line hunkering down in the trenches and giving a more consistent performance, wasn't it? They certainly provided a healthy Parker with the time to hit the corners speedily and glide through holes. I think Parker, of course, was the definitive x factor for this game; Big Ben was simply left with more play options and breathing room. Good to see that Ben-Roe was well-rested and mentally relaxed from the bye week and appeared able to calmly assess the field. I think we all were breathing a collective sigh of relief that he wasn't acting like he was playing cross-eyed and throwing picks. I particularly enjoyed that Ben participated in a few blocks on plays. He's already playing with questionable brain reserve from past injuries and could have used his head as a battering ram at this point. ;) The D played with their usual menace and fervor. I will caution that this was a shaky opponent; clearly, the Tomlinson injury was affecting the team chemistry and the choice in play-calling for the Chargers more than they let on. The idea will be to keep the players' egos in check during the week of media hype before the Ravens game. It's up for debate, but I'm glad that we don't have Porter around anymore to begin the taunting parade. Probably best to treat Ray "Should Have Been in Jail" Lewis with silence this week. Let's just put our head into the books.

Against the Brownies - December 28, 2008

What was scarier than Big Ben's head cracking off the turf? The uninspired play of the offense leading up to that injury, which will be largely overlooked by the sports media in the days ahead, I'm pretty sure. To be brutally honest (and I guess I am), they were not playing with the exuberance and chemistry that a playoff-bound team should coming down the homestretch against a vulnerable Browns organization. I'm pleased that the D we know and love returned to carry along the game; particular kudos to Tyrone Carter's INT and runback. Byron filled in seamlessly, I must say. It will sound weird to say, but perhaps Ben's concussion will provide the necessary fear and fuel to motivate the team through the bye week. Certainly there was a high degree of laziness exhibited with all the penalties; I believe the team did not play to its potential and needed this wakeup call. I'm going to take aim at the team with a cautionary quote from Xavier 'X' in Roll Bounce: "No, see I’m just trying to help you save face! Cuz I would hate to see you get spanked in front of all your fans!"