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Troy Polamalu, Pittsburgh Steelers’ One-Man Defense, is Missing in Action
Published: October 5, 2009
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If the Pittsburgh Steelers find their way through the thicket that is the NFL season and are playing to defend their title this coming February in Miami, then it is already obvious who is the only logical choice for team MVP.
Troy Polamalu.
The NFL’s finest defense suddenly has more holes than a block of Swiss cheese in the three-plus games Polamalu has been out nursing a badly sprained left knee. Last night’s 38-28 victory over the San Diego Chargers was simply the latest example of a defense that just can’t close the door without No. 43.
The script was familiar. The offense chugged along, getting busy on the scoreboard with seemingly large enough cushion for the final 15 minutes…only to have the defense implode and put a night’s work in peril. The defense coughed up comfortable leads in Chicago and Cincinnati, but it seemed nearly impossible for a team whose Super Bowl rings aren’t even dirty yet to blow a 28-0 lead.
Nearly impossible.
Phillip Rivers threw and threw and threw, and all of the sudden the Steelers’ ghost of the recent past was standing in the huddle again, pointing the finger all around. James Harrison couldn’t cover a receiver in the short middle where Polamalu would have provided a blanket of cover. William Gay couldn’t get players on the ground, where No. 43 would have torpedoed them.
About 20,000 fans who had already made their way back to the tailgate were walking en masse toward the Allegheny River, threatening to take a final plunge if someone didn’t out a stop to the madness.
Fortunately for all concerned, the Steelers offense mounted a pair of late drives of their own to salvage the night. But how much longer can this continue?
The Steelers awoke late this morning with a 2-2 record, a game behind Baltimore with what appear to be a pair of layup games ahead against Detroit and Cleveland. Neither game appears to be tough enough to force the Steelers to put their best player back on the field before he’s ready. A 4-2 record headed into Halloween might buy the Steelers some time to get Polamalu healthy and patch their defense back together.
But pull another el foldo against two teams who would have been crushed beyond recognition by the Steelers defense of 2008, and suddenly the peril of sitting at home through the first two months of 2010 becomes VERY real.
All because of one man. You know, the one with the hair, not the cape.
Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com
Don’t Be Surprised By a Steelers Repeat
Published: August 28, 2009
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Ryan Clark didn’t sound like a man swooning in a post Super Bowl hangover when he met the media Friday afternoon in Pittsburgh. The Steeler defensive back sounded like a man who had found a way to be on the wrong end of the final score this past February in Tampa.
“We didn’t get the job done when it counted. We gave up a touchdown when it counted the most.”
Clark called himself and the rest of his defensive teammates out before the interview ended. He demanded that they remember the Arizona Cardinals’ last drive as something that happens when they aren’t prepared to do their best.
These words ought to scare the rest of the NFL to death. If Clark is right and the Steelers suffocating defense has another gear, another level to show this season, the idea of winning a game in February is a very real possibility.
In this day of the salary cap, a Super Bowl champion is normally spiked by the salary cap and finds itself entering camp with a hole or two or three that demand immediate attention.
The Steelers arrived at St. Vincent College having said goodbye to linebacker Larry Foote, who would have lost his starting job to Lawrence Timmons regardless of the cap. They also found a way to pay defensive MVP James Farrior enough to stick around and even afford the new Smart car he drove to training camp.
The only real question for the team that has two of the last four Lombardi Trophies on public display this week is: Can the offensive line get off to a better start than last year?
The O line started slowly in 2008 and appeared to be well on the way to getting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger killed in a game in Philadelphia before righting the ship. The running game never really worked in short yardage situations, but Roethlisberger found ways to negate even that shortcoming when he had to.
Unlike last year, the Steelers aren’t staring the toughest schedule in the league in 2009. Outside of the normal bruise-fest with the Baltimore Ravens the, Steelers trade a trip to New England for a run through Detroit and a Sunday in Oakland against the Raiders. Throw in skirmishes in Kansas City and against the Packers, as well as a pair of meetings with the Browns and Bengals, and there doesn’t appear to be a roadblock in sight.
Ben Roethlisberger continues to grow into the mountain of a quarterback that repeat champions are built on. While his offseason has been somewhat clouded by off-field legal hassles, he has remained healthy through the offseason (unlike his last Super Bowl summer) and is continuing to take command of this team.
Troy Polamalu spent his offseason doing yoga and balance training in California and appears to be ready to terrorize offenses all season. Even the special teams look polished and new with the return of punter Daniel Sepulveda and the addition of CFL kick returner Stefan Logan.
Perhaps the soft-spoken Polamalu said it best on the opening day of training camp when he told the gathered media horde “I’ve been around long enough to know how this all works. If we stay healthy, there is no reason we won’t be there again.”
Troy, is that a threat or a promise?
