Bob in STL

If Barnett is our best LB right now, and he was let go by The Pack, think about how much more talent we need? I hope that Sheppard, Batten, or Moats can develop into good starters. I recall in the Polian/Butler eras that we hit on LBs in the draft all the time.

Roosevelt played a whole series where we ended up punting. Compared to the other WRs he looks very small and slight in build. Fitz tried to hit him with a pass but his route was poorly run and he did not get open. I think he had a drop too. I grabbed my bonoculars to make sure Nelson was only resting and not hurt. Just not impressed. I did see two blitzes in the seconds half, both were DBs and I recall one was by Byrd. Both blitzes were picked up with ease. On one Welker had a long catch and run. Blitzing is not a good idea against Brady/Welker/Hernandez/Gronkowski. I want Spiller to get more reps but I don't know how at this point? After watching Jackson do everything, including great pass blocking, it is hard to see how Spiller fits in. Hopefully Chan finds a way to use this kid. I am going back on Nov 11th. I will try one of the above.

On the positive side I had a great dinner at Frank's Sunny Italy on Saturday night. Ot is on Delaware and Tacoma. Huge portions, family dinning, and reasonable cost.

I was in Buffalo for the weekend and went to the game. Great day, perfect weather (warm actually) and despite all the negative feedback on the parking, things seem to go smooth. We got to ECC at 10:15 and there was tons of parking places so we parked in our usual spot no problem. We went into the Stadium via gate 4 about 30 minutes before kickoff. No long lines and no big deal on the pat down. The crowd was great. On to football: 1. I watched the OL and DL on almost every down with binoculars. I can see a rivalry in the making. Wood and Wilfork were as great matchup. Wood took a few penalties but he did not back down. Wilfork continues to live up to his image as a dirty player. 2. I was hard on the OL in preseason and they are proving me wrong. The look good. Levitre was a beast. Rhinehart or Urbik, I saw no difference in the play. The tackles were solid too. 3. Our DBs all played a well, despite the numbers put up by Brady. They made plays when we needed them. 4. Our DL did not get much pressure at all. With a few exceptions Brady had all day. I saw some pressure from Merriman that almost resulted in grounding penalty. Merriman kind of slowed down on the tackle and fell to Bradys feet. On the next play Merriman was held or hooked by interior linemen, could have been Mankins. Blatant holding was missed. The Pats * ended up scoring their 3rd TD. 5. Barnett is our best LB right now. We need better players on the front seven. 6. Seeing Spiller on the bench, Troup hurt again and Carrington getting limited reps. So far our best players from that draft were not even drafted. 7. Not enough words to say about Freddie Jackson. His pass blocking was great and that factor alone will keep Spiller on the bench. 8. Our young receivers are looking very good. Roosevelt is a big drop off from Jones, Johnson and Nelson though. 9. We had another one of the those TE TDs 10. Fitz overcame a slow start and his leadership is infectious. I sense the change in the attitude of this team. They are well spoken, well prepared and well coached. The losing culture is changing. They are accountable to themselves and to their team mates. They trust their coaches. This team is much different than 2008. Final note: You guys are always talking best wings, best pizza. I went to Duffs on Sheridan. I havent been there in 30 years. The wings were bad. To me, they use way too much vinegar and no butter flavor at all. You can do better at almost any bar or restaurant. This was the only disappointment on my trip. Duffs is living on an old rep IMO.

They forced us to run by playing a two man line and taking away the crossing patterns. We did not figure it out until it was too late. Everytime we saw the two man line we should have pounded the ball down their throats. That would have opened up the pass. Our staff did not adjust until to late. Thurman would have had 200 yards on the ground with ease. Man ... our team was so much better.

Even? We substantially weakened the Steelers by cutting these players.

No Littman is not. Littman makes no decision on who gets paid. He is an accountant. He could care less who gets the money as long as he hits his budget and financial goals that are set to him by Ralph. We all know that he will do exactly what Ralph wants, to the tee. He probably does not know these players at all. With the minimum spending line coming into force in 2013 they will have to spend more anyway.

Jabronis - where did you get that? Been on Bahston to long? Ok everybody, let's not embarrass this guy at work on Monday. Too funny.

Knowing the Pats* and Bellichek, they will still run to TEs and Hernandez's replacement will get an opportunity to perform. They seem to be able to plug players in as needed. If they limit the TE formation than we have to deal with another formation that we have less film on. As good as Hernandez is, this is not a huge a game changer.

Great news. Lets keep it up next week.

Back to yhe question. He was starting, then was injured and could not work himself back into the line up. I think they had a coaching change too. PS - Nice Avatar.

Great answer. How about this ... both Feddy and Spiller run for 100+ yards. Let's keep Brady off of the field. When he does pass we have to hit, even if we are a tad late, we have to hit him.

Why would you even bring this up? Every guy you named is a big part of this team BTW.

No that was one of his rap moves.

Well lets play the game first. Could be we have something that we have not shown yet? We really stacked the run for our last two opponents. Maybe he have a few wrinkles for Tommy Boy.

+1 Good post.

Everybody needs to go to that link and listen to Freddy, David and Fitz. We have a hungry team. This guys have the right temperment.

On the long TD McKelvin had good coverage but was behind the reciever, the problem was the safety Wilson made a late break on the ball. I think Wilson missed that play. McKelvin has a habit of having good position on the reciever but unable to make a play on the ball. He has the speed and tools but just does not seem like a natural football player. Definitely not a smart player at this stage of his career.

Having weapons is a good thing. Spiller is a threat and teamns will account for his presence. Spiller made some plays today too. We really need him to develop.

I will take it. The TD was clutch as the ball was tipped.

Most teams draft DBs high in the draft. It is a critical position and you need 4 good ones. They drafted Williams last year in round 2 and many people here went bonkers. I figured he was good insurance for the aging McGee and the lunk-headed McKelvin. Too bad McGee cannot stay healthy. He has been a very good player for us. True. Remember that the draft used to go 12 rounds years ago. There are good players available after round 7. Some of them just need time. Nelson and Jones are so much better than countless recievers that we used draft picks on.

Not sure when Buddy left SD but I think he was there when they drafted Chandler. He most likey faced Pears when Pears was a Bronco. Urbik has a Whaley connection to Pittsburgh. Hard to say. Buddy loves being a scout and probably talks to lots of scouts through out the league.

Merrill said we have no weaknessess? Wow. His partner on the set pointed out how many points we gave up. Yes, we have weaknesses but lets enjoy the wins.

Spencer has looked good. Keep rotating the big boys up front. Does'nt matter who starts.

I think you are trying to say if they overturned the interception by the review? Yes, in that case there would be one more chapter of pain to the Bills book of pain. The kid should have knocked the ball down with a hard spike straight down to the turf. I looked at the replay several times and he did have the ball first and for the entire time of the play. Had the Raider WR touched the ball at the same time as our DB touched it, it could have potentially been ruled a simultaneous catch and that would have been a TD. We made the play and got the call. Time to be happy. Wannstedt needs to have a talk with the young DB on Monday.