Tipster19 Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 I'd like to talk about the second half of the Steeler-Raven's game this past weekend. First off let me state that I am by no means a Steeler fan or any other team other than the Bills. I haven't had any time to discuss this second half and I haven't really seen anyone else talk about it to any great length but what I saw was some of the best hardnose defensive football that I haven't seen in maybe a couple of decades. I work with several too many Steeler fans and I begrudgingly have to admit that they have some kind of franchise. Year in, year out this franchise either wins their division, conference or just flat out has winning seasons. In the last 20 years I can only remember a handful of disappointing seasons and I ask myself why. I'm not posting right now trying to be some kind of "football expert" or trying someone who thinks that he's original. I'm just an average guy who just really digs NFL football and who REALLY just flat out loves the Bills but I have to say, when a team displays what I witnessed in the second half of that game then I can man up and give credit where credit is due. I've asked myself many a times, "How do these Steelers keep their no quit, no surrender mentality defensively?". At first it was easy to credit Bill Cowher. There were years during his tenure I could minimize it with that there was a lack of talent in their division. I don't think that I'm totally wrong about that, even to this day but now I believe that I'm not totally right neither. Then came along Tomlin, especially last year when he sounded like he wanted to get away from the power football that so traditionally made this franchise so successful thru these last couple of decades. He insinuated that he wanted to emmulate the type of team/offense that the Patriots always seem to employ. I felt then, and still do, that he was making a big err in judgement. Then came this season and earlier in the season, and especially against the Ravens in this last game, I saw what makes the Steelers so formidable season after season. I'll take this opportunity to give our beloved Bills the credit that I believe that they so deservedly earned but didn't get nationally when they took this team to the brink and then just let them off the hook. Kudos to you Chan Gailey & Co, you really showed me something in that game! Thanks, you helped restore some of my optimism for the future with our fledgling franchise. Anyways, back to the Steelers' defense. Then there was the obvious common denominator in that Dick Lebeau is not only the architect of this defense, and he is, but he also has been the consistent constant with them. No doubt, he IS the reason that this team is so defensively tough. The defense tradionally is rarely weak. The defense is what is ALWAYS the reason that this franchise competes, wins, and dominates year after year. I will also feel compelled to mention also that the years that they did actually win the championships it was when their offense did actually step up and make the diffence in winning it all. At the same time I do have to admit to my Steeler co-workers that their team has a mentality on the defensive side of the ball that I haven't witness in any other team/franchise so consistently season after season. It kills me to admit that. Not only to myself but especially to THEM but it is true. I might have taken the long way around to get to my realization but I wanted to try and elaborate and explain what I have been thinking about the Steelers for such a long time and all the while I scratch my head wondering why my team can't be more like them and then I finally had an insight that I just recently read that I would like to share with many of you. It was an article about Rex Ryan the other day and he gave an inside look into the real world of football and it's mentality that the average fan isn't aware or privy to. This is what the real men of football percieve, not us the fan perceptions, but the real coaches and the fraternity that truly makes up the NFL. I'm going to provide a link to the article and I hope that you all read it before any of you respond to this post, if any of you respond at all that is. If you have read this far then I would like to thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts and opinion, I hope that you've enjoyed it. http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/jets/2011/01/17/2011-01-17_rex_ryan_has_nothing_but_good_things_to_say_about_mike_tomlin_and_steelers.html#ixzz1BOdBPrge You see, it all starts with a team's leader and I sure hope that Gailey is that guy. So far he has struck me as a hardnose football guy and I can only hope that I'm accurate in my perception of him and that his players/team emmulate him. One other thing, I hope that the Bills' brass also watched that second half and that they have come to the realization that it starts with defense when it comes for us to draft this year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalo Barbarian Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 The Steelers' defense[is the reason they have been dominant for past 20 years] there was the obvious common denominator in that Dick Lebeau is not only the architect of this defense, and he is, but he also has been the consistent constant with them. No doubt, he IS the reason that this team is so defensively tough. I have been thinking about the Steelers for such a long time and all the while I scratch my head wondering why my team can't be more like them and then I finally had an insight that I just recently read that I would like to share with many of you. It was an article about Rex Ryan the other day and he gave an inside look into the real world of football and it's mentality that the average fan isn't aware or privy to. This is what the real men of football percieve, not us the fan perceptions, but the real coaches and the fraternity that truly makes up the NFL. http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/jets/2011/01/17/2011-01-17_rex_ryan_has_nothing_but_good_things_to_say_about_mike_tomlin_and_steelers.html#ixzz1BOdBPrge You see, it all starts with a team's leader and I sure hope that Gailey is that guy. So far he has struck me as a hardnose football guy and I can only hope that I'm accurate in my perception of him and that his players/team emmulate him. One other thing, I hope that the Bills' brass also watched that second half and that they have come to the realization that it starts with defense when it comes for us to draft this year. As a veteran poster you should know that posting such a long thread will not get read, so I fixed it for ya. The only reason I read through it was because you had no responses so I figured I'd check it out. As far as the average fan goes I think we can get the fact that Rex respects some coaches and teams and not others. Plus honestly I think he does what he does to motivate his team, he knows that he can't be all "us against the world" all the time so he changes it up a bit to keep his players listening and focused. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Jose Bills Fan Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 I like Mike Tomlin but we're talking about a team which has won 6 Super Bowls with 3 different coaches. The Steelers are a great organization. It starts with their ownership. Because of their great ownership, guys like Tomlin and LeBeau (remember Dick LeBeau was an employee of the Buffalo Bills in 2003) are identified as assets and placed in a position to succeed. The Steelers, along with the Green Bay Packers, Kansas City Chiefs, New Orleans Saints, and a few others are proof that smaller market teams can still excel in the NFL. The Steelers are successful in so many ways (they draft well…they coach well) that you can point to numerous micro reasons why they are a model franchise. But the one macro reason, the one common denominator, is the ownership. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tipster19 Posted January 20, 2011 Author Share Posted January 20, 2011 (edited) As a veteran poster you should know that posting such a long thread will not get read, so I fixed it for ya. The only reason I read through it was because you had no responses so I figured I'd check it out. Thanks for trying to help me out, I appreciate it. My main point in all of this is is the amazing and interesting aspect is that a coach would send out his player to man up. In my book that's accountability to the utmost degree. THAT'S what makes them great. I hope that's what we immulate the most. Edited January 20, 2011 by Tipster19 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-9 Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 The Rooneys are truly an amazing ownership with genuine affection for the community. I'm not saying RW doesn't care, but how cool would it be to see him walking from his house to the stadium every Sunday to watch the games? The Rooneys used to do that (not sure if they still do) every week. Those walks to the games amidst the average fans also on their way to the stadium must have forged a strong bond over the years. And Art Rooney made that walk when the Steelers were laughingstock doormats of the league. It must have given the Rooneys a perspective that professional sports franchise owners just can't get any other way; a true understanding of what the team looks like and means to the average fan. GO BILLS!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuntheDamnBall Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 The Rooneys are truly an amazing ownership with genuine affection for the community. I'm not saying RW doesn't care, but how cool would it be to see him walking from his house to the stadium every Sunday to watch the games? The Rooneys used to do that (not sure if they still do) every week. Those walks to the games amidst the average fans also on their way to the stadium must have forged a strong bond over the years. And Art Rooney made that walk when the Steelers were laughingstock doormats of the league. It must have given the Rooneys a perspective that professional sports franchise owners just can't get any other way; a true understanding of what the team looks like and means to the average fan. GO BILLS!!! I'd be pretty scared for the man to see him walking down Abbott Road. For one, it's a different era and fan civility is sort of at an all-time low. Two, he's old. I mean, respectfully, he is really old and way too frail to take that walk. I agree over their lifetimes that the Rooneys were much closer to the people who paid for their tickets. How about sitting in the cheap seats? That'd be something! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tipster19 Posted January 21, 2011 Author Share Posted January 21, 2011 It kind of disappoints me that there were only 5 responses to this thread and now 6, 2 of them being mine but it was never about what I wrote or thought but more importantly what inspired me. Let me once just post the link that started this whole thing. Please just read it, I think that you'll enjoy it and then you can draw your own conclusions on what makes greatness. http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/jets/2011/01/17/2011-01-17_rex_ryan_has_nothing_but_good_things_to_say_about_mike_tomlin_and_steelers.html#ixzz1BOdBPrge. Btw, in no way am I credited Mike Tomlin or any one individual for what I believe is a collective effort for excellency. I do believe that it all started with a great man and that man is Art Rooney Sr. This franchise to this day drips with an element that you just can't buy or manufacture. This will be the last that I post about this or bump this thread. Please disregard what I personally posted and try to see or read into something that is truly remarkable. Please, draw your own conclusions. There is nothing that can compare to the human spirit and I believe over the course of time that the Steelers' organization has exemplify it. After I posted this thread I decided to pull up a little history on the Steelers. Some of it I already knew and some of it I found refreshingly new. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. http://www.steelergridiron.com/history/artrooney.html I can't remember if I heard or read that at one time Mr. Rooney would at times even deliver game/season tickets personally to the door if need be. That's passion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuntheDamnBall Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 I think you can't be too enamored of any one guy's approach. I think Tomlin and Ryan have done wonders for their teams but they're not infallible. See Tomlin's sort of idiotic statement about James Harrison needing to put his kids through college (a justification for not fining him for dirty hits). Ryan has had plenty of less impressive moments. They're feted right now by the press because their approaches are working. That's to be expected. But the chorus of people who insist that strong, stable, level-headed ownership is the constant in a winning franchise isn't far off. Barring that, it's strong, level-headed management without ownership interference (think Polian under RW). I do hope that Gailey and Nix are a partnership that Ralph will interfere with minimally. Good football people being allowed to do their job is what has made Pittsburgh great, and has led to the NYJ resurgence. Pittsburgh football fans were blessed with the Rooneys. You won't be seeing the likes of them again. (Regardless, note that they gave Big Ben a pass when other transgressions didn't go unpunished. A bit of tarnish on their legacy as far as I'm concerned. Again, it worked out for them.) Ralph is a mixed blessing. He has done much with his wealth and with his team, but the Bills have been capable of so much more than they have accomplished, and that's in part on Ralph. Part of that is the bullheaded nature of managers like Donahoe; part of it is RW's reaction to Donahoe's failures, or to disagreements with Polian. I don't doubt that the man desperately wants to win. That would seem to account for some of the desperation moves of the past decade. I just am positive he doesn't know modern football well enough to be making crucial personnel decisions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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