A quick daily look at what’s happening around Steelers Nation. And consider this your open thread for discussing the days events and, well, anything else that comes to mind about the Black and Gold.
– Pro Bowl rosters have been announced: James Harrison, Troy Polamalu and … Maurkice Pouncey. As Rob D pointed out in yesterday’s comments, I’m especially excited for Deebo, Roger Goodell’s Public Enemy No. 1 against football-related violence. Feel free to bellyache about the guys who didn’t make it but should have. I’ll start: Bryant McFadden. (Hey, he had a pick last week.)
– As expected, the Ravens had a bunch of defensive players named to the Pro Bowl; Joe Thomas was the lone representative for the Browns; and the Bengals, well, they’ll get nothing and like it. Again. [ESPN]
– Behind the Steel Curtain gives out some team awards. [BTSC]
– Reader EasyLikeSundayMorning asked this question the other day: “QOTD: If Kubiak is fired, would we want him as our OC next year?”
And that got me thinking. Specifically, about how much animosity fans had for Bruce Arians a year ago. But much like Ray Lewis making the Pro Bowl year after year, BA’s reputation precedes him. The thing is, I think 2010 has been Arians’ best season as the Steelers offensive coordinator.
What constitutes “best” is certainly up for debate, but look at it this way: Pittsburgh went 3-1 without Big Ben to start the season. And while much of that had to do with the defense, the offense minimized mistakes. When you’re rolling with your third- and fourth-string quarterbacks, that’s a major accomplishment.
Arians also hasn’t shied away from the run, although he seems to be less predictable (completely anecdotal assessment, by the way; maybe I’m way off, but that’s the perception). He’s getting the ball to Mike Wallace, even when defenses took away the deep ball, and perhaps most impressive: the passing offense hasn’t missed a beat with the additions of Manny Sanders and Antonio Brown — and without Santonio Holmes.
Things were so bad last January that rumors had BA’s termination as imminent. And then there was this.
Oh, something else: are there any offensive coordinators you’d want? Honestly, I can’t think of one, mostly because every fan — save Josh McDaniels when he had Tom Brady — hates the OC. It’s a weird, tenuous dynamic.
Sorta related (and this was also mentioned in the previous thread): As long as we’re handing out awards, Sean Kugler should get Coach of the Year.
– From the YouTubez archive: 1976 Steelers Defense…
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