The Sports Monitor

It's time to face the facts, Steelers fans. The team just isn't that good. Really. They stink. Bad. There's no other conclusion to draw after Thursday's 13-6 loss to the Browns. It looked that way after the Steelers' loss to the Chiefs. It was easy to chalk it up one game up as an aberration. It wasn't the time to panic. Sure enough, the Steelers dropped a heartbreaker on Sunday to the Raiders. They made Oakland's season with a defensive effort in the fourth quarter that was as bad as the Pitt Panthers' collapse against Cincinnati. In the Panthers' defense, they were at least up against an undefeated team. If the Steelers managed to hit a low with the Oakland loss, they topped themselves Thursday. Against a team that ranks 32nd in rushing defense, the running back Rashard Mendenhall managed 16 carries for 53 yards. Against a team that widely is regarded as one of the worst in football (the Chiefs and Raiders are included in that e...

Mike Tomlin promised the Steelers would unleash hell in December. Well, after Sunday's troubling 27-24 loss to the Raiders at Heinz Field, Tomlin would have been better off saying the Steelers would unleash H-E-Double Hockey Sticks. That's about as watered-down as you can get. The Raiders admitted after the game that Tomlin's comments motivated them. It least it motivated someone because Tomlin certainly didn't seem to inspire his own team. Maybe the Steelers just weren't that motivated to play the Raiders. Heck, everyone thought it would be a gimmie. You had a team thought  to be one of the worst in the league traveling from the West Coast to face a wounded Steelers' team looking to end a three-game losing streak. The offense couldn't sustain a drive in the first three quarters and when they found their groove, the defense predictably faltered when it was needed the most. That's how a three-game losing streak becomes four games. A team led b...

To go from 6-2 and end up 6-5 is hard to take. A chance to win the division title was within the Steelers' grasp a couple weeks ago. Now, they need some help to get back into the division title chase and are simply relegated to contending for a wild-card playoff berth. That might be a bit of a fall for the Steelers, but you don't need to get a first-round bye in the playoffs to win the Super Bowl. The Cardinals made it to the big game last year after playing in the first round. And I think the Steelers did pretty well playing all of their games on the road before winning Super Bowl XL. The biggest need the Steelers have right now is to get Troy Polamalu healthy. The team can't win a game right now, let alone a playoff game, without him. A healthy Polamalu makes this team dangerous. That's why I'm not ready to hit the panic button on this season just yet. Polamalu's impact on the defense reminds me of the Colts' need for safety Bob Sanders when th...

Dennis Dixon shouldn't be a Pittsburgh Steeler. Dixon was on his way to winning the Heisman Trophy in 2007. He had thrown for over 2,100 yards and rushed for nearly 600 yards at Oregon. He had thrown 20 TD passes and rushed for another nine touchdowns. He was on his way. Then, he blew out his knee. There went his season and his draft stock. The Steelers were smart enough to take a chance on him on draft day. Today, I wonder if they were smart enough with their play calls with Dixon running the offense against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday night. Everyone should be impressed with Dixon's performance against the hated Ravens, and they shouldn't place the blame for the loss on his throw in overtime. I can't help but feel that they didn't use his ability to run during the game. He showed off his speed with his fourth-quarter touchdown run that briefly gave the Steelers the lead. Dixon also had a longer run called back. Even if quarterback Ben Roethlisbe...