The Sports Monitor

Embed from Getty Images Every Steelers fan knows Antwaan Randle El. His pass in Super Bowl XL helped clinch the Steelers' fifth Lombardi. Now people might know Randle El for another reason: He's having trouble remembering things and having trouble walking down stairs. The Post-Gazette's story was a grabber, with Randle El saying he wouldn't play football if he could do it over again. Here's a quote: The kids are getting bigger and faster, so the concussions, the severe spinal cord injuries, are only going to get worse. It’s a tough pill to swallow because I love the game of football. But I tell parents, you can have the right helmet, the perfect pads on, and still end up with a paraplegic kid. There’s no correcting it. There’s no helmet that’s going to correct it. There’s no teaching that’s going to correct it. It just comes down to it’s a physically violent game. Football players are in a car wreck every week. He played football for nine sea...

Embed from Getty Images I've never seen an ending like that . Oh, sure, I've seen games play out like the scoring summary did from Saturday night's unbelievable wild-card game. Steelers take a 15-0 lead. It looks like they have the game in hand. The Bengals take the lead late in the game. The Steelers win it with a field goal in the waning seconds. That doesn't quite sum it up, does it? Not this game. Not the way it unfolded. Let's get back to the 15-0 part. Martavis Bryant gave the Steelers that lead with an incredible TD catch from Ben Roethlisberger. He actually caught it with his butt. I'm not sure how that was a football move -- but I digress. At that point, it looked like the Steelers were in control. Then Vontaze Burfict took over for the Bengals. Yeah, that guy. Burfict sacked Roethlisberger at the end of the third quarter, knocking Big Ben out of the game. Embed from Getty Images But all the Ste...

Embed from Getty Images There's a label attached to the Steelers this postseason: The team no one wants to face. Don't buy it? Monday Morning QB thinks so . Andy Benoit says an explosive passing game and creative defense makes Pittsburgh the most dangerous team in the AFC. I don't think the Ravens had any problems facing the Steelers two weeks ago. But, hey, the Ravens aren't in the playoffs, right? The problem with the Steelers is the defense. They might be creative, as Benoit suggests, but they're also vulnerable to the big play. The team seems to play up -- or down -- to its competition. So, again, there are no Ravens in the playoffs, so they can't be accused of playing down. However, the Steelers have to like their chances with the Bengals on Saturday. One Vegas line on Sunday night had Pittsburgh as a small favorite. Does that mean the Steelers could play down to Cincy? I'm sure the Steelers will be fired up. And it is the po...

Embed from Getty Images I'm already hearing talk about this year's playoff is unfolding like last year. You know how that went: The Steelers lost their starting running back in Week 17, then lost in the wild-card round against a divisional opponent. This year, DeAngelo Williams was injured in Week 17. And the Steelers face a divisional opponent -- the Bengals. That's where it stops. Williams has a sprained ankle, and is considered day-to-day. They also face an opponent that has a rich history -- of losing in the postseason. That's not to suggest that this game is a gimmie and the Steelers should book a trip to Denver. This will present it's share of challenges, namely A.J. Green and tight end Tyler Eifert. The Steelers will need to slow them down, no matter who's throwing the ball. But, if A.J. McCarron is behind center, that should be in favor of the Steelers -- also something different from a year ago.

Embed from Getty Images Cue the music... Here we go Steelers, here we go. Yeah, it's playoff time. Thanks to a little help from the Buffalo Bills, the Pittsburgh Steelers are back in the postseason. The wild-card team will play the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday night. That should be quite a showdown. But before we get into that game, let's look at Sunday's regular-season finale. It had the beginnings of the Ravens game from a week earlier, with turnovers costing the team and the Browns hanging around. Then the Browns realized they were the Browns. And some 200 miles away, Jets quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick realized he was Ryan Fitzpatrick. The Steelers' defense showed some grit, Ben Roethlisberger found a receiver other than the irreplaceable Antonio Brown and the Steelers smothered the Browns at the end. And speaking of Brown, that was one heck of a season: 136 receptions for 1,834 yards. Imagine what he would have done with a healthy Ro...