Initially, a couple of thoughts about the ubiquitous Steelers fan base. Most times when people say the Steelers fans took over our stadium, it's vastly overblown. Not so today. For the first time in 20 seasons, I got the sense we were the road team in our own stadium. I hope one day we will win enough games and attract enough fans such that will never happen again. Secondly, I'm not sure if it was because we were winless going into the game or what, but I was surrounded by Steelers fans, but the ones near me were not nearly the troglodytes we have grown accustomed to seeing from Steelers fans. There were a couple of stupid drunks in front of me who warned me they would be obnoxious, but they wound up moving up a couple of rows. Seemingly everyone else were middle age or older, or kids. All were respectful and courteous.


As far as the action goes...


1. Good job by the defense keeping us in the game. There were not the blatant mental errors that left so many opposing receivers running alone in our secondary. There were maybe a couple. I think the bigger culprit was the lack of a playmaker on the defense. There was a 3rd and about 3 in the 3rd quarter that epitomizes this. Big Ben took a 3 step drop and threw deep down the left side to a WR and Will Blackmon was in perfect position to make a play and couldn't make it. He didn't turn around to see the ball. He didn't knock the ball out of the receiver's hands. The Steelers were able to flip the field on that critical play. Lest anyone think I am picking on Blackmon, there were smaller instances-mostly in the run defense-where we seemingly had the RBs stopped for a loss or minimal gain, only for the back to turn it into a larger gain. Hopefully, the comparative lack of blown coverages remains constant for the rest of the season and this represents progress. The next step for this defense would come in the form of making a play.


2. Hopefully Poz is okay, but that sure didn't look good. Unfortunate, especially considering I thought Poz had a good game.


3. Good to see Ace Sanders back, but I wonder if his seeming ineffectiveness on returns was a function of rust, good coverage by the Steelers' special teams, or some combination of the two.


4. Rookie Watch: This will be a long one because six rookies started on offense.


A. Blake Bortles-Thus far, it seems Bortles is good for two picks a game. It seems like one pick is an "okay" pick, where he throws downfield where there is single coverage, he relies on the receiver to make a play or at least stop the DB from picking off the ball. This happened again today. The other pick is almost the stereotypical "oh my God what is he thinking" type of rookie pass, and he had one of those today that was returned for a TD. There was also that botched shotgun snap (I didn't fully see what happened) that took the team out of a favorable down and distance into a 3rd and 10. Nevertheless, there were some good things he showed. He showed the ability to climb the pocket on a few plays. He showed some pretty decent accuracy on some throws. There were plays where he checked out of a play and audibled into something else when he didn't like what the defense showed. When he eliminates the second category of interceptions is when he will make his next progression upward.


B. Marqise Lee-Did not play.


C. Allen Robinson-Had a pretty decent day, although once again was in a play downfield where he lost a jump ball to a DB that resulted in an INT. Right now, of the three rookie receivers, he seems to be the most reliable.


D. Brandon Linder-Didn't really stand out in a negative way, but my view may change when I watch the game.


E. Aaron Colvin-DNP


F. Telvin Smith-Played and I think I saw him in on a tackle or two, but did not make any plays.


G. Chris Smith-DNP


H. Luke Bowanko-Did not stand out in a negative way like Widell would against Joel Steed. In fact, he impressed my quite a bit with his athleticism on the screen pass to Gerhart, as he was down field blocking ahead of him.


I. Storm Johnson-got his first playing time of the year and had a couple of impressive runs. In fact, with his limited playing time, I got the sense he should be the starter at RB.


J. Allen Hurns-Watching him today, I think I figured out why he fell in the draft: his hands are unreliable. The first three times Bortles targeted him, he dropped catchable balls that would have resulted in first downs. Combine that with the drop in Washington and the near drop last week against the Chargers. I know he is young, and I know he has potential, but if this offense is going to progress, he has to be more consistent.


5. Back to the defense for a second, I think the D-Line showed several instances of hustle. Two plays that stood out to me: DT Roy Miller ran wide to the right side to tackle a runner and Branch recovering the fumble against Roethlisberger.


6. I am tired of seeing bubble screens.


7. I think despite the Steelers' reputation for being able to rush the passer, I think the OL did a fairly decent job handling the blitzes today.


8. Nice job, Scobee and Anger.


9. Bottom line: A week or so ago-right before the Chargers game- I predicted the Jaguars would win within the next 3 games. The team went toe to toe with the Bolts in the first half before folding in the second half. The team actually seemed to play defense against the Steelers and played the most competitive game of the year. Even though the team lacks playmakers and the team remains winless, I still see some improvement. Next week, whether it's Locker or Whitehurst, we will be playing against a QB who is at least a step down from Foles, Luck, Rivers and Roethlisberger. Though I think it will be a tough game for us, I think once again, we get our first win of the season against the tacks.

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