The Pittsburgh Steelers better watch out in this game.  They wanted to hire Ken Whisenhunt in the off-season but the NFL gave them a call and reminded them who made the “Rooney Rule” so they hired Mike Tomlin instead.  Ken Whisenhunt and Russ Grimm left Pittsburgh to go to the desert and they have had this game circled since the schedule came out.

The Steelers will try to do what they have done all season and that’s pass the ball to get the lead and then grind out the football game on the ground.  Ben Roethlisberger must protect the football this week and the offensive line has to keep him clean to make throws as the Cardinals have already made 8 sacks this season.  The Steelers will be without Hines Ward, so they will need to have either TE Heath Miller or WR Nate Washington to step up in this football game.  The Steelers must be aware of where safety Adrian Wilson is lining up as he is just as good of a football player as Troy Polamalu is.  Don’t forget the Steelers running game as Willie Parker (368 yards rushing, 5.0 ypc) and Najeh Davenport (136 yards rushing, 7.2 ypc) have both been outstanding so far this season.  They should have success on the ground against Cardinals defense which is allowing 104.3 yards rushing and 4.0 ypc so far this season.

The Steelers will think that they are looking in the mirror when the Cardinals offense is on the field.  The Cardinals offensive line has been outstanding this season as they have only allowed 2 sacks this season and they have averaged 118.0 yards rushing and 4.5 yards per carry!  Something has to give in this game as the Steelers will be blitzing a lot which has led them to having 12 sacks this season.  QB Matt Leinart will have to be smart with the football or the Cardinals will replace him with Kurt Warner who was outstanding last weekend against Baltimore.  The Steelers’ corners are not the strength of the defense and they will likely have big trouble covering Anquan Boldin (22 rec, 286 yards, 3 TDs) and Larry Fitzgerald (15 rec, 192 yards).  The Cardinals will also challenge the Steelers on the ground with Edgerrin James (277 yards rushing, 4.6 ypc, 2 TDs) running behind their much improved offensive line.

PREDICTION:  The Steelers should win this football game, but, it’s hard to bet against a team that will be as fired up as the Cardinals will be to win one for the coaching staff.  I don’t know which team will win the game, but I’m guessing that it will only be by a field goal.

The Steelers will like be without Hines Ward this weekend against the Cardinals as he has a sprained knee.  Ward wasn’t off to his best start anyway as he has caught 9 passes for 108 yards (12.0 avg) with 1 TD catch.  He also has 1 carry for 7 yards.  In fact, the Steelers will likely miss Ward more in the running game as he is an outstanding run blocker often adding a few yards to Willie Parker’s total with downfield blocks.  Nate Washington (3 rec, 60 yards) will step into Ward’s starting spot and Cedric Wilson (1 rec, 12 yards) will probably move up to the #3 slot for this week’s game.

The Steelers dominated the 49ers in every phase of the game.  Ben Roethlisberger completed 13 of 20 passes for 160 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 interceptions.  He also carried the ball 1 time for 18 yards.  RB Willie Parker was outstanding again for the Steelers as he carried the ball 24 times for 133 yards (5.5 ypc) and Najeh Devenport kicked in with 5 carries for 47 yards (9.4 ypc) with 1 TD run.  TE Heath Miller led the way in the passing game for the Steelers with 4 catches for 82 yards (20.5 avg).  WR Santonio Holmes (3 rec, 49 yards) and TE Jerame Tuman (1 rec, 9 yards) each caught 1 TD pass apiece.  The Steelers finished up with 205 yards rushing on 33 carries (6.2 ypc) and they also completed 13 of 20 passes for 145 yards.  KR Allen Rossum returned 2 kickoffs for 120 yards (60.0 avg) including a 98-yard TD return.

Safety Troy Polamalu finally showed up this season as he led the Steelers with 8 tackles to lead the team.  CB Bryant McFadden only had 4 tackles but he also returned an interception 50 yards for a TD.  The defense held the 49ers to 91 yards rushing on 22 carries (4.1 ypc) and the Niners completed 17 of 35 passes for 198 yards.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=270923023

Ben Roethlisberger has looked like the “Big Ben” of old so far this season.  He has given the Steelers offense the balance that it needs as the Steelers have averaged 195.0 yards rushing per game and 197.5 yards passing per game so far this season.  He has been buying time with his feet in the pocket as he only has been sacked 2 times this season.  Roethlisberger has completed 33 of 57 passes (57.9%) for 403 yards with 5 TD passes and 1 interception (101.7 QB Rating).  Even though the Steelers haven’t played a team with a good defense yet (Browns, Bills) they have to be happy to see how well Roethlisberger is leading the offense.

The Steelers again fed on an inferior opponent this week as they punished the Bills last Sunday.  The Steelers used their usual playing style as they ran the football and played excellent defense to win the game with ease.  Ben Roethlisberger completed 21 of 34 passes for 242 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 interception.  Willie Parker was outstanding again as he carried the ball 23 times for 126 yards (5.5 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Backup RB Najeh Davenport was also outstanding with 6 carries for 46 yards (7.7 ypc) on Sunday.  Hines Ward (5 rec, 55 yards) and Santonio Holmes (3 rec, 53 yards) both had solid games and rookie TE Matt Spaeth caught a TD pass for the 2nd consecutive game to start his career.  The Steelers finished up with 184 yards rushing on 33 carries (5.6 ypc) and they also completed 21 of 34 passes for 236 yards.

Linebacker James Farrior led an inspired effort by the Steelers’ defense as he had 10 tackles.  The Bills rushed for 102 yards on 22 carries (4.6 ypc) and they completed 15 of 25 passes for 121 yards.  The Bills only had possession of the football for 24:33 of this football game as they couldn’t sustain any drives against the stout Steelers’ defense.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=270916023

All the Steelers had to do in this game was sit back and watch the Browns implode.  The Steelers started three drives in Browns territory in the first quarter because of turnovers and before you could blink an eye the Steelers were up 17-0.  The Steelers had to be happy with the performance of QB Ben Roethlisberger who looked sharp completing 12 of 23 passes for 161 yards with 4 TD passes.  RB Willie Parker got his work in with 27 carries for 109 yards (4.0 ypc).  Najeh Davenport came in at garbage time and he ran well carrying the ball 8 times for 43 yards (5.4 ypc).  The Steelers spread the ball around in the passing game as Santonio Holmes (2 rec, 55 yards), Hines Ward (3 rec, 51 yards) and TE Heath Miller (4 rec, 35 yards) each caught a TD.  The Steelers finished up this game rushing for 206 yards on 42 carries (4.9 ypc) and they completed 12 of 23 passes for 159 yards.

The Steelers defense was all over the field in this game making big plays.  LB James Harrison had 7 tackles and a sack.  CB Ike Taylor was also outstanding with 5 tackles, a sack and a interception.  The Steelers held the Browns to 46 yards rushing on 16 carries (2.9 ypc) and they only threw for 175 yards on 17 of 38 passing.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=270909005

The Steelers were made to comply with the lousy “Rooney Rule” in hiring Mike Tomlin and they will pay for it.  Tomlin is not ready to be a head coach in the NFL and that will show on the field.  Bypassing Russ Grimm and Ken Whisenhunt will hurt the Steelers both on and off of the field.  In fact, I’m certain that the date with the Steelers in a couple weeks is circled on their calendars.  The Steelers trademarks have been having a good defense and a good offensive line but they will have neither this season.  They also will need Ben Roethlisberger to use his head more this season.  Bet the under if you need some money as the Steelers are only winning 6-8 games this season.

The Pittsburgh Steelers travel to Cleveland to open the season against their hated rivals…the Cleveland Browns.  The Steelers will try to run the football against the Browns mostly behind C Sean Mahan, LG Alan Faneca and LT Marvel Smith as the right side of their offensive line is weak.  Willie Parker has had some stellar games against the Browns in his career and he will again unless the Browns get some push out of their defensive line.  Inside linebackers Andra Davis and D-Qwell Jackson are good run defenders if they are kept clean by the defensive line.  OLBs Kamerion Wimbley and Antwan Peek will be unleashed to blitz QB Ben Roethlisberger into mistakes so the Steelers must be able to hold them out of the backfield.  The Browns secondary will be at full strength against the Steelers for the first time in quite a while and that could cause the Steelers problems.  CBs Leigh Bodden and rookie Eric Wright are both skilled enough to handle Hines Ward and Santonio Holmes.  The Browns safeties should also have no problem in dealing with TE Heath Miller.  SS Sean Jones is every bit as good as Troy Polamalu and the numbers back that up.  Look for him to make a big play or two against the Steelers offense.

The Steelers defense is an overrated bunch who will miss their spiritual leader Joey Porter.  Like him or hate him he got the Steelers defense fired up.  The Browns will likely try to run the football to the left side behind rookie OT Joe Thomas and veteran OG Eric Steinbach.  They should be able to control that side of the football field unless the Steelers bring Troy Polamalu over there.  The Browns will feed RB Jamal Lewis the rock to try to keep the ball away from the Steelers and to set up play action passes down the field for the Browns.  QB Charlie Frye will have to limit his mistakes against a secondary that can make some plays on the ball.  Still, Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow could cause the Steelers defense problems.  Look for Joe Jurevicius and TE Steve Heiden to be the Browns secret weapons against the Steelers.

The special teams could play a big factor in this football game.  Neither Jeff Reed or Phil Dawson is very accurate so chances are they couldn’t make a pressure kick to win the game.  The Steelers are going with a rookie punter in Daniel Sepulveda so he could have the jitters in his first game.  Browns punter Dave Zastudil has been gimpy this week as the Browns have brought P/K Paul Ernster just in case.  The Steelers added themselves an impact kick returner in Allen Rossum and he should give the Steelers good field position in this game.  But, Joshua Cribbs was even better than Rossum last season and he will make some big plays against the Steelers.

PREDICTION:  The Steelers have owned the Browns lately but Coach Tomlin is no Bill Cowher.  Look for this to be a very close game as either team could win it.  I tend to think the Steelers will win a close game but it would not surprise me at all if the Browns scored an upset.