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About an hour ago
The Steelers have spent the last two weeks on the road and beat the Tennessee Titans (5-0) and the Baltimore Ravens (5-1).
They did it without playing their best football. In fact, they’ve been pretty ugly for about half of the two games.
So, in a way, this had to make Steelers fans feel pretty good that their team could push back two high-ranking AFC enemies into their buildings without even playing high-end football the entire time. match.
This was not the case Sunday in Dallas, however.
Well the first part was true. The Steelers still appeared to play only half of the game. This is how they managed to sneak past a pathetic 2-7 Cowboys team in Dallas that was much less uplifting.
The 24-19 victory for Mike Tomlin’s crew didn’t sound like the same kind of valiant comeback as the last they pulled off seven days earlier in Baltimore, even though they were trailing 13-0 in Texas.
And the efforts to push Garrett Gilbert’s charge back in the end brought a sense of relief far more than inspiration, as it did in Nashville when they fought off the Titans.
Mark Madden of 105.9 The X seemed to agree on this week’s Madden Monday podcast.
“What I take away the most from the game is that even at 8-0, I just don’t trust the Steelers. And I certainly don’t trust (head coach) Mike Tomlin, ”said Madden.
Madden specifically pointed out that he didn’t like Tomlin’s decision to aim for a fourth try instead of throwing a basket that could have increased his lead to eight points.
“I just don’t know if I’m going to trust this team,” Madden said. “Which seems strange to say at 8-0. But I know what I see. I know what I saw (Sunday) and I can’t help but say it. This is how I feel. “
Part of the reason Madden’s confidence is eroded a bit from the previous seven wins is that the defense seems to be slipping. This could be due to wear and tear on that side of the ball due to injury. Devin Bush, Tyson Alualu and Mike Hilton all missed the Cowboys game. And new linebacker Avery Williamson won’t be fully integrated into the mix until next week’s game against Cincinnati at the earliest.
“It’s amazing they made the fourth string quarterback for Dallas as good looking as he is,” said Madden. “Dallas ‘rushing offense tore the Steelers’ defense apart like Baltimore’s last week. At this point, aside from the garish stats and splashing, I don’t think it’s unfair to call this Steelers defense slightly overrated.
So the Steelers barely managed to avoid their typical annual bad road loss. Does that mean that close call is now out of the team system? Or will players take on equally poor opponents from Cincinnati and Jacksonville before reuniting with the Ravens at Thanksgiving?
“If they had demolished Dallas, then I think they would have had a game like this in the overtime,” Madden said. “And if that had happened against Cincinnati, maybe they would have been good enough to take advantage and take the win. Even at Heinz Field. But now that they survived Dallas – despite having a really bad game – I bet they beat the Cincinnati bejesus.
Madden and I cover all of these topics in the podcast. We also dive into Mike Tomlin’s curious decision to avoid throwing a late-game basket, heavy defensive efforts in the fourth quarter from top stars and controversial referee calls.
Additionally, we discuss this debate about Notre Dame students rushing to the field at South Bend, Penn State’s 0-3 start, and the notion of more hockey in the NHL in a bubble format.
Listen: Tim Benz and Mark Madden discuss Steelers’ precarious win over Cowboys
Tim Benz is a writer for Tribune-Review. You can contact Tim at [email protected] or via Twitter. All tweets could be reposted. All emails are subject to publication, unless otherwise specified.
Categories:
Sports | Steelers / NFL | Breakfast with Benz
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