Problems For Tomlin In First Year

Did the Steelers deserve to win against Jacksonville? Maybe, maybe not. But the Burgh's poor kick coverage gave the Jags a huge boost of momentum early in the game. All year, Pittsburgh had trouble stopping kick returns, putting their defense in a tough spot a lot of times. Their defense, clearly the best in the league (through 12 weeks), was torn up in the regular season back-to-back weeks by New England and Jacksonville, giving up 63 points in two games.

Mike Tomlin looked like a great fit in Pittsburgh, but fell short in big games and in clutch situations. Going for two!? From the 12-yard line!? What is he thinking!? He badly mishandled the special teams unit, which seemed to give up a huge return whenever the other team needed it. Joshua Cribbs picked them cleaner than Quaker Steak & Lube bbq wing, and Maurice Jones-Drew haunted them early in the divisional round. If it wasn't for the Broncos and James Harrison killing Ed Reed, Pittsburgh would rank among the lowest in kick/punt coverage.

The offensive line was another key problem for the Steelers in 2007, which ultimately lost the game against the Jaguars. Alan Faneca, a top-5 lineman in the NFL, was singled out this year with a group of unexperienced, unprepared, and quite frankly untalented linemates. Ben was sacked 47 times this year, forcing him to become a Jerome Bettis in the pocket. Smith and Simmons are washed up, and Mahan and Colon have no idea what their assignment is. The Steelers' O-line was about as inconsistent as Bobby Petrino's coaching plans. The best tackle left in the draft should be taken by Pittsburgh.

Another blunder with the Steelers was their secondary. The corners were consistently beat up from week to week, and I guarantee Anthony Smith won't get much playing time next year. Ike Taylor and Deshea Townsend are mirror images of Dwayne Washington and Chad Scott. Ike and Chad get burned down the field, and Deshea and Dwayne are old and slow. The free safety spot was atrocious this season, leaving a run-stopping strong safety Troy Polamalu to cover deep. The Steelers recovered more fumbles than they had interceptions (14-11) which is horrible for the secondary. If James Harrison didn't have a breakout year, Pittsburgh's D would be much worse.

Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh's golden boy, set a career-high with 32 TD passes in the regular season, but failed to make an impact in key games. Throughout his career, Ben struggled against a Cover-2 or Cover-2 Shell defense. In almost all games, Ben plays mediocre in the first half, and rallies in the second. Rashean Mathis looked like last year's version in the wildcard game. Bruce Arians seems to like the idea of Najeh Davenport being a deep-ball threat, which is an insult to Santonio Holmes, a potential top-5 receiver. Even though he's won a Super Bowl, Big Ben seems to choke in big games. He was one of those quarterbacks that was "just good enough" to win a title, similar to Trent Dilfer in Super Bowl XXV. The Ravens had a ridiculous defense and special teams unit, and Dilfer just had to hand off to then rookie Jamal Lewis. Ben did the same with Parker and Bettis.

Even though Tomlin had some issues in his first year, I think it will make him all the better. He handles the press well, knows what his team needs to work on, and has a likeable personality. With experience, he'll get the team together and they could return to elite status within a few years.

Prediction Record in '08: 9-7, miss playoffs '09: 12-4, win AFC North and claim 2nd seed in AFC