May 24, 2013

A few thoughts on Sunday’s Jets – Steelers game…

January 22, 2011 by 27 Comments

The first of those being the fact that if Pittsburgh loses, Braylon wins.  This might be a tough spot for some Browns fans to root from - assuming you’re looking for a rooting interest in Sunday’s AFC title game - but not for me. 

I don’t want Pittsburgh to go to the Superbowl.  I don’t want to hear what a great guy Big Ben has matured into becoming for the next month leading into that game down in Dallas because of the fact he helped his team string together enough wins to get after his suspension, and I don’t want to hear or see the bursting from the seams joy from Stiller Nation.

I don’t really care about Braylon either.  I’m not a fan of his, but in truth he has rendered himself irrelevant to me.  I could care less.  He’s not the best receiver on his team, and I really can’t see a scenario in which the Jets advance because of Braylon Edwards.  I suppose I hope he gets shut out by Pittsburgh’s secondary, drops six balls, catches none, and the Jets advance despite of him.

–

I’m also interested to see how healthy Brad Smith is upon his return to the line-up on Sunday.  Smith missed last week’s win over the Patriots since suffering a groin injury against the Colts, but he will be back for this one. 

Smith took the opening kick to the house from 97 yards out the last time these two teams matched up, and that ended up being the difference in the Jets win over Pittsburgh (22-17).  

He also averages 7.9 yards per rush out of the Wildcat, and certainly adds another dimension for Mike Tomlin’s group to prepare for.  That change of pace could prove to be a critical spark for Mark Sanchez and company if they stall early.

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Besides the fact that it is the Steelers, I do have to admit that I also want to see Rex Ryan win. 

I know it’s New York, I know they may grind on people at times with all the talking they do, but for me it’s entertaining television. 

The way I see it, regardless of who goes to the Superbowl we’re going to hear about all teams from all angles on one force fed story after another.  If it is the Jets, I’m guessing those stories will be more entertaining than they would be otherwise.

There’s also a Hard Knocks factor here for me too.  I’m not saying I’m proud of this, but I just have to admit that Rex and all that goes into his approach to his team, and their response to him, is something that’s caught my attention since day one. 

The guy loves eating snacks, and his team loves playing for him.  And for as loud and as much as he’s talked about going to the Superbowl this season, there’s something cool in the fact that he might actually get there.

I’m with Bart Scott on this game, I can’t wait to watch it.

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  • Tom

    You know, we all were angry at Braylon after he punched one of LeBenedict’s friends, but, really, he just had the best foresight of all of us and the worst aim too.

  • http://twitter.com/Bbo13 B-bo

    Dream scenario: Jets annihilate the yinzers. In the aftermath of the win, Braylon blows out a knee while mocking the crowd by stomping on one of their precious yellow hankies–an all-around victory!

  • Biki

    “I really can’t see a scenario in which the Jets advance because of Braylon Edwards”

    I know it’s easy to rip on him because of his failures in Cleveland, but he’s done great with the Jets and other than his DUI he hasn’t been a distraction at all, and most of all, has helped them to win games.

    You watched the Pats game right? How many big plays did Braylon have?? He had 2 big third down grabs that were monster catches, and he had that beastly TD catch and run. Even in the Colts game he had that big 3rd down catch to put them in much closer FG range.

    Not to mention that he’s always been known as a great run blocker and he has done a great job to help with the Jets running game.

    This season, Braylon has proven that he can be considered a #1 receiver in the league. Only ONE drop the entire season.

    Obviously having Santonio on the other side and J-Co and Keller help Braylon but that’s what’s playing on a good team affords you. Braylon didn’t really have that sort of supporting cast in Cleve and now we’re seeing what he can do with stability around him.

    A lot of that credit has to be given to Rex and his ability to work with a bunch of different personalities. Talent usually wins in the NFL and hopefully the Browns new regime can do a better job with managing the influx of talent we should get with the #6 pick and whoever else we bring in.

    Hopefully him and Santonio are smart and realize they help each other and the Jets pay them both to stay.

  • Biki

    and i “CAN’T WAIT” to see the J-E-T-S to beat the Steelers..

  • Alex

    broadway butter fingers braylon, or a serial Rapist-burger…

    GO J-E-T-S

    I dont plan on watching the Superbowl if the steelers are in it…

  • Shamrock

    Steelers will win because they are the better TEAM. Put the envy, jealousy, bitterness and anger aside or try. I know it’s not easy.

  • Jewpants

    hate the steelers

  • tsm

    @6. BS. Rooting for the steelers is like rooting for Al-Quida. No loyal Clevelander can ever root for the enemy. It has nothing to do with bitterness. While I respect the Rooney family, I despise the team and the fanbase.

  • JNeids

    Thanks for the life tip as always, shamrock.

    I guess I’m in the minority that thinks big Ben and the steelers winning another title is a lesser evil than braylon and sanchez winning their first. I hate the steelers more as a team, but hate more jets individually, and since the steelers have been there before, it wouldn’t be as satisfying to them as the jets getting there for the first time. Kinda like why I wanted the patriots out of the 4 teams left last week.

  • http://www.redright88.com Titus Pullo

    There’s no scenario I can think of that would make me root for the Steelers. They could be playing the Taliban, with Hitler at QB and Satan on defense and I still wouldn’t root for them.

    And that doesn’t even go into all the preseason stories about how the team and the Pittsburgh fans wouldn’t accept Rothlisberger back because he betrayed the “Steeler way.” Yeah, that lasted about 15 minutes.

    Plus, as you said, Rex Ryan is just fun. Wouldn’t Super Bowl week be funner with a Ryan involved? Makes you wonder why the Browns couldn’t even be bothered to give him a call after they fired Romeo; it’s not like they weren’t familiar with his work from playing Baltimore twice a year.

  • Ben

    Titus with his 1st paragraph just gave 75% of Browns fans a Facebook status update for Sunday.

  • Alex

    x2 on Titus’s facebook status greatness

  • JM

    Titus FTW!

  • Shamrock

    @9 Not so much a life tip just MY OPINION on the whiners. I mean the only thing worse then a Steelers subject is. LeBron one. I can understand the latter since it’s recent but honestly the Steelers have owned the Browns for so long again that what’s the difference.

    Anyways I have Green Bay so the winner of Jets-Steelers doesn’t matter. Have a nice day!!

  • humboldt

    “Hitler at QB”…

    “Down, set, hut, hut, reich!”

    /Sorry

  • subadai

    The AFC is dead to me. Go Packers! Or Bears! I don’t care which.

  • pepe

    Good news for rapers!

    The National Institute of Health has released a study that proves putting rapists in jail is less desirable than forcing rapists to play football. The study finds that the best way to rehabilitate a raper is to give him a football team to play on. But to ensure total rehabilitation, the raper should only be allowed to play for a winning team. The study suggests rapists on playoff teams rehabilitate themselves must faster than rapists on losing ones.

  • http://www.moonbattery.com modell2hell

    @10: My sentiments exactly. That being said, it’s going to be quite a task to beat Pittsburgh a second time at home this year. Lrt’s hope Braylon has a monster day tomorrow, then drops an easy catch to lose the Superbowl.

  • C-Bus Kevin

    If the Steelers win, avoiding the “Big Ben Comeback” story will be easy. Stop watching espn and cancel your cable…that’s what I did and I don’t miss it a bit.

  • Harv 21

    My match-up analysis: a scumbag plays QB for an organization otherwise worth emulating for their sound football philosophy, consistency and stability. Once upon a time we were rivals, but we’re the only ones still pretending that’s true. Most of the time we’re just an extra bi-week for them.

    NY fans – with their obnoxious attitude of entitlement, inevitability, eastern hegemony – make me almost physically ill. And if they win, the NY-based media will make it All Rex, All The Time. Like just this season he invented football, gluttony and stretch pants.I will blow chow.

    Steelers, please.

  • subadai

    @20

    Speaking of match up analysis, try this.

    PGH QB is a rapist and the Jets HC is a deviated pervert. I call that a push.

  • http://www.waitingfornextyear.com Denny

    Well, that comment section went downhill fast.

  • BuckeyeDawg

    Harv – I understand where you are coming from…but I just can’t do it. Mainly because I have to deal with the annoying bandwagon Pittsburgh fans that have become an epidemic in northern Ohio.

    It’s just as much the Pittsburgh fans that make me hate them as it is the team.

  • http://www.60bpm.com/ Robbie

    If a team owned by Satan, coached by Adolph Hitler, with Joseph Stalin at QB and Benito Mussolini at MLB… Pol Pot kicking the FGs and Mao Tse Tung running back kicks and punts… if that team was playing the Steelers I STILL COULD NOT POSSIBLY WANT PITTSBURGH TO WIN!!!

    Go Jets! Go Braylon! J-E-T-S, win, win, win!

    (Unfortunately for Jets fans, anything Browns fans really, really want for loses. Sorry.)

  • jimkanicki

    in defense of jets fans: they bear no resemblance to yankees fans and NO new york fanbase approaches any from boston in loathsomeness. don’t forget they’re the underdog in their own town.

    steelers fans are worse than anything from the northeast. good lord, i hear they’re taking over your giant eagles. i hear columbus is becoming infiltrated with front-running steeler douchebags.

    how can any of you root for the steelers? have you gone mad?

  • topher

    Living in NY for the last 10 years, I can honestly say that Jets fans are nothing like typical NY fans that North East Ohioans loathe so much. I hate the NY media and all the rest as much as anybody, but its just not the same thing when we are talking about the Jets.

    If Tampa Bay wins some playoff games next year, do we root against Kellen Winslow? Im just wondering what the statute of limitations is. Butterfingers is an a-hole, but theres plenty of other guys on that team to pay attention to. They talk alot, and thus far they’ve backed it up. The respect is earned.

    I wish I had a group of douchebags that talented playing in the Orange and Brown. I wish I had a coach who believed in his team the way Ryan does.

    Also: rooting for the Steelers? Come on…that has to be a cardinal sin if you’re from NEO. Just repugnant.

  • Harv 21

    @ jimkanicki:

    Don’t disagree about Boston fanbase – lived there for while and heard it constantly – but prefer it because Boston’s attitiude of “we invented fan heartbreak and all sports tradition” is more often said to each other as an affirmation of specialness. It’s not screamed at me with a side of spittle in a bar in Ohio, like NYers do with their provincial crap. Agree that when sportswriter fans of New England do it it’s just as repugnant. Like listening to a Kennedy third cousin waxing on about flag football at Hyannesport and Camelot- ugh.

    Know a Clevelander living in Pitts who feels as you do. I would probably too if there.