Weekly WTF – Preseason Week 2
I am going to start off by saying I have very mixed emotions on preseason games. Of course, you want your team to win.
Why play the game if you aren’t there to win?
But then you have to put things into perspective when some teams do not play their starting quarterbacks, wide receivers, defensive players or even their starting kickers and punters. I understand sitting some of your star players is to protect them from themselves; to protect from injury.
And that’s when you have trouble picking apart a preseason game where the opposing team looks dominant and the Steelers looked like… well…
First Quarter
The first WTF is Atlanta steamrolling the Steelers in the first quarter of last Sunday’s exhibition game. The Falcons jumped out to a 10-0 lead with a good portion of first and second team players on the field. And they kept marching without much trouble no matter who was playing at quarterback. First, it was Matt Ryan, then Matt Schaub (who attempted one pass) and finally (wait for it) Matt Simms.
WTF is with all of the Matts?
Should we be concerned?
Sunday wasn’t exactly the “Sunday” game we were hoping for.
James Conner looked sharp at times but also had three dropped passes. Joshua Dobbs’ carelessness with the ball (as Coach Tomlin put it) is a concern and so was his lack of attention to the game clock.
Ross Cockrell looked like the former Antwon (now Valentino) Blake, getting beat by anyone in his path.
Even Vince Williams took a beating.
The defense looked weak and exposed. It’s time to step it up, as the clock is ticking down to the regular season.
Good Times
If you didn’t know, I live tweet during each Steelers game on the official Steel City Underground Twitter account, @steelcityundrgr. I try to do more than just repeat stats and scores like others do, as a way to interact with our followers and make things fun.
For those of you watching the game on TV, were you annoyed with local play-by-play announcer Bob Pompeani as I was? I kept rolling my eyes when “Bob” (alongside analyst Charlie Batch) kept pronouncing player’s names wrong.
For example, and this one frosts my cookies every time I hear it, it’s not “MartavIUS Bryant” it’s “MartavUS Bryant”.
How hard is that? There is no “u” in Martavis people! WTF?!
But the best is third-year linebacker Anthony Chickillo getting called the ol’ Chickidillo.
Really?
I expected the Fonz to come on TV any moment and say “exactomundo!”
Big WTF.
Case of mistaken identity
As I am live tweeting the game someone apparently thought it would be cool to taunt me. Tray… oops, I mean Trey, as in Trey Williams, runs back a punt for a touchdown.
I follow the Steelers, but like a lot of you, I’m not following the preseason so closely. I admit I did not know who Trey Williams was… but it gets better. As Pittsburgh is really getting some momentum in late in this game I see a number 30 on special teams make a great tackle. I almost jumped out of my seat to call Pittsburgh and say WTF is James Conner doing out there!
Then I realized… whew, it was our “other” number 30, safety Malik Golden.
Jeez, warn me why don’t you!
Some of you are saying “Oh Terry” but don’t tell me those of you watching the game didn’t think the same thing for a second: you did!
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is close to getting a new 5-year extension through 2024, per @dkaplanSBJ.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 21, 2017
Extension
ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting that “NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is close to getting a new 5-year extension through 2024, per sources.”
Isn’t he the most hated commissioner ever? The news shocked me. What are your thoughts?
I could lift that. #SolarEclipse2017 pic.twitter.com/RIFz0j7uwJ
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) August 21, 2017
Solar Eclipse
Everyone was obsessed with the solar eclipse on Monday. Even James Harrison took off the tough guy mold for a moment and was seen sporting the special glasses to look at the sun. (He was also spotted cutting the practice facility fields too: WTF?)
Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. wasn’t wearing those glasses and was seen squinting into the sun on his Instagram.
SMH WTF?
Then he gets hit low later that same night in a preseason game against the Browns, leaves with what might look like a serious knee injury, but ends up being okay… Yeah, I’m glad he’s not our wide receiver!
9-1-17 😉 https://t.co/8Sj7MvzD79
— Le'Veon Bell (@LeVeonBell) August 23, 2017
The Return?
Finally, a cryptic WTF message was tweeted from our invisible star RB Le’Veon Bell, who posted “9/1/17” indicating a possible return one day after the final Steelers preseason game.
That gives him a total of four practices to get ready for the Steelers first game of the 2017 season.
WTF?
I hope he’s ready!
