That's right we've found a name for our group, UPON FURTHER REVIEW. Now it's time for the Steelers, and a second prime time Monday Night game for the Broncos. Brought to you by the Scouting team of Boydy, Bshrout, Broncofan 91, and Kaptain Kirk. Here is a look at what this weeks opponents have done in their season so far. Enjoy!

Weeks 2 & 3 - Pittsburgh @ Chicago / Pittsburgh @ Cincinnati -- Bshrout

I decided to study the two Pittsburgh losses to see if there were any common factors.

 Both losses were away games; the only away game the Steelers have won was against Detroit (1-5).

I looked first at Lebowskibronco's "Stats That Don't Lie"

By these stats, Pittsburgh should have won both of these games.  Let's dig a bit further.  Let's look at the game scores by quarter:

In both games, Pittsburgh led going into the 4th quarter -- 14-7 over Chicago, and 20-9 over Cincinnati.  In reviewing all of Pittsburgh's games, it can be seen that Pittsburgh has been outscored 62-30 in the 4th quarter.  In fact, the Steelers have not scored in the 4th quarter of any of their three road games.  Further, 14 of their 30 4th quarter points came from a fumble and an interception which were both returned for touchdowns.  This means that the Steelers have only scored 16 offensive points in the 4th quarter.  This would suggest that their offense is less than effective late in the game.  This would also explain why their opponents have been able to score twice as many 4th quarter points -- the defense is being forced to spend too much time on the field.

Now, let's look at each of the fourth quarters in Pittsburgh's losses.

Pittsburgh at Chicago

The quarter started with Pittsburgh leading 14-7.  Pittsburgh had the ball 1st and 10 at the Chicago 26. Parker ran right for 6 yards.  A completed short left pass to Holmes netted 7 more.  Parker was tackled for a loss of 1.  Brown sacked Roethlisberger for a loss of 9.  Pittsburgh attempted a field goal, but missed wide left.  Pittsburgh had 5 plays, gained 3 yards and missed a field goal.  They attempted 2 runs (5 yards), 2 passes (7 yards - a 9 yard sack for a net of -2) and a field goal (which was missed).

 Chicago took over 1st and 10 at their own 28.  Knox caught a pass to the short right for 7.  Forte was stopped for no gain on the left end.  A no huddle, shotgun formation pass to Hester short left netted 13 yards. Cutler connected with Olsen for 29 yards in the deep middle.  This was followed by a short pass to the left to Davis for 8.  Another no huddle, shotgun formation pass was completed to Olsen short left for 6.  Cutler's next pass was incomplete.  Forte ran to the right for 2 yards.  Cutler completed a 7 yard pass Knox in the short middle for a touchdown.  Chicago went 72 yards in 9 plays for a touchdown.  Chicago gained 2 yards on 2 runs, and 70 yards on 7 passes.

 After the kick-off, Pittsburgh had the ball 1st and 10 at their own 29.  A short pass to Ward on the right gained 4.  Ward was hit for 9 more over the middle, out of a no huddle, shotgun formation.  Another no huddle led to Moore gaining 15 off right tackle.  The next no huddle resulted in an incomplete pass.  A second incomplete pass was nullified by a defensive offsides penalty.  After starting in a shotgun formation, Roethlisberger scrambled for 5 yards.  Moore lost 2 on the next play trying to run around the left end.  A short pass to Wallace on the right gained 10.  Roethlisberger challenged the Bears with a deep throw to the left that fell incomplete.  Pittsburgh missed a 2nd consecutive field goal.  Pittsburgh ran 10 plays and gained 46 yards (18 rushing, 23 passing, 5 penalty).

Chicago's next drive started at their own 33.  Forte caught a short pass to the left for 12 yards and fumbled the ball, which was recovered by Chicago.  Cutler followed up with a short pass to Knox on the left for 5.  Forte rushed to the right for 1 yard.  Hester caught a short pass on the left for 5 more.  Chicago threw in a run which netted them 4 yards on a run by Forte to the right.  Forte ran to the right a 2nd time, gaining 3.  Then he ran to the left for 1 more yard.  At this point, with 20 seconds left in the game, Chicago kicked a field goal.  They had gone 41 yards in 8 plays (4 runs for 9 yards, 3 passes for 22 yards, 10 yards on the fumble recovery).

 Chicago kicked off to Pittsburgh.  The Steeler fumbled the kickoff and Chicago recovered. Pittsburgh in the quarter ran 15 plays, gained 49 yards and missed 2 field goals.  Chicago ran 17 plays, gained 113 yards, scored a field goal and a touchdown.

 This means that Pittsburgh put up 259 yards in the first three quarters, while limiting Chicago to 162.  41% of Chicago's yardage came in the 4th quarter as did 31% of the Bears play.  The Steelers' offense appeared to become very conservative during the 4th, while their defense seemed to let up.

Pittsburgh at Cincinnati

The quarter started with the Steelers leading 20-9.  Cincinnati was continuing a drive begun in the 3rd quarter.  The Bengals had the ball 3rd and 3 at the Pittsburgh 34 yard line. Palmer's pass was incomplete.  The Bengals then missed a field goal, wide left.  The drive went 2 plays for 0 yards and a missed field goal.

 Pittsburgh got the ball at their own 42 yard line.  Parker ran to the left for 3 yards.  A second run to the left was stopped for no gain.  A short pass out of the shotgun formation fell short by only gaining 6 yards.  This forced Pittsburgh to punt.  This drive was marked by 3 plays, gaining 9 yards and ended in a punt.

 Cincinnati's next possession began at their own 15 yard line.  Palmer completed a pass short right to Caldwell for 14 yards.  Ochocinco caught another 14 yard pass to the short right.  An incomplete pass to the deep middle was nullified by a defensive pass interference penalty.  Benson ran to the left for 8 yards.  Palmer was sacked on the next play, but was able to get back to the line of scrimmage.  Palmer completed his next pass, a short left pass toColes that went for 9 yards.  Benson finished the drive by running to the left for 23 yards and a touchdown.  This drive went for 7 plays, gained 85 yards and ended in a touchdown.  The Steelers gave up 31 yards in rushing and 37 yards in passing.  The defensive penalty added 17 yards to the drive.

 Pittsburgh's 2nd drive started at the Steelers' 27 yard line.  Parker was stopped for no gain on a run to the left.  Wallace gained 9 on a short pass over the middle.  Roethlisberger scrambled up the middle for 2 more.  Parker added 3 on a run to the right.  He then tried the left side  but gained only 1 yard.  Roethlisberger was sacked for a loss of 5 on the next play and the Steelers were forced to punt.  Pittsburgh gained 10 yards on 7 plays.

 After the punt, Cincinnati had the ball on their own 29.  Benson ran right for 3, followed by a completed pass to Coles on the right for 17.  Benson caught a pass for 5, followed by an 8 yard run.  Palmer's next pass hit Caldwell short over the middle for 9.  Palmer scrambled for 1 to the right.  Palmer's next pass fell incomplete.  Caldwell caught a short pass on the right for 8.  Another incomplete pass was followed by Coles making a grab for 5 yards on the right.  Palmer spiked the ball to stop the clock.  This was followed by 2 incomplete passes.  On 4th and 10 from the Steelers' 15 yard line, Palmer connected with Leonard on the right side for 11.  Palmer again spiked the ball to stop the clock with 19 seconds left.  Palmer hit Caldwell over the middle for a 4 yard touchdown.  This drive went 71 yards in 16 plays and included 2 4th down conversions. 

 Pittsburgh ran two drives, gaining 19 yards on 10 plays, and had both drives end in punts.  Cincinnati had 3 drives, gaining 156 yards on 25 plays and resulted in 2 touchdowns. 

 The Steelers amassed 354 yards in the first three quarters, while their defense limited Cincinnati to 117.  57% of the Bengals' yards came in the 4th quarter along with 45% of their plays.  As in the Chicago game, the offense suddenly became ineffective while the defense experienced an abrupt let down.

 It is unclear what should be drawn from these two games.  These were both games that the Steelers were fully in control of for 3 quarters.  They were also games that Pittsburgh lost (more than their opponents won) in the final quarter.  There were no glaring problems in the film to explain why the Steelers dropped these two games.

 What this means for Denver:

 1) Pittsburgh is a tough team.They are not terribly consistent late in the game, so there's no way to know whether we're going to face the Steelers team that racked up 2 defensive touchdowns in the 4th quarter of their last game, the Steelers team that allowed 21 4th quarter points to San Diego, or the one one that lost two games in the 4th.

 2) It is imperative that we limit Pittsburgh's scoring in the first 3 quarters. They outscored Chicago and Cincinnati 34-16 in those quarters.  They've outscored all of their opponents 134-67 in the first 3 quarters.

 3) We must hit Roethlisberger hard and often. We have to tackle better than we did against Flacco.  Pittsburgh's line allows Big Ben to be pressured.  If he's not wrapped up on the first hit, he has the ability to break free and make plays.

 4) Our offense has to establish the ability to sustain drives.Our offense has to dictate the pace of the game from the beginning, and must keep the Pittsburgh offense off the field -- especially early in the game.

Week 4 - SD vs PITT --broncofan91  This was done a few weeks ago here.

Week 5 PITTSBURGH 28 DETROIT 20 --KaptainKirk

The Steelers were perfect inside the red zone, coming away with three TD's on three tries. Ben Roethlisberger had three TDs passes through 3 quarters and RB Rashard Mendenhall rushed for 77 yards and a TD in his 2nd straight start for injured Willie Parker (left toe). LB James Harrison had 3 sacks in the game, and forced a fumble. The Steelers finished with 7 sacks and their defense was just good enough to hold off the Lions for a win.

Detroit lost their top offensive threat, WR Calvin Johnson, in the 1st quarter. He left with a thigh injury and did not return.

There were many Steeler fans that made the 4 1/2-hour drive to Ford Field to take advantage of plenty of empty seats. They were loud enough to create havoc for the Detroit O-Lineman, who had trouble hearing the snap count in their own house.
 Roethlisberger finished the game 23 of 30 for 277 yards with TD passes going to Mike Wallace, Hines Ward and TE Heath Miller. He threw a pick to William James who returned it 38 yards for a score in the 2nd quarter.

Daunte Culpepper played in place of No. 1 overall draft pick Matthew Stafford (right knee), and was 23 for 37 for 282 yards with a TD and an INT. Dennis Northcutt was the lone standout for the Lions with 6 receptions for 79 yards and a TD. RB Kevin Smith was held to 53 yards and 2.6 yards per carry.

The Lions led in time of possession (32:35-26:55) and 1st downs (21-18). The two teams had 1 turnover each.

Tyrone Carter filled in for Troy Polamalu, who was Re-habbing a torn MCL.

OFFENSE

The Steelers opened up the game in a 2 TE, 2 WR set with the receivers lined up off the right side and Rashard Mendenhall as the lone setback. Mendenhall went in pre-snap motion, joining the two WR's. Ben Roethlisberger threw a bubble screen to Hines Ward out of this set. On 2nd and 5, they went to a 3 WR set and the pass was incomplete to TE Heath Miller. On 3rd and 5, they went 4 WR's with 3 to the left. Mewelde Moore is their 3rd down RB.

Their 2nd drive started with the 2 TE set, and Roethlisberger threw a quick hitch left, to Santonio Holmes for 14 yards. They go to a 2 Back set and Mendenhall runs up the middle for 27 yards. Former Bronco Marquand Manuel is making a lot of tackles for the Lions, so the Steelers are having success running the ball. After an in-completion, Ben connects with Hines Ward for 20 yards down to the 7, and Mendenhall runs it in for the score.

On the Steelers 3rd possession, they used a mix of formations, a 3 WR set with Mendenhall as the lone setback. On 3rd and 4 they went back to the 4 WR set and  Roethlisberger converts on a pass to Santonio Holmes. Then they come out in a 2 TE, 1 WR, 2 RB formation and Mendenhall runs off LT for another 6 yards. After a couple of swing passes to Mendenhall, Big Ben throws a screen from the Shotgun to Mewelde Moore. Then Detroit finally gets some pressure on Roethlisberger and he throws a pick to Lions nickle back Eric King. The play gets called back because Julian Peterson ran into Ben's knees. Mendenhall runs for 5,
Santonio Holmes catches a pass for 7 yards. Mendenhall runs behind TE Heath Miller and then Ben hits Miller on a TE screen for a 15 yard TD.

The 4th possession started with a fake end around hand off to Mewelde Moore for a yard. Then they ran a 5 Receiver spread set and Ben completed a pass to Santonio Holmes for 20 yards. Rookie WR Mike Wallace gets called for delay of game, for kicking the ball after a long incomplete pass. After a Draw to Mewelde Moore, Roethlisberger throws a pick six to Detroit CB William James for 38 yards.

5th possession. Ball on the Pitt 48. After 2 Mendenhall runs and 3 passes to TE Heath Miller, who was matched up with Rookie Safety Louis Delmas, Ben finds Hines ward in the end Zone for a 17 yard score. The Steelers dominated the clock for 9:32 in the 2nd Quarter. They got the ball back with 1:03 left in the half with the ball on their own 10, but ran out of time.

DEFENSE

On the Lions first play, Daunte Culpepper was introduced to LB James Harrison. Harrison beat up TE Will Heller to collect one of his 3 sacks on the day. The Steelers run a Base 3-4 and like to rush OLB's LaMarr Woodley and Harrison on passing downs using the 5-2 look. Legendary Defensive Coordinator Dick LeBeau like to Zone Blitz, and will bring different people from different positions on each play. Pittsburgh has a defense that tackles very well.

The Steelers maintained good coverage on the Lions receivers for the entire game, so Daunte found it hard to find someone to pass to. He was able to scramble for extra yards, gaining 32 yards one play. Still, the Pittsburgh defense held the Lions to 2 FGs until the 4th Quarter. On 3rd and 1, the Steelers went with 9 in the box, and at one point, the Lions brought Rookie TE Brandon Pettigrew in to account for James Harrison. In the 3rd quarter, Free Safety Ryan Clark gave Pettigrew a "Welcome to the NFL Kid" kidney shot when Brandon tried to catch a pass over the middle.

The Steelers had 10 tackles for loss and 2 for no gain in the game. James Harrison was everywhere and even ran down a TE screen to make the tackle after nearly sacking Culpepper. Daunte was nervous enough to wildly throw up an INT to Ryan Clark, after fumbling a snap at the end of the 3rd Quarter.

The Lions were able to drive from their own 18 for a TD in the 4th. They had the benefit of a Pass Interference penalty and rebounded from a holding penalty before Culpepper hit Dennis Northcutt for a 25 yard TD.

The Lions got the ball back at their 29 yard line with 3:07 left in the game and down by 8. After sideline passes for 18 and 13 yards to Derrick Williams, LaMarr  Woodley took advantage of a blitz and sacked Culpepper. The next play was a Deep Incomplete pass, and on 3rd and 19, the Steelers rushed 6 and Daunte was able to convert for 22 yards. Then 3 consecutive sacks by William Gay, LaMarr Woodley and Lawrence Timmons left the Lions with a 4th and 34 with 1:18 left. Culpepper threw a last chance desperation heave into the End Zone that was batted away by Ike Taylor to end the game.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Daniel Sepulveda, who is Left-footed, had 4 Punts that averaged 50.5 and netted 43.3 yards. The Punt coverage unit allowed an average of 5.75 yards per return, which is above average.    Jeff Reed's Kickoffs made it to the 1, 8, 3, 8, and 5 yard line respectively, and the coverage team gave up an average of 23 yards, which is also pretty good. Kicker Jeff Reed was 4/4 on extra points and didn't attempt a FG. Stefan Logan returned 2 punts for a 7 yard average, and 5 kicks for a 25 yard average, including a nice 47 yard return.

SUMMARY

The Steelers may have found a cure for their running game in Rashard Mendenhall. the RB followed up his sensational performance in the previous week with 77 yards rushing and a TD on only 15 carries. The improvement on the ground has given the Steelers an added dimension for their offense. With the team able to show the threat of the run, Roethlisberger can use play-action passes to Heath Miller, Hines Ward and Mike Wallace over the middle of the field. The Steelers have put up 28 points or more in back-to-back games to this point,and their improved rushing attack played a part in that success.

Week 6- Pittsburgh vs Cleveland

Defense
1st Quarter: Pittsburgh had 3 defensive series in the first quarter. Most of the plays were wildcat runs. The Steelers seemed to struggle when Cribbs ran the ball. The first drive was fairly short. Pittsburgh blitzed on almost every play. The Browns tried to run a conventional offense on the next drive with no success. Things got interesting on the third drive. Pitt really struggled with outside runs. Cleveland ran the ball down to the Pittsburgh 20 beforeCribbs decided to throw the ball near Troy P. The result, INT. A big part of that play was the pressure by Timmons and Woodley.
2nd Quarter: Technically, the Browns had two possessions in this quarter but the second one was a kneel down at the end of the half so it doesn't count. On the other drive, Pittsburgh continued to struggle against outside runs. The Browns tried to get the passing game going but Pittsburgh's pressure was too much.
3rd Quarter: Pittsburgh continued to bring pressure but got burned on the Browns' first pass. Mohamed Massaquoi ran past double coverage and caught a 43 yard strike by Derek Anderson. They scored two plays later. The Steelers defense buckled down forcing a quick 3 and out and a fumble to end the quarter.
4th Quarter: Much of the same in the final quarter. Pittsburgh had 4 defensive series resulting in 0 points and 1 interception by Ryan Clark. The Browns continued to have success with the wildcat but were forced to abandon it due to time constraints. The  Steelers kept blitzing throughout the rest of the game. Something that I noticed was that the Browns' receivers were open a lot near the sidelines. It could have been a more interesting game if Cleveland hadn't dropped like 75 percent of their passes.
Offense
1st Quarter: Pittsburgh had a tough time moving the ball in this quarter. They had trouble protecting Big Ben. He was under constant pressure and had to scramble in order to avoid a sack. The running game didn't help either.Mendenhall had a few nice runs but most of them were stopped for very little gain. On their third drive, the Steelers seemed to be getting into a rhythm but a bad snap was recovered by the Browns.
2nd Quarter: On their first possession of the second quarter, the Steelers scored thanks to two big plays. The first was a 22 yard pass to Heath Miller. The other was a 40 yard pass to Santonio Holmes. These two plays put them at the Browns' nine yard line and led to their first touchdown of the game. Ben hit Miller for the score. The running game continued to struggle while the passing game flourished. Big Ben had all day to pick apart the Browns' defense. The score at the half was 17-7 Pittsburgh.
3rd Quarter: The Steelers came out swinging in the third. Big Ben connected with Hines Ward for a huge gain which helped set up a 1 yard TD run by Mendenhall. Their next three drives ended in disaster. A bad throw turned into an interception on on the first drive. Back-to-Back fumbles by Mendenhall soon followed.
4th Quarter: Not much to write about here. Big Ben was sacked twice but for the most part the o-line was able to keep him upright. Final score, 27-14 Pittsburgh.-broncofan91

Week 7     PITTSBURGH  27 MINNESOTA  17 --Boydy

1/ Steelers Defense:

• Le Beau is the master of disguise. He brings pressure from many places and uses lots of movement to confuse looks.
• Will bring blitzing from secondary as well.
• Steelers D kept them in the game. They pressured Favre a lot, and he eventually broke, with 14 points scored by the D.
• Like to bring the FREE man, so requires that we have a RB in chipping.
• Steelers are candidates for hard count with their aggression, particularly in noisy building like Mile High.
• Secondary, particularly Polamalu, are prone to bite on pump fake. Once again, this due to their aggression.
• Steelers weakness is across the middle, where chinks of 8 and 9 yards picked up easily.
• Corners are a weakness. They bite, and can be thrown on.
• Great coverage and reading on bootleg.
  

What this means for the Broncos:

• We need to keep Steelers at bay with a commitment to run game. You will see us attack off tackle at LE with a weakness there. Cutbacks made some gains and we need to have our O line moving laterally and then attack against the grain.
• Attack corners as they are susceptible to long ball and routes to sidelines.
• Weakness over middle, even with Polamulu, and with Clark out, we need to get BM and DG across middle, and Scheffler down the seem.
• Buckhalter sets up better against the Steelers as we will need a RB that can read the plays and be patient. We only need to sell the running game to stop the Steelers from attacking.
• Steelers will bring it, and will go after Polumbus and Hamilton. We will need DG in there and Moreno and Buck will have to be good in protection, and do a good job of chipping, that may set us up for some gains on the screen game.
  

2/ Steelers Offense:

• Many crossing routes relying on YAC.
• Run game dominant running a lot at off tackle and reliance on cut back lanes.
• Ben pressured a lot and did not go down field much.
• Steelers were dink and dunk and this game, and fairly unimpressive.
• Use of Heath Miller in seem and peeling out on screens and underneath routes.
• O line is susceptible to blitz and disguise and Ben DOES fumble.
• Will set up end around against aggressive defenses, using Holmes and Wallace.
  

• We need to out Steeler the Steelers! Lots of disguise, different looks and lots of variety. Big Ben is suspect against the blitz and will fumble and can be sacked. We need to make sure that WHEN our guys get into the backfield, we don’t run pass him and let him out of the pocket. That’s when he thrives.
• Our LB corps, and WW and even Barrett will have to be on their game for Holmes coming across the middle and Miller in underneath routes and seems.
• Wallace and Ward will threaten deep, so we need  to get pressure on Ben, though I can see Goodman and Bailey taking away the deep play threat.
  

3. Special Teams:

• Logan has some jets and PR team does a good job.
• Jeff Reed is a good kicker and consistent with decent leg (though an awful tackler HAHAHA).
• Kick off coverage only average. Struggle to cover after returner is past initial crease.
• Punting team does solid job.
  

What this means for the Broncos:

• Cover and tackle!
• Eddie Royal needs to hit the hole and go. Harvin picks up cheap yards by hitting the hole early. No more dancing Eddie, use your speed and go!.
  

In conclusion, I have NO idea how the Vikings lost this game. They dominated in all facets of play, and one bad penalty, and 2 turnovers doomed them. The Steelers, to me , are very similar to the Ravens, but with a few more weaknesses in defense, and a an O line that can be dominated.

Here is something interesting to with regards to coaching. You know who flashed on some plays for the Vikings? Karl Paymah. Makes you wonder what good players slipped through Denver because of bad coaching or scheming.

Anyhow, Denver can win this game. A good showing from our O line should enable our offense to take opportunities in the passing game,and I have a feeling we will force some turnovers on D as well.

So Upon Further Review, GO BRONCOS!