First of all, the field was a nightmare...making it an obvious scapegoat, as to why the Dolphins could not run the ball. That said, Willie Parker played well (81 yards rushing) despite having to run through the same swamp-like conditions. Thus, the onus of blame falls directly upon Miami's running backs: Jesse Chatman and Ricky Williams.
And, Yes, I did indeed say Ricky Williams.
The former Heisman winner played for the first time in nearly two years. His vision was still there, and he appeared to be lean and mean; alas, he was not in "football" shape. In turn, after just six carries (for 15 yards), he left the game with a season ending pectoral-muscle tear.
Speaking of ineffective running backs, at one point in the third quarter, Jesse Chatman actually had a negative yards-per-carry average. Then, a few plays later, on his longest play of the game (for 10 yards), Chatman was injured...and did not return.
This just in: Heinz Field was completely water-logged on Monday.
Considering the conditions, as well as the ineptitude of Miami's tailbacks, it should come to no surprise that the Dolphins were completely shut out in this game. In fact, Miami only reached Pittsburgh's twenty yard line once in the entire game. Conversely, what is indeed surprising is the fact that the Steelers were held scoreless until the final seventeen seconds of the game.
And, Yes, I said the "final seventeen seconds."
The Steelers started off the game great: they marched down the field and appeared ready to score. Then, Joey Porter (now with the Dolphins) made a nice play on the ball, and intercepted a Roethlisberger pass. From that point on, neither team could do much of anything, due to the fact that the field conditions became increasingly worse: the more plays run, the muckier the field became.
Speaking of field conditions, Heinz Field looked more like a pool of quicksand than a grass field. And, in case I forgot to mention it: Ricky Williams returned to the NFL.
As I was saying, it did not surprise me that the Dolphins could not score on the Steelers: they were starting a rookie quarterback, a rookie wide receiver, and a running back who had been out of football for almost two years (Ricky Williams...in case you missed it). Conversely, the Steelers are vying for the second seed in the AFC, and should have been able to score more than one lousy field goal. Then again, I doubt that any team (not even the Colts or Patriots) could have managed much offense while playing in that quagmire.
In other words, little (if anything) can be derived from this game. Pittsburgh's offense looked mediocre...but, that was largely due to the field conditions (which were poor...in case you did not know that already). Similarly, Pittsburgh's defense looked stout...but, a good portion of that was due to the fact that Ricky Williams (who, by the way, returned to the NFL) had not played football in two years. In summation, this game can be boiled down to three simple words: muddy Ricky Williams.
