Battle of the Titans Tonight?

[toobfreak]

Or maybe better put as a battle of the Legends? Tonight's Thursday Night Football will pair off a meeting of 41 year old Aaron Rogers on the Pittsburgh Steelers against 40 year old Joe Flacco who was just traded to Cincinnati from Cleveland. This will be only the second oldest meeting of 2 QBs ever! The only QBs to ever meet older than these two were Brady and Brees when they played each other in 2020.

Cincinnati has been having a terrible year so far but now they have Flacco and are playing at home, plus, somehow, Pittsburgh always somehow manages to lose every TNF.

I actually follow the Steelers and I have to say that I'm pleasantly surprised by Rogers. He's a better QB than they have had, better than Roethlisberger, last week he threw down the field to his left while running hard to his right---- and hit his man. All I can say is that if Rogers is a worn-out old has-been now, he must have been killer in his youth.

If Cincinnati wins this game, they pull their season out of a nosedive, but one which still likely won't go very far.

If Pittsburgh wins this game, not only do they break a horrible trend of losing Thursday games, but their record becomes 5-1, 2nd/3rd best in the NFL, and practically cements their dominance in winning their division going into the Playoffs before the season has hardly begun.

 

[Blaster]

This should be an interesting game.

 

[Unkotare]

Battle of the Titanium Hip Replacements.

 

[XponentialChaos]

 

[1srelluc]

I'll watch at least the first half of it.

 

[Blaster]

Rodgers is probably the GOAT.

 

[toobfreak]

Rodgers is probably the GOAT.

Oddly, over the years, I never saw him playing on Green Bay that really caught my attention, but then, I never saw Green Bay much. And Green Bay stats or Super Bowl wins was never anything super special. Green Bay was just one of many teams generally recognized as consistently good.

I just hope his body hold up to tackles and sacks. Honestly, since 2019, the Steelers have had as QB Roesthilisberger, Kenny Pickett, Mason Rudolph, Devlin Hodges, Mitch Trubisky, Russell Wilson, Justin Fields, and now Rogers, and Rogers is better than any of them.

 

[bluzman61]

Rodgers is probably the GOAT.

That would be Tom Brady, in my humble opinion.

 

[MarathonMike]

Best night game of the year IMO! Both 40 year olds played great and Flacco who's only been with the Bengals for 10 days carved up the Steelers Defense like a Thanksgiving Turkey. Rodgers had 4 TD passes and LOST! Great game.

 

[toobfreak]

Best night game of the year IMO!

Well, it did go back and forth in the 2nd half and end on a final second nail-biter, but no one expected the highest paid defense in the NFL to allow the worst rushing offense in the league to run for 4X their usual amount and DOUBLE their next best game!

OK, so it was the Steeler's second football game in four days, but last Sunday's game was a pretty easy home game after a bye week, and Cincinnati is a short drive from Pittsburgh. Yet the wheels came off the Steelers right away, they played an unduly conservative offense, utterly failed to stop the run and the pass, Cincinnati practically moved down the field at will, and they threw to the same guy all night (Chase) because there was almost nothing the Steelers did to slow it down.

And what was with that gadget play--- they N E V E R run a flea-flicker, so why did they pull one out today, then they fudged it up. After that, Rodgers started throwing interceptions and stuff and things pretty much unraveled.

The Steelers might make it to a Wildcard game, then lose, but they might end up not even winning the Division. I'm sure Tomlin had written off this Cinci game thinking it was in the bag until Cleveland threw a wrench in the gears with Joe Flacco, and the game the Steelers are really focused on is Green Bay and Rodgers playing the Packers perhaps for the last time in 10 days after another mini-bye.

Shame. If the Steelers were truly a caliber team on the rise going places this year, they wouldn't have choked on a team like the Bengals.

 

[22lcidw]

Well, it did go back and forth in the 2nd half and end on a final second nail-biter, but no one expected the highest paid defense in the NFL to allow the worst rushing offense in the league to run for 4X their usual amount and DOUBLE their next best game!

OK, so it was the Steeler's second football game in four days, but last Sunday's game was a pretty easy home game after a bye week, and Cincinnati is a short drive from Pittsburgh. Yet the wheels came off the Steelers right away, they played an unduly conservative offense, utterly failed to stop the run and the pass, Cincinnati practically moved down the field at will, and they threw to the same guy all night (Chase) because there was almost nothing the Steelers did to slow it down.

And what was with that gadget play--- they N E V E R run a flea-flicker, so why did they pull one out today, then they fudged it up. After that, Rodgers started throwing interceptions and stuff and things pretty much unraveled.

The Steelers might make it to a Wildcard game, then lose, but they might end up not even winning the Division. I'm sure Tomlin had written off this Cinci game thinking it was in the bag until Cleveland threw a wrench in the gears with Joe Flacco, and the game the Steelers are really focused on is Green Bay and Rodgers playing the Packers perhaps for the last time in 10 days after another mini-bye.

Shame. If the Steelers were truly a caliber team on the rise going places this year, they wouldn't have choked on a team like the Bengals.

They are rolling the dice with Rodgers. The Steelers need to be in position to choose a Quarterback in the draft that has a higher percentage of being top notch. With their history, even with great offenses, a grinder eating up time would do them well.

 

[toobfreak]

They are rolling the dice with Rodgers. The Steelers need to be in position to choose a Quarterback in the draft that has a higher percentage of being top notch. With their history, even with great offenses, a grinder eating up time would do them well.

Well, as the story goes, they only drafted Rodgers for this one final year because there were no good upcoming new QBs graduating, but supposedly, there will be good QBs to pick from next year, so I assume they will be picking one as their next franchise QB and Rodgers I expect will be retiring.

 

[Blaster]

That would be Tom Brady, in my humble opinion.

I'd rank Brady 2nd best NFL QB of all time.

 

[MarathonMike]

Well, it did go back and forth in the 2nd half and end on a final second nail-biter, but no one expected the highest paid defense in the NFL to allow the worst rushing offense in the league to run for 4X their usual amount and DOUBLE their next best game!

OK, so it was the Steeler's second football game in four days, but last Sunday's game was a pretty easy home game after a bye week, and Cincinnati is a short drive from Pittsburgh. Yet the wheels came off the Steelers right away, they played an unduly conservative offense, utterly failed to stop the run and the pass, Cincinnati practically moved down the field at will, and they threw to the same guy all night (Chase) because there was almost nothing the Steelers did to slow it down.

And what was with that gadget play--- they N E V E R run a flea-flicker, so why did they pull one out today, then they fudged it up. After that, Rodgers started throwing interceptions and stuff and things pretty much unraveled.

The Steelers might make it to a Wildcard game, then lose, but they might end up not even winning the Division. I'm sure Tomlin had written off this Cinci game thinking it was in the bag until Cleveland threw a wrench in the gears with Joe Flacco, and the game the Steelers are really focused on is Green Bay and Rodgers playing the Packers perhaps for the last time in 10 days after another mini-bye.

Shame. If the Steelers were truly a caliber team on the rise going places this year, they wouldn't have choked on a team like the Bengals.

I was amazed the Steelers didn't adjust their coverage on the number one receiver in the NFL. Flacco and Chase looked like they were playing catch the back yard.

 

[Blaster]

I was amazed the Steelers didn't adjust their coverage on the number one receiver in the NFL. Flacco and Chase looked like they were playing catch the back yard.

Flacco still has a great throwing arm at 40 years old. The guy just amazes me.

 

[leftwinger]

If a QB can just stand in a clean pocket all game and throw balls it is not that hard in the new NFL. DB can't really play defense past 5 yards.

FlukO can't move well. You got to pressure him. What happened to PITT blitz? Or D-line? It was a Turkey shoot for a tall Statue QB.

 

[leftwinger]

It was an Unpredictable game going in. I had no idea if 4-1 PITT would win 34-0, 10-9, 24-21 in OT?

Almost a gambling fix? Zero or token defense by PITT? CIN has the best O-line in the history of football?

Is Tomlin over-rated? Where were the changes? No safety blitz? To allow to be picked apart all night?

 

[Unkotare]

...

Is Tomlin over-rated? ...

Always has been.

 

[leftwinger]

FlukO goes from garbage at CLEVE (could not do crap), looking like a 41 yr old trying to run with 20 yr old, to "better than Joe Burrow" in one game? Wow!

Yes yes. I saw FlukO lucky run thru open space. That was "nice" for PITT to leave it open.

Not sure I expect this to continue.

 

[leftwinger]

Amazon TV does pretty good. Late in the game it showed CIN players (coaches?) joking and happy the last two minutes like a FG was a "done deal". Seems a bit odd and can jinx your chances? Weve seen misses, bad snaps, penalties, doing, block, laces....all sorts of stuff.

Most teams keep their game face until it's settled (or they shoild). Looks out of control at CIN?