[kevkrom]

Miami -- 0 and 1. Pittsburgh -- 1 and 0.

That is the only stat that counts, of course.

But looking at the raw numbers, despite what the fishophiles on the thread want to believe, the only reasons that Miami stayed in this game as long as they did were their punt returns and the Steelers' fumble on the goal line.

Miami couldn't run. On 42 passing plays (by my count -- 37 passes, 3 sacks, 2 scrambles) they only had 18 completions, and Culpepper was under pressure almost every time he threw. With a non-existent running game, that isn't going to win any ball games.

On Pittsburgh's side, it took a while for Parker to get going, but once the Miami defense started wearing down, he became more and more effective. Batch was spotty, but aside from the fumble, the only dangerous mistake he really made was one he got away with -- throwing to Wilson in double-coverage in the end zone.

[xpertskir]

Willie Parker looked like a studd. He is a completely different back this year. You can see his vision, cut backs, patience, and strength have improved tremendously and he is more concerned with picking up the 3 and 4 hard yards up the middle than the big play outside. As a Steeler fan it excited me greatly to see how much more mature and well rounded he is. At the end of last year I was afraid because I didn't think he could be THE guy, but after watching him play last night he changed my mind.

[beyond the sea]

Good summary of the game.

I'm from Pittsburgh (60 years). I thought the Steelers could not tackle at all, and had way too much trouble with the surface for some reason.

But, did it when they had to. I like that!