OPINION —
BOTH BYRON Leftwich and Mike Tomlin are to blame for the Steelers’ 13-10 loss to Baltimore Sunday evening.
That’s right, I went there.
Both Tomlin and his quarterback share equal blame for the Steelers’ downfall.
Yes, the head coach and the quarterback unfairly shoulder most of the blame when their team loses, but I don’t think I’m being unfair when I point the finger at them for Sunday’s loss to the Ratbirds.
No one knows his body better than Leftwich and there’s no way he didn’t know he had injured ribs.
Granted, I’ve never even had bruised ribs, but people I know that have have told me it hurts to even breath let alone throw a football – or even hand it off.
Yet, Leftwich tried to both for nearly 60 minutes Sunday night.
I give him all the credit in the world for trying to tough it out and play through incredible pain.
While I couldn’t see his facial expressions while standing on the sidelines Sunday night, I could see it in his throws. All week, we heard about how strong his arm was.
It was clear for most of the night – I think he was hurt when he fell into the endzone on the Steelers’ opening drive – that something was wrong.
There was no strength is his arm and more importantly, there was no accuracy to his throws.
He hit a Raven in the back right between the numbers. He short hopped a throw to a wide open Mike Wallace, couldn’t get the ball to Rashard Mendenhall on a screen and couldn’t make a 45-yard throw to an equally wide open David Gilreath.
All signs, to me, that something wasn’t right with Leftwich.
Why didn’t Tomlin, his assistant coaches or the team’s medical personnel notice any of these telltale signs?
Driving home from the game, Pittsburgh-area sports talk shows were all atwitter with Steelers fans’ talking about a potential Leftwich injury.
Heck, people watching at home have commented to me about Al Michaels and Chris Collinsworth continued comments on something not being right with Leftwich.
Yet, the men in charge of the on-field product didn’t do a darn thing.
This is where Tomlin receives blame.
I understand he is in charge of all facets of the game, but how do you not notice something is physically wrong with your quarterback.
Maybe Tomlin did notice something amiss, quizzed Leftwich on how he was feeling and was told everything was OK, but if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it’s a duck.
Same thing with injured players.
If he acts like he’s injured, then he probably is.
There’s nothing wrong with being safe rather than sorry by forcing Leftwich to seek medical attention.
Which is exactly what the Steelers were feeling in the aftermath of their loss to the hated – and I use that word lightly after watching Ryan Clark, Ike Taylor and Troy Polamalu clown around with Baltimore’s Ed Reed during an injury time out Sunday night.
But that’s a rant for another day – in about two weeks – and back to Leftwich’s injury.
When Ben Roethlisberger suffered a similar injury a week ago against Kansas City, they rushed him off the field and into the lockerroom for X-rays.
Why didn’t they do the same with Leftwich?
OK, I get it. It appears Leftwich’s injury wasn’t as serious – or painful – as Roethlisberger’s, but the team should have forced Leftwich to yield to an x-ray or two during halftime just to be safe.
Had they done so, they likely would’ve seen the cracks in Leftwich’s ribs and made the appropriate changes to the line-up – and perhaps saved him from injuring the ribs further.
I also get it that maybe Leftwich didn’t want to come out of the game and downplayed the injury, but the team needed to enforce treatment for his own good.
We’ve all done that with our own kids on however many occasions through the years using the phrase “It’s better to be safe than sorry.”
Because the Tomlin and Co. couldn’t follow that time honored ideology, the Steelers will play the Browns Sunday with Charlie Batch at quarterback – many people think he’s better suited to run Todd Haley’s offense than Leftwich.
Let’s hope the Steelers – and their legions of fans across the country – won’t be sorry then as well.
Agree, Disagree or just want to comment contact Corey at gcsportsguy@yahoo.com.
Sports
Related Photos
-
Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin discusses strategy with injured quarterback Ben Roethlisberger before Sunday's loss against the Baltimore Ravens. Corey J. Corbin/Allied News
Discussion
STAIRWAY TO 7: Tomlin should have pulled his injured QB
- Sports
-
-
HIGH SCHOOL SPRING SPORTS ROUNDUP: County track set today at Hickory
The annual Mercer County Track & Field Invitational will be held at Hickory High’s Hornet Stadium today, beginning at 9 a.m.
Competing are all Mercer County teams, Class AAA and AA, as well as Slippery Rock. The meet serves as a warm-up to the District 10 championships set next week at Harbor Creek High. -
RANDOM THOUGHTS: Competitive cheerleading tough for even manly men
WHEN I THINK OF MYSELF, I think I’m one of the more manly men you’ll find.
I definitely don’t mind eating all kinds of meat and potatoes. I love watching sports — and participating in them when I can.
I do many other things that ‘real’ men do that aren’t fit for print and proper readers.
What I don’t do is wear skinny jeans or other tight-fitting clothes. I don’t wear jewelry nor do I wear colors that lean more to the femine side than the masculine side. -
HIGH SCHOOL SPRING SPORTS ROUNDUP: Mercer 9 drops thriller to KC
It was a game both teams were trying to win — it just seemed as though neither wanted to — as Kennedy Catholic High baseball team met Mercer Friday afternoon in an inter-region District 10 affair.
The teams traded late leads before, ultimately, Scott Moore’s fielder’s choice RBI-grounder scored pinch-runner Ethan Feldmiller with the game-winner, as KC captured an 11-10 conquest. -
NCAA Football: Rock 6-1 after 17-3 win over Cal U
Slippery Rock University rode a length-of-the-field scoring drive by its offense and a goal-line stand by its No. 1-ranked defense late in the first half of action Saturday to a 17-3 win over 14th-ranked visiting California (Pa.).
-
NFL: Steelers top Jags as Mendenhall makes return
Mike Tomlin isn’t ready to say the Pittsburgh Steelers are back. Not after watching his team sleepwalk through the second half against Jacksonville on Sunday.
-
IndyCar Racing: Crash takes Wheldon’s life
Every race car driver heads onto the track understanding this race could be the last and hoping it won’t be. On Sunday, IndyCar drivers got a harsh reminder when the worst happened to one of their own.
-
NHL: Sabres beat Penguins 3-2
The Buffalo Sabres have had trouble with the Pittsburgh Penguins whether Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin play or not.
-
NHL Quick glance: Montreal at Pittsburgh
A breakdown of the National Hockey League game Thursday night between the Pittsburgh Penguins and visiting Montreal Canadiens.
-
High School Highlights: Oct. 19, 2011
A look at the last few days in local high school fall sports action.
-
Leading Off: Oct. 19, 2011
News and notes from the local, regional and national sports scene.
- More Sports Headlines
-
Okla. City Mayor: Up to 13K Homes Hit by Tornado
Raw: Aftermath of Deadly Attack in London
Paperless Scanner, Vision of the Future
Florida FBI Shooting Has Boston Bombing Links
Garcetti Elected Los Angeles Mayor Over Greuel
Raw: New Video of Deadly Oklahoma Tornado
IRS Official Pleads 5th Amendment
Lawyer: Feds Investigating Susan Powell Case
Former Rep. Weiner Running for New York Mayor
Jodi Arias: Death Penalty Would Cause More Pain
Police Ram House to End Hostage Standoff
Families Begin Returning to Their Homes in Moore
Raw: Aerial View of Moore Tornado Damage
Looking for Love? Take the Prague Metro
First Person: Baby Falcons on a New York Bridge
Crews Race to Find Survivors of Okla. Twister
Oklahoma: Images of Devastation, Reunion
Raw: Students Clash With Police in Chile
Protests Outside Cincinnati IRS Office
New Xbox One Entertainment Console Unveiled
