Running Diary: Steelers vs. Redskins

8:29 Welcome to the Steelers vs. Redskins running diary. Tonight's official beer is Breckenbridge Oatmeal Stout. This is an excellent beer. If you like oatmeal stouts then you can not go wrong with this one. As a preveiw to the game, I am going to say that Dick LeBeau (future hall of famer) and his defense will be the game-changing factor tonight and I am predicting a 20-16 win for the Steelers. I am also going to call Ben will take 4 sacks and throw the ball away for 1 INT. Anything more than this will mean the Steelers lose.

8:33 Apparently tomorrow is election day... kind of snuck right up on me. I have been watching ESPN for exactly 30 minutes and I am ready to hit the mute button. I will refrain from doing so for you my esteemed readers... err... reader. To answer Hank William Jr., I am ready for some football. I am ready, ok ... just please stop singing and making computerized helmets fly around on my TV.

8:34 Did you know that if the Redskins win then incumbent party loses ... yeah.

8:41 Onside kick by the Steelers to start the game... WTF? Why do you do that? Why do you need to do that? Needless to say this fired up the stadium and the Steelers' gamble did not pay off.

8:43 That gamble just cost the Steelers three points ... stupid. Redskins 3, Steelers 0. The only thing that is keeping me happy is the Redskins Cheerbabes ... best in the league. Thank you, Dan Snyder. If I were him I would personally select each cheerbabe for the team. It's good to be the owner.

8:47 Fast Willie Parker (official name) is starting tonight. If you are Mewelde Moore aren't you thinking, "Hey, I was carrying the load the last four weeks, why you starting Willie?" Of course, Ben gives up his first INT tonight off a defection ... shit. The 12 beers I have on ice will not be enough tonight. If this defense has to play the entire game on both a short field and against the Redskins O-line, they will be toast come the 4th quarter. The offense cannot continue to shit the bed and hope the defense can carry this team. It will not work.

8:51 Another short field ... another three-and-out by the Redskins and another three points on the board. 6-0, Skins ...

8:53 A crazed Redskin fan has a sign that reads, "Cooley 4 Prez." I can back that up ... although I don't think we should elect a president that posts pictures of his junk on the internet. Just saying.

8:59 Ben takes his first sack ... this is going to be ugly. And now ESPN is forcing me to listen to that goddamn "Saved by Zero" commercial by Toyota. I hate that song so much I am ready to light my wife's Toyota Corolla on fire ... how about some market research? If your ad is so annoying that you wish for the company's marketing team to burn in hell, then it is probably not effective.

9:07 Next week on MNF is the Cardinals at 49ers ... the Cardinals are up by three games in the NFC west ... they can still blow it, right? They will still blow it, right? ... they are the buzzsaw--they have to blow it. I think they will blow it.

9:09 Beer number three ... for me to get through Boomer interviewing McCain and Obama, I will probably need to be totally bombed. If the second half of this post really sucks, blame him. He is forcing me to drink. Santonio Holmes dropped another pass like a bag of weed out a car window ... this offense is pathetic. Pittsburgh's SpEd teams still look horrid. There are three parts to a football team ... defense, offense and special teams (or in the case of the Steelers--SpEd teams). The Steelers right now stink in two of those three parts.

9:15 Another short field from the Skins ... beer number four (thank you, Mrs. Bearcat).

9:21 Tony and Jaws are really pouring it on with Zorn ... they are practically blowing him. Tony asks Jaws if while he was QB in Philly, they threw bags at him during practice ... Jaws chuckles and says no ... right answer was that the fans "threw beer bottles at me on Sunday."

9:30 During this year's fantasy football draft, contributing editors of Daddy's Sugar Ball--Cap, Max Power and I discussed the drafting of Derek Anderson for a starting QB. I said at that time that Brady Quinn would start in week 10. I nailed that one. By the way ... you can't see that game because it will be shown on the NFL network this Thursday. Thanks NFL!

9:40 When you absolutely, positively, need a first down right now ... Hines Ward. The defense needed that third down conversion more than the offense needed it. The offense needs to work it down the field and give the defense a breath. Follow this by Large Benjamin taking a sack on the next third down ... bring out the kicking team for three ... 6-3, Skins.

9:50 This defense looks great ... the defense has held the Skins to 0-7 on third downs ... if the offense can get in gear, the Steelers can win this game. If they can't then the defense might be too tired by the fourth quarter to hold back a pretty good Skins offense ...

9:54 The Steelers long snapper was moving furniture this time last week ... are you kidding?

9:57 Steelers block the punt ... sweet! We need seven points on this one and what does Ben do on first down ... he takes a sack. Two-minute warning ...which means only two minutes until I have to put up with Chris Berman interviewing Obama and McCain ... Mrs. Bearcat has delivered beer number six. They are going down smooth. Check back on Daddy's Sugar Ball later for a review of Breckenbridge Oatmeal Stout. Sack on first down and now a hold on second ... how about if Mike Tomlin kills a man during halftime ...that might clear some heads.

10:03 Once again Hines Ward getting the ball to convert on third down. First and goal on the half yard line. I think this is where you bring back Mewelde Moore to drive it up the gut. Of course Tomlin stays with Parker. You must run the football here. QB sneak and the Steeler are up 10-6.

10:12 I am going to refrain from posting about the halftime interviews ... I am spent on this election. If you care, follow my election night Running Diary tomorrow on my politics blog, Pink Elephants on Parade.

10:24 Leftwich (DC native) to start the third quarter ... this should be interesting. If you are a Steeler fan, interesting is not good.

10:27 Nate Washington with a 50-yard catch ... I am officially changing his name to Nate "Big Play" Washington because that is all he does ... he makes big plays.

10:31 Parker touchdown ... 16-6 after the missed extra point. How do you miss that? Steelers SpEd teams never fail to disappoint. Beer number seven; best slow down or this post might end early.

10:43 On that series the Skins defense penetrated the Steeler offensive line like they were a drunk girl on prom night. U-G-L-Y ... but the Steelers are up by 10 with the best defense in the NFL ... wow, just saw a commerical for a new Mortal Kombat game ... Mortal Combat vs. DC Comic Universe. I wish I was making that up. Mike Tirico informed us for the 2,983 time tonight that Jim Zorn calls his own plays. Thanks ... in other news, Ryan Fitzpatrick played at Harvard, Farve is a gunslinger, when the Steelers play the Ravens it is a two chin-strap game, Jerome Bettis is from Detroit and water is wet.

10:50 Interception ... Steelers get the ball with 3:41 left in the third. Zorn calls his own play and challenges the ruling on the field that the Steelers have intercepted the ball. Zorn called that himself ... even though he has never been a coordinator on any level.

11:08 Holmes touchdown ... 23-6 ... wow. This game is over. If the trends mean anything, then McCain is picked according to the history of Redskins victories and losses picking Presidents.

11:27 This game is dragging on way too late at this point. The number of timeouts and the length makes these games impossible to watch. If the Steelers were not on tonight, I would be in bed already. Yeah I am getting old ... it sucks. Skins blow it on fourth-and-goal.

11:37 Seven sacks by the Steelers' defense. That is impressive. Jim Zorn got his jock handed to him by future hall-of-famer Dick LeBeau.

11:50 Game over. Steelers looked great in the second half. If you enjoyed this post feel free to check out my politics site ... Pink Elephants On Parade ... tomorrow will be a election day running diary.

Thanks for coming and suckling Daddy's Sugar Ball.

Bearcat