Normally I would never consider this but putting aside my homer hat for a moment...the Ravens got it right with youth policy last season. Frankly without Cundiff and Evans epic choke that youth would have carried Ravens to the SB. Tight ends, Cb, Wr and dline.

Ravens thrust youth into the limelight and for most part it worked. I am usually a more conservative type when it comes to pushing the "hero" (Anthony Smith anyone?) youth on the bench but to me this is the time.

On O Steelers have the potential to have wow speed across the board, to the point they can get mismatches on most downs. Wallace, AB, Sanders, Rainey and Saunders could wreak havoc. Ben might finally get an athletic oline to pass pro naturally and with the "speed" to routinely make the second level with results.

Yes I realize a bunch of ifs but those ifs are better sorted now so late Nov/Dec a team jells and takes off. In case folks didnt notice homefield is nice but frankly far more important is being hot at the right time. Green Bay in 2010, Giants 2007 & 2011, Steeler 2005. All wild cards all with one thing in common they got hot and rolled with young players playing a pivotal role.

Ravens I believe saw this and reacted appropriately. They saw a chance to mold a team and infuse it with youth. It worked damn well.

On Steeler D almost by default youth will happen. Curtis Brown, Tez, Heyward, Sly, Ivy (watch for him), Spence, Ta'amu, Mcclendon and Worilds (I know he gets stick but if projected out for full season he would have had 7 to 8 sacks, and 40 pressures not exactly chopped liver). Wildcard: Carter.

Will there be growing pains? Yes definitely. It cost Ravens games. In Charger game 2 youngs CBs: Smith & Williams got torched repeatedly but in the long run it served them well. Smith by all accounts has improved vastly and Williams I am not enamoured by but as an UDFA he is more than adequate as #3.

It also allowed players to flourish. We are going to hate the names Mcphee and Webb for a long time. Those 2 are flat out studs.

I firmly believe Steelers can "steal" that blueprint and make this team fast, dynamic and successful.

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rb13ksYO0s

RIP MCA

*looks around, whistling innocently*

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better hope so, because if we want to like it or not, they were the better football team last year. And stayed much healthier. If not for their 2 letdowns the weeks following their Steeler wins where they lost to Seatte and Tennessee, they run away with the division. Both were pretty big mental let downs.

they had answers for everything we did last year

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Colbert on the #Steelers RB situation: "Where we were in running game last year was indicative in the talent at the position.''

Aye that they did. However, without Suggs many of those answers have now become major dilemmas.

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rb13ksYO0s

RIP MCA

the whole point of your thread is to say they got younger and better

just sayin, don't get caught speeding here

Suggs is good, but they other talented players as well

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Colbert on the #Steelers RB situation: "Where we were in running game last year was indicative in the talent at the position.''

Caught speeding? Yes I should have added Suggs facilitated players like Mcphee, Webb and Smith to succeed on D fair cop. I believe a healthy Woodley/Deebo can do much the same for Tez, Brown and others.

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rb13ksYO0s

RIP MCA

We don't have to steal that blueprint, it's our blueprint. They finally decided, hey, that's a good idea used it to improve themselves last year. One year ahead of when we were going to do it.

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The only things that matter to me are: Wins, Losses, Rings - FC

Since the start of the 2008 season, the Steelers percentage of designed rush plays has declined from a high of 46.4 percent of their plays in 2010 to 39.6 last season. - Chris Mortensen

Not so worried about the Ravens come playoffs, tho think we will likely split with them and hopefully don't lose too many games, and the division letting our relatively young, new players gel.

Don't know what that means, but I feel ya dog.

Ravens got old slow & done, with their version of TP out with a torn achilles. Steelers have rid themselves of deadwood,& gradually replaced them with guys they've been grooming for a few years. Funny how RayRay never gets old. I'd like to finish this up with something thought provoking, but I just had a chocoholic moment with booze & the crystalliest of green.

I will put money on Steelers owning Balt this year. Getting them after the mid point only lets the OL get gelling. I think we dominate them & steamroll everyone else after the kinks get worked out. Week 5, im thinking....#7 coming this year.

Again, I'm frothing @ the mouth for this season.

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i agree, i believe we own baltimore this year, even if suggs comes back he will be half the player he was coming off an achilles injury

hopefully this year the refs don't give the rats so many bogus pass interference penalties, seemed last year harbaugh would just bitch till they gave him the penalty, happened to us big time in second game, arizona got screwed royally by the refs and had baltimore beat, same goes for san fran, 9ers were doin well till a couple of really bad calls one which took away a td from them seemed to just demoralize them

baltimore should have never made it to the AFCCG last year, texans outplayed them drastically, if yates had not completely shit the bed it may have been the texans in the SB last year, they had a good team