Don Quixote in Steeltown

Last week's collapse in San Francisco was hard to take. Our fiery young defense kept us in the game, despite our pass rush's almost total inability to pressure Alex Smith. Good run defense and pass coverage bought time for our offense, which squandered the first half, unable to move the ball on the ground or through the air. The O-Line continues to manifest our worst fears. Tarvaris Jackson struggled throughout the first two quarters, but settled down and made some plays after halftime.

Unfortunately, our special teams were a liability all game. The return teams repeatedly stymied our offense with poor field position. After several poor returns by Leon Washington suggested that returning a kickoff from your own end zone is a bad idea in 2011, Ted Ginn proved it could pay off handsomely, scorching an injury-depleted Seattle kickoff coverage unit. Minutes later, Ginn incinerated our punt team for another touchdown.

Winning today in Pittsburgh is about as probable as hitting the Powerball jackpot. The Ravens destroyed the Steelers in Baltimore last week, providing extra motivation for our opponents in their home opener. We shall be the scapegoats for what Pittsburgh endured last week.

It is probably best to think of this as an exhibition contest. As a team, our players need to show that they won't quit, even against nigh-impossible competition in a hostile environment.

For our defense, today is an opportunity for our defense to build on its successes from last week, and to try something new, like pressuring, hitting and sacking the opposing passer.

If our special teams don't lose the game for us, that would be progress.

Moreover, the contest gives our starting offensive line their first chance to work together since the first preseason game, assuming Robert Gallery returns from injury as planned, and assuming that James Carpenter plays well enough to keep Breno Giacomini on the bench. Any success running the ball or protecting the passer would be welcome.

However, our offensive game plans remain suspect. Our first-half struggles in San Francisco owed as much to predictable playcalling as they did to poor execution on the field. One thing hasn't changed since last year: Our O-Line can't manhandle anyone. If the opposing defense knows we want to run the ball, they will shut us down every time. Thus, you can't forfeit every first down by handing the ball to Marshawn Lynch and running between the tackles.

Finally:

If we ditched Hasselbeck and brought in Tarvaris Jackson for his mobility, why are we still running an offense largely predicated on the notion of a stationary pocket passer? Where are the frequent rollouts, sprintouts and quarterback draws calculated to compensate for poor pass protection and to encourage defenses to back off on the blitz?