Dunlap: 5 Things To Watch In Steelers Opener
Finally all the talk will cease. OK, maybe all the talk won't cease, but at least the games for the Pittsburgh Steelers will get underway when they visit New England to clash with the Patriots on Thursday night.
It's about time.
I don't know about anyone else, but the chatter about football has grown tiresome and, to me at least, it is time for, well, football.
When the Steelers take on the reigning Super Bowl champions, here are a handful of things to make sure to pay special attention to:
+ The Safety Dance: Shamarko or Will Allen?
Has Shamarko Thomas --- who waited and waited and waited some more --- behind Troy Polamalu to get his chance to play shown you anything in the preseason that gives you any confidence in him at the strong safety position? If you say, "yes" you are in small company. To me, and I understand how one can easily overvalue preseason games, but he played his way off the field in such action. That said, it will be interesting to see, maybe even by default, how many snaps Will Allen gets at the position and if he slides his way into starting there somehow.
To me, Allen might not have the same ability as Thomas to make the splash play, but he definitely doesn't have the same propensity for the big screw-up. I'd go with Allen on a majority of the snaps if I were defensive coordinator Keith Butler.
+ Gronk factor
Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski can, will and has single-handedly changed football games with his mixture of size and speed at the tight end position. With the Steelers coming in having enormous question marks on defense, this game is lining up as one where Gronkowski could absolutely annihilate the black-and-gold defense.
Do I want that to be the case? No. Is that the stark reality? Yes.
If Pats quarterback Tom Brady starts to hit Gronk with some throws in succession, and a rhythm begins to grow with that pitch-and-catch combination, the Steelers will be in a world of hurt. That said, the lone way the Steelers can stop Gronkowski is to pay an enormous amount of attention to him and hope to God no one else hurts them.
+ DHB! DHB! DHB!
With Martavis Bryant and Le'Veon bell both suspended (boneheadedness) and myriad attention probably being paid to all-everything receiver Antonio Brown, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger must rely on weaponry that he normally doesn't find in his arsenal.
Here, I will say it: Darrius Heyward-Bey has a chance to really play a huge role in this football game.
Certainly he has been a disappointment to this point in his career, but there is zero question he can flat-out fly. Look for him to try to take the lid off the shaky Patriots defense. Also, DHB has a fixed amount of time (four games) where he knows he could be a decent factor in the offense and doesn't necessarily have to fight for a job --- in my estimation that could help him become relaxed, comfortable and more confident in his abilities.
+ Cortez the Stiller
Is Cortez Allen any better than last season? We will quickly find out. In short, he needs to be or this team has zero chance against the Patriots and Cortez the Stiller has zero chance of keeping his job for long.
Indeed Tom Brady and his band of Merry Deflators have seen the tapes (they are good at seeing tapes) from last season when Cortez was flat-out awful. Look for them to test him early and see if Allen has improved at all and mustered any sort of confidence.
Who knows if Keith Butler will make a move to Antwon Blake or Brandon Boykin at any point, but one fact remains: Cortez Allen is a liability until he proves otherwise.
+ Stay to within about 10
This game has the possibility of becoming a track meet, with both offenses (even with the Steelers shorthanded) more than able to score. That said, with the suspensions to Bell and Bryant --- and the injury to Maurkice Pouncey --- it would be in the best interest of the Steelers to not get too far behind and have to play catch-up.
In my eyes, if the Steelers do have a chance in this game, they must keep it close throughout as a frantic, come-from-behind victory simply seems out of the realm of possibility in this one. Because of all of that, if the Patriots' lead gets to more than 10 points at any time in this game, you can start crying in your IC Light.
Colin Dunlap is a featured columnist at CBSPittsburgh.com. He can also be heard weekdays from 5:40 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Sports Radio 93-7 "The Fan." You can e-mail him at colin.dunlap@cbsradio.com. Check out his bio here.
