Hope springs eternal
Disappointment is warranted and ok. A level of sadness is warranted and ok. A smaller level of frustration is warranted and ok. These feelings are ok to feel and process related to the Pittsburgh Steelers 2024-2025 campaign. Anger, hatred, vitriol for coaches, players, owners, and general managers are not. I went to bed last night a Steelers fan. I woke up this morning a Steelers fan. I am disappointed with how the team played the final 5 games, including the loss in the Wild Card round of the playoffs to Baltimore. I was sad to see what will most likely be Najee’s final game as a Steeler. I was frustrated to read the “fire Mike Tomlin” chatter this morning from local media. The game last night did not go as any “true” Steeler fan would have hoped. The offense again got off to a slow start despite a different game plan. The Steelers made no unreasonable attempt to run the ball on first downs. They threw the ball a lot in the first half, just without as much success as they hoped. The offense did come to life in the 3rd quarter and those two touchdowns were exciting to watch. They gave each of us a little bit of hope that the Steelers were going to make come back. However, the defense failed. The players on the field could not stop the Ravens, both Lamar and King Henry, from running the ball at will. The back end couldn’t get the necessary stops on third downs and the Steelers just got too far behind. It stinks. It sucks. It was hard to watch at times. But it is over. The sun came up today and will come up tomorrow. The NFL draft will occur in April. The team will convene in the Summer and the Steelers will be competing in the NFL next season. No matter the level of disappointment I felt last night or today, I am grateful for the memories of this season. I am proud of the work I did on this site and the podcast for a full season. I am lucky enough to still be able to watch the games with my dad and brothers. I was able to once again take my dad to a Steeler game and this year they got a win! I cheered a lot this season when the Steelers did good things. I will do this again next year, and the year after, and the year after. I hope all of you Steeler fans will join me next season in rooting for this team. I hope none of you spend most of your time spewing hatred, wishing for the coaches to be fired, or playing arm chair GM. It is a waste of your time and pointless. I still like and believe in Mike Tomlin. Do I want him and the Steelers to take the next step in the playoffs? Yes I do. Do I also not want to be the Patriots and rebuild? No I do not. This team and this season had more positives than last year, do not forget that as we slowly rebuild our hope in the offseason because, “hope springs eternal in the human breast. Man never is, but always to be blest.”
Go Steelers.