Very nice post, Lilo. I've been watching the Steeler/Raven rivalry grow over the past several years, and it has become the fiercest in the sport. They have been the best, most physical defenses this decade, and their regular season matchups and postseason games are almost always classics.

I agree that Tomlin outcoached Harbaugh, but even with a fourteen point lead, I didn't think that the Ravens had the game under control as the lead resulted from weird circumstances. Baltimore didn't really move the ball easily in the first half and managed only 28 yards in the second half. For them to win the game they would have needed another crazy play or two.

And, yes, Roethlisberger is an amazing competitor, who'll do whatever it takes to win. His offensive line has provided substandard protection for the past three seasons, but he consistently sheds tackles, extends plays, and comes up big in the fourth quarter. He is certainly a big game player.

You raise an interesting point about getting the league to return to a running oriented game. I'm not sure if you're old enough to remember the NFL in the 70s, but the great qbs of the era - Staubach, Bradshaw, Stabler, Tarkenton - all were capable of scrambling and picking up yards on their own or throwing on the run. This was necessary because offensive linemen couldn't extend their arms in peass protection, defensive linemen could head slap the o-line and cornerbacks could hit receivers all the way down the field. At the end of the decade the league sought to assist the passing game by enacting the Mel Blount riule, and liberalizing pass protection. It was no coincidence that the West Coast offense was immediately born as it could not havesucceeded in the prior decade. Star qbs of today, namely Brady and Peyton Manning, would not nearly be as successful under the 70s rules as they are today as they are not very mobile and are vulnerable out of the pocket.