Who else is honestly losing interest?

The pot calleth the kettle black.

 

Liar , you praised Noll and Cowher, then said there isn't much hope with the current organization.

 

I hate 24/7/365 NFL.
I miss the days of reading the "Sporting News" on my lunch break.
$hit is damn dumbed down that, yes, I have lost a lot of interest especially the pre and post game shows. I'll watch the game and visit a forum from time to time but that is it for me.

 

The Steelers are a part of me and will be until I die. I just don't turn off the games, no matter how bad the outcome.

I have, however, mellowed out in my old age. I don't get anywhere near as disappointed in the losses as I used to. Like my name here shows, I definitely long for the old days, the glory days. Being a Steelers fan isn't always as rosy as other fans want to point out. But we have most definitely been spoiled by our team's success over the years. And many of us act like we are spoiled.

Regardless, game day is a staple in The Glory Days' household. My daughters wouldn't understand if their dad suddenly stopped watching the Steelers. They are in college now, but both know that if they come home for a fall or winter weekend, dad is going to be spending a few hours in front of the tv, watching the black and gold.

They were both born in Florida and roughly 20 years ago, if you were in a particular Steelers bar on game days, you might have seen my oldest, at 3 years old, dressed up as a Steelers cheerleader. I would take her into the bar before the game and most of the guys would touch her head for good luck. My wife would drop me off and humor me with taking her into the bar for a few minutes.

From fantasizing about being the kid giving Mean Joe a coke to my baby being a good luck charm in a bar to the wind coming in from the lake, the Steelers are a part of me. Lose interest? I don't think that's possible.

 

I don’t stay glued to the tv like I once did. I’ll get up and leave the room for a minute no problem and not miss much. When I was a kid I watched as many games as I could across the whole league. I don’t know the players around the league like I did. Just not as exciting.

 

I lived for the Sporting News each week. Loved all the stat pages. Something about that sacred yet limited available data and the great sense of anticipation of it arriving in the mail. Now it's just instant gratification and data overload of NexGenStats. I get mad when it takes 7 seconds to open this MB sometimes. I kind of miss the old days with very few choices - say like ice cream - unless you were at Isaly's or Thrifty's, your choices were Chocolate, Vanilla and Neapolitan. Period. And you didn't mind. Heading out to pasture now........................

 

People forgot what happened in the past. It's so easy to call for the HC to be fired. The issues with the team this season are beyond the HCs control. That being said he is helping the team remain in the thick of the playoff race when everyone thought this team was dead.

 

I definitely don't experience the same level of anguish at a loss as I used to. The 2001 Championship game, at the time, was one of the worst days of my life. The next day at work, nobody spoke. I remember going into Pasta Too in Castle Shannon to get some dinner and it was packed, yet nobody was speaking. lol

I don't get like that anymore. Maybe an hour of disappointment then I move on.

 

For me, the slippery slope was instant replay. I guess feeling that way really makes me "old school." Calls, good or bad were part of the game. I understand the appeal of the instant replay, however I had a suspicion what it was going to lead to.

 

@Stone I have found myself over the last couple years backing off the NFL. I still am glued in front of the TV for the Steelers and I still jaw with friends over each of our teams. However I find myself over the last couple years not pumped up for football in the first half of the season if the Steelers aren't on tv Sundays. My wife has made comments as to why I now golf on Sundays and not watch football while we have the Sunday ticket.

I bleed Black and Gold and that will never change however this new NFL has me sick to watch. Over the last 5-6 years we didn't know what a catch was and we didn't know where to hit a QB and now we have to find out what a defenseless receiver is. I get all the safety and I do not want to see any player get hurt however this is still football and not dance. This has a lot to do with my interest as far as watching the NFL.

With all that said I live in a small town in NY and there really isn't much to do in the winter time if you don't like the cold like I do. We as a family watch football and eat some food and just enjoy each other, even if my youngest son and his best friend are Eagle fans. That does get fun as they are still wet behind the ears and act like I use to when their team don't play well. So yeah I am losing interest in the NFL but still and 100% for our Steelers.........

 

Rapidly college football is becoming like this. I laugh at the NCAA punishing a kid for a thousand buck 'loan' to protect 'Amateur purity', yet the big conferences are making hundreds of millions on the broken backs of these kids. Not trying to starts an argument about the merits of anything, just that all 'big time' sports has become (in your words) entertainment business. In business it is always about he bottom line.

 

Its a very valid point. Think about how other sports are using technology to detect scoring and fouls with laser pinpoint precision, the NFL still uses a chain with links to measure 1st downs lol. The problem is once that route was taken, where does it stop. Officiating mistakes were always subject to human error and interpretation. Now you stop the game and give one guy in a New York studio the ability to determine the outcome of the game.

 

I don't always agree with you on things, man, but I love this post.

 

Not just a chain with links - a guy putting his foot down where he saw the play stop!

The centralisation of replay was just such a bad idea. Each game has its own flow, and that's the same with just about every sport. On some days, refs will let them play. On others, they want to clamp down early. So much of that is decided by what's happening there and then on the field. So sending it over to New York, to a guy who has no sense of what's been called previously in the game, where "the line" is at that point, etc. etc. just makes no sense. It's meant to be an objective decision, but it will always come across as arbitrary simply because refs need to be on the goddamn field of play.

 

Very good thread to read through!!!!!

I think aging plays a big part in everything. If I was a young man I imagine my passion would be the same because I wouldn't know how the NFL was back in the 70's. I would guess the young people today will be bitching about how different it is for them come 2050.

Two things for sure, I was born Pittsburgh sports and I'll die Pittsburgh sports and growing old sucks balls. Wait that's three things, see growing old makes you stupid.

 

You guys both make valid points and there are a couple things to consider. I agree 100% with Iowasteeljim, the old way was part of the game but I think that with the players being bigger, faster, and stronger every year it is becoming more difficult to catch reality in real time.

1. Why DOESN'T the NFL imbed something in the lining of the ball so that the "exact" spot is 100% accurate? Because it takes away the ability for the officials to control the outcome!
2. Why DOESN'T the NFL change the language which classifies offensive holding so that it is no longer a penalty which could be called on every play of every game? Because it takes away the ability for the officials to control the outcome!
   
3. Why DOESN'T the NFL correct obvious infractions we see every week via instant replay? Because it takes away the ability for the officials to control the outcome!
4. Why DOESN'T the NFL develop a zero tolerance policy on PED and HGH? The players union wouldn't fight because the players don't want to have to take PED's and HGH, the players do it to keep their job because everyone else does it. Because today's gladiators make the NFL a boatload of money!

 

One of the highlights, for me, of Monday Night Football was Howard Cosell's whirlwind recap of all the games at halftime!

 

Here are some things they can do to improve the game:

Less penalties - let them play. I’m tired of 25% of all deep passes being deemed ‘completed’ due to PI. And what’s whet the hands to the face penalties 3-5 times per game?

Fewer reviews. Especially PI which has proven to be totally useless since they don’t even overturn the most blatant PI’s.

Reinstate kick returns. Why even bother to kick when 90% are touch backs and half of those that are returned get called back for holding. I can’t remember the last time I saw someone return a kick past the 50 yard line. I’m sure it happens but not in games I’ve watched.

put a sensor in the ball and on the sidelines and goal line. That will speed up reviews.

 

I agree with the kick returns. One of the more exciting things in the game.

Years ago a lineman for the Steelers (name forgotten) said there could be a penalty called on 90% of the plays in the NFL.

 

Exactly.

Every one is a fair weather fan to some degree. Things are always more interesting and engaging when your team is winning.

 

Ebb and flow. We are still relevant to the playoffs, even with the injuries. We are so spoiled as fans of this team. I remember the 60s teams. I loved them then and love them now. Do I want some changes? Sure, but that never has come in one season. Ride along, we are not really that far off with a good defense. I'm not going to panic over an average season. We are a beat up team right now, that's when your team needs it's fans the most. We will see you band waggoner fans later on.

 

It's not appropriate to call fans who see it different than you band wagon fans. There are so many points in your post that simply don't represent reality.

True, we are not mathematically eliminated but the reaction by many of us is not based on one year as you suggest. This year we have endured lack of preparation and horrible play calling in addition to a multitude of injuries, last year we failed to make the playoffs with possibly the most talented team in the history of the league, the year before that we were one and done with possibly the most talented team in the history of the league, we have been one and done in 3 of the last 5 years we made the playoffs.

You suggest that the team needs us, I suggest that we as fans need to see something other than underachievement. In the 60's we flat out stunk, we have become the model franchise since then, making the current underachievement a little harder to accept......this isn't Steeler football!

 

I agree that they were setting things up to remove Butler, but that was before the defense showed great improvement this season. I hope you are right, but I'm concerned that they will look at the improvement and think it is worth keeping Butler.

 

I'm curious why you say Ben and Randy are a set? I'm not aware of anything that ties them together, can you share? Let's make Randy and Keith a set and put them both on the curb with a "free to any team in the AFC North" sign.

 

I didn't call any one person a band wagon fan. I have seen them come and go over the years and when we get good again they will be back.

We have been through the team hanging on to vets for too long and thought we would never be good again, well it is happening again so quit complaining and wait for the turnover. Many good things have happened to this team. Our defense is relevant again. If we had tuitt we would be even better. We are always better as a team with a good defense. No, I have not lost interest just because our practice squad players and young qb is struggling. What do you expect with the hits this offense has taken? So yes that is band waggoning in my book. sorry you And a few others don't like my feelings on the matter.