MAX STARKS RETURNS TO STEELERS AND ACTUALLY BLOCKS as Steelers beat Titans 38-17
Steeler Nation breathed a collective sigh of 'bout damn time' this week as Max Starks returned to Pittsburgh and blocked pass rushers.

Big Ben responded with his best game of the year, which was highlighted by 5 touchdown passes (and was only sacked once, yes once, no I'm serious -- once).  This may have also been due to the fact that I benched Ben on both of my fantasy teams (sigh).

Starks' return also helped the Steelers run game, which didn't miss Rashard Mendenwho at all.  Redman and some guy name Jonathan Dwyer (who apparently holds a roster spot) combined for 26 carries and 156 yards rushing.  Starks may have even sparked the Steelers defense, which heretofore was lackluster at best.  Today the Steeler defense actually forced a turnover (an interception) and sacked the opponent's quarterback three times.

On behalf of a grateful Steeler Nation: Welcome back Max Starks!

In other news . . .


Hines Ward still plays for the Steelers.  He caught two touchdown passes.  Maybe Ben hadn't been able to see Ward due to the lack of pass protection until Starks showed up today to protect his blind side.

Heath Miller can still catch footballs and score touchdowns.  Due to Starks ability to effectively play left tackle, Miller didn't feel obligated to stay back in pass protection to try and save Ben's life.  Rather, he was able to run downfield and catch footballs thrown to him by Big Ben.


While the NFL and the Oakland Raiders mourned the passing of Al Davis, a local Raiders fan who was informed of the news went back to eating his sandwich for lunch.