3-0!

What to make of that disaster? Let's see:

• According to Blog N' Gold, Vince Neil was set to sing the national anthem but didn't sound so good warming up in the afternoon. Maybe that' was the real reason they didn't sing the anthem last night - not this silly excuse that TV wanted to hurry up and start the game, what does TV ever control?
• Whoever thought to put a new layer of sod OVER the old one and then do so without looking at the weather forecast should be fired. The old field would not have been worse than what they put down. Plan to put new sod down guys, but have a contingency plan in place in case the forecast on Saturday afternoon (which is only 2 days before Monday night meaning even the weather guys could be right) calls for cats and dogs living together kind of rain coming on Monday. If so, leave the field be.
• Last night's field conditions, broadcast to the entire country will go a long way to forcing the Steelers to rip up the real stuff and install fake grass for next year. Which is too bad. Players, the Rooneys, and most fans prefer real grass and playing in conditions that real grass presents is an element of football that shouldn't be taken out of the game. That said, the conditions last night were horrible, but I attribute that more to putting new sod down in the rain. Can't they get real grass that doesn't get torn up every year?
• Mike Celizic at MSNBC.com rails against the Steelers and the NFL for allowing the field to get that bad:
  

  It was a travesty of football and an insult to the NFL, the players, the fans, and anyone who turned on a television in the hopes of enjoying Monday Night Football. It was a disgrace.

  Calm down Mike.
• How is it that every year the WPIALs, Pitt and the Steelers play at Heniz on the same weekend? Can't someone ensure that either or both Pitt and the Steelers are on the road the weekend after Thanksgiving when the WPIALs are played?
• Ed Bouchette at the PG uncovers a couple of interesting notes about turf and the league:
• The new turf for last night was not from Kentucky or some other area known for its grass. It was from New Jersey!! Now it all makes sense, what does NJ do right?
• Teams wanting to change their playing surface in the middle of the season must get approval from the league office. The New England Patriots did not do that last season, when they installed Field Turf late in the season, but the league office did nothing to stop them. What? Why not? Another conspiracy here...
  

• Steeler defense with Troy in the lineup gives up 16.1 points/game. Without Troy: 0.
• Big Ben completed a team record 15 straight passes at one point - how does that happen in those conditions? Just goes to show that bad conditions do NOT mean you have to run the ball, as the TV talking heads always proclaim. You can throw the ball in the rain and mud and is often more effective than running, for many reasons.
  
• Ben's tackle on Joey Porter after his interception may have been the best tackle of the game and even the play of the game. If he doesn't slide and make that tackle, Porter has clear sailing all the way up the sideline for a TD. How big would that have seemed in the second half?
• At one point midway through the 4th quarter, Ben had attempted 13 passes (completing 11). 9 of those came in the first quarter, 10 by 14:07 of the second. He attempted 1 in the entire third quarter. Then on the last drive, he threw the ball 5 out of 9 plays - and they scored! I know they tried a few more passes and either Ben was sacked or there was a penalty but that "balance" is absurd. They threw the ball 5 of 8 on the first drive then basically put Ben's arm in hibernation until the last two drives. They need to have better balance than that.
• When they did attempt a pass, it was (until the final drive) invariably a short one, 5-10 yards at most. Why? This is a team that throws the ball downfield more than all but a couple of other teams. Weather? The Dolphins, with inferior talent, were throwing the ball vertically. No Santonio? Maybe, but someone should be able to get open against the Dolphs secondary. No time? Ahhhh, very likely.
  
• Speaking of no time to throw - for a few weeks now, teams have gotten pressure on Ben but the routes and play calling haven't changed much (until last night, though even the short routes last night took time to develop). What happened to draw plays? Might slow down a rush....
• Heath Miller was brutal last night. Two costly penalties and not a good blocking performance at all. I thought he would make a good mudder. Guess not.
• A true mudder: Hines Ward. What a game he played. No drops - these days he is usually good for one or two a game. But not last night, he had the right attitude:
  

  "We play in Pittsburgh. The weather and the field are not going to be perfect all the time."

• Longsnapper Greg Warren may be the MVP of the game:
  

  "On the winning kick, at least my feet were level," Warren said. "On the miss [late third quarter from 44 yards] one foot was about 5 inches below the other and the ball hit grass on the way out." Warren said that because the Steelers called a timeout with 19 seconds left before Reed's winning kick, he had time to tamp down the turf with his feet to get a level stance to snap the ball. The Steelers didn't call a timeout before Reed's first attempt.

• Best quote of the night comes from Larry Foote about Joey Porter's interception:

  "His mouth was moving so fast you couldn't understand him. But you know he was talking trash. He was screaming."

• The Steelers have gone 99 minutes and four seconds without scoring a touchdown.
• Despite all the ugliness, Ron Cook (for once) gets it right: It's a win and no one will remember come January.