| Mike Tomlin: Leaders Do Not Conform | ||||
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“I just told the team this is the same team that got blasted last week in Baltimore.” Those were the first words Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin used to address the media following the Steelers’ win. “It was appropriate considering how we played and performed a week ago. One week ago the Steelers looked like a team blinded in the headlights while the Ravens looked to be on the verge of taking that giant leap towards running away with the division. But after Baltimore’s 26-13 loss in Tennessee, the landscape has once again changed. Safety Ryan Clark expressed that “losing a game like that, although upsetting, wasn’t mind blowing or earth shattering.” Clark added that Pittsburgh has “lots of guys with wisdom and experience.” Those words reverberated through the locker-room after the week 1 loss. Leaders do not conform; they’re not easily pacified by platitudes or empty rhetoric “We didn’t give no big speeches,” 13-year veteran defensive end Aaron Smith said. “This is a veteran group with a lot of proud men on this team.” Leaders can be aggressive, visionary, arrogant, optimistic, and rarely subjective. But they produce, they commit, and they persevere, which is exactly how the Steelers responded after being left for dead only one week ago.The Seattle Seahawks basically earned air miles today because they were never in this game, on either side of the ball. The time of possession was 38:44 to 21:16 in favor of the Steelers. “Coach (Pete Carroll) will reevaluate the game plan and reevaluate the game. We will come up with something,” said first-year Seahawk Tarvaris Jackson. “It was embarrassing. We can’t be a good football team and play like that.” With Seattle still finding itself and the Steelers going Aretha Franklin early—‘take care, TCB’—the only thing that will be remembered was an illegal hit Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger took to the left knee. The hit resulted in Seattle’s defensive end Raheem Brock being penalized. At first glance it looked as though the franchise quarterback would be missing a significant amount of time as the medical staff and coaches surrounded him. “It was pretty scary. You just feel guys roll up on your legs, and when he rolled up on me it was a scary feeling,” said the Pittsburgh signal caller. Luckily enough, Roethlisberger returned on the same series after the two-minute warning. Even with the Steelers playing as close to a flawless game as a team could, Coach Tomlin said, “I’m sure I could find a lot to complain about” when he goes to the film. Tomlin added, “I’m still chewing on last week and that’s just the nature of this thing.” -- Follow Bo Marchionte on Twitter @NFLDraftBible 
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