Two halves don't make a whole

The story of two halves ended really bad for the Steelers. Because the worst part is the Bengals got the biggest slice!

I wish I didn't see this coming but it was painfully obvious the way the Steelers have approached this season. On one hand though I know people who have been reading my comments are saying "wait a minute you got what you wanted, they ran the ball 28 times to their 31 pass attempts".

I guess I was not specific enough for Mike Tomlin and Bruce Arians. Yes it was refreshing to see a more balanced approach. It was also nice to see Willie Parker go for 95 yards on 25 carries. I want to see a balanced offense for 4 quarters. Look at this, something smells here.

According to reports Rashard Mendenhall was benched for lack of urgency. When translated that means he was being a jackass. Not putting in the preparation. Apparently being late for meetings and stuff also. Note: I was glad to see Parker had a little more of a burst in his step however. It was against the Bengals though. That said .....

There was at least a half of dozen plays that I saw that the Steelers put an extra O-lineman out there. That is sad. You have 2 really good blocking tight ends and yet you have that little confidence in your line as a whole that you bring in the supersize players? If running calls for that it only puts an exclamation to the point I have been making.

And they only ran for 26 yards in the second half! 2 of them by Ben. The Steelers had a mediocre 102 yards rushing all day.

Tomlin might think about benching Holmes for an attitude. The INT, pick 6 by Joseph for the Bengals first TD was clearly a mis run route.

The Steelers D looked out of character in the 4th quarter. The Bengals did nothing for 3 quarters and ended up with 273 yards of offense. 100 on the ground. The Steelers don't give up 100 yards on the ground to anyone let alone the Bengals.

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Steelers manage 2 sacks against the Bengals? Really 2?

The first half the Steelers ran up and down the field and only score 13 points. That is always a recipe for disaster. I don't care how bad a team is, if you don't bury an NFL team when you can and you let them hang around, it will most likely bite you in the balls.

Jeff Reed?

Limas "greasy hands" Sweed? Are you serious?

No turnovers? We forget how much of a loss Polamalu is!

Ben's numbers were pretty good, but again most of them came in the first half!

I reluctantly will credit Arians with some really well designed plays. He is quite creative on the board. I still am a critic of his overall play calling and preparation, his short yardage and red zone results SUCK! When you continue to have the same problems over a long period I blame the coaching. Tomlin included.

In the end I still believe the Steelers can weather the storm. I think the "urgency" issue may be a problem with way more guys than Mendenhall. Thank God the Chargers are still coached by Norv Turner. That gives the Steelers a chance to remedy their issues.

Oh and Baltimore did what they were supposed to do to a bad team.

NOTE: Mike Wallace continues to impress. Sweed just moved further down the bench. They would let him carry a clipboard but he would probably drop it. Hines Ward wnet over 10,000 receiving yards for his career! Stefan Logan is having a quality year returning kicks/punts.

By: Andy Natalie
ProFootball-fans.com Pittsburgh Steelers Correspondent