Here's the thing about the Steelers' win....
(SOUND EFFECT OF SHRILL WHISTLE) False start. Replay the column lead.
Sorry, that's just a way of acknowledging the start-and-stop nature of the Steelers' first victory of the season, Monday night in Tampa.
At his noon news conference on Tuesday, a sleep-deprived Mike Tomlin admitted it probably wasn't an appealing game to watch.
He was right about that.
The flow of the game was constantly interrupted by penalty flags. There were occasionally two infractions on the same snap.
After three games, the Steelers have had 37 accepted penalties, most in the NFL. It doesn't really matter how many any other team has. The fact is 37 in three games is too many by a wide margin.
Tomlin spoke of a need to play cleaner and smarter, and there's no arguing that. Don't shove a runner who's already out of bounds because you're frustrated. Don't compound a bad situation by arguing an existing call and getting another penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct.
The offenders in two cases cited there were Sean Davis and Darrius Heyward-Bey.
Play smarter indeed. An official isn't going to change his call because a player keeps yapping at him. It's far more likely he'll do exactly what Monday night's official did and throw a second flag while marching off more yardage.
Some penalties are unavoidable. That's particularly the case early in the season when teams and officials are still defining the rules on roughing the passer.
Some penalties are actually good. If the quarterback is going to get wiped out by a pass rusher, it's better to hold than to let the quarterback get blasted.
But a lot of penalties are just dumb and/or lazy. Those are the ones on Tomlin's radar, as they should be.
In other Steelers matters:
--Vance McDonald's stiff arm dismissal of would-be tackler Chris Conte will live on highlights for generations to come. It was the most abuse dealt a defensive player since Jerome Bettis bowled over Hall of Fame Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher on the way to the end zone in the show at Heinz Field in December, 2005.
--Is it Artie Burns or Artie's Burned? Wow, this is a former No. 1 draft pick now rotating with two other players.
--What a difference it makes when a defense gets pressure on the quarterback. Those takeaways were related to the limited amount of time Ryan Fitzpatrick had to make decisions.
--Tomlin reaffirmed his belief in kicker Chris Boswell. What choice does he have? The Steelers just signed Boswell to a new contract.
--It isn't just that Ben Roethlisberger can escape and extend the play. It's that he doesn't panic while he's doing that. That skill probably won't be fully appreciated until he isn't around to do it any more.
--Network announcers never get it right. ESPN showed Steelers fans cheering in Tampa and Joe Tessitore made the remark about how the Steelers Nation travels. There were probably some people from western Pennsylvania in the crowd. But the Steelers built a national fan base in the 1970s. With that and the displaced Pttsburghers who relocated after the steel industry faded way, a lot of those Steelers fans at the game have Florida zip codes.
--ESPN analyst Booger McFarland seemed to be castigating the Steelers for not paying Le'Veon Bell. Bell could have come in on Labor Day, signed the contract tender and been guaranteed more than $14 million for this season. A lot of people would consider that a fair wage.
--The difference between 1-1-1 and 0-2-1 is much bigger than the math says it is.
(John Mehno can be reached at: johnmehnocolumn@gmail.com)
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