Posted by Rich DeLeo
on 12/2/2003, 10:18 am
Board Administrator
When I knew what the 2003 NFL schedule was going to be, I saw that my Raiders were ticketed for Heinz Field again. And after the seasons that both the Raiders and Steelers had in 2002, it looked like a blockbuster game for week 13. But now, just one day after I acquired tickets for this game, I was wondering what to write about today. Then it came to me, how much both teams have fallen off of the radar scope, and this game on Sunday, which had all the makings of a great game with two potential playoff teams, has turned into a game for possibly the right to pick number 1 in the draft come next April. Between them, these teams have just 7 wins, and the Raiders are coming off of a Super Bowl appearance. What happened? The Raiders essentially kept the same team that went 12-4 last season and won the AFC. The Steelers also kept their team intact, and also had ideas of playing in Houston on Feb 1. Now both teams have been relegated to the playoff sidelines, although if you listen to Bill Cowher, he still insists that it is not over. His team is 3 games out of first place with 4 to play. They needed to beat Cincinnati last Sunday to have any hope whatsoever of making the playoffs. And that win would have given them a great chance, because they still have a meeting with the hated Ravens on the final Sunday of the season. Now that game looks like nothing more than the Steelers playing the role of spoiler, since only 1 team from the AFC North will be making it into the playoffs. Back to the Raiders, I am still trying to figure out what happened to the team that I watched last season. The only thing I can pin this incredible drop off on is that they finally had age catch up with them. And looking at the injury list, it certainly looks like this team is showing just how old it is. So what looked like a game that would be impossible to get tickets to, is now a game where scalpers will be hard pressed to get face value. Still though, it is the Steelers and Raiders. These teams have a history of perhaps the most fierce rivalry in the decade of the 70's. That is gone, but the intensity between the fans still lives. I will be in Heinz Field on Sunday cheering my Raiders on, hoping that they can come up with a win, and make my holidays much more enjoyable. To be able to claim bragging rights for another year. I hope the Steelers forgot what happened last year when the Raiders kicked their backsides 30-14. I'm sure that the energy will be there on Sunday, but it is a shame that the bad seasons these two teams are having will take away any true meaning this game promised when the schedule came out!
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