Super, but not Sexy

Steelers Nation, we need to face some facts about our team. Our Steelers are a great team, no doubt about it. They have a strong management team, a great coach, a hugely loyal fan base, and a strong tradition. The Steelers are headed to their 8th Super Bowl, and trying to win their 7th championship. They are facing the Green Bay Packers, a well respected team and fan base with very similar qualities. Both fan bases are great tailgaters, both survive their seasons in cold, snowy weather. And Cheeseheads love a good sausage, whether it be kielbasi or bratwurst, on a grill with a good cold beer before a game just like we do. It's Title Town against the City of Champions. It's a classic old NFL match up that all NFL fans are anticipating. This Steeler team is one of the best ever. They overcame Ben's suspension, a host of injuries, and tons of referee flag throwing to get here. However, I did realized something after our team's victory over the Jets in the AFC Championship, they just aren't sexy.

Now that you are gasping and wondering what the hell I am talking about, let me explain. Sunday before last, as I watched the Steelers receive the Lamar Hunt Trophy, I was thrilled to see Franco Harris and Rockey Bleier on the stage being interviewed. I thought, "Great!! Franco and Rocky are there! How cool to make them part of this!" And it was cool to make them part of the celebration, the fans love them. But then the next day, I said to myself, "Why were they there?" This should have been about the current team. The team with two Super Bowl Rings, going for their third. Rocky and Franco got quite a bit of camera time for not even playing. Then it dawned on me. The current Steelers aren't sexy, the old Steelers of the Seventies were, and still are. On a side note, I am not talking hot girl walking down the street sexy when I state "sexy". I am not talking about physical appearances. I am talking about public appeal, just to make sure we are all on the same page.

The Steelers have an appeal problem, stemming from a few different sources. I'll address the most obvious one first, our QB, Big Ben Roethlisberger. He is one of the top QBs in the league, no doubt about it. The problem is, image wise, he just doesn't compare to the other two top QBs: Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. He doesn't have Peyton's down home charm or personality. He isn't married to a super model and have a Justin Bieber hair cut like Tom Brady. He doesn't look as graceful or even as skilled on the field as those two do, even though he is. And due to accusations of immoral activity, he doesn't get TV commercials like they do. (Yeah, I used the word "accusations". He wasn't convicted of anything. He wasn't even arrested. However, after being accused twice, in the eyes of the public, he might as well be guilty.) He also faces the same image problem that Terry Bradshaw faced, he lives in the shadow of his defense. Think about it, who has a greater personality than Terry? Talk about appeal. But Terry always played second fiddle to the Steel Curtain when it came to the identity of the Steelers. As Ben does with the current defense. He lives in their shadow. His playoff record is 10-2, only Bart Starr's is better. He has two Super Bowl Rings, but you wouldn't know it from the way the media treats him. And in all fairness, it's his own fault. Guilty or not, he put himself in this situation.

And the rest of the team doesn't fare much better. Hines Ward has a great smile and personality. He is the greatest receiver in Steelers history. But his appeal has diminished. He has fallen behind Mike Wallace as the teams leading receiver. And with new receivers Sanders and Brown on the rise, Hines is becoming an after thought. He is no longer the face of this team. In fact, that is part if the problem, nobody is. Coach Tomlin comes off as very cerebral in an interview. He is a great coach, but not a lot of pizazz there. The team's top defensive Star, Troy Polamalu, the best safety in the league, isn't very exciting off the field or in front of a camera. He comes off as shy and is soft spoken. His humility prevents him from being the face of this team. And no one else on the defense interviews very well. Harrison, Woodley, Timmons, Hampton, the list of great players goes on and on. But no one is sexy. Harrison was becoming the face of that defense, until the NFL started fining him for hits. He lays low now, and I don't blame him. Where is Joey Porter when you need him? Oh, that's right. He's in Miami.

Remember Super Bowl XL? That was a sexy team! Jerome "The Bus" Bettis was the face of that offense. They were in Detroit to win the Super Bowl and end the Bus' career in front of his home town. They were the first sixth seeded playoff team to win the Super Bowl. Hines Ward was at the pinnacle of his career. Big Ben was an up and coming super star, second year QB how hadn't locked himself in a bar restroom with a co-ed yet. Bill Cowher, with his protruding jaw and the spiddle flying out of his mouth when he yelled, was a huge part of that team's image. Hell, Coach Cowher would have put on a uniform and run out on to the field if he could have. Joey Porter was the hardest hitting linebacker in the game, an out spoken man with a brash personality. He was the face of that defense. Man, I really miss those guys.

Don't get me wrong, I love our current team. They are great. They are Champions. They are about to make NFL history. I just wish there was a little more pizazz, more flair. But of Super Bowl our teams, this one is the most lackluster. Hines arrived in Dallas wearing a cowboy outfit. And he showed up for media day in a Polamalu wig. That's a step in the right direction. And Brett Keisel has grown a Grizzly Adams beard. So they are trying.

But I still don't call it sexy. Remember this guy.

Now he was sexy!