- Rookie Antonio Bryant -- emphasis on rookie -- made what Joe Buck charitably called "a mental error" when he failed to let a Denver punt go over his head and into the end zone. Instead, he fielded the ball inside the five, then seemed surprised that the guys in blue and orange were waiting to tackle him. Brown is trying to make the Steelers roster, and this obviously doesn't help his case.
- Buck also observed that rookie center Maurkice Pouncey has "a lot of ink for a guy who's only 20 years old." (In the tragic case that you are less hip than Joe Buck, "ink" is slang for "tattoos.") I only wish that Buck had continued the train of thought, maybe saying something like, "I mean, I didn't even get my Troy Aikman chest piece colored in until I was 28!"
- Speaking of Pouncey, he seemed to hold his own against Jamaal Williams, a 13-year veteran who at least used to be a premier nose tackle in the NFL. Just another positive in what has been a tremendous preseason for the first-round selection out of Florida.
- Ike Taylor came on 3 & 7 and recorded a sneaky sack on second-string
deer in headlightsquarterback Brady Quinn. Poor Brady. He gets traded from the Cleveland Browns and he still can't escape Pittsburgh pass rushers. - Dixon had some problems with accuracy during his first two drives. His first pass attempt was tipped at the line -- not really the quarterback's fault, although this can result from a passer staring down his receiver -- then Dixon missed tight end David Johnson in the flats, despite sitting comfortably in the pocket. However, he found Johnson a few plays later for a third down conversion.
- Then, Dixon had some problems with decision-making. His second drive ended with a bonehead play: Dixon rolled right, but had only blanket coverage in the end zone. Instead of throwing the ball away, Dixon forced the ball into coverage and rookie defensive back Perish Cox made a spectacular, toe-tapping interception.
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