Alright Steeler fans, everyone take a deep breath. This may hurt a little, but we are going to have to admit it. WE LOST. Go ahead, say it loud and get it off your chest one good time. Accept it and move on. I know many of us lack the ability to "suck it up" and admit that we just didn't play good enough to beat the storied Packers in Dallas on Sunday. Some want to say that "they didn't beat us, we beat ourselves", or "we lost it, they didn't win it". My reply, who cares? I mean does that really make you feel better? I know for damn sure it doesn't bring that seventh Lombardi to Heinz Field, so let it go. I defend Steeler fans until I'm blue in the face, and then a select portion of the Nation turns into those very assholes that no one can stand. So whether or not you think the Pack "deserved" it, what else can we do but tip our caps and say, "you got us this time." Let them take that shiny trophy back to their frozen wasteland and have the most miserable party of all time.
I have said this before, the problem with the Steeler Nation is that we are spoiled. We know our football, and no one will debate that. But between depression, anger, and Iron City, we tend to blur reality. Everyone who sat through XLV knows that we didn't deserve to win that game. But we feel entitled, as if we gave OUR trophy away. Personally, here is how I see it. We lost the Super Bowl, which in my opinion is the second best result you can hope for at the end of a football season. There are 30 teams that would have loved to have the season that the Steelers just had. No shame in that at all.
So what happens after we lose the Super Bowl? The typical yinzer, knee-jerk reactions. I have to admit that, even though we know our shit, that we get a little bit crazy about who needs cut and who needs released and which coach we should tar and feather in public. We better draft this, and this guy stinks. Yinz need to chill out. We just played in the Super Bowl, maybe we shouldn't dismantle the whole team. We often forget, we are just fans. Let's let the people who are way smarter than we are make those decisions, because face it, we are going to cheer for any and ever body that they throw in that black and gold. It's in our nature. We are loyal to the point of potential jail time if someone speaks poorly of our boys.
I am only 27 so I don't remember the dynasty of the 70's. But already in my lifetime I have seen the team I love play in four Super Bowls, and win two of them. Other teams haven't seen this type of success in decades, if ever. We have it pretty good, folks. We're one of the most respected and successful franchises in all of sports. And it's tough sometimes, when you know you're good, to not get greedy. Success has become the standard and we expect it every year. But even we can't win them all.
As for the "Steeler haters", we just kind of have to take our licks. Another thing we members of the Nation like to do is talk shit. We're usually the biggest dog in the fight, and we like to let the other fellas know it. So it can only be expected when we lose, that we get a bit of our own medicine. Even though most of the ribbing we are taking is not from actual Packer fans, but from Clevelanders and the like. Let them bark... pun intended. Their hatred is bred from jealousy. They hate us because they want to be us. They tell us we suck, only because they know we don't. So we have to let this bitter loss slide past that lump that is undoubtedly still is all of our throats, and just swallow it. Let's give Green Bay the credit that they are due. They played a better game, they took care of the ball, and when they clock hit zero, they were the champs. It's going to hurt, but there is nothing to be ashamed of. So let the wait 'til next years begin, and know that you are still a die hard fan of the greatest team in NFL history. And if you feel yourself losing your cool over some Cowboys fan saying we suck, just remember, they're just bitter because they didn't even make the playoffs and we got to have a big ass party in their house.
Let's be the knowledgeable and respectable fans that we are. We are the most loyal in the world and everyone knows it. So next time the haters start riding you, refuse to stoop to their level, just smile and simply say... We still have six baby!
