Buffalo Bills defenders Paul Posluszny, left, and Angelo Crowell wrap up the Pittsburgh Steelers' Willie Parker during fourth-quarter action at Heinz Field, Sept. 16, 2007.
John Perrotto, Beaver County Times
09/16/2007
PITTSBURGH - It was not the happiest of homecomings for Paul Posluszny, at least in terms of the outcome.
Posluszny and his Buffalo Bills were routed 26-3 by the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field on Sunday, though it was certainly no fault of the rookie linebacker from Hopewell High School and Penn State. He was one of the few players who stood out for the Bills as he had a game-high 12 tackles, five of which were solo.
Of course, Posluszny had plenty of opportunities to make tackles. The Steelers held a 35:27-24:33 advantage in time of possession and ran 68 plays to Buffalo's 51.
And while Posluszny was disappointed to be 0-2 in his fledgling career, he couldn't help but break into a smile when asked about what it was like to come back to his home area in a professional football uniform.
"It was really a special day and something I'm going to remember for a long time," Posluszny said. "The atmosphere for a Steelers home game in unbelievable. To be able to come in here and play a game at Heinz Field as a rookie is definitely a thrill. It was special to be here."
Posluszny had his immediate family at the game: his mother and father, two brothers and sister and their fiancés.
"I got off easy. I only had to leave 12 tickets because so many people I know already have (season) tickets," Posluszny said.
Steelers tight end Matt Spaeth spikes the ball in front of Buffalo's Paul Posluszny (51) after scoring during the third quarter Sunday at Heinz Field. The Steelers won their home opener, 26-3.
Posluszny also saw plenty of familiar faces while he was warming up before the game.
"There were a bunch of people from Hopewell who hollered at me and wished me good luck, and that was really nice," Posluszny said.
He then stopped and laughed.
"But while they were wishing me good luck, they were wearing Hines Ward jerseys," Posluszny said. "So, I don't know how much good luck they really wanted me to have."
Those people went back to Hopewell happy Sunday night. Their favorite son had a good game, and their favorite team won the game.
While Posluszny grew up a Steelers fan and had hoped they would draft him in April, he wasn't as thrilled about Sunday's outcome.
"They just beat us up, plain and simple," Posluszny said. "They came out and really dominated us. We didn't play well at all and they played great.
"The disappointing part is that they didn't do anything we weren't expecting. We were prepared for their offense but we just didn't execute. Their offense line has to be one of the most physical in the league and they controlled us."
Not only did the Steelers' dominance put a damper on Posluszny's homecoming but on what had already been an extremely difficult week for the Bills. Back-up tight end Kevin Everett suffered a spinal cord injury in the opening-day loss to Denver and there was not only a question of whether he would walk again but even if he would survive.
"We're professional football players and our job is to block out those kinds of things and go out and play," Bills linebacker John DiGorgio said. "But you're also human, and when you have a teammate in the hospital and fighting for his life, it's tough."
Buffalo coach Dick Jauron and Posluszny, though, both said Everett's situation had no effect on Sunday's game.
"Coach called us together before our first practice this week and said it was going to be hard for us but we had to do our best to work hard and get ready for the Steelers, and we did," Posluszny said. "We had a good week of practice. We just didn't play well."
Still, it couldn't totally dampen Posluszny's homecoming in a stadium where he helped lead Hopewell over Pine-Richland in the 2002 WPIAL Class AAA championship game.
"I played here twice in the WPIAL finals and both games were at night," Posluszny said. "It's really a spectacular sight here in the day with the river and the city skyline in the background. I took it all in during the pre-game and it really felt good to be home."
Unfortunately for Posluszny, the Bills' day didn't end right then.
John Perrotto can be reached online at perrotto@timesnet.net.
©Beaver County Times Allegheny Times 2007
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