Good evening or as the Steelers might say to their 2012 season, and to all a good night. Or as Casey Hampton might say, “This stuff’s a wrap.’’
      Several real interesting comments after the game. They are in my game story, but I want to draw them out and highlight them here.
        The first comes from James Harrison. I asked him what this team needed.
“We have to do a better job as players playing the game, individually and collectively,’’ he answered. “We have to do a better job as coaches, coaching the game, and putting our players in positions to make plays.”
  I asked him if there were some examples of coaches not putting players in positions to make plays. He answered:  “We have to do a better job as players of playing, and a better job as coaches of coaching.”
     Then there was Isaac Redman. I asked him if Sunday’s game was typical of what’s happened to the Steelers this season.
  “I’m not surprised at all,’’ said Redman. “Stuff just happened the whole year. It’s frustrating. Turnovers at key moments of games have just crushed us all year long.”
       The last two losses, of course, can be hung on Ben Roethlisberger’s mantle, and he prevented a possible comeback win when he was pick-sixed in Denver with two minutes left.
   Anyone, let’s get onto some other stuff from the game:
  --- I again did not make a prediction this morning on this site. But I made one on radio and TV before the game: Bengals, 24-21. Had the score wrong, had the spread right.
 --- Marvin Lewis deserved to lose that game all by himself. The 56-yard field goal try with just over 3 minutes left in a tie game? Really? How about throwing deep on fourth and 22 at the Steelers’ 23? He kicks a field goal there he might win it without the late-game theatrics.
--- Had the Steelers kicked a field goal on second down at the Bengals’ 28  right after Cortez Allen’s first interception early in the third quarter, they might have won. Of course, that would have been silly, but they came up empty when Ben Roethlisberger was sacked back to the 37 and they punted.
--- Bad day again for the officials. First, there was the ludicrous penalty on Brett Keisel when he did his arrow-and-bow celebration after a sack. Unsportsmanlike conduct, 15 yards. It didn’t lead to anything but he’s been doing that routine for 11 years and this time they call a penalty? Also, referee Mike Carey said it was the end of the first quarter when the third quarter ended and he also said that one receiver did not get both feets in bounds on a play. He also missed the chains who had it first and 10 after a five-yard penalty that should have been first-and-five, a play he rectified after the first down. Yikes!
 --- The Steelers will finish third in the division, exactly where many people predicted before the season they would end up. Me? I had them 11-5.
 --- Injuries killed this season for the Steelers, and I’m not sure if Ben Roethlisberger’s shoulder and rib injuries that caused him to miss three games affected him, but he wasn’t the same quarterback after he returned. He had three games with passer ratings of 121 or more before the injury and another at 98.8. He did not hit the latter number in his final four games when he came back and he finished with six touchdowns and four interceptions in those – four of his eight total interceptions for the season.  
--- Roethlisberger was as distraught in his post-game interview as I’ve seen him.
   --- I’ll put the over-under attendance for next Sunday’s game vs. Cleveland at 40,000.
--- With all the injuries that have befallen the Steelers stars and starters, one who escaped it all season was Heath Miller, right up until the fourth quarter Sunday. He had PCL and MCL injuries, but his knee should be healed well ahead of the spring workouts.
--- Larry Foote told me this Sunday might be his last game. Why, I asked. Because he said either the Steelers might not want him back or he may decide in February that he’s had enough.
--- He won’t be the only one.
--- I’m stopping now so I can save some for the morning.

First Published: April 6, 2016, 4:16 p.m.
Updated: December 2, 2420, 2:45 p.m.