Pirate Galaxy » T.J. Green, Colts first and second-round draft pic

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers have dished the flash of September for a decidedly more pragmatic approach in December.Heavy doses of LeVeon Bell and Antonio Brown.A dash of tight end Ladarius Green.A defense that looks competent and maybe even a bit dangerous.The Steelers will gladly sacrifice the style points for the substance they showed in a 24-14 win over the New York Giants on Sunday.The result emphatically ended New Yorks six-game winning streak and sent a message that Pittsburghs midseason funk appears to be firmly in the rearview mirror.I just think were finding our rhythm, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said after his team allowed just 234 yards and picked off Eli Manning twice.I think were gaining continuity with the mix of guys who are playing. The young guys are growing up.A pivotal development for the Steelers (7-5), who have won three straight, each one a step up in class.Two weeks ago it was a simple slump-buster in Cleveland.On Thanksgiving, it was a decisive victory on the road in Indianapolis, albeit against a backup quarterback.This time it was one of the leagues hottest teams, though New York (8-4) hardly looked like it at times while spoiling first-year coach Ben McAdoos homecoming.McAdoo grew up an hour east of Heinz Field in Homer City, Pennsylvania. The team he faced on Sunday looked a bit like the one he idolized as a kid.The Steelers dominated the line of scrimmage at times behind Bells 182 yards of total offense and prevented Manning and wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. from ever really getting comfortable.We are who we are right now, McAdoo said. We need to go back to work. You cant just flip a switch and have things change.The Steelers have reinvented themselves on the fly following a four-game slide that took all the shine off their high-flying 4-1 start.Rather than try to overwhelm opponents with firepower they have put the ball in Bells hands and let him lead the way.Bell touched the ball 35 times -- 29 rushes and six receptions -- and went over 100 yards rushing for the third straight game by churning for 118.He did so against a defense that hadnt allowed an opponent to reach the century mark since Adrian Peterson in Week 16 of last season.I just wanted to make sure that I kept running hard, Bell said. Then, in the fourth quarter, holes got a little bigger.Ben Roethlisberger passed for 289 yards and two touchdowns for Pittsburgh and Brown caught six passes for 54 yards, including an acrobatic scoring grab in the back of the end zone that put the Steelers up 11-0.Its that time of year that we have to be our best self, offense, defense, special teams, Roethlisberger said. Everybody needs to just do their job, and I thought they did that tonight.GOING GREENPittsburgh splurged in free agency on Green, hoping the 6-foot-6 tight end could fill the void left by Heath Millers retirement.After a shaky start in which Green spent the first two months of the season recovering from various health concerns, hes starting to look like money well earned. Green caught six passes for 110 yards and his first touchdown of the season .Im not close to where I thought I would be, but Im getting closer, Green said. Im building a little more confidence every game.BUMMED BECKHAMBeckham won the statistical battle with his good buddy Brown, catching 10 passes for 100 yards.Yet Beckham was baffled by an exchange with an unspecified official after he drew an offensive pass interference flag in the first quarter, a call that eventually set up a Pittsburgh safety. Beckham said when he approached the official for clarity on why the call was made, he was told get out of my face.I dont really understand that, Beckham said. Thats not really how I was raised.INJURIESGiants: Played the second half without defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul, who left in the second quarter with a groin injury. Pierre-Paul said afterward hes not sure of the severity of the injury and will be examined on Monday. New York also lost cornerback Coty Sensabaugh to a rib injury.Steelers: Rookie nose tackle Javon Hargrave left in the first half because of a concussion. Safety Shamarko Thomas, recently recovered from a groin injury, sustained a concussion while covering a kickoff return in the first half.UP NEXTGiants: host NFC East-leading Dallas next Sunday night. New York beat the Cowboys 20-19 in Week 1. Dallas has not lost since.Steelers: head north to Buffalo next Sunday.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL Whoelsale Colts Jerseys . 10 Texas A&Ms offence dominated as usual against SMU. Pat McAfee Jersey . Just not the game. Kyle Palmieri scored two straight goals in the third period to rally the Anaheim Ducks past the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 on Tuesday night. http://www.cheapcoltsjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=authentic-reggie-wayne-jersey . LOUIS -- Heading into the final stretch of the season, the issues for the Chicago Bears banged-up defence only seem to be getting worse. Marshall Faulk Jersey . The Redskins announced Monday that the quarterback who led the team to the Super Bowl championship in the 1987 season will serve as a personnel executive. Cheap Colts Jerseys Authentic . "I wrote 36 on my sheet at the beginning of the game," the Cincinnati coach said, referring the yard line the ball would need to be snapped from. DETROIT (7-9) at INDIANAPOLIS (8-8)Sunday, 4:25 p.m. EDT, FoxOPENING LINE -- Colts by 5SERIES RECORD -- Colts lead 21-18-2LAST MEETING -- Colts beat Lions 35-33, Dec. 2, 2012AP PRO32 RANKING -- Lions No. 23, Colts No. 16LIONS 2015 OFFENSE -- OVERALL (20), RUSH (32), PASS (9).LIONS 2015 DEFENSE -- OVERALL (18), RUSH (19), PASS (14T).COLTS 2015 OFFENSE -- OVERALL (28), RUSH (29), PASS (22).COLTS 2015 DEFENSE -- OVERALL (26), RUSH (25), PASS (24).STREAKS, STATS AND NOTES -- Lions have lost four straight in series, going 0-3 vs. Peyton Manning, 0-1 vs. Andrew Luck. ... Detroits last win over Colts was 1997 and only win in Indy was in 1991. ... Lions coach Jim Caldwell led Colts to Super Bowl in first season as NFL head coach, going 14-2 in 2009. ... Offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter wants Lions to play faster and has made no-huddle prime component. ... QB Matthew Stafford had career-high completion percentage of 67.2 percent last season and passer rating of 110.1 over Lions final eight games, but offensive line allowed 44 sacks and Detroit rushed for league-low 83.4 yards per game. ... WR Golden Tate finished among leagues top 10 receptions each of past two seasons (99 catches in 2014, 90 in 2015). ... WR Anquan Boldin needs 4 yards to pass Hall of Famer Andre Reed (13,198) for 16th on NFLs career list. ... Star WR Calvin Johnson retired from Lions in offseason. ... Colts have started 0-2 each of last two seasons and are 2/3 in last five home openers. ... QB Luck expected to make first regular-season start since Nov. 8, 2015. He threw 14-yard TD pass on final play of game tto beat Lions in Detroit in 2012.dddddddddddd ... DE Kendall Langford has been recovering from August knee surgery and hopes to extend consecutive games streak to 129. ... OLB Robert Mathis, 2013 NFL sacks champion, did not play in preseason but should start Sunday. ... K Adam Vinatieri begins 21st season at No. 3 on NFLs career scoring list, and at age 43 still is oldest player in league. Vinatieri now has spent more time with Colts (11 seasons) than Patriots. ... Vinatieri needs two field goal attempts to become fifth player in league history with 600, and three to tie Jason Hanson (601) for No. 4 all-time. ... Rookie C Ryan Kelly and rookie S T.J. Green, Colts first and second-round draft picks, both expected to start. ... RB Frank Gore needs 35 yards rushing to pass Thurman Thomas (12,074) for No. 14 on leagues career list and 81 to pass Franco Harris (12,120) for No. 13. ... Starting DE Art Jones will miss first of four games for violating NFLs performance enhancing substance policy. Fantasy Tip: Take any Detroit receivers. With Johnson gone, Tate and Marvin Jones will compete for passes that often went to Johnson -- and theyll be facing injury-riddled Colts secondary. The Colts also struggled to defend tight ends last season and did not make any key moves to their front seven. So if Eric Ebron (lower right leg) is healthy enough to start for Detroit, he could be sneaky play.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '