Blitz You Very Much

It sounds simple, but doing it is much harder. Still, the San Diego Chargers almost certainly must accomplish it to win today’s AFC championship game. Take the blitz out of Blitzburgh.

The Chargers played here a year ago, losing 16-3, but it’s a much different Pittsburgh than they saw then - even the name has changed. On every street corner, on every sign post, on nearly every storefront window, they’re greeted by Blitzburgh signs.

Even some of the staffers at the Hyatt Hotel downtown where the Chargers are staying are readying them for what they’ll face today from the AFC’s top-rated defense: blitzes from the right, blitzes from the left, blitzes up the middle.

Just check out the T-shirts that Pittsburghers, er Blitzburghers, are wearing: “Welcome to Blitzburgh.” “Blitz This.” “Blitzburgh, Next Stop, Miami.”

The Steelers got to a rattled Browns quarterback Vinny Testaverde only twice despite blitzing 26 times last week, but the cumulative effect of the pressure was visible in Pittsburgh’s 29-9 win. Testaverde was twice rushed into interceptions, and the containment tactics employed by the Browns often left him with only a couple of receivers on any given play.