Steelers planning off-season workouts
Some Pittsburgh Steelers players are thinking of holding informal offseason workouts in the event of a lockout next month. Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger and WR Hines Ward told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that the pair have discussed such plans so that the young wide receivers on the Steelers roster can continue to practice.
In the event of a lockout, players will not be allowed at team facilities to either work out or to practice. Several teams have been discussing the possibility of getting together in the offseason in order to stay fresh and continue to work on timing issues.
The Steelers have a trio of very talented wide receiver that will continue to only get better with practice. Mike Wallace, Emmanuel Sanders and Antonio Brown all showed tremendous promise on the field this season for Pittsburgh.
Teams start handing out franchise tags, will the Pittsburgh Steelers place one on LaMarr Woodley?
Several teams this morning have placed franchise tags on key players, will the Pittsburgh Steelers place the franchise tag on LaMarr Woodley? Woodley will be a free agent whenever the free agency period ultimately starts and after four seasons with the Steelers, he has become a dominant force on defense. His career totals include 186 tackles, seven forced fumbles, three interceptions, but where he excels is rushing the passer. He has 39 career sacks.
The designation of the franchise tag this season, is nothing more than an insurance protection for the respective teams in case there is a new collective bargaining agreement put in place before the expiration of the current agreement. Regardless of what ever designation teams place on current players, all titles will be null and void with the expiration of the current CBA on March 4th.
The Philadelphia Eagles placed the franchise title on QB Michael Vick and the New England Patriots used the same title on OL Logan Mankins this morning. Several other players are expected to do the same with key free agents. The franchise designation allows the player to receive a one year salary equal to the top five salaries in the league at that position. Woodley, 26, earned $550,000.00 in 2010 and whether he receives a new contract or plays for one season with the franchise designation, will be playing for significantly more in 2011.
Steelers defender to go under the knife on Monday
Pittsburgh Steelers LB James Harrison is set for surgery on his shoulder on Monday according to NFL.com. The LB hit Twitter on Friday, saying that believed his injury will take 4-weeks to heal. Surgery at this time is most likely the best time for Harrison to undergo the procedure.
If there is an owner’s lockout on March 4th, as currently expected, Harrison would have to pay for his own surgery. And with the recovery time being reported at 4-6 weeks, Harrison should be ready to go for any mini-camps the Steelers might be having.
Harrison said he was disappointed in the way he played in the Super Bowl, saying, “I don’t feel anything but pain”.
Harrison had an exceptionally strong regular season. He recorded 100 tackles, 10.5 sacks, 6 forced fumbles and two interceptions.
There is a reason why Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger isn’t considered in the “elite” discussions.
As the dust settles after the aftermath of Super Bowl XLV, there is now proof of why Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger isn’t considered as an “elite” quarterback in the NFL. Big “Ben” was not the reason the Steelers lost the Super Bowl, however, he contributed a lot of ammunition as to why.
Is Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger a force? Is he tough? Yes. But is he an elite quarterback in the NFL? No. Plain and simple. However, that does not distract from the fact that he is a quality starting quarterback in the league. The Pittsburgh Steelers won four Super Bowls with Terry Bradshaw under center.
The entire concept of what has made the Steelers such a successful franchise is simply the team concept. Steelers fans have to know and understand this. Roethlisberger was rumored to be on his way out of Pittsburgh this past offseason when he was involved in another sexual situation. WR Santino Holmes was shipped out of town for the bargain basement price of a 5th round draft choice.
Heading into Sunday’s game, there was a lot of discussion about whether or not if Ben won another Super Bowl, he could be considered an elite quarterback. Yes, he has been under center for two Super Bowl wins, but what exactly qualifies as “elite” status?
Roethlisberger does not seem to excel on the Super Bowl level with his style of play. His two interceptions yesterday were very costly.
The Steelers are a team which have a storied history of strong defense, a strong offensive running game and a quarterback which manages the game. It was too much this week, heading into the Super Bowl to try to define Ben Roethlisberger, and where he will wind up in the history of the NFL.
This was also a Steelers team which entered the Super Bowl with a glaring weakness, the offensive line. Roethlisberger failed to deliver on the big stage once again, so does Roethlisberger get remembered for his poor performance in this Super Bowl? Or does he get remembered because he took the Steelers to three Super Bowls?
Post season accolades are worth nothing. This year, the great minds at the Associated Press voted overwhelmingly for New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick as coach of the year. Packers head coach Mike McCarthy did not receive one vote, yet despite losing 16 players to injured reserve over the course of the regular season, he won the Super Bowl.
So, should Roethlisberger be considered an elite quarterback or simply a game manager?
Steelers Rashard Mendenhall thinks the Steelers can win without Pouncey
There has been much made this week about the Pittsburgh Steelers taking on the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl XLV without Pro Bowl rookie center Maurkice Pouncey, but RB Rashard Mendenhall believes that Pittsburgh can win without Pouncey. Mendenhall is coming off his best regular season in his three year career with the Steelers, rushing for 1,273 yards and scoring 13 touchdowns this year.
Mendenhall joined ESPN Chicago and spoke about the upcoming game against the Green Bay Packers. You can listen to the entire interview right here.
The running back told the radio hosts that he believes the Pittsburgh Super Bowl experience will be a factor in this afternoon’s game. When asked about the team having an edge because of their experience in the Super Bowl in recent years, “I believe it does. When you’re going through this process you know these older guys have been through it. They don’t really ride the wave of emotions with everything going on”.
The hosts had to ask Mendenhall about playing the game without their sensational rookie center and whether or not his loss would affect the outcome of the Super Bowl. He responded-
“I think it’s tough when you lose a playmaker like Pouncey and all the things he does. He [Pouncey] can get to any level of the defense and block. He [Pouncey] springs so many big plays, but at the same time you know we played the whole AFC Championship almost without him and we were able to be successful, so ugh we feel like we can win no matter who’s in. We’ve had to play games without Ben [Roethlisberger]. We’ve had to play games without Troy [Polamalu]. You know I mean Pouncey that hurts, but we feel like we can win it as a team.”
