It’s been a crazy last couple of weeks for the Steelers and the fans. The untimely exodus from the playoffs, the Bruce Arians saga, and now Ben Roethlisberger talking to the media while at the Pro Bowl in Hawaii. Everybody has their opinions on what’s going to happen but the fact is nobody knows the inner workings of the Steelers except for the front office and coaches. The players know more than the fans ever will but fortunately they don’t normally take their internal business public to a point where it becomes a major distraction usually. The Steeler way has always been to deal with team issues inside the confines of the team and give the media as little as possible in the way of details. That is certainly the case now as they face one of the most important off seasons in the last decade. The salary cap issue, old players, injuries, coaching changes, it’s all well documented but I think we need to really get a handle on the talk that there are internal issues between the Rooney’s, Mike Tomlin and his players.
We all knew this was coming, Ben Roethlisberger was going to say something at the Pro Bowl this week in regards to the Bruce Arians retirement/release/”I had to leave” situation. As was reported this morning by the Pittsburgh Trib, Ben had this to say about new change coming at Offensive Coordinator:
“When I get back, I’m going to go up to Mr. Rooney’s office and ask him what he wants from me, what he wants from this offense, because I think that’s a viable question for him,” Roethlisberger told the Tribune-Review on Thursday following an AFC practice at Hickam Air Force Base. “He’s our owner and our boss, so I really would like to know kind of what he wants and where he sees our offense going because I’d like to tell him where I see us going.”
”We feel like we are really close to being an elite offense,” Roethlisberger said. “For your leader to be gone is kind of a shocker, but you’ve got to be ready for whatever the Rooney’s and coach (Mike) Tomlin decide it our next step.”
Surfing around twitter tonight I came across a tweet from Hines where he talks about making the list of the top 20 players players for any era according to ESPN: Here is the writeup on Hines (#8) and also James Harrison who also made the list (#10)
ESPN.com is unveiling its “Any Era” team this week which features 20 current players with the toughness to play in any period of NFL history. The team was assembled by votes from 20 Hall of Fame players (here’s a full explanation of the project).
Coming in at No. 8 on the Any Era Team is Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward. Is there really any other wide receiver that would define “Any Era” more than Ward? You can love him or hate him, but you don’t ever want to be a defensive back on a running play with him on the field. ESPN’s John Clayton put it best when he called Ward a “ruthless blocker” and “a tough player who just happens to catch the football.”
Championship teams in any sport at any level will almost always have those one or two guys who are considered ‘stars.’ Magic and Kareem, Mario and Jaromir, Greene and Lambert and Ruth and Gehrig come to mind. Our current Pittsburgh Steelers squad is loaded with guys who could be labeled as ‘stars.’ Troy Polamalu, Hines Ward and Ben Roethlisberger are each viable candidates.
While great teams are typically driven by the all-stars that lead them, there are guys in the shadows that often go unseen. Guys who do the dirty work and are willing to do whatever it takes for the betterment of the team. In basketball and baseball, those players typically stand out because of the fewer numbers on the field of play than in football where many players often go unnoticed especially those on the offensive and defensive lines.
If there’s one player this offseason that the Steelers can ill afford to lose, my money is on Casey Hampton. It’s not that the Big Snack is a free agent, because he’s still under contract for another season yet. It comes down the team just not having a suitable replacement at starter for him and at this point only 1 player in reserve, Steve McLendon. Casey may not be the player he used to be, he’s been in the league since 2001, but he can still hog up the Center and Guard pretty darn well. He is key to the Steelers run defense without question. There are pressing needs on the offensive line & middle linebacker as well as general depth at most positions on the team that will take priority with the premium round picks the team will have this coming draft. If they can keep Hampton around for another season they can address those needs and then look for either a late round gem to groom for the future or spend a top pick in the 2013 draft. Many scenarios can still play out yet but NT is a position that will be addressed either with Hampton’s return or in the draft.
One of the biggest complaints about the 2011 Steelers, besides the injuries and poor offensive line play was the redzone scoring deficiencies. You can’t always hit the endzone from 50 yds. away so when you get inside the 20 you better make it count. The way today’s NFL offenses are, everybody is passing and eating up yards like crazy and teams aren’t afraid to throw the ball close to the goal line. You take what they give you and be creative, it’s just common sense. If they stack the line then just throw it, 6 points is 6 points. This business of we’re going to pound it in and make a statement is out of date. If you have weapons like Heath Miller then use them. Call a Tackle eligible play and actually throw it to Starks or Gilbert. Let’s face it NOBODY would be expecting that from the Steelers. The more you keep teams off balance the better chances you have of scoring.
Hoke sustained his eventual season ending neck injury against Jacksonville in week 6. 
He is best friends with fellow NT Casey Hampton and was a mentor for Steve McLendon, also playing the same position. Near the end of the season it was assumed that he would more than likely retire after having the surgery and not being able to play or work with the team any longer.
You can tweet out your memories of Chris Hoke using the #HokeMemories hash tag. I’m sure Hokie will enjoy reading of all the great memories the fans have of seeing him play for the the Black & Gold.
I can personally remember watching him at training camp, he was always one of the first ones out onto the field. Watching jump on the sleds and just completely stand them up with ease time after time was enjoyable for me. He always had that “lunch bucket” attitude about him. Just come to work, do your job, support your team and move on to the next one. Continue reading »
According to our friend, Chuck Finder at CBS Sports, he tweeted that Steelers Defensive End Brett Keisel will not require surgery for groin injury he suffered in the wildcard loss to Denver. There was concern after the season is over that he may have needed surgery for what Coach Mike Tomlin called a “significant groin injury”. It’s good news that Da Beard will be able to seemingly recover with rest and rehab during the offseason.
Radio wrap-up: Line coach Sean Kugler told KDKA-FM he has no interest in being offensive coordinator, which leaves WR coach Randy Fichtner as the remaining internal candidate. And DE Brett Keisel said on WDVE-FM he doesn’t need groin surgery and he doesn’t expect NT Casey Hampton to require knee surgery.
SA RSS Feed
Follow us!
Like Us!
Digg Us!
Our Videos
