What to do with Ward

[jnes1216]

Lets face it, as much as I love the guy, his playing time has dropped considerably and next year if he plays, it will probably be less. He's had a stellar career and should probably retire this offseason.

With a new OC coming in, it seems like good timing. Do the Steelers FO try to coax Ward into retirement? If so, hopefully they learned from the BA situation and handle it in the media much better, maybe wait until late in the offseason to announce it.

If Haley and any other outside candidates fall through and RF is promoted to OC, does this leave a spot open for Ward in the coaching dept?

[Mr. Goosemahn]

Lets face it, as much as I love the guy, his playing time has dropped considerably and next year if he plays, it will probably be less. He's had a stellar career and should probably retire this offseason.

With a new OC coming in, it seems like good timing. Do the Steelers FO try to coax Ward into retirement? If so, hopefully they learned from the BA situation and handle it in the media much better, maybe wait until late in the offseason to announce it.

If Haley and any other outside candidates fall through and RF is promoted to OC, does this leave a spot open for Ward in the coaching dept?

The organization won't get rid of him, IMO. Bruce Arians wanted him gone since 2010, supposedly, but the FO (Rooney's too, in all likelihood), kept him. I think he'll have to take a massive paycut though, close to vet minimum, to stay with the team.

With Cotchery being a free agent and a legitimate concern that Wallace could be taken away, he'll probably be asked to restructure.

[OldSchool58]

With Cotchery being a free agent and a legitimate concern that Wallace could be taken away, he'll probably be asked to restructure.

I agree. Ward would be worth the money if all he did was stay around and help guide the young guys......sort of like what Ray Lewis will do. He'll take a pay cut because he's loyal and doesn't want to be a part of anything that isn't Pittsburgh football. We can't just dump guys who have played their asses off for us for years. Anybody who lays Ed Reed out like a prison bi**h is my hero any day.

[BlitzburghRockCity]

Rumors have been tossed around that since Arians is no longer with the team, that may make Ward's decision to stick around for less money, easier. I'm sure he wasn't happy with the lack of playing time and since Arians was calling the plays, you can see the correlation there.

If it comes down to eitehr Cotchery or Ward, you have to keep Cotchery and see if you can ink him to a 3 yr. deal or something.

[MDSteel15]

Why does it have to come down to one or the other? We only have 4 under contract! We keep 6 WRs usually and all that needs to be done is re-structure Hines' contract, re-sign Cotch and draft a nice young project in the mid to late rounds....

[LatrobePA]

What can Ward offer other than his name? Not much, sorry gang we've kept old stiffs for too long as it is, I'd send him packing...

[connecticutsteel]

It pains me to think Ward could be in a different uniform next year but if he wants to play he may have to . The good news is Cotchery wants to come back which means he won't just burn out the door

[steelspikes]

Encourage him to retire. He's got enough records already. Maybe he could open up a dancing salon.

[Real Deal Steel]

What can Ward offer other than his name? Not much, sorry gang we've kept old stiffs for too long as it is, I'd send him packing...

In football, for a franchise to continually be good, hard decisions have to be made and someone isn't going to be happy when those decisions are made. That someone in this
case should be Ward.

He can't play any more. It's as simple as that. When the 49ers let Rice go, the philosophy was, " It's better to let a guy go a year too early then a year too late." And I agree with this philosophy. If Ward still wants to play, he can go do it on another team.

We have 4 good WR in Wallace, Brown, Sanders and Cotchery and that's enough. And considering we are trying to refocus and get the running game back on track, we reeeeaaally don't need Ward.

Ultimately, just like in every sport, youth must be served. It's a cruel part of the game..but it's part of the game non the less.

Ward will always be welcomed her in Pittsburgh and treated like the stud that he was. But his time is up as a player.

[RIVERS OF STEEL]

The team needs the money for fresh meat. It is the NFL. everyone in the games know's when it's time. Hines it's time. Thanks for the memories.