Partial
01-21-2008, 10:58 PM
When Ben Roethlisberger announced his off-season wish list, he officially became one of you. Rather, one of yinz.
Roethlisberger can wish all he wants, but the Steelers are not going to re-sign Alan Faneca. They’re not going to add a big wide receiver of any pedigree unless he’s available in the draft. Yinzer Nation can wish all it wants, but the Steelers are not going to alter the way they do things.
That’s with one notable exception: Big Ben will get a contract extension that includes $32 million or so in guaranteed money. Much as they would like to, the Steelers can’t escape that facet of NFL reality. To keep the big-time quarterback, you’ve got to splash the big-time cash. I just hope a defibrillator is handy when Dan Rooney is handed the pen.
Otherwise, it will be lack of business as usual. The Steelers will build through the draft, and any free agents they sign will be marginal.
Kevin Colbert is a good general manager — within the context of what the Steelers want him to do. Colbert shops at the dollar store. He gets an occasional good buy, like safety Ryan Clark.
The talk-show crowd is clamoring for the Steelers to yank 6-foot-4 Jacksonville receiver Ernest Wilford out of the free-agent pool. Despite a modest career and a modest 45 catches this season, however, Wilford will draw a fair amount of interest, and the Steelers won’t compete for him.
Adding a receiver would be a good idea. To maximize the investment in Roethlisberger, the Steelers need to maximize his weaponry, or at least upgrade it to average. Hines Ward is 32 and sidelined by wear-and-tear a bit more every year. Nate Washington drops darn near as many as he catches.
But if the Steelers get a receiver through free agency, it will be someone on Cedrick Wilson’s level. So why bother? They’ve already got Cedrick Wilson. Also, adding a receiver with tangible talent would just cause Ward — the self-proclaimed leader of the wideouts — to pop off about lack of respect, and how many times does he have to prove himself ... I just can’t go through that again.
Fact is, the logical thing for the Steelers to do would be to reinforce and realign their receiving corps with an eye toward Ward sliding to the No. 3 spot, to the slot. That role might prolong his career. At this point, less would be more for Ward. But why accept reasonable thinking when you can get what you want through whining, or the threat thereof? Ask any spoiled seventh-grade girl.
To maximize the investment in Roethlisberger, the Steelers also have to make sure he doesn’t die. Since Ben has cut down on motorcycle accidents, that leaves the offensive line to consider.
Colbert was recently quoted as saying that the offensive line is not necessarily a glaring need. That sounds absurd, but what else is Colbert supposed to say?
If Colbert says, “Boy, our line stinks” — what then? The Steelers aren’t going to replace the whole offensive line. Some of this season’s line is going to have to play next season, so perhaps it’s best to not drain them of the little bit of confidence they might yet happen to have. Colbert says what’s best for the team. If you ever bothered to think it through, you’d be happy about that.
That said, that line really does stink, and is losing its best player and leader besides. The Steelers broke their usual do-little free-agent policy by signing center Jeff Hartings in 2001. If an offensive lineman of Hartings’ ilk is available ... wait a minute, one is. But the Steelers are letting Faneca go.
That said, I don’t blame the Steelers. Giving a guard big money just doesn’t make sense. Cleveland did that last off-season, giving Eric Steinbach a deal that included $17 million in guarantees.
I analyze the NFL via one basic tenet: If the Browns did it, it must be wrong.
There’s already a clamor for Roethlisberger to help the Steelers retain Faneca by giving the wayward guard some of his money. That clamor is exactly why Ben shouldn’t have opened his yap regarding the Faneca situation.
At any rate, it’s Roethlisberger’s responsibility to get his. Period. The Steelers are currently projected to be $18.61 million under the NFL salary cap next season. They have the money to keep Faneca with no help from Roethlisberger.
So, with this column mercifully wrapping up, it’s time to bunker in for the Steelers off-season. Aside from the necessities — the draft and Roethlisberger’s contract extension — absolutely nothing of any interest will occur. But that won’t stop the Steelers from being featured in some manufactured way on the front page of every local sports page, and in the opening moments of every local newscast.
Roethlisberger can wish all he wants, but the Steelers are not going to re-sign Alan Faneca. They’re not going to add a big wide receiver of any pedigree unless he’s available in the draft. Yinzer Nation can wish all it wants, but the Steelers are not going to alter the way they do things.
That’s with one notable exception: Big Ben will get a contract extension that includes $32 million or so in guaranteed money. Much as they would like to, the Steelers can’t escape that facet of NFL reality. To keep the big-time quarterback, you’ve got to splash the big-time cash. I just hope a defibrillator is handy when Dan Rooney is handed the pen.
Otherwise, it will be lack of business as usual. The Steelers will build through the draft, and any free agents they sign will be marginal.
Kevin Colbert is a good general manager — within the context of what the Steelers want him to do. Colbert shops at the dollar store. He gets an occasional good buy, like safety Ryan Clark.
The talk-show crowd is clamoring for the Steelers to yank 6-foot-4 Jacksonville receiver Ernest Wilford out of the free-agent pool. Despite a modest career and a modest 45 catches this season, however, Wilford will draw a fair amount of interest, and the Steelers won’t compete for him.
Adding a receiver would be a good idea. To maximize the investment in Roethlisberger, the Steelers need to maximize his weaponry, or at least upgrade it to average. Hines Ward is 32 and sidelined by wear-and-tear a bit more every year. Nate Washington drops darn near as many as he catches.
But if the Steelers get a receiver through free agency, it will be someone on Cedrick Wilson’s level. So why bother? They’ve already got Cedrick Wilson. Also, adding a receiver with tangible talent would just cause Ward — the self-proclaimed leader of the wideouts — to pop off about lack of respect, and how many times does he have to prove himself ... I just can’t go through that again.
Fact is, the logical thing for the Steelers to do would be to reinforce and realign their receiving corps with an eye toward Ward sliding to the No. 3 spot, to the slot. That role might prolong his career. At this point, less would be more for Ward. But why accept reasonable thinking when you can get what you want through whining, or the threat thereof? Ask any spoiled seventh-grade girl.
To maximize the investment in Roethlisberger, the Steelers also have to make sure he doesn’t die. Since Ben has cut down on motorcycle accidents, that leaves the offensive line to consider.
Colbert was recently quoted as saying that the offensive line is not necessarily a glaring need. That sounds absurd, but what else is Colbert supposed to say?
If Colbert says, “Boy, our line stinks” — what then? The Steelers aren’t going to replace the whole offensive line. Some of this season’s line is going to have to play next season, so perhaps it’s best to not drain them of the little bit of confidence they might yet happen to have. Colbert says what’s best for the team. If you ever bothered to think it through, you’d be happy about that.
That said, that line really does stink, and is losing its best player and leader besides. The Steelers broke their usual do-little free-agent policy by signing center Jeff Hartings in 2001. If an offensive lineman of Hartings’ ilk is available ... wait a minute, one is. But the Steelers are letting Faneca go.
That said, I don’t blame the Steelers. Giving a guard big money just doesn’t make sense. Cleveland did that last off-season, giving Eric Steinbach a deal that included $17 million in guarantees.
I analyze the NFL via one basic tenet: If the Browns did it, it must be wrong.
There’s already a clamor for Roethlisberger to help the Steelers retain Faneca by giving the wayward guard some of his money. That clamor is exactly why Ben shouldn’t have opened his yap regarding the Faneca situation.
At any rate, it’s Roethlisberger’s responsibility to get his. Period. The Steelers are currently projected to be $18.61 million under the NFL salary cap next season. They have the money to keep Faneca with no help from Roethlisberger.
So, with this column mercifully wrapping up, it’s time to bunker in for the Steelers off-season. Aside from the necessities — the draft and Roethlisberger’s contract extension — absolutely nothing of any interest will occur. But that won’t stop the Steelers from being featured in some manufactured way on the front page of every local sports page, and in the opening moments of every local newscast.