Pittsburgh Steelers

By James Pete more…) The Pittsburgh Steelers have a long-line of outstanding wide-receivers and linebackers since their vaunted dynasty days. This season, two Steelers are primed to join the greats of the Steelers’ fraternity with break-out seasons. Wide Receiver Santonio Holmes and linebacker L...

By James Pete Let’s hope that the right moves are made with the guys we have. If they are, this line may just be better than we think. The foundation of any good football team is the battle fought in the trenches, and for the Pittsburgh Steelers, that will be the key to their season in 2008. There are many questi...

On the Bubble: Sean Mahan - The Steel Tradition

Is Anthony “Booger” McFarland still a realistic option? - The Steel Tradition

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By James Pete Thanks to the near 1,500 fans that voted in the last Steel Tradition poll, ‘The face of the Pittsburgh Steelers.’ Only two Steelers garnered double-digit votes, and it’s doubtful that either one of them were a surprise to anyone. ‘Mean’ Joe Greene came in second place with 31% of the vote and...

By James Pete If you were to believe most of the pundits out there in the ‘media-world,’ the Cleveland Browns are going to be the best team in the AFC North. It’s actually interesting reading the articles that are out there, as most of them talk about how good the Browns are going to be, then throw in the prov...

By James Pete Yes, Jones would be an ideal back-up for the Steelers once healthy. At the same time, where would he fit? Who would he step in front of? He certainly wouldn’t step in front of Parker, who is the certain starter. He wouldn’t step in front of Mendenhall, who is a very similar back as Jones, but heal...

By James Pete Mike noted earlier that tailback Najeh Davenport was released by the Pittsburgh Steelers yesterday. With Davenport officially out of the picture, the Steelers’ backfield becomes pretty clear-cut to start the year. With Willie Parker once again healthy, Rashard Mendenhall coming in a...

Steelers plan to use Mendenhall - CBSSports.com

Mendenhall Looking Like a Good Fit for Steelers Offense - Steelers Gab

More: (Former) Denver Press Club Fantasy Football League Player | The FanHouse - AOL | Fantasy Football Mastermind

By James Pete Steeler coach Mike Tomlin has allowed Polamalu to skip all spring workouts while he’s rehabbing and getting into shape with Marinovich (he attended minicamp, but didn’t participate), and Troy won’t report to Steelers camp until training camp starts in July.

By James Pete The Steelers won their first game, then things went south quickly. The Steelers were 1-6 when they traveled to Chicago to play the vaunted Chicago Bears, and a defense led by the meanest player in the game, Dick Butkus. It wasn’t a pretty game for the Steelers, as the Bears’ offense scored at w...

By James Pete The only question remaining is who do you think qualifies as the one guy that stands out? Is it a hall-of-famer such as Terry Bradshaw, “Mean” Joe Greene or Jack Lambert? Is it a blue collar guy such as Rocky Bleier, who overcame severe injuries in Vietnam, and still bleeds black and gold to t...

By James Pete Former Steelers’ quarterback Terry Bradshaw admitted to steroid use to “get away the aches and the speed of healing” during the dynasty years in the 1970’s, while being interviewed by Sports Illustrated’s Dan Patrick during his radio show recently.

By Mike Frazer Jones has been a fixture on the Bengals’ line for several years and, aside from injuries, has been a starter since his rookie year. That kind of longevity is indicative of his level of play. Smith, too, has been a key component in the Steelers’ line, but back problems have degraded his play. He’...

By Mike Frazer Playing as the 3rd receiver in the Steelers’ “run-first, pass-only-when-we-have-to offense,” Weegie hauled in 79 balls for 1,377 yards in 11 TD’s in his career. His best game may have come against Green Bay in 1986. In that game, Weegie returned to Chick-Fil-A Bowl form and caught 6 passes...

By Mike Frazer White may best be remembered for his performance against the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl IX, the Steelers’ first, when he returned to the team from the hospital still suffering from pneumonia.  He scored the first points of the game, taking down quarterback Fran Tarkenton in the end z...

Ex-Steelers DE Dwight White dead at 58 - Officialsportsbetting.com

Former Steelers DE Dwight White dead at 58 - RTSports

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By Mike Frazer Slowest week in Steelers’ history? Maybe, and with good reason: the Penguins are in the Stanley Cup Finals (and it only took until the third game to play like they belong there) and the Steelers have been quiet. While the lack of good news is maddening (not Maddening, or else I’d be sitting he...

By Mike Frazer Mike Florio of the Sporting News may raise the ire of a number of Steeler fans. Not because he says the Steelers will fail to make the playoffs — everyone is entitled to their opinions, and playoff fortunes ebb and flow as the years pass anyway — but because he claims the “Steelers of the free-a...

By Mike Frazer Hartwig comes to Pittsburgh officially as a guard, but make no mistake: he’s here to play center. He has played the role well both in Carolina and in Tennessee, and comes to the team with a longer history of playing at center than Mahan.

Agent for McFarland Thinks Steelers Should Sign Him - Steelers Gab

Is Anthony “Booger” McFarland still a realistic option? - The Steel Tradition

More: Behind the Steel Curtain | Pittsburgh Tribune-Review | Fantasy Football Mastermind | articles.lancasteronline.com

By James Pete To e-mail Steel Tradition about the Steelers, and possibly be included in a future wail, MAIL, send it to steeltradition@mvn.com, or pojorisin@gmail.com. We look forward to your e-mails! Here’s a look at some of the e-mail I’ve received about the Steelers since the 2008 NFL draft. One focus...

By James Pete As long as he can make it out to the huddle, he’ll get the job done. The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted Texas wide receiver Limas Sweed in the second round of last month’s 2008 NFL draft. The Sweed selection is believe to be based on Ben Roethlisberger’s request that the Steelers add a tall receiv...

By James Pete It’s a gamble worth taking. On June 4th, Anthony “Booger” McFarland will hold a private workout for NFL scouts. You can count on the Pittsburgh Steelers being more than just a presence. The Pittsburgh Steelers appeared to have two large needs coming into the 2008 NFL draft: the offensive and...

Agent for McFarland Thinks Steelers Should Sign Him - Steelers Gab

On the Bubble: Sean Mahan - The Steel Tradition

More: Behind the Steel Curtain | Pittsburgh Tribune-Review | Fantasy Football Mastermind | articles.lancasteronline.com

By Mike Frazer In two of the last three drafts, the Steelers have selected arguably the best wide receiver prospect: Santonio Holmes in 2006, and Limas Sweed just last month.  Coupled with Hines Ward, Holmes has become one of the top downfield threats in the league, leading all receivers in yards per cat...

By James Pete The Pittsburgh Steelers signed Mewelde Moore earlier this offseason to a three-year deal. Presumably, Moore was signed to be the Steelers’ primary return man, and their third down back. Moore probably also took note of Willie Parker’s health, and figured he’d be the first option in the St...

By James Pete Last season the Pittsburgh Steelers had allowed defensive leader Joey Porter to leave via free agency. The move left a rather large gap in the defense that the Pittsburgh Steelers needed to address. Enter first round pick Lawrence Timmons.

By James Pete Tape that. It’s now been confirmed, the New England Patriots videotaped the Steelers’ sidelines during the 2002 AFC Championship game. Now, I could get into a long and substantial diatribe about why the Patriots should be struck off the face of the earth, and all their 2002 earthly glory sh...

By James Pete Dennis Dixon had just had a game of pool interrupted by Pittsburgh Steelers’ head coach Mike Tomlin with the Pittsburgh Steelers on the clock. Dixon was about to become a Pittsburgh Steeler. Pittsburgh was watching. Now, Bill Cowher is gone.

By James Pete Welcome to the team Mr. Sweed, you’re surely welcome. The Pittsburgh Steelers coveted wide receiver Limas Sweed long before they selected the 6′4″ senior from Texas in the 2nd round of the 2008 draft. Steelers’ director of football operations, Kevin Colbert, had penciled in Sweed as a pote...

By James Pete He’s got good size, good hands, and can block some. He’s a project though, but Arians like Tight Ends, and Pittsburgh needs them. So there’s a shot, although it’s remote. He’s a dime back, and return specialist. Pittsburgh is obviously going to try a bunch in special teams.

2008 Steelers Roster Predictions - Behind the Steel Curtain

Steelers 53-Man Roster - Part 3 - Behind the Steel Curtain

By James Pete Dennis Dixon, QB, Oregon:  I don’t question Dixon, he could be an incredible star in this league.  Pittsburgh is salivating at having the new slash.  I can’t lie, after a day of sitting with this, I am as well.  Dixon was on his way to the heisman, before his college career ended with a severe kne...

By James Pete Alright, the big names are gone, and the Steelers got two of them.  It’s not an arguable point, however, that the Steelers still have three major needs to address.  Here’s a quick look at several names that the Steelers may be looking at as day two progresses.

By Mike Frazer So, do the Steelers reach a little (not much, though) and take a running back, and then fill the more pressing needs in later rounds?  The logical decision here is to improve the line before the running game; even the best big backs struggle behind a bad line (see Jerome Bettis in 2003 with ju...

By James Pete There’s been some mention over the past week that the Pittsburgh Steelers may go after that big back that they’ve lacked since Jerome Bettis retired. A lot of the discussion has been based on Kevin Colbert’s sentiments that he would take the best player available. On that list of potential b...

By James Pete On the outside looking in, it sounded good. Cedrick Wilson did a bad thing. Pittsburgh, not wanting the NFL to frown upon the Steelers newfound Bengals-like press, let Wilson walk. It also allowed the Steelers to sign Carolina center Justin Hartwig. Of course, weeks earlier, James Harrison...

By Mike Frazer So this past January, the Steelers had a tenuous 29-28 lead over the Jaguars in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. The Jags faced a fourth-and-two, inside two minutes to go. Quarterback David Garrard proceeds to run for 31 yards. Steelers — and every fan watching — complained immediately af...

By Mike Frazer While not truly a free agency signing, this is important here because it shows the team has no desire to let its franchise quarterback even come close to free agency.  Ben Roethlisberger is a star in this league, and the front office is paying him like one. His eight-year, $102 million contra...

By Mike Frazer Like just about every other offensive starter for the Steelers in 2007, Carey Davis had a roller-coaster season.  His production on the ground (17 car., 68 yards, 4.0 yards/car.) was nearly half of Dan Kreider’s career production of 144 yards, accumulated over eight years.  He was more than a...

By James A comedy of Steelers’ mistakes tonight at Heinz Field allowed the Jacksonville Jaguars to advance to the division round of the playoffs by defeating the Steelers 31-29. At this point in the game, Pittsburgh found their rhythm, looking to Hines Ward and Heath Miller, as Roeth led the Steel...

By James The Steelers have to establish the run.  Is Najeh Davenport a good back?  I think most Steelers’ fans have wondered that since Bill Cowher signed him to be the big back that the Steelers lacked after Jerome Bettis retired.  He has shown flashes of being that very back, but nobody really knows...

By James Coming Soon: Steelers Starters–Tomorrow’s pregame and liveblog! In December of 2004, I found myself roaming in a place called Jacksonville, as the Pittsburgh Steelers faced off against the Jacksonville Jaguars.  In another one of ‘those’ games, the Steelers held on to win the footbal...

By Tony Ferrante To the Steelers, however, emotion for most of this year has worked squarely against them. So I’m going to lay it out there to say I think the Steelers have a very good chance to beat the Jaguars on Saturday night, a much better chance than many others are giving them.

By Tony Ferrante Quite the downer yesterday in Ravensland.  My son and I attended the Steelers/Ravens tilt in Baltimore on Sunday.  Of course, hindsight being 20/20, it really turned out to be a meaningless game for the Steelers.  I’d have much rather have attended a game there that actually meant somethin...

By Mike Frazer There’s not a lot at stake for the Steelers this week. The fact of the matter is that, no matter how hard they try with backups at key positions, the Steelers’ ultimate playoff fate rests in the hands of the San Diego Chargers. Win or lose, Mike Tomlin’s gang cannot achieve anything beyond the f...

By James Terry Bradshaw’s career has seemed to diminish over the years. 1978 was one of his better years. He set the Steelers’ record for TD passes that year, with 28 (passed this year by Roethlisberger), and completed 56% of his passes (many were deep balls for the end zone). He was the leader of this te...

By Mike Boyko Only one regular season game remains on the Pittsburgh Steelers 2007 schedule and that is against the rival Baltimore Ravens.  The Ravens crawl into week 17 with a mark of 4-11, which is a drastic difference from one season ago when they won 13 football games and were crowed the AFC Nort...

By Mike Boyko Roethlisberger also has to get rid of the ball a little quicker.  While last season quick decisions resulted in bad interceptions, he has to find a way to get the ball out of his hand to avoid sacks.  Adding Verron Haynes to roster will help as he has a knack for picking up the blitz.

By Mike Boyko What do you think the Steelers should do this coming week? Steelers fans around the world got an early Christmas present on Sunday as the Bengals beat the Browns to help hand the Steelers the AFC North Division title.  Now that the Steelers are officially in the playoffs, the age old questio...

By Mike Boyko Davenport stepped to the forefront in a big way as he slashed the St. Louis defense for 123 yards on 24 touches as he helped the Steelers control the clock for 36:16 of the football game.  The way the Steelers ran Davenport was similar to the way they used Jerome Bettis in the past.  Davenport h...

By James The Steelers are 10-5, and still hold first place in the AFC North. The Pittsburgh Steelers’ offense proved that they were ‘The Greatest Show on Turf,’ at least for one night.  Several members of the Steelers’ offense stepped up tonight, in a game that saw their best offensive player, Willi...

By Mike Boyko The 2007 Pittsburgh Steelers have endured a terrible skid over the last month that dates back to the Sunday afternoon on November 11th that saw them rally to beat the Cleveland Browns on their home field.  The skid of playing mediocre football began then and since the team has gone 2-3.  Can...

By James Now, Bulger, Holt and Jackson are back, and in good health.  Combine that with a game IN St. Louis, Pittsburgh’s penchant for playing bad on the road against bad teams, and Pittsburgh’s 2-game losing streak, and you could have a mix that spells trouble for the Steelers.

On the Bubble: Sean Mahan - The Steel Tradition

Is Anthony “Booger” McFarland still a realistic option? - The Steel Tradition

More: Steelers Gab | Behind the Steel Curtain | Pittsburgh Tribune-Review | Fantasy Football Mastermind | articles.lancasteronline.com

By Tony Ferrante And it goes without saying, you just know that the Baltimore Ravens would love to knock the Steelers down a playoff spot or two.  Who knows, if the Steelers lose to the Jags and the Rams, and the Browns defeat the Bills and Bengals, this could be a game that decides the AFC North title.  Stranger...

By James Finally, it’s time for the game, and for all the talking to end.  The game on the field could be an interesting one.  The New England offense is truly a special unit, and no matter what even the toughest Steelers fans would have you believe, this offense MAY be the best of all time.  They are cer...

By Tony Ferrante Should’ve been an easy coasting to the Super Bowl, eh ??  Not so quickly.  Just as the Steelers were themselves riding a 15 game winning streak going into the AFC Championship game at Heinz Field, the Pats dominated the Steelers, winning 41-27.

By Mike Frazer After starting shaky, both Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh defense both stepped up to the plate.  Roethlisberger essentially hit a stand-up triple, and the defense knocked the ball, and the vaunted Bengals’ offense, right out of the park.

By Tony Ferrante Heinz Field is a great place to watch a football game for the fans, particularly in comparison to Three Rivers Stadium.  Three Rivers, along with the similiar “cookie-cutter” stadiums built at the same time in Cincinnati, St. Louis, and Philadelphia, had astroturf that tore up dozens of k...

By James Later, in the second half, Pittsburgh sustained another drive, and Roeth hit Jerame Tuman in the right side of the endzone, for a nine-yard TD pass.  It’s the third tight end to catch a touchdown for Pittsburgh, and the fifth TE TD overall.  Tuman was in the game due to Matt Spaeth’s quad injur...