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Thursday, March 05, 2009

Steelers close in on Fox

Linebacker Keyaron Fox, a key member of the Steelers' special teams unit, is close to signing a new deal with the team.

Other than that, there's not a lot of free agent action happening with the Steelers.

But that's nothing new for the team.

Other than a few quick signings over the years – Jeff Hartings, Kevin Greene, Duce Staley – the Steelers are more content to let things happen, allow the market to settle and the big spenders to finish their business and then sift through what's left.

© In other news, the Steelers have apparently brought wide receiver Martin Nance back into the fold, though they didn't announce it.

Nance, who played at Miami (Ohio) with Ben Roethlisberger, wasn't among the group of players signed after the Super Bowl.

But it appears that after Nate Washington signed with Tennessee and then offensive coordinator Bruce Arians talked about him being a possible replacement, they brought him back.

22 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is great, he was a valuable member of the special teams and one of the reasons our punt and kick coverage was much better this year. From what I have seen of him in the preseason and such, I feel he would do an admirable job if he had to fill in as a starter for a few games in the event of an injury to a starting LB.

Anonymous said...

Glad to hear about Fox for sure.

As for nance, I looked the same day Arians made those comments & Nance was listed on the roster at Steelers.com so I don't think he was brought back after they lost Nate. In fact I just looked at Scout.com's Steelers Transactions page & they show Martin Nance being signed by the Steelers on Feb. 18th. Interesting that I didn't see that reported anywhere, but that's what Scout says.

Anonymous said...

glad to hear they signed Fox. good backup, good special teams player

next backup we need to sign is Essex

Anonymous said...

Hey Dale...Any thoughts on moving Colon inside to RG and either drafting or bringing in a RT (Would love to see Khalif Barnes....Starks, Kemo, Hartings (Mack) Colon, Barnes)

HACK

Patrick said...

Ok, I'll do it, I'll be the one to bring up TO, since someone had to

(I know its a completely pointless talk but its the downtime between FA and the draft, might as well begin the beating of the dead horse)

so, DALE! any chance of TO coming to the Steelers a la Randy Moss to the Patriots two offseasons ago. Theres a veteran 3rd WR for ya.

(NO way in hell does it happen) la la la la la

Anonymous said...

What is the real difference in the desired physical characteristics of a guard versus a tackle? Short arms vs. long, I get. What else?

Anonymous said...

tackles are bigger than guards

Ben said...

I may be wrong, but I think in a tackle you're looking for a longer, lankier guy. Tall and athletic with enough bulk to hold off a DE. Good footwork is especially important for dealing with speed rushers.

In guards, you're looking for a mauler. A guy who can get ahold of his guy and drive him back 5 yards. They tend to be shorter with more bulk.

Think of the difference between defensive end and defensive tackle. Tackles deal with ends, guards deal with tackles.

Dale Lolley said...

I've got a better chance of playing for the Steelers next year than T.O. does.

As for Nance, the team never announced he had been re-signed.

Tackles are taller with long arms and quick feet. They've got to be able to play on the edge.
Guards can get away with shorter arms because they're playing in a smaller space.

The Colon at guard has been brought up many times. The coaching staff seems to think he's more effective at tackle. I think he'd be better at guard - and so do some in the front office - but right now, he's their right tackle.

Dale Lolley said...
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Dale Lolley said...
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Anonymous said...

"and so do some in the front office"

Thats what I was wanting to hear.

HACK

Patrick said...

Dale if I ran a team, I would definitely sign you. First, your just as fast as Matt Spaeth and now you have a better chance of making the team than TO? Are you more of an H-Back type?

I'm just fooling around and having fun. It is funny.

Dale Lolley said...

I'm more of a slog-back, cross between a slot-back and a hog.

Anonymous said...

It is really disturbing to hear that our FO has more football sense than the coaching staff. Arians/Zerlien need to go but winning the SB sure softens the blow of keeping them.

Anonymous said...

Yeah, though the FO is who gave a big contract extension to Kendall Simmons. Even the most casual of fans knew that was a stupid move.

Anonymous said...

So, when the FA market does "die down," what, if any, remaining FA's out there could you theoretically see Pittsburgh going after?

I know a lot of that depends on what happens with B Mac and how much cap space is left, but who could you see in B&G, in your opinion?

Dale Lolley said...

I still like Chris Carr, the CB/KR from Tennessee. He would add CB depth while finally giving them an NFL-caliber return man.

And I've laid out a number of the veteran receivers I feel they should look at for competition with Limas Sweed for the No. 3 job as well.

The Steelers don't, historically, just hand a job to a young guy without somebody to push him.

Anonymous said...

say we dont sign Chris Carr and we dont sign another receiver

what if we drafted Percy Harvin at #32? he has got to be a good return man

(I still prefer linemen w our 1st few picks, just a thought)

Unknown said...

Have they brought in Chris Carr for a visit yet? Most reports I see say that the Steelers haven't brought in any FA prospects yet, but I remember you saying they were going to visit with him.

Anonymous said...

Need a 4th WR? After Hines, Santonio, Limas.... draft another.

Ramses Barden - Cal Poly. 6' 6" 227 lbs. End of round 2.

Unless of course there is a stud OL available.....

Anonymous said...

Ramses Barden put up some really good numbers this year, but looked poor at the Senior Bowl against better competition. Didn't stand out at the combine either (at least in a good way). No way is he worth a 2nd rounder. More likely a 4th round or later. And no value as a returner which would be very beneficial to the team & was a gaping hole in the team last season.

Question for Dale: any interest on the Steelers part in Justin Miller? His value as a returner alone is worth a look.