The big news of the day was not the earthquake that shook the Pittsburgh area and the Steelers' facility on the South Side, but the signing of linebacker Lawrence Timmons.
Timmons got a six-year extension worth $50 million from the Steelers, giving them three linebackers who are earning an average of nearly $10 million per year.
That's a lot of money tied up in the front seven and the defense in general.
But it also means the Steelers have now tied up their two youngest defensive starters – Timmons and LaMarr Woodley – to long-term deals.
That's significant considering they are the only two starters who are under 30.
The team still has yet to do anything with strong safety Troy Polamalu, but may wait on that. Polamalu could be given the franchise tag at the end of the season.
© Speaking of young defensive players, rumblings are getting stronger that Bryant McFadden may be the odd man out when the Steelers start cutting corners – no pun intended.
The thinking is that at this point in his career, McFadden is what he is. He's not going to get any better. And what he is right now is adequate.
But would the defense be any worse off with, say, Keenan Lewis in the starting lineup opposite Ike Taylor?
At least there is the opportunity that Lewis could still get better.
And with a number of young corners on the roster who the Steelers don't want to give up on, it may not make sense to keep McFadden and his higher salary hit and take the chance on somebody signing Crezdon Butler or Cortez Allen if they are released.
© Trai Essex admitted to allowing himself to get out of shape in the offseason, which was a big reason why the Steelers didn't re-sign him.
His signing, even at this late date, could mean the Steelers aren't happy with the progress made by some of their young linemen, particularly Chris Scott.
Scott was given the chance to win the right guard spot and failed badly against Washington. He followed that up with a sub-par effort last week against Philadephia.
There is also some concern that Jonathan Scott's knee injury may not be completely healed when the Steelers roll into Baltimore in Week 1.
Dale,
ReplyDeleteIs there any chance that the Steelers will ink a long term deal with that long-kicking kicker?
Dale I thought the deal was 50 million? that's what I see everywhere but here
ReplyDeleteanyway, IF they cut McFadden it's because they are confident in the young guys, namely Lewis. If he's gone I'll gladly accept it cause we can keep more young guys and make them have an impact immediately
still hope Cortez can go on IR if he doesn't play
*if he doesn't play on saturday
ReplyDeleteThat was a mis-type on my part.
ReplyDeletedale why are you letting these retarded comments on here?
ReplyDeleteI mean come on, look at that first one, wtf is the point of that? Will you please delete these and get rid of the losers.
What a joke.
Stfu Patrick
ReplyDeleteWhy don't u just leave
wah wah wah wah
ReplyDeleteyou little boy, I'll keep posting and you twits can keep me calling me "stupid" cause thats all you got.
Aren't these pointless posts fun?
Lets keep them going until we get moderated. And you'll be the reason.
oh and I like how the kickoff specialist was such a dumb, idiotic idea when teams were running back 1 or 2 kicks a game on the Steelers and it cost them the season.
ReplyDeleteNow that the majority of kickoffs will be touchbacks, or damn near close, its a good idea?
You guys should all be doctors
Dale, really appreciate the blog and enjoy the banter in the comments. Have enjoyed your reporting in the O-R for many years. Keep up the good work! (Would love to see more hunting/fishing articles from you.)
ReplyDeleteBTW, how many Patrick's are there?
Patrick, seriously ignore it and the idiots will leave trust me
ReplyDeleteDale,
ReplyDeleteI think everyone should have to compete for their job to start, particularly Chris K. and B. McFadden. BMac has been dinged up a lot and played below the line this past year as well as being dinged up a lot. I'd much rather cut Willie Gay, but Gay isn't the one with a $2.5M base salary this year.
The Ravens are going all out to beat the Steelers this year by signing McKinney and dealing for Lee Evans. I think both are good moves for them, but I still like the way the Steelers do it. Draft'em, get'em good or get'em gone.
Long Time admirer and reader of this blog but I'm getting tired of all the anonymous and imitation Patrick's trolling here. May I suggest the real Patrick change his name and the rest of us ignore the trolls. I have seen this on other blogs and if you don't feed them they eventually do go away
ReplyDeleteDale is there any chance that the Steelers go after Max Starks once he shows he Healthy can not be happy with Scott and essex.
ReplyDeleteIf Patrick just ignored Patrick, the Patricks would go away. He is inciting them. I hold him responsible.
ReplyDeleteAt this point, I don't see Starks re-signed unless there's another injury.
ReplyDeleteDale do you think Starks could be the answer at FB?
ReplyDeleteUs homer Steelers fans have been asking for a fullback since Krieder left and with completely baseless homerism have been waiting for guys like Frank Summers, Doug Legursky, and that D lineman that was converted to offense a few years ago, to fulfill our dream of "smash mouth football" despite the fact we have a franchise QB who routinely leads us on game winning drives.
Starks could be the answer.
What about Lendale White as the answer for our goal line back? Ever since he ballooned to over 250 lbs and become a complete failure he appears to be on the up and up. They key is he is fat and plays RB and thats obviously what we need.
just wanted to add another dumb comment like everyone else. K thx, bye.
Patrick,
ReplyDeleteIf that's you, I sympathize with you about everyone making fun of you. It's not nice, and it's not fun for me to have to sift out all that crap with my brain.
That said, you are totally wrong on this one. Clown Patrick's question is at least partially legit. There's an argument to be made for a KOS. Even though Suisham can get it 7 yards deep now, that might turn into 1 yard deep in December. That'd mean a large portion of the season where our kickoff team is exposed. I wouldn't make the move myself, but it's a legitimate opinion, and I'm going to respect it at least enough to not call the guy a retarded loser. Maybe you don't like that he didn't use a name (I'm thinking he meant Waters), or maybe you don't like that he suggested a long-term deal. I think he might have just been going for some kind of alliteration. long long kicking kicker. It sounds funny. I'm guessing you thought he was just wasting time for the fun of it, because no one could be that stupid, or maybe he was making some kind of indirect jab at you. All of those are possibilities, but you know what? WHO CARES? Have you ever thought about why they pick on you? It's because of your general arrogance, which is so strong it frickin' transfers through the internet. So they pick on you. What do you do about it? Whine. That's understandable. After all, lots of people are pricks, but most of them don't get (oh no!) teased online about it. Then what do you do? Seek advice? Whether you were seeking it or not, about 50 people have told you to ignore it and let it go away. Do you take that advice? No, you whine some more, each and every time. You fire back insults and complain to Dale for letting him play too. You criticize his blog and the way he runs it, and then expect him to do what you want. Then when somebody makes a Steeler related comment that you don't think is up to YOUR standards, you go beyond whining and throw a hissy fit like a damn 5 year old. You are a joke, and your inability or refusal to understand human beings on a basic level has finally driven you lower than the timewasters that come on here just to make fun of you. Congratulations.
Hey Dale,
I'm all for McFadden getting bumped back if someone steps up and outplays him, but wouldn't it be overkill to cut him based on the promise of some mid-round picks? I love Brown, but we don't have a great track record there. Shouldn't we wait for someone to actually play better than McFadden before we cut him? I'm not sure Lewis' two or three good plays qualifies. And heck, I'd make two or three guys leapfrog him before I cut him. If it's a money thing, I Foote could easily go first. He makes way too much and doesn't contribute anymore than Sylvester could in his place. Thanks.
who is this long kicker everyone is talking about?
ReplyDeleteAnd i think its stupid to keep 2 kickers now. They should have just spent the money and upgraded Suisham
they will not keep a second kicker and i think a young Cb will have to show something to bump Macfadden
ReplyDeleteKeep in mind that all those kick-offs into the endzone are being done in warm, summer weather. It's like that every pre- and early season. Even Jeff Reed kicked ball into and out of the endzone. When it's outdoors and cold in Nov, Dec and Jan, those kick-offs won't be going deep, if at all, into the endzone.
ReplyDeleteMuch ado about nothing.
adamg,
ReplyDeletegood point that early on the weather makes it easier to kick the ball thru the endzone.
however, just imagine in the cold weather months and the playoffs being able to boot the ball 5 yards deep into the endzone consistently. very effective and suisham will not be able to do that.
i believe it is a legitimate consideration when the steelers were 24th in the league in opponent's average starting position after kickoffs last season.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteTim I wasn't going to respond to your partial thesis because you start by believing that first comment was serious. And then you go to basically admit its nothing but bs aimed at me.
ReplyDeleteBut what I really don't get is this:
"Then when somebody makes a Steeler related comment that you don't think is up to YOUR standards, you go beyond whining and throw a hissy fit like a damn 5 year old."
When have I done that? I try to just banter and argue with the legit posters, but then I have these idiots with constant "you're an idiot posts" and they contribute nothing at all.
My only criticism of Dale's blog is that he lets those comments go on and they serve no purpose. Otherwise I respect his work and maybe I don't agree with him all the time, but thats the point of a blog and comments.
Not senseless wastes of time which has become about 60% of the comments, unfortunately.
^ Patrick whining again
ReplyDeleteneed a pacifier?
hey anonymous, you guys are the one who cry more than anybody.
ReplyDeleteGet a login or tag and then talk. Apparently I can't even respond to posts about me now.
Lets keep the pointless comments going. I'm all for it.
I have been reading this blog and the comments for years now. There used to be some insightful opinions in the comments. Blog is still great but the comments are unbearable anymore. I hardly ever comment and when I do, it is as anonymous. It doesn’t matter who has a username and who doesn’t. If it’s a good comment, it’s a good comment. I can't stand the bickering, doesn’t matter who started what, its just annoying for everyone else...I am kind of upset with myself that I am even commenting about this. Patrick and all the anti-Patricks, I wish all of you would go away or stop commenting. But you won't.
ReplyDelete^ agree with anonymous
ReplyDeleteThis is a great blog site. I used to comment here quite often but now I typically dont even read the comments section. Patrick - the reason you are getting picked on is because many of your comments show how little you know about football. Unfortunately, instead of ignoring your comments like most people do, a small group of people decide to target you for fun. Maybe you should comment less untill you learn more about the game of football
marc, frankly, I think the move up to the 35 will make ST coaches start to have their kickers practice the high, long hang time kicks the carry between the goal line and 5. The heck with giving the ball to the opponent at the 20, I'd be using that extra 5 yards closer to try and pin them inside the 10 or 15.
ReplyDeleteKevin your stupid.
ReplyDeleteThese comments are awesome.
adamg,
ReplyDeleteOne other change to ST is players will not have the same running start on KO they used to. SO it will take a bit longer to get down the field. I think this will make it more difficult to cover kicks.
absolutely correct, Eric. The running start was shortened as part of the rule change and I believe I read somewhere special teams coaches already commented on how they are not interested in gambling and trying to pin someone inside the 15.
ReplyDeleteas a good example, do you see cundiff for the ravens trying to sky the ball and pin someone deep? nope. he drills it thru the back of the endzone every chance he gets.
eliminate the uncertainty. if you gave a ST coach the option of giving the team the ball on the 20 or taking a chance to tackle the returner inside the 15, they would take the 20 every single time.
Dale,
ReplyDeleteCan you give an update on Miguel Chavis. I noticed that he is now listed as a tight end on Steelers.com. Also, are there any other names from camp who won't make the team but could be future studs?
Thanks.
Hey, Dale. I was wondering about the status of Mario Harvey. You had reported a few times about his progress in camp, and I feel like I have not seen him play in either of the first two preseason games. Is he injured? If memory serves me correctly, Sylvester and Ivy have been getting the majority of the backup work at ILB. I think Carter may have played some against the 'Skins.
ReplyDeletePlease don't get me wrong though. Ivy, especially as a local player, has me feeling good about our more youthful depth at ILB.
Harvey has heen injured for the past three weeks, though he's practicing again now. Too little, too late.
ReplyDeleteIf ST players can cover punts from a contested start, they can cover kickoffs from a 5 yard, uncontested running start.
ReplyDeleteYou don't see coaches thinking it's a good idea to punt into the endzone when the option is trying to pin the opponent inside the 20 either.
The goal of ST kick cover teams is always to make the offense start inside their 20 if at all possible.
adamg,
ReplyDeleteyou are delirious trying to compare punts to kickoffs. it's obvious how much more control (and hang time) a punter is able to have over a ball than on a kickoff.
also keep in mind the distance traveled by the coverage units on punts vs kickoffs.
and also keep in mind that on kickoffs the blockers on returns are WAITING for you instead of chasing you.
two completely different animals. you are comparing apples and oranges.