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Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Wednesday news and notes

Got to the bottom of Chris Hoke being out two weeks with a stinger.

The issue is that the stinger is the second in a close period of time for Hoke and the nerve sheath still hasn't regenerated.

It will be an issue for Hoke for the remainder of the season.

© James Harrison is getting closer to a return. He said he's still experiencing some light sensitivity and will wear a visor when he does come back.

The biggest issue for Harrison is his vision.

@ Chris Kemoeatu was fined $25,000 for a facemask and unnecessary roughness penalties against Arizona last Sunday.

© Hines Ward sat out practice today for the Steelers, but that's nothing new. He never practices on Wednesdays.

Ward told reporters that it will take a lot for him not to play against the Patriots Sunday.

20 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks Dale. Been wondering about Hoke since he left the Jacksonville game. Not good for the d-line depth but McLendon looked like he can handle the backup duties just fine.

Mfinn said...

James in a dark visor would be so Darth Vader! I wonder if he would make that scary breathing sound...

Tim said...

Agreed. McLendon has proven he can handle spot duty filling in for Casey Hampton. Keep Hoke out as long as it takes to get him back to 100%. No reason to aggravate it. We'll need his depth later in the year, and God knows what's happening at the position next year, but we'll want him healthy.

adamg said...

Was Brady really caught talking smack about owning the Steelers?

It's been true the last few meetings, but he should be smarter than running his yap and giving the Steelers (and Steeler fans) bulletin board material. That can't make Belicheck happy.

Anonymous said...

adamg, you must be joking.

Dale Lolley said...

Didn't see any smack talk from Brady. I read all of his quotes from today and didn't see anything.

Patrick said...

I heard Brady waz talkin smack on u Dan. What u gonna do sit back n take dat ?

bruinmann77 said...

You could really expect to see James with the Darth Vader Shield and showing up against the ravens.

Jim said...

Dale, I know you'll get into this later in the week, but I can't help but look ahead and compare with last year.

Offensively, I think the Steelers are better equipped to handle the matchup this time around. Receiving core has taken a step forward thanks to the young guys. The passing game has felt more dangerous, when Ben doesn't have an unblocked defender baring down on him, but pressuring the QB is not the Pats' strength from what I've heard, so their weakness may be hidden somewhat. The running game has been worse this year, though I can see Mendenhall ripping a few good runs off, especially if we can establish the pass.

Defensively, I think this will be the game we miss Harrison the most. We had trouble pressuring Brady last year, and now we're without our most disruptive pass rusher (however possessed Woodley has been playing lately). Timmons @ OLB/Foote @ ILB in exchange for Harrison is a big step down, and doesn't allow Timmons to cover their TE's, which is where he could be most helpful this game. Pass defense has been better, but we're facing a different class of QB here. This has to be the game we turn the turnover generator on (how many more can Troy drop!!!), in order to have a shot.

The one time we beat Brady was the classic early lead, take the air out of the ball game the Steelers used to thrive on during the Cowher years. I definitely don't think we can repeat that. The model for beating the Pats in recent years has been turnovers (Bills this year) and punching them in the mouth (Giants, Jets). A career game from Wallace wouldn't hurt.

adamg said...

Reportedly this was on video, but I don't enable video on my computer, so I haven't seen it. That's why I asked.

Anonymous said...

The comment that adamg is referring to reportedly was said during preseason. There is a reference to it around the 3:20 mark in this video: http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-network-around-the-league/09000d5d8237a969/Can-Brady-do-it-again.

Phil said...

Dale, did the player who broke Harrison's orbital bone on a helmet to helmet block get fined?

If not...i don't think Goodell has it out for the Steelers, but he definitely doesn't care about defensive players.

datruth4life said...

Dale,

Here's hoping that Check-down Ben shows up for this game. When this Ben takes what the defense gives him and gets the ball out of his hands quickly, good things happen. Ben can still take his shots, but this game has to be about moving the chains and putting points on the board.

Who do you think the Steelers will match up with Welker, William Gay? (gulp!) Why hasn't Chris Carter gotten more burn rushing the passer in the sub defenses? Is Jason Worilds out for this game as well? My two players I think could be the Steelers first round pick next year - G David DeCastro from Stanford (bye-bye Kemo) or (my personal favorite) ROLB Courtney Shaw from Alabama (for life after Deebo).

When Chris Hoke is put on IR and the Steelers activate NT Elisha Joseph off the practice squad, then this old and slow DL will all of sudden look a lot younger going fwd.

adamg said...

Interesting note on ESPN's NE "penalty watch" blog on how many false start penalties the Pats' receivers have had this season. If the crowd noise is as expected at Heinz Field Sunday, that could make things more difficult for their spread formation.

kelly said...

adamg,

That would be nice, but it certainly didn't hurt them last year.

Darren said...

Last year, a lot of times fans got together and sent in money to try to help pay off undeserved Steeler fines. I think we should all get together to send in invoices to charge Kemoeatu more in fines for his idiotic plays.

Dale Lolley said...

No, Brown did not get fined for the play that broke Harrison's orbital bone. Nor should he have.
It was just a typical blocking play where their helmets hit - which happens on every play. On this play, Harrison's helmet gave way a little and Brown's helmet got into his cheekbone.

Tim said...

We're grasping at straws if we're hoping the receivers commit false starts. I can't imagine an easier fix for an offense. They don't even need to know the snap count. They get to look at the ball!

Anonymous said...

If receivers are busy looking for the ball to be snapped, they aren't looking at the defense are they?

Tim said...

Anonymous,

You know a lot about football. For examples in my defense, would you like me to tell you about specific plays where receivers are looking at the ball at the time of the snap, or just say "All of them"? Check it out.

I guess those receivers that play in loud stadiums -- you know, the ones where even the OTs and TEs have trouble hearing -- must be part German Shephard or something.