Free agency look: kickers and tight ends

As I do every offseason, I’ll take a look over the next few weeks at the Steelers’ potential free agents and possible veteran replacements or upgrades.

Keep in mind that the Steelers have never been major players on the free agent market. So no matter how much you want them to go out and sign say, Terrell Owens, it’s not going to happen.

This week, we’ll take a look at the kickers and tight ends.

Steelers potential losses
Jeff Reed, PK, unrestricted
Daniel Sepulveda, P, restricted
Matt Spaeth, TE, restricted

The Steelers have made re-signing Reed one of their offseason priorities and should be able to get something done.

Despite his legal problems – at some point, Reed is going to have to grow up – he’s been one of the more reliable kickers in the NFL. Yes, he missed a couple of kicks in Chicago this season, but he’s made a lot more of those kind of kicks that he’s missed during his career. And as we saw throughout this season’s playoffs, that’s a rare commodity.

Sepulveda is heading into his restricted free agent season, while Spaeth will get a second season of restricted free agency when no deal is reached on a collective bargaining agreement before the March 4 deadline.

The Steelers will make tender offers for both.

Sepulveda has struggled somewhat in cold weather, but as he gets the opportunity to do more of it, he should get better. In addition, he was coming off knee surgery on his plant leg in 2009 and should be considerably stronger in 2010.

Spaeth doesn’t do any one thing particularly well, but he’s a big target and has proven to be a reliable pass catcher when filling in for Heath Miller. He’s too tall to ever be a great blocker - it’s just too easy to get up underneath him – but the Steelers will likely use David Johnson more as their blocking tight end in 2010.

So what happens if talks with Reed break down?

There are a number of solid kickers who could be on the free agent market March 4.

Leading that group is Cincinnati’s Shayne Graham. I know what you’re thinking, Graham missed some big kicks for the Bengals in the playoffs this season.

But he’s also one of the most accurate kickers in NFL history and has a history of kicking at Heinz Field and other cold weather cities. There are conflicting reports about whether the Bengals will make an effort to re-sign him, but if they don’t, he would be a good replacement for Reed.

Arizona’s Neil Rackers will also be an unrestricted free agent and it wouldn’t be a stretch to see the Cardinals and Steelers basically trade kickers. Remember, former Steelers special teams coach Kevin Spencer is now with the Cardinals and he and Reed had a strong relationship.

Rackers had some groin injury problems in 2009, but has been a very productive kicker for the Cardinals. He’s also averaged nearly one touchback per game for his career.

Jay Feely has kicked for four NFL teams, most recently the Jets, for who he has made 54 of 64 field goals in the past two seasons. In addition, he’s also had 17 touchbacks in the past two seasons.

Like Graham, Feely missed a couple of field goal attempts in the Jets’ final playoff game, but one was over 50 yards and his career percentage of 81.6 percent is very good.

Reed, Hampton, Clark the priorities

The Steelers have identified the three players they consider their free agent priorities and, to what should be nobody's surprise, they are placekicker Jeff Reed, nose tackle Casey Hampton and free safety Ryan Clark.

The Steelers will make overtures to the agents of those players in the coming month leading up to the opening of free agency March 5.

Contract offers will not be made to cornerback Deshea Townsend and running back Willie Parker before the start of free agency, but the club will not rule out offering those players deals at some point as well. It's unlikely that either will return to Pittsburgh.

The Steelers have both a franchise and transition tag available and could use both.

Though the Steelers are tight-lipped about the order in which they are placing the three priority players, it is believed to be Hampton, Reed and then Clark.

Clark, however, could be the easiest of the three to sign, giving Pittsburgh the option of using its tags on Hampton and Reed.

Free agency look: The offensive line

As I do every offseason, I’ll take a look over the next few weeks at the Steelers’ potential free agents and possible veteran replacements or upgrades.

Keep in mind that the Steelers have never been major players on the free agent market. So no matter how much you want them to go out and sign say, Terrell Owens, it’s not going to happen.

This week, we’ll take a look at the offensive line.

Steelers potential losses
Willie Colon, RT
Darnell Stapleton, G/C (restricted)

The Steelers, like many teams, will be watching the collective bargaining agreement negotiations closely.

If no new agreement is reached, Colon, along with a number of other players, will be restricted free agents rather than unrestricted.

And no other position may be affected by that like this group of offensive linemen.

The Steelers would like to have Colon back to man their right tackle position. He’s gotten better the more he’s played and has turned into a good, but not great, player.

But can the Steelers do better by bringing in a free agent?

Certainly a free agent lineman would help this team a great deal. The Steelers have not done a great job in recent years drafting on the offensive line. They haven't taken one in the first two rounds of the draft since Kendall Simmons in 2002 and several of the later draft picks haven't worked out as well as they would like.

If the Steelers choose to go the free agent route, there are a number of intriguing possibilities, most of who will be restricted if there is no new collective bargaining agreement.

And that could be the rub.

For example, the Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints have three linemen, tackles Jammal Brown and Jermon Bushrod, and guard Jahri Evans, who are scheduled to reach free agency.

Brown, Bushrod and Evans will be restricted if there is no new collective bargaining agreement.

The problem for the Saints will be decided how to tender each of those players.

Brown, who will turn 29 next month, is the oldest of the trio, but might also be the most valuable. The former Oklahoma star is a natural left tackle with 58 career starts under his belt.

Bushrod, however, filled in admirably for Brown after his injury and, at 26, is three years younger.

Evans, meanwhile, was the team’s best run blocker from his right guard position.

And, as the Steelers know all too well, there is a heavy price that goes along with being a Super Bowl champion, making it unlikely that New Orleans will be able to keep all three.

Brown would certainly be an upgrade for the Steelers, but, even coming off an injury, his price tag will likely be out of the team’s range. That’s especially true considering how much money the Steelers are paying Max Starks. They could sign Brown and move Starks back to right tackle – a move that would really solidify the team’s line – but would likely then have $12 to $14-million per season wrapped up in their offensive tackles.

Of the three, Bushrod, a Towson product, might be the best fit, if the Saints tender him with a low offer. Bushrod is a former fourth-round draft pick.

A number of other decent options are also available, but are also looking at the possibility of restricted free agency.

That group would include San Diego left Marcus McNeil, Minnesota right tackle Ryan Cook and New England guard Logan Mankins.

Of the unrestricted group, there are two players who are young enough to still have some upside who have not lived up to their billing with their current teams, St. Louis’ Alex Barron and Green Bay’s Daryn Colledge.

Barron, a former first-round draft pick, has been plagued by penalties playing left tackle for the Rams, particularly false starts. But perhaps a change of scenery and joining a winning program could bring out the best in him.

Colledge, meanwhile, is headed for unrestricted free agency, but the word out of Green Bay is that the former second-round draft pick won’t be tendered an offer.

Congratulations to Coach LeBeau

Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau has finally gotten his just due, being named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

It has long been one of the most serious cases of injustice that LeBeau was not already in the hall.

LeBeau set a record for defensive backs with 171 consecutive games played and also had 62 career interceptions in 14 NFL seasons. A three-time Pro Bowl selection, LeBeau was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in 1959 and released in training camp. He went on to sign with the Detroit Lions and has spent the past 51 years as a player or coach in the NFL.

Also inducted were former Steelers offensive line coach Russ Grimm, linebacker Ricky Jackson, running back Floyd Little, defensive tackle John Randle, wide receiver Jerry Rice and running back Emmitt Smith.

Who I like, Super Bowl version

Let me first say that this promises to be an exciting Super Bowl if you like to see teams go up and down the field.

The Saints and Colts can both move the ball in chunks. But while much of the focus on this game has been on the offenses, it will be the team that makes a big defensive play that wins it.

Indianapolis is a five-point favorite and that is mainly because of one factor, Peyton Manning.

A win in this game would solidify Manning's place among the greatest quarterbacks of all-time.

But New Orleans' Drew Brees isn't bad in his own right.

The fact that Dwight Freeney figures to be limited and Reggie Wayne suffered a knee injury in practice Friday scares me a little bit, but I think the Colts win a tight one.

Take Indianapolis to win, but New Orleans to cover in a 34-31 Colts victory.

Bullet Bill Dudley dies

One of the all-time great Steelers, Bullet Bill Dudley has died at 88 after a short illness.

Dudley, who resided in Lynchburg, Va., was the Steelers' No. 1 pick in the 1942 draft and is the last Pittsburgh running back to lead the NFL in rushing.

After a stint in the military during World War II, where he served as a B-25 and B-29 pilot in the Pacific, Dudley returned to the NFL.

In 1946, Dudley led the league in rushing (604 yards), interceptions (10) and punt returns (27) and was named NFL Most Valuable Player. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1966.

After a falling out with the Pittsburgh coaching staff, Dudley was traded to the Detroit Lions.

© Steelers director of pro scouting Doug Whaley has been hired as the assistant general manager of the Buffalo Bills.

Looking at free agent skill positions

As I do every offseason, I’ll take a look over the next few weeks at the Steelers’ potential free agents and possible veteran replacements or upgrades.

Keep in mind that the Steelers have never been major players on the free agent market. So no matter how much you want them to go out and sign say, Terrell Owens, it’s not going to happen.

This week, we’ll take a look at the skill positions, QB/WR/RB

Steelers potential losses
Charlie Batch, QB
Willie Parker, RB
Joey Galloway, WR
Carey Davis, FB

As you can see, there’s not a lot here – other than Parker – that cannot be replaced.

Galloway was a late-season replacement for Limas Sweed – more on him later – who never saw action in a game, while Batch made it through just a handful of plays before suffering a broken left wrist while replacing Ben Roethlisberger in an overtime loss at Kansas City. He was subsequently passed by Dennis Dixon as the team’s No. 2 quarterback.

The team thought so little of Davis, meanwhile, that he was released at the end of training camp, only to be re-signed later in the year.

Losing Parker will be a blow. And it’s almost guaranteed that Parker will not return. He told me after the team’s regular season finale at Miami that he still considers himself a starter and wants to go to a team that will give him that opportunity. It won’t happen in Pittsburgh, where Rashard Mendenhall has taken on that role.

The Steelers would like to have Parker return as a backup to Mendenhall, but realize that’s not likely and won’t make much of an effort to do so.

And they won’t go into next season with Mewelde Moore as the only backup to Mendenhall. That could mean that Isaac Redman or Frank Summers will get that opportunity. But the Steelers could also dip into the free agent market in an attempt to find a promising young back with low mileage as they did with Moore two years ago.

Complicating matter is the unsettled status of the collective bargaining agreement, which could take a number of unrestricted free agents and make them restricted.

Among players who could interest the Steelers who would revert to restricted status include Leon Washington of the Jets, John Kuhn of the Packers and Mike Bell of the Saints.

Former Seattle fullback Justin Griffith could be a possibility as a more dangerous version of Davis and tight end/fullback David Johnson. The Steelers like Johnson’s blocking and feel he’ll improve greatly in that role in his second season, but he’s not much of an offensive threat.

While Summers will again get the opportunity to compliment Johnson, the 6-0, 230-pound Griffith, who turns 30 in June, is an accomplished receiver out of the backfield in addition to being a capable – though not great – lead blocker. Griffith has 141 career receptions for 989 yards and 12 touchdowns.

At quarterback, the Steelers could bring Batch back for at least one more season. He’s well-liked in the locker room and helps mentor both Roethlisberger and Dixon.

The problem is that Dixon’s contract is up at the end of the 2010 season - though he will be an exclusive rights free agent, meaning the Steelers will be able to keep him. But we don’t know at this point what changes a new collective bargaining agreement will bring.

The Steelers may want to look for a little more long-term stability.

Though the team will likely sign at least one rookie free agent following the draft, a veteran such as Patrick Ramsey or Brian St. Pierre could be brought in to serve as a more long-term solution as a third quarterback.

Finally, the team expects Sweed to be back for a critical third season now that the “personal issues” he dealt with at the end of last season are behind him.

I know that many people are down on Sweed, but keep in mind that the third season is often a big one for wide receivers, particularly big ones who got by on their athletic talent and size in college.

Witness Sidney Rice’s explosion this season with the Vikings. Yes, Rice benefited from the addition of Brett Favre, but he was a player who struggled catching the ball in his first two seasons, hauling in just 46 passes in his first two seasons. People considered the former second-round pick a bust.

He caught 83 passes for more than 1,300 yards and eight touchdowns this season. I’m not suggesting that Sweed will catch 80 passes in 2010, but he will be given every chance to prove that he’s not a competent NFL wide receiver.

With Sweed, Hines Ward, Santonio Holmes, Mike Wallace and youngster Tyler Grisham returning, it’s unlikely the Steelers will sign a veteran wideout off the free agent market.

Steelers hire Olsavsky

It's a good thing Bill Cowher is gone so we won't have to hear him butcher Jerry Olsavsky's name all the time. Cowher liked to add an extra l in Olsavsky, calling him Olslavsky until finally just settling on Jerry O.

The Steelers hired Jerry O. As their defensive quality control coach Friday. Olsavsky replaces Lou Spanos, who left to become linebackers coach with the Washington Redskins.

The 42-year-old Olsavsky – man that makes me feel old – was drafted by the Steelers in the 10th round of the 1989 NFL Draft and played linebacker with the team from 1989-97. He finished his playing career in 1998 with the Baltimore Ravens.

A native of Youngstown, Ohio, Olsavsky spent the past seven seasons coaching linebackers for Youngstown State. Prior to coaching at Youngstown State, Olsavsky spent one year as an assistant strength coach at University of North Carolina, and he also coached at his alma mater Chaney High School in Youngstown and at Duquesne University.

Olsavsky’s Pittsburgh roots extend back to his college days when he was named a first-team Kodak All-American as a senior in 1988 at the University of Pittsburgh. He became the Panthers’ first player since 1976 to record more than 100 tackles in three straight seasons.

Thoughts on Senior Bowl practice

The practices for the Senior Bowl have been happening all week long and the best player there has been someone most probably wouldn't have thought much about prior to this week.

Idaho guard Mike Iupati was somebody I wanted to see more of this week. And thanks to the miracle of the NFL Network, I got that chance.

And Iupati is as good as advertised.

So while all the early focus for the Steelers is on other positions, I'm narrowing in on Iupati as a strong possibility as the team's No. 1 draft pick.

Yes, he's a guard. But he also lined up at tackle this week and more than held his own.

With Art Rooney II's proclamation in the media last week about wanting to get back to running the ball more, Iupati would make a lot of sense as the Steelers' top pick.

Pro Bowl has become even more of a joke

When the number of players who declined their Pro Bowl invitation last week surpassed the number of women who came forward claiming to have slept with Tiger Woods, the NFL should have realized it had a problem.

The league already knew that it was going to need replacements for the players whose teams were playing in the Super Bowl. That was the risk it was willing to take when it moved the game to the Super Bowl site a week before the championship game.

But it felt the move was needed to generate more interest in a game that, quite frankly, had already become a bit of a joke.

Now, however, it's become even more of a joke.

Just look at the AFC quarterback situation as an example.

Instead of seeing Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Phillip Rivers or Ben Roethlisberger leading the AFC squad, we'll see Matt Schaub, David Garrard and Vince Young.

Are you kidding me?

Of the three, only a legitimate case could be made for Schaub deserving to be there. Garrard was so pedestrian this season the Jaguars are considering looking for a replacement in the draft, while Young didn't become Tennessee's starter until midway through the 2009 season.

I guess Brady Quinn and JaMarcus Russell still have some hope.

Certainly some players who were deserving of being named to the Pro Bowl have benefitted from the high number of players dropping out of the game. The Steelers' LaMarr Woodley and Heath Miller come to mind.

But it's time for the NFL to consider dropping the game and just naming the Pro Bowl team.

Everybody's happy

With Indianapolis' victory over the New York Jets, there were a lot of happy people in the Steelers' locker room.

They weren't happy because they favored the Colts over the Jets. They were happy because Indianapolis heading to the Super Bowl means that tight end Dallas Clark can't play in the Pro Bowl, thus opening a spot for Heath Miller to go.

Miller's a pretty popular guy in the locker room and many of the players have long lobbied for him to get a trip to the Pro Bowl. But it's been difficult because he's never had the gaudy catch numbers that usually get players selected to the NFL's all-star game - until this season.

© In a week or so, I'll be starting my look at the upcoming free agency period. I used to do it for SteelCityInsider.com, but I'll do it here.

In the series, I'll look at the Steelers' impending free agents and possible replacements/upgrades available on the market.

Who I like, conference championship games

After taking the donut last week - though I was 3-1 straight up – to fall to 2-6 in the playoffs I need to bounce back in a big way this weekend.

I will note, however, that I am one game better in this postseason and blow-hard Chris Berman, who's a miserable 1-7.

But I digress.

I like both home teams to win and cover this week. Here's why:

Try as they might, there's no way the Jets will shut down the passing game of Indianapolis. Peyton Manning is just too good.

And since the Colts haven't run the ball well all season long, they won't care if New York shuts down their running game. Manning has carried that offense - literally by throwing to guys like Pierre Garcon and Austin Collie – and he'll take the Colts to the Super Bowl.

Also, at some point, Mark Sanchez is going to have to lead the Jets to a score, particularly if Manning and company get ahead early. He won't be able to do it.

I like Indianapolis, 24-13.

The other game was a little more difficult until the final injury report came out. Pat and Kevin Williams are questionable, as is Percy Harvin, for the Vikings.

That's a big blow if any one of those guys doesn't play, let alone all three.

Drew Breese will pick apart a soft Minnesota secondary en route to a 31-24 win.

© Houston linebacker Brian Cushing has dropped out of the Pro Bowl, opening up a spot for LaMarr Woodley to make his first trip.

Woodley led the Steelers with 13.5 sacks this season.

Roethlisberger passes on Pro Bowl

With Tom Brady backing out of the Pro Bowl due to injury, that left Ben Roethlisberger next in line to go.

He, too, turned it down thanks to a sore shoulder that developed late in the season.

That means Matt Schaub will be heading to Miami.

Roethlisberger appeared to have problems with his throwing shoulder during the Steelers’ season-ending game at Miami on Jan. 3. Coach Mike Tomlin later said he doesn’t think Roethlisberger will require any medical procedures to correct the problem.

Fichtner new QB coach

The Steelers have moved wide receivers coach Randy to quarterbacks quarterbacks coach.

Fichtner replaces Ken Anderson, who retired at the end of the season.

Fichtner coached the quarterbacks at Memphis from 1990-93 and from 2001-06, when he also was the offensive coordinator. He was the quarterbacks coach at Arkansas State from 1997-2000, when he first worked with Tomlin.

Fichtner also coached at Purdue, where he was in charge of recruiting besides coaching the wide receivers. He joined Tomlin’s staff in 2007.

Fichtner would appear to be the offensive coordinator in waiting should the team decide at some point to part ways with offensive coordinator Bruce Arians in the future.

© The Steelers bolstered their depth at linebacker - and on special teams - by signing free agent linebacker Derrick Doggett.

Doggett (6-0, 210), who will enter his first year in the NFL, has played in the CFL for two years with the Edmonton Eskimos and most recently the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. In his two seasons, he amassed nine tackles on defense and one interception. Doggett has excelled on special teams, where he recorded 27 tackles last year with the Blue Bombers

As an undrafted rookie free agent out of Oregon State in 2008, Doggett was signed by the Eskimos and recorded six tackles on special teams. In 2008, he was signed by the Blue Bombers where he recorded nine tackles on defense, 27 special teams tackles and one interception.

© The Seattle Seahawks hired Green Bay Packers executive John Schneider as their new general manager.
The Seahawks confirmed the hiring of the 38-year-old Schneider, a 17-year veteran of NFL personnel work, Tuesday afternoon. ESPN first reported the deal.
The move means that Omar Khan, who was a finalist for the job, will remain with the Steelers.

Pro Football Weekly All-NFL and rookie teams

Pro Football Weekly released its All-NFL and All-Rookie teams and there were no Steelers on either roster.

To me, this is a much better list than the AP All-Pro team because it's voted on by the members of the Pro Football Writers of America, of which I am a member.

These are the guys who see all the games, talk to players on a daily basis and cover the league more in depth than some of the people who vote in the AP. It's also more inclusive than the AP vote, which is done by 50 people.

Pro Football Weekly/Professional Football Writers of America 2009 All-NFL team

Offense
QB Peyton Manning / Colts
RB Chris Johnson / Titans
RB Adrian Peterson / Vikings
WR Andre Johnson / Texans
WR Wes Welker / Patriots
TE Dallas Clark / Colts
C Nick Mangold / Jets
OG Steve Hutchinson / Vikings
OG Jahri Evans / Saints
OT Ryan Clady / Broncos
OT Joe Thomas / Browns

Defense
DE Jared Allen / Vikings
DE Dwight Freeney / Colts
DT Kevin Williams / Vikings
DT Haloti Ngata / Ravens
OLB Elvis Dumervil / Broncos
OLB DeMarcus Ware / Cowboys
ILB Patrick Willis / 49ers
CB Charles Woodson / Packers
CB Darrelle Revis / Jets
S Darren Sharper / Saints
S Adrian Wilson / Cardinals

Specialists
PK Nate Kaeding / Chargers
P Shane Lechler / Raiders
PR DeSean Jackson / Eagles
KR Josh Cribbs / Browns
ST Kassim Osgood / Chargers

Most Valuable Player — Colts QB Peyton Manning
Defensive MVP — Packers CB Charles Woodson
Coach of the Year — Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis
Rookie of the Year — Texans LB Brian Cushing
Offensive Rookie of the Year — Vikings WR Percy Harvin
Most Improved Player of the Year — Cowboys WR Miles Austin
Comeback Player of the Year — Patriots QB Tom Brady
Executive of the Year — Colts president Bill Polian
Assistant Coach of the Year — Bengals defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer
Golden Toe (Best Placekicker or Punter) — Raiders P Shane Lechler

Pro Football Weekly/Professional Football Writers of America All-Rookie team

Offense
QB Mark Sanchez / Jets
RB Knowshon Moreno / Broncos
RB Beanie Wells / Cardinals
WR Percy Harvin / Vikings
WR Austin Collie / Colts
TE Brandon Pettigrew / Lions
C Alex Mack / Browns
OG Andy Levitre / Bills
OG Louis Vasquez / Chargers
OT Michael Oher / Ravens
OT Phil Loadholt / Vikings

Defense
DL Tyson Jackson / Chiefs
DL Terrance Knighton / Jaguars
DL B.J. Raji / Packers
DL Matt Shaughnessy / Raiders
LB Brian Cushing / Texans
LB Clay Matthews / Packers
LB Brian Orakpo / Redskins
CB Vontae Davis / Dolphins
CB Jacob Lacey / Colts
S Jairus Byrd / Bills
S Louis Delmas / Lions

Specialists
PK Ryan Succop / Chiefs
P Pat McAfee / Colts
PR Quan Cosby / Bengals
KR Percy Harvin / Vikings
ST LaRod Stephens-Howling / Cardinals

Pagac to Steelers?

I'm hearing rumors that Richeyville native Fred Pagac is very interested in joining the Steelers staff - though that opportunity may have dried up when linebackers coach Keith Butler declined Miami's overtures to become the Dolphins defensive coordinator.

Pagac has been the linebackers coach for the Vikings the past four seasons and his contract is up at the conclusion of this season. I'm told he and Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin are close from their days in Minnesota - where Tomlin was defensive coordinator for a season before joining Pittsburgh.

Pagac has coaching stops with Kansas City and Oakland in the NFL and was a longtime Ohio State assistant.

Would he possibly leave Minnesota to become specials teams coordinator for the Steelers? That's the only defensive opening the team currently has - outside of defensive quality control, a position he is overqualified for.

Who I like, divisional round

A 2-2 record last week put my season record at a very respectible 132-113-3 against the spread.

I missed the pick of the week when Aaron Rodgers' fumble in overtime was returned for a touchdown. That puts my pick of the week at a less-than-stellar 7-11.

But let's get on to this week's picks.

Take Dallas at plus 3 to beat Minnesota outright.

Take the Ravens to cover the 6 1/2 points in a loss to Indianapolis.

Take San Diego to cover its nine-point spread against the Jets.

Take Arizona to cover the 6 1/2 points in a loss to New Orleans.

If that holds up, New Orleans will host Dallas in the NFC Championship game, while Indianapolis will host San Diego in the AFC.

© Steelers linebackers coach Keith Butler has reportedly turned down the Miami Dolphins' offer to become their defensive coordinator.

© Steelers Business & Football Administration Coordinator Omar Khan is reportedly one of two finalists for the general manager position in Seattle. The other finalist is former Tennessee Titans GM Floyd Reese.

NFL From the Sidelines on the move

As I mentioned last month, NFL From the Sidelines is moving.

Well, that day is here, the site can now be found at http://www.observer-reporter.com/or/sidelines/.

Sorry for any confusion this causes, but it was a necessary change.

New URL for blog

Starting soon, "NFL from the sidelines" will have a new URL:

http://www.observer-reporter.com/or/sidelines/

Please make a note, and please continue to visit! And thanks for your patience.

Steelers hire new o-line coach

The Steelers have hired Sean Kugler as their new offensive line coach to replace Larry Zierlein.

Zierlein was fired last week after three seasons with the team.

Kugler was fired by two weeks ago by the Buffalo Bills. He's also spent time with the Detroit Lions.

Kugler coached a Buffalo offensive line that last season set a team record for allowing just 26 sacks - just over half the total the Steelers allowed in 2009.

His hiring leaves the Steelers with two openings on their coaching staff, special teams and quarterbacks coach.

The team must also find a new defensive assistant after Lou Spanos left to accept a position with the Washington Redskins as their linebackers coach.

Khan to interview with Seahawks

According to NFL.com, Steelers salary cap specialist Omar Khan will interview for the general manager position of the Seattle Seahawks.

It's an interesting move considering Khan isn't a personnel guy. It could mean the Seahawks may be intent on giving new head coach Pete Carroll control over personnel.

Khan is a bright guy and would do well in the position. His loss would be felt with the Steelers, particularly heading into a possibly uncapped season.

Some keen insight on the Steelers

If you've never checked it out before, now former Steelers offensive line coach Larry Zierlein's son, Lance, has a great pro football blog on the Houston Chronicle web site.

This week he has some great stuff on the Steelers, including talking about his dad's firing.

I'm sure you'll enjoy it:

http://blogs.chron.com/fantasyfootball/

Who I like, playoff version

Regular followers of this blog know that I went 11-0 versus the spread last year in the playoffs. I can't promise that kind of performance again this year – I'd be in Vegas instead of Washington if I could - but I did finish a solid 130-111-3 against the spread picking games in the paper this year.

Here's who I like this weekend
N.Y. Jets (plus 3 1/2) at Cincinnati - The Bengals went very vanilla last week while the Jets threw out everything and the kitches sink. I'm not a big fan of rookie quarterbacks in the playoffs, especially on the road. Take the Bengals, 20-13

Philadelphia (plus 4) at Dallas - People always like to bring up that old "it's hard to beat a team three times in one season" mantra. But is it? In 19 times a team has swept the regular season series with a division opponent, it has also won the third game 12 times. That's 12-7, so it's not that tough to beat a team three times. Sometimes, you're just better. Take Dallas, 27-17

Baltimore (plus 3 1/2) at New England - The Patriots struggled to beat the Ravens at home earlier this season, winning 27-21 with the help of some generous calls from the officials. Wes Welker didn't play that game, either. I like the road team here, take Baltimore, 23-20.

Green Bay (plus 1) at Arizona - If Anquan Boldin doesn't play, the Cards aren't nearly as explosive. And Arizona was also mediocre at home this season. Green Bay is my pick to win the NFC and it starts this week. Take the Packers, 31-24.

Hall of Fame finalists announced

Defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau and former All-Pro center Dermontti Dawson were among the 15 finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame announced Friday.

The list also includes Tim Brown, Cris Carter, Don Coryell, Roger Craig, Dermonti Dawson, Richard Dent, Russ Grimm, Charles Haley, Rickey Jackson, Cortez Kennedy, Dick LeBeau, Floyd Little, John Randle, Andre Reed, Jerry Rice, Shannon Sharpe and Emmitt Smith.

Between four and seven members will be selected from that group. LeBeau and Little are senior committee picks and are considered locks.

Smith and Rice are also considered locks, leaving likely one or two more players to get in.

That will probably mean Dawson gets passed over once again. Of that group, I'd probably vote for Andre Reed, a key contributor on four Super Bowl teams, and Shannon Sharpe.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

Offensive line coach Larry Zierlein and special teams coordinator Bob Ligashesky are gone.

Quarterbacks coach Ken Anderson has retired.

Offensive coordinator Bruce Arians is staying, apparently at the behest of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.

What does it mean?

For one, it means that head coach Mike Tomlin was very serious when he said he's out to change the fact that Roethlisberger has been the most sacked quarterback in the league over the past four seasons.

Was that all Zierlein's fault? Nope. Roethlisberger was sacked 40-plus times in 2006 when Russ Grimm was still the offensive line coach in Pittsburgh and Ken Whisenhunt was the offensive coordinator.

But the team learned to live with Roethlisberger taking some of those sacks by holding the ball because him holding the ball also turned into some big plays for the offense.

While Arians will be back, some of the things the team does offensively will change. He and whoever the new QB coach is will work with Roethlisberger on getting rid of the ball more quickly - ie. reading defenses better - with the idea that they can prolong his career.

Roethlisberger has bucked that in the past because the coaching staff has been willing to live with the bad plays because the big plays were so great. But with the team's third-down conversion rate plunging this season to the bottom of the league and a defense that wasn't as dominant, the Steelers couldn't fight through the bad sacks this season. They just couldn't afford to lose that kind of field position.

Roethlisberger going to bat for Arians and getting his way is a bad sign for this team, however, in that it gives the QB the idea that he's in charge of this ship.

Should Roethlisberger have some say in the matter? Sure. But Tomlin had better have told him that if Arians stays, Roethlisberger had better spend the necessary time in the offseason working on getting rid of the ball more quickly.

Anderson to retire

Head coach Mike Tomlin met with the media today for his final press conference of the 2009 season and while there wasn't any earth-shattering news, he did announce that quarterbacks coach Ken Anderson was retiring.

Anderson, a former Pro Bowl QB with the Cincinnati Bengals, has spent the past three seasons with the Steelers.

Tomlin is continuing to meet with the players as they put a wrap on a disappointing 2009 season.

He did say that he will meet with members of his coaching staff later this week and would not discount some additional changes there.

Free agent-to-be nose tackle Casey Hampton was one player who had his meeting with Tomlin Monday and Tomlin indicated - without actually saying it - that he would very much like to have Hampton back.

Placing the franchise tag on Hampton is a strong possibility.

Post-Miami thoughts

Complain about teams laying down in the closing weeks all you want – and apparently commissioner Roger Goodell is angry about it as well – but there's nothing anyone can do about it.

Anyone who wants to complain about need only see what happened to New England's Wes Welker Sunday in a game the Patriots really didn't need.

Welker apparently blew his knee out and will miss the playoffs, likely making New England a long shot to win the Super Bowl. The Pats were something of a long shot to begin with, but without Welker, they have no chance.

Goodell has good reason to be ticked off about teams tanking. Fans around the league – especially those in Pittsburgh and Houston – are angry about the Colts tanking a game against the Jets and costing their teams a shot at the playoffs.

Ticked off fans could mean fewer fannies in the seats. And with Goodell pushing for the league to expand to an 18-game schedule, how's it going to sell when you've got a quarter of the league taking the final week - or more in the case of Indianapolis - off?

Reportedly, Goodell would like to offer teams draft picks as a reward for playing their regulars in meaningless games, but all they'll have to do is think about Welker and weigh the loss of a top player against picking up an extra draft pick.

© Now, let's get on to the thoughts from Sunday's game.

Willie Parker closed out his career with the Steelers in style, hammering the Dolphins down the stretch and eating up the clock.

Parker likely won't be back in 2010. He wants to be a starter somewhere or at least be given a chance to start.

But he kept his cool about it all season long and performed when the team asked him to. That's what professionals do.

© Finally, not one but two interceptions by the cornerbacks. Than again, that ruined what would have been a great statistical footnote.

© That was a nasty, but clean, hit that Ike Taylor put on Pat White, knocking the former WVU quarterback out of the game.

White was falling to the ground after being tripped from behind by Lawrence Timmons and Taylor just happened to hit him helmet to helmet.

It was still a scary play, though.

© I think you might have to get used to the shootout-style victories.

Something tells me they'll be more of the norm rather than the exception in 2010.

New England, Cincinnati trying to avoid SD?

Word around the league is that both the Patriots and Bengals would prefer to finish as the No. 4 seed in the playoffs.

Why?

Both teams would rather put off a trip to San Diego until they absolutely have to go there.

The view around the league is that San Diego is the hottest team in the league at this point and teams would rather face Peyton Manning - coming off three weeks off - rather than San Diego.

© Steelers punter Daniel Sepulveda was very much under the weather Saturday but looked much better today.

© Brett Keisel is inactive today for the Steelers, as is Troy Polamalu.

Nick Eason will start in place of Keisel at DE.

Interestingly, despite being down another defensive end, Sunny Harris is still down as well.

That could mean some time at DE for Chris Hoke.

Who I like

Much last last week's game against Baltimore, I think Sunday's meeting between the Steelers and Miami comes down to the quarterbacks - Ben Roethlisberger vs. Chad Henne.

That should give you a good idea of who I like.

Both secondaries are vulnerable and both QBs should have some success.

But Roethlisberger is, by far, the better QB and has the added bonus of having better receivers to work with.

Ricky Williams is questionable to play for the Dolphins, but is expected to see some time.

Meanwhile, Troy Polamalu is also questionable for the Steelers, but I'd be surprised if he plays.

Take the Steelers, 24-13

© So where will that leave the Steelers?

Here's what I expect to happen in the other meaningful AFC games:
I'm taking Houston over New England, 27-21
I'm taking Baltimore to beat Oakland, 27-13
I'm taking Cincinnati to beat the Jets, 24-17
And I'm taking Denver to beat Kansas City, 21-10

That will mean that Baltimore and Houston claim the two AFC wildcard spots.

Polamalu practices

For the first time in a month and a half, strong safety Troy Polamalu participated in practice Wednesday for the Pittsburgh Steelers, albeit in a limited fashion.

Depending on how Polamalu's sprained knee reacts to his participation, he could be available for the Steelers for the remainder of the seaso - however long that may be.

© Ricky Williams, who is nursing a shoulder injury, practiced today for the Dolphins and it appears he will play.

Harrison, Hampton make Pro Bowl

Steelers outside linebacker James Harrison and nose tackle Casey Hampton have been selected to the 2010 AFC Pro Bowl team announced today by the NFL. Harrison was named the team’s only starter in the NFL’s annual All-Star game.

Harrison was named a starter on the AFC Pro Bowl squad for the third consecutive season, in as many seasons as a starter for the Steelers. The 2008 NFL Defensive Player of the Year posted another outstanding season in 2009 with 70 tackles, 10 sacks, five forced fumbles and 20 quarterback pressures.

Harrison was named AFC Defensive Player of the Month of October in 2009 when he registered seven sacks and 21 tackles. He recorded a season-high three quarterback sacks in Week 5 at Detroit, earning him AFC Defensive Player of the Week honors.

Hampton will make his fifth Pro Bowl appearance in nine NFL seasons. The anchor of the NFL’s third-ranked rushing defense, Hampton has recorded 40 tackles and a career-high 2.5 quarterback sacks this season. Hampton was also a member of the 2004, 2006, 2007 and 2008 AFC Pro Bowl squads. His five Pro Bowl appearances rank fourth in Steelers’ history among defensive linemen behind only Joe Greene (10), Ernie Stautner (nine) and L.C. Greenwood (six).

Steelers playoff scenarios

PITTSBURGH STEELERS
Pittsburgh clinches a playoff spot:
1) PIT win + HOU loss or tie + NYJ loss or tie
2) PIT win + HOU loss or tie + BAL loss or tie
3) PIT win + NYJ loss or tie + BAL loss or tie + DEN loss or tie


Of those scenarios, No. 2 is the most viable, in my opinion.

I think NE will play to win because it has performed poorly on the road this season and Houston hasn't been dominant at home. Either way, that game should be a shootout.
Joe Flacco is very inconsistent and if the Ravens struggle with Oakland's rushing attack - which is pretty good - they could lose out there.

But it doesn't look as good for the Steelers as it would have had Miami held serve at home.

And from our friends at the Cincinnati Enquirer via Elias Sports, here's how Cincinnati could finish with the No. 3 seed in the AFC even without a victory and a New England loss Sunday:


If the Bengals and Patriots both lose:

* Cleveland must beat Jacksonville
* Pittsburgh must beat Miami
* Indianapolis must beat Buffalo
* And any of the following four: Baltimore beats Oakland, Green Bay beats Arizona, Kansas City beats Denver, New Orleans beats Carolina, Seattle beats Tennessee

If the Bengals and Patriots both win:

* Cleveland must beat Jacksonville
* Pittsburgh must beat Miami
* Plus one of the following two groups
* If Indianapolis beats Buffalo any of three following three must happen: Baltimore beats Oakland, Green Bay beats Arizona, Kansas City beats Denver, New Orleans beats Carolina, Seattle beats Tennessee.
* If Buffalo beats Indy all of the following must happen: Baltimore beats Oakland, Green Bay beats Arizona, Kansas City beats Denver, New Orleans beats Carolina, Seattle beats Tennessee.

Post-Baltimore thoughts II

I'm sure people in Baltimore will be complaining about 11 penalties for 113 yards the Ravens were assessed in their 23-20 loss to the Steelers Sunday, but honestly, there wasn't one that when reviewed wasn't an actual penalty.

The Ravens lost their composure quite a bit in this one.

There was no reason for Terrell Suggs to block anyone in the back on Domonique Foxworth's interception return for a touchdown. But he did it.

There was really no reason for Kelley "I celebrate every catch like a jackass because I've apparently never had one before" Washington to hold Deshea Townsend like a 12-year-old at a middle school dance during a Willis McGahee touchdown run. But he did it.

And there was no reason for ONiel Cousins to go all WWE on LaMarr Woodley right in front of an official five seconds after Joe Flacco had released the football to draw a penalty that moved the Ravens out of field goal range. But, again, he did it.

They were stupid penalties by what is apparently, a stupid team.

But they seem to be the norm for the Ravens, who have been penalized 110 times this season compared to just 83 for their opponents.

All you need to know about how those things are treated on that team is that when Haloti Ngata – who is a great player – was penalized 15 yards in the third quarter for a late hit on a punt that moved the Ravens back to their own 35 instead of getting the ball at the 50, he was all smiles and getting props from his teammates on the bench.

© That said, the Ravens are likely going to the playoffs and the Steelers aren't. That's what losing games to the likes of the Browns, Raiders and Chiefs will do.

The Ravens traditionally beat up on weak teams and lose to the better ones. That hasn't changed this season, which is why they'll probably beat up on the Raiders next week to clinch a spot in the postseason.

© Indianapolis head coach Jim Caldwell probably got himself taken off some Christmas card lists Sunday with his decision to bench his starters – most notably Peyton Manning – with just a 15-10 lead against the Jets.

I'm sure Steelers fans are ticked off by that decision, but I refer back to the aforementioned losses to Cleveland, Kansas City and Oakland.

© Rashard Mendenhall has great talent. What he does not seem to have is great vision. And that spin move is something this coaching staff has to spend the offseason getting him to take out of his bag of tricks.

That stuff might work in high school. It might work in college. But all it's going to do in the NFL is get you tackled - if you don't fumble.

© Willie Parker is showing he still has something left in the tank. He came very close to breaking free for long touchdown on one of his only two carries.

© Pittsburgh's run defense has now given up 171 yards rushing to the Browns and 175 to the Ravens in their past three games. The Steelers only gave up 60 yards rushing to Green Bay, but that was more because the Packers only ran the ball 12 times.

There's more to that than this team just missing Aaron Smith and Troy Polamalu.

The defense is so concerned about getting burned through the air that it is giving up yards on the ground in bunches.

Harrison will play, Reed won't

Though ESPN was reporting that Ed Reed will play for Baltimore, he's inactive.

James Harrison is active for the Steelers and will start.

Reed will miss his fourth consecutive game with a groin injury.

Harrison suffered a biceps injury in practice this week and was questionable. But he tested the water this morning and will give it a go.

Keenan Lewis, Carey Davis, Troy Polamalu, Kraig Urbik, Chris Kemoeatu, Sunny Harris and newly acquired Joey Galloway are down for the Steelers.

Justin Harper, Reed, Keith Fitzhugh - excuse me - Tavares Gooden, David Hale, Jared Gaither and Kelly Talavou are down for Baltimore.

Dannell Ellerbe will start at LB in place of Gooden. Oneil Cousins starts at RT with Michael Oher moving to the left side in place of Gaither.

Tom Zbikowski will continue to start in place of Reed.

For the Steelers, David Johnson will start at fullback in place of Davis. Tyrone Carter gets another start in place of Polamalu, while Deshea Townsend will start at cornerback in place of William Gay.

Merry Christmas and who I like

Merry Christmas from NFL From the Sidelines. Hope Santa brought you all everything you wanted.

What the Steelers want this week is a victory and I liked their chances in this one even before the offense put up more than 500 yards against Green Bay last Sunday.

The Steelers and Ravens don't care for each other. That much is no secret to anyone.

And regardless of anything else that's happened this season, these two teams will get after each other like they do nobody else.

The Steelers sacked Joe Flacco five times - all in the second half - in their overtime loss at Baltimore earlier this season.

That was a game in which the Steelers were not only missing Troy Polamalu - who won't play again this week - but Ben Roethlisberger as well.

That balanced out with Baltimore missing defensive end/linebacker Terrell Suggs and safety Ed Reed.

Suggs will be back for this one, but Reed is still out. And without him, Baltimore's secondary is as scary as … the Steelers' without Polamalu. In other words, not scary at all.

Now that the Steelers have gotten a good long look at the speed and shiftiness of Baltimore running back Ray Rice, they'll have a little better idea of how to get him on the ground. That was a problem in the first meeting.

And Pittsburgh's defense will do enough to confuse Flacco, who will be outplayed by Roethlisberger.

Take Pittsburgh to win, 24-17, to stay alive in the AFC playoff race.

Polamalu iffy

Troy Polamalu said today that the latest MRI he had on his injured knee was very positive. But the All-Pro strong safety would not commit one way or another as to whether he'll play this weekend when the Steelers host Baltimore in a must-win game.

Polamalu did say that he won't practice today. He did not, however, rule out practicing at some point this week.

Ideally, Polamalu would like to practice for an entire week before taking the field again, but as we know, the Steelers certainly face less than ideal circumstances at this point.

© Ben Roethlisberger was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week for his 500-yard performance against Green Bay.

© Though he aggravated his hamstring injury against Green Bay and could barely walk Sunday, wide receiver Hines Ward said there's no way he's missing the game against the Ravens.

Sweed, Warren done for year

The Steelers announced Monday that wide receiver Limas Sweed and long snapper Greg Warren will miss the rest of the season.

Sweed, a former second-round draft pick, is on the reserve non-football illness list. He missed Sunday's 37-36 win over Green Bay with an illness.

Warren, a fifth-year pro, has been placed on the reserve/injured list. He injured his right knee after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament on the final play of Sunday’s game against Green Bay.

Post-Green Bay thoughts

No sooner had Ike Taylor recovered the Steelers' surprise onside kick - only to have the flag thrown for touching the ball at 9 1/2 yards - than the press box armchair coaches started with the 'I can't believe he did that' refrains.

I was not one of them.

At the time, I told another writer that Tomlin likely did it because he knew his defense couldn't stop the Packers and even if the Steelers didn't recover the ball, it would give the Pittsburgh offense more time to score.

Turns out, that was exactly what Tomlin was thinking. He admitted as much after the game.

That, in itself, was a refreshing bit of honesty. All too often coaches make a move like that and then say they were just rolling the dice.

Tomlin called out his defense while also taking a risk calculated to help win a game.

It was a good move.

© I know the Bruce Arians bashers will look at the run-pass ratio in this game and say it's proof that Arians doesn't know what he's doing.

But when you look at what the Steelers were doing when they did try to run it against Green Bay's front seven and then look at what they did attacking the Packers' overrated secondary, you see what the Steelers were trying to do.

The Steelers averaged 3.4 yards per rushing attempt and Ben Roethlisberger threw for a team-record 503 yards.

Green Bay's front seven is fast and athletic. It's secondary, well it's made up over overhyped Charles Woodson - how many penalties is that? - and a bunch of bums.

Sounds sort of like the Steelers.

© I know I'm in the media and - at least according to Ryan Clark - don't know what I'm watching, but if I'm Tomlin, I've seen enough of Tyrone Carter missing tackles and taking bad angles on the back end of plays.

© Now, we can start talking about playoff scenarios and including the Steelers in them.

And they aren't as far-fetched as they once seemed, especially with Denver's ridiculous loss at home to Oakland. Wait, where have we seen that one before?

Seriously, I thought Sunday's game was the one the Steelers would lose before rebounding to win their final two.

I expected Miami to lose in Tennessee and the Jets-Falcons game was a tossup. That Denver loss was an early Christmas gift to all of you Steelers fans from Santa Goodell.

So here's what we've got now coming up:

The Steelers, of course, host Baltimore next Sunday. The Steelers need a win, but a loss wouldn't do much to hurt Baltimore given Denver's loss Sunday. The Ravens will win a tiebreaker with the Steelers based on a better division record.

Denver travels to Philadelphia, where the Broncos should get the snot stomped out of them by an Eagles' team that is hitting its stride and needs the win to clinch a division title.

Now, let's look at the 7-7 teams.

Jacksonville heads to New England, where the Patriots always play tough and need a victory to try to gain the No. 3 seed in the AFC playoffs. That should be a loss for the Jags.

Miami hosts Houston in what will be an elimination game for the loser. The Steelers would be better served by Miami holding serve at home since they finish up with the Dolphins in Week 17. But even if Houston wins, it must host New England in Week 17 and the Texans are behind the Steelers in the AFC playoff race, anyway.

The Jets, the other team ahead of the Steelers right now, travel to Indianapolis this week. The wildcard is whether the Colts will play their regulars in the game. But they will have had 10 days off between games, so the guess here is that they do. Even if the Jets somehow win that one, they have to finish up with the Bengals at home, a game Cincinnati could need to possibly move past New England into the No. 3 spot in the AFC.

Tennessee hosts red-hot San Diego on Christmas day. I would say the Titans should win that based on San Diego's soft run defense, but since the Steelers hold the head-to-head tiebreaker on the Titans.

Obviously, we'll know a lot more about what's happening after next weekend's games, but the Steelers' win Sunday made them relevant once again.

© That's a tough injury for Greg Warren, who tore his ACL on the final play of the game.

It's also a tough injury for the Steelers, who must now find a new long snapper. It's a good thing it happened on the final play, though.

Imagine if the Steelers had been forced to go for a two-point coversion on the final play of the game instead of just kicking the PAT because Warren was out.

Pittsburgh-Green Bay inactives

Sweed, Keenan Lewis, Polamalu, Urbik, Kemoeatu, Sunny Harris and Nick Eason are down for the Steelers. Batch is still the No. 3 QB.

John Kuhn is down for the Packers. Ryan Pickett is active but B.J. Raji will start at nose tackle in his place.

Who I like

It's come to this, the Steelers are two-point favorites this week but I'm not sure why.

Maybe they are mad as hell and not going to take it any longer, but they should have been at that stage the past few weeks and it hasn't been the case.

Green Bay's passing game is going to cause the Steelers problems for obvious reasons. They haven't defended the pass very well without Troy Polamalu and don't force any turnovers.

Green Bay's defense is also going to be a tough matchup.

It seems pretty cut and dried to me as I expect the Packers to win, 27-20.

That said, it wouldn't surprise me if the Steelers win since they've been totally unpredictable this season. But I doubt it.

NFL from the Sidelines will be moving

In the near future, this blog will be moving to http://www.observer-reporter.com/or/sidelines/ . You'll still be able to access it by going through the Observer-Reporter web site.
Thanks for your patience.
Dale

Last three weeks should be interesting

I'll be watching the Steelers closely these final three weeks to see how they finish.

Understandably, there's a lot of disappointment in the locker room thanks to the team's collapse following its 6-2 start.

But it will be interesting to see if this group allows the losing to continue, as the 1998 and 1999 Steelers did, or whether they go down fighting, as the team did in 2000, 2003 and 2006.

That has been what has separated the Steelers from the Clevelands and Cincinnatis of the NFL over the past couple of decades – how they've dealt with adversity.

The bad teams have gone out expecting something to go wrong and not being surprised when it does.

The Steelers have usually looked at it the other way and gone down fighting.

© Free safety Ryan Clark went off on the media today, blaming it and negative comments made about the team for the Steelers' struggles.

Hogwash.

That's an age-old cop out and Clark is better than that.

But it kind of gives you some insight into how this team – at least some of them – is looking at its five-game losing streak.

They don't want to point fingers in the locker room and they can't say bad things about the fans – who will surely boo this team Sunday if it struggles against Green Bay – so they point them at the easiest villan around, the media.

I've always had a good relationship with Clark and have found him to be one of the better and more insightful thinkers I've been around in 17 seasons of covering this team.

But in this case, he's barking up the wrong tree.

Cloudy AFC playoff picture

The Steelers' season remains on life support as despite their 5-game losing streak, they're still alive - technically - in the AFC playoff race.

This coming weekend should help clear the picture up a great deal.

Jacksonville (7-6) hosts Indianapolis, which will continue to play its starters - at least this week. And next week, the Jaguars travel to New England before finishing up at Cleveland.

Miami (7-6) travels to Tennessee (6-7). A loss by the Titans would end their playoff hopes, while a loss by the Dolphins would make things difficult for them considering they have to host Houston (6-7) and the Steelers (6-7) to finish things off.

The Jets (7-6) host Atlanta (6-7) before travelling to Indianapolis next week and finishing up with Cincinnati. That's a pretty tough road, though the Colts and Bengals could be resting some people.

Baltimore (7-6) hosts Chicago this week before coming to Pittsburgh in Week 16. The Ravens head to Oakland in Week 17.

After hosting Miami this week, Tennessee heads to San Diego in two weeks and finishes up at Seattle.

And Houston has games with St. Louis and New England sandwiching the game with the Dolphins.

One of that group of teams will win the final playoff spot in the AFC.

Jacksonville currently owns the best conference record at 6-3, which could come into play in a three-way tie. But the Jaguars would need to beat either Indianapolis or New England to get to 9-7. It's possible, but not likely.

Miami has a tough road as well, starting with this week's game at Tennessee, where the Titans have won four games in a row. Houston and its high-octane passing attack could also cause troubles for Miami's soft secondary.

The Jets have been up-and-down behind rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez, who's likely to return this week. I don't trust them to win two of their final three at all.

Which brings me to Baltimore. It may not be what Steelers fans want to hear, but I expect the Ravens to at least get to 9-7. Though Baltimore is just 2-4 on the road this season, the Ravens have a 6-4 conference record. They should beat Chicago this week and though I think the Steelers will give them a tough battle and could beat them in Pittsburgh in two weeks - neither team ever wants to lose to the other - I would expect them to win in Oakland to get to 9-7, at worst.

In tiebreakers with two teams, head-to-head is the first consideration. Next is conference record. If there is still a tie, best won-loss record in games against common opponents, with a minimum of four is considered.

If that still doesn't settle things, strength of victory is considered.

Post-Cleveland thoughts

Losing to Kansas City was bad. Losing to Oakland was worse. But losing to that Cleveland Browns team was definitely the lowest of the low points for the 2009 Pittsburgh Steelers.

Cleveland entered that game dead last in the NFL in offense and defense. And the Browns were missing a number of starters, including Pro Bowl nose tackle Shaun Rogers.

Not only could the Steelers not stop Cleveland's running game, they couldn't run the ball.

This was a total team effort against a team that should have been making the first selection in the NFL draft in a few months.

© I'm sure usual whipping boy Bruce Arians is taking all the blame for that loss, but Ben Roethlisberger played like a rookie.

You can argue whether it was prudent for the Steelers to go to the shotgun with empty backfields on their first three third-and-shorts, but that's pretty much what everyone does in today's NFL.

But there's no way the quarterback should be taking sacks in those situations - three times in a row. And those sacks were his fault. He's got to see that Cleveland is bringing seven pass rushers and get the ball to his hot read - especially when you only need a yard or two.

Those defensive calls for Cleveland came right out of the Philadelphia playbook from 2008. And Roethlisberger froze on them.

Not all of the eight sacks were on Roethlisberger in this game, but the majority were.

To quote the big guy, "Who's laughing now o-line?"

© I've heard from a number of players over the past few weeks that this team hasn't paid attention to the details or hasn't been on the same page.

To me, that's inexcusable. If you're a professional football player, you'd better play every game like it's the last one you'll ever see.

Not paying attention to the details is another way of saying that they took somebody lightly. That explains how the Steelers have beaten San Diego, Minnesota and Denver but lost to Kansas City, Oakland and Cleveland.

It explains it but it doesn't justify it.

Heads are going to roll after this season and a lot of that is going to depend on what happens in these last three games.

It will be interesting to see if the free agents to be mail it in the rest of the way or whether they go down fighting.

Santonio Holmes told me he got up following Mike Tomlin's post-game speech and told the team he'll be fighting the rest of the way. That's a good sign from a young player.

We'll see if anyone joins him.

Just got to Cleveland

The wind is bitterly cold here and heavy, both of which should affect this game a great deal.

But I already expected that.

But this wind is whipping and colder than I even imagined it would be.

© After testing his sore hamstring, it appears that Hines Ward will play for the Steelers.

I think this is a big mistake - especially considering the weather. There isn't likely to be at lot of passing in this game and the cold weather could cause that hamstring to lock up.

Who I like

First, let's address the injury issues. Both Hines Ward and William Gay will likely be out for the Steelers' game against Cleveland Thursday.

But with heavy winds and snow forecast, that might not be all that significant. This game will come down to an old-fashioned running contest.

In that kind of matchup, you have to like the Steelers, even though the weather conditions may make things a little tricky.

Brady Quinn has struggled mightily with his accuracy on his deep passes and his young receiving corps has struggled holding onto the football on a regular basis.

That makes this a perfect game to see what rookie cornerbacks Joe Burnett and Keenan Lewis have to offer.

Much like their game in Cleveland last year, a 10-6 win in heavy winds, the Steelers will win a game that is closer than it should be, 14-7.

© With Ward out, rookie receiver Tyler Grisham has been promoted from the practice squad to give the Steelers a fourth receiver.

Polamalu not done for season

Contrary to the AP report that says Troy Polamalu may be done for the season, the strong safety will likely be back – sooner rather than later.

In fact, it's likely he will return when the Steelers play Dec. 20 against Green Bay.

Polamalu likes to play with the media, particularly large groups.

He will be examined by doctors following Thursday's game at Cleveland.

© Hines Ward did some light running Tuesday with trainers, but did not practice. He looks unlikely to play against the Browns.

© William Gay was back at practice Tuesday - funny how quickly guys heal when their jobs are on the line - but it's likely rookie Joe Burnett will start at cornerback opposite Ike Taylor against the Browns.

Keenan Lewis will also get some playing time.

Gay, Ward doubtful

Because the Steelers play on Thursday this week in Cleveland, head coach Mike Tomlin had his weekly press conference Monday.

As expected, cornerback William Gay could be out of action against the Browns after suffering a concussion from a hit by teammate Ryan Mundy in Sunday's 27-24 loss to Oakland.

Rookie Joe Burnett would start in Gay's place, with fellow rookie Keenan Lewis also likely to get at least some playing time, probably in the nickel in place of Deshea Townsend.

Burnett would slide inside to Townsend's spot, while Burnett would play on the outside.

Tomlin also said wide receiver Hines Ward may miss the game after suffering a hamstring injury while making a catch on the next-to-last play of the game.

Rookie Mike Wallace and second-year pro Limas Sweed would share time at Ward's spot, with veteran Shaun McDonald likely to be re-signed - though Tomlin didn't name him specifically.

Tomlin said veteran quarterback Charlie Batch could return to practice this week, meaning Tyler Palko would no longer be needed and Palko would likely be released to make room for McDonald.

Tomlin said other changes could be made as the team tries to get out of the four-game tailspin it is currently in. And, he said those changes could come in all three phases of the game.

Steelers-Raiders post-game thoughts

Though the players won't admit it, it has become painfully apparent the Steelers' secondary just cannot play without strong safety Troy Polamalu.

Without anybody in their secondary other than Polamalu who can consistently catch the ball, the Steelers just don't scare anybody.

Oakland's Bruce Gradkowski threw a number of balls up for grabs in Sunday's 27-24 win over the Steelers and the Raiders either came down with the pass or saw it fall harmlessly to the ground.

We already knew that catching the football was not Ike Taylor's strong point, but now it's become apparent that neither can anyone else, sans Polamalu.

And the group is also playing without any confidence as well. It's not a good combination.

Opponents are obviously targeting Willie Gay play after play and Gay has not been up to the challenge at all.

In fact, after Gay was beaten a couple of times Sunday, defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau just started sending him on corner blitzes.

I guess if you can't cover, you might as well go after the quarterback.

Head coach Mike Tomlin said Sunday that the team will consider changes in its lineup. The only changes they could make defensively would probably be in the secondary – though the run defense allowed more than 100 yards rushing for the second consecutive game.

All you need to know about the difference between the Steelers defense of 2008 and the 2009 version is that Gradkowski completed five of 16 passes for 18 yards and two interceptions against them last season. Sunday, he threw for more than 300 yards with three touchdown passes.

© I've taken heat all season long for blaming the defense for not holding leads late in games.

That was again the case Sunday. Anybody want to defend the indefensible defense this week?

© I was not a big fan of Tomlin's decision to attempt a 53-yard field goal on the opening play of the fourth quarter and even after Tomlin's explanation that Jeff Reed had been making them from there before the game, I'm still not.

With a four-point lead, why punt there and make the Raiders - who had not shown anything offensively to that point - drive the length of the field?

By giving Oakland the ball at its own 43, all the Raiders needed was 20 yards to get into field goal range. They did better than that, scoring the first of three fourth quarter touchdowns.

© Rashard Mendenhall did not have a carry in the entire second quarter.

He didn't even set foot on the field as Willie Parker was given two consecutive series of play - the first a two-play touchdown drive – while Mewelde Moore was in on the final possession of the second quarter in the two-minute offense.

I'm all for keeping everyone involved, but that's taking it to the extreme.

© Ben Roethlisberger made one bad mistake in this one, throwing a pick from the Oakland 16 late in the first half.

He forced that throw to Hines Ward, who was open coming out of his break, but certainly was not once Roethlisberger let go of the ball.

It was the only sign of post-concussion play that Roethlisberger really showed.

Steelers-Raiders inactives

Batch, Keenan Lewis, Polamalu, Urbik, Hills, Harris and Kirschke are down for the Steelers.

Heyward-Bey and Greg Ellis are down for Oakland.

Eason starts at DE for Kirschke, Carter for Polamalu.

Matt Shaughnessy starts at DE for Ellis for Oakland. Louis Murphy at WR for Heyward-Bey.

The weather here is great. The field looks good.

Who I like

If the Steelers are to start a run into the playoffs, it starts this week at home against Oakland.

Bruce Gradkowski will get the start at quarterback for the Raiders, which should tell you a little about how badly JaMarcus Russell played this season.

Last we saw of Gradkowski in Pittsburgh, he was having arguably the worst quarterbacking performance I've seen in 17 seasons of covering the Steelers - and I saw every one of Kordell Stewart's starts.

Starting for Cleveland in the regular season finale last year, Gradkowski was 5 for 16 for 18 yards and two interceptions in a 31-0 loss.

Gradkowski has been a little better in Oakland this season, but he's still completing just 52.5 percent of his passes.

Even though I think the Steelers will limit Ben Roethlisberger's passing a little bit to keep him from taking any big hits, Pittsburgh's offense should be able to do more than enough to cover the 13 1/2-point spread.

Take the Steelers, 27-6

Madison is back

The Steelers today signed cornerback/special teams ace Anthony Madison, who was waived Tuesday by the Colts.

To make room for Madison on the active roster, they released Corey Ivy. Ivy had been signed last week to help bolster the special teams unit.

Madison, of course, led the Steelers in special teams tackles with 25 in 2008 but was released in training camp.

© Guard Chris Kemoeatu went through a full practice today, as did quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.

Troy Polamalu is still out.

© From the Associated Press today:

"NFL teams now have new, stricter instructions for when players should be allowed to return to games or practices after head injuries, guidelines that go into effect this week.
In the latest step by the league to address a hot-button issue, commissioner Roger Goodell sent a memo to the 32 clubs Wednesday saying a player who gets a concussion should not return to action on the same day if he shows certain signs or symptoms.
Those include an inability to remember assignments or plays, a gap in memory, persistent dizziness, and persistent headaches.
The old standard, established in 2007, said a player should not be allowed to return to the same game if he lost consciousness.
Wednesday’s memo also says players “are to be encouraged to be candid with team medical staffs and fully disclose any signs or symptoms that may be associated with a concussion.”
Nearly one-fifth of 160 NFL players surveyed by The Associated Press from Nov. 2-15 replied that they have hidden or played down the effects of a concussion."

Steelers-Ravens thoughts

If I'm a member of the Baltimore Ravens, I don't know that I'm all that happy after beating the Steelers, 20-17, in overtime at M&T Stadium Sunday.

OK, sure, I'm happy because I got the win, but let's be honest, Pittsburgh was playing its third-string quarterback.

Should you be happy that you had to go to overtime - at home - to get the win against a third-string quarterback who had thrown all of one career pass before Sunday's game?

Baltimore's defense isn't what it once was and we're seeing the decline of Ray Lewis, who doesn't look like the Ray Lewis of old.

He's still a good player. He's just not a great one any longer.

© By the same token, if I'm a member of the Steelers' defense, I'm pretty upset.

Your third-string quarterback got you 17 points on the road, but you allowed Baltimore to convert a third-and-22, albeit in two plays, into a first down to go in for a game-tying field goal.

And the Ravens rolled up 393 yards, including 132 on the ground on 29 carries. That's 4.6 yards per carry, more than a yard per carry more than what the Steelers had been giving up.

© While waiting for the bus to take us to M&T Stadium, I noted that the first three players I saw get on the buses were guys who weren't with the team in Kansas City.

And not only were they now on the active roster, they were all dressing. That was a bad sign.

© The Steelers broke their string of an NFL-record eight consecutive games with a return touchdown allowed.

They tried to add a punt return to the list - something they had not done this year - but Baltimore's Chris Carr fouled things up by stepping out of bounds on a 34-yard run.

© That was the kind of game plan that Steelers fans were used to seeing from the team five or six years ago when Ben Roethlisberger was a rookie.

Offensive coordinator Bruce Arians called 38 running plays and 26 passes.

Rashard Mendenhall looked very good running against the Ravens and the Steelers appear to have a budding star on their hands at the position.

Though this is not the Baltimore defense of old - as I already noted - Mendenhall ground out 95 yards on 24 carries and looked powerful doing so.

© The Steelers' pass rush really had Baltimore quarterback Joe Flacco flustered by the end of that game.

After not getting to him in the first half, the Steelers got home five times in the second half.

Now, about that coverage.

© Hines Ward's said he was misquoted when he said the locker room was split 50-50 regarding Roethlisberger not playing.

He then proceeded to talk about how other guys have played with concussions and how it would have been nice to know that Roethlisberger wasn't playing before Saturday.

It will be interesting to see if this effects Ward's relationship with Roethlisberger.

Steelers-Ravens inactives

Roethlisberger is the No. 3 and is dressed.
Batch, Keenan Lewis, Polamalu, Urbik, Kemoeatu, Sunny Harris and Nick Eason are down for the Steelers.
Eason's a surprise. I guess they're sure Kirschke can make it through a whole game.

Antwan Barnes and Suggs the only notables for the Ravens.

Roethlisberger may not play

I'll admit when I'm wrong and in this case, I was. The NFL Network's Jason La Canfora's report Friday night that Ben Roethlisberger may not play Sunday against the Ravens was correct.

Roethlisberger apparently is suffering from workout-related headaches and will serve as the No. 3 QB behind Tyler Palko, who will be added to the active roster.

Wide receiver Shaun McDonald will be released.

It's a surprising turn of events, especially considering the Steelers don't have backup Charlie Batch available.

But the Steelers will do some things that are specific to third-stringer Dennis Dixon's talents.

Against Baltimore's defense, however, that's not likely going to be a winning combination.

Because of that, I also have to change my pick in this game. Despite Baltimore's defensive injuries, the Ravens should be able to win this one, 20-10.

Who I like, dispelling Roethlisberger report

I've gone back and forth all week long with the Steelers game against Baltimore this week, one day liking Pittsburgh, the other liking the Ravens.

But that usually seems to be the case in this matchup, in which the games are usually decided by five points or less.

But one thing changed my mind this week to tilt me in Pittsburgh's favor. There had been some question as to whether Terrell Suggs would play or not.

Suggs suffered a sprained knee just two weeks ago against Cleveland on a hit from Brady Quinn that drew a fine. But he had been targeting the game against the Steelers for a return.

Remember, this is the guy who had two sacks against the Steelers in the AFC Championship playing pretty much with one arm. And he had four sacks in three meetings with Pittsburgh in 2008.

But Suggs was unable to practice all week and is listed as doubtful to play. Couple that with Fabian Washington's placement on injured reserve this week and the fact that both Ray Lewis and Ed Reed are nursing injuries as well and I'm leaning back toward the Steelers winning, 20-17.

© Jason La Canfora is back at it again with some truly ridiculous rumors.

You'll remember that La Canfora, who works for the NFL Network, reported in late August that the Steelers were considering releasing Pro Bowl nose tackle Casey Hampton.

Now, La Canfora is reporting that quarterback Ben Roethlisberger may not play Sunday against the Ravens despite being cleared medically to do so.

La Canfora goes on to report that Roethlisberger will inform the team Saturday morning whether he'll play or not.

Roethlisberger "may" also grow wings and fly to Baltimore on his own, but I doubt it.

The Steelers are quite certain that Roethlisberger will play. How do we know this?

They've only got one other quarterback on their roster, second-year man Dennis Dixon.

If they thought for a moment that Roethlisberger might not play Sunday, they would have signed another QB immediately.

They didn't.

And, because of the respect he'd lose in the locker room, Roethlisberger most certainly wouldn't wait until Saturday morning – when the team is leaving for Baltimore a few hours later – to inform the coaching staff if he intends to play.

So where did something like this come from?

La Canfora cites an unnamed source. But unless that unnamed source is Roethlisberger or head coch Mike Tomlin – and it isn't – this report holds as much water as the Hampton report, which was laughed off by both Hampton and the Steelers.

Steelers working out a pair of vets

The Steelers are reportedly working out a pair of veteran quarterbacks today in Todd Bouman and Patrick Ramsey.

It's likely, however, that it's a precautionary thing just in case something happens in Sunday's game against Baltimore to either Ben Roethlisberger or backup Dennis Dixon.

Dixon will be the team's only backup QB to Roethlisberger against the Ravens and possibly beyond.

Veteran backup Charlie Batch suffered a fracture in his left wrist last Sunday against Kansas City and had surgery on the wrist Wednesday.

Roethlisberger practices Wednesday

Ben Roethlisberger practiced Wednesday for the Steelers, but backup Dennis Dixon took more than 50 percent of the snaps.

Roethlisberger wasn't talking Wednesday as he recovers from a slight concussion, but it's likely the Steelers were getting Dixon more snaps just in case he were forced into action Sunday in Baltimore.

With No. 2 QB Charlie Batch out for two to four weeks with a broken left wrist, Dixon is the only QB behind Roethlisberger on the roster.

Roethlisberger took a knee to the head in last Sunday's 27-24 overtime loss at Kansas City but has been medically cleared to play against the Ravens.

© Guard Chris Kemoeatu (knee) and safety Troy Polamalu (knee) did not practice due to injuries Wednesday.

Tuesday with Tomlin, licking the wounds

After back-to-back losses, Mike Tomlin was in pure Tomlin mode today as he discussed what the Steelers need to do to turn things around heading into a critical game against Baltimore.

Tomlin said he expects Ben Roethlisberger to be his quarterback when they play the Ravens on Sunday night, with Dennis Dixon as the team's primary, and only, backup.

Charlie Batch will have surgery Wednesday and is expected to miss two to four weeks. Former Pitt star Tyler Palko is expected to be signed to the practice squad to give the team an extra quarterback for practice purposes.

Meanwhile, linebacker Donovan Woods and defensive back Keiwan Ratliff were the latest to be released as the team tries to solve its special teams coverage problems.

They were replaced on the active roster by veterans Rocky Boiman and Corey Ivy.

Travis Kirschke is expected to practice this week and the team hopes he'll return to play against the Ravens.

Troy Polamalu remains questionable, while guard Chris Kemoeatu is out.

As for the excuse from some members of the secondary that they were unaware of the play call for the 61-yard catch-and-run in overtime by Chris Chambers in the 27-24 loss to Kansas City, Tomlin said defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau called the third-down play before the players took the field, then reiterated the call following second down.

Steelers should adjust game plan

With Charlie Batch out with a broken wrist, many Steelers fans are in a panic.

Who will start next week against the Baltimore Raves with Batch out and Ben Roethlisberger having left Sunday's game against Kansas City after taking a knee to the head?

Don't worry, Roethlisberger is fine.

But let's be honest here. It's likely that Roethlisberger will be a little more susceptible to a full-blown concussion after taking the knee from linebacker Derrick Johnson Sunday.

With that in mind, now would be a good time for the Steelers to dust off an older playbook, one that won't require so many passes from the unquestioned leader and best player.

Rashard Mendenhall is proving capable of carrying the load and Willie Parker looks as if he's as close to 100 percent as he's been in two months.

Baltimore's defense is also not the Baltimore defense of old. The Ravens can be run on - even though the real weakness is at cornerback.

Plus it would make far more sense to have Roethlisberger hand off 35 times than drop back and throw into a secondary that includes Ed Reed.

He may have passed all of the cognitive tests the team gave him Monday, but testing Reed too much is tempting fate, especially if Roethlisberger is even the slightest bit slow.

Post-Kansas City thoughts

How in the world do you lose a game in which you roll up more than 500 yards of offense?

Yeah, I know, three turnovers and a special teams touchdown.

But, seriously, that was pretty pathetic to lose to Kansas City's popgun offense.

Put it this way, Lance Long had a big catch against the Steelers in the fourth quarter, picking up 30 yards down the middle of the field on third down from the 10.

Lance Long for cripes sakes. Dude with a name like that should be making porn, not catching 30-yard passes.

© As things stand, the Steelers would be the No. 2 wildcard in the AFC playoffs. But I'm seeing nothing from this team that would suggest it could make it through a playoff run as a wildcard as the 2005 team did.

Then again, a healthy Troy Polamalu would help.

A number of national reporters have said Polamalu will miss a month.

Don't believe it. Polamalu is closer than that and could play this week against Baltimore.

© I would expect to see Ben Roethlisberger as well.

He seemed pretty lucid in the locker room after the game.

© Four kickoff returns in the past five games has left this team shellshocked. That's also eight consecutive games with a return of some type against this team, an NFL record.

It's stat akin to the 'fat, dumb and stupid is no way to go through life' line from Animal House.

© Rashard Mendenhall ran hard Sunday and blocked well in blitz pickup.

Willie Parker ran hard Sunday and even looked good catching a pass out of the backfield.

Yet it was Mewelde Moore, the slowest of the three, carrying the ball on a critical sweep on third-and-two in overtime.

Genius. I've defended Bruce Arians quite a bit this season, but I can't defend that.

Moore also blew a couple of blitz pickups late in the game.

I'm sorry, but Mendenhall should be on the field full-time from here on out. If he needs a breather, Parker has shown he's healthy enough to effectively spell him.

Moore would be my last resort at this point.

© Ike Taylor, you've got to come up with that interception if you want to make the Pro Bowl.

Taylor had an interception on the play before Matt Cassel threw a six-yard pass to Chris Chambers that turned into a 61-yard catch-and-run to set up Ryan Succop's game-winning field goal.

But Taylor lost control of the ball as he rolled over.

It would have been a nice interception. Instead, it's a footnote to a sorry day.

Taylor was also one of the guys who missed Jamal Charles on the opening kickoff.

© Nobody will be blaming Jeff Reed for missing any tackles this week.

Steelers-KC gameday thread

I'm already here at Arrowhead and the field looks bad. Spotty grass with plenty of brown spots.

I love this stadium - it's one of my favorites in the league - but people in Pittsburgh would be complaining about this grass.

© This is a must-win game for the Steelers, more so than next week's game at Baltimore.

Why?

You have to make your layups - to steal a term from another sport - and this game is one of them.

© The Steelers have Carey Davis, Polamalu, Urbok, Hills, Sunny Harris, McDonald and Kirschke down this week.

Mike Vrabel and guard Andy Alleman, a couple of starters, are down for the Chiefs.

Who I like, Week 11

After getting burned last week by the Bengals, the Steelers should be smarting a bit this week against Kansas City.

The Chiefs just aren't very good offensively and even though Troy Polamalu and Travis Kirschke won't play for the Steelers, their defense should have no trouble locking them down.

Defensively, Kansas City is very young in the secondary and that's something the Steelers will exploit, Kansas City also has just 12 sacks this season.

Take Pittsburgh, 31-10.

© Linebacker James Harrison was fined $5,000 by the NFL for his personal foul Sunday against Cincinnati offensive lineman Andrew Whitworth.

Kirschke suffers setback

After going through some individual drills on Wednesday, defensive end Travis Kirschke sat out Thursday as he continues to attempt to come back from a calf injury that has sidelined him the past two games.

Kirschke, of course, had been thrust into a starting role after Aaron Smith was lost for the season.

Nick Eason has started the past two games at defensive end with Smith and Kirschke out.

Polamalu in knee brace

Strong safety Troy Polamalu was at the Steelers practice today, but was wearing a large knee brace and did not participate.

Head coach Mike Tomlin said Polamalu is "very questionable" to play this week against Kansas City. By the looks of things, Polamalu may be out even longer than that.

Considering the Steelers play in Baltimore in two weeks, that's not a good thing for Pittsburgh, which is 2-2 in games that Polamalu has missed.

© I keep hearing the stat that the Steelers haven't won this season without Polamalu. Paul Alexander said it following the Mike Tomlin press conference Tuesday. It was repeated on an ESPN 1250 radio show Wednesday afternoon as something that's a fact.

I'm sure they probably read it somewhere, even though it's false. Don't these people do any research of their own?

© Carey Davis and Travis Kirschke were back at practice on a limited basis today and look like they could be back against Kansas City.

© Mike Wallace was out today with an undisclosed illness.

Kansas City's Bowe suspended

As if the Steelers needed any more help defeating the Kansas City Chiefs this weekend, now wide receiver Dwayne Bowe, the team's top receiver, has been suspended by the NFL for four games for violating the performance enhancing substances policy.

This leaves the Chiefs very thin at wide receiver.

Tuesday with Tomlin-Polamalu update

Mike Tomlin said the injury to All-Pro strong safety Troy Polamalu is not as serious as the team feared when he left Sunday's loss to Cincinnati.

Tomlin said Tuesday that Polamalu's injury is a PCL strain as opposed to a re-injury to the MCL that forced him to miss four games earlier this season.

"Troy's status for this game is questionable, at best," said Tomlin as the Steelers prepare to play at Kansas City Sunday. "Although we have had some favorable information in regards to where he is from a health standpoint. We're going to take it day-to-day with him."

In other injury-related news, Tomlin said defensive end Travis Kirschke will work in individual drills Wednesday, as will fullback Carey Davis.

Both have missed the past two games, Kirschke with a calf injury, Davis with a hamstring pull.

© The Steelers have also signed linebacker Donovan Woods from their practice squad, releasing linebacker Arnold Harrison.

Woods is expected to help the team's kickoff coverage problems.

Post-Cincinnati part II thoughts

Give credit where credit is due, Cincinnati defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer coached himself a heck of a ball game Sunday.

Individually, Cincinnati's defenders aren't all that good. In fact, they're largely the same group that has lined up for the Bengals the past few years - with a few notable exceptions.

But people have said that about the Steelers for years as well.

Sometimes scheme can outperform ability.

It did Sunday for Cincinnati.

© Cincinnati's offense didn't do a whole lot again against the Steelers, picking up 218 yards.

That's why it's kind of funny that quarterback Carson Palmer spoke after the game about how they outschemed the Steelers in the run game and in the play-action game.

Hey Carson, you outschemed the Steelers to the tune of 61 rushing yards, 157 passing and four field goals.

No, this day belonged to Zimmer.

© Ben Roethlisberger was off all day long in this one, overthrowing open receivers on a number of occasions.

Many of his throws were high. Again, credit Zimmer for keeping Roethlisberger in the pocket and for some well-timed delayed blitzes that kept Roethlisberger from stepping into his throws.

© The injury to Troy Polamalu is troubling.

Including Sunday's loss in which he played exactly one defensive series, the Steelers have won 13 of of the past 15 games he's started.

They're 2-2 when he doesn't play.

There's no word yet on Polamalu's status, but he pulled himself out of the game, so obviously he felt something wasn't right.

© That's seven consecutive games the Steelers have allowed a return touchdown, including three-straight home games that they've given up a kickoff return touchdown.

The defense has allowed 11 touchdowns all season.

Mike Tomlin joked following the game that he'd put himself out there if he thought it would help the kickoff coverage team.

But a call to Anthony Madison, who's unemployed right now, might be in order.

Keiwan Ratliff was inactive Sunday and rookie Keenan Lewis went down with a rib injury.

Ratliff could be released or Lewis could go on IR to make room for Madison, who was the Steelers' leader in special teams tackles in 2008.

© Chris Kemoeatu was the only Steelers player named to Sports Illustrated's midseason All-Pro team by Peter King.

Sunday, Kemoeatu gave up a pair of sacks to somebody named Johnathan Fanene. He also was penalized once for holding Fanene.

I'm pretty sure Fanene was not on King's All-Pro team.

Just saying.

© I'm sure Steelers fans are hitting the panic button right now after being swept by the Bengals.

But really, the Steelers still control their own destiny.

Sunday's loss will likely cost the Steelers any chance of a bye in the playoffs and could mean they might have to settle for a wildcard spot, but outside of Indianapolis and New England, who in the AFC playoff picture scares anyone?

Don't think for a second the Steelers wouldn't welcome a third game with Cincinnati.

Steelers-Bengals inactives

Keiwan Ratliff, Carey Davis, Urbik, Hills, Sunny Harris, Shaun McDonald and Travis Kirschke are inactive for the Steelers.

Keith Rivers is down for Cincinnati.

Brandon Johnson will start in his place.

Who I like

Really, this is one of the easier picks I've made this season. The Bengals are a legitimate playoff contender, but they aren't coming into Heinz Field and winning. It's just not going to happen.

And if you think back to the first meeting, the Steelers dominated it for about 3 1/2 quarters. Even with Cincinnati's two late TD drives, the Steelers still outgained the Bengals by 100 yards.

An interception return for a touchdown caused by Santonio Holmes and botched snap on a PAT made a big difference.

How did the botched PAT make a difference. Had the Bengals made the PAT after the interception return in the third quarter, they'd have been behind 20-17 and facing fourth-and-11 with under a minute remaining. Marvin Lewis would have kicked the tying field goal instead of going for the first down.

And who knows what happens after that.

Add in Limas Sweed's dropped touchdown pass and a Jeff Reed missed field goal and you just had the perfect storm for the Bengals.

Won't happen again this time.

Take Pittsburgh, 27-13

Timmons back at practice

Linebacker Lawrence Timmons was back at practice Wednesday and looked good moving around on his sprained ankle.

All signs point to Timmons returning to play after sitting out the Steelers' victory over Denver.

Travis Kirschke and Carey Davis sat out.

© Chad Ochocinco wrote on his Twitter page that he was going to send the Steelers defensive backs mustard in the mail this week because, "they weren't going to be able to ketchup" on Sunday.

It's really not that big of a deal for the Steelers, who seem to like Ochocinco's playful little digs.

Ochocinco is just 5-12 in 17 career games against the Steelers, so I guess they get the last laugh.

Cincinnati head coach Marvin Lewis, though, apparently nixed Ochocinco's plans and told him not to send the package.

Post-Denver thoughts

Sorry these are so late, but after spending all night in the air and getting in at 5:30 a.m., the need for sleep took over.

© I loved how the Steelers consistently attacked Denver All-Pro cornerback Champ Bailey again and again.

Bailey has the reputation as a shut-down cornerback. But the Steelers tested him over and over.

Bailey finished with a team-high 12 tackles, which is not a good thing if you're a cornerback.

© I asked Brett Keisel as we walked out of the stadium if the hometown officials - they're not really, but it works for this note - wanted to give him the sack trifecta with that ridiculous call late in the game on the pass he batted backwards.

But the fact was that Keisel's play helped set the tone in this one as Kyle Orton got less and less comfortable in the pocket.

Keisel's two sacks were the only ones the Steelers had, but they were in Orton's face from the second quarter on once Dick LeBeau realized the Broncos were not going to – could not? – test the Steeler deep.

© Denver is a fraud. That will be a team that will be fortunate to finish this season with nine wins.

They're not bad, but they're also not going anywhere with Kyle Orton at quarterback.

I could be wrong about that since Denver gets four gimmee wins because of the division in plays in, but San Diego is going to win the AFC West.

© Rashard Mendenhall is averaging 5.7 yards per carry and just hit the 100-carry mark for the season Monday night.

Many people will focus on his long runs, but I was much more impressed when he hammered the ball into the line early in the game, getting positive yards each time.

He still goes to that spin move a little too often, but he's starting to get it.

© Troy Polamalu continues to amaze me.

On one play late in the game, he lined up outside of the left tackle and at the snap took off across the field and covered wide receiver Brandon Stokley in the right flats, covering a good 50 yards before Orton could get the ball there.

It was something only Polamalu does.

© What makes the Steelers so good?

Three defensive starters were out and it looked like the exact same defense that has taken the field in the first seven games this season.

In fact, the replacements perhaps outplayed the usual starters.

Keyaron Fox, starting for Lawrence Timmons, was everywhere helping shut down Denver's running game and finished with a team-high seven tackles.

Tyrone Carter, starting in place of Ryan Clark, picked off a pair of passes at free safety, taking one of them to the end zone.

And while the stat line says that Nick Eason and Ziggy Hood combined for just one tackle subbing for Travis Kirschke at defensive end, they were very disruptive.

Pittsburgh-Denver inactives

As stated, Ryan Clark is down for the Steelers.

Also down are Sunny Harris, Urbik, Hills, Shaun McDonald, Kirschke and Timmons.

Peyton Hillis, Ryan Harris and McBean are inactive for Denver.

Sunny Harris is a bit of a surprise. It leaves the Steelers with three DEs, but Hoke can play there in a pinch.

No surprise, Clark won't play

In a move that should surprise no one, safety Ryan Clark will not play in tonight's game at Denver against the Broncos.

Doctors cleared Clark medically to go against the Broncos, but head coach Mike Tomlin decided to err on the side of caution rather than play Clark.

Clark, of course, has a rare blood disorder that caused his blood to sickle after Pittsburgh's last game here. He had his spleen removed, which was supposed to solve the problem, but there are no guarantees it would not have happened again.

If this were a playoff game, Clark and the Steelers may have come to a different decision. But since it is not, they decided it would be best not to play.

Who I Like, Steelers at Denver

This one really isn't as difficult as many would think.

The Steelers are 2 1/2 or three-point favorites against the Broncos, depending on what service you use.

But Pittsburgh's offense is way more dynamic than Denver's and that should be the difference.

The Steelers will get after Kyle Orton and force him to make those quick short throws that really aren't going to hurt Pittsburgh.

Playing this game in Denver will keep it reasonably close, but the road team will win it in the end, take Pittsburgh, 20-16.

© Lawrence Timmons and Travis Kirschke still have not practiced this week. That's no surprise for Kirschke, who has a slight tear in his calf. But Timmons will need to practice Saturday if he's to play in Denver.