LeBeau done? Thanks for the distraction, ESPN

by PittRiverman on Jan 23, 2011 5:07 PM EST

So, I hit ESPN to get the box score on the NFC game and this little nugget jumps off the screen and grabs me by the throat:

Sources: Dick LeBeau's contract up

Thanks. Thank you very much for the distraction just before kickoff. I really appreciate it, ESPN. I'm sure the players do as well. I guess we now know what the Super Bowl hype week stories will center around after the Steelers get past the Jets today. What will they do with Coach Dad? Will they pay him? Will he retire? Will he go to Arizona? Will Tomlin take over the defensive signal calling and install a Tampa 2 4-3? I really thought we had moved beyond this when MT retained Coach Dad.

My guess is that Mr LeBeau will retire after this season if the Steelers win #7. I just can't imagine Coach Dad going to Arizona, or the Rooneys letting that happen. I hope.

Poll

What will happen with Coach Dad?

He'll retire after this season.

43 votes

He'll be re-signed by the Steelers.

279 votes

He'll be coaching somewhere else.

2 votes

Shut the **** up, I'm only thinking about the Jets.

22 votes

346 votes | Poll has closed

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Comments

Distraction??

I think not, this just gives our D more motivation (not that we really need any) to give 110% today out there

by XxWeapon 56xX on Jan 23, 2011 5:46 PM EST via mobile reply actions

I do think a few people would retire if we win our 7th

Hines
JF
Coach Dad

by Majabe on Jan 23, 2011 5:56 PM EST reply actions

Disagree. None of them will retire. They are all on record saying they want to come back.

by worldtrip on Jan 23, 2011 6:31 PM EST up reply actions

With a lockout, it will be tough to resist retiring on a high, and still on high ground

""I can never make up my mind if I'm happy being a flute player, or if I wish I were Eric Clapton." Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull)

by Flying Polamalus on Jan 23, 2011 6:39 PM EST up reply actions

Wards coming back for 1,000 receptions and another realistic shot at one more ring. Farrior I can see, but he may give up a starting role to stay.

by alistar7 on Jan 23, 2011 10:24 PM EST up reply actions

I think

Aaron smith would retire if the Steelers won i think. Ward in a preseason interview said he would retire the day he got his third ring but it wouldnt take much to get him to return and Farrior is in better shape now than when he was 30 and takes fulfilling the length of his contract at a high level his motivation. They may get Lebeau to come back for another season win or lose the Rooneys and Tomlin wont just let him walk.

by BubbyBrister6 on Jan 23, 2011 10:57 PM EST up reply actions

I think Mr. LeBeau will die on a football field

And I mean that in a good way, as in he won’t retire until he literally cant coach anymore, kinda like Joe Paterno at Penn st. And I pray he stays with our beloved steelers as long as possible. It will be a sad sad day when the the greatest defensive coordinator EVER is no longer on the sidelines orchestrating the best D in the NFL

by blitzzburgh on Jan 23, 2011 6:21 PM EST reply actions

All reports I have heard

From people really close to the organization is that LeBeau loves football too much to stop coaching right now. And he loves the Steelers, he wouldn’t leave here.

by John Stephens on Jan 23, 2011 8:32 PM EST reply actions

If he wants to stay, we'll pay him.

No worries in my mind about that. If he wants to retire, he damn well deserves it and we’ll still love him.

This is not an issue.

by TomlinsPuffyJacket on Jan 23, 2011 9:57 PM EST reply actions

Like Tomlin said. . .

The day LeBeau wants to retire Tomlin won’t be available. There’s no way LeBeau leaves unless he really wants out, and I don’t see that happening.

by Phantaskippy on Jan 23, 2011 10:11 PM EST reply actions

I think he'll retire when he dies

One of the great disappointments of a football game is that the cheerleaders never seem to get injured.

by samliam on Jan 23, 2011 10:15 PM EST reply actions

isn't our LB coach being groomed for the job?

not that coach dad wont be missed but I think the Rooneys are preparing for it, though I hope the switch is years away

it never got weird enough for me

by JerseyFresh on Jan 23, 2011 10:32 PM EST reply actions

A friend of mine who worked for the Steelers had this to say on the matter:

“They’re going to have to carry LeBeau out of Heinz Field in a box. He’ll never retire.”

Seriously, I wish I could look like he does when I’m 50 let alone 70 something!

I could see Aaron Smith calling it a day, especially if he manages to play in 2 weeks. He’s had a lot of injuries in recent years and Ziggy means he can leave the LDE slot in good shape. It would be great to have him back and have a 3 man rotation for a year (or two!) it’d keep them all healthier, but yeah if I was Smith and I just missed another significant portion of a season and came away with a 3rd ring, I’d probably call it a career and be happy.

Ward too for similar reasons. Not so much the injuries but he really does look in pain whenever he runs out there. A bit of a hobble. He can leave the WR corps looking young and promising and look forward to his call from Canton in a few years. Ward, like Smith would have nothing left to prove. And I’m sure we’d all love to see both of them as coaches. I wonder if they could find a role for them on the team.

I’d fear their on field loss a lot less than their off field loss. Both big time leaders and examples to their team mates and I’m not sure there’s obvious replacements for them in those roles yet.

by KiwiSteelerFan on Jan 23, 2011 11:07 PM EST reply actions

Aaron Smith

said in locker room interview this week that he intends to play next season and that he has a lot of football left in him.

by steel sox on Jan 24, 2011 12:29 AM EST up reply actions

NONSENSE

If you want the real answer, read this

The money quote:

“I’m not even the oldest coach in the state of Pennsylvania,” he said. "There’s a guy up here at Penn State, he’s 10 years older than me, so I feel like a baby.

The prospect of outlasting Penn State’s 84-year-old Joe Paterno aside, LeBeau doesn’t sound like a man making his final Super Bowl run.

“I don’t think these guys had too bad a year defensively, and we’ve still got some defense to play,” he said. “So if somebody wants me to work, I think maybe we can still get them in and out of the huddle a couple times.”

"I respect everyone on the football field. But some people I don't like. And some people I dislike even more." - James Harrison

by steely mcballs on Jan 24, 2011 8:24 AM EST reply actions