First, the really, really good news. Its August.
Bell and Blount
This could have happened in September, October, November, December, January, or (God forbid) February. And if it had happened during any of those times it would have really sucked and could have destroyed a season. As it is, a little adversity (and it really is just a little adversity) though never welcome can be alchemized into a good thing as long as the response doesn't move beyond anger mixed with some disgust to rash thoughtless reactions. Some of us have already taken and failed that test. Fortunately, none of these people have been in a decision making capacity with the Steelers.
Putting on a coaches hat (amateur), there are a lot of developmental positives here. The two big negatives are the injuries, that are never a good thing and the flawed perspective of LeGarrette Blount. Le'Veon Bell's behavior could be attributed to youthful knuckleheadedness (is that a word?). Blount, a late twenty something and having spent some time in the league is harder to casually explain away. You would have thought that he would have stepped up and prevented something like this from happening. This doesn't place Blount in the category of being a cancer, but it does reconfirm the fact that he is, indeed, flawed. But he has also already established that he brings talent to the position and, perhaps most important, a level of malevolent swagger that has been matched by few who wear the black and gold in the beginning of this new era. Benefits have to be weighed against liabilities. Will the Steelers elevate Blount or will he pull down Pittsburgh? I think the former would be a good bet at this point.
The best thing that this incident did, though it may take a considerable amount of perspective to think of it in positive terms, is that it exposed the Steelers as a group that probably has the requisite talent to compete at a high level in this league, but for now, lacks the collective heart, mental toughness and resilience that may be more essential than ability in putting together a championship effort. One common characteristic of the three Super Bowl teams of the 21st Century is that each had to overcome situations where the odds were definitely stacked against the team succeeding (2005, having to win as a sixth seed; 2008, overcoming a slow start and the most difficult schedule in 30 years; 2010, getting past the suspension of Roethlisberger and the trading away of their number one receiver, Santonio Holmes).
You can have preparatory conversation about coping with and overcoming adversity until you're blue in the face, but I suspect that this is one of those things that you have to actually experience in order to truly understand and develop the necessary iron to pass the tests when they come. To this point everyone has been saying all the right things, but it is one thing to anticipate how one might react to, say, a death in the family, as opposed to having to actually deal with a death in the family. In this sense the issue here isn't what happened on Thursday night in Philly, as Tomlin has stated, the true test will come with the response.
Viewed from this perspective this is more blessing than curse. The wake up call came during the preseason meaning that the learning curve and corrections are not coming at the expense of actual wins and losses. It was an equalitarian failure. Blame LeBackfield if you like, but everyone stunk. The offense couldn't move anyone, the defense couldn't stop anyone and special teams couldn't kick straight. No one is in the position to finger point, except into the mirror. Bell and Blount are now under pressure to deliver. If young guys like Shazier, Tuitt or Archer were thinking about getting full of themselves, that's over. Troy and others who might have been uncomfortable asserting their leadership...screw that. Lead or die. And all that talk about why Keisel has to be brought back has gone away, hasn't it. And for all the bandwagon fans and haters, this would be a perfect time to jump ship and hook up with the Seahawks or whomever ESPN says is going to be hot. Probably won't happen, but we can dream can't we?
Sean Spence and injuries
Sticking with the theme of luck running out, to bad both insult and injury Sean Spence suffered what appeared to be the absolute worst case scenario; going down with yet another knee injury. Take a breath. Turns out that it is 'just' a sprain that will not require surgery. This, along with the successful surgery this week for long snapper Greg Warren suggests that though no where near ideal, the problems on the injury front remain manageable for now. Both players are likely to be available for the bulk of the season.
Keisel
The timing of the return of Da Beard couldn't have been better. I'm pretty sure this move has been in the works for some time, though it may have been possible that if one or more of the newcomers or young guys were having a monsterous summer then the team might have gone in a different direction. The lesson here for those who are willing to take it to heart is becoming overly enamored with the promise (sometimes false) of new, unproven talent over known players for whom we may have wearied of their presence. Tuitt may be equal to or better than Keisel eventually, maybe sooner than later, but not now. Mauro has looked good going up against other third stringers, meaning what? Some are discovering to their dismay that Steve McLendon (and probably Cam Thomas) is no Casey Hampton. Duh? Right now, walking in off the street, Brett Keisel is probably the best defensive lineman the Steelers have. Players like Keisel, Troy and Ike Taylor are better in decline than most of the other players in this league at their peak. College tape and stats at the Combine are all interesting, but doesn't prove that a player can contribute in a meaningful way in this league at once, or ever. Keisel can help on the field, and Lord knows he's needed in the locker room.
Gilbert
Another foundation block was secured for these next generation Steelers when right offensive tackle Marcus Gilbert signed a $30 million contract extension this week. The fact that two of three signings this summer involve offensive linemen speaks volumes of the progress and promise involved with that particular unit. In years past the conversation about what ails this team would almost certainly start with the O line. No more. Next up on the contract extension list, cornerback Cortez Allen.
Isaac Redman
Even before their legal difficulties there was concern about depth at the running back position. When the bad news broke on LeBackfield Hombre de Acero suggested the possibility of revisiting having Isaac Redman as part of the roster. This led to two tragic revelations. The first being that Redman had suffered an injury that put his spinal cord in jeopardy and ended his NFL career. The second came before the reveal of the severity of Redman's condition and involved the extreme negative reaction to a player who previously been such a fan darling and favorite. Check the comments on Hombre's piece. It says something disturbing to me about the fickle nature of fan adoration.
William Gay
On the other side of the fan adoration scale would be cornerback William Gay. Many fans never liked this guy, and don't I assure you, don't like him now, but are just waiting for an opportunity to open fire. This piece by Dale Lolley would, hopefully, move you to reconsider not only your view of Gay, but also the relative severity of the transgressions by Bell and Blount when compared to that of Ray Rice and others. Being stupid is not a virtue, but unfortunately, most of us have been there in some form or fashion. Issues like domestic violence are on a different order, and while it remains to be seen if the distraction to the Ravens will rise to level that the Steelers have already experienced, I can live with some ill advised weed smoking.
Putting the preseason in perspective
It might help some if you would just repeat to yourself that 'its only the preseason'. Grantland's Bill Barnwell notes that preseason performances can be unpredictable indicators of what follows in the regular season. Many Steelers fans jump quickly to connect the dots between last season's 0-4 preseason record and the 0-4 regular season start that followed. But contrast that with the Detroit Lions whose preseason record in 2008 was 4-0 and then went on to go 0-16 in the regular season. So what is the meaning of Pittsburgh's 1-2 preseason in 2014? Maybe something, maybe nothing.
Snoop Dog
Steelers Nation has some notorious members of its fan base, including the likes of Hank Williams Jr., I believe Rush Lindbaugh, and Snoop Dog. And these guys can be just as off the hook as anyone else when they are critiquing their favorite team. Snoop offered Mike Tomlin some personnel advice concerning the position of offensive coordinator. As far as I know Tomlin hasn't responded, but OC, Todd Haley has.
After allowing a couple of days for the blood pressures to lower, perhaps a review of what actually happened in Philadelphia is in order. Heath Miller earned the dubious distinction of being the Steelers Digest player of the week. Mike Tomlin's postmortem is here. Neal Coolong's winners and losers, here. Scott Brown's evaluation, here.
Bubble players and the practice squad
A bit lost in the wake of the massacre has been the potential fate of players like Jordan Zumwalt and Shaquille Richardson who at this point may not make the 53 man roster. With so many quality prospects who aren't quite ready, the expansion of practice squad numbers may prove a godsend to the Steelers.
Brian Hoyer
With a week like this it may be easy to forget that the Steelers aren't the only team in the AFC North that is experiencing drama. The Cleveland Browns announced that Hoyer would start against Pittsburgh on the September 7th opener. The performance of the Steelers defense this week should provide him reason for optimism.
The business side
Some interesting information on agents and how they support their clients.