Steelers News Roundup

It was a whirlwind week for cgolden, myself, and the rest of us on BTSC last week. The Max Starks developments (which still leave plenty of questions unanswered), more roster reviews, and our first look back at how we've drafted in recent years. Friday was a day of rest, but at this time of the year especially, there's no end to the roster maneuverings, off-field stories, and draft and free agent prognostications. To quickly catch up on the goins-on since Friday:

* This deserves more than a blurb, and will likely be expounded upon a bit more tomorrow, but the Steelers have parted ways with three veterans, Clint Kriewaldt, Jerame Tuman, and Allen Rossum. Tuman was the most senior of the three, having played in 121 (starting 56) for the Steelers. Kriewaldt will also be missed. The two-time special teams co-captain ('04 and '07) recorded 77 special teams tackles while playing for the Steelers. Rossum began his Steelers career with a bang, returning a 98-yard kickoff return for a TD against San Francisco. He failed to deliver much after though, and provided very little to nothing at all as a punt returner. A stop-gap solution for the Steelers in '07, and most certainly not an abject failure, but I think most of us would agree that we can, and must, improve in the return game.

* Larry Foote, a Detroit native, is doing his part to lend (financial) support to a fellow Motown member, who tragically died while playing on a patch of thin ice with friends on the River Rogue, an old stomping ground of Foote's during the long, cold winters of his youth.

* John Harris of the Tribune-Review, weighs in on how Marvel Smith should factor into the Steelers' plans this offseason. In essence, Harris argues that Smith should be resigned somehow, someway (his contract expires at the end of '08). He points out how Smith's injury might explain why the Steelers didn't renegotiate an extension this offseason, a year before his contract is up, as is often the case with the Steelers. Smith's future in Pittsburgh is certainly worthy of its own debate, surely to be had soon enough, if not now.

* DeShea, pay your taxes, or if you have, find a receipt, then fire your accountant.