Monday Morning Quick Hits: Steelers Style

by cgolden on Mar 31, 2008 9:40 AM EDT in News

Here are some Monday morning quick hits to get the week started off right.

Coach Mike Tomlin gives some memorable quotes while relaxing at the NFL Owners Meetings. He offers some insight about how the offensive line will be improved and praises Dallas Baker for his work on the practice squad last season. This is what our leader had to say when asked about a daunting schedule in 2008:

"Don't ask me about the schedule. I could care less. If we want to be the best, we've got to beat them all, anyway."

I hate to keep beating a dead horse but Coach T continues to impress me with his no nonsense attitude.

An article about Anthony Smith concludes with a complete injury update on guys such as FWP, Aaron Smith, Hines, and Marvel Smith. As you would expect the reports are that each one is progressing either on schedule or ahead of schedule and all are expected to make a full recovery by the beginning of camp. A separate article tells the complete story behind Ryan Clark's bizarre injury and his road to recovery. It's definitely encouraging to hear that he's been released to participate in all drills at full speed. He's also only 10 pounds under his playing weight, which is pretty amazing considering he lost about 30 pounds during his recovery.

I also read this weekend that as Steelers fans, we need to be rooting for Brian St. Pierre, Marquis Cooper, Verron Haynes and Dan Kreider to get jobs somewhere this off-season. If none of these guys sign with another team before the start of camp the Steelers won't get any compensatory picks in next season's draft. By rule, a team is only eligible for compensatory picks if they sign fewer unrestricted free agents than they lose. The count currently stands at three signed (Moore, Keyaron Fox, and Hartwig) and two lost (Faneca and Haggans). If a couple of those guys are signed the Steelers would likely get a third round pick for the loss of Faneca. Something worth keeping an eye on?

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comp picks

Wow, I never knew that. It's sad to think that our third round pick is at the mercy of that group. The wiki you linked to also said that even if we have the same number sign as leave, we can only a 7th rounder, which would suck. We should seriously consider giving next year's 7th rounder (or even 6th) to a team who would sign two of those guys, considering we'd get a 3rd and maybe a 5th. A little help, Whis??

One of those articles also mentioned that Dallas Baker was pretty good on the PS last year. I guess he was unspectacular in training camp, but for obvious reasons, they don't talk about how well the PS'ers are doing during the season. It would be nice to see him compete with Reid (and/or a draft pick) for the #4 role, or the KR role.

by BadMaafala on Mar 31, 2008 11:02 AM EDT reply actions

AZ

I'm sure the Cards will pick up one if not all of those guys :)

by Michael Bean on Mar 31, 2008 11:06 AM EDT reply actions

yeah i was going to say the same

Seems like the Cards are big time steeler wanta bes but hey cant blame wiz for wanting some hardworking players on the team. If anyone is going to look up to a team, it would be the steelers, they do well from the top down. GOD ITS GREAT TO BE A STEELER FAN EVERYDAY.

* till next time wave those towels proud

by LiveinDCbutsteelerfanbyheart on Mar 31, 2008 11:12 AM EDT reply actions

Dan?

The biggest change under Tomlin, that I could see, was how the fullback position is used. Instead of using Thunder Dan in his traditional blocking role, they stuck in Carey Davis and actually gave him some touches.

Dan's been such a consistent blocker, I'm really not sure if letting him go is a good move. Davis is 30 lbs lighter, and Ben needs all the help he can get to stay upright. He might be more costly, but if he can't find any takers, we should resign him for league veteran minimum.

by zacharai on Mar 31, 2008 11:53 AM EDT reply actions

Welcome to BTSC

Kreider was one of my favorite Steelers of the past couple of years and I was one of the louder one's at the begining of '07 when word came out that he lost the job. I'd be surprised if he's in the league at all next year though. Fullbacks like him don't last too long after the age of 30, especially after a major knee injury and he turned 31 earlier this month. I'd still love to see him back in the Black and Gold for one more year though. Can anyone imagine a goal line set of Kreider and Schmidt?

by cgolden on Mar 31, 2008 12:04 PM EDT up reply actions

kreider

Good thoughts and yeah, welcome.

Any update on his health? Is he fully recovered and ready to go?

by Michael Bean on Mar 31, 2008 12:07 PM EDT up reply actions

woops sorry fogot to type

the comment. I really think that if owen schmidt falls in our hands. Our special teams play will be fixed right away. With a mind like schmidt who has little regards of his body, is a huge. Im a firm believer, if you are crazy dont matter what your size, color or athletic ability is, they will find a place for him if he is going to be the bowling ball that blows up that first wall of blockers. I think next year if we get schmidt he will help us a lot at special teams, and in a few years we can develop him working in the back field.

ALso if our punter goes down( i know his name but to lazy to look up how to spell it) schmidt can step in there and punt it. If he screws up, coach dont need to yell at him because he be hitting his head against his helmet till it bleeds. MY KIND OF PLAYER

* till next time wave those towels proud

by LiveinDCbutsteelerfanbyheart on Mar 31, 2008 12:44 PM EDT reply actions

hehe

I'm getting the impression that you want Schmidt :)

by Michael Bean on Mar 31, 2008 12:50 PM EDT up reply actions

Schmitt

I'm right there with the Schmitt pick.. there's always one or two guys in each draft that I'd kill for.. usually they aren't the guys we need.. I think this year though - I might get my wish.. If we had Schmitt we'd be getting a guy that would bring that toughness and ferocity.. and he can block.. Just imagine him back there protecting Ben.. and he can run a little.. check out this link.. for all of you who didn't catch the Fiesta Bowl - he was labeled "the runaway Beer truck" .. and boy do i like beer..

http://youtube.com/watch?v=0TUKrH197eE

by smashmouthsteel on Mar 31, 2008 1:16 PM EDT up reply actions

nice

i posted that on the main page. thanks for sharing.

by Michael Bean on Mar 31, 2008 1:27 PM EDT up reply actions

comp picks

Brian St. Pierre looks to be signing with the Cards (agreed in principle), which is a good step. Also, a commenter on AOL (reliable source, I know) seemed fairly certain that since Hartwig was cut, his signing doesn't count toward the UFA total. I think we should be ok, but hopefully Whis will help us out a little more just to be sure.

So Faneca is probably a 3rd, but Haggans will probably get cancelled out by Moore, depending on playing time.

by BadMaafala on Mar 31, 2008 12:58 PM EDT reply actions

St. Pierre

He signed with the Cards.

by BadMaafala on Mar 31, 2008 3:27 PM EDT up reply actions

Good for us

a little surprising though. I wouldn't have expected anyone to pick him up. I guess he knows the system, though.

by WolfpackSteelersFan on Mar 31, 2008 3:40 PM EDT up reply actions

The PG's take

The PG wrote a wrap up article like the one above, and it had some new info. It's the most trustworthy insight I've seen as to what's going on with Starks. It also gives a different context to Tomlin's quote on the OL.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08091/869306-66.stm

by BadMaafala on Mar 31, 2008 3:39 PM EDT reply actions

Which

If you had your choice of tomlin or crennel which would you choose?

by bereadawg @ Behind the Steel Curtain on Mar 31, 2008 4:15 PM EDT reply actions

Tomlin

Isn't Crennel around 60 years old? Also, he's been there 3 years? or 4 years? It was a mess when he got there, no doubt, but he didn't show any discernible progress until last year. He was clearly on the hot seat coming into this year.

I would take Tomlin for these reasons:

-He's young, so he has upside potential
-He's shown that he can be a good leader in that he won over the team in his first year
-The Rooneys have a good track record in their recent coaching hirings (both of them)

by WolfpackSteelersFan on Mar 31, 2008 4:41 PM EDT up reply actions

Tomlin vs Crennel

I don't think it would take any Steelers fan more than half a second to say Tomlin. Crennel has done a commedable job at leading the Browns back to some level of respectability but I would think most Steelers fans are more than happy with Tomlin's demeanor and results to this point.

by cgolden on Mar 31, 2008 5:04 PM EDT up reply actions

ok

BUT the Browns are an expansion team that was made to fast. The Steelers were a pretty good team when tomlin took over. Not many players are around from when crennel took over. Ya he's old but he the head coach if it gets too bad we can wheel him out to the sideline (I think hes worth it). Not to say Tomlin isn't good he has tons of potential.

by bereadawg @ Behind the Steel Curtain on Mar 31, 2008 4:47 PM EDT reply actions

dont know what happened there

Ya he's old but if he gets to old we can wheel him out to the sideline (I think hes worth it). Not to say Tomlin isn't good he has tons of potential.

by bereadawg @ Behind the Steel Curtain on Mar 31, 2008 4:50 PM EDT reply actions

equal at this point

Yeah both have now had 1 decent year and it's hard to say which is better. For now I'll trust the Rooney's judgement first and foremost...

by Chicago Steeler on Mar 31, 2008 6:08 PM EDT up reply actions

Agreed

I guess the main reason is that Tomlin hasn't given me reason to want him replaced. He took over a good team, and he didn't screw it up. Age does have something to with it too.

Like for my college team. I love our new coach (Tom O'Brien), but he's close to 60 (58 now, I think). I'm sure he'll be around for at least 7-10 years, but I wish we had hired him when BC did 10 years before that.

Crennel can turn out to be a good coach for you for the next 5-7 years, but he's probably going to retire soon after that. Tomlin could be our coach for the next 20+ years, possibly.

by WolfpackSteelersFan on Mar 31, 2008 4:55 PM EDT reply actions

well

I dont think age should really factor into the consideration THAT much. Hell, what's the average shelf life for a coach these days? I'm not sure exactly, but it's not 7-10 years, I know that.

I think Crennell is fine. I have no idea if he's as personable as Tomlin and as able to relate to today's players, but he's been in the game for quite some time and has had solid results on a number of different levels.

by Michael Bean on Mar 31, 2008 5:07 PM EDT up reply actions

Coach's tenure in one position

Sure, you're right that coaches usually don't last that long in one position. But, that's mostly from ownership impatience leading to firings. The Rooney's have proven to be more patient with their coaches, allowing Noll to retire on his own terms after not winning 10 games in a season throughout the 80's and Cowher to survive 7-9 and 6-10 seasons. Both had earlier success that made them willing to believe the coaches, but other teams have not been as forgiving. Billick getting fired after winning a SB, for example.

by WolfpackSteelersFan on Mar 31, 2008 5:18 PM EDT up reply actions

coaches

It's hard to pick based on what they have done since joining their teams, since the teams are so different. I thought Crennel was a good signing for the Browns, and I'm glad they gave him enough of a chance to turn things around. I will say that Crennel's pre-HC resume was more impressive than Tomlin's, but it looks like the Rooney's wanted someone young. My guess is that if Crennel was up against Tomlin, they would have still picked Tomlin. I think I would have picked Crennel.

by BadMaafala on Mar 31, 2008 6:10 PM EDT reply actions

As first time HCs

Yeah, I guess you're right. Based on right now, I couldn't say that there is a huge difference in HC resumes (overall resumes, yes, Crennel has much more experience). Both had their teams at 10-6 last year. Main difference being Tomlin beat Crennel twice for the tie-breaker. At this point, both seem to have bright futures and reasons to be excited about their directions. So, there's is really no reason for fans of either team to be unhappy with who they have.

by WolfpackSteelersFan on Mar 31, 2008 6:16 PM EDT up reply actions