Steelers fans heeded to pump brakes on excitement

Been there, done that, got that t-shirt.

That is essentially what Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger told Alan Robinson of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review when he was asked about his excitement level for the upcoming season after OTAs officially ended last week.

"It's real early, we wore helmets, that was it, there was no hitting, no pads. Right now I like what I see, but it's way too early to get excited about."

It is very easy to get taken away with wonderful tales of Dri Archer streaking to the endzone during OTAs, Ryan Shazier covering Antonio Brown out wide and even scuffles that could signal the die hard Steeler fan within everyone to get giddy about this team's potential in the 2014 season.

Trust me, I'm as guilty as the next person, but Roethlisberger hit the nail on the head.

The Steelers had a great draft, and it seems that there will be several players that will make an impact as rookies in 2014, but that doesn't mean that fans should think that this 8-8 team will rise from the ashes to win their 7th Lombardi trophy, at least not in June.

This Steelers roster was transformed almost overnight from old and slow to young and fast. With youth comes inexperience, and with inexperience comes mental mistakes. No one should be surprised if there are some growing pains this season for the Steelers.

Don't take Roethlisberger's quote the wrong way. By all means you should be optimistic about this season. There is plenty to be optimistic about, but what the 11 year veteran quarterback is trying to warn against is the hubris that will lead to a downfall.

So what is a starved football junkie to do when their star quarterback tells them they should calm down with the excitement levels this early? Simple. Be excited about the potential surrounding this team, but also realize there is a lot of room to grow and improve as well.

As Mike Tomlin would say, this team's arrow is "pointing up".