Pittsburgh Steelers Season Preview

Black & Yellow Illustrated



Latrobe, PA (AP) -- Football is back! As we embark on a new season, the Pittsburgh Steelers got to work at St. Vincent College this past week in pursuit of their 1st XML trophy.

While many veterans rolled up to the dorms in their pimped out whips, Brett Keisel took a different approach.



Keisel's Tractor

Coach Sack just released the teams depth chart, so today we will take a quick look at how things shake out.



OFFENSE:

QB: Ben Roethlisberger, Byron Leftwich, Charlie Batch

If Ben goes down...they're screwed. We fully expect Sack to draft a QB in the offseason to start grooming.

RB: Rashard Mendenhall. Isaac Redman, Jonathan Dwyer, John Clay, Baron Batch, Chris Rainey

Mendenhall will be the workhorse and Redman will get some short yardage carries. Rainey could be a nice weapon on special teams and out of the backfield on 3rd down.

WR: Mike Wallace, Antonio Brown, Emmanuel Sanders, Jerricho Cotchery

The retirement of Hines Ward actually makes the wr core better. Lots of speed here.

TE: Heath Miller, Leonard Pope, Weslye Saunders

Heath Miller is a mainstay in Pittsburgh and the signing of Pope helps sure things up in case Miller goes down. Saunders has some upside but we doubt they keep 3 TE's.

OL: The Steelers really improved their Oline through the draft. They picked David DeCastro in the 1st and Mike Adams in the 2nd. They will team up with Maurkice Pouncey, Marcus Gilbert, and a healthy Willie Colon and could be very good for years to come.





DEFENSE:

NT: Casey Hampton, Steve Mclendon, Alameda Ta'amu

With Hampton getting old. Ta'amu was drafted to be his replacement and has a ton of potential. Don't sleep on Mclendon.

DE: Brett Keisel, Ziggy Hood, Cameron Heyward

Those 3 are locks to make the team. Hood and Heyward are the future but the "Beard" still has some game left.

OLB: James Harrison, Lamarr Woodley, Jason Worilds, Chris Carter, Brandon Johnson

Harrison and Woodley are beasts. They need these 2 to stay healthy because there is a big dropoff after. Look for them to draft an OLB.

ILB: Lawrence Timmons, Larry Foote, Stevenson Sylvester, Sean Spence

With Farrior gone, Foote steps in to a starting role. Timmons is a pro bowler but this group is pretty weak. Spence has a bright future. Look for the Steelers to trade for a LB before the season.

FS: Ryan Clark, Ryan Mundy

Clark is the starter but is no spring chicken. Look for them to upgrade in the offseason.

SS: Troy Polamalu, Will Allen

75% of earth is covered by water, the rest is covered by Polamalu. A healthy Troy makes this defense scary (key word: "healthy")

CB: Ike Taylor, Keenen Lewis, Cortez Allen, Curtis Brown, Terrence Frederick

Taylor is a nice corner but is getting older. Lewis , Allen, and Brown all have potential...but who will step up?



I hope you all enjoyed the 1st edition.

Nice write up Sack! I really think Timmons (unless he's traded to the Cards ) will be the MVP for you this season. Incredible athlete and football player who has really come into his own lately and will be the undisputed game changer for this team moving forward.

I can't argue with that at all (except the trade to AZ part). LT is my favorite player on the team. I could ship you Foote so he can take the same route as Joey Porter and Clark Haggans.

jsack11 wrote:I can't argue with that at all (except the trade to AZ part). LT is my favorite player on the team. I could ship you Foote so he can take the same route as Joey Porter and Clark Haggans.

One of the reasons I picked the Cards was because they are the Pittsburgh Steelers west, but I'm good with Foote. May be interested in some other guys though. LT is mine too actually!