SteelerWatch

The Six Pack Sports Report has posted an "open letter" from Brady Quinn.  You know him — he's that tool that will eventually be the franchise loser of the AFC North whipping boys in Cleveland.  Normally I don't post this sort of thing, but this is 1) about the enemy, and 2) funny as hell.

Check it out here.

Six Pack Sports Report, you have officially made the SteelerWatch friends list.

Wikipedia: pwned

Bill Walsh, architect of the 49ers' three Super Bowl victories in the 1980s, has died of cancer at age 75.  I won't go into any details, but you can read further here.

While he's been the target of a few verbal shots this week for the brutal hits he has delivered in training camp, it sounds as if second-year free safety Anthony Smith is growing up and accepting his role in the defense.

As free safety, the NFL equivalent to baseball's center fielder, Smith has a lot on his shoulders.  He's got the most ground to cover on any given play, he has to read receivers carefully and commit to a coverage judiciously and, as the last person between the offense and the end zone, he needs to know when to give up a few yards rather than risking a big play by trying to knock someone's head off.  It sounds like, after the first week of practice and being called out by offensive leader Hines Ward, Smith is grasping the bigger picture.  According to the Post-Gazette:

"The only problem with me and [Troy Polamalu] being in there at the same time is we're both risk-takers," Smith said. "Troy can take a few more [risks]. I take my shots. I have to be smart about it, though."

Asked if it's hard for him to curtail his style, Smith said, "It's not tough at all. You just can't make a big play every time. I try to make as many as I can."

 Smith has become one of SteelerWatch's favorite players because of his big hits and his natural knack for finding the ball.  If he can back that up with his intelligence, it will give the Steelers the best one-two punch at safety in the NFL.

Read the entire article here. 

By now, you've most likely heard of Brian Jackson, the Pittsburgh (Bretwood) resident who has spent the last three years "impersonating" three Steelers — Ben Roethlisberger, third-string QB Brian St. Pierre and Jerame Tuman (his latest and greatest).  You're probably also sick of hearing about it, because it's not big news.

The Tribune-Review is now also guilty of impersonation, mocking the story's developments with this satirical take on the situation.  In my opinion, it's probably the most accurate sports story to come out of the T-R this year, but that's just my opinion.

Right about the time free agency started, a lot of us were concerned about player buy-in to Mike Tomlin, particularly in the older group of guys who have spent most or all of their careers doing things the Cowher way. Hines Ward headed that list as he regularly made comments that, while not taking potshots at his new coach, appeared to lean heavily in favor of his old coach.

Well, it appears those days are long gone. Training camp has begun and, in a single practice, Coach has proven to his players that he is for real, is not to be taken lightly, and will do whatever is necessary (and, hopefully, ethical) to win in this league.  One day in, and the Steelers have already held what the Post-Gazette’s Ed Bouchette called “the most physical practice session at Saint Vincent College since the days of Chuck Noll.”

His hardest sell would have been to Alan Faneca, but he’s playing this season with one foot out the door anyway. Next hardest? Ward, himself.

Sold.

In an article published this morning by the Post-Gazette, Ward put his new-and-improved feelings out there very matter-of-factly.

“Coach Cowher’s not here anymore. We’re doing it the way coach Tomlin’s doing it,” Hines Ward said. “He wants to prove to everybody he can be a great coach and he has a set way with the team. If you don’t like it, get off the ship.”

I don’t think anyone could have said it better.

About 45 minutes ago, players were scheduled to report to Latrobe for the annual migration of successful sports (read this carefully, Pirates management) back to the city of Pittsburgh. With hockey in the middle of its off-season, the Passion now off on their National Women’s Football Association Championship honeymoon, and the Pirates longing for the early 1990s when they actually managed a winning record, the city is in urgent need of more quality sports. And tomorrow morning, it begins. Coach Tomlin’s “Give me victory, or give me death!” schedule that includes 15 two-a-day practices starts Tuesday and continues for 11 straight days before the players are given a day off — the day before the Hall of Fame game in Canton, Ohio.

After the Passion’s 32-0 thrashing of the Columbus Comets last week, the magnifying glass will be on the Steelers to see if they can continue the city’s football winning streak in the neighboring state that now stands at 12 games since a 2001 loss in Cincinnati in week 17 (@Cleveland 5 times, @Cincy 6 times including 2005 playoffs, @Columbus by the Passion).

Get out and support your team!

Troy “Taz” Polamalu and the Steelers agreed today to a contract extension that will keep him in Black ‘n Gold for another five years.  The contract makes him (rightfully) the highest-paid safety in the league at $33 million over the duration of the contract.  As reported by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, he will receive more than $15 million in signing and roster bonuses.

With all current contract negotiations complete, coach Mike Tomlin is free to focus solely on football in his first training camp, as disgruntled guard Alan Faneca has vowed to participate in all camp activities and should not become a distraction for a team that is looking to return to their 2005 form.

Regardless of what legacy Mike Tomlin eventually leaves Pittsburgh with, one thing he has already cemented in his tiny patch of history is that he is a man of his word.

On Thursday Tomlin reportedly stated that he believed all draft picks would be signed before the players report for traning camp, and Sunday evening that came to fruition with the signing of first-round pick Lawrence Timmons to a five-year deal.  The deal promises to be fairly lucrative, with base pay ranging from $12 million to $15 million depending on incentives and more than $8 million in guaranteed money, including his signing bonus.

This leaves the Steelers with few outstanding issues — the only pressing one at this point being the contract extension negotiations surrounding strong safety Troy Polamalu.  His agent has stated that he expects the deal to be completed by tomorrow, but no early indications have risen over the weekend that would specify the outcome of the negotiations, one way or the other.

Mike Tomlin looks to make good on his word that all draft picks would be signed by the time Training Camp opens. With Saturday’s signing of cornerback William Gay, only first-rounder Lawrence Timmons remains unsigned. Camp opens Monday afternoon, with practice starting Tuesday. It looks as if all rookies will be ready to go, assuming the team and Timmons’ agent can come to an agreement in the next 30 hours.

Let’s hope this is a little foreshadowing of things to come from Pittsburgh football this fall.

The Pittsburgh Passion, the city’s National Women’s Football Association franchise, took it to the Columbus Comets yesterday in the league championship game, shutting out their Ohio foes 32-0.  In doing so, ‘Burgh Ball, Women’s Division stepped up and showed the world that it doesn’t matter who dons the City’s pigskin colors — we’ll still stomp any Ohio football team into the ground.

The championship caps an amazing 12-0 season including playoffs.  During the post-season, the team defeated opponents by an average score of 44.5 to 7.  Their utterly dominant defense gave up a total of 53 points during the regular season; by contrast, their offense scored at least 52 points in five of their eight games leading up to the playoffs, including a 77-0 stomping of their in-state rivals, the Central Pennsylvania Vipers.

Now, let’s hope Ben Roethlisberger can lead the other professional football team in Pittsburgh to a similar fate.  Heck, after last season’s let-down we’ll settle for a wildcard berth in the playoffs.