Sanders hurt again

[pittpete]

Wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders, who returned to play Sunday after missing two games with a knee injury, did not practice Thursday because of an unspecified new injury to his foot.

Think maybe Antonio Brown will return kickoffs this week :roll:

[pittpete]

never mind, just found this little tidbit
Wednesday news and notes


It appears the Steelers will get linebacker LaMarr Woodley back this weekend to face the Cincinnati Bengals.

Woodley was a full participant in practice Wednesday and looked good moving around.

His return would help bolster a defense that has recorded just 24 sacks this season. Woodley and James Harrison, who have played just three full games together this season due to injuries, have recorded 14 of those 24 sacks.

© Emmanuel Sanders said today that he has been told he will continue to return kickoffs this week and he guaranteed that he will do a better job of it than he did last week at Kansas City.
I also spoke to Antonio Brown, who had been handling all of those duties, about it and he said he takes way more of a beating returning kicks than he does punts.

Remember, Sanders was the team's primary kick returner last season and averaged 25.1 yards per return.

[WindyCitySteel]

Need to get Brown and Wallace signed long term. It doesn't look like it's in the cards for Sanders.

[Oviedo]

Need to get Brown and Wallace signed long term. It doesn't look like it's in the cards for Sanders.

:Agree Sanders is getting way too many lower body injuries as a WR early in his career. Kid is great talent but like Sweed it may not be in the cards for him long term.

It does bring up an interesting set of off field questions regarding that position. Does Hines stay? Do Sanders' issues make resigning Cotchery a higher priority? Do you draft another WR in the first three rounds?

Remember, they still don't have that "tall" WR that many of the better passing teams seem to have. I'd like to see them increase the opportunities to the Tight Ends and maybe add a really good pass catching TE in the draft and get rid of David Johnson. We seem to struggle against those types of TEs, maybe we should learn something from that.

[aggiebones]

Another offseason may do wonders for him. No sense throwing him off the bus yet.

Just because WRs get it right away (rarely in the NFL) doesn't mean he won't.

Next season when healthy, he'll make a good 3-4 WR. And he's currently cheap.

[BradshawsHairdresser]

Too early to give up on Sanders, but his fragility has to be a big concern.

[flippy]

Need to get Brown and Wallace signed long term. It doesn't look like it's in the cards for Sanders.

:Agree Sanders is getting way too many lower body injuries as a WR early in his career. Kid is great talent but like Sweed it may not be in the cards for him long term.

It does bring up an interesting set of off field questions regarding that position. Does Hines stay? Do Sanders' issues make resigning Cotchery a higher priority? Do you draft another WR in the first three rounds?

Remember, they still don't have that "tall" WR that many of the better passing teams seem to have. I'd like to see them increase the opportunities to the Tight Ends and maybe add a really good pass catching TE in the draft and get rid of David Johnson. We seem to struggle against those types of TEs, maybe we should learn something from that.

We've got Saunders who should be used a lot more.

Not a fan of DJ, but he's played a little better recently.

[RuthlessBurgher]

Another offseason may do wonders for him. No sense throwing him off the bus yet.

Just because WRs get it right away (rarely in the NFL) doesn't mean he won't.

Next season when healthy, he'll make a good 3-4 WR. And he's currently cheap.

We do a good job drafting 3-4 OLB's and 3-4 DE's, and now we're drafting 3-4 WR's as well? (just kidding... :wink: )

[jj28west]

Dont we have a 6'8"WR on the practice squad?

[RuthlessBurgher]

Dont we have a 6'8"WR on the practice squad?

The 6'8" former WVa WR Wes Lyons was in camp with us, but the only WR on our practice squad at this time is 5'11" Tyler Grisham.

http://crackbillionair.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/devine.jpg

[TallyStiller]

WR is a position that we should be taking a shot at every year day 2, like OLB. Because of the proliferation of spread offenses and pro style passing games at the college level, good receivers are easy to find... and so players can be had who are both talented and cap friendly. We should draft a receiver this year... If he's good enough to beat out what we've got, great. If not, we try again next year. This is the process through which we found Wally and Brown in the first place, isn't it?

[hawaiiansteel]

Sanders playing through pain of mother's passing

By Mike Bires mbires@timesonline.com | Posted: Wednesday, November 30, 2011


PITTSBRGH -- Emmanuel Sanders knows all about adversity on the football field. That still didn't prepare him for the tragedy he experienced one month ago.

On Nov. 1, he was informed that his mother had died suddenly. She was just 41 years old.

Sanders, a wide receiver in his second season with the Steelers, used his Twitter account to announce the sad news.

"Mom passed away this morning," he tweeted. "Tell your loved ones how much they mean to you because you never know when that day will come."

When Sanders learned of his mother's death, he was experiencing some personal hardship of his own. In the Oct. 30 win over New England, he suffered a knee injury that would have to be surgically repaired.

It would be the third time this year that Sanders underwent the knife after having two -off-season surgeries. The first operation repaired a bone in his foot that he broke in the second quarter of the Super Bowl. The second procedure was needed to fix a stress fracture in his other foot.

"I've definitely had my share of ups and downs this year," Sanders said. "But at the end of the day, that only makes me stronger. That's how I look at it. I'm only 24. But I'm growing as a man."

Sanders, the most prolific pass catcher ever at Southern Methodist University, is a bright and articulate young Texan with a bubbly personality. He's a lot like his mother, who was a good athlete in her own right when she played basketball and ran track at Bellville High School in suburban Houston.

In her obituary, Stephanie Sanders was described as "an outgoing person ... life of the party ... she loved to have fun and enjoyed making people laugh."

"You never think in a million years that something like this will happen to you," Sanders said. "And then one day it happens and it opens your eyes. Wow! That's the reality of the world. Things like this can happen to anyone. Out of the blue -- one day she's here, the next day she's gone."

While Sanders dearly misses his mom, he knows he must remain strong. He has two younger sisters, Precious and LaSabria, who are 22 and 19.

"They leaned on my mom a lot, so now I have to fill that void," he said. "They took it so hard, so I have to be there for them."

Sanders said he's lucky to have football as an outlet to help him cope with the loss of his mother. This past Sunday in Kansas City, Sanders played for the first time since hurting his knee in the New England game. He was back in the rotation at wide receiver with Mike Wallace, Antonio Brown and Hines Ward. Although he only caught two passes for 25 yards, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger threw to him four times.

Sanders also made his debut as the return man on kickoffs and averaged 19.3 yards on four returns.

"I didn't do as well as I thought I could do, but I will do better this week," he said.
Because of his injuries, Sanders isn't having the kind of season in his second year as a pro as he anticipated. Last year, he had 28 catches for 376 yards and two touchdowns. So far this year, he's caught 20 passes for 268 yards and two TDs.

But starting Sunday against the Bengals, there are five more regular-season games to play and Sanders feels good about his chances of being more productive. He's healthy again, and he knows he has the support of his teammates on and off the field.

"They've helped me out a lot," he said. "They've definitely been like a band of brothers. They've been a great support system for me."

"I've gone through a personal loss, too," said Roethlisberger, whose mother died in a car accident when he was just 8 years old. "I think a lot of times when things like this happen to someone, maybe you don't want to necessarily talk about it, but at the same time, you want to know that there's someone you can talk to.

"That's what I wanted to do with Emmanuel. If he needs someone to talk to, I'll be there for him. I told him. ‘We're thinking about you. We're praying for you. Let me know if there's anything I can do for you.'

"For now, I'm glad Emmanuel has football. Being able to play football is a great way to take your mind off of things that happen in life."

http://www.timesonline.com/sports/steel ... mode=print (http://www.timesonline.com/sports/steelers/sanders-playing-through-pain-of-mother-s-passing/article_eb483504-42cd-5b3b-b4ff-ca8299f89896.html?mode=print)

[Oviedo]

WR is a position that we should be taking a shot at every year day 2, like OLB. Because of the proliferation of spread offenses and pro style passing games at the college level, good receivers are easy to find... and so players can be had who are both talented and cap friendly. We should draft a receiver this year... If he's good enough to beat out what we've got, great. If not, we try again next year. This is the process through which we found Wally and Brown in the first place, isn't it?

:Agree Need to keep reloading at that position in the pass first NFL.

[steelblood]

WR is a position that we should be taking a shot at every year day 2, like OLB. Because of the proliferation of spread offenses and pro style passing games at the college level, good receivers are easy to find... and so players can be had who are both talented and cap friendly. We should draft a receiver this year... If he's good enough to beat out what we've got, great. If not, we try again next year. This is the process through which we found Wally and Brown in the first place, isn't it?

:Agree Need to keep reloading at that position in the pass first NFL.


Yes! We may need to add 2 or 3 WRs. Cothery, Ward, and/or Battle could be gone.

[pittpete]

Looks to be no-go for Browns
http://www.nflfromthesidelines.blogspot.com/