To the Rooneys with respect,

[Rod Polamalu]

Well before we bring Coach Cowher back let's not forget about 1998 - 2000 when the Steelers had the following record with Cowher making draft picks for six years previous to the following records:

1998 - 7-9
1999 - 6-10
2000 - 9-7

Kevin Colbert joined the Steelers as GM in 2000 and the results have been very solid - with 8 playoff appearance in 13 seasons (not counting whatever happens in this season), and three Super Bowl Appearances.

I'm not necessarily the biggest believer in Tomlin yet --- because I feel he did inherit a very good team, however his contributions with Colbert have been very good!

It's true that he probably hasn't drafted a future Hall of Famer yet --- (unlike Cowher/Colbert players Troy Polamalu and Ben Roethlisberger)

And unfortunately the 2008 draft panned out very poorly -- in my opinion Mendenhall was a bust, and obviously Limas Sweed never made an impact except for a negative one when he faked an injury against the Ravens in an important game. And Bruce Davis also never made anything happen either.

However -- we have still have four players from 2007 - Timmons, Woodley, Spaeth and Gay.

Timmons has been very solid, and Woodley at times has been dynamic (other times invisible).....but both of these players have contributed to the Steelers AS MUCH as any 1st and 2nd rounder that Cowher selected in his time here. (Arguably Searcy and Kirkland), but still these two picks were very good.

In 2009 - We drafted Ziggy Hood, Kraig Urbik, Mike Wallace, and Keenan Lewis.

** Not a great year necessarily as it works out for the Steelers -- but Wallace and Lewis were considered fairly big Free Agent Pick-ups, Kraig Urbik didn't work for us -- but is starting for the Bills, and Ziggy Hood hasn't been a breakout talent......but overall I think he's been solid, he just hasn't been "great".

You can't say this was a bad draft for the Steelers -- we just ended up with a few talents we didn't want to over pay for.

Now look at 2010 -

Pouncey -- before his injury most people consider him one of the best centers in the NFL.
Worilds -- has been solid over the past two seasons in spot play (and will likely do well in Free Agency)
E. Sanders -- fantastic for a 3rd round pick
S. Sylvester - considering he's in the 5th round he's been very solid
J. Dwyer -- 6th round short yardage back....at only 24 years old I think he can still be a solid back-up
Antonio Brown - Another 6th round pick -- with Brown you get one of the leading receivers in the NFL.

One of the reasons this draft went so well.....we went 9-7 the previous season and were selecting 18th in the draft. Sometimes the key to a good draft is simply being in a position to draft well.

In 2011 - (after a return to the Super Bowl) we pick up -

C. Heyward -- who has looked good this season (keep in mind Brett Keisel, a 7th rounder, didn't start for four seasons)
M. Gilbert -- He's coming along (it took Max Starks awhile to be solid)
C. Brown -- Haven't seen enough
C. Allen -- Haven't seen enough

2012 -- is a rough year

Rainey, Ta'amu both eventually get themselves into legal trouble, and now both are playing for different teams. But let's not forget Coach Cowher also picked up a few trouble makers in his time (see Bam Morris or Santonio Holmes).

DeCastro - Adams and Beachum all come from this draft and all of them seem to be developing as linemen --- I'm disappointed in Adams, however we all had hoped he was a steal in the draft and he just hasn't come into his own yet (or maybe he has). I still have hope for him. (Again Max Starks took time to develop).

And in 2013 we have the most rookies seeing action that I can remember -

Javis Jones
Le'Von Bell
M. Wheaton
Sharko
Vince Williams

Who knows how any of these guys will ultimately develop -- but Jones has been a hustler out there and I believe with more time he'll be very solid.

I'm extremely impressed with Le'Von Bell -- and (hopefully if he can keep healthy, will ultimately be one of the best backs in the NFL).
Vince Williams has played very well for a rookie 6th rounder that has been asked to play a bulk of the season.

Our best drafts under either coach have come when we're drafting at least in the teens, which of course means we didn't have a "great" season the year before --- or in the rare case where we traded up to get Troy Polamalu.

While it's true Cowher had a few better drafts in his time, he also had more losing seasons than Tomlin.

I don't think our recent issues have been due to drafting poorly (except the 2008 draft), overall I just think we're in a tough division, we've had some difficult injuries to overcome -- and in a number of games we had the opportunity to win it late and failed.

There's an ebb and flow to it all.

Coach Cowher was no more perfect than anyone born of flesh. Nor where all of his decisions. However, no matter what any of you say via this forum,...you all know within your hearts and rational minds that we would not be in such dire straits in terms of capable personnel, and identity were he here as opposed to Tomlin.

[feltdizz]

Coach Cowher was no more perfect than anyone born of flesh. Nor where all of his decisions. However, no matter what any of you say via this forum,...you all know within your hearts and rational minds that we would not be in such dire straits in terms of capable personnel, and identity were he here as opposed to Tomlin.

What was our identity when Famous Amos Z won the starting job over Bettis?

[Lonbull]

However, no matter what any of you say via this forum,...you all know within your hearts and rational minds that we would not be in such dire straits in terms of capable personnel, and identity were he here as opposed to Tomlin.

Well if it doesn't matter what I write (i.e. say) than this is probably wasted virtual ink.....however many MANY Steelers Fans felt Cowher's last year showed that he was finished and had lost his passion for coaching at the NFL level -- I don't agree with that assessment, but I think if many Steeler fans look back on his last season here -- and his last draft, many may not completely agree that his continued stay here would have been better than Tomlin taking over.

That written Coach Cowher also has had to deal with personal/family issues during this time, and it would be asking too much for him to remain focused on the NFL during that time.

L.B.