Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances

[Snatch98]

Re: Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances

I'm personally getting tired of reading about Holmes on this message board. Absolutely he'd be helping the team right now but we also have Manny Sanders stepping up. Brown is contributing and Mike Wallace is tearing it up. Hindsight is certainly 20/20 but when Holmes was in the black and gold he was a constant headache with one thing after another. Add in the Ben scandal and you have a team that needs to lessen the PR blow and improve the locker room. Holmes was shipped off and while the offense would certainly be more potent I don't believe we'd be playing worlds better with Holmes in the line up. His involvement in the offense would also hinder the development of one of the younger guys. Dude is a headcase plain and simple...game winning catches or not.

[NW Steeler]

Re: Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances



We get our chance with both the Jets and Ravens. Gotta take care of our own business. Win those two and we are in GREAT shape.

[NJ-STEELER]

Re: Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances

ESPN was pumped big time over the Jets win (more $$$ for them with a NY major market team in the SB ???).
On that First Take (or whatever) show today, the girl on the show interviewed Stonio on his cell while he was driving. She was all over his stuff with the catch, it was something close to phone sex, I thought.

Since 2001, New York has prohibited drivers from talking on hand-held devices while operating a motor vehicle. Way to broadcast that over the airwaves, dingleberry.

bluetooths are legal

[skyhawk]

Re: Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances

I miss holmes.

Mike Wallace doesn't

[hawaiiansteel]

Re: Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances

What's amazing is no one brings up Sanchez's past while Ben has been forever convicted in the press.

cool, I've never heard any dirt on Sanchize...what did he do in his past?

[hawaiiansteel]

Re: Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances

yet another Sanstonio TD...


Rapid Reaction: Jets 26, Bengals 10

November, 25, 2010

By Rich Cimini
NEW YORK -- Thoughts from the Jets 26-10 victory over the Bengals:


Not bad for "average": The anticipated Darrelle Revis-Terrell Owens showdown didn't produce any fireworks, mostly because Bengals QB Carson Palmer stayed away from Revis Island. Revis was in man-to-man coverage on Owens almost every down, and he limited the Big Mouth receiver to three catches for 17 yards. Owens, who famously called Revis "just an average corner" earlier in the week, was targeted only six times while covered by Revis. Bottom line: Revis made T.O. eat his words.

'Tone Time: Receiver Santonio Holmes scored for the third straight week, burning newly signed cornerback Jonathan Wade on 13-yard slant in the third quarter. The coverage was terrible and Wade had no safety help. Brilliant move by the Bengals. The Jets should've been hitting that all night, but you know, sometimes it takes them a while to figure things out.

Lucky break: Holmes' touchdown was made possible because Bengals coach Marvin Lewis failed to challenge the Jets' recovery on a muffed punt. It was ruled on the field that the bouncing punt hit Andre Caldwell, but replays showed that it didn't. Where was the red flag? Lewis seemed to have problems getting the flag out of his pocket.

Off day for Sanchise: This wasn't one of Mark Sanchez's smartest games. He threw a horrible interception in the third quarter, forcing a pass while being chased out of the pocket. A few minutes later, he nearly took an intentional-grounding penalty, foolishly flipping a pass to no one while being sacked at the 1-foot line. He also missed several open receivers, including a wide-open Braylon Edwards on what should've been a long touchdown.

Non-starters: Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer needs to take a hard look at how he scripts his plays to start games. They've gone seven straight games without a first-quarter touchdown. Schottenheimer tends to be too preoccupied with trying to outsmart the opponent instead of attacking their obvious weaknesses. The Bengals secondary was decimated by injuries, yet the Jets completed only five passes to wide receivers in the first half.

Pick 'em: The Jets snapped their streak of five straight games without an interception, with safety Jim Leonhard and cornerback Antonio Cromartie producing first-half picks. Before everybody praises the defense, let's be real: They were two horrible throws by Palmer. The latter was a throw to Owens into triple coverage.

Depleted Cincy D: Talk about an injury bug. The Bengals played without five defensive starters: defensive tackle Tank Johnson, defensive end Frostee Rucker, cornerback Johnathan Joseph, safety Roy Williams and safety Chris Crockett. Things were so bad in the secondary that Wade, whom they signed off the street Monday, started at cornerback.

Undisciplined Jets: They were penalized eight times, including six in the first half. This sounds like a broken record, by Ryan's crackdown is having no effect. The biggest penalty was unnecessary roughness on nickel back Drew Coleman, a questionable call that gave the Bengals a first-and-goal from the 5 instead of third down from the 11. The Bengals capitalized, scoring on a 5-yard pass to Jordan Shipley. Later, the Jets dodged a bullet after a fourth-down roughing-the-passer penalty on safety James Ihedigbo. It put the Bengals in field-goal range, but Aaron Pettrey missed from 27 yards.

What's ahead: Get ready for Armageddon, AFC East style. The Jets will make their highly anticipated trip to Foxborough, where they will face the New England Patriots (9-2) for sole possession of first place. The Jets won the Week 2 meeting 28-14, but the Patriots -- post-Randy Moss -- are humming on offense. They've scored 115 points in their last three games.

[url="http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/tag/_/name/2010-bengals-jets-rapid-reaction"]http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/tag/_ ... d-reaction[/url]

[Crash]

Re: Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances

Another under 50 yard game for Santonio with Sanchez.

Sanchez will be the Jets un-doing in the playoffs. He'll be Jake Plummer 2005.

[hawaiiansteel]

Re: Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances

I can't wait until we play the Jets!



Updated: November 26, 2010, 2:16 PM ET

Rex Ryan, Jets ready for Pats

ESPNNewYork.com


NEW YORK -- The showdown is set, and Rex and the Jets are ready.

Immediately after New York topped Cincinnati 26-10 on Thursday night -- with no overtime or last-minute heroics needed this time -- the Jets turned their attention to their next opponent.

Yep, those pesky New England Patriots.

With both winning on Thanksgiving, they are tied for the NFL's best record at 9-2. That sets up a meaty Monday night matchup on Dec. 6 at New England, which New York coach Rex Ryan calls "the marquee game of the year."

Ryan says Friday he believes the best two teams will be playing, and the only way it would be better is if it was the regular-season finale.

"Our football team believes we can beat anybody, and we're going to prove it," the coach said. "We've won eight in a row on the road, and we plan on making it nine."

Ryan acknowledges he's still not in Bill Belichick's class, but "he's going to get my best shot."

He gave his take on the Patriots with more than a hint of sarcasm: "Clearly, they're the best team in football. That's what all the experts say, except me."

[url="http://sports.espn.go.com/new-york/nfl/news/story?id=5851867"]http://sports.espn.go.com/new-york/nfl/ ... id=5851867[/url]

[hawaiiansteel]

Re: Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances

Holmes not all about redemption

Those close to the Jets receiver say he's grown up and shed bad-boy image

By Elizabeth Merrill
ESPN.com


NEW YORK -- There was a charity fashion show in one of New York's swankiest hotels Monday night, with paparazzi, fine wines and puffy hors d' oeuvres, and there, in one of the most unlikely corners of the city, the playful soul of this 9-2 New York Jets team was revealed once again. Offensive linemen strutted down a runway wearing designer clothes. A not-so-shy young man named Steve Weatherford -- the punter, for God's sake -- ripped his shirt off to screams from the crowd. And somewhere, presumably on the other side of the Hudson River, Santonio Holmes stayed away.

He is minding his p's and q's these days, lying low, soaking up every syllable of the playbook. This is what a change of scenery can do for a man; it can change his life. The very closest people to Holmes say he's grown up, he's shaken his bad-boy transgressions and moved on. "Great teammate" flows off the tongues of at least a half-dozen Jets these days.



Receiver Santonio Holmes and QB Mark Sanchez have clicked on the field this season.
Great story, right? The NFL loves redemption stories, and Holmes -- who has hauled in four clutch catches in the waning moments of four Jets victories -- fits perfectly into a 6 o'clock time slot. Man wins Super Bowl MVP, trips up repeatedly and loses his roots in Pittsburgh. Man moves to New York, the city of opportunity, the place where Alicia Keys sings "these streets will make you feel brand-new." But Holmes isn't exactly cooperating with the narrative. He hates this stuff, talking about anything besides running routes, and isn't necessarily interested in peeling back layers or becoming the league's next feel-good story.

He was on the phone Wednesday night for a rather awkward conversation filled with several pauses, calling to tie up some loose ends -- calling, mainly, because his publicist wanted him to. He does not make proclamations that he is a changed man. He doesn't care, really, what anyone thinks of him.

"If I ever worried about what someone else thought about me or said about me," Holmes said, "I don't think I would be in the position I am today. It's just about being confident in myself.

"I can't be concerned about the media, the fans, talking about the way that I play or the off-the-field things. That doesn't do anything for me. That doesn't boost my confidence; it doesn't make me go out and want to play harder. This is my job, this is my life, this is what I do for a living. I don't listen to nobody else on the outside."

Growing up

Patricia Brown will help push this narrative along. She's known him the longest. In 1984, at 16, she gave birth to Santonio, the first of four children in a single-parent household. She wanted so much for this stubborn, playful kid, so much for a boy who quickly became the man of the house.



Coach Rex Ryan and the Jets took a chance on Holmes, and so far it's paid off.
It was Santonio who got his brothers ready for the school bus, who cooked them dinner and called his mom for recipe instructions. It was Santonio who pulled down A's and made his mom so proud that she kept all of his report cards.

She knows why Holmes plays football the way he does.

"I would say mainly because of me and the struggles that I had," Brown said. "And the struggle … You know, I actually had to make him grow up faster than he wanted to. Because it was just me and him and his brothers.

"I had to go to work at 4 o'clock in the morning, and some days he didn't see me unless I'd go in the room at night and wake him up and say, 'Baby, I'm home.'"

Brown is careful with her words, choosing the best answers that won't breach 26 years of trust. Her son was sick when he was little. She worried about him. It wasn't until he was an adult, after his son Santonio III was born and was diagnosed with sickle-cell disease, that they realized Santonio had the trait, too. (Holmes arrived late for camp this summer because he was with his son, who had his spleen removed because of complications from sickle-cell anemia).

When Santonio was a kid, he was small. Maybe half the size of some of the other boys, she said. So she tried to lock him up, and of course he sneaked out to play, diving for passes, falling onto discarded mattresses in a yard.

Money was tight in Belle Glade, Fla., a rugged, impoverished town on the southeast shore of Lake Okeechobee. It's sugar-cane, hard-labor land, and it's also known as "Muck City." Santonio never knew he was poor. He was just like everybody else in his neighborhood.

Then again, he wasn't. He had the stride of an Olympic sprinter and the curiosity of a third-year law student. And coaches loved that thirst for knowledge. When Holmes made it to the NFL, after four years at Ohio State, he bought Patricia a new truck for her 40th birthday. A year later, he got her a four-bedroom house.

"He's not a mama's boy," Brown said. "He's pretty much his own self."

With the Steelers

The off-the-field stuff has dogged him since Belle Glade. There was his confession just before Super Bowl XLIII that he sold drugs as a kid, a statement as jolting as his last-minute, game-winning catch a few days later that sealed the Steelers' championship. There was a domestic violence incident in 2006 that was later dismissed, an arrest in 2008 for possession of marijuana, and a lawsuit from March that alleges Holmes threw a glass at a woman in an Orlando nightclub.



Holmes was the MVP of Super Bowl XLIII when he played for the Steelers.
The latter -- along with an impending suspension for violating the league's substance-abuse policy -- was the last straw for the Steelers, who were also dealing with the fallout of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger's spring of scandal and an accusation of sexual assault. (Georgia prosecutors later decided not to file charges, but Roethlisberger was suspended for the first four games.) With suspensions looming for two of their star players, the Steelers traded Holmes to New York for a fifth-round draft pick, informing him of the move on an April night when he was walking his dog.

Holmes was floored by the news, and his mother immediately knew something was wrong when he called that night.

"I'm going to New York," he told Patricia. "No more Pittsburgh."

His account of that night is about as emotional and revealing as Holmes gets. Pittsburgh had become home. He connected with the people there. Hines Ward taught him how to be a professional, taught him to take his playbook on road games and to visualize. But even Holmes couldn't see this.

"Being a Super Bowl MVP, that's the last thing on your mind, regardless of any situation you ever go through in life," Holmes said. "I was sad that I left. But it's the NFL … I don't even know. I was lost. I was shocked.

"But it also gave me a new surge of energy, you know? That's kind of how I feel right now. I just let it roll off my chest. It hit me, and I said, 'All right, I'm playing for the Jets.' That was it."

The Steelers declined comment for this story, referring to their policy of not commenting on other teams' players. But Tom Shaw, Holmes' mentor and speed coach, said Holmes got caught in a "perfect storm" of offseason turmoil that led to his Pittsburgh exit.

Looking back on it, Shaw said it was probably the best thing that could have happened to Holmes. Just after he was traded, the receiver had a sit-down with Jets coach Rex Ryan, who, along with general manager Mike Tannenbaum, has been known to take a few risks on players who are perceived as bad seeds. The Jets also picked up troubled receiver Braylon Edwards, plus Antonio Cromartie, who was buried in paternity problems in San Diego.

But back to the meeting. Ryan told Holmes that if he did what he was supposed to do, they'd be together for a long time.

"You see Rex Ryan, and people think he's a goofball because of the things he does on TV," Shaw said. "But he's probably one of the truest people you'll ever meet. He's not afraid to tell you what he thinks."



Jets GM Mike Tennenbaum says the team has put its trust in Holmes.

Eight months later, it's clear that Tannenbaum threw sevens on what was once perceived as a huge gamble. Yes, Holmes had to sit for the first four games this season for his suspension. But he's had 32 catches for 491 yards in the past seven, with a handful of them being the difference in razor-thin games.

Tannenbaum calls it a partnership, an exchange of trust. The Jets took a chance on Holmes, and Holmes, through the first part of December at least, has made them look brilliant.

"Every situation is different," Tannenbaum said. "I think you have to weigh the risks and the reward and evaluate where you are as an organization, see what the price is. We go into every deal pretty methodically and talk about the pros and cons. And at the end of the day, [it's] 'Hey, this is what's best for the Jets.' And typically there's two sides to every story."

Shaw insisted it's that way with Holmes. He's known him since Holmes was a teenager, when he weighed 147 pounds and looked nothing like the rest of the NFL talent gravitating to Shaw's Florida camps. He said Holmes is genuine, that he loves his craft, and that deep down he's hurt by the negative publicity.

They had a conversation recently about Holmes' sons. He said he didn't want his kids to someday Google his name and come up with countless hits regarding their dad's misdeeds.

"He understands that the first 15 pages need to be about Santonio Holmes scoring touchdowns," Shaw said. "Doing good things for kids.

"He's got to end up proving it. He's doing everything right now. And I'm proud of him. I really am."

It's Patriots week
Grab a seat, Holmes says. He stares at a light-gray wall, softly speaking over a room full of players and reporters. It is New England week, a clash between two AFC rivals sitting at the top of the standings together at 9-2 looms Monday, and the place is buzzing with a playoff feel. In a few minutes, Rex Ryan will joke about how he looks a lot like Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. Holmes seems unfazed by the "Monday Night Football" buildup. He seems unfazed by everything.



"For a guy who's in his fifth year, he has great awareness beyond his years as a football player," says Jets receivers coach Henry Ellard.
Maybe it's because he reached a different stratosphere at age 24, with 35 seconds on a clock. He caught a pass from Roethlisberger in the back of the end zone, tapped both sets of tippy-toes on the ground before red end zone turned to white, then sat on the ground, clutching the ball, never wanting to let go.

"For a guy who's in his fifth year, he has great awareness beyond his years as a football player," said Jets receivers coach Henry Ellard. "That's God-given."

And it's as if he's been with the Jets since draft day in 2006. Holmes regularly goes out to dinner with second-year quarterback Mark Sanchez -- a lot of the guys on offense do -- and traveled to California this past summer to be part of Jets West, a voluntary passing camp that served as a group bonding session for the receivers and Sanchez.

Holmes shrugs off the notion that clicking with a new quarterback is all that difficult.

"I just told him, 'Just put the ball wherever you feel comfortable putting it, and I'll make a play for you,'" Holmes said. "And over the course of time, he started understanding the way I play the game and how aggressive I am and how hungry and eager I am to make plays."

But tight end Dustin Keller knows how tough it is to establish that connection. It took Keller until the playoffs last year before he felt totally comfortable. He says Sanchez clicks with Holmes because "you know what you're getting from him every single time."

"It means that the two are almost sharing one mind," Keller said about the connection. "They sit there and they see a defense and they're going to attack it the same way."

It could have gone the other way. Receivers with rap sheets, an aging running back who was supposedly washed up, a head coach who irritates a few opponents with his brash talk.

In August, nobody knew for sure what was going to happen. Somehow, all these diverse personalities have managed to come together and make it work. Linebacker Bart Scott sees it. He surveys the locker room and gives a rundown of the personalities and how they're strategically positioned.

"Quiet, quiet … loud enough for two," Scott said as he pointed to the lockers. "Quiet … talkative a little bit."

Stats & Info
As the most-anticipated "Monday Night Football" game of the season draws closer, the biggest names in the New York Jets-New England Patriots rivalry -- almost all of whom make their living on the offensive side of the ball -- will take center stage. But which defensive players might have an unforeseen impact on the biggest game of the year? Three top candidates | Stats & Information NFL blog

Scott has noticed that Holmes doesn't say much, and doesn't keep many personal items in his locker. But they get along. They talk about their kids. They have that in common.

Holmes came to New York in April talking about accountability, but that's about as far as he went. He doesn't say that this is his second and possibly last chance, and that he can't blow it. That would sound too much like a redemption story.

But his teammates know why he is here, in this season that has seemed charmed with so many last-minute heroics.

"Rex doesn't care what other people think," Scott said. "And when you don't care what other people think, you do what you think is best.

"Everybody fits in well in this environment. It's an environment that's open for all kinds of personalities. For all kinds of people. It's an environment where people are allowed to be themselves."

Elizabeth Merrill is a senior writer for ESPN.com. She can be reached at [email="merrill2323@hotmail.com"]merrill2323@hotmail.com[/email].

[url="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/story?page=hotread12/SantonioHolmes"]http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/s ... onioHolmes[/url]

[aggiebones]

Re: Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances

If lose to the Ravens and Jets, then it really is irrelevant and calmly..not our year. If we split, we are in the playoffs

[frankthetank1]

Re: Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances

I'm personally getting tired of reading about Holmes on this message board. Absolutely he'd be helping the team right now but we also have Manny Sanders stepping up. Brown is contributing and Mike Wallace is tearing it up. Hindsight is certainly 20/20 but when Holmes was in the black and gold he was a constant headache with one thing after another. Add in the Ben scandal and you have a team that needs to lessen the PR blow and improve the locker room. Holmes was shipped off and while the offense would certainly be more potent I don't believe we'd be playing worlds better with Holmes in the line up. His involvement in the offense would also hinder the development of one of the younger guys. Dude is a headcase plain and simple...game winning catches or not.

me too. its not like the steelers traded jerry rice. holmes's hands will always be suspect. if ben didnt throw two perfect passes in the last drive of the 08 SB holmes doesnt even have a sb mvp. wallace is better than holmes any ways. wallace is bigger and faster. wallace also has a much better attitude and a functional brain. holmes's talent isnt worth the headache. i would bet anything that holmes will be suspended more in the future. i would also wager the same amount that wallace will never be dealt a suspension.

[hawaiiansteel]

Re: Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances

I'm personally getting tired of reading about Holmes on this message board. Absolutely he'd be helping the team right now but we also have Manny Sanders stepping up. Brown is contributing and Mike Wallace is tearing it up. Hindsight is certainly 20/20 but when Holmes was in the black and gold he was a constant headache with one thing after another. Add in the Ben scandal and you have a team that needs to lessen the PR blow and improve the locker room. Holmes was shipped off and while the offense would certainly be more potent I don't believe we'd be playing worlds better with Holmes in the line up. His involvement in the offense would also hinder the development of one of the younger guys. Dude is a headcase plain and simple...game winning catches or not.

me too. its not like the steelers traded jerry rice. holmes's hands will always be suspect. if ben didnt throw two perfect passes in the last drive of the 08 SB holmes doesnt even have a sb mvp. wallace is better than holmes any ways. wallace is bigger and faster. wallace also has a much better attitude and a functional brain. holmes's talent isnt worth the headache. i would bet anything that holmes will be suspended more in the future. i would also wager the same amount that wallace will never be dealt a suspension.

Mike Wallace has done a great job replacing Santonio as the #2 WR.

the problem is ARE has done a poor job of replacing Mike Wallace as the #3 WR...

[RuthlessBurgher]

Re: Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances

I'm personally getting tired of reading about Holmes on this message board. Absolutely he'd be helping the team right now but we also have Manny Sanders stepping up. Brown is contributing and Mike Wallace is tearing it up. Hindsight is certainly 20/20 but when Holmes was in the black and gold he was a constant headache with one thing after another. Add in the Ben scandal and you have a team that needs to lessen the PR blow and improve the locker room. Holmes was shipped off and while the offense would certainly be more potent I don't believe we'd be playing worlds better with Holmes in the line up. His involvement in the offense would also hinder the development of one of the younger guys. Dude is a headcase plain and simple...game winning catches or not.

me too. its not like the steelers traded jerry rice. holmes's hands will always be suspect. if ben didnt throw two perfect passes in the last drive of the 08 SB holmes doesnt even have a sb mvp. wallace is better than holmes any ways. wallace is bigger and faster. wallace also has a much better attitude and a functional brain. holmes's talent isnt worth the headache. i would bet anything that holmes will be suspended more in the future. i would also wager the same amount that wallace will never be dealt a suspension.

Mike Wallace has done a great job replacing Santonio as the #2 Wr.

the problem is ARE has done a poor job of replacing Mike Wallace as the #3 WR...

Yeah, but Manny Sanders is an improvement over ARE as the #3 WR now (in spite of the drop he made...well before the much-more-talked-about Stevie Johnson drop...that could have clinched the Buffalo game for us).

[hawaiiansteel]

Re: Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances

A Big Test and Opportunity for the Pittsburgh Steelers' Young Wide Receivers

by Michael Bean on Dec 4, 2010 2:29 AM EST



Who's ready to fill the significant void in production against the Ravens created by Holmes' departure to New York? (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

I wouldn't feel comfortable 'predicting' who will win this week. Not with Ben Roethlisberger's health a question mark, and more importantly, because it's the Steelers and Ravens. You know it's going to be close. I think there's a number of different ways that both teams can emerge victorious. Both teams can put up points in a hurry in the passing game; both can win in an grind-it-out slug fest; and both teams have play-makers on defense that can turn a game in their team's favor.

However, this year's Steelers squad is missing the one player that Baltimore has the most difficult time containing. Santonio Holmes. Make no mistake about it, the Steelers and their fans (myself included) have moved on from Holmes. I don't think anybody in Steeler Nation has any real ill-will towards Holmes, but true Steelers want to be here, and conduct themselves on and off the field accordingly. (If you immediately just thought to yourself, 'what about Big Ben?' Well, he's a $100+ million dollar man, so he gets an extra get-out-of-jail-free card(s) than everybody else, but it's safe to say that he's on his last chance). More importantly, there's Mike Wallace filling his shoes tremendously this season. The second-year WR out of Ole Miss is having a Pro Bowl caliber season, and he's quieted any doubts about whether he would be able to slide into a No. 2 type role.

However, Wallace has yet to prove that he's capable of producing against the Steelers' most important opponent - the Ravens. That's not a knock on Wallace necessarily. Not yet at least.In the teams' Week 4 meeting, Wallace caught two passes for 2 receptions for 24 yards. Charlie Batch was under center though. In his one game against the Ravens that Roethlisberger played, Week 16 last year, Wallace had three catches for 83 yards. Not bad at all.

But Holmes left huge shoes to fill when it comes to his productivity against Baltimore.

Here are Holmes' career totals against the Ravens:


Game Receptions Yards TDs

2006 Week 12 3 31 0
2006 Week 16 5 90 0
2007 Week 9 4 110 2
2007 Week 17 4 98 1
2008 Week 4 3 61 1
2008 Week 15 3 21 1
2008 AFCCG 2 70 1
2009 Week 12 6 74 1
2009 Week 16 5 86 1
Totals 35 641 8

Impressive.

We'll see how Wallace performs. But I'd contend it's equally, if not more important that the Steelers get contributions in the passing game from either Emmanuel Sanders or Antonio Brown...or both, though I doubt both will be active this week. It might make sense however to deactivate Antwaan Randle El this week in favor of Brown. If he makes a mistake, so be it. The Ravens secondary can be attacked with speedy receivers that are good after the catch.

I happen to believe that Randle El has legitimate value to this team - as an occasional 3rd down possession receiver, and because of his ability to make defenses prepare for and account for him and his gadget-play ability. Against the Ravens though, I'd rather have more speed out there. I can't see Randle El breaking any tackles and picking up big yardage after the catch against Baltimore. Sanders and Brown might be a different story.

I've been wondering though how much upside Sanders has after the catch. I love what he's shown as a rookie. Let me make that claer. He's clearly got 'it' as a competitor - not satisfied by his accomplishments, and not too hard on himself when he inevitably fails. He had a big drop last week against the Bills, but I don't see that sticking with him this week.

However, I don't think Sanders is strong enough yet to break tackles. Only 32 of his 179 receiving yards have come after the catch, or roughly 16 percent. By contrast, 169 of Holmes' 491 receiving yards this season have been after the catch. That's about 30 percent, an exceptional ratio. Even Wallace, who's having an amazing season, is only at about 23 percent.

If there ever were a game for Wallace and Sanders (and Brown too if he gets a hat) to make plays after the catch, it would be this week. I think we'll see the Steelers try to run the ball, but history suggests it will be tough sledding in that department. Hines Ward and Heath Miller will do what they do - make plays in the seam, over the middle, and in the flats, then fight and scrap for yards after the catch. However, if Ben Roethlisberger doesn't have much time to go through his progressions and wait for guys to get open down the field, it's imperative that the passing game not shut down entirely. That means quick-hitting passing plays that actually work.

Easier said than done, but much of the burden falls on the guy receiving the ball to make the first guy miss in order for bubble screens and quick slants to work. Santonio was great in that regard thanks to his vision, explosive first few steps, and the world-class balance he possesses. I'm not convinced Sanders has those god-given physical gifts. His talents lie more in his outstanding hands and his understanding of how to get open against zone coverage. I do believe Sanders can make those types of plays. Maybe not consistently, but he's got good enough raw speed to take it the distance if he gets past his man.

I think Brown has better vision and is a bit more naturally gifted at making the first guy miss with his shifty moves. But Brown clearly has work to do before seeing the field regularly as a wide receiver. So it may not be realistic to think that he'll get his first shot in months in a situation like this. You never know though.

In order to beat Baltimore on the road with a banged up quarterback and patchwork offensive line, the Steelers almost assuredly need a solid defensive performance. Even if they get that, they may still need someone not named Hines or Heath to have a significant impact in the passing game. The countdown to Sunday night is on. Can't wait.

Go Steelers!

[url="http://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/2010/12/4/1852544/a-big-test-and-opportunity-for-the-pittsburgh-steelers-young-wide"]http://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/20 ... young-wide[/url]

[Flasteel]

Re: Santonio hurting Steelers possible wild-card chances

...and now he's hurting theirs.