It's alright people- nothing to fear...

[Oviedo]

If nothing else, this board is fun to stir up every now and then....

Yes it is and you just have to know the topics that will get certain posters spun up and the posts flowing.

[Chadman]

Yes it is and you just have to know the topics that will get certain posters spun up and the posts flowing.

Sooo many options to choose from...

[Oviedo]

Sooo many options to choose from...

I have my favorite and it is...

[birtikidis]

I think we'll miss Wallace, but really, we weren't going to pay him that kind of money, so it's pointless to point fingers. We just can't do it. Not with the hefty paychecks Troy and Ben get. Rest of the guys? Good riddance. Willie should never have been extended to begin with. Sanders can't stay healthy. We can find other running backs that fumble at the most inopportune times. I also think we'll miss Harrison, though, his release was just a matter of time. It's rare for a player at any position to last as long as he has.
The other guy we may miss is Starks. I'm not sold on Gilbert OR Adams at this point.

[birtikidis]

You think that is all there is to it? Let me ask you: On all of Terrell Owen's teams, who had the most TDs on those teams as well? Is that all there is to the story, or didn't he single-handily ruin almost every team he was on? So I guess he was an over all positive for every one of his teams, since scored the most TDs, right? Funny thing is, no one on any of those teams would agree with that. Was Wallace THAT bad, with his attitude? No, but the point remains: some production isn't worth the overall package if the player hurts team chemistry. I have never seen a team win a championship unless it had good team chemistry. MW did not help, but rather damaged, that end of things. I claimed this long before other players have come out and said the team was not together for the 2012 season. How did I know?

TO also had the most drops year in and year out too. Wallace may not have had the same amount of drops, but He RARELY fought for a ball like TO did either.

[birtikidis]

Not unless they also change the way they play offense, and what the #1 priority on offense is.

If we try to score? We'll win.

If we try to worry about TOP and keeping our alleged #1 defense rested? We won't win 8 games.

OR if we worry more about keeping hold of the ball and not turning it over. That's why we were 8-8 last year. period. We turned the ball over way too much.

[Slapstick]

OR if we worry more about keeping hold of the ball and not turning it over. That's why we were 8-8 last year. period. We turned the ball over way too much.

QFT...especially at critical points in the game...

[steelnavy]

Where was the team chemistry problem in 2011,2010,2009? Wallace was a member of the team in those years we had two back to back 12-4 seasons and a Super Bowl birth.
Injuries hurt our season more than anything last season. We started out slow but regained our postion later with a 6-3 record then the injuries mounted and downhill from there.

The numbers Wallace produced since he was a Steeler proves he was a productive receiver, some are just pissed he stood his ground and got the money he thought he could get just like Flacco did.
I look at the bottom line, Wallace and Miller were the main producers on offense, to say he had an attitude is one thing but he put up the numbers and that counts.

"some are just pissed he stood his ground and got the money he thought he could get..."

What a simpleton comment. Don't put stupid thoughts that come out of your own head into my mouth. Wallace's actions last year were a cancer to the team and it played out EXACTLY as many feared, including myself. Try arguing with facts without insulting those who disagree with you.

[SteelerMaine83]

Football players first, entertainers second. Free agency lets all the media "gurus" dub the new great dynasties, and then the season starts. Pittsburgh, with a little luck and better health, will win again. Miami, Tampa Bay??? We'll see. Wallace is gone; good luck to Mike.

[lloydroid]

Sooo many options to choose from...

Wait a minute: This is the same poster who whines when he claims others post stir-provoking topics. So what is one called when they do the very same thing they speak out against? Oh, that's right. Very interesting. It's like the outspoken gay hating Senator getting busted trying to score oral sex in the male bathroom.

[lloydroid]

"some are just pissed he stood his ground and got the money he thought he could get..."

What a simpleton comment. Don't put stupid thoughts that come out of your own head into my mouth. Wallace's actions last year were a cancer to the team and it played out EXACTLY as many feared, including myself. Try arguing with facts without insulting those who disagree with you.

Ding, ding, ding. Winner, winner, chicken dinner. Why reference seasons where Wallace played where he wasn't whining about $? He wasn't pouting then; but he sure did last season. Then he said he wasn't really paying attention during games, because they didn't get him the ball early or often enough. Yea, really great attitude.

[lloydroid]

Don't you stir counterclockwise Down Under?

I thought he frowned on posts that "stirred stuff up?" First he speaks out against it and now he says he enjoys doing the same. Sounds like a GOP Congressman who speaks out against gays but has a boyfriend on the side.

[supersteeler]

"some are just pissed he stood his ground and got the money he thought he could get..."

What a simpleton comment. Don't put stupid thoughts that come out of your own head into my mouth. Wallace's actions last year were a cancer to the team and it played out EXACTLY as many feared, including myself. Try arguing with facts without insulting those who disagree with you.

First of all I pointed out his numbers as a receiver for us, I don't think anyone can dispute his production and his numbers are FACT. Second, I don't expect everyone to agree with my opinion and I never insulted any member here including you.
What come out of your mouth was your first sentence that anyone here could see is insulting.I pointed out in another thread the main reason Mike's not here is the money he was offered by the Steelers wasn't enough in his mind not because someone thinks he was a cancer to the team. If Wallace would of accepted the Steelers offer this dicussion wouldn't exist and I bet the Steelers would be happier than they are now.

I never heard the Steelers say he was a cancer on the team these are your words and your opinion which you are entitled to, but please don't acuse me of insults when none were made.
To disagree with my post or opinion is ok, I don't have an issue with it, but when you turn the discussion into an personal insult torwards me is another thing.

I could respond in a much different way to your comments but I choose to keep it from getting out of hand.

[hawaiiansteel]

Change can provide new opportunities

Teresa Varley
Steelers.com

Every NFL player shares the same feeling, that they have what it takes to be a starter in the league. That if they are given the opportunity, they can get the job done.

But there are often obstacles in front of them, and for Steelers’ linebacker Jason Worilds, that obstacle has been James Harrison, the Pro Bowl linebacker who has started ahead of him since he was a rookie.

Things have changed though. Harrison was released earlier this month, and that has opened a whole new world for Worilds. He now has every opportunity to prove he can handle the job and be that starter come September.

“I believe that Jason Worilds is chomping at the bit to prove he is capable of being that,” said Steelers’ Coach Mike Tomlin from the NFL owners meetings in Phoenix, Arizona. “When I first got to Pittsburgh in 2007, and we had to let go of Joey Porter, there was a guy that came in my office that was ready to prove that he was capable of 900-1,000 snaps a year. His name was James Harrison.

“We will see what Worilds is capable of doing.”

And with a laugh, he added, “No pressure.”

Worilds, who started two games at left outside linebacker last year when LaMarr Woodley was injured, hasn’t been in the spotlight like Woodley and Harrison, but don’t doubt for a minute he hasn’t been continuously learning and growing.

“I think if we all knew what James Harrison was capable of he would have played more than he did before 2007,” said Tomlin. “But that’s what this is. That’s what change does. It provides opportunities for guys to ascend and take advantage of opportunities, and to carve out a niche or a name for themselves. I think that these competitors are challenged by that or encouraged by those opportunities that change presents.”

Worilds, as well as cornerback Cortez Allen who could take advantage of the departure of free agent Keenan Lewis to New Orleans, understands the importance of seizing every opportunity that comes his way.

“My main focus has always been to get better every time I step on the field,” said Worilds, the fourth-year linebacker. “My all around game has gotten better. I am more comfortable in my assignments, so I don’t just go out there and not make a mistake, but go out there and make a play. I have been fortunate enough to transition easily from defensive end in college to an outside linebacker. You have to know your position, where to be and how it affects the man next to you. You have to know how important it is for you to do your job and the way you do your job. I want to do the right things, at the right time and the right way.

“Barring a few nagging injuries I have been able to do that and get better. I hope the coaches realize that and know I am going to continue to do so. That is my goal.”

Tomlin understands that there are going to be changes in 2013, with Harrison, Lewis and wide receiver Mike Wallace three starters who are now gone, along with running back Rashard Mendenhall, a long-time starter whose playing time decreased last season when he started only four games.

“It’s a challenge but it’s a challenge that is part of our business,” said Tomlin. “It’s a challenge that I embrace. I think every year when the ingredients change, particularly significant ones, it’s a coaching challenge. It’s part of the game itself. Of course, we will be building it with some new ingredients in critical areas. It’s up to us to make it come together. I am looking forward to that.

Tomlin also addressed a variety of other topics at the owners meetings, including the following:

* Tomlin said nothing is happening right now with wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders, a restricted free agent who visited the New England Patriots, but despite reports did not receive an offer sheet from them.

“As of right now, he doesn’t have an offer, so it’s a moot point,” said Tomlin. “That’s something we will address as an organization if the situation develops. But based on the information we have right now, it’s no news.”

* After finishing 8-8, and losing multiple starters, Tomlin said he isn’t worried about the perception that the team is weaker now than they were at the end of the 2012 season.

“I’m not overly concerned in that regard,” said Tomlin. “I know prognostication is what it is. I’m more concerned about building with the group of men that we are assembling right now, and seeing how that goes. I don’t have a feel for that as we sit here today. We haven’t started the building process in terms of phase one in our offseason conditioning program. I think that’s when you can really start to get the feel of the components that are coming together, and of course after the draft, particularly as you move into OTAs, it will become clearer.

“Right now, we are just focused on the task that is in front of us, which is free agency and draft preparation.”

* With the departure of Wallace via free agency to the Miami Dophins, wide receiver is definitely a position that the Steelers will be looking to strengthen, but not the only one.

“We are trying to add talent at all positions,” said Tomlin. “Obviously, wide receiver is one of them. When you lose a guy the caliber of Mike Wallace – we want to continually add to the talent at our depth. So we will have the opportunity to do that in a variety of fashions this spring, the draft being the primary one, but also recognizing that we are capable of doing something in free agency as well.”

Tomlin added that while they will be looking to plug some holes, finding replacements for starters via free agency could be tough because of the salary cap.

“I think there is a desire to assemble the very best team we can assemble but obviously, we deal in a world of realism,” said Tomlin. “We have some constraints from a salary cap standpoint that could limit some of those thoughts. I am not a big dreamer in that regard. I don’t spend a lot of time looking at things that aren’t practical. I approach it from the mindset of the constraints in which we are working from a salary cap standpoint, what is available to us, and of course how that measures with the draft talent.”

Wallace, Lewis and Mendenhall signed deals that combined were worth over $90 million, something that Tomlin understands is part of the game.

“That’s the NFL,” said Tomlin. “I think that’s what makes it an exciting product. Teams have an opportunity to ascend and get better and acquire talent. The system is put in place that creates parity. We are challenged to acquire new talent, to continue to develop the talent that we have and that’s something we embrace.

“It’s also a source of pride, when you see guys like Mike Wallace and Keenan Lewis, who are third-round picks, develop into the types of players that they have developed into, and move on to new challenges. Hopefully we will acquire some new talent that helps those guys grow and develop in similar ways.”

* Tomlin said the team will definitely be looking to add another running back. Restricted free agent Jonathan Dwyer already signed his tender offer, but Mendenhall left via free agency to sign with the Arizona Cardinals, and Isaac Redman is a restricted free agent who has yet to sign his tender. He didn’t say it would definitely be a feature back that is signed as it’s all based on who is available.

“It just depends on what we get, what works and how it comes together,” said Tomlin. “But obviously, we need to add to the pool of talent that we have at that position.”

* Tomlin is well aware of comments made by several of his players and others, claiming that there were issues in the locker room last year. Tomlin doesn’t believe that there is a major problem, but rather frustration from finishing the season with a disappointing 8-8 record.

“I heard about it second hand,” said Tomlin. “For me, the reality of it is we were an 8-8 team and that’s probably more acceptable in some places than it is in our place. I hope that we’ve got a scalded group. I believe that we do. I’m not looking to put anyone at ease in that regard. We’ve got to get better in ’13 and we’ve got to do better, obviously, than we did in ’12. I think that we will have a group that’s geared toward that.”

Tomlin believes that despite losing several leaders over the last few years, that the team still has plenty of leadership in the locker room.

“I don’t think we’re devoid of leadership at all,” said Tomlin. “We’ve got some quality, veteran players that know how to play, but beyond that they’re good teammates. They know what championship-caliber team building is about. They put the good of the group in front of their own personal good. I think we’ve got great examples of quality leadership on our football team. We were 8-8 in 2012 and none of us liked that. Obviously, there are certain things that kind of come along with that and we’re going to embrace it.”

* Tomlin said it was a tough decision releasing Harrison, who brought a lot to the team during his Pro Bowl career.

“James is a special guy and was a special player for us,” said Tomlin. “It is a part of the business. We may never replace James but we will have an opportunity to strengthen ourselves in other areas. I think that’s what you look at sometimes when you look at some of the things that have happened from a change standpoint. No, we won’t be able to replace James. No, we won’t be able to replace Mike Wallace. Those guys are who they are. But those voids will provide opportunities for us to strengthen ourselves in those areas and in others, and collectively maybe even make us stronger. I think that’s an approach I always take to change. That’s why I view it somewhat optimistically.”

[URL]http://www.steelers.com/news/article-1/Change-can-provide-new-opportunities/a5efd883-9f3b-48a6-9e47-c85fbe0db47a[/URL]

[Eich]

I never heard the Steelers say he was a cancer on the team....

Never heard them say Santonio was a cancer either. They got rid of him.

Mendenhall was as close as you see them label someone as a cancer. And even then, they didn't say much when they suspended him for not showing up. Then they let him leave.

The Steelers - or any team for that matter - don't label people as cancers in public. They just try to get rid of them when the cancer factor becomes more of an issue than the production & salary demands warrant.