Santonio Holmes was arrested for possession of marijuana yesterday October 23, 2008.
“PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Steelers receiver Santonio Holmes will be charged with misdemeanor marijuana
possession after a traffic stop in which police smelled burning marijuana and found marijuana-filled cigars in his car.”
– Source ESPN.com
According to sources, Santonio Holmes was not practicing Friday at the Steelers facility. Typical, Steelers policy is that if you don’t practice on Friday then you don’t play on Sunday. Consistent with this philosophy, Holmes was deactivated today for the game on Sunday. The Steelers hopes may be that by being prompt with their actions that there won’t be additional ramifications set by league commissioner Roger Goodell.
This is certainly disappointing not just to the Steelers franchise but the timing of this incident. The Steelers are approaching the “meat” of their schedule and start by facing the Super Bowl Champion New York Giants. The expectation was that the suspect Giants secondary would have trouble containing the Steelers wide receiver depth. Losing Holmes is significantly damaging to the Steelers passing game.
Look for Limas Sweed, the 2nd round pick from Texas to see significant playing time with Holmes absence. In fact, Sweed may be the wide-out in replacement of Holmes and Nate Washington will stay in the slot where he is most effective.
