Importance of a Franchise Quarterback to the Steelers Success

Since 1974, the Steelers have been to eight Super Bowls, winning 6 of them. Over the course of these last 40 years, the Steelers have had exactly two franchise quarterbacks. Terry Bradshaw went 4-0 in Super Bowls. Then, there was a long gap with one Super Bowl loss in between Ben Roethlisberger taking the team to three Super Bowls and winning two of them.

Roethlisberger and Bradshaw Are Franchise Quarterbacks

The point here is that it hasn't mattered that the Steelers have had some of best defenses over those 40 years. The also team went to an additional six AFC Championship games without advancing to the Super Bowl. Mark Malone, Neil O'Donnell, and Kordell Stewart were certainly not franchise quarterbacks and could not get that elusive fifth ring for the team. The franchise QB is important to success!

Some might argue that Roethlisberger is not a franchise QB. However, his overall record and two Super Bowl rings speak for themselves. He deserves the franchise QB moniker. While, there's still a few more years left for a productive Roethlisberger, the team really needs to start thinking about what's next or really loading up for a couple of more runs with him. This year's team may only be as good as a make-it-to-the-playoffs team. Our fan base really doesn't want to see another long drought of championships and years of mediocrity. It's time to start looking for and grooming that next franchise QB.

Bell and Blount...A Storm on the Horizon?

There's no denying the stupidity of what these two knucklehead running backs did last week. Do they not understand the cascading impact of what this could do to the team. If Le'Veon Bell and LeGarrette Blount want to smoke some weed, don't do it in your car on McKnight Road, one of the busiest roads in Pittsburgh. Do it at home! While it doesn't sound like a suspension will be coming any time soon, here's what could get interesting once the league dishes out its discipline.

If they get more than a one game suspension, what will the players and owners think about that when comparing it to Ray Rice's two game suspension for beating the tar out of his wife. Would this show that league is more concerned over players smoking marijuana, which is being legalized in more and more places, rather than players involved in domestic violence incidents? Matt Prater already got a 4 game suspension for drinking a few beers after an initial substance abuse issue.

For anybody who saw the video evidence of Ray Rice dragging his unconscious wife out of the elevator, how could he only get two games? Now, don't get me wrong on this...Ben Roethlisberger is certainly no saint here, but there was no where near the evidence in his case of what the league had on Rice, and he got suspended for six games initially (later reduced to four). May have been the best thing to happen to Big Ben as he seems to gotten things together since then. 

So, what's next? The league needs to figure out its player discipline strategy before its inconsistencies cause major issues.

Franchise Tag for Casey Hampton

Is the franchise tag for Casey Hampton a good or bad thing?  For the Pittsburgh Steelers, it's a necessity as there is nobody behind him on the depth chart.  For Casey Hampton, it's at least $7 million in his pocket this year and potentially more long term.  Not bad for a 33 year old who hasn't really committed himself to physical fitness over his career.  What do you think?

Keep Casey Hampton or Ryan Clark?

With both Hampton and Clark about to be unrestricted free agents, this is a pretty tough decision for the Steelers.  Both players are key contributors to the defense. 

Hampton is really the cog of the 3-4 scheme.  He takes on blockers and opens the holes for the linebackers to make the plays.  While he's somewhat unheralded because of his stats, he's extremely valuable to the performance of the defense.  He will be 33 at the start of next season and has a history of injury and weight issues.

Clark is the safety valve of the defense when Troy Polamalu is flying all over the place.  Yes, he was exposed this season without Polamula in the line up, but who wasn't exposed on the defense this past year.  He is a couple of years younger than Hampton and probably has a little less wear and tear on his body because of the position he plays.  Clark is one of the most ferocious hitters in the NFL and receivers fear him coming across the middle.

Both players will be looking for top 5 money at their positions and the Steelers will not be able to sign both.  If Hampton does not come back, the team may need to shift to a 4-3 defense, a potential major philosophy change.  And, losing Clark would present a depth problem at safety.

Who do you think is more important for the defense to be successful again in 2010?

Holes the 2010 Steelers Must Fix

Yes, 2009 was a disappointing year for Steelers and us fans.  We can leave it at that and now move on.  What we did learn is this team does have some critical holes.  However, the situation is not dire and the Steelers should have a solid chance of getting back into the playoffs in 2010.

When analyzing the roster based on performances in 2009, here are the areas that I think are critical to fix:
Defense -- unlike the Steelers, it was the defense that continued to breakdown last year.  The depth is just not there to compensate for the losses of Troy Polamalu or Aaron Smith.  Both injuries had a huge impact on the teams performance.  The Steelers must focus on quality defensive depth when drafting this year.  Every defensive position needs some youth.

Defensive Line: Casey Hampton is a free agent and the rest of the line is getting older.  Ziggy Hood stepped in late in the season and showed that he will be an impact player.  However, he's the only player on the line younger than 30.  The team needs youth and depth here.  Is a first round pick needed?  Probably not, but two picks in later rounds would not be a surprise.

Linebacker: Woodley and Timmons will be the new cornerstones of this defense.  Harrison will still be a force for a few more years.  However, Farrior was exposed a little more this past season.  In the OT loss to Baltimore, Farrior looked slow trying to cover Ray Rice.  Why was Timmons not assigned to cover Rice?  Farrior is still the leader of the defense, but he cannot be put in situations where he doesn't match up well.  Beyond the starting four, there are also depth issues here.  Don't be surprised if a first or second round pick is spent on a linebacker.

Safety: Polamalu will be back, but who else will be.  Ryan Clark is a free agent and was exposed without Polamalu.  Tyrone Carter is an OK fill in for a game or 2, but he is not a long term solution.  There are some younger players, but they are unproven.  This may be the position the Steelers focus on in round one, especially if Earl Thomas is available.

Conerback: Ike Taylor is a good cover CB.  Just wish that he could catch the ball.  Deshea Townsend is probably not coming back.  William Gay lost his confidence after repeatedly getting burnt.  Can the young guys fill in here or do the Steelers need to draft or sign few new players?  This is another area where depth is needed.

Offense: Not a lot is needed on offense.  Willie Parker will likely not be back, so a RB will need to be drafted in the later rounds.  WR is all set.  QB is all set.  TE is all set.  The offensive line does need depth, but it's not as bad as the stats dictate.  This group will be healthier and better.  A second or third round choice should be used on an OT.  And, signing Willie Colon is a must.

Special Teams: The Steelers must sign Jeff Reed and fix the kick coverage.

Bungled by the Bengals

OK, it's hard for me to give the Bungles respect, but by sweeping the Steelers this year I will now refer to them as the Bengals. They have a greatly improved defense that just completely frustrated Big Ben in this last game. And, Carson Palmer is playing as well as he ever has. Losing Cedric Benson could be tough on them. Signing Larry Johnson was a strange move considering how hard Marvin Lewis has worked to change the perception of that team.

Enough about the Bengals... Good to see KC up next for the Steelers. This should be a great opportunity to get the running game back on track. If Mendenhall doesn't go for at least a 125 yards, then we got problems. This should be a good tune up before the first Baltimore game. Steelers just need to stay healthy and show some improvement in kick off coverage, which has just been a disaster.

Steelers can still catch the Bengals, but will lose the tie-breaker for first place. My guess at this point is that both teams finish 11-5.

Wow...A Lot Can Happen in a Year

Well, my last post to this Blog was over a year ago and a lot sure has happened... Can you say Super Bowl ring #6. A new, very demanding job and young child took me away from writing to my Blog. Just wasn't enough time in the day to do it all. It's a shame because I missed commenting on one amazing season. I hope to find some more time now and throughout training camp and the new season. It would be great to repeat, win # 7, and trump the Patsy'rots as the team of the decade.