The Blitzburgh Report

I think most Steelers fan would agree that there are some positional changes that could be made on the team right now. Former head coach Bill Cowher wasn’t known to be one who often switched out under-performing players, especially veterans. He was a “players coach” who was often loyal to his players, sometimes to a fault. That is why I am interested in seeing what Mike Tomlin will do.

It is never an easy decision to bench or move a player. Without a doubt, it is a fine line. You don’t want to overreact and pull someone too soon. But after 11 weeks, I think that you have a good idea about who is under-performing and who might have just had a bad game or two.

The first player that needs a look is Allen Rossum. I called for Willie Reid getting a shot last week, but it didn’t happen. There’s more of a real chance for it this week, however, as Reid should be active on gameday due to Santonio Holmes‘ injury. I think that it is time for a spark on returns and it is worth the risk of trying Reid, especially against the Dolphins.

The other glaring spot is the offensive line. It is the one position where you don’t really say you’re bringing someone in to provide a spark; it is not a very spark-y position. You kind of know what you have who does what best. The concern is that I’m not sure the Steelers have any special guy waiting in the wings, just begging to get his shot. The Steelers OL backups are: Trai Essex, Chris Kemoeatu, Darnell Stapleton, Marvin Philip, and Max Starks. Not exactly a who’s who of rising OL stars.

As far as the starters, Sean Mahan just isn’t getting it done and should probably be the focus right now. Marvel Smith and Alan Faneca might not be playing their best but I don’t think they should be benched, because who would take their place? I like Willie Colon and while his inexperience shows, I think he is a very solid player in the making. With Mahan, you can say he is still learning but I would have hoped that he would be further along at this point. That is not to say he might not be good at another position. In fact, I would think that he would be headed that way after this season. But is it worth trying before then?

I’ll freely admit that I am no expert on offensive line mechanics, but I do know enough to realize that switching positions is not cut and dry, especially in the middle of the season. The team thought highly enough of Darnell Stapleton to keep him on their 53 man roster to start the season. Would they be confident enough in him to give him a shot? They then might give Mahan a turn at right guard, or even try Kendall Simmons at center, where he does have a little experience. How viable is all this? Maybe not very much, but I am just throwing some things out there.

Also, what about fullback? Count me in with the group of people that were high on Carey Davis after the pre-season. I did not, however, feel that he should be replacing Dan Kreider and I feel even more strongly about that today. Carey Davis is not getting the job done blocking, and his versatility ( the supposed reason he was playing ahead of Kreider) has yet to really have any impact.

Running out of three tight end sets has been very slow going, especially with rookie Matt Spaeth’s poor blocking. The biggest issue facing the team presently is that they can’t pass block, and really haven’t been doing great run blocking either. So why not bring back the guy who specializes in it? If you can’t protect your quarterback, bring in the guy who is basicially another offensive lineman. Willie Parker has made it well-known he prefers running behind Krieder as well.

The point is that there are changes out there that can be made. I am not saying they are all great changes (well, except for putting Kreider back in, which I feel very strongly about). But it will be interesting to see if Tomlin is the type of coach that will make them. As I said earlier, it is a fine line of when to make a switch, but some changes might just be what the doctor ordered to help shore up some weaknesses.

What are some changes that you would like to see be made for the team to strengthen it self?

Free Safety Ryan Clark (Spleen) and Tight End Jerame Tuman (Back) have both been placed on Injured Reserve.

The Steelers signed Center Marvin Philip from their practice squad to fill one of the roster spots. That is a bit odd because it leaves the team with three centers on the active roster. It is unclear yet whether the Steelers have plans for Philip or if they were protecting him from being signed by another team. It may also be the case that they aren’t too happy with Sean Mahan’s constant short and low snaps to Big Ben in shotgun formations. We’ll see.

The Steelers also signed cornerback Grant Mason from the practice squad. Mason was signed as an undrafted free agent by the New Orleans Saints last year. He was waived by the Saints before the season started and never played in a regular season game. The Steelers signed him last January and he spent training camp with the team. Hopefully he can play special teams.

The Steelers signed eight players to their practice squad today, seven of which were in their camp this pre-season. The list includes 2007 draft picks wide receiver Dallas Baker and defensive end Ryan McBean (am I the only one who keeps thinking of Steely McBeam the mascot ever time I see his name?). Also, 2006 draft pick center Marvin Philip, wide receiver Gerran Walker, tight end Jon Dekker, defensive back Grant Mason, and defensive linemen Scott Paxon. They also signed running back Jamal Branch, who spent the pre-season with the New Orleans Saints.

The Steelers have made their last cuts this off-season, finalizing their 2008 roster. The two biggest names are center Chukky Okobi and running back Verron Haynes.

Three of the Steelers’ 2007 draft picks were also cut - fourth round pick defensive end Ryan McBean, fifth round pick guard Cameron Stephenson and seventh round pick wide receiver Dallas Baker.

Center Marvin Philip, defensive end Shaun Nua and special teams ace Chidi Iwuoma were also cut. As well as fullback John Kuhn, quarterback Bryan Randall, linebackers Rian Wallace and Ron Stanley, receivers Walter Young and Gerran Walker, tight ends Cody Boyd and Jon Dekker, nose tackle Scott Paxson, cornerbacks Anthony Madison and Jovon Johnson, and safeties Grant Mason and Mike Lorello, and tackles Jason Capizzi and Brandon Torrey.

Perhaps the most hotly contested position, running back, is now finalized. Keeping Dan Kreider was a smart move, especially with the offensive line still questionable. New backs Carey Davis and Gary Russell provide youth to the position.

An interesting aside, the Steelers have four total backs that were undrafted- Willie Parker, Dan Kreider, Carey Davis, and Gary Russell.

The battle for the center position was also sorted out, with Coach Mike Tomlin apparently liking what he saw from Sean Mahan more then Chukky Okobi. Furthermore, center Marvin Philip was also cut, leaving some serious question as to the depth behind center.

Steelers.com has an article up about Kendall Simmons taking reps at center this offseason. He says that he’s up for the challenge of making a position switch:

“It is something I want to try,” said Simmons. “It’s a new challenge. Any athlete who is willing to get better will try to step up to the challenge. It’s something I think I can do. Coaches have said it would help slow me down. I move too fast. They would say I am a bull in a china shop sometimes and playing center would help me because it would slow me down.”

Our take is that Simmons is not stupid and knows this might be his only shot at having a long term future with the team. He’s been on the hot seat at guard and may actually turn out to be a better fit at center. However, there is already a bottleneck of possible replacements for Jeff Hartings, between Simmons, Chukky Okobi, Marvin Philip, and the newly signed Sean Mahan. While none of the candidates are a shoe-in, Simmons probably figures last in the competition because of his lack of experience at the position. But Simmons just might be a much better fit at center then at guard, and if he is, maybe he could be another Jeff Hartings.