The Blitzburgh Report

James Harrison Voted Team MVP

James Harrison was voted team MVP by the Steelers players. My first reaction wass I am very happy for Harrison. He’s come a long way and has had a great season- one that is worthy of team MVP. But my second thought is, was it really worthy over Ben Roethlisberger’s season?

I know there are mixed feelings out there about profootballtalk.com, but they raised an interesting point today:

In 2005, we heard plenty of rumors that quarterback Ben Roethlisberger isn’t one of the most popular guys among Steelers players. A Super Bowl win diluted such talk, and his popularity took a back seat last season to his near-death experience after driving a motorcycle into a car.

This year, we’d assumed that everything had changed. Apparently, it hasn’t.

Though Roethlisberger wasn’t named a team captain at the start of the season, the fact that Hines Ward received the nod for the offense didn’t raise eyebrows. More recently, after having one of the better passing seasons of any quarterback in franchise history, Roethlisberger wasn’t named the MVP of the team.

But Harrison still is worthy none the less and both players have had remarkable seasons and deserve congratulations. The team has done co-MVP’s in the past, so it is even surprising that they didn’t share the honors. It really does make you wonder, but I wouldn’t jump to any conclusions just yet. Aside from this incident, all indications this season have been that Ben has won over a lot of people with his gutty performances and leadership on the field. We really don’t know what went on with the voting and why the players voted as they did. So file it away, but don’t necessarily get worried that everyone hates Ben or anything.

Ben Will Likely Sit Out Ravens Game

Speaking of Big Ben, the Post-Gazette is reporting that he is expected to sit out the game against the Ravens.

I think it is a good move by coach Tomlin. They mention that his ankle is still a bit sore from the Rams game, but I am sure he is hurting all over as well. The Steelers do have a bit to play for with trying to get the 3rd seed in the AFC, but not enough to risk having their star quarterback out or even more injured for the playoffs, especially with how physical Baltimore is and Ben’s history of getting knocked around by them.

It will be interesting to see how long Tomlin plays a lot of the starters. Will he also take other players out as the game goes on? You would have to think that if the Steelers jump out to an early lead they would. I just wish Charlie Batch luck with that offensive line as I am not sure that he is quite the Houdini that Big Ben is.

Marvel Has Back Surgery

The Post-Gazette is also reporting that Marvel Smith had back surgery and will miss at least the Ravens game and the first game of the playoffs.

Max Starks will take his place at left tackle. Starks has actually played quite well recently while filling in and Smith’s absence makes it the decision easy to sit him for Starks. He started the season as the line’s scapegoat, but after riding the bench for a bit he seems to be playing with a new sense of purpose.

The Post Gazette is reporting that Najeh Davenport was injured during an acupuncture treatment away from the Steelers’ medical facility. Apparently something went wrong that left his foot swollen and him unable to play last Sunday night.

The Steelers examined Davenport on Monday and determined that he should be ready to go against the Patriots. That means former Steelers running back Verron Haynes, who worked out for the team, won’t be resigned.

I still don’t know what to believe. We’ve heard a few different stories as to just what happened. First, we heard that Davenport got into a fight at a night club and was beat up. Then we heard that he was actually injured on an elliptical machine. Now we hear that it was an acupuncture procedure gone wrong. Whatever it is, something doesn’t seem quite right. They were tight lipped as to what happened for so long, and just now it is coming out that it was from an acupuncture treatment. I’m not sure that is something that they needed to be so secretive about.

(Update: Apparently, the final word is that he injured the foot on an elliptical machine, and then it swelled up after he received acupuncture treatment .)

Profootballtalk.com has a rumor up suggesting that there is talk in league circles that former Steelers coach Bill Cowher is angry our Ben Roethlisberger’s recent comments that their relationship wasn’t that great:

COACH CHIN NOT HAPPY WITH BIG BEN

Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger recently said that his relationship with coach Bill Cowher “wasn’t great.”

Cowher’s reaction to the comment “wasn’t great,” either.

Talk in league circles is that Cowher is very unhappy with Roethlisberger’s comment. Cowher supported and nurtured the young quarterback during their three years together, and Cowher never spoke out negatively about Roethlisberger after he nearly died as a result of a motorcycle accident in June 2006.

Said Roethlisberger last month: “It’s going to be definitely different, because coach Cowher was, obviously, here before I got here, so our relationship wasn’t great just for the fact that he was here so long before I got here, and I was just a young kid, a rookie, when he got here. Coach Tomlin and I are both, in a sense, rookies together. So, I think we might have a little bit better relationship.”

The fact that the statement from Roethlisberger was plastered onto the team’s official web site not long after the comments were made also is a slap, we believe, at the former coach, whose wishy-washiness in 2006 regarding his future with the team chafed some within the organization.

I believe it. One thing fans have learned after being with Cowher with 15 years is that the man has a pretty big ego himself and I doubt he takes such comments lightly. There have been rumors all along that Big Ben and Cowher weren’t the best of friends- not that they disliked each other but that the relationship with very much business.

All of this seems to play into those rumors. Some say that Big Ben was not Cowher’s choice, or even that he may have resented Ben’s lightening fast climb to stardom. Some even say finally having a good quarterback (one he might not have wanted) is what allowed Cowher to finally win the big one.

What ever it was, it is time to move on. Cowher is no longer the coach. Everything so far indicates that new coach Mike Tomlin and Ben have really hit it off; a relationship that will hopefully bring more titles to Pittsburgh very soon.

Profootballtalk.com (or as we like to call it “gossip for guys”) is reporting that there is speculation in league circles that the Cardinals may have been in contact with Steelers’ guard Alan Faneca- which is, of course, a big no no:

PHOTO: Mike Fabus/Pittsburgh Steelers

There is growing suspicion in some league circles that the current contract conundrum between the Steelers and guard Alan Faneca might be the product of some wink-nod off-the-record conversations between Faneca and/or his agent and coaches and/or front-office employees with the Arizona Cardinals, regarding the possibility of Faneca landing in Arizona either this year via trade or next year via free agency.

There’s no hard proof that this is happening. And it doesn’t take a rocket surgeon to figure out the link between Faneca and current Cardinals offensive line coach/former Steelers offensive line coach Russ Grimm — especially since Faneca wanted Grimm to be the head coach of the Steelers.

The fact that the Cardinals have a crappy offensive line that became even crappier due to the departure of Leonard Davis to Dallas makes the possible link even stronger, as does the fact that the Cardinals have the cap room to pay Faneca. And the Steelers don’t.

Even if Faneca never lands with the Cardinals, any communications aimed at laying the foundation for a trade or a signing would constitute blatant violations of the tampering rules. Whether the Steelers would file tampering charges remains to be seen, and whether the league would do anything about it is a separate issue.

With all that said, there is suspicion (and, for now, suspicion only) that something could be happening. We’re not saying anything is happening or will happen. Yet.

This whole situation is really heating up. While we don’t doubt that some discussion has taken place, we’re not sure if something would ever come of it. But still, it is a just a rumor and needs to be taken with a grain of salt.