Thoughts on the 2010 Steelers roster
Yesterday was the deadline for NFL teams to submit their final 53-man rosters to the NFL office. The Steelers turned in their final roster along with all of the other NFL teams. If you haven’t seen their 2010 roster yet, please click here.
After having some time to digest the roster, I wanted to share a few thoughts about the 2010 Steelers.
Overall thoughts:
I go into every season thinking that the Steelers are going to win the Super Bowl. I’m just that kind of fan. Everybody is 0-0, so why be pessimistic? Sure, the Steelers didn’t make the playoffs last year, but they were Super Bowl champs the prior year. Have they really changed that much?
In some ways, we are actually stronger than the team that won the Super Bowl. But in other ways, we look awfully similar to the team that missed the playoffs in 2009. Let’s take a look at the team’s strengths and weaknesses.
Strengths:
Quarterback – The quarterback position is clearly a strength for this team. We all know what Big Ben can do. And I was pleasantly surprised to see a very serious debate going on among Steelers fans about who should start in Ben’s absence. Some felt that Byron Leftwich was the best choice. Others were advocating Dennis Dixon. Still others felt that Charlie Batch was the way to go.
The way that I see it is that the Steelers have 4 very capable quarterbacks. Any one of them can lead their team to a win in the NFL. Each of them has different strengths and weaknesses. But they are all capable. Not many teams have as backup quarterbacks that are as talented as ours. So that is a very good problem to have.
Linebacker – The Steelers have always been known for having great linebackers. And this year’s linebackers are as good as any in recent memory. Not only are they good, but they are deep.
I was concerned that the team was going to be forced to cut one of their talented rookie linebackers in order to get the roster down to 53 players. But they surprised me and kept 9 linebackers on the roster. That was a great move. I challenge you to name another team that is as strong at linebacker as the Steelers currently are.
Running back – Some believe that the Steelers are going to be more of a running team in Ben Roethlisberger’s absence. Personally, I’m not convinced. I don’t believe that Bruce Arians will ever allow that. But if he did (he won’t), we have a great group of running backs to carry the load.
One of the most notable things about this group of running backs is that they are all capable of breaking runs to the outside, or getting tough yards between the tackles. With Isaac Redman and Jonathan Dwyer added to the mix, I don’t think the Steelers are going to struggle in short yardage situations the way they did last year.
Wide receiver – This group has a good mix of youth and experience. Hines Ward is the same dependable receiver he’s always been. Mike Wallace is going to get a lot more opportunities, so that is going to be great for the team. I think he is ultimately going to be a better receiver than Santonio Holmes was. And the two rookies, Emmanuel Sanders and Antonio Brown, should both to have long, productive careers with the Steelers. It wouldn’t surprise me if one or both of the rookies ended the year ahead of Antwaan Randle El and Arnaz Battle on the depth chart.
Defensive line – Aaron Smith is back. Need I say more?
Weaknesses:
Defensive line – I know that I just said that the defensive line was a strength. But it’s also a weakness. Our line is old. In fact, Ziggy Hood is the only defensive lineman that we have who is under 30. That’s not good. We have to address this problem in next year’s draft.
Offensive line – I feel like a broken record each time I say this. But our offensive line just isn’t that good. Max Starks tries hard, but he just isn’t quick enough to handle speed rushers. Trai Essex wouldn’t start on most NFL teams. And Flozell Adams is past his prime, and is a penalty waiting to happen. By the 3rd game of the season, when Flozell has accumulated his 20th false start penalty and his 50th holding penalty, Steelers fans are going to start clamoring for a change at right tackle.
Fortunately, the Steelers drafted Maurkice Pouncey in the first round. Pouncey is already the starter, and I anticipate nothing but good things from him for the next 10 years.
Cornerbacks – Our cornerbacks got torched last year. They made mediocre wide receivers look like Randy Moss. The couldn’t stop anybody. They didn’t record their first interception until the last game of the season. And unfortunately, they haven’t looked much better in the preseason.
The team did bring back Bryant McFadden, but McFadden didn’t record a single interception last year with the Arizona Cardinals, so he isn’t likely to help in that regard. Hopefully, Ike Taylor will return to his old ways and will be able to stop the opponents’ best receiver. Also, I’m hoping that either Keenan Lewis or Crezdon Butler steps up and beats out William Gay for the nickel position.
So those are my initial thoughts as I look at the players who made the Steelers’ final 2010 roster. Do you agree or disagree. Please leave a comment and let me know your thoughts.
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Couldn’t agree more with this assessment. That’s especially true about the OL. At some point this year, I’d like to see Tony Hills in that starting lineup. He did a lot of work to improve his status on this team and I feel he now needs a chance to play live in a real game. It will only help him. Slowzell Adams, Kemo and Max are embarrassingly slow and are no good against quick edge rushers.
I have been on the “our OL sucks” bandwagon for at least 5 years now and it has only begun to improve with the selection of Maurkice Pounsey. The Steelers really need some players on the line who can handle a speed rush and drop a hammer on a blitz. And the LT should at least be Pro Bowl caliber on a perennial playoff/ Super Bowl contender. Max Starks will never be that player and his replacement needs to be found sooner rather than later.
1I, like you, am always optimistic starting the season. Our 2009 roster was good enough, if we stayed healthy. Same this year…can’t lose Smith or Polamalu on defense. Need Ward to be Ward, he can’t slip. Our WR are very unproven, Mike Wallace is a question mark as a lead guy. Love him, was great last year, but he still has to prove he can be a lead guy. The OL is a question, big question. If we can start 2-2, we are in good shape. Limit turnovers and injuries and we are a playoff team and then anything can happen.
2Glad to see the young athletes Stevenson, Butler and Dwyer on the active roster. Figured Bailey and Logan had to go-wish them luck. Now that the Practice Squad has been named – glad that Grisham and Worthington are there-the two with upside. predictably, we also added the two O-linemen (Jolly & Brooks) and a TE (Bright-this is Spaeth’s last chance.) Adding Summers seems like a consolation prize-as long as BA uses him like a FB (which he is NOT) he will not be able to contribute. As a RB, he wasn’t better than Redman or Dwyer, so he got cut. Not sure why we brought him back. Rather reach for a young D or O lineman with potential -we certainly need help there! Overall, I am happy with the choices that the coaches made. Some rookies will have to step up on ST if we are going to improve-a big opportunity for some young guys.
3I always try to be a realist. I do not think I am a pessimist. If the team can go 2 and 2 while Ben is out, I feel the Steelers have a reasonable chance to make the playoffs. I think they did the right thing on the cuts. I feel the running game will be improved, if for no other reason than the change at center. I think it is great that they kept 8 rookies. They can not do that every year of course, but they got 3 new studs in the linebacking core. If the secondary can do a decent job, the Steelers can do very well.
4@Dave – I agree with you in principle, but with one caveat. I don’t think it will be easy to get a Pro Bowl caliber left tackle. Every team in the NFL wants one. However, the only way to get one seems to be to lose a lot of games and then get a very early pick in the NFL Draft. That’s how the Cleveland Browns got Joe Thomas. Frankly, I don’t want to see the Steelers go down that path.
5Jim H, Mark, and John#21 – I agree completely. Good points.
I think that 2-2 after the first 4 games will be a good record. Then Ben will come back and we can start really winning.
As I mentioned, I am still very concerned about the offensive line. I’m afraid that we’re going to see Dennis Dixon running a lot more than he wants to. That O-line is going to have him running for his life.
I’m also very concerned about the d-backs. They didn’t show me much during the preseason. Somebody is going to have to step up their game.
Baltimore had a good off-season. They made some nice draft picks, and they picked up some very good free agents. They are definitely trying to make it interesting. And Cincinnati swept the AFC North last year, so we can’t overlook them. This is definitely going to be an interesting season.
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