Steelers Draft Shamarko Thomas, Syracuse Safety in 4th. Video Highlights

As the third day of the 2013 NFL Draft opened the Pittsburgh Steelers pivoted back to defense and they did it in an uncharacteristic way.

Realizing that the days of Troy Polamalu and/or Ryan Clark are numbered and unable to get a safety in rounds 1-3, the Steelers traded their 3rd round pick of the 2014 NFL Draft to the Cleveland Browns to move up to pick Syracuse Safety Shamarko Thomas.

Thomas was one of the Steelers pre draft visits, and while he only stands at 5’11”, considered short for an NFL safety, at 217 pounds he’s earned a reputation as a ferocious hitter.

Steelers secondary coach Carnell Lake, himself a former strong safety for the Steelers, could not say enough good things about Thomas, explaining:

Shamarko is an outstanding football player. I think if he had two more inches he would have been in the first round. Not only can he play safety, but he can also get up there and play man-to-man on the slot receiver. He has played nickel, and he has played corner at times.

From video that is available of Thomas, it is easy to see why his secondary coach is happy to have him (note, this would not be my choice of audio; available as of 4/27/13):




Lake of course would have a particularly appreciation for safeties who can play cornerback, as he himself made the shift in both 1995 and 1997, saving the Steelers seasons both times as a result.

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Steelers Draft Terry Hawthorne, Cornerback from Illinois in 5th Round of NFL Draft

Although the Pittsburgh Steelers do not lack for bodies at cornerback, they are taking no chances drafting cornberback Terry Hawthorne of Illinos in the 5th round of the 2013 NFL Draft.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that Carnell Lake compared Hawthorne to incumbent Steelers starter Ike Taylor, although he also characterized him as a “fast raw prospect.”

Hawthorne stands at 6’ and weighs in at 190 pounds, here is a brief highlight sketch of him from the Illinois OSU Game (available as of 4/27/13):



Joining the Steelers as a 5th round pick in no way guarantees Terry Hawthorne a roster spot. He will need to earn one. Ike Taylor is of course going no where and neither is projected starter Cortez Allen, nor will the Steelers cut William Gay after resigning him.

That means that Hawthorne will need to beat out Courtney Brown, Justin King, Josh Victorian, DeMarcus Van Dyke and Isaiah Green.

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Perhaps Steelers, Free Agent Ryan Mundy Should Cut Losses

Unrestricted free agent Ryan Mundy entered the NFL as the 6th round pick in the Steelers now maligned 2008 draft class.

Shortly before the season started Mundy was an injured-waived but returned via the practice squad in November. Mundy had a strong training camp in 2009, played well in preseason and looked good on special teams during the regular season.

• Ryan Mundy appeared to have enough upside that with Ryan Clark testing the free agent waters in 2010, there was some talk that the Steelers might just slot Mundy in as a replacement.

Clark of course resigned with the Steelers, but Mundy’s role with the defense grew and he did well in his first start vs. the New York Jets (yes, he did bite on one play allowing the Jets to advance but the Jets managed to thoroughly outfox the Steelers that day.)

Going into the 2011 season no one thought that Ryan Mundy would ever earn a place along side Donnie Shell, Carnell Lake, or Troy Polamalu, but he did look like he was growing into a Myron Bell or Lee Flowers type of player.

That assessment held throughout the regular season, as Mundy continued to excel on special teams and get more snaps in the secondary, including his first interception in a defensive struggle vs. Kansas City.

Steelers 2012 Season: Ryan Mundy’s Development Stalls

Ryan Mundy started in Ryan Clark’s place during the Steelers 2011 Wild Card game vs. Denver.

On paper, Mundy had a great game, leading the team with 7 tackles and forcing two fumbles. But he was also part of a defense that gave up 20 points to a Tim Tebow in single quarter and ultimately could not stop him in over time.

Pinning all of that on Mundy would be grossly unfair. Innumerable players left Invesco Field on the injured cart, and the ones able to play (such as Mike Wallace) left a lot of plays on the gridiron. But...

• ...The Steelers returned to Denver for opening day 2012 and failed to hold on to a fourth quarter lead. Again not Ryan Mundy’s fault. But…

....Two weeks later, the Steelers traveled to Oakland to take on the Raiders. Mundy gained national attention with his helmet-to-helmet hit to Darrius Heyward Bey. The contest was notable because it was yet another game where the Steelers saw a fourth quarter lead slip away. Clearly, Mundy was far from the only one at fault, but….

• ….Mike Tomlin had apparently seen enough. When Troy Polamalu was out for an extended period during the mid season, it was Will Allen and not Ryan Mundy who started in his place.

And while Ryan Mundy shouldn’t be unjustly singled out as a scapegoat for the early inconsistencies of the Steelers defense, the fact is the unit improved with him on the bench.

Does Ryan Mundy Have a Future in Pittsburgh?

No one is going to flash dollars at Ryan Mundy. As the hit on Darrius Heyward Bey shows, Ryan Mundy in many respects has developed into a Myron Bell-Lee Flowers type of safety.

• And that could be part of Mundy's problem. 

The NFL’s increased focus on player safety, protecting the defenseless receiver and reducing helmet-to-helmet hits is making an endangered species safeties who roam the middle in search of the coveted “kill hit.”

The Steelers invested several years in developing Ryan Mundy and it would be a shame to see their investment go to waste, but there’s also the real possibility Mundy's development has reached a ceiling.

The Steelers can likely bring Mundy back if they want him back, but if they get the chance they might just be wiser cut their losses and inject youth into the position.

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Keenan Lewis Now Likely to Leave Pittsburgh as Free Agent

If William Gay’s return to the Steelers signals Keenan Lewis’ exit, Lewis will leave Pittsburgh haven proven two things:

• While history often serves as a useful guide, those who live in the present ultimately write their own history
• Position coaches can and do make a difference in the NFL

Keenan Lewis was one of three third round picks from the Steelers in the 2009 NFL Draft along with Mike Wallace and Kraig Urbik. Yet, it was fifth round pick Joe Burnett that got all of the attention and playing time in what was one of the most trying times for a Steelers secondary in recent memory.

Injuries kept Lewis out of all but three games in that season, yet he came back strong in training camp the following summer in Latrobe. He looked so go that it was said he might challenge for a starting job – until he actually got his audition in Denver.

Lewis flopped badly and took out his frustrations on a sign in the Broncos locker room, an act which Mike Tomlin forced him to pay for. 2010 was tough for Keenan Lewis, he only played in nine games and then mainly on special teams in spite of Bryant McFadden’s struggles at corner.

Keenan Lewis Writes His Own History

By the summer of 2011 most of Steelers Nation had given up on Lewis. History was also against him. A quick survey of Steelers 3rd round picks showed that if they hadn’t shown “something” by the end of their second season, they never would (click here for the comparison between Keenan Lewis and previous third round picks).

A number of Steelers coaches had apparently also come to that conclusion. Fortunately for both the franchise and Lewis, newly installed defensive backs coach Carnell Lake wasn’t one of them.

Lake allowed Lewis to start with a clean slate, and Lewis rewarded his coach’s faith. By the time the Steelers had broken camp at St. Vincent’s Lewis had shown he could play, and by beginning of the season he’d earned a spot in the 3rd down rotation.

Lewis didn’t come on gang busters in 2011, but played well, breaking up passes and making a game-saving interception on Monday night vs. Kansas City.

William Gay’s departure to Pittsburgh West aka Arizona opened a starting spot and Keenan Lewis fought through injury to fend of a fierce challenge from Cortez Allen and won the starting spot.

Again, Lewis rewarded the coach’s faith in him by transforming himself into a one man pass defending machine. Week after week Lewis seemed to make odds-defying pass break up after odds-defying pass break up. By season’s end Lewis had 23 passes defensed – that’s ten more than Ike Taylor and only two less than Taylor’s career best in 2005 (source Steelers.com).

• Not bad for a player labeled a bust after his “sophomore” NFL season.

Lewis benefited from what my friend Ivan Cole from Behind the Steel Curtain has called the “Lake Effect.” Credit Carnell Lake for having the faith and the ability to teach Lewis to play corner in NFL. But Lewis couldn’t have done so without ignoring the naysayers and simply focusing on playing football.

Do the Steelers Have the Cash to Keep Keenan…?

The downside is that Keenan Lewis is budding into a top NFL cornerback just as he’s reaching free agency. In the past, the Steelers have made it a point to try to sign players like Lewis before they hit the open market.

They haven’t done that here. Last summer such a move would have been too risky, and now the Steelers need to guard their salary cap dollars closely and Kevin Colbert has indicated Lewis will be allowed test the waters.

Prior to William Gay’s return, what was to happen to Lewis was anyone’s guess.

• Dejan Kovacevic of the Tribune Review nailed it when he said the Steelers need to pick a number for Lewis and stick to it

The same logic holds true now, except that the number the Steelers pick will be far, far lower.

• One of the clear lessons of the NFL’s salary cap age is that you can’t over pay.

Ideally Lewis can and would be an asset to the Steelers for years to come. But for as strong as Lewis has come on, Cortez Allen has come on even stronger, and could conceivably wrest the starting job from Lewis.

There’s no reason to pay a back up starter money if you don’t have to, and the Steelers are paying William Gay back up money.

Keeping Keenan Lewis would be a great success story for Carnell Lake and the Steelers secondary, but hard to imagine Lewis will not command an average salary that trends towards 8 figures on the open market.

That’s simply going to be out of the Steelers price range.

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Keenan Lewis: Reason for Steelers Nation to Give Thanks

Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday. It cuts across all colors, ideologies, and creeds. No on has commercialized it. It is one of the noblest of American traditions.

I sincerely hope that everyone reading this has many, many reasons to be thankful that are far more consequential than football or that have nothing to do with the Steelers. I certainly do, especially on this occasion.

However, as is tradition. Steel Curtain Rising takes a moment to find reason within the Pittsburgh Steelers franchise to give thanks.

In 2009 the Steelers were in the middle of their 5 game tail spin, yet the heart Rashard Mendenhall showed in saving a pick six in an otherwise ugly game at Kansas City was cause for thanks.

In 2010, Maurkice Pouncey, Emmanuel Sanders, and Al Everest and the resurgent special teams prompted Steelers Nation to give thanks.

Last year, as Hines Ward was waning, the clear emergence of Antonio Brown as a pass catching demon supplied the reason for Steelers Nation to give thanks.

Cornering the Market on the "Lake Effect"

For a long time the Steelers have searched and searched to find a capable corner to consistently man the slot opposite of Ike Taylor. Part of the reason was that the aging Deshea Townsend didn’t yield his spot as he was ‘supposed to.’ First he held off Bryant McFadden and then it was William Gay.

And while neither Gay nor McFadden were “busts” neither ever quite blossomed into a quality number 1 NFL corner.

In this 2012 campaign, Keenan Lewis is giving every sign that he’s well on his way to realizing the potential the Steelers saw in him when they selected him in the third round of the 2009 NFL Draft.

• 2009 was a disaster for Lewis where back injuries kept him out of all but four games.
• 2010 wasn’t much better, as Lewis flashed in camp, then burned in preseason, and did little during the regular season.

As Rebecca Rollett from Behind the Steel Curtain reported, when Carnell Lake arrived as Steelers secondary coach, he learned that many of his compatriots had written Lewis off.

• In the 2010 preseason, Steel Curtain Rising we openly speculated that past history showed that third round picks were pretty much known commodities by their third summer camp….

But Lake was hearing none of it, and took Lewis under his wing, and as result of what Ivan Cole (also of BTSC) the “Lake Effect” Lewis established himself as a legit number 3 NFL corner.

2012 has been Lewis’ year to shine, as he currently holds a wide lead over Ike Taylor in both tackles and passes defensed and, perhaps more importantly, has come up with the ability to be in the right place at the right time.

For that Steelers Nation can give thanks (and then add a prayer that we don’t lose him as a free agent.)

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you from "everyone" here at Steel Curtain Rising.

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David DeCastro to IR, Steelers Sign DeMarcus Van Dyke

Just yesterday Steel Curtain Rising opined that the Steelers were acting wisely in delaying their decision to put David DeCastro on the IR list.

The logic was that prudence was warranted, there was no need to hurry to put DeCastro on IR, lest a higher-value starter were to get injured. And besides, no one was going to sign Trai Essex, and by signing him after the Broncos game, the Steelers would avoid being on the hook for his salary for the entire year.

The Steelers did put David DeCastro on the injured reserve list today, and they did it because they signed another player. Except it wasn’t Essex.

The Steelers signed DeMarcus Van Dyke Friday, who had been cut earlier in the week by the Oakland Raiders.

The Raiders drafted Van Dyke in the third round of the 2011 NFL Draft, making him the 81st player overall taken. To put that into context that’s 14 picks higher than Curtis Brown and 47 picks higher than Cortez Allen, the Steelers 3rd and 4th round picks for the 2011 NFL Draft.

Van Dyke played in 12 games for the Raiders last year, starting in 4 contests on the NFL’s 27th ranked pass defense. Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle discussed Van Dyke’s fall from grace:

Van Dyke, drafted in what was a bit of a reach in the third round last year, played in 14 games with four starts, recording 13 tackles, four passes defended and one interception. He was the fastest player at the NFL combine, running a 4.28 40-yard dash. 

He played well the first two weeks of training camp, routinely breaking up pass plays, but struggled once the preseason games started. Against Arizona, he got beaten twice on deep passes and missed a tackle on a running play that resulted in a touchdown.

Lake Reclamation Project?

Van Dyke raw athletic talent is evident. The Raiders have been cleaning house in the secondary, and one must wonder if they gave up on him too soon, even if they discovered he was a reach.

A year ago there was another third round corner who’d done little to justify his high draft status. He’d been written off as a little more than a place holder on a unit that was unquestionably a team’s weak link.

• Everyone in the organization had given up on him. Everyone except for one man, the new secondary coach.

The player was Keenan Lewis, the Steelers third round pick from 2009 NFL Draft. History said it was past now or never time for Lewis, but Carnell Lake wasn’t buying into any of it.

Carnell Lake worked with Lewis individually. Lewis improved dramatically, notching the game-sealing interception vs. Kansas City last year, and will start for the Steelers Sunday vs. the Broncos.

Will DeMarcus Van Dyke benefit similarly from the “Lake Effect?” Time will tell.

But if he doesn’t, it won’t be for lack of quality coaching.

Essex to Return Anyway?

Just because Van Dyke is here does not mean that Essex won’t be back. Behind their starting front five, the Steelers only have Mike Adams, Doug Legursky, and Kelvin Beachum.

Expect another roster move next week to clear space for Trai Essex to return.

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Understanding the Rise, Fall, Resurrection and Ultimate Undoing of Kordell Stewart

Kordell Stewart has officially retired as a Pittsburgh Steeler. That’s a strange thing to say for someone who threw his last pass for the Steelers in December 2002 and left the NFL in 2005.

Yet this is a fitting ending.

Few, if any Steelers had as long and strange of a trip as Kordell Stewart. Steel Curtain Rising takes this opportunity to offer a look back at the oft entertaining, always controversial quarterback who made “Slash” a household word in Steelers Nation.

Click on the links below to either relive a moment of Kordell’s glory or look back at this times of struggles.

1995: “Slash” Fuels Rally to Super Bowl XXX
1996: Warning Signs or Just a Sophomore Slump for Kordell?
1997: Kordell Stewart Defies Gravity, Rises to Glory
1998 and 1999: "My Buddy's the Cop who..." - Steelers Nation Shows its Ugly Side
2000 and 2001: Kordell Follows the Flight of the Phoenix
2002: Understanding Kordell's Undoing
2012:Slashes Don’t Die, They Just Fade Away….

1995: “Slash” Fuels Rally to Super Bowl XXX"

Pittsburghselected Kordell Stewart in the 2^nd round of the 1995 NFL draft. With Neil O’Donnell, Mike Tomczak, and Jim Miller ahead of him everyone expected Stewart simply stand in street clothes clipboard in hand on the sideline.

Steelers lost Rod Woodson and Neil O’Donnell in the 1995 opener. By mid-season back to back losses to the expansion Jacksonville Jaguars and Cincinnati Bengals had sent the Steelers reeling.

Bill Cowher made changes. John L. Williams and John Jacksonreturned to the lineup. Carnell Lake shifted from safety to corner. Erric Pegram started in place of Bam Morris.

And, on a third and long situation, Kordell Stewart lined up under center. 16 yards later he’d converted a key third down, and a Steelers rally began that only ended in Super Bowl XXX.

Stewart’s role grew. Already used as a decoy in multiple receiver sets, during the next week vs. Chicagohe got his first catch – for 27 yards.

A week later, he zig zagged through the backfield throwing his first pass, a 2 yard touchdown to Ernie Mills vs. the Cleveland Browns.

The next week he tore through the Cincinnati secondary for an amazing 71 yard touchdown vs. the Bengals that put the Steelers ahead for good. How impressive was this catch? Take a look (available as of 5/2/12):

And so went 1995 for the Steelers. Kordell Stewart only ran 15 times, only caught 14 balls, only threw 7 passes with one touchdown in each category.

• Modest but sufficient stats for Kordell Stewart and the “Slash” phenomena take Steelers Nation in force. 

He could do no wrong. But that would change….

1996: Warning Signs or Just a Sophomore Slump for Kordell?

Many expected Kordell Stewart to size the reigns in the 3 way quarterback derby Bill Cowher convened at Latrobe in the summer of ‘96.

Kordell failed to distinguish himself and after quickly benching Jim Miller, Cowher turned to Mike Tomczak. Stewart remained “Slash” and if he improved at receiver, he often seemed hesitant and tentative under center where he’d previously been cocky and confident.

After stabilizing the team during early and mid-season, Mike Tomczak began to find the limits of his abilities. As injuries mounted and the playoffs loomed Cowher sought for a weapon to compensate.

• The weapon’s name was Kordell Stewart and the season finale vs. Carolinawas instructive.

With the Steleers behind late in the first half Kordell came into the game and immediately put the team ahead with an electrifying 80 touchdown scramble.

Kordell stayed in, but couldn’t complete passes. Any passes, unless you count 2 interceptions. The defense kept it close, and on the final drive Kordell found his rhythm and was an end zone drop away from a successful comeback.

Cowher employed a similar strategy for the playoffs. Vs. New England in Fog Bowl II he was an utter disaster throwing 10 passes with no completions…..

1997: Kordell Stewart Defies Gravity, Rises to Glory

Bill Cowher named Kordell Stewart his starter for the 1997 season and the roller coaster ride was on.

Statistically Kordell’s play in 1997 failed to impress. But he did something more important than put up pretty stats – he won, often in dramatic fashion.

Week 5 vs. Baltimoregave an early example. I sat in the stands at Memorial Stadium and Kordell looked cluelessly threw three interceptions, one worse then the next. With the Baltimore up 24-7 at the half, Ravens fans joked that “Kordell is our most valuable player.”

• But a different Kordell rallied Pittsburgh to victory in the second half, throwing three touchdown passes and scoring another on a 70 yard scramble.

Week 15 vs. the Broncos told a similar tale.

As John Elway was toasting Donnell Wolford, Kordell was erratic and threw an interception that Denverquickly turned into a touchdown. A side line reporter revealed that Bill Cowher told Mike Tomzack and Mike Quinn to “talk to Kordell and get him to calm down.”

• Kordell didn’t calm down.

Instead he exploded to throw to touchdown strikes to Yancey Thigpen and rushing for two more as the Steelers won.

A week later in New England, Kordell was at it again.

A late Drew Beldsoe interception gave the Steelers a chance to tie a game they’d never led. Kordell helped convert a 4^th down on this drive, threw a touchdown and then completed a pass for a successful 2 point conversion which tied the game. Pittsburghwon, and secured a bye in the playoffs.

Although the 1997 playoffs ended with the Kordell’s 3 interception loss vs. the Broncos in the AFC Championship, the sky seemed to be the limit for Kordell. 1998 and 1999 revealed Kordell’s limits to be much closer to the ground….

1998 and 1999: "My Buddy's the Cop who..." - Steelers Nation Shows its Ugly Side

1998 and 1999 were dark times for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

While the Steelers wisely refused to overpay to free agents Yancey Thigpen, John Jackson, and Carnell Lake, their draft picks and free agent replacements proved woefully inadequate.

• The line couldn’t block for Jerome Bettis
• Receivers couldn’t get open
• The secondary became a sieve (anyone remember Travis Davis?)

Below this lay a simmering feud between Bill Cowher and Tom Donahoe.

Most of this was lost, however, on Steelers Nation.

• For many, the Steelers problems boiled down to two words:  Kordell Stewart.

Stewart indeed struggled mightily.

Ray Sherman was clueless when it came to using Kordell’s athleticism, and Kevin Gilbride sought to transform him into a pure pocket passer.

At times Kordell looked beyond lost. The long ball, which had been his specialty, disappeared completely. Check down passes of 6 or 7 yards routinely landed at players ankles.

Stewart resisted taking responsibility. He got benched in Tampa. He cried. He finished 1999 as a wide receiver, with Cowher banning him from quarterbacks meetings.

Things got ugly.

• Kordell received death threats
• Fans poured beer on him
• He began playing better on the road than at Three Rivers Stadium
• Racist comments circulated
• Rumors about his personal life surfaced

No shortage existed of people ready to assure you “My buddy’s the cop” who found Kordell in some supposedly unsavory and illegal situation.

Further complicating the situation was the huge contract that the Steelers, in a show of confidence, had given Kordell following the 1998 season.

Salary cap realities tied the Steelers to Stewart.

2000 and 2001: Kordell Follows the Flight of the Phoenix

With the 8^th pick in the 2000 draft the Steelers had their choice of quarterbacks. Yet Kevin Colbert and Bill Cowher optedagainst selecting Chad Pennington.

Instead they brought in Kent Graham who won the job in preseason. The Steelers nonetheless started the 2000 season 0-3 and things seemed to go from bad to worse when Graham injured himself on a late Friday afternoon.

The Steelers were heading to Jacksonville, where once again Kordell would rise from the ashes.

• With their backs to the wall, Kordell led the team to victory in a game that set the tone for the entire decade. 

Kordell did it again the next week vs. New York and two weeks later replaced an ineffective Kent Graham. He led comeback victories vs. Cincinnatiand came off the injury cart a week later to rally the team vs. Oakland.

The Steelers were eliminated on tie breakers during the season’s final week that year, but had recovered their mojo. Many players can claim credit for that, but perhaps none more than Kordell.

The 2001 Steelers took the NFL by surprise, finishing 13-3. Kordell had a Pro Bowl year and was voted team MVP, having picked up the slack when Bettis fell injured late in the season.

The Steelers made it to another AFC Championship and they lost again with Kordell throwing another 3 interceptions.

But the loss was not his fault. The Patriots offense shredded the Steelers defense in the first half, while their defense stuffed the Steelers running game. Steelers special teams gave up two touchdowns and that simply proved to be too much for Stewart to overcome.

2002: Understanding Kordell's Undoing

Kordell Stewart’s first and second passes of the 2002 season were intercepted and quickly converted into points by the New England Patriots in what would become known as the “Dread the Spread” game.

The next week vs. Oakland Kordell played better but was still unable to lead a comeback.

The following week Stewart again struggled as Pittsburgh found itself locked must win situation vs. the Cleveland Browns. Late in the 4^thquarter Cowher needed a spark and sent in Tommy Maddox and the Steelers won.

• After the game Cowher seemed to indicate that Stewart would start the next week, but he shifted course, naming Maddox as “the starter.”

A few weeks later when the Steelers played the Colts and the game was broadcast on ESPN Deportes reporter Raul Allegre dropped a bomb, telling his Latin American audience:

Hablé con Bill Cowher sobre Kordell Stewart, y él me dijo que no quisiera cambiar a su mariscal, pero sentí que tendría que hacerlo, porque Kordell Stewart había perdido la confianza del resto de los miembros del equipo.

In a nutshell, Cowher told Allegre that he didn’t want tobench Kordell but felt he had to because Kordell had lost the confidence of the rest of the locker room.

• And therein lies the key to the rise and fall of Kordell Stewart:  Confidence.

Success in the NFL at quarterback involves many factors, but none are perhaps more important than confidence and mental toughness.

Ben Roethlisberger once remarked that the true test of toughess for a quarterback was the ability to shrug off throwing 3 interceptions in a playoff game and comeback to play well enough to give your team a chance to win.

Kordell Stewart lost whatever swagger he had as a swashbuckling Slash that allowed him to lead numerous comebacks.

To tap an overused metaphor on this site, when Kordell could rely on instinct and athleticism, he defied gravity with a uncanny cartoon character like ability. 

• But twin sets of triplet interception AFC Championship performances forced Stewart to look down. And like the Road Runner, Kordell fell.

Most quarterbacks are finished when they lose their confidence.

Kordell, after enduring a particularly cruel two-year purgatory, rebuilt his confidence and earned a second chance to knock on heaven’s door, only to fall short a second time.

Bill Cowher couldn’t afford to give him a third chance because the only thing that allowed Kordell to return to relying on instinct, was removal of the pressure of the starting job.

If you want proof, consider that when Tommy Maddox got injured in 2002, Kordell Stewart played some of his best football ever, nearly rallying the team to victory in Tennessee, and going 22-26-236-0-1 with another forty yards rushing the next week vs. Cincinnati.

• Those were arguable his best two games as a passer.

He followed a similar pattern in Chicago, playing his best when coming off the bench.

Slashes Don’t Die, They Just Fade Away….

As someone whose heart was rooting for Kordell even when his head said he was done, I wished him success after Pittsburgh, and thought he’d enjoy a successful run as a backup.

That was not to be. Kordell held a clipboard for two years in Baltimore, but threw no passes. As late as 2009 or 2010 Steelers Digest reported that Stewart held out hope that his phone might ring.

• It never did.

So he decided to seek closure in the place where his long, strange NFL odyssey began, and by his account he found it. Good for you Kordell. Good luck and Godspeed in retirement.

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Steelers Draf Needs at Cornerback and Safety

Having discussed the Steelers draft needs at tight end and quarterback, running back and wide receiver, offensive line, defensive line, and linebacker, we now turn our attention to the secondary.

Steelers Needs at Cornerback

Just 365 days ago anyone registering a pulse within Steelers Nation knew one thing:

• Super Bowl XLV had proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Steelers cornerbacks were the franchises Achilles heel

To that end, large factions of Steelers Nation were clamoring for the Steelers management to exhaust all possible means in securing a top corner in the draft.

My, what a difference a year makes.

The Steelers of course did not attempt to move heaven and earth to secure a corner waiting until the third to grab Curtis Brown and the fourth to get Cortez Allen.

Despite the fact that these two gentleman played sparingly, the clamor to grab a corner at all costs has died down.

A big reason for that is what Ivan Cole of Behind the Steel Curtain has termed “The Lake Effect.” Carnell Lake joined the Steelers staff as secondary coach in 2011 and the improvement in the unit has been dramatic.

As positive as that the Lake Effect has been, any predraft assessment of the Steelers needs at corner must take into account the fact that its chief beneficiary, William Gay, is now in Pittsburgh West.

In the same vein, Keenan Lewis will be a restricted free agent next year. And while both Brown and Allen defined expectations and got onto the field in sub-packages, assuming that one or both men will develop into quality starters remains a leap.

And it should be said, Ike Taylor, coming off his best season as a pro (the Denver debacle notwithstanding) isn’t getting any younger.

All of which is to say that cornerback remains an area of need for the Steelers, and one which they could do well to continue to address in the draft, should a quality player present himself.

• Priority of Cornerback for the Steelers in the 2012 NFL Draft: Medium/High

Steelers Needs at Safety

Troy Polamalu, Ryan, Clark, Ryan Mundy, and Will Allen. What you see is what you get with the Steelers at safety, and it does make for some pretty pleasant window shopping.

Troy Polamalu is of course one of the amazing, few, non-quarterbacks in each generation who can change a game with his own play.

Ryan Clark doesn’t get his just due at safety. Consider that Polamalu played much of 2011 up near or at the line of scrimmage and the Steelers pass defense still improved, and then you begin to get an idea of what Clark is worth to the team.

Ryan Mundy, member of the much maligned 2008 Steelers draft class, has emerged from a practice squad player to competent back up NFL safety who reminds me of Lee Flowers in a lot of ways.

Allen joined the team during the 2010 free agent signing spree. Allen hasn’t played much, and is seen as a likely candidate to go should the team need to free up salary cap space.

But Allen’s job is safe for the now, if for no other reason than the Steelers have no one else to play at safety….

Which brings us to safety, the Steelers, and the draft. Few are talking about it as a position of need, but they should be. (God, you hate to agree with John Harris, but give the man credit, he’s right.)

Clark, while his play continues to be solid, is aging. And as Hines Ward showed last year, when they reach their mid-30’s players can lose it from one year to the next.

Steelers Nation breathed a collective sigh of relief last year when Polamalu passed the entire year without major injury. That’s good. But Polamalu has also passed the 30, and that fact coupled with his daredevil style of playing all but ensures that the contract he signed last year with the Steelers will be his last.

If Mundy is in fact on the Lee Flowers track that’s not a bad thing – but Lee Flowers was no Ryan Clark or Troy Polamalu. And regardless Mundy will be an unrestricted free agent in 2013.

Safety is a position which the Steelers must address in the draft and it wouldn’t hurt for them to do it early.

• Priority of Safety for the Steelers in the 2012 NFL Draft: High/Medium

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Steelers Show Strong vs. Browns, Despite 13-9 Score

The Pittsburgh Steelers have been a weak road team in 2011. Going into the final game, Steel Curtain Rising suggested that contest at Cleveland Stadium would serve as a dress rehearsal for what would likely be a series of tests on the road to a shot at Lombardi Number 7.

In effect, the question was “Is it time to count style points?”

Well, the opponent was the 4-11 Browns, and the outcome was 13-9 with the losing team having at shot at an upset in the game final moments. How do you evaluate the Steelers performance in this dress rehearsal? Given that Baltimore took care of business in Cincinnati, is the glass proverbial half full or half empty?

For Steel Curtain Rising, the glass is half full, the reasons for which we explain below.

Steelers vs. the Browns, Football As It Should Be

Credit, (once again) Tim Gleason of Behind the Steel Curtain. In his capacity as Steeler historian, the author of From Black to Gold has done his part to educate the younger members of Steelers Nation on the nature of the Steelers Browns rivalry.

Gleason’s contention is, that for all of its greatness, the Steelers-Ravens rivalry is more about the two biggest dogs on the block fighting for the same bone. I am not sure if I agree completely with Gleason on this front. I have likewise found it difficult to raise my anti-Cleveland ire ever since Art Modell ripped the heart out of his community by moving his team to Baltimore in 1995.
But Gleason was certainly right on one thing, the Browns take this rivalry seriously, and they proved it on the field.

The game at Cleveland Stadium had everything you could want in a classic AFC North match up. Hard hits, players leaving with injuries, timely turnovers, fierce bone-chilling winds, and to top it all off, snow. These Browns had nothing to play for, but neither team left anything on the field.

A 13-9 win over a 4-12 might not seem to be the ideal dress rehearsal for a Lombardi run, until you consider the context laid out above.

Over Coming Adversity

Ben Roethlisberger was played hurt. LaMarr Woodley was out and in the course of the game the Steelers lost Keenan Lewis, Cortez Allen, and worse yet, Rashard Mendenhall.

That’s a lot to overcome, but the Steelers did want they needed to do to win the game and, if you look beyond the scoreboard, they did it in impressive fashion:

• A week after gouging the Ravens for 112, Peyton Hillis was ineffective vs. the Steelers defense gaining only 30 yards
• Isaac Redman fumbled twice in the fourth quarter, but Cleveland got zero points off of it
• Losing the turnover battle (again) the Steelers won the turnover war by converting Polamalu’s pick into gold in the form of the game’s only touchdown
• Ben Roethlisberger looked shaky for much of the first half, but was sharp enough to drive the team 70 yards to get Pittsburgh on the board

Meanwhile, on a day when the wind made airing the ball out dicely proposition, the Steelers running backs put up 161 yards rushing, and Ben Roethlisberger managed to connect with nine different receivers.

Strong Secondary

One of the many amazing stories of the 2011 Pittsburgh Steelers is the turnaround of its secondary.

The defensive backs ended 2009 as a shell-shocked unit who had let two games bounce off of their hands. Led by the return of Troy Polamalu, the unit bounced back in 2010, but ultimately Aaron Rogers exposed weaknesses that were so great, that they became to be seen as lethal liabilities during the 2011 off season.

The Steelers, it seemed, had doomed themselves by not trading up to get a top defensive back in the draft, instead "settling" for Cameron Heyward.

No, the Steelers didn’t get a top corner in the draft, but the did something which might have had more impact – they brought back Carnell Lake to coach their secondary.

13 months ago as the Steelers departed the field in Arlington, Texas, William Gay was considered to be a back up nickel back at best and Keenan Lewis a failed project. Under Carnell Lake's guidance, both men have grown into being confident, compotent members of the NFL's number 1 pass defense.

Seneca Wallace had to throw in the same wind as Ben Roethlisberger. Wallace isn’t the quarterback that Roethlisberger is, but also wasn’t hurt. Wallace did however, have the misfortune to throw against the Steelers secondary.

The Steelers defense was all over the Browns receivers, knocking away balls, taking away easy check down routes, and throttling guys after the catch.

• Troy Polamalu made the defining play of the game with his interception in the third quarter.

The Steelers had just tied the game, after consuming much of the clock, and Polamalu’s pick snuffed out Cleveland’s chance to match Pittsburgh blow for blow.

After that it only took Ben Roethlisberger, Hines Ward, Antonio Brown, and ultimately Isaac Redman to find the end zone.

The Steeler did leave plenty to find fault with in the Browns game – they lost the turnover battle and struggled to score in the Red Zone.

But even if we accept that from Polamalu’s interception onwards, one thing was clear:

• The Steelers were going to, and did make whatever plays were necessary to win.

That’s not a bad formula to take into the playoffs.

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Keys to the Steelers Success in 2011

The 2011 NFL regular season is now upon us.

The Steelers 2011 off season started in Dallas on the sour note Super Bowl XLV’s final gun. Since then, collegiate pre-draft visits, NFL Owners-NFLPA labor mediation, the lockout, the draft, training camp, free agent signings, and preseason have occupied the attention of Steelers Nation.

All of that is well and good, but the hopes of the Pittsburgh Steelers 2011 come down to two words: Balance and Opportunity.

Pittsburgh and the Punditry

To read what’s written in some quarters the Steelers are more likely to contend for the first draft pick and Lombardi Number Seven this season.

The litany of the Steelers sins goes something like this:

• The defense is too old,
• James Harrison isn’t fully recovered from back surgery
• The Steelers have one viable corner when three are needed
• Pittsburgh has no offensive line strategy

Either collectively or individually these issues could derail the Steelers season. But every NFL team has strengths and weaknesses – the question as always lies in how you deal with them.

Black and Gold and the Mean Between Two Extremes

Aristotle taught that virtue is about moderating between two extremes. The Steelers success or failure in 2011 will be measured by their ability to do that on the football field.

Age Meets Maturity

The Pittsburgh Steelers defense is the NFL’s oldest. This will matter for little if the Steelers match age with maturity.

3 of the last 4 of Aaron Smith’s seasons have ended in injury. And he’s a year older.

• Ziggy Hood is also a year older – and a year better. Ditto Steve McClendon.

If the Steelers can rotate Smith, McClendon, and 1st round draft pick Cam Heyward, they can benefit from the energy that youth brings and the wisdom of aging veterans.

Don’t Be Timid About Putting Your Foote Forward

James Harrison’s recovery from back surgery is a serious issue, and Jason Worilds isn’t ready for Prime Time.

• Perhaps its time for a change up in rhythm at OLB and
• maybe Larry Foote becomes the unit's unsung hero

Over the last three years, James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley have unleash fury on opposing quarterbacks unlike no other outside linebacking duo. But their play has followed a similar pattern – Harrison starts out strong then tapers off while Woodley starts slow and finishes with a bang.

2011 would seem to be an appropriate time to reverse that pattern.

That only works if James Harrison back can heal in the middle of the rigors of an NFL season, which might be totally unrealistic.

If that turns out to be the case and the pass rush suffers, then Dick LeBeau needs to balance the situation by inserting Larry Foote into the lineup and begin working Lawrence Timmons into the rotation at outside linebacker.

Finding Equilibrium Between Coverage and Pressure

It’d be nice to think that the Steelers can get contributions from Curtis Brown or Cortez Allen the way they got them from Emmanuel Sanders and Antonio Brown last year.

And that might happen, but Dick LeBeau cannot bank on it.

But the Steelers corners were good enough to get them to the Super Bowl last year. To transform a Super Bowl appearance into a win Dick LeBeau need to cleverly disguise coverages and pressure schemes. Perhaps no where is the Aristotelian concept of virtue more applicable than here. LeBeau needs to finely calibrate the mix.

Be that as it may, as Mike Tomlin says, “schemes are overrated."

Dick LeBeau and Carnell Lake are smart enough to get their players in position, but the Steelers corners must execute and, yes, Troy Polamlau must stay healthy.

Sean Kugler Must Do His Thing

Injuries kept the Steelers offensive line in almost constant disarray last year, yet offensive line coach Sean Kugler shifted guys in and out of position all year long, some times on a series-by-series if not play by play basis.

Having just written extensively on Behind the Steel Curtain about the Steelers offensive line, there isn’t much more to say here.

The Steelers have won pretty big with their “situational offensive line strategy” of late. Kugler is no stranger to balancing personnel against constantly shifting needs and that trait should continue to serve him and the Steelers well in 2011.

Opportunity Knocks

It is so important that pull off the balancing feats indicated above, because their Super Bowl window remains open.

Super Bowl windows are temperamental things. Sometimes they slam shut quickly, as they did for Tampa Bay after 2002.

Other times they remain, or appear to remain, open indefinitely is it did for the Dallas Cowboys who made Super Bowl appearances in ’75, ’77, ’78 and then tantalized their fans with NFC Conference Championship in ’80, ’81, and ’82 before fading into the mid-80’s.

The Steelers have their Super Bowl window of opportunity and they must seize it.

Book makers would say the percentages are against this happening.

• ...Only a handful of recent Super Bowl losers even made it to the playoffs in the succeeding season.
• ...The 1971 Dallas Cowboys were the last team to flip their Super Bowl fortunes for the better in a single season.
• ...Wikipedia, that ever infalable source, even has its own “Super Bowl Losers Curse” page.

And that’s what makes the Steelers situation so beautiful because you needn't bother breathing a word of that to Mike Tomlin.

He doesn’t care.

The Past is the Past. They Don’t Write Our Story, We Write Our Own Story.

And he’s right.

To bring home Lombardi Number Seven the 2011 Pittsburgh Steelers might need to walk a few tight ropes, but their destiny is in their hands.

Sunday against the Ravens we’ll began to see what the Steelers can make of that destiny.

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