Like B-Mac Before Him, William Gay Returns to The Steelers via Pittsburgh West

Who says that lighting does not strike twice?

Bryant McFadden was drafted by the Steelers in 2005 worked his way into the line up, and by the time he was playing out his restricted free agent tender he was alternating as a starter.

Following Super Bowl XLIII, McFadden departed to Pittsburgh West aka the Arizona Cardinals.

• A year later McFadden was back with the Steelers, via a draft day trade.

The Steelers drafted William Gay in 2007. He worked his way into the line up, first alternating with starters, then he won the starting, lost it to McFadden, and then won it back albeit he played in the slot position on 3rd downs.

As a free agent in 2012 William Gay signed with Pittsburgh West….

…Last week the Cardinals cut him, word leaked he was headed to the South Side, and presto he’s a Pittsburgh Steeler again.

Hopefully, however, he will not repeat McFadden’s return performance in Pittsburgh. While McFadden did a respectable job in his only full season as a starter, he struggled in the 2010 playoffs. He got injured in the Debacle at Baltimore and never to return as a starter.

When the Steelers found themselves 25 million over the cap in the 2011 off season, McFadden was one of the first cuts.

Does William Gay’s Return Spell Keenan Lewis' Exit?

The immediate speculation is that William Gay’s return signals the end of Keenan Lewis’ days in Pittsburgh. Lewis, by all accounts, wants to stay in Pittsburgh.

But he will likely command a multi million dollar salary on the open market, and the Steelers are strapped for cap space. Add that to the fact that Lewis will have to hold off Cortez Allen for the starting.

Gerry Dulac reported that William Gay signed for approximately 1.5 million dollars a year – not dirt cheap, but a lot less than Lewis will make.

Time will tell, but the probability of Keenan Lewis playing next year in Pittsburgh just took a hit. And irrespective of how it impacts Keenan Lewis' prospects, William Gay's return could also move James Harrison and/or Willie Colon closer to the exit.

We will soon know.

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William Gay's Visit to Pittsburgh Could Signal Coming Cuts...

Steel Curtain Rising began its Steelers Free Agent Focus2013 by quoting “there’s a storm coming Mr. Wayne” from Dark Knight Rises.

Thus far there has been far more calm than storm on the South Side.

• That could change very early this week.

 The Pittsburgh Tribune Review is reporting that the Steelers will work out William Gay, who was released late last week by Pittsburgh West aka the Arizona Cardinals. Even before news broke that he’d visit with the Gay went so far as to Tweet, “I am glad I never sold my condo in Pittsburgh.”

After a rocky 2009 and a better but still only so-so 2010, William Gay emerged into a solid starter in 2011 before departing for Arizona as a free agent in 2012. Now, like Bryant McFadden before him, the Steelers may want him back. 

• But there’s a catch.

While contract restructurings with Lawrence Timmons, Ben Roethlisberger and Antoino Brown have put the Steelers under the cap, they still don’t have much space. They still need to tender restricted free agents Emmanuel Sanders and Steve McClendon and perhaps also tendering Jonathan Dwyer (Stevenson Sylvester is not likely to be tendered.)

While the Steelers could restructure LaMarr Woodley’s contract, at some point Kevin Colbert an Omar Khan are going to need to do some honest to God subtraction as opposed to simply rearranging numbers.

• And that mean’s cutting someone.

An that means that it could be James Harrison and WillieColon’s final week as Pittsburgh Steelers.

Neither move is certain, but neither move would be a surprise. The Steelers are in talks with Harrison, whose agent has said he will not take a reduced salary, the first sign that he could be gone. Colonhas simply stated he is waiting.

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Steelers Prepare to Say "Good Bye" to Big Snack Casey Hampton

Ed Bouchette, the Dean of the Steelers press corps., has observed that lever to the success of 3-4 zone blitz can be found in the nose tackle’s knees. History proves his point.

The 1998 and 1999 Steelers started both seasons off playing dominant defense despite the absence of studs like Rod Woodson, Greg Lloyd, Kevin Greene, Chad Brown and, in 1999, Carnell Lake.

The operative phrase is "started both seasons." In both campaigns the defense fell apart late in the season and in both years the defense's decline can be traced directly to the deterioration of Joel Steed’s knees. (Steed in fact retired after '99.)

Since 2001 the Pittsburgh Steelers have consistently posted one of the NFL’s best defenses. Big Snack Casey Hampton was drafted by the Steelers in 2001. Those two events are not coincidental.

As a rookie Hampton who only needed 5 weeks to beat out incumbent starter Kendrick Clancy.

Neither the Steelers nor Hampton have looked back since. Casey Hampton has quite simply anchored some of the best defenses in Steelers history.

Trying to measure the impact of nose tackles in the 3-4 is kind of like trying to measure the influence of B2B marketing in corporate revenue streams – you know you need a good nose tackle, but its hard to put a number on his performance:

• 3-4 nose tackle’s don’t pull down eye popping statistics
• They rarely make the ESPN highlight reels
• Quarterbacks are seldom said to “fear” nose tackles

Yet the 3-4 nose tackle plays an essential role, by disrupting and cogging everything the opposing offense wishes to achieve.

Casey Hampton has never had as many as three sacks in a season, never had a tackle total above 45. But he’s been one of the best 3-4 nose tackles in the business during his time in the NFL, and this video (available 3/3/13) show just how poor of a guide statistics can be at times:



When the Steelers have needed him, Casey Hampton has stepped up, and perhaps no bigger moment reveals that than his sack of Matt Hasselbeck in Super Bowl XL, which not coincidentally was the first play on the video.

Can the Steelers Keep Casey?

Casey Hampton has started for 12 straight years with the Steelers, an impressive run by any measure.

Alas, all things come to an end.  The quality of the Steelers run defense began to slip in 2011 and Hampton was injured in the Teebowing the Steelers suffered vs. Denver in the playoffs.

Many fans thought that Hampton was done, and he only returned for his 12th season after agreeing to a pay cut. Casey Hampton clearly showed by the end of the 2012 season that he has something left and he’s a free agent.

The Steelers will most certainly allow Hampton to test the free agent waters where he’s likely to get an offer, and he’ll likely play his final football in colors other than Black and Gold.

That will be sad, but it will be an unfortunate necessity – knowing when to let go of aged veterans is just as important to a team’s development as is evaluating youth. And unlike the situation the Steelers face with James Harrison and Jason Worilds, Steve McLendon is ready to step up.

• Its time for the Steelers to set Hampton free.

Should he get no interest and be willing to play for the veteran minimum then the Steelers could consider welcoming him back, but at the end of the day the Steelers need to focus on the future and not the past.

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Plaxico Burress Came Home Again. Will He Stay?

Kevin Colbert used his very first draft pick on Plaxico Burress. Plaxico Burress had a rocky rookie season but then followed with Steelers four good seasons (his rookie season was a bust) and them moved on, although it should be noted he did drop a touchdown pass in the 2004 AFC Championship gave vs. New England.

Since that day, Burress went on to be a goat who gassed out trying to reach the end zone in New York, to the hero of Super Bowl XLII, to a victim of his own gunshot wound, to doing time in prison, to being a parolee coveted by the Steelers to signing with the New York Jets.

When injuries hobbled the Steelers receiving corps in mid 2012, the Steelers turned to Burress, proving that you can come home again, and also bringing Kevin Colbert full circle as a GM whose success with first round draft picks and street free agents is unmatched.

Burress only made three catches during the season, but one of those was for a game sealing touchdown in the season finale vs. Cleveland. But he showed enough to know that he’s still got something left.

• No one is going to throw big money at Burress in free agency, as he’s a year older for those three catches.

If the Steelers can get him back at or near the veteran minimum, he’s someone who can help them on the field while perhaps providing veteran leadership off of it.

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Steelers 2013 Free Agent Focus: Odds and Sods

The Pittsburgh Steelers have their share of marquee free agents this year, men who’ve earned household word status in Steelers Nation. Players like Max Starks and Casey Hampton who’ve helped the team to two Super Bowls.

Others such as Keenan Lewis, Steve McLendon and Ramon Foster are young turks who are reaching free agency just as they’re playing their best football.

Then they’ve got others whose names very well might elicit a “who?” from all but the most diehard Steelers fans. This edition of Steel Curtain Rising’s Steelers Free Agent Focus 2013 takes a look at those men.

Odds and Sods of the Steelers 2013 Free Agent Class

Leonard Pope, Tight End:  Signed a year ago largely because he knew Todd Haley’s system, Pope did little to impress and was outplayed by rookie David Paulson. Still, with Heath Miller recovering from a torn ACL, Pope could be find a spot in camp, if not the roster, at the veteran minimum.

Brandon Johnson, Linebacker:  Signed as an insurance policy at linebacker, Johnson has position flexibility. Given Stevenson Sylvester’s dubious development and Sean Spence’s stunted injury recovery, Johnson could be back but only at the right price.

Greg Warren, Long Snapper:  He’s got one thing to do. He does it very well and Steelers Nation can expect to see him doing it in Pittsburgh in 2013.

Justin King, Cornerback:  Steelers Digest said it best:  “On the one had King is a 25 year-old cornerback with 19 career starts, but on the other hand he was cut last October and out of football until December.” They go on to say he’d be wise to accept the veteran minimum and stick around Pittsburgh another year. Agreed.

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Is Steelers Free Agent David Johnson Facing "Life's Work?"

Steelers free agent fullback/tight end David Johnson serves as a poster boy for the role that pure luck plays in success or failure in the NFL.

The Steelers drafted David Johnson in the 7th round of the 2009 NFL Draft. Johnson saw action in 15 games but only caught two balls working into the offense more as a fullback than as a tight end.

Johnson’s role with the team grew gradually in 2010 and 2011, and with the Todd Haley’s arrival as offensive coordinator, David Johnson was to move (nearly) full time to fullback.

He was also entering his restricted free agent year, which meant that only one year lay between him and his second NFL contract.

Eyes may roll at the last statement with memories with Johnson’s egregious drop in the late season Monday Night loss to San Francisco. But Johnson has shone at other times:

• Johnson’s block help spring Rashard Mendenhall free for his 50 overtime run that iced the 2010 opener vs. Atlanta
• David Johnson also stepped it up with 3 catches, including a clutch one on third down vs. Baltimore in December of that year

Still skeptical? Take a close look at the video below (available as of 2/28/13). Hines Ward (rightly) gets credit for making the first block, but it is Johnson (no 85) who makes the block that breaks Mendenhall free past the second level:




Alas, David Johnson had the bad luck tear his ACL in preseason, robbing him of his chance to prove his worth as a fullback.

How Does David Johnson Figure into the Steelers 2013 Plans?

The Steelers plans for Johnson, if they have any, remain a mystery. The press has devoted zero attention to his status. Heath Miller’s long road to ACL recovery might bode well for Johnson, but Johnson is coming back from his own injury, and the last time he was healthy he was transitioning to fullback.

Johnson is not likely to attract much attention from other NFL teams. He’s shown he can help the Steelers, but then again the Steelers have Will Johnson at fullback.

One year ago David Johnson was 16 games away from veteran minimum salaries that start trending towards 7 figures.

Instead Johnson now faces the very real prospect that, in the immortal words of Chuck Noll, he’ll have to begin “life’s work.”

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Steelers Restructure Brown, Roethlisberger Contracts, Add

As expected, the Pittsburgh Steelers restructured the contracts of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and wide receiver Antonio Brown. Roethlisberger's restructure alone gained them 6 million dollars in salary cap space. With those two moves, in addition to the restructure of Lawrence Timmons, the Steelers are reportedly in compliance or close to compliance with the NFL salary cap.

Steelers Claim John Parker from Waiver Wire

In an apparent indication that the Steelers have in fact gained some wiggle room under the cap, Behind the Steel Curtain is reporting that Pittsburgh has claimed former Alabama quarterback John Parker Wilson off of waivers. Wilson has never played in an NFL game, but spent time with Atlanta and Jacksonville, mainly on the practice squads of those two teams.

Restructuring Done? Heads to Roll Next? 

Earlier in the off season Steelers General Manager Kevin Colbert warned that Pittsburgh was reaching the limits of its ability to restructure contracts, acknowledging that managing the salary cap by perpetual contract negotiation carries dangers, and saying that the Steelers would prefer to avoid reaching a point where they would need to blow the entire team up to stay under the cap.

The only other way for the Steelers to reduce their costs is by cutting veterans or getting them to agree to play for less money, something the Steelers have only seldom done (see Jerome Bettis.)

Willie Colon has long been suggested as a possible cut, although Colon would only save them 1.2 million dollars against the 2013 cap. The biggest X Factor involves James Harrison.

The Steelers want Harrison back, but at a lower cap number, and a restructure is not likely due to his age and injuries.  That means that Harrison is likely to be cut if he does not agree to a reduced salary.

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