July 29
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Not long ago, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman's trips to Pittsburgh were designed to tout the city as a hockey town and the Penguins as an important franchise that needed a new arena to survive. Tuesday afternoon, after a news conference at Heinz Field to laud the New Year's Day Winter Classic, Bettman paused to reflect on a particularly pleasurable sight - Penguins icon Mario Lemieux and Art Rooney II, the man in charge of football's flagship family ownership group, sitting next to one another on a stage. "We've always believed in Pittsburgh," Bettman said. He suggested local sports fans have reasons to believe in the franchises that won the Super Bowl and Stanley Cup in 2009, calling the"
July 29
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
columnist John Harris
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During the Steelers' five-game losing streak last season, coach Mike Tomlin told reporters he rotated cornerbacks ? replacing starters with reserves and then switching back to starters in the same game ? in a search for playmakers. "We played quite a few people in the secondary, looking for guys to make splash plays," Tomlin said. In 2009, Steelers cornerbacks accounted for two interceptions ? both occurring in the final game of the season against Miami. By Tomlin's definition, both could be considered splash plays: Deshea Townsend's interception ended a scoring drive; Taylor's pick in the closing minutes thwarted a final Dolphins comeback. As a team, the Steelers totaled 12 interceptions"
July 29
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Showing again that they value stability in the highest levels of their organization, not to mention Kevin Colbert's body of work, the Steelers signed the head of their player personnel department to a five-year contract extension Wednesday. Colbert, a Pittsburgh native who has been the Steelers' director of football operations since 2000, was heading into the final year of his contract. The Steelers generally have received high marks for their drafts, around which they have built their teams, since Colbert, 53, returned to Pittsburgh. During his tenure, the Steelers have won two Super Bowls and five division titles. "Kevin is without question one of the best in the NFL in his job, and we"
July 28
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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The Steelers' scramble to fill the void left in the offensive line by the season-ending injury to Willie Colon last month continues. Veteran lineman Chester Pitts (6-foot-4, 308 pounds) visited the Steelers' South Side practice facility Tuesday, one day after the 31-year-old, eight-year veteran met with the Buffalo Bills. Tuesday's meeting was the second time within a week the two sides have crossed paths. Pitts worked out in Arizona for both the Steelers and Indianapolis Colts last Tuesday. "He did visit the Steelers (Tuesday)," Pitts' agent Andrew Kessler said. "That's all I can tell you at this time." The Steelers are still monitoring the free-agent market for a possible replacement for"
July 26
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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When last seen with the Steelers, first-round draft pick Maurkice Pouncey was wrapping up voluntary practices in early June with an eye toward the opening of training camp. Pouncey, the No. 18 pick from Florida who can play center and guard, is being counted on to upgrade the team's offensive line play, especially in light of right tackle Willie Colon's season-ending Achilles injury. As of today, Pouncey remains unsigned — four days before players are scheduled to report to Saint Vincent College. The Steelers have an excellent track record for getting their top draft picks to camp on time. The first three first-round selections under coach Mike Tomlin (Lawrence Timmons, Rashard Mendenhall"
July 25
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
columnist Joe Starkey
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The Arizona Cardinals recently rewarded coach Ken Whisenhunt with a four-year contract extension, plus a team option for a fifth year. The Minnesota Vikings last season extended their coach, Brad Childress, for three years. The San Diego Chargers did the same six months ago for Norv Turner, extending his contract by three years despite his latest playoff failure. Two years ago, the New Orleans Saints gave coach Sean Payton a five-year extension. The Steelers didn't follow that pattern. They apparently believe Mike Tomlin "has proven to be one of the top head coaches in the National Football League," as team president Art Rooney II put it Friday, but they have extended his contract by a"
July 25
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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The Steelers ranked fifth in the NFL in total defense last season and were, for the most part, harder to run on than wet cement. What the defense didn't do: measure up to the near-impossible standard it set in 2008. That is why it served as something of a scapegoat when the Steelers missed the playoffs a season after winning a record sixth Super Bowl. If the Steelers are to return to the ranks of contender, the defense will have to resemble the suffocating unit that led the way in 2008, not the one that failed to protect five fourth-quarter leads last season. And James Farrior wouldn't have it any other way. "Not a knock on our offense," the veteran inside linebacker said, "but we always"
July 24
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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The Steelers made it official Friday that coach Mike Tomlin has signed a two-year contract extension which includes an option year. If the Steelers pick up the option, Tomlin will be signed through the 2013 season. The announcement came a week before the opening of training camp at Saint Vincent College, and dispels any speculation that Tomlin would not coach the Steelers beyond this season following a 9-7 record in 2009. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Steelers president Art Rooney II said in a statement that Tomlin has climbed the ranks among the top coaches in the NFL "in a relatively short time." Hired in 2007, Tomlin has a 31-17 (.646) regular-season record, including"
July 23
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Third-year quarterback Dennis Dixon isn't your typical late draft pick. A knee injury blunted his Heisman Trophy hopes and pushed him down to the fifth round, where the Steelers were able to steal him. Dixon made his lone NFL start last season at Baltimore when Ben Roethlisberger was a late scratch because of a concussion. Dixon displayed promise in the Steelers' 20-17 overtime loss, and he is expected to be No. 2 on the depth chart behind veteran Byron Leftwich when training camp opens a week from today. Despite Dixon's upside, agent Jeff Sperbeck doesn't believe his client practiced with the first-team offense enough during offseason workouts for the coaching staff to fully evaluate his"
July 22
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Tackle Willie Colon's season officially ended Wednesday when he was placed on injured reserve, and the Steelers signed journeyman offensive lineman Adrian Jones to take his roster spot. Jones, 29, is a five-year veteran who has played tackle and guard in the NFL, though he sat out the 2009 season after being cut by the Houston Texans in training camp. The Steelers signed him to a one-year contract. The 6-foot-4, 330-pound Jones was drafted by the New York Jets in the fourth round of the 2004 draft. He has appeared in 55 games with 26 starts, including 16 with the Jets at both tackle positions in 2005. Jones made 10 starts at guard for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2008."
July 22
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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For the critics who believe offensive coordinator Bruce Arians needs to call more running plays, that he needs to get back to the type of blue-collar Steelers football that provided the organization so much success over the years, he has a revelation. "We need to run the ball better," Arians said, "not necessarily more." That's what Arians took away from meetings with the organization's higher-ups, including team president Art Rooney II and coach Mike Tomlin, after last year's 9-7 team missed the playoffs. The veteran offensive coordinator couldn't agree more with the theory. So as the Steelers await next week's training camp at St. Vincent College, Arians is dedicated to running the ball"
July 22
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Ever since there has been a Super Bowl, there has been a Pittsburgh Steelers training camp at St. Vincent College, and Benedictine Brother Norman W. Hipps, the school's new president, said Wednesday his hope for the Steelers is the same: that Training Camp XLV will culminate in a Super Bowl XLV victory for the team. "The road to the Super Bowl (victory) has started six times at St. Vincent, and we hope to continue that success," Hipps said. Hipps, in his first year as president of the Catholic college, joined other college officials at a news conference at the school in Unity yesterday to discuss preparations for the 45th annual training camp, which starts in just nine days. Although it is"
July 21
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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William Gay acknowledges freely that things didn't go as planned during his first year as the Steelers' starting left cornerback. "Being consistent week in and week out -- I had to learn that the hard way," Gay said Tuesday, following a workout at ESPN Wide World of Sports. "You've got to come to play. I hit some bumpy roads in those 16 weeks." Given Gay's struggles as a first-time starter -- he didn't start the final two games last season -- the Steelers brought back Bryant McFadden in a draft-day trade and signed him to a three-year contract extension. Ironically, one of the reasons McFadden joined the Arizona Cardinals in 2009 as a free agent is because Gay replaced him in the starting"
July 14
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Ohio authorities investigated a complaint that a member of Ben Roethlisberger's golfing foursome urinated publicly on the Country Club at Muirfield course, but issued no citation. Dublin police said Tuesday that the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback wasn't the person who urinated behind a pine tree between the 17th green and 18th tee box of the course bordering the Jack Nicklaus-built course that's home to the PGA's Memorial Tournament. Instead, it was one of three unnamed friends from Roethlisberger's hometown of Findlay, Ohio. The woman who complained, Nanette "Nan" Fowler, didn't want to press charges, said Dublin police spokesman David Ball. "We spoke to the golf course (management), and"
July 13
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Veteran cornerback Deshea Townsend hasn't given up hope of returning to the Steelers in 2010. Townsend, who turns 35 in September, was surprised when he wasn't retained for the upcoming season. "I did kind of expect to be back, just to add some depth at the position," he said. "They know there's a player out there they don't really have to teach the system, that can come in and play." Townsend, a fourth-round draft pick from Alabama who played 12 seasons with the Steelers, lost his starting job when he was converted to nickel back after the emergence of William Gay. Since then, the Steelers have selected three cornerbacks in the past two drafts. They also reacquired former starter Bryant"
July 7
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Summer - or at least the fun part of it - officially ended for Hines Ward on Monday. From now until July 30, the Steelers' wide receiver will eat nothing but fish, broccoli and fruit. He will work out two times a day to acclimate his body to the grind of training camp. And Ward will log a considerable amount of time in his hyperbaric chamber, which promotes the flow of oxygen throughout the body. "That's just been the formula I've had success with over the years," said Ward, who plans to report to camp at least five pounds lighter than his listed weight of 205 pounds. "Every year, the older I get, I want to lose more weight, I want to look better. There's never been a problem with me"
July 4
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Whenever cornerback Ike Taylor contemplates his NFL future, he envisions finishing his career with the Steelers. "Deep down in my heart," Taylor said, "I want to retire as a Steeler." However, as the team's only defensive starter eligible to become an unrestricted free agent after this season, Taylor, 30, could put himself in line to receive a big free-agent payoff. And that might be too rich for the Steelers, who have yet to offer a contract extension. "I've been here seven years," said Taylor, the only active starting cornerback in the league to win two Super Bowls. "I'm a Steeler all the way. But it's on them if we can agree - be on the same page. If not, I've gotta move on." Taylor"
June 30
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Willie Colon, the Steelers' longest-tenured starter on the offensive line, will miss the 2010 season because of a torn Achilles tendon. Colon, who is scheduled to have surgery today, started 54 consecutive games at right tackle, including the playoffs. His recovery period is expected to last nine to 12 months, agent Joe Linta said. Linta spoke extensively with Steelers team physician Dr. James Bradley, who will perform the surgery. Linta predicted that Colon, who suffered the injury while working out Monday at the team's facility, will make a full recovery for 2011. "It's a classic deal where the Steelers are very positive Willie will be back 100 percent," Linta said Tuesday. "(Bradley)"
June 29
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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The Steelers may go outside the organization to find a replacement for injured right tackle Willie Colon. Mammoth free agent tackle Flozell Adams (6-7, 338) was at the Steelers' practice facility today visiting with the organization. Adams went through a workout and physical with the team. Adams, 35, was a five-time Pro Bowl selection with the Dallas Cowboys after being drafted in the second round in 1998 out of Michigan State. Adams started 173 of his career 177 games with the Cowboys, most of which came at left tackle. Adams played his first season in the league at right guard. Adams asked for his release earlier this year when it became apparent that the Cowboys were going to release"
June 29
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Starting right tackle Willie Colon will have surgery Wednesday on the Achilles tendon that he tore while working out at the Steelers' practice facility yesterday. Steelers director of football operations Kevin Colbert said in a statement today that rookie offensive lineman Chris Scott will also have surgery on Wednesday. Scott hurt his foot while working out at the University of Tennessee, his alma mater."
June 29
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
columnist John Harris
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Sometimes you have to be careful what you wish for -- such as a scenario in which the Steelers selected Pitt cornerback Darrelle Revis in the first round of the 2007 NFL Draft. That nearly happened, if you go by all the speculation and conjecture before and after coach Mike Tomlin's first draft three years ago. I, myself, see the glass being half empty rather than half full. The Steelers have a track record for trading up in the draft if they want a player badly enough. They did it for Troy Polamalu in 2003 and Santonio Holmes in 2006. In my opinion, if the Steelers truly wanted Revis -- whom they saw practice and play first-hand throughout his college career -- they would have traded up"
June 29
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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New look offensive line? Starting right tackle Willie Colon will likely miss the 2010 season after injuring his right Achilles tendon Monday. If Colon is lost for the season, here is how the offensive line may shape up for the 2010 season: LT -- Max Starks. Starks has been the protector of the QB's blind side since 2008. The seventh-year veteran started at RT before losing his starting job to Colon in 2007 but is likely to stay where he is. LG -- Chris Kemoeatu. Entering his third season as a starter, Kemoeatu played well enough in 2009 to get named an alternate to the Pro Bowl. C -- Justin Hartwig. The shoulder injuries that limited him during offseason practices shouldn't be an issue"
June 29
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Someone cut the phone lines and ripped out the security alarm keypad while burglarizing the Point Breeze home of Steelers nose tackle Casey Hampton, Pittsburgh police said Monday. An assistant to Hampton checked on the home June 21 and found nothing disturbed, but returned Thursday to discover the break-in had occurred, investigators said. Three large, flat-screen televisions were stolen along with two expensive watches, police said, and the home was ransacked."
June 28
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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A trying offseason for the Steelers just got worse. Starting right tackle Willie Colon left the Steelers' practice facility on crutches today with a foot injury. Colon hurt his right foot while working out at Steelers' headquarters. There were initial fears that Colon, who has started 54 consecutive games, tore his Achilles tendon. If that is the case, Colon will need surgery and miss the upcoming season. Steelers director of football operations Kevin Colbert confirmed an Achilles injury today on the team's web site. "He is still undergoing further evaluations by Steelers' medical personnel and we will not have anything more to release at this time," Colbert said. The loss of Colon would"
June 27
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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A framed Steelers jersey hangs on a wall. Autographed footballs sit on shelves. A gold helmet rests on a bed stand, and the sliding closet doors are painted black to look like lockers. There is a story behind every Steelers item in the bedroom of the late Heather Miller, who would have celebrated her 12th birthday this week. Together, they explain why sports matter beyond final scores -- and how some Steelers players are still helping a family in its greatest time of need. The jersey is signed by safety Troy Polamalu, and it is the one he wore in the 2008 AFC title game. The gift offers a glimpse into the bond between Polamalu and Heather, both of whom have been described as fearless."
June 26
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward said the Ben Roethlisberger questions he and teammates have faced during the offseason are "tiring" and the Steelers need to move past the scrutiny generated by the franchise quarterback's boorish behavior. "Everywhere we go, we're all affected as teammates, because we're always asked about it," Ward said. "For us, it can get monotonous." Ward told the NFL Network that Roethlisberger needs to address the team about his off-the-field missteps. The 13th-year veteran told the Tribune-Review, however, that it is up to Roethlisberger if he wants to talk to teammates about the events that led to a four- to six-game suspension at the start of the 2010 season. "To"
June 26
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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He had jotted down notes and points he wanted to emphasize. But when the cameras started rolling, Hines Ward fumbled his words, and at one point he tried to stop - to hit rewind, so to speak. Alas, the Steelers wide receiver found out that there are no timeouts in live television. That was one of many things Ward and other former and current players learned earlier this week at the NFL's Broadcast Boot Camp. The four-day camp, which concluded Thursday, provided Ward, Steelers quarterback Charlie Batch and 23 others a close-up look at the business to which many former players gravitate. A sobering one, too. Ward could attest to that after his mock studio taping Tuesday with FOX's Curt"
June 23
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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The Steelers won't blame their defensive dip last season on a failure to communicate, but that hasn't stopped Mike Tomlin from imploring them to listen while learning this offseason. Or, more appropriately, learning to listen. "That's one thing that coach Tomlin talked to us about," said inside linebacker James Farrior, who took the brunt of blame for the problem because he handles the defensive calls signaled from the sideline. "Listening is a skill, something you've got focus in on and learn how to do." Miscommunication was a major culprit last season when the Steelers blew five fourth-quarter leads, including cushions against the lowly Kansas City Chiefs and Oakland Raiders. It's"
June 22
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
columnist Kevin Gorman
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With Mike Tomlin serving as moderator, football campers were free to ask anything of special guest Heath Miller. The Steelers' Pro Bowl tight end must have been caught off-guard by one question: Do you have a bodyguard? Ben Roethlisberger's name is no longer associated with what is now known as the Coach Tomlin Football Camp, but it was a telling display of the damage Roethlisberger has done to his reputation. Kids know that Roethlisberger has been run through the ringer since March 5, when - in the company of two law-enforcement officers serving as bodyguards - he was accused of (but not charged with) sexually assaulting a 20-year-old woman at a nightclub in Milledgeville, Ga. Miller"