The Steelers returned to the practice field again on Thursday in preparation for the Sunday game down in Tampa versus the Buccaneers. As expected, QB dennis Dixon (knee) and G Trai Essex (ankle) did not practice today. NT Casey Hampton (hamstring) and T Max Starks (ankle) both worked fully for a second straight day and both are looking likely to return to the lineup after sitting out against the Titans last week. G Chris Kemoeatu (knee) and WR Hines Ward (calf) were both added to the injury report on Thursday and both were limited in practice. For the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday, C Jeff Read more [...]

The second Steelers game is in the books and according to the official gamebook, the Steelers allowed 4 sacks of the quarterback against the Titans on Sunday. I will go over them below and have the first two animated gifs done with the second two being added as soon as the video is converted. You can click the images to see the full size vide replay from NFL.com on the first two sacks. On the first sack on the Steelers first drive, Titans linebacker Will Witherspoon comes untouched off the Steelers left corner of the line to nail Dennis Dixon and cause a fumble in the process. Neither Dixon Read more [...]

The Steelers are half way to playing with house money for the first four games after slipping past Atlanta last week in week 1 of the NFL season. The win was huge and takes a ton of pressure off of the team immediately as they head out for their first road game of 2010. A win in Nashville would be epic and put the Steelers in a fantastic position heading into week 3. Per my usual here, below are 7 keys to the game that I believe the Steelers need to focus on to beat the Titans and a game prediction at the end. No Big Johnson Outside - For me to tell you how dangerous Titans running back Chris Read more [...]

The Steelers beat the Atlanta Falcons 15-9 in the 1st game of the 2010 season. Below are my recap notes and nuggets I kept on the game along with my observations. I have much more coming on this game and am working through the night. These are initial reactions of mine as I am about to watch the game a second time and begin working up tape selections. Below are the notes I compiled throughout the game. remember these are initial reactions one time through the game. I think you saw more reasons today why Dennis Dixon was behind Byron Leftwich in the pecking order. Very shaky at times and got Read more [...]

On Friday, the Steelers wrapped up their third official practice of week 1 in preparation to play the Atlanta Falcons and got some good news as LG Chris Kemoeatu returned to practice fully on Friday after sitting out Thursday with a sprained foot (ankle) injury. Kemoeatu said he felt good after practice today and expects to play Sunday. He was listed as probable on the Friday injury report. QB Byron Leftwich (knee) sat out again as expected and has been ruled out on the Friday injury report. For the Atlanta Falcons on Friday, WR Michael Jenkins (shoulder) has been ruled out after missing his Read more [...]

The Steelers just wrapped up their second official practice of week 1 in preparation to play the Atlanta Falcons and a new name was added to the injury report as LG Chris Kemoeatu did not practice with what is being officially termed a sprained foot injury. Kemoeatu said he sprained it after stepping on the foot of tackle Max Starks. QB Byron Leftwich (knee) also sat out practice for a second straight day as expected. For the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday, WR Michael Jenkins (shoulder) did not practice for a second straight day. OL Joe Hawley (hip) was limited on Thursday after not practicing Read more [...]

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review's Mark Kaboly reports that if the ankle tweak to left guard Chris Kemoeatu is not serious, backup lineman Ramon Foster and Tony Hills will be gameday inactives against the Falcons on Sunday. The 6th and 7th lineman active would be Doug Legursky and Jonathan Scott. This clarifies our gameday inactive list guesses earlier in the week and means that in all likelihood that rookie 5th round draft pick, linebacker Stevenson Sylvester, will be active on Sunday as he has shown the most ability on special teams in the preseason. This means that now with this clarification that Read more [...]

ESPN 1250 reporter, Ken Laird, tweeted that a source has informed him that Steelers starting left guard Chris Kemoeatu went to the rehab facility today before practice. Kemoeatu was not listed on the Wednesday injury report and practiced fully. There was no mention of any injury post practice and we will wait and see if he indeed practices fully today or is added to the injury report. If Kemoeatu were some how not able to play Sunday, the likeliest candidate to take his place at left guard would be reserve interior lineman Doug Legursky or second year lineman Ramon Foster. More as we get it. UPDATE: Read more [...]

Opening Statement: So much has happened since the final 2009 season game against Miami and the start of the season must be a welcome sight for the Steelers players and coaches. The preseason was a bit of a blur and was overall a success until quarterback Byron Leftwich went down with a MCL injury in the final game against Carolina. The roster has been paired down to 53 and features 8 rookie draft picks and 17 players 30 years of age or over, 10 of which are defensive players. The picture heading into the 2010 season is pretty clear for the Steelers as franchise quarterback Ben Roethlisberger Read more [...]

When the Steelers report to Latrobe on tomorrow, so will begin several training camp battles that we will be keeping a close eye on. We have narrowed them down to six to match the six championships the Steelers have. They are as follows. 1. Quarterback - Byron Leftwich vs. Dennis Dixon - Mike Tomlin has let veteran Byron Leftwich receive most of the first team snaps since his re-acquisition from Tampa Bay. The Steelers will need a starter for at least 4 games with franchise quarterback Ben Roethlisberger suspended to start the season and Leftwich looks to be the guy unless Dennis Dixon can Read more [...]

Training camp gets closer and we continue on with our Steelers Training Camp Previews by position. This installment focuses in on the offensive line as I get you acquainted with the 2010 offensive line roster. Training Camp Preview – Defensive Line |Training Camp Preview – Safeties |Training Camp Preview – Linebackers | Training Camp Preview – Offensive Line | Training Camp Preview – Tight Ends | Training Camp Preview – Wide Receivers | Training Camp Preview – Running Backs | Training Camp Preview – Quarterbacks Overview: There are more questions than answers headed into the Read more [...]

The Steelers will likely play their 2010 week 1 game at home and on Sunday according to reports. There was speculation they may play the Saints, but the Pirates baseball schedule has become a conflict in the scheduling. If the Steelers opened on the road, they likely would be on the road for 3 straight weeks to start the season and that is unheard of these days. Steelers president Art Rooney II would not discuss any potential negotiations on a contract extension for head coach Mike Tomlin, yesterday. Tomlin has two years remaining on the original contract he signed in 2006. Rooney only said, Read more [...]

Steelers Depot has moved to the Sweet 16 of the 2010 Pittsburgh Sports Blog Tournament. We sure would like to go to the Elite 8 with some help from our readers. Please vote here! Steelers guard Chris Kemoeatu and brother Maake Kemoeatu of the Panthers along with more than 20 NFL players are in Hawaii and will be conducting football skills camps for youth and high school players Thursday and Saturday in addition to several school visits throughout the week. You can read about the Kemoeatu Brothers Foundation here! Ed Bouchette's latest Steelers chat transcript is up on the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Read more [...]

I had a few emails this past week asking about the Steelers offensive line stats for the 2009 season. I finally got around to compiling them thanks to Stats.com. I have ranked the lineman by sacks allowed. I also included the sack yardage allowed, penalties as well as penalty yardage. Player Games Started Pen Pen Yards False Starts Holding Sacks Allowed Sack Yards Max Starks 16 16 7 55 3 4 8 44.5 Willie Colon 16 16 6 40 4 2 8 38.0 Justin Hartwig 16 16 3 31 0 3 7 49.0 Chris Kemoeatu 12 12 4 35 1 3 4.5 37.5 Trai Essex 16 16 3 20 2 1 1.5 21.5 Ramon Read more [...]

Two of the most pressing offseason things the Steelers will need to do, outside of the draft and free agency, is to get contract extensions done with wide receiver Santonio Holmes and linebacker LaMarr Woodley. Both players enter 2010 with it being their final years on their contracts. Both Holmes and Woodley put up career numbers with Holmes falling 1 reception short of 80 on the season and Woodley closing out the 2009 season by registering at least a half a sack or better for the final 8 games. The contract extension that Holmes is likely to receive will be somewhere in the neighborhood of Read more [...]