Alby Oxenreiter, Sports Director for WPXI in Pittsburgh, reports via Twitter this afternoon that a source has told him that Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin may be interested in talking to recently-fired Oakland Raiders head coach Hue Jackson about the still open offensive coordinator position. Jackson has long been speculated as a possible candidate for the job ever since it was announced that Bruce Arians would not return next season. Jackson began his coaching career at his his alma mater, Pacific, in 1987 and has since had several coaching stops at both the college and professional Read more [...]

Former Steelers great defensive back and Hall of Famer Rod Woodson will likely be candidate to be the new Cincinnati Bengals secondary coach according to their head coach Marvin Lewis on Wednesday. Joe Reedy of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports that Lewis said they have interviewed some guys for the position already and that they are going to talk to some other possible candidates and make a decision as quick as possible. According to the report by Reedy, Lewis said that he would consider Woodson as a possibly replacement to replace Kevin Coyle, who left to become the Miami Dolphins new defensive Read more [...]

Pittsburgh Steelers running back Jonathan Dwyer posted today on Twitter that he is in his last week of rehab, presumably for his broken left foot that he suffered late in the game against the Cincinnati Bengals in week 13. The foot required surgery and Dwyer was placed on injured reserve in the early part of December as a result. When he finishes up his rehab he will be off to his hometown of Atlanta, Georgia for the offseason according to his Twitter feed. The Steelers former 2010 6th round draft pick dressed for 7 games in 2011 and carried the ball 16 times for 123 yards. His most extensive Read more [...]

The Pittsburgh Steelers had five players in the 2012 Pro Bowl game Sunday in Hawaii and all 5 made contributions. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger threw two touchdown passes Sunday to help lead the AFC to a 59-41 win over the NFC in the annual NFL All-Star game. In addition to the two touchdowns, Roethlisberger completed 6-of-11 passes for 181 yards as he started the game at quarterback for the AFC squad. He connected with Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green for a 34-yard touchdown for the AFC’s first points of the game and found Miami Dolphins wide receiver Brandon Marshall for a 74-yard Read more [...]

The Pittsburgh Steelers officially made several future contract signings official today that I had previously reported along with a few players that had not yet surfaced. Officially signed now to future contracts are quarterback Troy Smith, cornerback Walter McFadden, wide receiver Tyler Beiler, wide receiver David Gilreath, wide receiver Derrick Williams and wide receiver Jimmy Young. the two new names on this list that were not yet reported are McFadden and Gilreath. McFadden spent a portion of 2010 and 2011 with the Oakland Raiders and on the practice squads of the Jacksonville Jaguars and Read more [...]

The news officially broke this morning that Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Bruce Arians will not be back in 2012 according to a statement by head coach Mike Tomlin. With the offensive coordinator position now open I have put together a list below of the likeliest candidates to be the Steelers next offensive coordinator. Tomlin will be down in Mobile, Alabama next week for the Senior Bowl and there could be a few interviews that take place down there, but that is just speculation. Those interviews could include a few coaches not on my list below as well, as the Senior Bowl always is a Read more [...]

By Jeremy Hritz Right now, it still hurts for Steelers fans. Two of our most hated opponents will battle for the AFC crown that we proudly wore last year. And in the NFC, we have to watch the other hated Harbaugh and the Eli Manning-led New York Giants. While Sunday will no doubt be agonizing as it reminds us of what could have been, it is time to move on. And what better way to do so than taking a closer look at the 2012-2013 Steelers' opponents. Opponents’ 2011 Records: 103-105 (.495) 2011 Playoff Opponents on 2012 Schedule: 4 - Baltimore, Cincinnati, Denver, New York Giants Divisional Read more [...]

One of the biggest gripes you will hear from Steeler Nation concerning the play calling of Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Bruce Arians is his use of the wide receiver bubble screen. Everyone screams bloody murder when one goes for negative or minimal yardage and to hear the fan base talk, Arians uses it 10 times a game and 10 times too much. The bubble screen is predominantly used as a run game alternative and is effective in getting the ball in the hands of your best play makers using a high percentage throw. The use of it can help in keeping defenses honest in regards to over-committing Read more [...]

It is time to have a player by player look at the Pittsburgh Steelers 2012 Free Agents and do a complete breakdown of their 2011 season and look ahead to their pending 2012 free agency situation. I will start with the restricted free agents and then move on to the unrestricted and exclusive free agents. To kick this series off I will start with wide receiver Mike Wallace. Player: Mike Wallace Position: Wide Receiver Experience: 3 Years Free Agent Status: Restricted 2011 Salary Cap Hit: $710,168.00 2011 Season Breakdown: Wallace had a torrid start to the 2011 season up until the Read more [...]

The Pittsburgh Steelers offseason roster has started to expand as former Ohio State defensive back Antonio Smith has signed a three year futures contract with the team. Smith was originally signed by the Indianapolis Colts as an undrafted free agent in 2007 and has also been a member of the Detroit Lions, San Diego Chargers and Cincinnati Bengals. Smith measures in at around 5 foot 9 and weighs 192 pounds. Smith was an All-Big Ten selection while at Ohio State following a senior campaign where he made 71 tackles, second-best on the team. He also was an accomplished special teams player covering Read more [...]

The Wild Card weekend of the playoff has come and gone and it is time to look at the TOX results from the 4 games. The Houston Texans had a plus 5 TOX and easily took care of the Cincinnati Bengals. The New York Giants had a plus 3 TOX against the Atlanta Falcons and easily won. The Pittsburgh Steelers did not reach the magic plus 2 number. Had they had one more explosive play or turnover, or allowed one less of each, they likely win that game against the Denver Broncos. How fitting that the final play was explosive as the Steelers were plus 2 at that point. The New Orleans Saints and the Detroit Read more [...]

The Pittsburgh Steelers 2011 season came to an abrupt end on the first play of overtime Sunday against the Denver Broncos as quarterback Tim Tebow hit wide receiver Demaryius Thomas for a 80-yard touchdown pass and the Broncos defeated Steelers 29-23 in the AFC wild-card playoff game. Not only was it the end of the Steelers 2011 season, it could be the final game for veteran wide receiver Hines Ward as well. Ward was asked about his thoughts on next season after the game and he replied, "No, I'm not even thinking about that. My heart is towards my teammates and towards this game. There are a Read more [...]

By Jeremy Hritz Recently on nfl.com, former Ravens coach Brian Billick posted a breakdown of the 12 NFL playoff participants and their rankings in what he feels are the most significant categories related to winning (here is the link: ). Those categories are as follows: Rushing offense Passing defense Rushing defense Passing defense Turnover differential Explosive play differential 3rd down offense 3rd down defense Red zone offense Red zone defense Billick totaled teams rankings in these categories and employed golf wisdom to anoint the teams with the lowest scores as Read more [...]

What a way to close a horrible regular season as I went 11-5 straight up in the week 17 games and 12-4 against the spread. Where has that been all season? Through 17 weeks I am now 156-101 straight up and a dismal 113-145 against the spread. I had a great 2010 playoffs, so let's hope I am picking up steam at the right time. Here are the wild card weekend picks below with links to the previous weeks picks. Week 1 Picks Week 2 Picks Week 3 Picks Week 4 Picks Week 5 Picks Week 6 Picks Week 7 Picks Week 8 Picks Week 9 Picks Week 10 Picks Week 11 Picks Week 12 Picks Week 13 Picks Week Read more [...]

When the Pittsburgh Steelers take on the Denver Broncos this Sunday in their AFC wild card matchup they will do so with all undrafted running backs in uniform. Starter Rashard Mendenhall was officially placed on injured reserve Tuesday with a torn ACL in his right knee that he suffered in the final regular season game against the Cleveland Browns and that means Isaac Redman, the Steelers undrafted running back out of Bowie State, will make his second career start. Redman was originally signed as an undrafted free agent in 2009 after offensive coordinator Bruce Arians saw him on tape after a Read more [...]