On The Steelers: Injuries piling up in...

SPORTS / STEELERS & NFL

On The Steelers: Injuries piling up in backfieldWednesday, September 30, 2009 By Ed Bouchette, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Peter Diana / Post-Gazette

The Steelers re-signed fullback Carey Davis.

Mike Tomlin called football a game of attrition the first day the Steelers hired him to coach their team. Nowhere has the erosion been felt more than in his backfield.

An already shaky backfield took three more blows with the revelation that fullback Frank Summers was placed on injured reserve with a back problem, his replacement last Sunday, David Johnson, is out with a high ankle sprain and starting halfback Willie Parker has turf toe.

The Steelers were fortunate in one sense that Carey Davis, their starting fullback through the first half of last season, was still available after they cut him before this season. They quickly re-signed Davis yesterday and he will become their third starting fullback in three games. Add to that the loss of Sean McHugh, their starting fullback the second half of last season who was placed on injured reserve this year.

Coordinator Bruce Arians said two weeks ago that there was no fullback in his offense, and, darn, if he wasn't correct.

Parker's injury might mean the resurrection of Rashard Mendenhall at halfback. Mendenhall was benched on offense by Tomlin Sunday in Cincinnati when his learning curve of the playbook looked more like a flat slider.

Tomlin took issue yesterday when he was asked at his news conference if Mendenhall was still in his doghouse.

"He is not in the doghouse. I don't have a doghouse," Tomlin replied. "A doghouse is something you have when you let things stew and you don't take action. I intend to take action and I'm done with it.

"He lacked a little detail in his preparation last week, so I chose not to play him offensively, and really was quite frank in dealing with him."

Perhaps, like Snoopy, Mendenhall merely spent time supine on top of his doghouse.

Tomlin explained why older players might get a break from him that Mendenhall, in his second season, did not over similar circumstances:

"It's a little different when a veteran football player potentially makes mistakes in preparation for a game. If Hines Ward misses an assignment on a Thursday, you kind of 'hmm' and you move on. Young guys have to earn their opportunity. They have to make coaches comfortable with their ability to execute details of their assignment. They need to make the other guys in the huddle very comfortable with their ability to execute the details of assignments.

"[Mendenhall] didn't do that to my satisfaction last week, so he didn't get a chance to play offense. That being said, I took action. I'm not carrying baggage into this week. If he plays above the line in preparation for the game, he'll be given an opportunity to play for us."

Tomlin might have no choice if Parker's big toe prevents him from running to satisfactory levels. As it is, the once-vaunted running game has been grounded, ranking 27th in the NFL with an average of 81 yards per game -- only 3.3 yards per carry.

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Parker leads with 159 yards but averages just 3.1 per carry.

Perhaps Mewelde Moore, their third-down back, also could become involved more if Parker cannot play. Moore helped saveit last season when, with Parker and Mendenhall out, he rushed for 303 yards in three consecutive starts.

Not so Sweed

Say goodbye to Limas Sweed for a while.

Like the passes he keeps dropping, Sweed has plunged to the bottom of the depth chart at wide receiver, and it looks as though veteran Shaun McDonald will take his place with what Tomlin likes to call a "hat" for Sunday night's game against San Diego at Heinz Field.

"He's quite frankly not catching the football when he's deep downfield," Tomlin said two days after Sweed dropped what would have been a 34-yard touchdown, all alone in the end zone. "He's got some tape that shows that. He's got to shake that off. If and when he's given the next opportunity to make a similar play, he'd better make it."

Asked if he were concerned if that could happen, Tomlin answered, "I am, I am," and that he would "absolutely" consider dressing McDonald instead Sunday.

Holmes' blocking praised

Santonio Holmes dropped his fourth pass in two games -- like Sweed, he dropped one in the end zone in Chicago -- and ran that wrong route that led to a Cincinnati interception for a touchdown. Yet Holmes did some things right on Sunday and that was Tomlin's response when he was asked if perhaps his Super Bowl MVP had lost his focus.

"I thought he did some great things when the ball wasn't in his hands," Tomlin said. "It was one of the most physical games he's played since I've been here. I think he had four or five knockdowns in the game. I was pleased with that.

"I don't worry about whether or not his numbers are his numbers. I don't care who the ball goes to. I want the ball to go to the open guy because the guys we put on the field are the guys we feel are capable of helping us."

Some minor injuries

Tight end Matt Spaeth (hip pointer) and center Justin Hartwig (ankle) came out of Sunday's game with more minor injuries that might limit them in practice but should allow them to play against the Chargers.

For more on the Steelers, read the new blog, Ed Bouchette On the Steelers at www.post-gazette.com/plus. Ed Bouchette can be reached at [email protected].

Ed Bouchette's blog on the Steelers and Gerry Dulac's Steelers chats are featured exclusively on PG+, a members-only web site from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Our introduction to PG+ gives you all the details.

First published on September 30, 2009 at 12:00 am

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Absence of Steelers' Polamalu palpable Wednesday, September 30, 2009 By Gene Collier, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Matt Freed/Post-Gazette

Gene Collier

Steelers safety Troy Polamalu has not played since Week One. View all related images

Can we expect any sort of recantation from Troy Polamalu?

I mean since Seattle Seahawks coach Jim Mora has gone ahead and broken the recantation ice, taking back Monday his comments from Sunday in which he trashed his own place-kicker minutes after a loss to the Chicago Bears.

Having slept on it, the head coach decided he should have been a little more temperate, a little more charitable.

So he recanted.

Two weeks earlier, Polamalu had done the rhetorical opposite, being too charitable, too gracious in his assessment of the Steelers' predicament upon learning they would be without him for the next three to six weeks. Troy said the Steelers' defense might actually be better off without him, which was as demonstrably wrong as anything Mora said.

But Troy was trying to be nice, which is why he can't recant.

You can't recant that.

You can't recant the publicly stated opinion that, with Ty Carter filling in for your inimitable All-Pro and the remainder of the defense scheduled for significant week-to-week improvement anyway, everything ought to be fine, if not better.

Even after consecutive fourth-quarter defensive collapses that submerged Mike Tomlin's team at 1-2, I wouldn't anticipate a recant.

I wouldn't anticipate much improvement, either.

"Antonio Gates is a matchup problem when you have a guy like Troy [Polamalu], so, needless to say, when you don't have a guy like Troy in a week like this, we've got to get in the lab a little bit," Tomlin said yesterday as his Troy-less defense considers a looming confrontation with the San Diego Chargers' tight end, among other spectacular lightning bolts. "We've got to figure out a way to slow this guy down."

Well, good luck there in the lab, because two weeks into this no-Troy-in-Mudville funk, it has become all too obvious exactly what No. 43 means to the Steelers' defense, and I'm not just talking about the nettlesome little factoid that all interceptions ceased immediately the moment Polamalu wobbled to the sideline after helping to block a field goal in the opener against Tennessee.

"Troy understands the game," Cincinnati Bengals coach Marvin Lewis was explaining this time last week. "Prior to his

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getting hurt in the first half of the Tennessee game, he made three of the finest defensive football plays I've seen in a long time."

All it would have taken was one fine play to seal a victory in the final minutes in Cincinnati. All it would have taken was one fine play to seal another one in Chicago 10 days ago. A little bit o' Troy goes a long way, so don't think for a minute that this particular knee injury isn't the difference between the Steelers starting 3-0 and instead being within a whisker of 0-3.

For all tangible damage done to Dick LeBeau's defense when you remove Polamalu (the Steelers are 14-3 when he intercepts, for example), the intangible impact is probably worse. Troy's absence appears to have a deflating effect at all levels of the scheme, unless such irritants as James Harrison's projected sack total of five for 2009 (after a club-record 16 a year ago) and LaMarr Woodley's projected sack total of zero for 2009 (after 11.5 a year ago) are wholly separate issues.

"We haven't changed what we're doing schematically in terms of how we attack people because Troy's not back there," Tomlin insisted yesterday. "It may look different because he has a unique skill set and he can do some unique things. But our play calling hasn't changed at all."

That might be, but it has to have a chilling effect, at least subconsciously, because once Troy is gone from the secondary, what you do with the people in front of it almost has to be more cautious. The Steelers had five sacks in September. That used to be a day's work. Pressure is perhaps most notably absent with opponents in the red zone, where they're 5 for 7 this season, including four touchdowns.

Chargers sniper Philip Rivers, one of two quarterbacks taken ahead of Ben Roethlisberger in the 2004 draft (Eli Manning being the other), likely hasn't seen a Steelers defense so vulnerable to his talents and those of the rangy wideout Vincent Jackson.

Rivers has 739 passing yards in San Diego's previous two games, with the Jackson target accounting for 261 of those. Come Sunday night, with Troy still likely two weeks from ready, who will really be surprised to see further evidence that Rivers-Jackson is one of the hottest connections in the AFC.

The Steelers will wear their throwback uniforms for this prime timer, but the audience doesn't want a defense that reminds them of the '60s, only of the first half Sept. 10.

Gene Collier can be reached at [email protected]. More articles by this author

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First published on September 30, 2009 at 12:00 am

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NEWS / BREAKING NEWS

Steelers sign fullback Davis Tuesday, September 29, 2009 By Ed Bouchette and Gerry Dulac, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Peter Diana/Post-Gazette

The Steelers re-signed fullback Carey Davis.

The Steelers have brought back a familiar face to help their running game -- fullback Carey Davis, a former two-year starter who was waived during the final cut of training camp.

Davis was signed after rookie fullback Frank Summers, who developed a back problem that Coach Mike Tomlin termed "mysterious," was placed on the injured reserve list, ending his season.

Also, rookie tight end David Johnson sustained a high-ankle sprain against the Cincinnati Bengals, an injury that could keep him out for at least two weeks and possibly more.

Davis started 11 games the past two seasons with the Steelers and played in 37 games in three seasons, including six playoff games. He had 12 carries for 35 yards and caught five passes for 27 yards in 14 games last season.

Davis was cut earlier this month in favor of Summers, a fifth-round pick from UNLV.

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First published on September 29, 2009 at 12:31 pm

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Tomlin threatens to bench struggling Sweed

By Scott Brown TRIBUNE-REVIEW Wednesday, September 30, 2009

The competition for the No. 3 spot at wide receiver is over.

And the loser of the battle that had been waged since the start of training camp may not even be in the Steelers' immediate plans.

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday that Limas Sweed could be dropped from the rotation at wide receiver because of hands that can make concrete look soft by comparison.

Sweed couldn't hang onto what would have been a 34-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Ben Roethlisberger in the third quarter of Sunday's 23-20 loss to the Bengals.

Drops have plagued the second-year wide receiver, and Tomlin is admittedly concerned about the miscues having a lingering effect on Sweed.

"He's quite frankly not catching the football when he's deep down the field, and he's got some tape that shows that," Tomlin said at his weekly news conference. "If and when he gets the next opportunity to make a similar play, he better make it."

Sweed, a second-round draft pick in 2008, may not get an opportunity to redeem himself Sunday against San Diego.

Tomlin said he will consider putting sure-handed veteran Shaun McDonald ahead of Sweed on the depth chart. Such a move would make Sweed the No. 5 wide receiver — the Steelers have only been dressing four wideouts for games — and it would mark a precipitous fall for the former University of Texas star.

Sweed had been splitting time with rookie Mike Wallace at No. 3 wide receiver, but Wallace is coming off his first 100-yard receiving game. Sweed, meanwhile, has just one catch for 5 yards in two games.

He is not the only member of his draft class that needs to show Tomlin something.

Running back Rashard Mendenhall made enough mistakes in practice last week that Tomlin didn't play the 2008 first-round pick on offense in Cincinnati.

"If Hines Ward misses an assignment on a Thursday, you kind of move on.

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Young guys have to earn that opportunity," Tomlin said. "They have to make coaches comfortable with their ability to execute details of their assignment. They need to make the other guys in the huddle very comfortable with their ability to execute details of the assignments. He didn't do that to my satisfaction last week."

Tomlin said Mendenhall is not in his doghouse. But he made it clear that he wants to see a more focused Mendenhall as the Steelers get ready for the Chargers.

"If he plays above the line in preparation for the game," Tomlin said, "he'll be given an opportunity to play for us."

It is not quite as clear with Sweed, who had just six catches for 64 yards as a rookie but appeared to make significant progress during training camp and preseason practice.

There is no questioning his talent, and the fact that at 6-foot-4 Sweed provides a nice target for Roethlisberger. He has shown an ability to get open, but the problems have occurred when Sweed has had to finish plays.

He dropped a deep ball that would have gone for a touchdown against the Ravens in last season's AFC title game. Against the Bengals, Sweed broke free in the middle of the end zone and appeared to catch Roethlisberger's pass.

The ball, however, squirted out his grasp as Sweed fell to the turf.

"At the end of the day, I can't go out there and make plays for him," Ward said when asked what he can do to help Sweed. "His playmaking ability has got to turn on. We've got to keep working and tell Limas he's got to take advantage of the opportunities you get and keep it moving."

Scott Brown can be reached at [email protected] or 412-481-5432.

Images and text copyright © 2009 by The Tribune-Review Publishing Co.

Reproduction or reuse prohibited without written consent from Trib Total Media

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Steelers re-sign experienced fullback Davis


In need of a blocking back, the Steelers turned to a player who didn't need directions to get to the team's South Side practice facility Tuesday.

The Steelers re-signed Carey Davis, who started 11 games at fullback for them in 2007-08 but was released when the team set its 53-man roster at the beginning of the month.

Davis takes Frank Summers' place on the roster.

The Steelers put Summers on the reserve/injured list because of a back injury, ending the rookie's season.

The loss of Summers, who saw a doctor yesterday, isn't the only reason the Steelers brought Davis back.

Tight end David Johnson, who also lines up at fullback, sustained a high ankle sprain in a 23-20 loss to the Bengals. Coach Mike Tomlin said the rookie is "questionable" for Sunday's game against the visiting San Diego Chargers.

In two seasons with the Steelers, Davis rushed for 103 yards on 29 carries. The 5-foot-10, 225-pounder also caught 17 passes for 76 yards and proved to be a solid player on special teams.

In other injury news, strong safety Troy Polamalu won't play against the Chargers because of a sprained left knee. Tomlin said he is encouraged about where Polamalu, who was hurt in the Steelers' season opener on Sept. 10, is physically.

"I like Troy's progress," Tomlin said. "Hearing good reports in that regard."

Several players will be limited in practice this week because of injuries, including running back Willie Parker (toe), center Justin Hartwig (ankle) and tight end Matt Spaeth (hip).




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Steelers quarterback taking on wrestling


Ben Roethlisberger will take a turn behind the microphone next Monday. The Steelers' quarterback is slated to serve as a guest host for World Wrestling Entertainment's "Monday Night Raw" in Wilkes-Barre. According to the WWE's Web site, Roethlisberger will take his offensive line with him to Wilkes-Barre.

Roethlisberger and a handful of other Steelers are fans of pro wrestling.

"I'm aware of it," Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday when asked if he had to sign off on the endeavor. "I just don't have a comment at this time."

Roethlisberger's appearance on "Monday Night Raw" will come the day after the Steelers play a night game against the visiting San Diego Chargers.

"Next Monday is so far away right now I haven't even pondered that thought," Tomlin said.

• Wide receiver Santonio Holmes had just one catch for 18 yards in a 23-20 loss to the Bengals on Sunday. But the Super Bowl MVP received high marks for his play from Tomlin after the third-year coach reviewed film of the game.

"I think it was one of the more physical games he's played since I've been here," Tomlin said. "I think he had four or five knockdown (blocks) in the football game. I was pleased with that. I don't worry about his numbers. I don't care who the ball goes to. I want it to go to the open guy, because the guys we put on the field are the guys we think are capable of helping us win."

• Lawrence Timmons started at right inside linebacker against the Bengals and didn't appear to be hampered by the sprained ankle that had forced him to miss the season opener. Tomlin, however, said the Bengals' ability to neutralize Timmons when he blitzed played a part in their beating the Steelers in Cincinnati for the first time since 2001.

"I thought the Cincinnati Bengals' running back did a nice job blocking him when he rushed the passer," Tomlin said. "I thought one of the signatures to the matchup a year ago when we played those guys is that Lawrence consistently beat the back when we sent him after the quarterback. I think the back consistently blocked him in this performance."

• Don't mention Super Bowl hangover to Tomlin. Yesterday, he refuted any notion that the Steelers' two-game losing streak stems from a lack of focus or

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effort. The Steelers have squandered fourth-quarter leads in road losses to the Chicago Bears and Bengals.

"I really think it's a lack of production on all our parts, coaches and players," Tomlin said. "We've got to fix it in a hurry. The story of the National Football League is finishing football games. In order for us to be what we desire to be, we've got to do a better job than what we're doing to this point."

• Steelers return man Stefan Logan will emulate Chargers running back Darren Sproles this week in practice. Both players are listed at 5-foot-6. ...The Steelers have beaten the Chargers in seven of the past eight games that the teams have played.

DIGITS

71.6 — Percentage of passes Ben Roethlisberger has completed.

1 — Roethlisberger's NFL rank in completion percentage.




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The tight end has become a solid NFL option

By Mark Kaboly DAILY NEWS SPORTS EDITOR Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Tight ends are an extension of the offensive line — nothing more, nothing less.

For years in the NFL, that is how the position was viewed by many, if not all, who were involved in the game.

Sure, there were exceptions to the rule. Guys like Ozzie Newsome, John Mackey, Dave Casper, Charlie Sanders, Jackie Smith, Kellen Winslow and Mike Ditka, to name just a handful, were as adept at catching a football as they were knocking a defensive end to the ground.

For years, though, NFL general managers steered clear of the tight end as a high draft pick because the position wasn't being developed thoroughly enough at the college level to translate to the pro game.

Also, teams would rather throw the ball to a speedy receiver than a plodding tight end, which made the position it was for years: a nonexistent one.

How the NFL has changed. Not only are tight ends being used in a variety of ways, they are being targeted more and more by quarterbacks around the league.

Through three weeks of the season, 13 tight ends lead their respective teams in at least one receiving category (receptions, yards or touchdowns.) Five others rank second as the top receiving threat.

That's 18 of the 32 starting tight ends that rank as a leading receiver.

"Once we rediscovered the tight end around the league, the light bulb sort of went on in a lot of different places at once," New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees told ESPN.com. "And you know what a copycat league it is. So, once it works for one team, then everyone wants in on the act. Plus, in general, the tight ends are simply better now and a lot more flexible than they used to be."

Brees, despite his many offensive weapons, has used tight end Jeremy Shockey plenty this year. Shockey isn't one of the players who leads his team in any receiving categories: His 14 catches for 128 yards and two touchdowns rank behind either Marques Colston or Devery Henderson.

Same goes for the tight end the Steelers meet Sunday in San Diego's Antonio Gates, who earns partial credit for how the position is played today. Gates has

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15 catches for 225 yards — all fewer than receiver Vincent Jackson.

Those two examples are not meant to de-emphasize the position's current value.

"Antonio Gates is probably one of the best tight ends in the world," Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said.

Gates is getting company when it comes to being labeled the best tight end.

Tampa Bay's Kellen Winslow Jr. and San Francisco's Vernon Davis lead their teams in receptions, yards and touchdowns.

Last season, 10 tight ends finished with 50 or more receptions, and six (Tony Gonzalez, Jason Witten, Chris Cooley, Zach Miller, Bo Scaife and Gates) led their team in catches.

This year, six are on pace again to lead their team in receptions (Brent Celek, Witten, Cooley, Winslow, Davis and Miller) with 16 reaching at least 50 catches.

START AT THE ENDS

A look at the 13 NFL tight ends that lead their team in at least one receiving category this season:

Player, Team: Rec.-Yds-TD

Brent Celek, Eagles: 22-245-2

Jason Witten, Cowboys: 19-181-1

Dallas Clark, Colts: 18-284-2

Chris Cooley, Redskins: 17-189-1

John Carlson, Seahawks: 15-169-2

Owen Daniels, Texans: 15-154-2

Kellen Winslow Jr., Buccaneers: 15-134-2

Vernon Davis, 49ers: 14-168-2

Tony Gonzalez, Falcons: 13-160-2

Todd Heap, Ravens: 10-124-2

Ben Watson, Patriots: 10-123-2



Zach Miller, Raiders: 8-113-2

Dante Rosario, Panthers: 6-89-2

SCOTT BROWN'S POWER POLL

TOP FIVE

1. Giants: Will be a popular pick in survivor pools this week, as they play the hapless Chiefs in Kansas City.

2. Ravens: Team that can now win with offense as well as defense has an early two-game lead over Steelers in AFC North.

3. Saints: Shut down Drew Brees and their high-flying passing game and New Orleans will beat you with its deep and talented stable of running backs.

4. Jets: Rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez is legit. Ditto for a defense that faces its biggest test of the young season Sunday in New Orleans.

5. Colts: Is there a more valuable player than quarterback Peyton Manning? He's helped make for a smooth coaching transition in Indianapolis.

BOTTOM FIVE

28. Redskins: True, they have a win. But they are coming off a loss to the Lions. Enough said.

29. Chiefs: First-year coach Todd Haley sure was a lot smarter when he had players such as Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin and Kurt Warner at his disposal.

30. Browns: Seriously, why did the Browns hire Eric Mangini? Then again, it's looking more and more like he doesn't have a quarterback around with which to build.

31. Buccaneers: Byron Leftwich is out, Josh Johnson in at quarterback. How long until we see rookie first-round pick Josh Freeman under center?

32. Rams: When you talk about really bad teams in the NFL, the Rams are prominent in the discussion. Another two-win season in St. Louis is a distinct possibility.

Mark Kaboly can be reached at [email protected] or 412-664-9161.





Tuesday September 29, 2009

Steelers' defense gets the blame By: Mike Bires Beaver County Times

Cincinnati Bengals running back Cedric Benson (32) runs past Pittsburgh Steelers defensive end Evander Hood (96) and linebacker James Harrison (92) in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2009, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

Right after the meltdown in Cincinnati, Ryan Clark played the blame game.

The Steelers’ free safety didn’t have any trouble pointing the finger at culprits most responsible for Sunday’s 23-20 loss to the Bengals.

“This is squarely on us defensively,” Clark said. “It’s evident what it is. It’s our fault.”

Clark and the rest of the Steeler defenders could have easily laid some blame on the offense for what happened in Cincinnati.

A wrong pass route run by wide receiver Santonio Holmes set the stage for cornerback Jonathan Joseph to return an interception 30 yards for a touchdown early in the third quarter. Wide receiver Limas Sweed later dropped what would have been a 34-yard TD catch. Jeff Reed then missed a 52-yard field goal.

But more than anything, the Steelers’ defense allowed two fourth-quarter touchdowns, including the game-winner with 14 seconds left to play.

Last week in a 17-14 loss in Chicago, the defense couldn’t hold the lead by allowing 10 fourth-quarter

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points to the Bears, including a 44-yard field goal by Robbie Gould with 15 seconds left to play.

“Yeah, we do take pride in being able to stop teams in those situations,” defensive end Brett Keisel said. “When we have leads, we have to come up big. We strive to be a great defense and make those plays that stop the other team. But we just haven’t been making them.”

Because the defense couldn’t hold leads the past two games, the Steelers (1-2) are below .500 for the first time in the three-year Mike Tomlin era.

“Right now, we know we can be in games, but we don’t know if we can win them,” Clark said of the mindset of the Steelers’ defense right now. “If you think about it, going back to (last year’s) Super Bowl, it’s become a problem for us.”

Clark was talking about the way the Steelers’ defense couldn’t finish off Arizona in Super Bowl XLIII. The Steelers took a 20-7 lead into the fourth quarter, but the NFL’s top-ranked defense couldn’t seal the title. The Cardinals scorched the Steelers’ defense and took the lead after two Kurt Warner-to Larry Fitzgerald TD passes.

On Sunday, Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer engineered a game-winning drive that included two crucial fourth-down completions. The second of those was a gain of 11 yards (on a 4th-and-10) to running back Brian Leonard, setting up Palmer’s TD pass to Andre Caldwell.

On the pass to Leonard, Farrior made the tackle but failed to keep Leonard from diving for first-down yardage. On Caldwell’s game-winner, Farrior was the nearest defender.

“I feel like I lost the game for us,” Farrior said. “If I stop that guy on fourth down and tackle him, we win the game and we aren’t even talking about this.

“To have a lead and blow it like that two weeks in a row, it’s very frustrating. We’ve got to find a way to make a play when we need one.”

“To play Steeler defense throughout the whole game until the fourth quarter, then in the fourth quarter, we don’t get off the field, that’s a slap in the face for us,” said Tyrone Carter.

, who’s starting at strong safety as Troy Polamalu recovers from a sprained knee.

“Fourth-and-10 with 20-some seconds left in the game, there’s no way you can tell me in a million years that we won’t stop that and come off the field with a victory.”

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Tuesday September 29, 2009

Madden: Steelers might care about Ben's in-ring debut By: Mark Madden Beaver County Times

Times photo by KEVIN LORENZI 8/13/2009 Coach Mike Tomlin during the first half of the Steelers' pre-season game against the Arizona Cardinals at Heinz Field on Thursday, August 13, 2009.

I have zero problem with Ben Roethlisberger being guest host on WWE Monday Night Raw. Hines Ward owns a bar, Brett Keisel goes hunting and Roethlisberger is a wrestling fan. It’s a day off. Ben is just having fun.

But I bet you don’t see it that way.

I bet the Steelers don’t, either.

As an employee of now-defunct World Championship Wrestling for just shy of a decade, I know exactly how this works. WCW promoted a pay-per-view tag-team match pitting Karl Malone and Diamond Dallas Page vs. Dennis Rodman and Hollywood (Hulk) Hogan. It occurred in 1998, one month after Rodman and Malone had clashed in the NBA Finals as Chicago beat Utah.

WCW convinced Rodman and Malone to scuffle on-court during the NBA Finals by way of promoting the bout. Think about that: The NBA Finals were actually compromised, albeit in a small way, by fake wrestling.

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Rodman was just an attention addict. But Malone loved wrestling and really wanted to be involved.

It was the same with ex-Steelers linebacker Kevin Greene. Greene flew from Tempe, Ariz., to Las Vegas on an off-day during Super Bowl week in 1996 to be in Hogan’s corner during WCW’s “Clash of the Champions” prime-time cable TV special.

WWE will not be looking out for the best interests of Roethlisberger, or the offensive linemen that accompany him. WWE wants to exploit them as much as possible.

If something bad happens, that’s fine by WWE. More publicity for them.

Roethlisberger and his linemen have surely been told they won’t be asked to do anything physical. But once they’re there, a WWE star like Triple H — somebody these guys are fans of — will try to convince them to clothesline somebody, or take a bump: “We do it all the time. Nobody gets hurt.”

Until, of course, somebody does.

The excitement of being part of the show will overwhelm commonsense, and a Steeler will do something he probably shouldn’t. I’d bet on it.

Chris Fuamatu-Ma’afala ran into the ring and did a series of moves during an Extreme Championship Wrestling show in Pittsburgh while he was a member of the Steelers — and on injured reserve. Not too bright, especially with a talk-show host in the audience.

What if the Steelers lose Sunday, drop to 1-3, and Ben and the boys are involved with fake wrestling on TV the next night? What will the fan backlash be? Roethlisberger will get crucified. God forbid he plays badly. People will ask where his head is at. They’re asking that already.

Not me. Roethlisberger has had a good season to date despite the Steelers’ 1-2 mark. Raw is in Wilkes-Barre. It’s an easy round trip, especially by private jet. The Steelers involved might be made to look stupid on occasion, but no stupider than in the fourth quarter at Cincinnati. Chances are no one will get hurt.

But that won’t be the perception. Steelers fans will hate this. Steelers management will hate this. Those opinions matter more than mine.

Mark Madden hosts a radio show 3-6 p.m. weekdays on WXDX-FM (105.9).

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Tomlin says Sweed, Mendenhall not in his doghouse 9/30/2009 3:31 AM PITTSBURGH - Mike Tomlin said Tuesday he doesn't have a doghouse.

What Tomlin does have, however, is a bench. Following another dropped touchdown pass in Sunday's 23-20 loss at Cincinnati, second-year wide receiver Limas Sweed will likely find himself firmly planted on it.

"Absolutely," Tomlin said when asked if he was considering benching Sweed in favor of veteran Shaun McDonald, who has been active for just one of the team's first two games.

The 6-4, 220-pound Sweed has dropped a number of deep passes since the Steelers selected him in the second round of the 2008 draft, including one in last year's AFC Championship against Baltimore.

"Quite frankly, he's not catching the football when he's deep down the field," Tomlin said. "He's got some tape that shows that. He's got to shake that off. If and when he's given his next opportunity to make a similar play, he better make it."

When that opportunity will come is anyone's guess. Chances are, it won't be Sunday when the Steelers host the San Diego Chargers.

Rookie Mike Wallace, a third-round draft pick, has supplanted Sweed as the Steelers' No. 3 receiver. Wallace led the Steelers with seven receptions for 102 yards against the Bengals and is fourth on the team with 12 receptions for 147 yards this season.

Sweed isn't the only second-year player Tomlin is concerned about.

Running back Rashard Mendenhall, the team's No. 1 draft pick last season, played only on special teams against Cincinnati because Tomlin felt he did not prepare well last week. Mendenhall had played every third series for starter Willie Parker in the first two games.

Mendenhall has seven carries for 45 yards and one reception for 13 yards this season.

"He lacked a little detail in his preparation last week so I chose not to play him offensively, and really was quite frank in dealing with him," Tomlin said. "It's a little different when a veteran football player potentially makes mistakes in preparation for a game. If Hines Wards misses an assignment on a Thursday, you kind of 'hmm' and you move on. Young guys have to earn their opportunity. They have to make coaches comfortable with their ability to execute details of their assignment."

Tomlin insists Mendenhall can rectify his situation this week.

"I don't have a doghouse. A doghouse is something you have when you let things stew and you don't take action," Tomlin said. "I intend to take action and I'm done with it."

In other news Tuesday, fullback Frank Summers, who has been dealing with a back issue, was placed on

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injured reserve and veteran Carey Davis, who was released by the team at the end of training camp, was signed. Davis, a four-year veteran, appeared in 30 games for the Steelers in 2007 and 2008, making 11 starts.

Odds and end zones

Tomlin said safety Troy Polamalu, who has missed the past two games with a sprained knee, is progressing but will not play against the Chargers. Parker (toe), center Justin Hartwig (ankle) and tight end Matt Spaeth (hip) will be limited in practice early in the week. Rookie tight end David Johnson (ankle) will not play this week.

Copyright Observer Publishing Co.

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Related Terms:Barack Obama, Chargers, La Jolla, Super Bowl

Chargers story archive > September 2009

Connected by Steel City may have a new modern identity, but still identifies with its gritty NFL franchise

By Chris Jenkins Union-Tribune Staff Writer

9:05 p.m. September 29, 2009

MOST SUPER BOWL TITLES

6 Pittsburgh Steelers

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3 Green Bay Packers

3 New England Patriots

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PITTSBURGH – He grew up in the Steel City, a hard-and well-earned moniker for more than a century, but now a misnomer. Just about the only reminders of the Iron Age, aside from the girders of those yellow bridges spanning the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers, are the Steelmark decals on the black helmets.

Like most everybody else in Pittsburgh, Charlie Batch was born into a family that worked in the mills, manning the blast furnaces that fed everyone's bellies and blackened their faces and sky and lungs. In the toughest of towns, sometimes the toughest thing to do was just breathe, with smokestack smog so thick that you could barely see across any of the polluted Three Rivers.

Ben Roethlisberger, who reflects Pittsburgh's workingman image, directed last January's playoff victory over the Chargers. - Sean M. Haffey / Union-Tribune

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“If you wore a white shirt,” said a Carnegie-born cabbie while driving past his old neighborhood recently, “it'd have some color in it by the end of the day.”

For better in some ways, worse in others, the local steel-manufacturing industry died a slow, hacking death. With unemployment approaching 20 percent, the tombstone might've said “Pittsburgh, 1989, R.I.P.”

“Everyday life was hard, but you knew that on Sunday, you could put that life away and focus on the Steelers,” said Batch, Steel Valley High, Class of '91. “You had three hours a week, those three hours you watched the Steelers play and got to forget about everything else. And at the end of those three hours, the chances were very good that you'd have a reason to smile.”

The six very best reasons now can be found in the lobby of the Steelers' office and practice complex, located on the very Southside Works site where Batch's grandfather reported for daily duty to J&L Steel, a foundry that was abandoned and razed. Those half-dozen Lombardi trophies, symbolic of the championship of the NFL, represent what Pittsburgh both was and remains.

Batch was in a Steelers uniform for Super Bowl XL and on injured reserve in XLIII. Now in his eighth season with his hometown team, he's the backup quarterback to Ben Roethlisberger, who truly is as much of a local icon in Pittsburgh as that other Big Ben in London.

Of all the Steelers, however, Batch is the one who fully understands and appreciates why there are so many Steelers fans outside of Pittsburgh.

“They're everywhere we play, and there's the preconceived notion that the Steelers must travel well,” said Batch. “Steelers fans can't afford to spend the kind of money you need to travel with the team to Seattle or San Diego or wherever. No way.

“Those people at our road games are there because their families had to move out of Pittsburgh to find work. Wherever they went, they just made sure their kids and grandkids stayed true to the Steelers.”

That they had to leave their beloved hills of Western Pennsylvania was a pity that's grown into an irony. Because you couldn't find a more livable place today than Pittsburgh, where the Chargers will face the Steelers on Sunday night.

With all due respect to the Arizona capital whose risen-from-oblivion team nearly beat the Steelers in last year's Super Bowl, Pittsburgh is truly America's phoenix city. On one of its many clear days – something Pittsburghers so rarely saw in the 1960s and '70s – it's now one of the most picturesque metropolitan areas in the U.S.

Partly due to Pittsburgh's spectacular recovery from its economic and environmental woes, President Barack Obama chose it as the host for the G-20 Summit. See, by the time the rest of the U.S. was really hit by recession, Pittsburgh already had gone through one far worse and come through the other side with a whole new identity and consciousness.

Obama also might've been mindful that Pittsburgh's become a major center for health care, and where you might've found hard hats in local sports bars before, you'll see more patrons wearing medical scrubs. If the NFL was just now awarding the city a franchise, it'd be called the Pittsburgh Biotechers.

No? Well, they couldn't have been worse than some of the dreadful Steelers teams were in their first four



decades. From their introduction as the Pirates in 1933 through 1971, Pittsburgh played precisely one postseason game.

“When I was a little kid, the Steelers were always just the game on your schedule that you knew was going to be tough, but very winnable,” said Tom McMillan, a Pittsburgh native and former sportswriter who's now an executive with the NHL-champion Penguins. “How many times have you seen that classic picture of Y.A. Tittle, on his knees and bloodied? The Steelers were the team that left him that way. And lost the game.”

Possibly by coincidence, the Steelers began to cease being a sports laughingstock at almost precisely the time the city was entering its darkest days. With the riverside mills in steep decline, 1969 was the year the Steelers hired unknown Chuck Noll as head coach and selected collegian “Mean” Joe Greene, the first of nine Steelers drafted over six years that now are in the Hall of Fame.

The teeth-bashing type of football played by the likes of Bradshaw and Swann and Lambert and Blount and Harris throughout the '70s, then again two decades after them by rookie Roethlisberger and Bettis and Ward, has made the Steelers perhaps the team that most accurately reflects the mentality and strength of its community.

Regardless of the region's past poverty, the Steelers have sold out every game since 1972. Their fans, whether pipe-fitters or lab jockeys, have always made it as tough on visiting teams as the Pittsburgh defense.

Ask the players about the so-called “Steeler Way,” though. To a man, the answer immediately refers to the gentlest of Pittsburghers, the Rooneys.

The family has owned the franchise from the start, though you'd barely know it from the media guide, an ever-thickening book that some teams use to glorify their ownership and overhype their success.

To the contrary, the cover of the Steelers guide is adorned not with those championship trophies, but only with the team logo. The lone Rooney biography up front is that of staff veteran Dan Rooney Jr., who's a college scout.

“You might get the feeling that football's all business here, but I'd say the opposite, that it's all about family and camaraderie,” said Pro Bowl safety Troy Polamalu, a La Jolla resident whose soft-spoken words bely his banzai style of secondary play. “When I see (chairman emeritus) Mr. (Dan) Rooney, I call him 'Pops.' Guys here have his cell phone number.

“Most importantly, he's very humble. He's not flamboyant in any way.”

Decades ago, team founder Art “Chief” Rooney overheard a telephone receptionist answer a call with the words “World Champion Pittsburgh Steelers.” He flinched and told her it sounded like bragging, so ever since, it's been a simple, polite “Thank you for calling the Pittsburgh Steelers.”

Judging from a walk downtown on a recent Friday afternoon, everybody in Pittsburgh has the home and road versions of the Steelers uniform, design of which the team changes about every never or so. A decal on both sides of the helmet? Uh . . . why? A little showy, wouldn't you say?

The Steelers don't have cheerleaders. Heinz Field is a perfectly fitting and functional stadium, but it isn't one of those sporting Taj Mahals that have gone up all over the sports map.



© Copyright 2007 Union-Tribune Publishing Co. • A Copley Newspaper Site

The Steelers can't be euphemized, can't be given catchy nicknames like the Bolts. Call those other teams the Niners and Jags and Vikes and Pats, but the Steelers don't take such shortcuts.

They've had three head coaches in 40 years, each in his 30s when hired, all with backgrounds as defensive assistants and none coming from within the Steelers organization. Mike Tomlin's a pretty no-nonsense guy by nature, but when he took over from Bill Cowher less than a year after Pittsburgh had won the Super Bowl, he noticed something different about the Steelers right away.

“There's an eerie sense of calm here,” said Tomlin, “and a strong sense of purpose.”

Purpose?

“The mission is very clear: championships,” said Tomlin. “I knew that the instant I walked in here for the first time. The five Lombardis told me that.” Find this article at: http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/sep/29/n82884-steelers29-chargers/?chargers

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Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Tomlin may deactivate WR Sweed

Associated Press PITTSBURGH -- Steelers receiver Limas Sweed may have dropped his way onto the bench.

Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday he may deactivate Sweed, the team's second-round pick last year, for Sunday night's game against the San Diego Chargers (2-1).

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"Absolutely," Tomlin said at his weekly news conference when asked if he was considering benching Sweed in favor of veteran Shaun McDonald.

Sweed had one catch for 5 yards and dropped a pass in the end zone in the third quarter on Sunday as thedefending Super Bowl champions fell to 1-2 with a 23-20 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals (2-1). Sweed, who missed the previous game with a foot injury, has a history of dropped passes in his young career -- most famously a drop while wide open during last season's AFC Championship Game.

"Quite frankly, he's not catching the football when he's deep down the field," Tomlin said. "He's got some tape that shows that. He's got to shake that off. If and when he's given his next opportunity to make a similar play, he better make it."

Tomlin said he was "concerned" about Sweed's inability to catch the ball when he's open. It is clear that rookie Mike Wallace, who is third on the team with 12 catches for 147 yards, has moved ahead of Sweed on the depth chart.

McDonald, a seven-year veteran, has 220 receptions for 2,490 yards and 11 touchdowns in 84 games with the St. Louis Rams and Detroit Lions, including 79 catches for 943 yards and six touchdowns with Detroit in 2007.

Another high draft pick from the Steelers' 2008 class who is not meeting expectations is running back Rashard Mendenhall. Mendenhall did not have a carry or a reception in Cincinnati after Tomlin said he had a poor week of practice, but Tomlin suggested he would be back as the No. 2 running back for this week's game.

"I don't have a doghouse," Tomlin said. "A doghouse is something you have when you let things stew and don't take action. He lacked a little detail in preparation last week ... Young guys have to earn their

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opportunities. They have to make coaches confident with their ability to execute details of their assignments. He didn't do that to my satisfaction last week and didn't get any playing time on offense as a result. I took action, but I don't take any baggage into this week."

Tomlin also said the Steelers would look into signing a fullback this week because of two injuries at the position. Rookie Frank Summers has a back injury and was examined by doctors on Tuesday, and rookie tight end/H-back David Johnson sustained a high ankle sprain. Tomlin said Johnson will be evaluated throughout the week but that he could be out several weeks.

The Steelers released Carey Davis late in the preseason. Davis was their starter at the position for much of 2007-08.

Tomlin said he "liked the progress" injured All-Pro safety Troy Polamalu was making in recovering from a torn medial collateral ligament in his left knee and said that starting running back Willie Parker has turf toe. Parker is expected to be fine this week but Polamalu is not expected back for at least another week.

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Page 2 of 2ESPN.com - Tomlin may deactivate WR Sweed


September 30, 2009

Dementia Risk Seen in Players in N.F.L. Study

By ALAN SCHWARZ

A study commissioned by the National Football League reports that Alzheimer’s disease or similar memory-

related diseases appear to have been diagnosed in the league’s former players vastly more often than in the

national population — including a rate of 19 times the normal rate for men ages 30 through 49.

The N.F.L. has long denied the existence of reliable data about cognitive decline among its players. These

numbers would become the league’s first public affirmation of any connection, though the league pointed to

limitations of this study.

The findings could ring loud at the youth and college levels, which often take cues from the N.F.L. on safety

policies and whose players emulate the pros. Hundreds of on-field concussions are sustained at every level

each week, with many going undiagnosed and untreated.

A detailed summary of the N.F.L. study, which was conducted by the University of Michigan’s Institute for

Social Research, was distributed to league officials this month.

The study has not been peer-reviewed, but the findings fall into step with several recent independent studies

regarding N.F.L. players and the effects of their occupational head injuries.

“This is a game-changer — the whole debate, the ball’s now in the N.F.L.’s court,” said Dr. Julian Bailes, the

chairman of the department of neurosurgery at the West Virginia University School of Medicine, and a

former team physician for the Pittsburgh Steelers whose research found similar links four years ago. “They

always say, ‘We’re going to do our own studies.’ And now they have.”

Sean Morey, an Arizona Cardinals player who has been vocal in supporting research in this area, said: “This

is about more than us — it’s about the high school kid in 2011 who might not die on the field because he

ignored the risks of concussions.”

An N.F.L. spokesman, Greg Aiello, said in an e-mail message that the study did not formally diagnose

dementia, that it was subject to shortcomings of telephone surveys and that “there are thousands of retired

players who do not have memory problems.”

“Memory disorders affect many people who never played football or other sports,” Mr. Aiello said. “We are

trying to understand it as it relates to our retired players.”

As scrutiny of brain injuries in football players has escalated the past three years, with prominent

professionals reporting cognitive problems and academic studies supporting a link more generally, the N.F.L.

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and its medical committee on concussions have steadfastly denied the existence of reliable data on the issue.

The league pledged to pursue its own studies, including the one at the University of Michigan.

Dr. Ira Casson, a co-chairman of the concussions committee who has been the league’s primary voice denying

any evidence connecting N.F.L. football and dementia, said: “What I take from this report is there’s a need

for further studies to see whether or not this finding is going to pan out, if it’s really there or not. I can see

that the respondents believe they have been diagnosed. But the next step is to determine whether that is so.”

The N.F.L. is conducting its own rigorous study of 120 retired players, with results expected within a few

years. All neurological examinations are being conducted by Dr. Casson.

According to a 37-page synopsis of the study furnished to the league, the Michigan researchers conducted a

phone survey in late 2008 in which 1,063 retired players — those who participated from an original random

list of 1,625 — were asked questions on a variety of health topics. Players had to have played at least three or

four seasons to qualify. Questions were derived from the standard National Health Interview Survey so rates

could be compared with those previously collected from the general population, the report said.

Some health issues were reported by N.F.L. retirees at normal rates (kidney and prostate problems), while

others were higher (sleep apnea and elevated cholesterol) and others lower (heart attacks and ulcers), the

summary said.

The researchers also asked players — or a caregiver for those who could not answer — if they had ever been

diagnosed with “dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, or other memory-related disease.”

The Michigan researchers found that 6.1 percent of players age 50 and above reported that they had received

a dementia-related diagnosis, five times higher than the cited national average, 1.2 percent. Players ages 30

through 49 showed a rate of 1.9 percent, or 19 times that of the national average, 0.1 percent.

The paper itself questioned the reliability of using phone surveys to assess prevalence rates of diagnosed

dementia, as did several experts in telephone interviews. For example, some of those affected may not be

reachable; then again, N.F.L. players may have greater access to doctors to make the diagnosis. The lead

researcher, David R. Weir, said in an interview that proxies might have been handled differently in past

studies.

“This suggests something suspicious,” said Dr. Amy Borenstein, professor of epidemiology at the University

of South Florida. “But it’s something that must be looked at with a more rigorous study.”

Dr. Daniel P. Perl, the director of neuropathology at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, agreed

with Dr. Borenstein but described the Michigan work as significant. “I think this complements what others

have found — there appears to be a problem with cognition in a group of N.F.L. football players at a relatively

young age,” he said.

All rates appear small. But if they are accurate, they would have arresting real-life effects when applied across

a population as large as living N.F.L. retirees. A normal rate of cognitive disease among N.F.L. retirees age 50

and above (of whom there are about 4,000) would result in 48 of them having the condition; the rate in the

Michigan study would lead to 244. Among retirees ages 30 through 49 (of whom there are about 3,000), the



normal rate cited by the Michigan researchers would yield about 3 men experiencing problems; the rate

reported among N.F.L. retirees leads to an estimate of 57.

So the Michigan findings suggest that although 50 N.F.L. retirees would be expected to have dementia or

memory-related disease, the actual number could be more like 300. This would not prove causation in any

individual case, but it would support a connection between pro football careers and heightened prevalence of

later-life cognitive decline that the league has long disputed.

After the University of North Carolina’s Center for the Study of Retired Athletes published survey-based

papers in 2005 through 2007 that found a correlation between N.F.L. football and depression, dementia and

other cognitive impairment, a member of the N.F.L. concussion committee called the findings “virtually

worthless.”

After initiating a fund in 2007 that provides financial assistance to retirees receiving care for dementia, the

league insisted that it was doing so only because the disease “affects many elderly people” well beyond N.F.L.

players. And a pamphlet that the league gives every player about concussion risks states, “Research is

currently under way to determine if there are any long-term effects of concussion in N.F.L. athletes.”

“It’s time to edit that brochure,” said Kevin Mawae of the Tennessee Titans, the president of the N.F.L.

Players Association. “Now it’s in their words and not just other people’s.”

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FRANKLIN, Tenn. (AP) — Albert Haynesworth's wife is asking a Tennessee judge to force the Washington defensive tackle to pay up their debts going back to April 2008 and also wants a restraining order as part of their divorce case.

The motion filed Sept. 17 had been scheduled for a hearing Tuesday in Williamson County Chancery Court. The motion was continued until Oct. 13.

Stephanie Haynesworth charges Haynesworth recently threatened to stop paying temporary support that she received only during June, July, August and September of this year. The motion alleges he also told their daughter's preschool he would not be paying her monthly tuition and refused to pay an approximately $4,000 veterinarian's bill for the family dog — a charge Haynesworth authorized.

Haynesworth signed a seven-year, $100 million contract with Washington in the offseason. The Redskins said Monday that Haynesworth was in Tennessee for an MRI on a sore hip and personal business.

Attorney Joanie Abernathy, who is representing Stephanie Haynesworth, did not immediately return a message left at her office. The attorney representing Albert Haynesworth also did not immediately return a message left by the Associated Press.

Haynesworth's wife filed for divorce in March 2008, citing irreconcilable differences and inappropriate marital conduct. She originally asked for alimony and custody of their two children plus his oldest son, whom she had cared for since 2004.

Worried that Haynesworth will be "enraged" by the motion, she asks to be able to testify about the need for a restraining order to keep him from "texting, calling or coming around her for any reason."

Her motion wants Haynesworth to pay up debts that include her credit card and jointly owned property in which foreclosure notices have been received. She asks for at least $6,000 cash per month for support for herself and three children and that Haynesworth be ordered to keep their debts current until their divorce case is finalized.

This isn't the only legal case in Tennessee involving Haynesworth. A Nashville man sued him in May for causing a December car crash that left him needing hip replacement surgery. Corey Edmonson is asking for $7.5 million in compensatory damages and punitive damages of no less than 25% of Haynesworth's $41 million in guaranteed money from his Redskins' contract.

"Very sad for his family, but not surprising given Haynesworth's track record," said Edmonson's attorney, Jon Perry. "Like Mrs. Haynesworth and the kids, Corey also can't pay his bills because of Haynesworth."

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Wife wants Redskins' Haynesworth to pay the bills and stay away

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The Huddle: The latest word on NFL news, notes and buzz

Steelers' Mike Tomlin: Rashard Mendenhall 'not in the doghouse'

Eagles cut QB Jeff Garcia, sign LB Jeremiah Trotter

Sep 29, 2009

If Chad Pennington never played again, he'd leave impressive legacy 03:42 PM 15 Comments 5 Recommend

Chad Pennington won't ever get into the Pro Football Hall of Fame without a ticket ... or at least an invite from Curtis Martin at his inevitable

induction.

Pennington probably won't even have his No. 10 retired by the New York Jets (backup QB Erik Ainge is acutally already wearing it).

But if Pennington, who was placed on IR today and seems destined for his third major shoulder surgery in less than five years, never plays in the NFL

again, you might be surprised at the legacy he would leave behind.

His 66.1% career completion percentage is the best in NFL history. His 90.1 QB rating is eighth all-time.

Pennington is the only man to win the Comeback Player of the Year award twice -- a testament not only to his skills but his grit. He has also been a favorite

of his teammates, even a player like Jets QB Kellen Clemens, who competed with Pennington on more than one occasion to be the Jets' starter.

Pennington's best years in the NFL were his first as a starter with the Jets and first as a starter in Miami.

He led the NFL with a 104.2 QB rating and 68.9% completion rate after taking over as the Jets' starter in 2002; he led the team to only its second AFC East

title. Last year, he was a primary component in the Dolphins' about-face from 1-15 in 2007 to 11-5 division champs, winning his second comeback award.

Pennington's two-year deal with Miami expires after this season. But even though he doesn't have a rifle arm, if the shoulder of this highly cerebral, loyal

and accurate quarterback heals and the Dolphins don't ask him back, he's surely capable of helping another NFL team to better days. -- Nate Davis

Tags:NFL New York Jets Miami Dolphins Chad Pennington PreviousSteelers' Mike Tomlin: Rashard Mendenhall 'not in the doghouse'

NextEagles cut QB Jeff Garcia, sign LB Jeremiah Trotter

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Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Wilhite says he was hurt running away

By Mike Reiss ESPNBoston.com New England Patriots cornerback Jonathan Wilhite told police that he pulled his groin Sunday morning while running away from two people in the parking lot at his residence, according to a statement released by the North Attleboro police department Tuesday.

Wilhite, who was not on the Patriots injury report last week, did not play in Sunday's 26-10 win over the Atlanta Falcons.

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Patriots coach Bill Belichick previously explained that Wilhite had a mishap Sunday morning, but did not elaborate.

In a conference call on Tuesday, Belichick was asked about Wilhite again. "Any personal situation, I'll keep internally," Belichick said. He also said he had no update on the player's condition.

On Tuesday, North Attleboro police detailed the situation in a written statement:

"On Sunday, September 27, 2009, the North Attleboro Police responded to the Cumberland Farms store in the Attleboro Falls area of town, after receiving a call from Jonathan Wilhite concerning suspicious activity. Mr. Wilhite stated that 2 subjects were in his parking lot when he arrived home, and one approached him on foot and yelled at him.

"Mr. Wilhite became concerned and ran to Cumberland Farms where he asked the clerk to call police. He did mention that he had pulled his groin while he was running. The matter remains under investigation by North Attleboro detectives."

Wilhite, a second-year player, appeared in all 16 games during his rookie season with the Patriots.

Mike Reiss covers the Patriots for ESPNBoston.com. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

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