While the investigation down in Georgia continues, the Pittsburgh Steelers have thankfully made some news which doesn’t involve the sexual predator standing behind center.  In a surprising departure from their usual method of doing business, the front office has gone on an unprecedented wave of free agent spending in the past twenty-four hours. While none of these acquisitions are either marquee players or pricey big ticket items, it’s still a notable change from pretty much every other off-season when the team would wait until the market had dried up and then picked through whatever leftovers they could find.

The most notable signing is that of Ryan Clark.  I’ll admit to not expecting him back once he hit the open market but it appears he had a change of heart (or the money he was expecting to be offered wasn’t there after all).   He has accepted a four year, $14 million contract which is far from the $6 million he would’ve made had the Steelers placed one of their tags on him.  So it looks like they got him for the price they wanted all along.

While I don’t believe Clark is anything more than average, it’s hard to take issue with this move.  I would’ve let him walk if his contract demands were ludicrous but at $3 million a year he’s almost a bargain.  There aren’t any decent replacements available via free agency and Ryan Mundy has shown he’s not starter quality.  Meanwhile, even if the Steelers are able to take one of the top safeties in this year’s draft, rookies never see significant playing time for Dick LeBeau.

The Steelers also signed another safety, Will Allen.   Allen spent his entire six year career with Tampa Bay, where he was originally under the tutelage of secondary coach Mike Tomlin.  Allen started sporadically for the Bucs, entering last season as the starter before losing the final half of the year to a hand injury.  Allen will probably serve as the primary back-up to Clark with his greatest value coming on special teams.   Allen is fantastic coverage “gunner” who was even selected as a first alternate to the Pro Bowl for his special teams work.   Maybe we’ll actually be able to cover kicks this season.

Another newcomer to the Steelers is WR Arnaz Battle.  Battle had five receptions last season for the 49ers and a grand total of 11 touchdowns over his eight year career.  The key number when it comes to Battle is his height:  6′1.  The Steelers always want to have at least one large target among the WR corps and it looks like Battle is going to be that guy.  The obvious message you can read into this is that the days of Limas Sweed dropping passes in the black and gold appear to be rapidly coming to an end.

Finally, the Steelers have also re-signed our long lost gadget play specialist, Antwaan Randle El.   After throwing the game winning touchdown pass in Super Bowl XL, Randle El cashed in on his sudden fame by accepting a $31 million contract from the buffoon out in Washington D.C.    Despite leading the ‘Skins in yardage and catches last year, Randle El was cut as part of a team wide housecleaning by new head coach Mike Shanahan.  Although he started for the Steelers, Randle El was always best used as a third down possession-type receiver and as a return man.   Stefan Logan did well on kick returns but had problems as a punt returner so I’d imagine Randle El will be given those duties next season.

And, hey, he was a starting quarterback back in college where he was the first player in Division I history to pass for 40 career touchdowns and score 40 career rushing touchdowns.  If worst comes to worst, maybe he can move back.

There’s an old saying:  Once is a fluke, twice is a pattern.

For the second time in less than a year, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is being accused of sexual assault.   Yesterday afternoon, TMZ broke the story of Big Ben’s involvement in an incident which occurred at a nightclub in Milledgeville, Georgia.  The story has since been reported by the national media after being confirmed by the Georgia police.  The alleged victim, a 20-year-old female student from Georgia College & State University, was treated and released from the hospital on Friday morning.

The Steelers say they are currently “gathering facts on the incident.”  Meanwhile, Ben’s weasel agent released a statement where they took the high road by launching a preemptive attack on the victim by saying, “Obviously, given the prior accusation against Ben, we are skeptical of motive, but we will continue to cooperate with everyone involved.” Ben was evidently interviewed by the police some time Friday afternoon.   No charges have been filed as of yet.

The details of the night in question are still a bit hazy at this point. What seems to be clear is Ben and “a group of friends” (including teammate Willie Colon apparently) started the night drinking heavily at a bar called “The Brick” until about 1:30 a.m.   They then moved on to another club, Capital City, where the incident allegedly occurred. Roethlisberger’s accuser claims she was in the ladies room when Ben entered and proceeded to assault her.

As with the Andrea McNulty case, I’ll withhold final judgement until more details emerge.  But I think this incident firmly establishes once and for all that what I’ve been saying all along is absolutely true:  Ben Roethlisberger is a dick.

Using simple logic, the female student wouldn’t go to the hospital seeking treatment unless there was some sort of physical proof she had been with Ben.  So even if we are to believe Ben’s weasel agent’s inference that this woman is a lying skank who is trying to cash in on having sex with Ben, we are still left with the fact that Ben spent the night getting hammered and then banged a groupie in the ladies restroom.  Great behavior there, Ben.   You make Skippy look like a choir boy.

And of course if this allegation is true, then you have to take another look at the McNulty case.  Sure the woman seems to be a little off her rocker but being weird doesn’t automatically make you a liar.   Honestly, the fact the vast majority of his Steeler teammates can’t stand this idiot should’ve been a red flag from the get-go.  When a person of such outstanding character as Hines Ward dislikes you, that should tell you something.  Regardless of the outcome of either sexual assault allegation, Ben Roethlisberger has once again brought disgrace to himself, his profession, and most importantly to the Steelers organization.

The start of the NFL’s second season is less than twenty four hours away.  With Big Snack Hampton and Skippy Reed locked up, the Pittsburgh Steelers have protected their most valuable assets from reaching free agency.  Beyond that, you’ll probably read a number of rumors in the coming weeks about the Steelers being interested in this player or that one.  Don’t believe them.  The Steelers always follow the same pattern during the offseason.  Namely, they sign the guys they deem irreplaceable before they become free agents and then they sit back and pick through the low priced leftovers after all the “name” players have signed elsewhere.

The lone exception being one of their own players who they’d like to keep but couldn’t reach a contract agreement with in time.  Last year, they retained Chris Kemoeatu after he hit the open market.  Although that was a very fortunate stroke of luck because the Jets offered him more money.  Still, Director of Player Personnel Kevin Colbert has said that the team intends to stick to a self-imposed salary cap despite this being an uncapped year.  So don’t expect the team to break their long standing practice of avoiding costly bidding wars no matter who it is.

Let’s look at the Steelers free agents and discuss their outlook for the future.

First, the restricted free agents.  Players in this category are without a contract for 2010.  The Steelers can offer them whatever they’d like.  Any other team can offer them more but the Steelers have the right to match.  If they decline to match, they would get a draft pick roughly equal to where that player was drafted.

OT Willie Colon – Was issued a $2.5 million tender offer.  Which means the team would get a 1st round draft pick if he’s signed by another team.  How the Steelers determined this guy was worth that much money is beyond me because he was one of our worst OL last season.   He must have pictures of Mike Tomlin naked with a lampshade on his head or something.

RB Carey Davis - Was not tendered a contract for 2010, making him an unrestricted free agent.  HALLELUJAH!  Davis has added absolutely nothing to the team for two seasons now yet keeps coming back much like a cockroach after a nuclear holocaust.  Hopefully he stays gone for good this time.

DB Willie Gay- Tendered a $1 million contract.   I believe you all know how much I utterly despise this guy but the Steelers are so thin at CB they really had no choice but to keep him around.

P Daniel Sepulveda – Tendered a $1 million contract.  The Steelers spent a fairly high draft pick on him (4th rounder) hoping he’d become an elite punter.  He’s not really lived up to those expectations but would you rather have Mitch Berger?

TE Matt Spaeth – Tendered a $1 million contract.  I guess he didn’t piss away his chances with the Steelers after all.

G Darnell Stapleton – Not tendered a contract, making him an unrestricted free agent.  This one is a bit of a surprise as Stapler started most of the year for the 2008 Super Bowl winning team.  He missed all of last year to a knee injury and was replaced by Trai Essex, who was average to below average most of the year.  Not that Stapleton was headed to the Pro Bowl any time soon.  I can only guess that the knee isn’t recovering like they hoped so the Steelers decided to cut their losses.

Now on to the unrestricted free agents:

S Ryan Clark - Clark has taken to the media in recent days to whine about being stuck behind Heath Miller, Justin Hartwig, Brett Keisel, Casey Hampton, and Jeff Reed when it comes to receiving a new contract.   Hey Ryan, wanna know why?  Because they don’t suck.  Amazing how overinflated this guy’s ego is.  It’s like he doesn’t realize that I could play safety back there with Troy and look like an All-Pro.

In any case, the Steelers refused to tag him which would’ve paid him $6 million next year.  So that clearly tells you they feel his value to the team is worth significantly less than that.  The only worry at this point is the depth behind Clark is pretty weak with Ty Carter also a free agent and Ryan Mundy looking completely inept.  My gut feeling is they’ll resign Carter, who’ll come rather cheaply, and then let Clark walk for a bigger contract.

RB Willie Parker – I’m a Fast Willie fan.  How could you not love the guy who broke open Super Bowl XL?  Despite this, I have a feeling his days as a Steeler are numbered.  His repeated assertion is that he wants a chance to start and he’s not going to start here with Mendy looking very much like a future superstar.

What complicates things is the market for veteran running backs has suddenly become pretty deep.  Brian Westbrook, Ladainian Tomlinson, and Thomas Jones have all been released in recent days.  Running backs have become the NFL equivalent of a thoroughbred race horse.  The minute they pull up lame, they’re shipped off the glue factory.

Between a glut of broken down former Pro Bowlers and a draft that appears to have a good half dozen or so excellent prospects, I wonder how much of a market there will be for Fast Willie.   That’s why I think there’s an outside chance he re-signs with the Steelers, who don’t really have a decent backup beyond Mewelde Moore on the roster.  If he’s willing to take a Bettis-like minimal contract with incentives to provide insurance for Mendy, I can see him returning.  But if he’s expecting starter money or a starting opportunity, then his days in the black and gold are over.

QB Charlie Batch – I don’t know why Charlie didn’t retire after the season and take over the open QB coach spot that was available after the retirement of Ken Anderson.  Anyway, Dennis Dixon showed he’s ready for prime time.  He’ll be the #2 guy next season.  Batch will probably take a bare minimum contract and spend another season holding a clipboard as the team’s #3 emergency QB.

S Tyrone Carter – As noted above, his situation is probably affected by what happens with Ryan Clark.  If they re-sign Clark, I’d imagine Carter becomes expendable with Mundy as the apparent backup.   If they lose Clark, I can’t imagine going into the season with Mundy as the only option at FS.  Carter actually played decently when he was back there with Troy so I wouldn’t be that unhappy with him as a low cost insurance policy until the team can draft a safety-of-the-future.

DE Nick Eason and Travis Kirschke – These guys are older than dirt but both played well in relief of the injured Aaron Smith last season.  Kirschke was hampered by injuries himself but had a few outstanding games.   Eason looked good at times, as well.   2009 first rounder Ziggy Hood is obviously going to be the primary backup so one or the other is probably gone.   Personally, I’d keep Kirschke since he played a little better but I don’t think there’ll be a bidding war over either player so the Steelers can just sit back and re-sign whichever they want on the cheap.

CB Deshea Townsend - Deshea took over the starting CB duties from Will.i.am toward the end of last season.   He did a little better (then again, you’d have to be playing on a wooden leg to do worse) but he was far from an ideal starter.  With rookies Joe Burnett and Keenan Lewis entering their second year, there is hope one of them steps up.  Plus Gay is perfectly acceptable as a nickel DB.  Which doesn’t even take into account what the team might get in the draft.

Add it up and I don’t see where Deshea fits into the future plans.  There has been talk of him moving to Safety, which I don’t really see.  He’s never struck me as a particularly sure tackler nor a physical presence so I don’t see how that move would work.  Deshea feels he has the ability to still be a starter in the NFL which is either wildly delusional or a great negotiating tactic.  My feeling is he’ll be gone next season.

Feel free to discuss the wild and wooly NFL free agency season in the comments.

With less than a week before the start of NFL free agency, the Pittsburgh Steelers have been busy trying to lock up the players they must retain in order to be competitive next season.

Of course, the big (in more ways than one) name of the bunch is nose tackle Casey Hampton.  A five time Pro Bowler, Big Snack is arguably the best NT in all of football.  In the 3-4 defense favored by Hall of Famer Dick LeBeau, the nose tackle is doubly important.  If you don’t have a fatass up the middle to clog up running lanes and occupy two linemen so the linebackers can shoot the gaps, you’re in major trouble.

With more and more teams copying the Steelers by switching to a 3-4, the premium on high quality prototypical NTs is at an all time high.  Luckily, teams have a Franchise tag which would’ve been slapped on Hampton faster than doughboy can clean out a buffet.  Recognizing the situation, both sides have chosen to reach a compromise.  Early this morning, Hampton and the Steelers compromised to the tune of a three year/$21 million dollar deal.

It’s a good deal for both sides.  Hampton’s 33 and grossly obese so I’m guessing three more years is probably the outside limit of how many more quality seasons he has left.   Of course, 2009 saw him set career highs in terms of tackles and forced fumbles.  Then again, he was playing for a new contract and we all know how that goes.  However, considering the Steelers have no viable replacement waiting in the wings, allowing Hampton to reach free agency would’ve been an unmitigated disaster.  Had they used the Franchise tag, his 2010 salary would’ve been about $7 million.  So they basically paid what they were going to pay anyway without worrying about getting into a bidding war with 31 other teams.

Signing Big Snack leaves only two players on Director of Player Personnel Kevin Colbert’s wish list:  Ryan Clark and Skippy Reed.  Thanks to that senile old coot Al Davis throwing kicker contracts totally out of whack, the Steelers couldn’t reach a deal with Jeff Reed by this afternoon.   So instead he’s the one who’s been nabbed with the Franchise tag.  Yes, you read that right.  Skippy Reed is YOUR Franchise player.

And as anybody who saw kickers shank chip shot after chip shot in this year’s playoffs will attest, it’s a smart move.  Good teams need a dependable kicker (even one that tackles like a little girl).   Since the difference in salary between a Franchised kicker and a Transition tagged one is only about $300,000, there was no reason not to use it on Skippy.  I’m sure the female members of Steeler Nation will rest easier at night now that they know they’ll have their favorite piece of man candy roaming the sidelines for at least one more year.

Which leaves us with Ryan Clark.  The Steelers have said they want to re-sign him but won’t use either tag to do it.  Obviously they like him but only so much.  I’m guessing Colbert realizes, much like we all did, that Troy makes everybody in the secondary look better than they are.   Since Clark already knows LeBeau’s complicated defense, it’d be nice to keep him.   But they aren’t going to break the bank over it.   Frankly, I couldn’t care less if he stays or if he goes.  Remember, the Steelers brought him in as a cheap no-name when their starting safety Chris Hope priced himself out of their range.   I would shed no tears if history were to repeat itself.

Nice shoes, Swanny

Catching up with some Pittsburgh Steelers related news I may have missed while digging myself out from Snowmageddon ‘10.

Super Bowl X MVP and gubernatorial washout Lynn Swann has challenged The Bus to a ten pin smackdown at next year’s Super Bowl. Swann, serving as event host for the Fifth Annual NFL Charities Super Bowl Celebrity Bowling Classic, welcomed more than 40 ex-NFLers in Miami to a benefit for the NFL’s Youth Education Town (YET) initiative.  What is it with Steelers and bowling?  It can’t be a Pittsburgh thing because I haven’t been to McKnight Lanes in fifteen years.  Did our favorite rotund halfback accept the challenge from our Hall of Fame wide receiver?

Stay tuned!

Speaking of Hall of Famers, beloved Defensive Coordinator Dick LeBeau was finally selected for the Hall of Fame. Of course, he’s going in as a DB and not a coach but let’s not quibble over details.  After over fifty years of distinguished service to the NFL, nobody is more deserving.   Also making it is longtime Redskins All-Pro OG and Pitt legend Russ Grimm.   Hope this takes some of the sting off the whole “You’re the Steelers new head coach!  Oh wait, no you’re not!” thing, Russ.

Ben Roethlisberger is a dick, chapter 24. The New York Post ran this story about Big Ben leaving a Chicago night club.   Evidently, he dropped some cash on the ground, then gave a lady the stuck up jock treatment when she tried to return it.  Given Ben’s recent history, I don’t blame him for being leery of strange women.  Plus, he was probably fresh out of Rohypnol.

Ben Roethlisberger is awesome, chapter 5. Yahoo Sports has an article up proclaiming Big Ben a better QB than Peyton Manning.  Seriously.  I’m not going to get into this debate again since your opinion is going to be influenced by whether you’re a biased homer or a reasonable and realistic football fan.  I will say this, who cares if you’re the most clutch playoff performer in NFL history if YOU CAN’T GET YOUR DAMN TEAM TO THE POSTSEASON IN THE FIRST PLACE!

The AFC Champion Indianapolis Colts returned home to a massive throng of… Eleven fans?   ELEVEN?  I guess they had better things to do, like cow-tipping or taking advantage of that free Grand Slam breakfast.  File this sad display away in your memory banks for the next time some uneducated moron claims Steeler Nation is filled with bandwagon jumpers.

The Steelers sign training camp fodder. First, they plucked LB Derrick Doggett from the CFL.  Doggett was a special teams ace for that Mickey Mouse league up north.  I don’t know why they bother since he’ll need to beat out James Harrison or that nincompoop Tomlin will cut him because he “doesn’t believe in keeping strictly special teams players on the main roster.”   They signed two more guys yesterday. Brandon London is a 6-4 WR who was a practice squadder with the Giants but spent 2009 out of football.  Limas Sweed had better spend the off-season playing with radioactive spiders.  They also signed former Pitt punter Adam Graessle, who kicked last year in the UFL.   Teams usually bring multiple Ps, Ks, and QBs to camp so they can practice against real life people.   Don’t worry, ladies, Dreamy Daniel Sepulveda isn’t on the chopping block.

Which reminds me, Valentine’s Day is right around the corner. Last year, I turned my blog over to one of our most frequent and insightful commenters, Robyn, and she delivered a great post on the animal magnetism (or lack thereof) of Skippy Reed.  If any of my hundreds of sassy female readers would like to give it a shot this year, drop me a line at this address or post in the comments below.

Finally, a plea to you, my dear readers. I don’t ask for much.  In fact, I give you countless hours of high quality entertainment for the bargain basement low price of free several times per week.  But now I am asking for something.   Sean over at Sean’s Ramblings is hosting his 2nd Annual Best Pittsburgh Sports Blog Tournament.   Last year, I was bounced in the Sweet Sixteen by the tournament’s eventual winner, PensBlog.  While I have no delusions of grandeur, I would like to improve upon last year’s performance.   So please, take a second to click this link, scroll down about a quarter of the way (to the Ironhead Heyward Division), and drop a vote or two or three for the most super duper spiffy Steelers blog on the interwebs.   Thank you.