Steelers Morning Huddle 5/12/13

December 23, 2012; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers former running backs Franco Harris (left) and Frenchy Fuqua (right) chat on the field before the Pittsburgh Steelers play the Cincinnati Bengals at Heinz Field. The Cincinnati Bengals won 13-10. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Happy Mother’s Day Steeler Nation!  To many of us, football revolves around family.  We became Steelers fans because others in our family rooted for them.  The Rooney family has always owned the majority share of the team and players along the years have often cited the family atmosphere of the team.  Make no mistake, it’s a business first and the team owners, including the Rooneys intend to make money.  However, one of the things I have always liked is that the Pittsburgh and the Rooneys are synonymous with integrity.  They don’t always get it right.  I know that.  I’m disappointed when I think they didn’t.  However, I’m more often happy and proud of how situations are handled.  So, on this Mother’s Day, I’ll just say that a happy memory for me is realizing that my son chose to be a Steelers fan.  He grew up a military brat because his father and I both served in the Air Force.  His father roots for other teams, so I was never sure which team my son would follow.  Much to his father’s dismay, he picked the Steelers and now I hope to that we will someday sit in the stands at Heinz Field and watch a Steelers’ victory.  Enough of that, on to the news:

On a sad note, Pittsburgh Steeler Jack Butler passed away yesterday at the age of 85.  He was inducted into the Hall of Fame last year.  I don’t remember him playing, but his legacy with the Steelers is something to be treasured.  You can check out Ed Bouchette’s obituary for Mr. Butler.  Bob Cohn, of the Pittsburgh Tribune Review, also did an article.  Cohn notes that Butler never intended to play football and Art Rooney, Sr. steered him into it:

"Art Rooney Sr., a friend of Butler’s father, Patrick, recommended that Butler attend college at St. Bonaventure. Butler had no intention of playing football. But he decided to give it a try and ended up as a starting receiver. He signed a free-agent contract with the Steelers as a favor to Dan Rooney, the brother of Art Sr. and the athletic director at St. Bonaventure.”"

Now on to some other articles and blogs:

Is this year now or never for some of the Steelers to prove they can help lead a team to a championship?  Kyle Curry writes on the Steelblitz Blog that it is.  He calls out the veterans like Roethlisberger, Timmons, Woodley, and Brown.  I agree with Curry that these players are now the ones that the young guys look at for how they set the tone on and off the field.  I agree that it could be the difference between a winning season and another mediocre season if they don’t.   What do you think Steeler Nation?

As a side note, Mike Roth of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, put together an article about where the research on brain injuries and players possible development of CTE stands among football players.  He notes:

"Like most other football players who have been diagnosed with CTE — including the first case ever discovered, former Steelers center Mike Webster — his mental confusion took years to develop and began to set in when he was in his 40s.”"

I know this may not interest the majority of the NicePickCowher readers, but he does a nice summary with some recent cases.

It’s another slow Steelers news day, but it’s not a slow weekend for Pittsburgh Sports fans.  If you follow the Penguins, Pirates, Power,  Passion, or River Hounds,  4 out of the 5 teams had victories yesterday.  The Penguins move on to the next round in the championship.  Saturday was a good day to be a Pittsburgh Sports fan!