Apr 24, 2013; New York, NY, USA; NFL commissioner Roger Goodell interviews at the NFL Play 60 Youth Football Festival at Chelsea Waterside Park. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-USA TODAY Sports

Today I am taking a break from all things Pittsburgh Steelers and instead I’d like to offer up ten ideas to make the NFL somewhat fun again. Some of the ideas range from the practical to wishful, but allow me to dream.

1. Goodbye Goodell. I am not a Goodell fan, I think he’s bad for the NFL no matter how noble his intentions. Since taking over for Paul Tagliabue, Goodell’s NFL can be best compared to the Soviet Union’s Iron Curtain during the height of the Cold War. While he’s not the worst commissioner in sports (Bud Selig is absolute garbage and David Stern lets the inmates run the asylum), Goodell talks one game and tries to play another. I’m a little (make that very) tired of his puffed out chest and I’m-the-sheriff attitude. How can you say you are all for player safety yet want to add two games to the regular season?
Solution? Give he and every commissioner in sports an eight year term and that’s it. If the President of the United States can only serve two terms, why should commissioners of major sports be different? Let Sheriff Goodell have his eight years and let him ride off into the sunset, tin badge, ten gallon hat and all.

2. Rotate the NFL draft site. Why does New York always get the fun? Do you really think the players care if they are walking on the stage at Radio City music Hall or town hall? Do what the NHL does and rotate the draft site every year so each of the 32 team cities get to host a draft. Pick a stadium, an arena or whatever. It’d be great fun for the fans. A simple venue works just as well, the draft doesn’t always need to be a cirque de soleil presentation. Besides, I’m sick of hearing the J-e-t-s Jets Jets Jets chant every year whenever gang green comes up to pick.

3.Move the draft to March. News that the 2014 draft will be moved to mid-May due to scheduling conflicts with the Easter Bunny came out yesterday and it’s a very bad idea. Anyone who thinks a May draft won’t be a permanent thing after 2014 obviously still believes there is an Easter Bunny. Back in the old days, the draft was in February. A May draft would mean more analyzing and over analyzing (and more Mike Mayock) and would screw up the NFL calender. Move the draft (Easter Bunny be damned) to March and keep it there. By then the college all star games and combine would be over and teams would have a couple of weeks to make their choices. I know this conflicts with Pro days, but who cares? Make the pro days a week after the combine. There, problem solved.

4.Make preseason games free.O.K., I don’t know how exactly the logistics would work, but one solution is include them for free for season ticket holders in their packages and offer the remaining seats at the games for the rest. And since they are free, they can not be sold for any monetary value on stubhub or ticketmaster. Face it, half the guys playing the pre season games won’t make the team, why force people to pay to watch in person?

5.Keep the pre season schedule as is. Four games, that’s all. First game should be all rookies, rookie free agents, free agents and backups. No starter should take the field in the first game. I don’t need to see Ben Roethlisberger take four meaningless snaps and call it a day. Second pre season game the starters should play a quarter. The third and fourth games they play a half.Yes, the risk of injury is there, but you risk getting injured walking across the street. Every sport needs a preseason to get into shape, run the offense and defense and work on timing, etc. I know most teams keep it vanilla in the pre season but for guys trying to make the team, pre season games may be the only shot they ever get.

6.No more opening day kickoff concerts. The Broncos play the Ravens on Sept. 5th. That’s all we need. We don’t need some stupid half hour or hour long concert prior to it. What does Nickelback or Justin Beiber have to do with football? Just play the damn game.

7. Never, ever let Norv Turner or Wade Phillips be head coaches again. This one really applies to Turner, who for some reason keeps getting head coaching opportunities and does nothing with them. Some guys can do it, others can’t. Turner can’t. Phillips knows defenses, let him do his thing there. This one should be mandatory. Just hearing the words ‘Head Coach Norv Turner” makes me cringe.

8. Place some type of sensor in the football and end zone pylons. This one really is for running plays when there is an air of uncertainty whether or not the ball crossed the goal line. Place a sensor inside each end of the football so if it crosses the pylon, the pylon lights up indicating a score. If technology can allow us to program our TVs with our cell phones, they should be able to handle this.

9. Division rivals should open and close the season. Steelers-Ravens, Packers-Bears, Cowboys-Redskins, Giants-Eagles should all be on the opening and closing day slates. Sometimes these games are scheduled mere weeks apart in the middle of the season. Give some meaning to the last game of the season with an old fashioned rivalry that may even have playoff implications.

10. Let Tom Brady wear a dress already. Injuries are no laughing matter. I’ve watched several HBO sports spots on retired players dealing with the after affects of the game. Ray Easterling, Andre Waters and Junior Seau are just some of the tragic cases of what years of blows to the head can do after their careers end. And yes we’ve all seen how guys like Earl Campbell and Joe Namath and Conrad Dobler can barely walk due to destroyed knees. That said, ever since his knee injury Tom Brady has turned, well, soft. Even if a defender brushes his sleeve,the future hall of famer is whipping his head around towards the ref looking for a penalty. C’mon Tom, I know you’re married to a supermodel, that doesn’t mean you have to act like one. Jack Lambert made the famous quote about putting dresses on quaterbacks, maybe Tom Terrific should be first in line.

10a. O.K. I cheated, but here’s one more. Can we stop referring to Bill Belichick as a genius? Correct me but wasn’t he a defensive guru with the Giants? Name me the last time a Patriots defense terrorized opponents. He’s a good coach, bad dresser and not a genius. Einstein was a genius, Steve Jobs was a genius. Let’s keep it real.

10b. Sorry, I know I said 10. Here is the last one, I promise. Please, someone do something about the NFL network. How many sound fx and top ten marathons can we endure? Why is NFL a.m. on at 1pm? I don’t care about ‘hard knocks’ You have an entire treasure trove of NFL films at your disposal. How about going back in time to show us NFL games of the week from the 70′s and 80′s? Or this week in pro football from the same time period? How about team yearbooks? How about actual vintage games? A game from 2011 is not a classic. We keep getting the same tired “classic games” that are only 5 years old. My God has a network with so much ever done so little? And this top 100 players thing is the pits. And then we get the top 100 reaction show? Garbage. Simply garbage.
What are your ideas fans?

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May 21, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker LaMarr Woodley (56) participates in drills during organized team activities at the UPMC Sports Complex. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Today is the last day of this Organized Training Activity.  The Steelers will be back at after the Memorial day Weekend.

The Steelers continue to post interviews from some of the players.  Heath Miller patiently told reporters that he didn’t have any answers for when he would play.  I’m sure he is tired of the questions, but his presence on the field will be missed and we can only hope he comes back at 100%.  Ed Bouchette, of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, gives his take on the interview and notes:

The knee is a funny thing, especially when the torque of playing football on it rips apart three different ligaments. It happened to Miller in the next-to-last game of 2012 when the anterior cruciate, medial collateral and posterior cruciate ligaments tore in his right knee.”

Alan Robinson of the Pittsburgh Tribune Review looked at Heath Miller’s status and discussed how the Steelers did not pressure Miller to return by drafting a tight end:

Despite the importance of Miller in the Steelers’ offense — he had a team-high 71 catches and eight touchdowns while making the Pro Bowl last season — their only move to at least temporarily replace him was to re-sign Matt Spaeth. They did not draft a tight end.”

I don’t entirely agree with Robinson’s assessment.  Yes, the Steelers are a loyal team.  The best current example is that they haven’t outright released Sean Spence even though he isn’t ready to come back and start training yet.  However, the Steelers did pad their depth at the tight end position by signing Zack Pianalto and resigning David Johnson.  Heath Miller means a lot to this franchise, but they acknowledge they might need a different player at that position with some added depth if Miller isn’t 100% for the whole season.

LaMarr Woodley also stopped to answer reporters questions.  He answered multiple questions about the “anonymous person” in the locker room and how he felt about the comments.  When asked if he was in good shape this year, he gave a tongue-in-cheek response:

I’ve got to talk to the anonymous person about that. They have all the answers. Whoever the anonymous person was, we have to find him and ask him about that.”

Alan Robinson offers his perspective on Woodley and his approach to this year.  Woodley faces a lot of scrutiny because his productivity is down over the last two years.  Personally, I think the reporters need to let the “anonymous person” go.  They have their soundbites from Woodley.  Let’s let Woodley speak on the field.  Steelers’ fans want to see the familiar Woodley side-kick when he makes a sack a few more times this season.  It is probably too much to hope to see it during every game, but I hope that Woodley’s goal.

Isaac Redman showed up at the OTAs 10 pounds lighter, according to Mark Karboly of the Pittsburgh Tribune Review.  Redman worked out with a speed and agility specialist over the off season.   With the changes in how the teams can work out the players, the players have to take more responsibility for their off-season conditioning and how they show up at the training activities.  I like that Redman gave it so much effort.  I think some players aren’t as motivated or don’t understand that they can’t just show up, walk onto the field and play at a high level.  Redman feels he put in the right effort during the off season and looks to prove it on the field.  That’s what I like to hear!

Mike Florio, of the NBC’s Pro Football Talk, has been heading up the network’s Mount Rushmore nominations.  I hadn’t seen anything about this before until he did an assessment of the nominations from the Steelers.   He noted that the Steelers have a lot of nominations and that it is impossible to narrow the list down to 12 let alone to 4.  I completely agree.  Just from the Steel Curtain era alone, there are tons of great nominations.  If you want to take a look at all the nominations and possibly add some, go here.  The results are going to be announced during one of their shows in June.

That’s it for today.  What do you think Steeler Nation?  What do you think is the most positive aspect from this first OTA?  Sound off!

December 9, 2012; Pittsburgh, PA; Pittsburgh Steelers running back Isaac Redman (33) rushes against the San Diego Chargers at Heinz Field. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The Steelers have long been known for their dominant running game, or at least die-hard Steeler fans as well as Steeler haters, remember those years.  However, as Ben Roethlisberger became the face of the franchise that slowly changed and the running game seemed put to the side.  If #7 couldn’t make it happen with his arm, then it wasn’t happening.

The Steelers built their offense around their star QB, as many NFL teams have, and have been sorely pressed to find a way to win when Roethlisberger is not behind center.  The Rooney family, particularly Art Rooney II, seemed displeased at the lack of ability to adjust for injury.  Bruce Arians was “retired” and the search was on for a new offensive coordinator who would re-energize the running game and reduce the injury potential to Roethlisberger because he would be getting rid of the ball quicker.

However, the fans who expected a return to the glory days of the “ground and pound” in 2012 were sorely disappointed.  In 2012, the Steelers had 1537 rushing yards with nearly double the passing yards at 3787.  So much for the running game.  There were 412 rushing plays that averaged 4.7 yards per play.  Well.  Not dominant at all.  The gnashing of teeth over the 8-8 season could be heard across the country and the disappointment in the offense, particularly the lack of running game, was palpable for months after the season ended.

In my opinion, there were too many changes to the offense.  After about 4 games into the season, the sports pundits where over the moon about Roethlisberger’s efficiency rating thanks to the emphasis on short passes.  Most defenses came prepared for Roethlisberger to hang onto the ball, waiting for a receiver to open up for the long bomb.  The Steelers managed to take advantage of the confusion for a while, but the opponents started to catch on.  The short-pass strategy became less effective and the running game was still ineffective.  Frankly, you can’t ask someone who has been quarterbacking one way to suddenly turn on a dime and do something that is foreign to him.   It takes time to make those changes and it was too much to expect so many changes to be successful. Haley, as was his right as the offensive coordinator, wanted his terminology and he changed many of the plays.  Naturally it caused confusion.  I’m a fan of the 1/3 rule – change out 1/3 to 1/2 at a time, particularly if you have a lot of players who played under the old system.  However, there is something to be said for just ripping off the band-aid and getting the pain over with.  However, this pain lasted through the whole 2012 season.  Hindsight is a great thing.  I have been “victim” of both approaches.  I’ve had new bosses who came in with a scorched earth policy which left a lot of disgruntled employees with abysmal productivity at first.  I’ve also worked for new bosses who came in and gradually changed things, sometimes keeping old procedures that weren’t broken.  You can probably see both sides.  But where does the Steelers running game go from here?

Based on the draft and off-season signings, the Steelers clearly want to continue to redevelop the running game.  Rashad Mendenhall departed, but it seems very few are sorry to see him go.  Who have the Steelers gained?  Surprisingly, the Steelers signed LaRod Stephens-Howling, who has been in the NFL for 5 years, playing for Arizona with 651 career rushing yards.  I didn’t see his signing coming, but the Steelers have a history of being unconventional.  With LaRod’s pre-draft signing, it seemed possible that the Steelers wouldn’t draft a running back, but they took Le’Veon Bell in the second round.  The running backs who remained on the Steelers’ roster are:  Jonathan Dwyer, Isaac Redmon, and Baron Batch.  Curtis McNeal, RB from USC, was added to the roster as an UDFA.  So, as of right now, the Steelers have 6 running backs to work out in the OTAs and training camps/preseason.  They carried 4 on the roster for a good portion of last season, but it wasn’t enough because the offensive line couldn’t consistently open the running lanes for them.   It only added to the disappointment of the 2012 season.  I don’t think fans would be as disappointed with the 8-8 season if they felt there were glimmers of success.  Everything just looked dysfuntional when it came to the running game.

So, can the Steelers get the running game back for 2013?  I can’t say that I have a lot of hope.  Maybe the new offensive line coach, Jack Bicknell, Jr., will make a difference.  Bicknell has a ton of college experience and his NFL experience is as the assistant offensive line coach with the NY Giants.  While the Giants are a team I respect, they aren’t dependent on a dominant running game either, not with Eli Manning as their quarterback.  So, I’m not sure what difference Bicknell will make; however, I have to think that Tomlin and company saw something they were impressed with.  Additionally, I think given the opportunity, that Redman could be a standout running back.  I’ve seen some opinions that the starting RB job is Dwyer’s to lose, but I’m leaning more toward Redman.  I think it is a close race between the two, however.  That said, I’m not convinced that the Steelers have all the pieces they need to reinvigorate the running game.  It’s far to early to tell and I hope for encouraging news from the training camps, but my faith has been shaken over the last couple years with what I consider to be questionable coaching tactics and decisions.  You can have all the talent in the world and fail to utilize it properly.  That’s still a possibility for the Steelers.  However, I’m not burying them yet.  I’m just saying the running game may not be back in 2013.  It may take another year of rebuilding.

With Pittsburgh in the middle of their OTAs, I certainly can’t blame Mike Tomlin for trying to stress the importance of the aforementioned phrase to his players.  In fact, those four words could be just the fuel to motivate a team coming off of a season of underachievement like the Steelers are at the moment.

Don’t get me wrong, I’ll be the first to admit that there were some bright spots from last season, especially the play of Heath Miller, Max Starks, Maurkice Pouncey and Lawrence Timmons  But the negatives completely outweighed the positives from last fall when the team endured a roller-coaster season of sorts.

On offense, the line was decimated by a number of devastating injuries, Mike Wallace let his utter indifference to success and toxic attitude get the best of him and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger’s complained about Todd Haley’s play-calling on what seemed like a weekly basis.

Mike Tomlin will enter his seventh season this fall. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Not to be outdone, Pittsburgh’s defense was the quintessential definition of “Paper Champions” as they dominated the stats sheet but not their competition in 2012.  The unit allowed numerous 4th quarter leads to evaporate, they could not rush the passer with any consistency (T-15th sacks), nor could they force an adequate amount of turnovers (20) to help their offense.

Pittsburgh’s 2012 woes were not relegated to offense and defense though.  The Steelers’ special teams units left much to be desired as poor coverage and moronic penalties cost them some important regular season games as well.

The Steelers’ issues did not stop once the 2012 regular season finished though.

During this past offseason some members of the team alluded the amount of turmoil which existed in the locker room last season.  Other members criticized the play of underachieving veterans, while some just ran their mouths and hammed it up for the camera like the media-whores that they truly are.

While some of the “dirty laundry” was aired, there is still some reason for hope for the Steelers to rebound this fall.

As Craig alluded to, I think that many on the team are downright angry at the way that their 2012 season fell to pieces right before their eyes. Veteran linebacker Larry Foote is certainly pissed at the way last year ended, and the young offensive linemen appear ready to step up and improve as well,

I for one can completely understand the increased motivation for many of Pittsburgh’s players.  As much as the team struggled to consistently play well last season, they were nevertheless their “own worst enemies” for much of the year.  And while the franchise has lost an large amount of important players over the last couple of offseason periods, there is still enough talent on the roster for the team to play at a competitive level again in 2013.

As I alluded to before, the idea of “less talk, more work” would be a tremendous motto/rallying cry for the Steelers this fall.  Of course, “less talk, more work” is simply a phrase with zero meaning behind it unless Pittsburgh’s players actually believe in it and put forth their best efforts to do exactly that this fall.  Heck, “less talk, more work” could be just another empty yet hilarious “Tomlinism” like “Unleash Hell in December” was back in 2009 if the team fails to buy in to it and revert back to their 2011 and 2012 ways.

Whatever transpires though, I hope that the Steelers can adopt the aforementioned philosophy this fall as they try to erase last year’s “lost season” and continue the long process of rebuilding.

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Urlacher has always been a force in the middle. And, his knowledge of the NFC North could have aided the Steelers this season. Credit: Rob Grabowski-USA TODAY Sports

It’s not everyday that a player announces his retirement through Twitter, but that’s just exactly what former Chicago Bears ILB Brian Urlacher did on Wednesday morning.  In a photo he posted in the ol’ tweet tweet, Urlacher says that he thought long and hard this spring about whether to return and play for another team once he was released by the Bears this offseason.

When considering [my level of performance], along with the fact that I could retire after a 13 year career wearing only one jersey for such a storied franchise, my decision became pretty clear…. I’m proud to say that I gave all of you everything I had every time I took the field.  I will miss the great game, but I leave it with no regrets.

Those are just some of the things Urlacher had to say in the photo announcement.  Classy words from a classy human being and world class athlete.

Urlacher would have been 35 years old going into his 14th season in the league.  He is just about as tough as they come, and he played with a level of intensity and skill that oozed Steeler defense (my apologies to Bears fans).  After he was initially released by the Bears, I thought to myself, ‘Hey, wouldn’t it be great if the Steelers could eek out a one or two year contract with Urlacher to help stave the bleeding in the linebacker core?’  Of course, Urlacher would have been off the charts expensive, and I’m sure he would have been highly hesitant to join a franchise that at the moment is in a slight rebuilding phase (my apologies to Kevin Colbert).  He had options, but I guess none made him salivate enough that he could taste the elusive Lombardi Trophy that he never obtained while being a Bear.

But, can you imagine having #54 line up on the inside next to Lawrence Timmons (my apologies to Larry Foote)?  It would have been an adjustment for Urlacher, having played in a 4-3 scheme his whole career.  However, he is a true ‘insider’ in the sense that he knew how to cover the middle of the field and take on tight ends and slot receivers.  He knew how to play a zone blitz and confused the hell out of quarterbacks as to whether he was in coverage, in spy mode, or on a delayed blitz.  His numbers were never splashy in the amount of sacks he  racked up per season, but you could guarantee that Urlacher was in or near the pile of tacklers every single down the ball was near the line of scrimmage.

Even at age 35 and two years the senior of Foote, Urlacher would have been a force for the Steelers.  He would fit nicely on the strong side ‘Buck’ position next to Timmons.  Despite his age, Urlacher still has all the intangibles to make an impact on defense – more than what Foote would or even could.  Urlacher’s tenacity to get to the football, 1,229 tackles over 182 games, and more than double the amount of sacks than Foote would (as strangely as it sounds) have been a great band-aid for the defense in 2013.  When Sean Spence was drafted last season, he was clearly the replacement for Foote (or Farrior).  But, his severe knee injury in his rookie year has delayed that transition, and will not likely take place until 2014 (if ever at all).  Until Spence is healthy or until the Steelers gain another option at ILB in the draft, Foote is a liability for the defense – especially in coverage situations.  I’d also like to mention that the Steelers face the NFC North this season – not only would Urlacher’s familiarity with all of those offenses been helpful for at least this season, I’m also sure he wouldn’t mind getting to knock around Adrian Peterson one more time before hanging it up.  You can be sure AP will light up the Steelers current squad.

Well it’s fun to fantasize and dream about ‘what could have been.’  Urlacher has had one hell of a ride despite not ever getting to lay hands on a Lombardi.  I tip my hat to #54, and I hope he is starting the write his HOF acceptance speech.  I’m sure the clock for that has already begun.