I really haven’t written directly about the loss of Mike Wallace this off season except that he was one of several key productive players that the Steelers lost.  Even though I felt he was a key player I was not upset in the least that the Steelers lost him.  Why would I, a die hard Steelers fan who may not ever get over the loss of James Harrison, not care at all about losing the 4^th year wide receiver who is considered the fastest and most dangerous deep threat in the league? Also I know that many (and maybe closer to most) Steelers fans, feel the same way. Does that really make any sense? Something is wrong.

Steelers Nation Unusually Quiet

Usually the Steelers fans are up in arms over such a loss in talent but in Wallace’s case, most are not. I personally don’t know of one Steelers fan who is. The Brown fans I know (where I live it is either Browns or Steelers) don’t even use the loss of Wallace in their annual and futile arguments that the Steelers won’t be as good as the Browns this year. In the Steelers fan blogs or Pittsburgh media I don’t recall reading one column protesting the loss of Wallace. Why?

The Rest Of The NFL Will Soon Discover  Mike Wallace Really Is The Cliche: One Trick Pony

With Wallace being the prize catch of the 2013 off season in free agency (5 year $60 million dollar contract) the NFL spotlight will be magnified on Wallace this upcoming season. It may take a while but eventually it will be clear to the Dolphins fans and the rest of the NFL why the Steelers and their fans are not upset over losing Wallace. The NFL and its followers are now just starting to see and hear the beginnings of what the Steelers already know: Mike Wallace isn’t as good a receiver as the rest of the league thinks. Mike Wallace is a cancer, a malcontent with a bad attitude.

Mike Wallace A Leader In Miami?

In his second year in Pittsburgh he became the leader of the self titled “Young Money Crew” which included fellow wide receivers Emmanuel Sanders and Antonio Brown. According to USA Today’s Gary Michones, Wallace  borrowed the name from Lil Wayne’s rap group who like Wallace is from New Orleans:

“That’s my dawg,” says Wallace. “Yeah, we got a lot of money. We’re Young Money (too).”

Within the “Young Money Crew” Wallace’s self proclaimed nickname is “Fast Money.” It appears that what drives Mike Wallace is money. How impressive.

In the last month since Wallace’s arrival in Miami he has offended many with his comments on different topics.  Apparently since signing this years largest off season free agent contract Wallace seems to be feeling a sense of importance and that his opinion somehow now matters. In the  aftermath of current NBA player Jason Collins recent admission that Collins was gay, Mike Wallace went to Twitter and stated:

“All these beautiful women in the world and guys wanna mess with other guys SMH (shakin’ my head) …”

 Or as recently reported by  Adam H. Beasley of the Miami Herald, Wallace said he didn’t feel at home in Pittsburgh:

“In Pittsburgh, I knew I was [in] a six-month lease every time, a furnished apartment, I’d just bring my bag and be ready to go. Down here, I have to buy me a house, get settled in.”

Add in other comments by Wallace that Ryan Tannehill could be as good as Ben Roethlisberger and that Tannehill has a stronger arm than Roethlisberger. Then consider this quote Wallace told the Miami Herald about the Dolphins and not so subtly about the Steelers:

“Everybody has a college mentality around here,”. “It’s a lot different than where I came from. Everybody’s hungry. Everybody wants to get better, get to where we need to be — that’s a winning record.”

Wallace Maybe Not One Trick Pony After-all, Displays Another Talent: Burning Bridges

 So what Wallace meant  in his backhanded not so clever comments were: “Fast Money” didn’t like the city of Pittsburgh.  “Fast Money” only stayed in Pittsburgh the 6 months he had to. “Fast Money” got out of town as soon as it was not required for “Fast Money” to be there. “Fast Money” never had any intention of re-signing or settling in Pittsburgh. “Fast Money” thinks the Steelers are old, have no enthusiasm or spirit. “Fast Money” thinks his former teammates are satisfied, not hungry and don’t have the desire to get better. “Fast Money” thinks Tannehill can be as good as Roethlisberger. “Fast Money” thinks Tannehill has a stronger arm than Roethlisberger.

Despite His Speed Wallace Hasn’t Created Any Room To Run His Mouth

The Steelers instituted a new offense before the 2012 season. Wallace who considered himself the best receiver on the team chose to hold out until the last week of the pre-season before signing his one year restricted tender.  A tender Wallace could have signed at any time in the off season and reported to camp with his teammates to learn the new system. Selfish. Is that something a college football player say at Ole Miss would have done?  Or was it pouting because the Steelers Gave Antonio Brown a new contract and not him? The result of his protest caused Wallace to take months to catch up as he struggled with consistency from his prolonged holdout.

Steelers fans got sick of watching Wallace, who was no longer the Steelers top receiving target, pout and brood on the sidelines in 2012. Sick of his poor body language. It was obvious that he was not happy with his role in the offense but “Fast Money” was the one who chose to report at the last minute. Last year Steelers fans didn’t need to hear what they already knew but midway through the 2012 season “Fast Money” dropped another bomb (pun intended) to the Pittsburgh Tribune review:

“I’ve never been a guy who dropped balls or just lose focus, the first 3 years I was always involved, so you just warmed up in games, and were just into it. But when you don’t get the ball for two and a half quarters, you lose focus. But that’s the type of offense this is. We’re spreading it around, so you’re not going to get as many targets. When you get them, you have to make the best of them.”

According to the Pittsburgh Post Gazette former Steelers great Joe Greene allegedly retired from his front-office position with the Steelers this off-season because he felt that there is:

“a different attitude with the players” in the current era and that it would “be unfair for [him] to call someone out, not knowing who that person is,” but added, that when he was on the team as a player, “locker room information and  knowledge didn’t get outside the locker room.”

Most took this as Greene talking about “Fast Money”.  The same week as Greene retired, Steelers current player Ryan Clark on ESPN’s First Take said:

“The culture we have now is about money. The Steelers were a team that kept that away from the organization as long as possible.”

That is until they drafted the leader of the “Young Money Crew”. Clark said the new draft picks come in already thinking about money. However Clark now see’s a change in attitude in the Steelers locker room.  It just so happens that “Fast Money” is no longer there. How coincidental. Does anyone think Clark wasn’t talking about Wallace?

Does Miami Know What They Are Getting For $12 Million A Year?

Salary Cap reasons was just one of many reasons the Steelers had in not re-signing Wallace. Besides all of the money talk, selfishness, brooding and complaining is the actual play of Wallace. Sure he is the fastest receiver in the league and teams will often put up with diva player who produces. But the Steelers didn’t and it is widely accepted in league circles they let Wallace walk for salary cap purposes. Not so “fast”. If the Steelers felt that strongly about Wallace they would have made more of an effort to get him signed. So why didn’t they?

The Steelers didn’t want to pay big money to a receiver who makes most of his catches against his body, on his hip or shoulders. Why would the Steelers want to pay big money to a receiver who the next time he goes up in the air and out fights a defensive back for a reception will be the first time? Why would they want to pay big money to a receiver who the next time turns into a defender to break up an interception when the defensive back gets the position on him will be the first time? Why would they want to pay big money to a receiver who the next time he chases down and tackles a defensive back after an interception will be the first time? Why would they want to pay big money to a receiver who the next time he goes high over the middle to make a catch while taking a big hit, will be the first time? Why would they want to pay big money to a receiver who the next time he dives for a pass will be the first time?

It is too bad Wallace (right) didn’t take in all of what Hines Ward (left) had to offer.  Mandatory Credit: Jason Bridge-USA TODAY Sports

Apparently what Hines Ward had to offer to Wallace as a mentor didn’t take with “Fast Money” after Ward retired. Wallace appears to have wasted the 3 years he had with one of the greatest and most complete receivers ever. However what the Steelers and their fans did learn from Mike Wallace’s 4 years with the Steelers is that he is fast and he wants money. “Fast Money” the former leader of the “Young Money Crew” is now in Miami ready to unpack his duffel bag, spend some money and put down some roots.

It is too bad “Fast Money” didn’t take all of what Pittsburgh had to offer: One of the NFL’s best organizations year in and year out. One of the most competitive teams with some of the league’s best players including one of the league’s best quarterbacks. The league’s best fan base in one of the best cities with hard working grounded people who appreciate the same from their athletes.  Wallace  could of been a great one. Instead he chose to take the money and run. Fast.

Rough weekend buddy? Chad Johnson's mug shot following his domestic violence arrest.

What We Learned This Week in the NFL Preseason:

• Replacement Referees making friends all across the league
• The NFL goes nuts over Andrew Luck’s first game
• Chad Johnson catches a domestic violence case; his first catch in 2 years
• Injuries/Fights dominate Steelers camp (more…)

Big Ben to have Little Ben.

What We Learned This Week in the NFL Offseason:

• A Second Arbitrator rules in Goodell’s favor for bounty punishments
• Broncos LB DJ Williams tweets part of playbook
• Ochocinco cut from Pats
• Big Ben and wife expecting a Little Ben

In this week’s edition of the reality show that has become the NFL offseason, Goodell gets more confirmation that he alone holds ultimate power over the players as a second arbitrator ruled in his favor in a grievance filed by the NFLPA.  The players association tried to argue that Goodell was prohibited from punishing players for any conduct before the CBA was signed and that the player appeals should be heard by Art Shell and Ted Cottrell instead of Goodell.  But like the judgment before this one, the arbitrator ruled that Goodell is entitled to hand out the punishment alone and handle the appeal alone.  The NFLPA states it will appeal the decisions but that seems rather futile at this point.   The four players Goodell suspended in relation to the bounty program in New Orleans will have their appeals heard by Goodell on June 18^th.  I would say there’s a greater chance that the city of Cleveland becomes the next powerhouse in all of professional sports than these players get any of their suspensions reduced or overturned. (more…)

Mike Tomlin likes to say “Style points don’t matter.”  That’s his unique way of saying it doesn’t matter how you win as long as you win.  It’s a good thing games aren’t judged on style because the Pittsburgh Steelers would’ve been mocked by Perez Hilton for their 23-22 victory over the Miami Dolphins.

For the second week in a row, the vaunted Steelers defense made a mediocre quarterback look like an All-Pro.  Chad Henne, who threw four picks in his last two games, completed 23/36 for 257 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions.   While the defense did force a Brian Hartline fumble, they managed only one measly sack.

You knew it was going to be one of those days when rookie Emmanuel Sanders fumbled the opening kickoff.   After forcing a field goal, the defense found themselves right back on the field thanks to a brainfart by Ben Roethlisberger on the Steelers’ third offensive play.   With the pocket collapsing all around Big Ben, he decided to try an inane flip pass to Redzone Redman with two guys holding on to him.  The ball dribbled harmlessly to the turf where linebacker Koa Misi fell on top of it.  Once again, the Steeler D held the Fins to a field goal.

Late in the first quarter, the offense finally got on track.  Highlighted by a leaping 43 yard catch by Hines Ward, the Steelers ate up over eight minutes of clock with a thirteen play 80 yard drive.  The drive stalled inside the Miami 10 and they settled for a Skippy Reed field goal.   The Fins next possession ended with the Hartline fumble, which set the Steelers up deep in enemy territory.  They took the lead on a 21 yard TD to Hines, who eluded three defenders on his way to the end zone.   Ward, who would finish with 7 catches for 131 yards and a TD, was brilliant all day long.

The Dolphins moved the ball effectively on their next drive but once again had to settle for a field goal.  Sanders, who to his credit did a very good job on kickoff returns after the early botch, brought the ball out to midfield.   On their first snap, Big Ben hit a streaking Mike Wallace for a 53 yard touchdown bomb.  That would be the last pass Wallace caught all afternoon as the 60 Minute Man only showed up for 30 this week.

Miami answered with their first touchdown drive of the game.   Picking on the Steelers secondary, particularly Bryant McFadden, Henne moved the team 60 yards in a little over three minutes.  A little 8 yard out to Davone Bess turned into a 26 yard touchdown when he broke out of a Willie Gay tackle, sidestepped a whiffing Ryan Clark, and outraced Lawrence Timmons to the end zone.  It was a comedy of errors which brought back horrible memories of last year’s inept pass defense.

It didn’t help that guys were falling by the wayside left and right.  First, Flozell Adams had his ankle rolled up and was replaced by Jonathan Scott.  The lack of Flo and the horrible Doug Legursky no doubt contributed to Rashard Mendenhall’s worst game of the season (15 carries for a putrid 37 yards).  Then Mister Woodley disappeared with a hamstring injury of undetermined severity.  Rookie Jason Worilds replaced him and actually showed some flashes of brilliance.  He’s a hellacious pass-rusher who reminds me a bit of Jevon Kearse with his speed off the edge.   However, he’s clearly a one-trick pony at this stage, as all he seemed to do was go after the QB where Woodley is flexible enough to run with tight ends or drop back into coverage..

The third quarter began almost as disastrously as the first with the Dolphins returning the opening kickoff 46 yards.  Thankfully, it was called back due to a holding penalty.   But the Steelers good fortune lasted all of three plays.  On the third snap of the second half, Aaron Smith left the game with a torn tricep.  He’ll undergo an MRI later today but it looks like he’s out for the season.  Again.

The Ben-to-Hines Connection resumed on their first possession of the third, hitting twice for 36 yards.  On a third and 12 from the Miami 18, Ben had his second brainfart of the afternoon.   Scrambling away from danger, he sprinted a good two or three yards past the line of scrimmage before deciding to release the ball.   That’s an illegal forward pass, FYI.  Skippy = Field goal.

Miami pounded out another field goal drive to end the quarter.  The fourth was uneventful for the first six or seven minutes as the teams traded punts.  Then came Big Ben Brainfart #3 when he was sacked by two Dolphins and the ball popped free in the struggle.  Make like a groupie in Milledgeville, Ben.  GO DOWN.

Luckily, Maurkice Pouncey snagged the ball to prevent any further tragedy.  The Fins, perhaps invigorated by their sudden defensive superiority, moved the ball confidently down the field.  Two long passes against our Swiss Cheese Secondary led to yet another Miami field goal.  This boot shockingly put the Fins ahead 22-20 with five minutes left.

Sanders set the Black and Gold up at mid-field with another fantastic kickoff return.   Time for some Big Ben heroics.  A 29 yard screen to Mewelde Moore (where’s he been hiding?) got them down to the Miami 14.  A Redman run and an unnecessary roughness penalty later, it was first and goal from the 4.  Two more runs gained bupkiss.  Then came the play which will live in infamy.

Look, I’m pretty much the biggest Steelers homer you’ll ever meet.  I believe Super Bowl XL was officiated fairly, that Ben shouldn’t have been suspended for hitting on skanks, and James Harrison is a clean and honorable player.  But even I cannot defend what happened on third down.  The refs blew it in our favor.

Ben took the shotgun snap and immediately took off running on a designed scramble.  About a yard short, he dove for the end zone, stretching out hoping to break the plane.   The Miami defender smacked him in the elbow before he crossed the white line, causing a fumble.  The ball rolled into the end zone where two or three Miami players jumped on it with only Doug Legursky anywhere close to the pigskin.  Whistles were blowing as one ref was signaling touchdown while the others were rushing in to sift through the pile.  A Miami player emerged with the ball.

Due to the one ref calling touchdown, the play went to review.  It was pretty clear Ben fumbled before breaking the plane so that wiped the score off the board.  The issue then became who recovered the fumble.  For the first time that I can remember, the ref explained that you had to see clear proof of who recovered the ball otherwise the fumbling team retained possession.   Since you couldn’t see who had the ball in that scrum of humanity, the Steelers kept the ball.

How was it not clear who recovered that ball?  There were three Dolphins lying on top of the football!  I understand because they didn’t call it a fumble on the field and didn’t un-pull the pile, it’s hard to determine who had it initially.  But barring bottom of the pile finger biting and groin twisting by Legursky, I’m fairly certain Miami had possession.

Now, let’s forget the hysterical whining from South Florida for a second.  Yes, they got hosed.  But there was also two and a half minutes left.  Even if Miami were given the ball, the Steelers had three time outs plus the two minute warning.  They could’ve easily forced a punt and given Ben plenty of time to work the team into game-winning field goal range.  Likewise, Miami still had over two minutes to drive into last-second field goal range themselves.  So let’s not act like this blown call completely ended the game.

After Skippy’s field goal put the Steelers ahead, the Dolphins took the field with time on the clock.  Miami ran four plays netting a grand total of four yards.  On fourth and six, Worilds blasted Henne, hitting him just as he was about to throw.  The duck wobbled through the air where Silverback narrowly missed coming down with an INT.

I guess I could be an optimist and say, “If the Steelers played this bad and still won, that’s a pretty good sign.”  But, man, if the Dolphins could finish even 1/3 of their drives, we would’ve had a blowout of the wrong kind.   This game was like a microcosm of everything that went wrong last season from crippling injuries to key players, dumb mistakes at the worst times, almost no running game, and absolutely atrocious play from the secondary.  And that’s a nightmare I think we’d all prefer not to relive.

Time to get back to football or strenuous two-handed touch as the Lords of the NFL seem intent on making it…

After a league record 10 win improvement in 2008, the Miami Dolphins figured to take a step back last year and they did not disappoint anyone but their fifteen diehard fans in south Florida.  The Fins started 0-3, rallied to 7-6, then lost their last three games to finish the season below .500.  The drop-off really was inevitable as so often happens in the NFL, the Dolphins went from having one of the best turnover ratios in the league (+17) to one of the worst (-8).  One of the main reasons the Saints are struggling this season is their abnormally high turnover ratio from last year has baselined in 2010.   Miami’s sitting at a -3 so far this year despite boasting a solid 3-2 record, highlighted by impressive road wins over the Packers and Vikings.

STEELERS DEFENSE vs. DOLPHINS OFFENSE

Last year, Miami ranked fourth in the league in rushing at 139 yards per game but thanks to a poor passing game they were only 20th in total yardage.   To remedy this problem, the went out and got one of the most explosive wide receivers in the game, Brandon Marshall.   Marshall’s presence has elevated the team’s overall offensive output to 12th in the league, although they’ve had problems finishing drives as they rank only 24th in points.

Success on offense will depend heavily on the continued development of QB Chad Henne.  He was expected to improve drastically on his 12/14 TD-INT ratio of last year but is off to a disappointing 7/5 start.   This is only his second full season as starter so growing pains are to be expected.   However, with the wealth of talent around him, he has the luxury of letting others win games for him rather than trying to shoulder that responsibility himself.

Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown make up arguably the finest one-two punch in the NFL.  They split carries pretty evenly although Brown holds the edge in yardage 299 to 240.    At 33, Williams is still a solid runner although the explosive Brown is more of a big play threat.  Brown is also adept at running out of the Wildcat formation, which Miami likes to use on occasion.

The Steelers will be missing Bret Keisel, who did not practice this week due to a hamstring injury.  As we saw on his Pick-Six against Tampa, the Diesel is nothing without his blazing speed.  Nick Eason replaced him against the Browns and even ended up with a half sack.  I expect Ziggy Hood to also get some playing time since the former #1 draft pick seems to be languishing on the bench.  When’s this guy gonna do something?

It’s an interesting match-up because the Steelers have been absolutely dominant against the run, surrendering a minuscule 64 yards per game.  However, they’ve fallen into the bottom third of the league in pass defense.  Granted, the stats are skewed because a) teams quickly realize running is a lost cause so they pass more and b) two games have been blowouts where the other team accumulated a bunch of garbage time yardage.   Still, the Fins have some decent receivers with Marshall, Brian Hartline, and up-and-coming Davone Bess so the secondary will be tested.

STEELERS OFFENSE vs. MIAMI DEFENSE

Miami boasts a top-ten ranked defense although they measure that by yardage which ignores the fact they’re surrendering well over 20 points per game.  And that average is helped by games against the putrid Bills and inept Vikings.  The Patriots dropped 41 on them a few weeks back and Mark Sanchez put up crooky number (31) as well.

The Fish have retooled their defense by getting rid of veterans Joey Porter and Jason Taylor and bringing in former Cardinals star Karlos Dansby.  First round pick DE Jared Odrick broke his leg week one and is out for the season.  However, fellow rookie Koa Misi is having a solid season at OLB.   Misi plays opposite Cameron Wake, a budding superstar out of Linebacker U, who has already notched six sacks this season.

The Dolphins don’t appear particularly bad in any single area, giving up a little over 200 yards/game through the air and a smidge over 100 yards/game on the ground.  So I expect the Steelers to mix it up and go with what works.  As I noted in my game recap, the pass/run ratio last week was ideal.  Rashard Mendenhall is quickly moving into discussions of best backs in the league so ignoring him in favor of chucking 30+ passes per game would be foolish.  Of course, I’ve learned to never underestimate Bruce Arians ability to be stupid.   Hopefully, he’s finally learned that a big play offense is more about the quality of plays you make rather than the number of times you throw.

Speaking of the running game, Trai Essex continues to nurse an ankle sprain so Doug Legursky is expected to take his place.   Legursky was injured last week and replaced by Ramon Foster.   Personally, I don’t understand why the Steelers don’t like Foster as he seems to be a monster at run blocking.   The O-line didn’t surrender any sacks last week and have only allowed 9 total thus far which is a huge improvement over prior years.  As mentioned, the Fins have some guys who can get after the QB so this week will be an interesting test for them.

Ben Roethlisberger nudged the Steelers’ last place passing game up to 28th this week.   I expect it to continue to rise as Ben gets more in synch with his receivers.  Yes, despite his veteran status, Ben did leave a few plays on the field which I fully expect won’t be the case as time goes on.

This group of wideouts, Mike Wallace in particular, continue to impress me with their ability to get open all over the field.  I don’t know if teams aren’t giving Wallace the respect or they just aren’t familiar with him or what but he can’t be covered.  We’re five games into the season and he continues to get wide open on a regular basis.  Now that we have a QB who can get him the ball, I expect more big plays from this big play threat.

The Black and Gold look to go undefeated in Florida this season in front of Dolphins minority owner Marc Anthony and his wife Jennifer Lopez.  Will Jenny from the block be in for a bad day thanks to the boys from the Steel City?  Very likely.   With the  hardest part of their schedule on the horizon, this is the type of  very winnable game the Steelers would be well-served to pick up because those victories may prove the difference down the line.