Recognize this guy? Yeah me neither. Yet, someone thinks the Steelers should 'lure' him in. Credit US-Presswire.

I love Erik Lambert.  In what has been a typically quiet offseason  for the Steelers, it can be tough to find good news out there to report or comment on with a little more in depth analysis.  I tend to think we do a pretty damn good job of finding worth while things to talk about, and who doesn’t love reminiscing about the good ol’ days?  So I search and scour for those ‘interesting’ stories to read up on during the ‘slow days,’ and I keep coming across Erik Lambert from Gather.com.  Lambert continually reaches for the absurdity when it comes to talking about the Pittsburgh Steelers – and I love this stuff.  In fact, I’ve bookmarked this guy.  Whether he does it for attention like the way a shock jock pleads for it with their offhand comments, or he truly believes the absurdity he puts down on the ‘interwebs’ I don’t know.

Lambert has tossed up another softball topic to wreak havoc on yet again today.  The title of the post is ‘Could the Pittsburgh Steelers Lure Chris Ivory from New Orleans Saints?’  ’Lure’ is a word that Lambert loves to throw around in his titles and throughout his articles – as if Mike Tomlin is poking his head out of the South Side practice facilities and seductively calling over players using his index finger and calling ‘You hooooo!’  Lambert feels confident that the trading soup is a right mixture of desperation from both teams that would inject some enticement into a trade.

Lambert feels the Saints are decimated by the Bountygate and are desperate to right the ship or suffer years of having to rebuild from such a scandal.  While this sentiment is not completely unfounded, the Saints aren’t in a terrible situation.  They are in a bad situation, but not in one where they would trade off a running back who is developing into one of their premier backs.  Ivory is one of their bigger backs and has out performed others like Mark Ingram.  Are things that bad to trade off a guy who will actually help build up this team once Darren Sproles’ wheels fall off?  I think not.  If the Saints want to make an impact in overcoming Bountygate, they just simply need to survive the weeks most of the suspensions are worth and get back to work.  Drew Brees will return as the QB and the offense will continue to produce – that is assuming that the team won’t implode without head coach Sean Payton.  And there’s no trade that will fix that.

But what about the Saints trading some picks for Ivory?  Well you would have to assume that Ivory is worth a couple of picks – which he’s not – and you would have to assume that the Steelers would trade away picks for a running back who may or may not be the answer for Rashard Mendenhall’s departure – which he’s not.  Even if Ivory was worth a high pick – say round two or three – the Steelers would not give up early round picks.  The Steelers take pride in being able to draft great valued talent and develop them into household names.  The Steelers wouldn’t trade picks for Ivory, even if the Steelers were hurting for a running back – which they aren’t.

This is where Lambert always falls completely apart for me – his analysis (or lack thereof) of the Steelers situation.  Lambert is worse than some political talking head who ignores the facts and only uses the talking points that’s been generated by the base.  It doesn’t matter what’s taken place.  What was true 9 months ago, is true today.  For what?  Just to make your point?

Here are the highlights from Lambert on how bad Pittsburgh’s situation is:

- ‘Not only is their best receiver Mike Wallace stuck in a contract holdout, but their best running back Rashard Mendenhall will start the season injured with no real idea when he will return.’

- ‘That means quarterback Ben Roethlisberger could throw to secondary receivers behind a suspect offensive line while handing off to back up running backs.’

- ‘If the Steelers can’t solve the Wallace problem, they may try to help Roethlisberger through trade.’

- ‘The two names that must step up are Isaac Redman and Jonathan Dwyer.’

- ‘New Orleans needs draft picks and Pittsburgh always has them to spare. At the right price the Saints could send him to a city who loves power football.’

Lambert knows this guy plays for the Steelers.... right? Credit: Charles LeClaire-USPRESSWIRE

Where oh where to begin?  The most egregious statement of them all is about Ben throwing to secondary receivers behind a suspect line while handing off to backup running backs.  Has Lambert even heard of Antonio Brown?  Brown, who proved to be of more worth than Wallace last season set an NFL record for 1,000 receiving and 1,000 return yards in a single season.  ’Manny’ Sanders is solid and still growing.  Todd Haley’s TE happy offense has Heath Miller and Leonard Pope.  Haley also loves to utilize his running backs as receivers, and that’s where rookie Chris Rainey comes in.  Ben having a hard time finding an open target?  Hardly.  The offensive line has vastly improved with the draft – run blocking and pass blocking.  Even though David DeCastro and Mike Adams have yet to take a snap, I find it hard to even come close to comparing last year’s line from this one and conclude they are the same line.  Redman has yet to carry the load for an extended part of the season, but he’s ready for it.  He’s built to be the back the Steelers need, and has actually had very solid games when taking the majority of snaps – something Lambert fails to realize and in fact says Redman makes a play only once in a while.  And how in the world could you mention Dwyer as being the next immediate backup when you have Chris Rainey, Baron Batch and Jonathan Clay mixed in that group as well.  The running back situation is the most plastic out of all the positions going into camp this season.  We have no idea what that depth chart will be like.  So why pick Dwyer out of thin air?

As I said before the Steelers hardly trade picks if ever at all.  And, they certainly don’t have any ‘to spare’ in a trade deal.  It’s an absurd idea to think Kevin Colbert would give up the thing he does best for some back who will be one of many competing for backup roles in the offense.  No dice, Lambi.  The Steelers are far from a desperate situation and actually sitting pretty before heading into camp.  We are just weeks away, and this should prove to be one of the more fun and interesting training camps in a long time for the Steelers.

Trade for Chris Ivory?  Not by a long shot.  No that’s not buzzing in your head.  It’s just Erik Lambert making another Steeler analysis.  Keep’em coming dude.  Camp is still weeks away – I need more entertainment.

Big Ben is intrigued.....are you?

In the middle of May, finding news-worthy NFL stories is a tough racket to work.  The Steelers first OTA session – the only real Steelers news right now – has been covered extensively here on NPC and frankly, with so little information being let loose from the South Side there isn’t much to write about.  Luckily, our favorite black and gold warriors do have a few intriguing situations brewing and that got me thinking outside the traditional “Pittsburgh Box”.  Now that we are essentially through the period of free agent movement, trades, and the NFL Draft, we know which team and player situations will be the most closely monitored as the march to Training Camp and the preseason begins.  We may see a minor move here or there, possibly a trade (the Seahawks/Buccaneers deal earlier this week is an example), and the continuing saga unfolding in New Orleans may yield some news still.

Every NFL season starts out with the eyes of the football world focused on the intriguing stories that mold the new year.  I have compiled a list of the Top Ten Intriguing Stories for 2012, a snapshot of the stories you will be hearing over and over again in the coming months.  Yes, Tebow is here.  So is Mike Wallace.  However, there are some other stories that you may have let slip your mind.  Right now summer is approaching and the focus is on baseball, school letting out for the summer, and what non-traditional meat can be thrown on the grill for tonight’s dinner.  What we want to delve into here are the stories NFL fans will be pining over once the pencils and books are back in the Trapper Keepers and we are trying to decide which stereotypical Halloween character we will be shoveling our loose leaves into to get them off of our dying lawn (Pumpkins and Frankensteins ruled the neighborhood last fall).  Grab a cold one and prepare to be intrigued.

Colts QB Andrew Luck during the teams OTA session this week; photo courtesy AP

10.  The re-birth of the Indianapolis Colts – The Colts were a big mean blue machine from 1999-2010, racking up 11 playoff appearances and a Super Bowl championship.  Indianapolis transformed themselves from an also-ran franchise that had trouble selling tickets and rarely found any sort of relevancy into a powerhouse behind the arm of one Peyton Manning.  They crafted the entire franchise around Manning, bringing in receivers and blockers and mostly being satisfied with bludgeoning their opponents to death with high-scoring offense.  The Colts became a weekly visitor to prime time slots and packed fans into the RCA Dome week after week.  They were the glory days of Indianapolis Colts football, a franchise that finally was able to shake the stench of the Mayflower Moving Trucks and late night walk of shame that followed them from Baltimore in 1983.  Fast forward to 2011, the Colts lose Payton Manning to a severe neck injury and the wheels fall off.  The team decides the time has come to move on and lets former Pro Bowl players such as TE Dallas Clark and C Jeff Saturday walk away.  Bill and Chris Polian, both architects of the Colts decade of dominance, were fired.  Shortly thereafter, “The Catfish” swam out of town – head coach Jim Caldwell was shown his walking papers.  RB Joesph Addai, WR Pierre Garcon, and LB Gary Brackett were allowed to leave or were cut.  Veteran tackle Ryan Diem decided he wanted no part of this circus and retired.  When the team takes the field in 2012, it will do so with only three members of their starting 2011 offense.  Outside of video games, teams don’t purge their organizations in this manner.

So now the fresh start with QB Andrew Luck, a slew of rookies, and several mid-level free agent signings.  New head coach Chuck Pagano has never been the man in charge, and he will do so for the first time with a brand new offense and defense behind two new coordinators.  This is a total restart of a franchise the likes we have NEVER seen.  The Colts are fixing to be a bad team in 2012, but it will be intriguing to see how bad….will they mature quickly behind Luck and make a run at 8-8, or will they mirror the 3-13 they were in Peyton Mannings first campaign?  Fans may only get to see a situation like this once or twice, a franchise that basically goes the “expansion team” route.  It should be a very interesting train wreck.

C Maurkice Pouncey will be expected to lead the new Steelers offensive line from day one.

9.  The Pittsburgh Steelers Offensive Line – The Steelers have now invested four top draft picks (#1 in 2010, #2 in 2011, #1 and #2 in 2012) on offensive linemen to revamp a unit that has been the source of so much grief over the past few years.  The team is making a real commitment to protecting Iron Man QB Ben Roethlisberger and the big guy couldn’t be happier.  Now comes the hard part – molding these outstanding players into an outstanding UNIT.  New offensive Coordinator Todd Haley and Offensive Line coach Sean Kugler will be spending their summer in the film room and on the practice field, learning the strengths and weaknesses of their new players.  Former starting tackle Willie Colon moves to guard, and the team has yet to recall their wounded veteran Max Starks, another Big Ben friend who may find himself wearing a different hat in 2012.  This is a brand new day in the Steel City, and how the line comes together will make or break a year of transition for the Steelers.

8.  The Tebow/Sanchez/Ryan NYC love triangle – After leading the Denver Broncos to their stunning OT upset of the Steelers in last January’s Wild Card playoff game, Tim Tebow seemed destined to become the next franchise QB for the Broncos.  Then Peyton Manning became available and John Elway decided to pay a kings ransom to bring the future hall of fame QB into the fold.  Tebow became expendable, and for some odd reason the New York Jets became his destination.  Just after giving a three-year contract extension to incumbent QB Mark Sanchez, the Jets traded for Tebow and created a controversial situation that could blow up in the face of head coach Rex Ryan.  Sanchez, who many unfairly blamed for the down season the Jets experienced in 2011, is now on the hot seat in the hottest oven in professional sports.  With Tebow in the fold, Sanchez will be looking over his shoulder from day one, and any mistake – an interception, an overthrow, anything – will immediately cue up the “Tebow” cries by the Jets faithful and create a hostile playing environment for the emotionally scarred Sanchez.  Rex Ryan is surely not the coach to handle such a touchy scenario, as his media boasting and bigger-than-life personality can only add fuel to the fire.  How the Jets handle this Tebow/Sanchez quagmire should be one of the most talked about and followed stories of 2012.

7.  Mike Wallace turns Diva – The Steelers top WR experienced his first taste of NFL free agency this offseason, and he wasn’t crazy about the flavor.  After expecting to be flooded with #1 wide receiver contract offers from teams that matched deals obtained by Larry Fitzgerald and Andre Johnson, Wallace quickly learned that his profile is not quite at the level he thought it was.  He is now at the mercy of the Steelers and must either sign his tender offer or sit out 2012, since a long-term deal doesn’t appear to be in the offing.  With the emergence of WR Antonio Brown and the expectation that WR Emmanuel Sanders can reach the same level, Wallace could be the odd man out in the Steel City once its all said and done.  His ability to be a professional, sign the tender, and get to camp on time will be a major story this summer.  If he fails to do so, his time with the Steelers is over.  Tough ending to a Steelers career that seemed to be limitless at one point.

Artist rendering of the new NFL stadium in downtown Los Angeles

6.  The L.A. Equation – As I wrote about earlier this month, Los Angeles is beginning to make their push towards convincing an NFL team to relocate to the new stadium that is breaking ground in the downtown area.  Obviously, the NFL history of L.A. is one of teams moving AWAY, but the second-largest TV market in the Country is ready to re-establish themselves as an NFL city.  The Minnesota Vikings have secure funding for a new stadium, so they are out of the mix.  The Oakland Raiders and St. Louis Rams (both formerly tenants of L.A.) are still being considered as teams that may move, as are the San Diego Chargers.  Expect this to become a major story as the season wears on and chances are the NFL will be allowing a team to announce a move to Los Angeles sometime before kickoff of Super Bowl XLVII on February 3, 2013. 

Jeff Fisher has a major project on his hands in St. Louis

5.  Head Coach Jeff Fisher returns to the NFL, tries to dig the Rams out of a deep hole -The St. Louis Rams seemed to be on the right track heading into 2011.  After competing for the NFC West title down to Week 17 in 2010, it seemed that head coach Steve Spagnuolo had the team on the verge of becoming relevant for the first time since the “Greatest Show on Turf” was wowing the league.  All of that potential went down the crapper in 2011, as the Rams were hit by a string of injuries and finished 2-14.  The failure caused the firing of Spagnuolo and his entire coaching staff, and began the hunt for a new head coach.  The Rams went all out, coaxing former Titans coach Jeff Fisher out of a semi-retirement to become the eighth head coach in the team’s St. Louis history.

Now the work begins on revitalizing a downtrodden franchise that seems to have one foot out the door in St. Louis.  If the team does not respond to their new coach and has another horrific season, it could push them right up the ladder on the list of teams that could move to Los Angeles.  Bad attendance has been a plague for the Rams, who have a hard time filling the gigantic Edward Jones Dome most weeks.  The organization is counting on Fisher to breathe life back into the team and the fanbase.  The Rams had a good draft, bringing in DT Michael Brockers, WR Brian Quick, CB Janoris Jenkins, RB Isiah Pead, and CB Trumaine Johnson – all who could win starting jobs in 2012.  They also went out and signed several mid-level free agents and allowed some dead weight to move on, giving the entire roster a fresh feel.  The biggest factor will be the health of franchise QB Sam Bradford, who has proven that when healthy he can be a solid NFL signal caller.    This is a make it-or-break-it season for the St. Louis Rams.

Miami Dolphins 1st round pick QB Ryan Tannehill

4.  The Miami Dolphins, Seattle Seahawks, Cleveland Browns, and Tennessee Titans QB controversies -Let’s take a quick inventory here.  The Miami Dolphins have incumbent QB Matt Moore on the roster, then draft QB Ryan Tannehill in the first round, then sign veteran QB David Garrard to a contract.  The Seattle Seahawks have incumbent QB Tarvaris Jackson on the roster, then sign free agent prize QB Matt Flynn to a huge multi-year deal, then draft QB Russell Wilson in the 2012 NFL Draft.  The Cleveland Browns have QB Colt McCoy, long shoved down the Dawg Pound’s throats as the QB of the future.  They draft 28-year old rookie Brandon Weeden in the first round of the draft.  The Tennessee Titans have incumbent QB Matt Hasslebeck and young, promising QB Jake Locker nipping at his heels to take the job.

All four of these teams were non-playoff teams in 2011 and are trying to turn the corner.  With so many QB controversies sprouting up this early, it should make for an interesting summer and preseason for all four clubs.  Never have we had so many teams with no idea who their starting QB would be heading into a season, and at this point nothing would surprise fans of these teams, who always seem to make things harder than they have to be.  The Seattle situation is becoming even more intriguing, with highly-paid new QB Matt Flynn sharing reps with the first team with both Wilson and Jackson in team OTA’s this past week.  Flynn was the QB prize of the free agent pool, and was signed with the intention that he would be “the man” for Pete Carroll and the Seahawks.  In Tennessee, Jake Locker is primed to take over as the starting QB, but will have a fight ahead of him in camp.  Intrigue in Seattle, Miami, Cleveland, and Tennessee abounds.

WR Randy Moss is back, this time with the 49ers.

3.  WR Randy Moss returns to the NFL after a one-year vacation -After not playing in 2011, Randy Moss is back in 2012.  The one-time considered best WR in football, Moss signed a one-year deal to become a key part of a San Fransisco offense looking for new weapons for QB Alex Smith.  Can Moss rebound from a disappointing 2010 that saw him wear three different jerseys and a 2011 that saw him completely out of the game?  The 49ers are banking on Moss to be the #1 target for Smith, and will need him to produce the way he did from 2007-2009 with New England if they intend on making another deep playoff run.  Moss is a guy that can either show up and be great or show up and cause a team to implode on itself.  Furthermore, he is one of the most recognizable players of the past decade and the media will be following his every move on this comeback.

Mario Williams signed a six-year deal with Buffalo, one of the biggest surprises of the offseason.

2. The Detroit Lions try to build on their success, the Buffalo Bills try to spend their way to success – The Detroit Lions were the darlings of the NFL in 2011, making the playoffs just three years removed from an 0-16 season.  The Lions have explosive talent all over the field, including QB Matthew Stafford and WR Calvin Johnson.  Can the Lions continue to ascend to the elite level of their NFC brethren in Green Bay and New York?  Or will they take a step back, buried by preseason expectations that have them competing to make their first Super Bowl?  In Buffalo, the Bills started out 2011 as the hottest team in football before a terrible streak of losses ended any playoff hopes.  The Bills went out and made the biggest offseason splash in signing DE Mario Williams away from the Houston Texans for a record six-year $100 million deal.  The Bills also spent money on DE Mark Anderson and resigned WR Stevie Johnson to a five-year extension.  After not making the playoffs since 1999, will the spending spree propel the Bills to the playoffs? 

1.  BountyGate rips the hearts out of the New Orleans Saints – The biggest scandal in the NFL in years hit New Orleans hard.  BountyGate cost the Saints their head coach for the entire 2012 season, as Sean Payton will be replaced by Joe Vitt – once he returns from his six-game suspension.  The Saints also lost Pro Bowl LB Jonathan Vilma for all of 2012, DE Will Smith for four games, and were docked a bunch of draft picks over the next few years.  Furthermore, the team has a situation with QB savior Drew Brees, who is unhappy about being named the franchise player and not being granted a long-term deal.  This is an organization is tatters after NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell dropped the hammer on them.  The entire league will be watching to see if the Saints are able to continue their remarkable run of playoff appearances and give their team a chance to play a Super Bowl in their home stadium (The SuperDome hosts the big game this year).  After so many feel-good stories out of the Big Easy since the horrible events of Hurricane Katrina, the Saints are now fully in the eye of another storm.  If the results end up being a 5-11 season or even simply missing the playoffs, this could mark a significant change in the overall New Orleans Saints organization, with front office staff, coaches, and players being changed out to get the stench of “BountyGate” off of the team.

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'Hey... if you rip his leg off, I'll buy you a gold watch!' Credit: Matt Stamey-US PRESSWIRE

Audio from the Saints vs. 49′ers playoff game has been released via Sean Pamphilon and Yahoo Sports.  Pamphilon was present in the locker room because he was filming a documentary about former Saints player Steve Gleason, who is suffers from ALS.  The audio can be found just about anywhere, but there is a text snippet here.

Upon reading the text it seems like it could be any locker room speech for any football team on any given Sunday.  Coaches no only manage a game, but also act as a motivator before the players walk down the tunnel.  Football is a physical game.  The main point of the defense is to impose their own physical will on the other team to keep them from getting points – a will that includes hard hits.  That testosterone saturated locker room feeds off of the imagery of violent acts.  ’Battle,’ ‘battlefield,’ ‘enemy,’ ‘attack.’  These are words that do not instill peaceful monk-like feelings in the players awaiting to take the field.  To be put off by Williams’ violent rhetoric is wrong.  What team won’t test an injury to a player – with regards to Kyle Williams, albeit it was testing a concussion?  What team won’t encourage hard hitting that may wear out/down a particular player.  A team will take any and all advantages it can get to win the game.  And should Williams really be damned for asking a little more out of his players in trying to gain an advantage – the guy’s job is on the line every single week.  Winning is the only thing in the NFL next to money.

What IS disturbing are the gestures.  The pointing to the chin when referring to hitting Alex Smith is a problem.  The motion of the index finger and thumb simulating cash when saying, ‘I got the first one’ is a problem.  The motion to the chin is with the intent to injure.  The motion of the cash is to promote the added incentive – the bounty.  These are two big no no’s in the league.  One is illegal per the CBA (the bounty) and one is illegal in the eyes of the league for hits with the intent to cause injury – your helmet to helmet variety.  For these things it is what Williams should be damned for.  After this release of audio, I doubt Williams will ever be allowed to have anything to do with the NFL ever again.  Anything less would be a complete contradictory to the newly created mantra of a lawsuit filled NFL front office.

One other disturbing point is that this JUST happened.  This is all but the nail in the coffin for Sean Payton’s suspension.  If he wants to save any face, he should just apologize and skip the appeal process.  There’s no way he can win that now with this audio being released.