The Steelers War of Attrition Begins vs. Giants; Injury Report

The wait is over. Finally, a glimpse. The football gods once again have seen fit to bless us with their favorite sons. And Saturday night, those belonging to the Pittsburgh Steelers begin their preseason journey to Mount Lombardi against the New York Giants.

In preparation for this game and for the season, the Steelers have met with some debilitating injuries that have caused roster adjustments, a waiver claim and more reasons to declare "next man up!"

To date, the total injuries that have befallen the Steelers total as many as a baker's dozen, and they now have almost as many injured tight ends as healthy ones. Those tights ends and the rest of the MASH unit will be covered in the TIDBITS section.

So, with a pile of bodies to sift through, will the Steelers be able to field a team for Saturday? Naturally, yes. But that presents some specific things to look for in this first preseason game. Here are six players and things to watch for as two of the NFL's oldest franchises do battle.

SECONDARY(DEPTH):
With four defensive backs, including one starter sidelined, certain players will have to step up and state their case. Does the world class speed of DeMarcus Van Dyke and Isaiah Green make up for their lack of the typical build of the strong, run-defending Steelers cornerbacks? While one of them may make the team because of their speed, they would have to show special teams abilities. Playing principally as the punt gunner, think of sub 4.35/40 speed coupled with being able to break off a block at the line and race down the field to force a fair catch. That is a very valuable ability.

Unfortunately for Van Dyke, though, he likely won't play as he hasn't practiced this week. That affords more of a chance for the much-traveled Josh Victorian. - http://tinyurl.com/m56mpae

WIDE RECEIVERS (5 & 6 SPOTS):
Unfortunately, veteran wide receiver Plaxico Burress tore his rotator cuff during practice. It likely ends his season, and career, leaving the door open for Justin Brown and David Gilreath to do battle for the fifth wide receiver spot on the roster, unless another veteran is signed.

But the one who may now have the best chance at the number five spot is Derek Moye. His 6-5, 215-pound frame combined with 4.4/40 speed is hard to ignore. He has shown consistent hands catching everything thrown at him. He is a very good route runner and has been making big plays in Training Camp, already working his way up to third in line behind Antonio Brown and Jerricho Cotchery on one side of the offensive depth chart.

Because of the Burress injury, even return specialist Reggie Dunn has a greater chance to make the squad as a sixth wide receiver/special teams ace. As Mark Kaboly said on his Twitter, @MarkKaboly_Trib, account: "(The) wild card is Reggie Dunn. A kickoff return or two in preseason and now he's in mix...”

LINEBACKERS (PASS RUSH/YOUTH):
Last year's darling makes way for this year's. Alan Baxter is very explosive off the edge, is about the same height as former Training Camp darling Alan Robinson. He doesn't have the same lower body strength as Robinson or Woodley, his speed off the snap has at times been scary.

First-round pick Jarvis Jones is starting to make his case. Per Kaboly, "After the show the rookie put on against the third-team offense at the end of practice Wednesday, it might be time for the Steelers to reward Jones with a promotion. Within a span of five plays, Jones plowed over would-be blocker David Gilreath; recognized a screen pass while rushing the quarterback, peeled off into the flat and knocked the ball away from Baron Batch; knocked the ball away from tight end Peter Tuitupou coming across the middle; and knocked down another pass in the middle of the field while playing zone."

Who hasn't been heard from much is Jason Worilds, and that's because of a big toe injury he suffered causing him to miss last Friday's practice. He returned to practice early this week, but he hasn't been playing like a man with someone nipping at his heals.

Marshall McFadden, as we've written before, has a real chance at the backup Buck position. His performance in the early stages of Camp has been inspiring as he is showing he wants a spot on this team. So have some of his competitors, though, such as Stevenson Sylvester. It's imperative, therefore, that McFadden has a good performance Saturday.


JAMIE MCCOY:
Because of the Steelers now being bereft at tight end, McCoy's performance is crucial. He and David Paulson should see more playing time than most other starters. Along with tight end, Tomlin has stated that McCoy will also see time at fullback behind Will Johnson. So, he's going to be busy. If he wants to take advantage of the injuries at the tight end position, he needs to prove he's ready for the bright lights.

MIKE GOLIC, JR.:
Passion for the game gets you so far. Being a student of the game will help get you further. Even having name and pedigree can be a real boon to your career. But you can only go so far if you don't have the big boy strength required for the offensive line positions in the NFL. And that's where Golic, jr. has his issues.

One of those who was major competition for him was Nik Embernate who is now on Injured Reserve. Now Golic's major competition is Joe Long, another young player with NFL pedigree - he is the brother of the St. Louis Rams' Jake Long. But, if he can hold his own Saturday, he can build his case for being the last lineman kept.

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TIDBITS: Heath Miller (with no timetable for his return) and David Johnson are on the Active PUP list with knee injuries, and now they won't have Matt Spaeth until at least the 6th week of the regular season, if his Lisfranc injury does in fact have an 8-10 week turnaround.

Add to those four, Nik Embernate is on injured reserve after being waived/injured, Cortez Allen (knee) is sidelined for all of preseason, and defensive backs Curtis Brown (ankle), Terry Hawthorne (knee) and DeMarcus Van Dyke (hamstring) are down without definite timetables. Offensive tackle Guy Whimper was carted off the field Thursday with an undisclosed injury, although it isn't thought to be serious, and Nick Williams, Cameron Heyward and Emmanuel Sanders all missed at least some practice Thursday and/or Friday.

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Tomlin on rookie WR Markus Wheaton: "I've really been impressed with his above-the-neck game."

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Steelers have re-signed OT Mike Farrell and released CB Buddy Jackson.

Training Camp Battles On Offense Take On Different Look

"History has demonstrated that the most notable winners usually encountered heartbreaking obstacles before they triumphed. They won because they refused to become discouraged by their defeats." - B. C. Forbes (Yes, that Forbes.)

The Pittsburgh Steelers 2012 season ended abruptly at home at the hands of one of their division rivals, the Cincinnati Bengals. Something that absolutely chafed the Steelers leaders, one in particular speaking out about it.

“It‘s amazing to me how much little things really matter, the personnel and the personality of the team, how much all that matters in camp and what you put in in the offseason,” Polamalu said, adding, “(It‘s) how you treat your teammates in the offseason, how you prepare them.”

Fast forward to the 2013 post-draft offseason and, according to another Steelers veteran leader, inside linebacker Larry Foote, in an interview with GoBlueWolverine.com on Wednesday, the Steelers are still a chafed bunch who are now chomping at the bit.

“We’re pissed off we didn’t make the playoffs. On top of that, our rival won the Super Bowl. I know guys are taking it personally. It’s just a whole different mindset to the off-season. I know guys are ready to get back where we need to be.”

That "whole different mindset" likely also reflects Polamalu's calling it "a humbling process" for many players on the team. However, Polamalu and Foote were by no means the only players who were unhappy. Wide receiver Antonio Brown has also spoken up about leadership and responsibility this offseason and what it will take in Training Camp and beyond to make this a winning team again.

“We gotta do what we gotta do,” Brown told KDKA-TV Sports back before the NFL Draft. “Guys like myself gotta step up.”

The point of convergence here, though, is how the other players, principally the other receivers and running backs, will "step up" in Camp and after to make up the five or six WRs, the three or four tight ends (depending on Heath Miller's status) and the four or five running backs (including a fullback).

In the battle for the available WRs spots, the chance for there to be six this season may begin higher than some think. The WRs currently on the Steelers' roster, after Brown, are Emmanuel Sanders, Jerricho Cotchery, Plaxico Burress, Markus Wheaton, Justin Brown, Reggie Dunn, David Gilreath, Derek Moye and Kashif Moore. So, assuming the first four spots are set, the last two could easily be Wheaton and, not Justin Brown but, Dunn.

First off, let's just forward the résumé's of Moore and Moye to MetLife Insurance and the Cedar Rapids Titans respectively, and then concentrate on those who actually have a chance at making the team. With that done, we then face the fact that Gilreath has little chance of making the list of 53. Unless Justin Brown falls flat on his face, Gilreath is headed for the practice squad. If that.

That leaves Markus Wheaton to battle for the fifth spot in the rotation. In truth, he has the requisite talent, speed and "position flexibility" to move quickly up the depth chart with a strong Camp. If he's as good as we believe him to be, he could even challenge Cotchery for the third spot. With Cotch and Plax being on the wrong side of 30, Wheaton could eventually be used interchangeably this season with Sanders in the slot and outside positions.

Then Dunn gets our nod for a sixth spot courtesy of a correspondence between Behind The Steel Curtain. Dunn was a brilliant, if not scary, kick returner at Utah. We wrote recently about his prowess, but acknowledged that his chances were affected by only excelling at one thing. That's now changed.

In an article written last week, BTSC caught up with Utah University's Block U website on the attributes of one Reggie Dunn, and whether he can be used at WR also. The answers were very encouraging. - http://tinyurl.com/c84s245

"Dunn is a talent and, with a competent offense and quarterback, I anticipate he can be utilized." Considering the sixth WR spot would mainly just be special teams anyway, the chances for him making the roster just jumped.

Plus, considering the speed of the other WRs - AB: 4.5; Manny: 4.41; MW: a "disappointing" 4.44; and Dunn: 4.22 - a 4.62 Justin Brown is probably headed for the practice squad his first season, only to take over the spot of the red zone target next season from a then-retired Plax.

The tight end position rests upon the rehabilitation of Miller. If he's ready at season's beginning, he would lead David Paulson and Matt Spaeth as the three ends. If he isn't ready and is PUP Listed, the Steelers might keep David Johnson as effectively the fourth tight end until Miller is removed from the PUP.

The other possibility is to combine his worth with the fullback spot as the H-Back. That move is not popular with If It Ain't Steel as we're not overly fond of DJ and it would mean losing Will Johnson who proved to be a very good fullback. It would also, though, mean having keeping just four running backs. Outside of Le'Veon Bell, the next three are uncertain considering that one, likely Jonathan Dwyer, might be traded before the season begins.

If so, your four RBs would then be Bell, Isaac Redman, LaRod Stephens-Howling and Baron Batch. It would be a sensible stable of RBs with Bell being the feature back, Redman being the short-yardage and red zone option, LSH being the receiver out of the backfield and third-down option and Baron Batch receiving a hat on game day to carry out the latter two sets of duties.

And since last season's running game SNAFU begs to be remedied, that, along with the other ills of the offense, would seemingly be enough of 'history demonstrating heartbreaking obstacles'. Now, triumph, in position battles and into the season, must come by 'refusing to become discouraged by those defeats'.

Taking A Look At The Initial 2012 Steelers Roster

Yes, we said initial. The official roster will change the Monday after opening day. Then it will change again after the bye week. Aside from anything else injury-related, it will also change yet again after the short-term IR (Injured Reserve) is up after, we believe, eight weeks. 

The original proposal for the new rule was for the amount of time mentioned, and was only for players with a "major injury" who were placed on IR after 1600 hours EST Tuesday, September 4 or thereafter during the season, in order to be reactivated at a later time. Which would seem to be perfect for David DeCastro since his diagnosis dictated that he could potentially return in "3-5 months."

The way things had been going with regard to injuries, though, the Steelers may not put DeCastro on eight week IR just yet. Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert concurs. 

"The new rule will allow us to bring one person back from injured reserve once we put that person on injured reserve," Colbert said. "And DeCastro may be a candidate for that, we're not decided at this point. Right now, David will be carried on our active roster and we'll move forward from there."

Colbert's comments mean the Steelers will wait until after week one to re-sign a player, perhaps Trai Essex. By doing so they wouldn't have to guarantee that players' full salary for the year. If it is Essex, being that he's a vested veteran, he isn't subjected to the waiver process and was simply released. Most likely won't receive any offer sheet. (Let's be real, he's most likely staring at his phone right now trying to Jedi Mind Trick Colbert into calling him.)

Sean Spence is another story. He tore several knee ligaments and is done for the year along with David Johnson. Depth at linebacker and offensive line are both a concern. So, with these three men down, and with Max Starks, James Harrison and Jason Worilds being limited in the first game of the season and Stevenson Sylvester down for four weeks, players like Mike Adams, Chris Carter, and Adrian Robinson have to show that they're ready for prime time. 

Most of the roster spots were a given, naturally. If we'd gotten someone like No. 7 or No. 43 wrong we'd be turning in our keys to the Steeler Nation executive restroom. But a Mortty Ivy over a Brandon Johnson or a Jamie McCoy over a David Paulson is excusable. Ivy had to be waived/injured because of a left hamstring or he and Robinson would be your eighth and ninth LBs instead. It also made Marshall McFadden the obvious choice for the practice squad linebacker. 

Another area where we were wrong was at the wide receiver spot and the safety spot. First, we gambled and went with five wide receivers instead of going with our gut and penciling in four. We thought David Gilreath had shown enough to merit a fifth spot. We didn't even have seventh round draft pick Limas Sweed, er uh, Toney Clemons making the P.S., but he evidently showed enough to be kept.

We then selected Cromartie-Smith over Robert Golden and put Terrence Frederick on the P.S. The Steelers went with ballhawk Golden and his versatility-he can play both free safety and cornerback and may not be cut once Ryan Clark comes back but would simply play both positions when needed throughout the season. 

Also kept were Josh Victorian, who benefitted from the injury sustained by Terry Carter, and offensive lineman Ryan Lee. (For some reason I think of Lenny from "Of Mice And Men" when I think of him: big and burly corn-fed mauler who's just as kind as he wants to be off the field...just without the "loving" little animals to death.)

Without further ado, here is your initial 2012 Steelers roster in photo format by Matt Vargo, listed by position, followed by our injury-adjusted eight member practice squad and the actual squad:

ADJUSTED 8-man Practice Squad projection: LB M.McFadden, WR/KR Gilreath, DL C.Bryant, OL R.Lee, CB T.Frederick, S D.Cromartie-Smith, RB J.Harris & OL J.Malecki

The actual eight players were offensive linemen John Malecki and Ryan Lee, wide receivers David Gilreath and Toney Clemons, tight end Jamie McCoy, linebacker Marshall McFadden, safety Damon Cromartie-Smith and cornerback Josh Victorian.

Isaac Redman, Max Starks And Players To Watch

"I wasn't sure how my body would react, but I don't feel anything right now. Kind of feel like I never really injured it."

Those words were spoken by the Pittsburgh Steelers running back Isaac Redman after practice on Thursday as he prepared for the third preseason game against the Buffalo Bills. Regarding the game itself, he said further, "I'm anxious to get out there. I want to get out there and play and give it my all."

Redman had to sit out the Steelers second preseason game against the Indianapolis Colts because of a hip injury. Since Redman's health status was unclear and Rashard Mendenhall, who was just removed from the Active PUP list, certainly won't be ready, until now we'd had Dwyer as the starter not only in Buffalo, but in Denver on September 9th also. Looks like that might not be the case after all.

Nonetheless, Redman has seen little action this preseason. He was in for 11 plays in the first preseason game against the Eagles and carried the ball just five times for 14 yards. He also caught a pass for five yards on the first play of the game.

So, Redman will play Saturday night in Buffalo, but what's unknown is how much. Tomlin has stated that the starters will play at least the first half, maybe more. Since Jason Ford, who has a hamstring strain, won't make the trip, the carries will be divided between Redman, Jonathan Dwyer, Baron Batch and Chris Rainey. 

Per Mike Tomlin on Thursday, the inactive list for Saturday will consist of Ford, James Harrison, Mendenhall and Stevenson Sylvester. Hampton is traveling with the team, but is unlikely to play. None of the others will even make the trip. As a matter of fact, Mendenhall says he has no timetable at all yet on his eventual return.

“To be real, I don’t know when I’ll be ready to play,” said the running back who injured his right ACL in the 2011 regular-season finale at Cleveland. “I’m just working with the training staff and doing what I can to get on the field.”

Unlike most recovering from ACL injuries, Mendy downplays the mental hurdles involved: "Theres a physical difference, and once that's gone, I'll be able to play."

Regardless, that timetable he doesn't know about? Don't expect him back before the bye.

Max Starks will also start against Buffalo. Whether he plays for a quarter or a half is unknown, since he nor the coaches wants to overdue it. Tomlin, expressively forthcoming as always simply said, "Our intentions are to let him play."

Tomlin also said it's unlikely that fourth-string quarterback Jerrod Johnson, who seemed a little more comfortable his second time out, will play against the Bills. Though, Tomlin didn't make a determination who the 2nd QB is yet, I would expect to see Byron Leftwich before Charlie Batch this time. 

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PLAYERS TO WATCH in Saturday's preseason game against the Bills: 

DAVID GILREATH is consistently good in short area quickness and burst. He's still trying to earn a spot on this roster, but should be considered the frontrunner for the fifth wide receiver spot.

CHRIS CARTER is taking advantage of a golden opportunity and is "improving daily." With Harrison still ailing, look for him to stake a claim for the starting right outside linebacker position (with a solid performance over Cordy Glenn Saturday) against the Broncos to start the season.

JUSTIN PEELLE is a tight end who has played fullback and was brought in to replace the Steelers' David Johnson who was a tight end who had played fullback. Someone needs to be able backup WVU product Will Johnson and still play TE as well. 

MORTTY IVY, another WVU product, may just find a way onto the roster this year considering all the injuries to the position. If he has another solid game and can hold off Adrian Robinson, he just might do it this time. Though, both could make the initial 53-man roster with the aforementioned injuries being an issue. 

AL WOODS and CORBIN BRYANT are battling for the same position and one has to go. Woods had the big interception that he took about 50 yards into the red zone. It must've taken a lot out of him because Bryant received the majority of the snaps in the second game. Who'll step up Saturday?

A Mike Wallace Sighting, David Gilreath Looks Inviting

Stop me if you've heard this one.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette beat reporter Ed Bouchette and Beaver County Times reporter Mike Bires wrote Tuesday that the Steelers expect wide receiver Mike Wallace is in town and is expected to sign his tender soon. Possibly after the Steelers play the Buffalo Bills in Saturday's third preseason game.

If so, Wallace would have two weeks of practice before the Steelers play the Broncos in the Sunday night season opener, and it has people talking. - http://espn.go.com/blog/afcnorth/post/_/id/53068/video-discussing-wallaces-return-to-steelers?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Note, though, that I wrote "if."

Until Wallace joins the team, Wallace hasn't joined the team. It is, though, good news if true.

While it would avail Wallace of some action in the team's last preseason game on August 30th at the Carolina Panthers, more importantly it would give Wallace and the Steelers time to resume negotiations for a long-term contract. As we've written before, the Steelers don't negotiate unless a player with the team.

Then again...

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review beat reporter Mark Kaboly posted to Twitter some time after that: "For what it is worth, Ike says Mike Wallace isn't in town."

It's appropriate that all of this is happening in the month of Elvis' death because only he's had more unconfirmed sightings than Wallace.

Per CBS Sports, Mike Tomlin echoes that sentiment saying on: "Like I said from day one (when) I reported to training camp, I'll see him when he arrives."

Mark Kaboly came back again with a reassuring vote of...confidence(?) from Ike Taylor, saying: "We are going to shoot to Davios as soon as he touches down and I'm going to tweet you as soon as they give us our tab."

Bottom line: when Mike Wallace gets here is when he'll get here. Until then, what's a Zoltan?

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This was my reply to a Steelers fan and gentleman who goes by @ScottsdaleSteve on Twitter when he suggested that Jason Ford and David Gilreath, among others were doing very well and would all make the team: "Gilreath and Ford are camp bodies only. Dwyer and Rainey may cause Batch to be on the practice squad, though." 

As Lee Corso would say, not so fast, my friend. It looks like I was wrong about one of those. 

Wide receiver David Gilreath, who's 5’10" and 170 pounds soaking wet and carrying a brick, is a product out of Wisconsin who's been on the practice squads of three teams, Indianapolis, Buffalo and St. Louis. He may have done enough against the Colts to move himself into candidacy for the fifth WR spot. He's a special teams guy as well and could easily round out the receiver corps. - http://blogs.sites.post-gazette.com/index.php/sports/blog-n-gold/35115-gilreath-makes-case-for-final-wr-spot?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Neal Coolong of BehindTheSteelCurtain.com agrees and tweeted this on his personal Twitter account: "We've officially got our Training Camp Darling...congratulations David Gilreath. You are the front-runner for the 5WR position.” 

So, that may create a solution for figuring out the 53-man roster. With Gilreath emerging, that means listing Chris Rainey as a running back, though it might be at the expense of Baron Batch. 

Listing Rainey as a PR/KR for specials teams would, yes, still allow him to be used in different spots of the offense, but the same could be said of listing him as a RB. He can easily line in the slot as well.

We at If It Ain't Steel had suggested a few times he be used not only as a receiver, but listed as one also. Coolong, though, made a good point about that in a discussion we had recently. He pointed out that since "RBs can't go on the [line of scrimmage] and WRs can't line up in the backfield w/o reporting as eligible." 

Very true. A great offensive coordinator, though, can scheme ways to get Rainey his touches. Just, as Coolong, "don't get cute and list him as something he isn't. He'll def play in the slot, but you want him out backfield too” 

Fair enough. Maybe not the listing, but definitely the utilization. Remember those Bugs Bunny cartoons where Bugs played all the positions on the baseball field? "Bugs Bunny, shortstop. Bugs Bunny, left field. Bugs Bunny, centerfield. Bugs Bunny, right field...." That'll be Chris Rainey. He just can't get knocked out by a wide receiver on kick returns like in his first return of the game. He needs to remember the words of ol' crackhead Ezal from the movie Friday, "You shoulda been bobbin' and weavin'!"