Author Archives: Steve Alan

About Steve Alan

Steve, known by most as TTF, is owner of TheSteelersFans and administrator of the best Steelers message board on the net. Big fan of strong coffee and hardcore Steelers fan from womb to tomb.

Coach Tomlin And Kevin Colbert At Manziel/Evans Pro Day Today

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As you may have expected, Head Coach Mike Tomlin and General Manager Kevin Colbert were in attendance for the Manziel/Evans Pro Day today. At the center of media focus today was obviously QB Johnny Manziel. The main interest of Steelers staffers today though, was of course,  WR Mike Evans.

Evans and 5 other receivers fielded passes in shorts and t-shirts while Manziel donned pads and helmet during the event. The QB took all snaps under center and connected on 61 of 64 passes. After the showcase, he credited his receivers for making him look good. “I got to give a lot of credit to those six guys because they ran their hearts out and really helped me look good,” Manziel told the Houston Chronicle.

75 Scouts were in attendance to watch the festivities. Mike Tomlin was 1 of 8 coaches and Colbert was 1 of 8 GM’s. Oddly enough, the Dolphins and Browns were the only two teams that were not represented today.

The event was televised on ESPN and NFL Network. Here’s a look at some of the highlights.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKDhZTYOZQY

Steelers fans will most likely only be interested in this part of the clip- the 60 yard pass to Mike Evans in the endzone. Thanks for stopping by, and as always, be sure to share with your friends.

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Maurice Jones-Drew Visits Raiders Tonight

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Free agent running back Maurice Jones-Drew will fly to Oakland tonight to meet with the Raiders. According to mainstream media outlets, the two parties could make a deal quickly.

 

Up to this point, the Steelers are the only team the running back has visited with. Though, it was reported last week that his representation was going to be meeting with teams at the owners meetings in Florida.

Over the course of the last couple days, it has been reported that the Patriots and Dolphins are not interested in him, making the Steelers and the Jets the only two teams known to be “in the hunt”. Jones-Drew grew up a Raiders fan and still keeps residence in the area. He even mowed John Madden’s lawn as a kid.

The Raiders have over $14 Mil in cap space as of this writing. The Steelers, around $1.4 Mil. I think the dots connect themselves.

DE Jackson Jeffcoat Has Pre-Draft Visit Scheduled With The Steelers

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Former Texas Longhorns defensive end Jackson Jeffcoat has a private workout scheduled with the Steelers, according to Charean Williams of the Star-Telegram.

Jeffcoat is the son of retired NFL defensive end Jim Jeffcoat. Steelers scouts were on hand today at Texas’ Pro Day to see Jeffcoat, who measured in at 6’3″, 253 lbs. The former Ted Hendricks Award recipient stood on his combine numbers, which can be seen here: http://thesteelersfans.com/2014-nfl-combine-results-defensive-line/

Jeffcoat is a flexible defensive lineman, who will have his hand in the dirt at 5 technique on one play, and be standing as the Will linebacker on the next. In 2013, he registered 82 total tackles (40 solo), 13 sacks, 4 passes broken up, 15 QB hurries, 2 FF, 1 blocked kick, and 1 interception. There are some questions about his durability. In 2011, he suffered a rupture of his left pectoral muscle. The following season, he missed time due to a ruptured right pectoral muscle.

The defensive end is most likely to be selected late on day 2 or on day 3 in this year’s draft. Here are a couple games of him in action. Thanks for stopping by, and as always, be sure to share with your friends.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ZZHlmo_Q0aM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=XBdTBsyE-Sc

 

Report: Steelers And Bills Agree To Joint Training Camp Practices

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The Buffalo News reports that the Bills and Steelers have reached an agreement that will have the two teams participating in joint practices in Latrobe this summer. The agreement cannot be finalized until the NFL signs off on the arrangement, and not before preseason schedules have been announced.

While unusual for the Steelers, teams often hold joint practices and scrimmages. Just last summer the Patriots and Bucs held joint practices, where Tom Brady had an infamous injury scare. The last time the Steelers did something of this nature was under Chuck Noll’s watch in the early ’90s. Then, it was the Redskins who would come to Latrobe.

Bills coach Doug Marrone proposed the idea this week at the owners meetings. Bills General Manager Doug Whaley used to work in the Steelers’ scouting department for years.

About the practices, Whaley said, “One, it breaks up the monotony of camp. Two, it gives you a chance to evaluate your players against other players in practice setting.

“After all summer of going up against the same guys, you might slip into a false sense of reality. This will set the bar a little higher.”

The arrangement will include 3 joint practices in Latrobe this summer, and then the Bills will host at St. John Fisher College next summer.

Thanks for stopping by, and as always, be sure to share with your friends.

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Report: Alex Carrington Agrees To Terms With St. Louis

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Free agent defensive lineman Alex Carrington has agreed to terms with the St. Louis Rams, according to NFL Network reporter Ian Rapoport.

Carrington visited the Steelers a couple weeks ago, and the meeting was said to have went well. He had visits with a few other teams, but none of those resulted in a contract either. While it was reported that he passed his physical here in Pittsburgh, Steelers Digest editor Bob Labriola said that he is not fully healed from his quad injury.

The former Bills defender was one of Rotoworld’s higest ranked remaining free agent defensive tackles.  Thanks for stopping by, and as always, be sure to share with your friends.

Lance Moore Signs His 2 Year Deal Worth $3 Million

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Lance Moore has officially signed his two year deal, according to Steelers PR man Burt Lauten.

Moore’s two year contract has a total value of $3 Mil. The deal includes a $645,000 guaranteed signing bonus, with no other guarantees. His contract with the Saints that was voided called for $3.8 Mil in cash in 2014.

Here is a breakdown of his contract.

[table]

Player, Year, Base Salary, Signing Bonus, Salary Cap Number

“Moore, Lance”, 2014, “$855,000 “, “$322,500”, “$1,177,500”
“Moore, Lance”, 2015, “$1,500,000”, “$322,500”, “$1,822,500”
[/table]

As you might expect, the contract is a very terminable one if the need should arise after this season.

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Steelers Expected To Meet With Jones-Drew’s Camp Again This Week

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The New York Daily News reports that the Steelers, as well as other teams, are expected to meet with Maurice Jones-Drew’s representatives this week in Florida.

The Steelers hosted Jones-Drew for two days last week, but the veteran running back left without a contract. It was rumored that MJD was seeking $3.5 Mil per year, but the Daily News reports that multiple sources say that wasn’t the case. Even if it were true, the market will quickly determine that figure to be higher than what he should realistically expect.

The other teams reportedly interested in meeting with his people this week are the Jets, Patriots, and Dolphins. The Jets and Dolphins have a ton of cap space relatively speaking, though, the Dolphins may not be as interested in the free agent RB as the NY Daily News thinks. According to Miami Herald reporter Armando Salguero, the Dolphins haven’t shown much interest as of yet.

Jones-Drew has a lot of wear on his tires, but he’d be a solid veteran addition to back up Le’Veon Bell. It doesn’t seem very likely that he’ll wind up in Pittsburgh, but stranger things have happened. The Steelers also have a visit scheduled with RB LeGarrette Blount at the end of this week. Thanks for stopping by, and as always, be sure to share with your friends.

Steelers Hard Knocks

[Video] Mike Tomlin: Being Forced To Do Hard Knocks “Is A Joke”

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Mike Tomlin and Kevin Colbert were interviewed by KDKA’s Bob Pompeani tonight about the possibility of having to do HBO’s Hard Knocks this year. You could say that neither one of them is a fan of the idea.

Mike Tomlin says he doesn’t watch the show, and “hates” reality TV. “I hate [reality TV] to be honest with you. I think that’s a misnomer. I think it’s anything but reality”, joked Tomlin.  The head coach went on to say, “On a personal level, I’m not in favor of it. That’s just me. I think that time of year, in terms of team development, there are a lot of complex things going on as it is…and to add to it, is not conducive to what we go there to do from my perspective.”

It is a joke. Just because it happens to be popular, doesn’t mean I have to participate. -Mike Tomlin

Kevin Colbert voiced his opposition as well, saying that he understood why fans would be interested in what goes on behind the scenes, but that from a management standpoint managing the extra distractions is the main issue. “If we’re picked, we’re picked. We have no choice”, he conceded. Colbert joked that he’d get personal make up artists if they could give him hair.

The possibility of the Steelers being forced to do Hard Knocks is real. While it seems likely that another team will volunteer or be chosen to do it over the Steelers, they do meet the criteria. To be exempt, a team must-

  • Have made the playoffs in one of the previous two seasons.
  • Have a new head coach.
  • Have appeared on Hard Knocks within the last 10 years.

Obviously, the Steelers don’t meet any of the above criteria. Other teams who could be forced to appear on Hard Knocks this year include the Bears, Bills, Cardinals, Giants, Jaguars, Raiders, and Rams.

You can watch the segment below. Thanks for stopping by and be sure to share with your friends.

[xyz-ihs snippet=”ColbertTomlinHardKnocks”]

2014 NFL Compensatory Picks Announced, Steelers Receive 3

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The NFL has notified teams of the 2014 compensatory draft picks each club will receive. The Steelers will receive 3. A 3rd, a 5th, and a 6th- picks 97, 173, and 215. I projected the comp picks a few months ago, and I’ve always thought we’d get two- a 3rd and a 5th. Getting three is fantastic, especially in a draft that’s being touted as one of the deepest and best in the last ten years.

A comp pick “expert” had originally predicted a 3rd, 5th, and a 7th for the Steelers, but later revised it to a 3rd and a 5th.

The Steelers qualifying losses were Mike Wallace, Keenan Lewis, Rashard Mendenhall, and Ryan Mundy last year and only gained Bruce Gradkowski via free agency. The Steelers now have 9 picks this year in the 2014 draft. This article may be helpful in answering any questions about the process- http://thesteelersfans.com/1588/looking-at-the-2014-steelers-nfl-compensatory-picks/.

Thanks for stopping by, and as always, be sure to share with your friends.

Moats One Year Deal Qualifies For Minimum Salary Benefit

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The contract details for the Arthur Moats signing are available. The deal is for one year, with a base salary of $730,000- the minimum for a 4 to 6 year veteran. The deal also includes a low qualifying signing bonus of $65,000.

Being that the deal is for one year, includes a signing bonus of no more than $65,000, and is for the minimum non-guaranteed base salary, it will qualify for the veteran minimum salary benefit. His $730,000 base salary will only count $570,000 against the 2014 salary cap, the same as a 2nd year veteran’s minimum salary would. Expanding on that even further, his signing will ultimately only move the cap needle $150,000 due to rule of 51 displacement.

Last year, the Steelers saved over $1,375 Mil towards the cap by structuring deals this way. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. Thanks for stopping by, and as always, be sure to share with your friends.