Category Archives: Steelers News

[Video] Brett Keisel Asks Hair Raising Questions At Super Bowl Media Day

I know, I should be ashamed of myself for such a cheesy title. I’ll go rewatch Super Bowl XLV as punishment. Brett Keisel was on the scene yesterday at the Super Bowl media day, to ask Super Bowl participants the tough questions that no one else would ask. Head and Shoulders sponsored Keisel’s visit, and the results are pretty great. The two highlights of the video for me are the cheerleaders, and Peyton Manning being a good sport. You can watch below. Enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGpNkBpvkI4

[Video] Ike Taylor: I Would Love To Retire A Steeler

Ike Taylor is making appearances on Media Row today, and one of his stops was for an interview with Fox Sports’ Laura Okmin. Ike was his normal entertaining self of course, and at one point called himself ‘the black George Clooney’. After some lighthearted conversation, and a surprise kiss on the cheek from Ocho Cinco (yeah, that happened), the topics turned more serious.

During the interview, Ike was asked about his contract and the possibility of switching to safety. When asked about moving to safety, Ike said, “…I would move to safety.” Ike said he’s talked to Coach Lake and Rod Woodson, and the biggest adjustment involved in the transition is angles. “From talking to them…angles.”, Taylor said. “You’re the last line of defense- breaking down angles. You see the whole field. Instead of one side of the the field, you see the whole field.” The 33 year old cornerback went on to say, “Talking to Coach Lake and Rod, understanding what they went through, the transitions they made. Yeah, I understand, but I’ll have to go through it to actually see. I want to play football, so if I need to make that transition, if they ask me- I’m doing it. Regardless”.

When asked about the possibility of taking a pay cut, Taylor said, “You’ve got to understand it’s a business. Age comes into factor. Salary comes into factor. You’ve got to understand as a player that it will always be a young man’s sport, and I understand that. We’ll see the logistics, my agent and the team will sit down and talk and they’ll let me know what’s going on.”

“Of course changes always and will be made. Hopefully, I will be a part of the team. I would love to retire as a Steeler, but you just never know.”

You can really get a good idea of how down to earth Ike Taylor is by his comments around 3:45. Enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZOIdWXnBC8

 

[Audio] Brett Keisel: I’ve Got A Couple More Years Left In Me

Brett Keisel was on hand yesterday for the Super Bowl media day. The defensive end talked about almost making the playoffs, playing Peyton Manning, “Cowboy Justice”, Head and Shoulders, and more.

Towards the end of the interview, Keisel says he feels better than he did last year, and that he’s got a couple more years left in him. You can listen below or on the ESPN site.

 

As a parting gift, here are a couple shots of ‘Da Beard’ from his appearance yesterday. Enjoy.

 

Steelers Sign WR Danny Coale To Futures Contract

The Steelers have signed WR Danny Coale to a reserve/futures contract. Coale, 6′ 0″, 190 lbs, was originally drafted by the Cowboys in the 5th round of the 2012 draft. The former Virginia Tech receiver spent time on the Cowboys and Colts’ practice squads last year.

Scouts touted Coale abilities as a possession receiver coming out of college, with his route understanding being one of his strong points. Blocking was one of his weaknesses, particularly in the run game. He’s had a couple years to work on that in the NFL though, so we’ll see how he’s come along in that regard.

Steelers Hire James Saxon As New Running Backs Coach

The Steelers announce that they have filled the running backs coaching vacancy with former Vikings Running Backs coach James Saxon. Saxon coached the Vikings running backs from 2011-2013. Saxon served as running backs coach in Buffalo in 2000, in Kansas City from 2001-2007, and Miami from 2008-2010, before coaching in Minnesota until 2013.

Saxon was a fullback from 1988 to 1995 for the Chiefs, Dolphins, and Eagles. Saxon has coached a wide variety of running backs in a wide variety of schemes. Some of the backs he’s coached include Ernie Holmes, Larry Johnson, Ricky Williams, and of course Adrian Peterson.

This should be considered another good coaching pick up.

How Much Competitive Edge Did The Ravens Gain From Kirby Wilson?

Last week’s big news was that longtime Steelers Running Backs Coach Kirby Wilson was a leading candidate for the Ravens offensive coordinator opening. As we know, Wilson didn’t get the job, but went on to make a lateral move joining the Minnesota Vikings coaching staff.

Yesterday on ESPN’s NFL Insiders, Adam Schefter told the panel that Kirby Wilson sat for over 12 hours worth of meetings with the Ravens. Schefter went on to say that the interviews were basically tutorial sessions for the Ravens. The reporter also revealed that Wilson basically outlined to the Ravens how the Steelers run, and how they like their running game to be.

While it seems unlikely that the Steelers would be unprepared for the inevitable exchange of information, one has to wonder how much the Ravens gained from the exchange. Obviously, no one knows more about the Steelers running game than Kirby Wilson. If the accounts of Wilson’s desire to leave the team are true, then he would have had little to lose from divulging all that John Harbaugh wanted to know.

There haven’t been any reports as of yet as to who the next Steelers running backs coach will be. If they hire from within, I could see this being somewhat of an issue. Having said that, the hiring of Mike Munchak as the new offensive line coach should make a lot of Wilson’s “tutorial” a lot less valuable. It’s no secret that the Steelers have been wanting to incorporate outside zone blocking into their running game, and the hiring of Munchak will take those plans to a new plane.

 

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NFLPA Mulling Possible Use Of $2 Million Cap Option

The NFL Players Association is reportedly deciding on whether or not to use a $2 million per team cap option that would increase the salary cap to roughly $128.3 million in 2014. The Pittsburgh Steelers could greatly benefit from an additional 2 million in 2014 salary cap space. Jason Cole of the National Football Post reports that the NFLPA is considering the option in hopes to end the string of 4 straight years of having the salary cap fall below the pre-2009 CBA high. The current projection of the 2014 salary cap is roughly $126.3 Mil.

The NFLPA has an incentive to do this, as tough negotiations in recent salary cap years have caused a strain on player relations. The option was born in 2012, when NFL owners reached an agreement with the union to deffer payments of certain benefits to future years of the CBA, and move that money to the compensation of salary. At that time, the NFLPA also agreed not to bring collusion charges against the NFL for events prior to the new CBA’s signing.

Cole also reports that NFLPA spokesman George Atallah declined to say whether the union would use it this year. In an email Atallah told Cole, “The new economic model places an emphasis on cash spending to players not on cap, which is the highest it has ever been. Any report on what the salary cap will be next season is speculative because we will not know until mid-March. No decisions can be considered until then. Any reporting on the salary cap without the context or understanding of how the new system works is incomplete.”

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello acknowledged the existence of the option, but reportedly declined to speak for the union.

Report: Jerry Olsavsky To Interview With Bills For Linebackers Coach Position

Jerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette reports that Steelers Defensive Assistant Jerry Olsavsky will interview with the Buffalo Bills for their linebackers coach opening.

The former Pitt and Steelers linebacker replaced Lou Spanos in 2010, and was a linebackers coach for Youngstown State for 7 years prior to that. Ed Bouchette speculated that he may leave to go to the Packers, but there haven’t been any reports of contact with the Packers.

It has been reported in the past that Olsavsky wants a full time coaching position. He interviewed with the Tampa Bay Bucs  to be their linebackers coach in 2012, but they went with another candidate.

Steelers Sign LB So’oto And RB Poole To Futures Contracts

The Steelers announced a couple roster moves today. LB Vic So’oto and RB Tauren Poole have been signed to reserve/futures contracts.

So’oto played college ball at BYU, and was signed in 2011 as an undrafted free agent by the Green Bay Packers. The 6’3″, 263 linebacker was released by the Packers a year later, and went on to spend time on practice squads with the Raiders, Packers, and Redskins. He was with the Cardinals last season before being sent to IR after suffering from a chest injury.

Tauren Poole was originally signed by the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent in 2012. Poole measures in at 5’11” and 213 pounds. He spent the 2012 season on the Panthers IR due to a rib injury. The former Vols running back was released by the Panthers after an underwhelming 2013 training camp, and was later signed to the Colts practice squad.

[Video] Interview With Ben Roethlisberger In Ohio Today

Ben Roethlisberger was at Elida High School in Elida, OH today to attend his father’s induction into the high school’s athletic hall of fame. Ben’s father Ken graduated from the school in 1974. During his time there, he won accolades for his performances in football, basketball, and baseball.

While there, Ben gave a quick interview. You can see Ben’s interview at Elida high school from earlier today below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJOms65aDoo