Steelers football blog

Mendenhall running on instinct

Willie Parker said he is done tutoring Rashard Mendenhall, the Steelers' No. 1 pick this year. Parker said he has stopped giving the rookie running back advice about playing in the National Football League and won't do so again unless he is asked.

But, before anyone accuses the two-time Pro Bowl running back of being selfish or feeling threatened about Mendenhall's development, consider the reason: Parker said he thinks Mendenhall is getting too much advice and just needs to go out and run the football, unencumbered and without thinking too much. Continue

Tomlin tries not to rush Timmons

here was one drawback to the basic defensive plan the Steelers used in their second preseason game in Toronto, and it wasn't the ease with which the Buffalo Bills went up and down the field. It was that Lawrence Timmons nearly didn't get on the field until the second quarter.

That is not likely to happen when the Steelers play in Minnesota Saturday night, a game in which the starters typically see their most playing time in the preseason and the coaches sometimes trot out an extra wrinkle or two. Continue

Polamalu's return could be Tuesday

The Steelers will close shop at Saint Vincent College today, and injured safety Troy Polamalu will return home without pulling on the pads to practice with his teammates in training camp. His status, however, should change in a few days. He is expected to come off the physically unable to perform list and start practicing Tuesday, maybe play a little Saturday night in Minnesota. Continue

Steelers develop potent touchdown tandem

Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and wide receiver Santonio Holmes are two for two this preseason in terms of finding the end zone and are suddenly looking like a duo capable of producing touchdowns on a weekly basis. The way Patriots' Tom Brady and Randy Moss seem to find each other every game. The way the Colts' Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison or Reggie Wayne manage to connect with regularity. The way the Bengals' Carson Palmer and Chad Johnson are often heard from. Continue

Starting defense yields 2 early TDs

The Steelers and Buffalo Bills played an exhibition game in Canada last night and it looked early on as if they were playing under the wide-open CFL rules. The Bills scored touchdowns on their first two drives and the Steelers responded with a big-play scoring pass of their own, before things bogged down under the backups, although Steelers rookie quarterback Dennis Dixon ran 47 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter. Continue

Foote, Timmons battle for linebacker position

Lawrence Timmons may be the Steelers' future at right inside linebacker. But for Larry Foote, the future is now. Foote, a former fourth-round draft pick from Michigan entering his seventh NFL season, has made 64 consecutive regular-season starts and ranked third on the team last year with 69 tackles.

But to remain the starter, Foote will have to fight off a challenge from Timmons, last year's first-round pick. The battle continues tonight in Toronto, where the Steelers play an exhibition game against the Buffalo Bills. "I'm playing well," said Foote, a 6-foot-1, 239-pounder. "This is my seventh camp, so I know how to thrive and stay healthy. Continue

Steelers coach, teammates defend Anthony Smith

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin strongly condemned a recent story that he said characterized Anthony Smith as a thug because of the free safety's aggressive nature. Ryan Clark, who is competing with Smith for the starting job at free safety, went a step further. "Not to bring race into it, but is it because he is black that these acts are called thuggery?" Clark said. "Because a man has tattoos or may play a certain way, it doesn't make him a thug." Continue

Leftwich could play Thursday, might be backup all season

Quarterback Byron Leftwich, who should be starting somewhere else in the NFL, took his first snaps on the practice field as the new No. 2 quarterback with the Steelers yesterday, and it's possible he could stay there the whole season.

While the playoff opportunities for teams such as the Minnesota Vikings, Chicago Bears and Baltimore Ravens go begging for a decent starting quarterback, Leftwich scalded the hands of new receivers with his well-known fastball in two practices at Saint Vincent College. Continue

Steelers add backup QB Leftwich

Mike Tomlin had just finished briefing the media late Sunday afternoon when he got a call on his cell phone. The Steelers coach told the reporters who had started to scatter to stick around because he might have an answer to the question on everyone's mind. A couple of minutes later, Tomlin made it official: Byron Leftwich is the newest Steeler as well the insurance policy at quarterback that the team lost when Charlie Batch broke his right collarbone. Continue

Steelers likely to sign veteran backup QB

Daunte Culpepper or Byron Leftwich could be the new backup quarterback for the Steelers, who became vulnerable at the position Friday night when Charlie Batch was injured.

Batch, who suffered a broken right collarbone in Friday's 16-10 exhibition victory over the Philadelphia Eagles, is expected to be out four to six weeks, according to coach Mike Tomlin. That leaves just two rookies -- fifth-round pick Dennis Dixon and undrafted free agent Mike Potts -- behind starter Ben Roethlisberger, who was sacked 93 times the past two years and takes more hits than almost any passer in the NFL. Continue