• The Steelers cut one player today, Matt Trannon a 6'6 wide reciever from Michigan State. Trannon broke a finger and missed most of the OTA's. Jim Wexell also reports that the Steelers offered Kevin Jones a one year deal for the league minimum but he chose the Bears instead. 
• Coach T is still optimistic that both Mendenhall and Sweed will be signed and in camp on time. Time is running out though considering that players report on Sunday and the first practice is on Monday. He also notes that FWP and Troy will be 100% on day one and shouldn't be limited in camp. If last year was any indication though, he'll probably give veterans like those two and Ward a handful of days off during camp.
  
• Mike Prisuta thinks that Mendenhall's biggest role this year could be finishing games the way that The Bus used to. There's no doubt that the Steelers miss the 'grind it out style' that Bettis brought to the table but I wouldn't anoint a rookie with that label just yet especially since this offensive line doesn't compare favorably to the OL that Bettis ran behind.
  
• One of BTSC's favorite writers, Dale Lolley breaks down Tomlin's pre-camp press conference (Here's a link to the entire transcript). He's not buying Tomlin's attempt to reassure fans/media about the current status of the defensive line. If Eason makes the final roster it'll be because either McBean (who's healthy and reportedly working his butt off at the facility) or UDFA, Clement failed. Tomlin also said that the team will keep an very close eye on Ryan Clark, but that right now he's back up to his playing weight and feeling great. Max Starks will start camp working at right tackle and no mention was made of Colon working elsewhere (although it's still a possibility). Foote will open camp as the starting ILB, but Timmons could already have won the ILB spot on passing downs.
  

At what point should we start to get worried about Mendy and Sweed not making it on time? Anyone encouraged by the defensive line or are they an accident waiting to happen?

As camp nears, we look at another position that could be up for grabs once camp starts. We've already taken a look at the battles that will ensue at cornerback and 3rd WR but the competition at linebacker could be the most entertaining. Not only is this a battle to play linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers but it includes a first round pick that contributed very little his rookie season and a seasoned veteran whose started over 70 consecutive games, including a Super Bowl. In the end the coaching staff could be faced with another question of experience or potential.

The Incumbent Starter: Larry Foote has to be considered a major success story as far as Steelers second day draft picks are concerned. A fourth round pick in 2002, he became a starter his third season in the league and has started over 70 consecutive games since then. The Steelers thought enough of Foote to let Kendrell Bell walk after several injury plagued seasons (quite a wise move on their part) and he's rewarded them with a handful of productive years. During those four seasons he's averaged just over 85 tackles and over 3 sacks a season while playing beside James Farrior. Foote's entering his seventh season in the league but he's still only 28 years old. He's also a team leader and a solid presence in the locker room. While he's not an overly athletic guy or a guy who will ever get Pro Bowl consideration but he simply gets the job done. He's an outstanding tackler and has great instincts thanks to endless film study. His instincts and study though don't always make up for his lack of athleticism. He's basically a two down linebacker who excels at stopping the run but can be exploited in passing situations. He's extremely durable though and hasn't missed a game since his rookie season (2002). If Foote does lose the starting job, he'll likely star on special teams in 2008 but the real question will come in 2009 when he' s in the final year of his deal.

The Challenger: Most Steelers fans weren't thrilled with the selection of Lawrence Timmons in the first round last year but there is hope now that he'll become of the most athletic inside backers that Pittsburgh has ever seen. He was incredibly raw coming out of Florida State (only started one season as a junior) so it shouldn't have been a big surprise that his rookie season a slow one. He had to deal with injuries during the summer and training camp and he was having to learn a new position. He's still one of the youngest players on the team (only Gary Russell and Mendenhall are younger) considering that he just turned 22 two months ago. What he lacks in experience though he certainly makes up for with athleticism. He's by far the fast linebacker on the roster and by most accounts has already won the starting job on the dime defense. His ability to turn and run with a running back or tight end should be a thing of beauty this season. He also adds a serious pass rush threat any time he's on the field. If Timmons does win the starting 'Mack' job, it would set up an intesting situation next season and could go a long way to determining if Farrior is signed to another deal.

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The good news is that the Steelers seem to have two very capable guys battling for a spot that will have a huge impact on the defense. Whoever wins the job will rack up tackles and makes plays all over the field. In the end, I'd imagine that Timmons' potential will beat out Foote's experience. Foote will put up a fight but a team can't leave a first round pick on the bench for very long. He'll be the top backup at both inside backers and will likely still see plenty of playing time, especially on special teams. Thoughts? Has Foote started his last game? What should the Steelers do in 2009 if Timmons is a beast this year?

First and foremost, camp is only 7 days away. We've waited nearly seven months for Steelers' football to resume and it's almost here. As Hank Williams Jr would ask, are you ready for some football??

• James Farrior's going to be a free agent after this season and while both sides are saying that they are hopeful a deal can get done, he's aware of the Steelers' history of letting 30-something players walk. His agent claims that Farrior thinks he can play another four or five years and that he doesn't think he'll return to Pittsburgh if an extension isn't done before the start of the season.
  
• Dale Lolley has some encouraging news on the upcoming signing of both Sweed and Mendenhall. He thinks that Sweed's deal will be announced by Friday and Mendenhall's should be done by the weekend. There's also a very interesting note about a possible veteran signing/extension. Could it be Farrior or McFadden or Marvel Smith? Any other guesses?
• Here's a small preview of another camp battle that we'll roll out later today. Pro Football Weekly says that it's not a sure thing that Timmons will take Foote's starting job and even goes as far to say that they could both play vital role's in the defense this season. We'll dive into this potential battle in depth later today.
  
• I don't put any faith in this report but it's out there so here goes. Santonio Holmes is working on punt returns and could be the primary punt returner for the Steelers, according to Pro Football Weekly. They're also considering a host of running backs on kickoff returns including Mendenhall, Moore and Russell. Russell seems like an odd name to throw in the mix but if Davenport can return kicks, I guess Russell can too.

This always tends to happen and as Coach Tomlin says it's probably a 'necessary evil.' As tough as competition is in the NFL, tempers are going to flare up and fights will break out and that was the case yesterday as two separate bouts broke out while the Steelers were at their indoor practice facility. The participants were Willie Colon and Lawrence Timmons in the first showdown and Trai Essex and Arnold Harrison in the second. Neither scuffle amount to much and were over nearly as soon as they started. After practice Coach T talked about the scuffles:

"Practice broke out into a fight," said head coach Mike Tomlin afterwards. "You know, the competition is good, but the level of intensity has to be there if we want to get better.

"You have to understand professional etiquette; that's what we talked about after practice. These kinds of things have to happen as we develop our football team because it gives us a venue to address them, and why we do what it is that we do and how we approach what it is that we do.

"You don't like to see it happen, but it's a necessary evil. I'm glad that it happened, we addressed it and move on."

• In some actual football related news, Larry Foote sat out yesterday with a sore neck and that of course means that Timmons took all the reps the first group. I've always been a Foote fan but I really hope that Timmons can beat him out this preseason.
  
• Jim Wexell has been giving some pretty detailed OTA reports and some of the news encouraging and some it 'head-scratching' to say the least. I keep trying to move past the OL, but I just couldn't help myself when he mentioned that with the return of Marvel Smith yesterday, the starting lineup was Smith, Chris K, Mahan, Stapleton and Colon (Simmons isn't practicing yet). For what it's worth it looks like the starting five is different almost every day, but for what it's worth, when Mahan is there he runs with the first group. I did find one practice that had Essex running at guard though so it looks like they're trying to throw as much as they can against the wall and we'll see what sticks.
  
• There's also random notes of various players who have looked good at one time or another. Dallas Baker is a name that is in every report for either making a great catch or beating William Gay deep. Travis Williams (undrafted corner from East Carolina) is a youngster that Wexell thinks is worth keeping an eye on. He's also excited about Moore's versatility (compares to Kevin Faulk) and says the 10 pounds that Russell put on seem to help him quite a bit. Don't worry though Wexell also mentions how 'studly' Mendenhall looks at everything he's done so far. In addition to Simmons and Foote sitting out Ryan McBean, Deshea Townsend, Traivs Kirschke, Najeh Davenport, Willie Parker and Santonio Holmes were all sidelined with various bumps and bruises. It too early for someone to seriously worry about their job but if I was Davenport I don't think I'd let some minor bump/bruise keep me from the field considering all the praise we're hearing on the younger backs.
• In an earlier practice from last week, Timmons talks about LeBeau's new wrinkle for the dime defense that includes Timmons and Farrior as the inside backers. During that same practice they worked on punt returns with the returners going in this order: Reid, Moore, Holmes, Marion, Bloom, and Travis Williams. Wexell also mentions Tony Hills getting beaten badly by Silverback, although that's a heck of an assignment for the rookie. Anthony Smith is working at strong safety behind Tyrone Carter while Grant Mason is taking the second string reps at free safety behind Clark.

Thoughts about OTA's so far? Anyone run across any other news?

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I ran across a video (that you can watch here) that left me pretty perplexed. The Las Vegas PD was simulating crashes involving multiple vehicles and also accidents involving a pedestrian earlier this week, but for some reason they but a Ben Roethlisberger jersey on the pedestrian. I don't know what was more off setting, the idea that putting a jersey on a crash test dummy or the reporters skating around the mention of it.