Every team wants one (or should if they are run well), but it's a little late in the season to get new blood on the line, gifts from St. Nick not withstanding.

Last season, quite a few teams decided they needed to improve the line, and want after the postions in the draft with a vengence. So far, the Broncos and Panthers' choices have paid off. But it is a little early to grade things like this. Instead, it pays to look at the teams that have dominant lines now, because of what they have done in the last few years. The Giants have a great line, but it is the Titans that deserves high praise. A combination of drafting, free agent acquisition and coaching have been their foundation.

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That was a tough loss, a winnable game, and without bias, I think the better team lost.

The tipped pass touchdown is a fluke, the interception by ben at the end of the 1st half was brutal.

But the o-line offered solid pass protection, and the Steelers are still division leaders and have the 2nd best record in the AFC along with the Jets, Pats and Ravens.

This is still a team that can, and at a neutral site, probably should beat any team in the league. 7 games is an eternity, and there quite a few teams in worse shape.

 

Next up is a Chargers team even more desperate than the Colts.

That was a winnable game, not that the Steelers had a victory that was stolen, but the Giants didn't impose their will.

 

The positives: Moore comes to play. The rush defense was astounding, when you shutdown Brandon Jacobs, that is impressive. He is one of the best backs in the league. The secondary played well, especially since the pressure brought o Eli wasn't that great. Plaxico was a nonfactor.

The negatives: Ben held the ball too long and made poor reads, Colon struggled, Ward disappeared, Davenport brings nothing to the special teams' game. Injuries (hopeful they are not bad). The offense was crazy bipolar, looking unstoppable at points and then going into punt mode. The first half could have been a blowout, but the second half the steelers had a great chance to cement a lead. I said the secondary played well, but Boss always was open and there TEs could have been more troublesome if they didn't keep dropping passes

This is by no means an indepth examination of the centers, guards and tackles taken in 2008, rather a brief summary to see how things are shaping.

The Steelers were one (of many) teams thought to target the oline going into the draft as a pressing need. As most people on this site know, instead their early picks went to Mendy (now lost for the year) and Limas (not on the radar). While it is unfortunate Mendy is out for the season, it is too early to consider either pick in terms of good or bad. It's also too early to judge most anyone from the 2008 class. Still...

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http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/michael_lombardi/05/27/uncapped.strategy/index.html Interesting insights, and a bit more involved than the cookie cutter analysis of owners going wild with ceiling-less spending. There are huge unknowns approaching the game. Some of it is the nuts and bolts under the hood that many fans don't care about. But it will have an impact and maybe a large impact. Also, the comments regarding the draft were the first I had read on the subject. Yikes! It almost seems as if the owners have chosen chaos rahter than pay slight salary premiums.

http://admin.clevelandbrowns.com/article.php?id=8430

 

Here is a guy who went undrafted and a number of fans were hoping their respective teams would pick him up.

There was a time many thought he would be 1st or 2nd round talent (and this past year, who knows, the Steelers might have taken him with their first or second pick).

Unfortunately, he had an ankle injury, then tore the quad in his left leg, missed the last 6 games of his senior year and no teams took him in the draft.

When the Browns signed him, I thought they were getting a steal. True, it is unclear the extent of the injury and that recovery process. But when healthy, this guy can play, and he plays with an intensity. Another guy I would like to see the Steelers bring in for a look.

This was the nfldraftscout report on him-

2007: Started the team's first eight games at left offensive tackle, earning second-team All-Southeastern Conference honors, despite sitting out the final six contests after suffering a torn quadriceps muscle in his left leg vs. South Carolina…Also hampered early in the season by an ankle sprain that he suffered in the Florida clash…With Young in the lineup, the team averaged 147.6 yards per game rushing (130.43 average with him sidelined), 268.9 yards passing (256.1 ypg without Young) and 416.4 yards in total offense (386.57 ypg without Young)…In 495 offensive snaps that he appeared in, Young registered 58 knockdowns with eleven touchdown-resulting blocks and seven more blocks down field, leading SEC offensive linemen with an 86.38% grade for blocking consistency…He graded at least 90% in each of the Southern Mississippi, Arkansas State and Georgia contests, as he did not allow any quarterback sacks or pressures in any of the games he started…Led an offensive line that allowed only four quarterback sacks for the season. Had arthro shoulder surgery in Jan. '07. Started all 13 games at right tackle in '06. Played nine games, including last six in a row in '05. Appeared in three games, including Cotton Bowl vs. Texas A&M in '04. Redshirted in '03.

This guy was heralded as one of the better linemen out there just one year ago. Now that he has been cut, why aren't the steelers interested in him?

From what I read, it might be he got a big payday and his play dropped off, then again, it could be he clashed with the coaching style of turner.

I think the steelers benefit from bringing this guy in, and if the fire is still there, this is a team and coaching stuff- with a chance for redemption- that could get the most out of him again.

I read this in the latest issue and didn't realize p. king was behind it, surprisingly decent it also appears here: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/peter_king/04/22/lesssons.of.98/index.html It's an interesting opinion that if not for manning/leaf, Ward would be the guy most remembered from the draft. Also had this great Donahoe quote: "There is only one way to do this job," says Tom Donahoe, who drafted Ward as Pittsburgh's director of football operations at the time. "You have to put the tape on and watch play after play, to see if the guy can play football. Hines proved he could play without the ACL, and play at a high level, and run away from corners. He was a victim of what still plagues a lot of players 10 years later -- a good player, but [after the season] people start poking holes in him. "The process is not getting better," Donahoe adds. "There'd be fewer mistakes if the league drafted at the end of January and eliminated all those workouts and most of those player interviews, which are a waste because they're so scripted. Turn the tape on. Can the guy play or not?"