FibSeq13478
On the Game Day Roster
- Joined
- Jun 20, 2007
- Messages
- 268
- Reaction score
- 102
Yeah, I think Pittsburgh is flying under the radar right now, if that's possible for a defending champion. Hines Ward is a consummate professional. Besides being a consistent 1000 yard receiver he's fundamentally sound, from getting open for a first down to being one of the best WR run blockers in the game. Santonio Holmes has gone over 800 yards in each of his first three seasons and should only get better. Add Sweed and McDonald, along with TE Heath Miller and they'll be tough to cover.
In addition their offensive line was hurt badly by injuries last year so they should be improved in pass protection as well. If that's not enough they also get the addition of RB Rashard Mendenhall who only played a couple of games last year before going on IR.
This offense is probably better than the one Pittsburgh had in Roethlisberger's rookie year with Ward, Burress and Randle El as his receivers, and that team went 15-1. They still have one of the best if not the best defense in the NFL; put it together with what their offense appears to be capable of and they could be in line for another very big season.
IMO, it really doesn't matter how good a superbowl team (winning team as well as losing team) looks in preseason or early season because their chance of repeat performance appears to always hinge on how well these teams deal with the numerous injuries they invariably face by mid season due to toll on their bodies and the short off season to recover from. It took a masterful coaching job by BB to get through the 2004 season with record number of injuries to repeat as SB champs (Troy Brown and Earthwind as CBs!).