New Coaching, New Outlook - 01/02/04

• Soon after Cowher announced that everybody would return from his coaching staff, Tim Lewis and Kenny Jackson were let go. I considered this to be not just a great move but also one that was a must. Lewis, the Steelers defensive coordinator, never did understand the nuances of the 3-4 defense and how to use it properly. He also, according to Cowher, was a coach that was constantly in fear of being fired. That is no way to coach. Lewis’ downfall centered mainly on the fact that he tried using the 3-4 like it was a 4-3. Rushing four down lineman, the two ends being outside linebackers, was his version of a blitz. This, of course, did not work and being picked apart on third downs proved it. Soon after his firing Lewis was hired to coach the Giants defense. Look for him to be much more successful in New York which uses a true 4-3 defense. As for Jackson, his downfall was the lack of progress shown by the Steelers three young receivers, Plaxico Burress, Antwaan Randle El and Lee Mays. With a ton of talent, both Burress and Randle El both seemed to regress this year and Mays has shown nothing even resembling progress.
• The good news doesn’t stop with the removal of two coaches but also the moving on of some others to bigger and better jobs. Offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey left to take the head coaching job in Buffalo and took QB’s coach Tom Clements with him to run the offense. Congratulations to both of them and also good luck. They will need it when they see what kind of an offensive line they’ve inherited. Also leaving for a better opportunity is Willie Robinson, the Steelers secondary coach will be the new defensive coordinator in San Francisco. Say what you will about the porous Steelers secondary, Robinson can’t help the schemes in place and he did a nice job of getting both Deshea Townsend and Ike Taylor ready for major playing time. Don’t be too surprised if his name doesn’t come up in the future for head coaching jobs.
• Enough of who left, that’s the past, let’s look to the future and let me tell you, in my opinion, it looks pretty good. This may be the best staff that we’ve seen Bill Cowher put together. Starting on offense, the new coordinator will be former tight ends coach Ken Whisenhunt. He’s a guy who comes from a real interesting background, mainly with the Redskins and Falcons. The philosophy of that background is best summed up by a recent Whisenhunt quote, “run the ball, run the ball.” He learned from smash mouth football experts like Joe Gibbs and Dan Henning. Joining him as assistant head coach and still the team’s offensive line coach is Russ Grimm. Grimm is from the same school and is one of the best in the business. So good in fact that he was almost hired directly from offensive line coach to head coach of the Chicago Bears. He’ll be a head coach in this league before too long but we’re lucky to have him back for another year. Heck, he even got the woeful Oliver Ross playing halfway decently towards the end of the season. Replacing Clements as the QB coach will be former U Mass head coach Mark Whipple and he is a steal. He’s had nothing but success at the college level as a head coach and will bring more experience to the job than Clements did when he took the position. My hope is that he’ll be able to get something from Brian St. Pierre (something akin to what New England got from Tom Brady). My guess is that the Steelers won’t have him for too long either as college teams look for head coaches next year. The biggest surprise to me was the hiring of Bruce Arians as the new receivers coach. Arians is almost over qualified for this position as he has previously been offensive coordinator for the Browns for the last three years and was Peyton Manning’s first coordinator with the Colts. If he can’t get Plaxico to realize his enormous potential then nobody will. On the defensive side of the ball, we get to welcome back the great Dick Lebeau as the Steelers new (again) defensive coordinator. I could go on and on about how much I love this move but I’ll just say that he was the man behind the 3-4, zone blitz defense and was the defensive coordinator on Cowher’s only Super Bowl team. ‘Nuff said. Darren Perry will take over the duties of secondary coach after being the assistant secondary coach last year. His main job will be to prepare Troy Polamalu for a move into the starting lineup. All in all, I feel real good about this staff, both offensive and defensive. I can’t remember the last time I’ve been able to say that.
• One of the reasons I am very pleased with our new offensive coaches, sight unseen, is that if you look at the two teams in the Super Bowl you’ll know that a running game is important not only to move the offense but also to control the game and keep your defense off of the field. Ball control and strong defense is the quickest way back to the Super Bowl. You don’t need a franchise QB for that.
• Now that we know how the Steelers plan to operate on offense, it’s time to take a look how to make it happen. The two biggest needs will be a new right tackle and a ball-control style of running back. Even though Oliver Ross showed some progress towards the end of last season, he needs to be replaced and possibly released. The best options to replace him look to be from the draft. If big Shaun Andrews is available with the 11th pick I would look for the Steelers to go that way but it looks like Houston with the 10th pick is interested as well. After Andrews, the next tackles to look at will be likely second rounders Max Starks from Florida, Jacob Rogers from USC and Travelle Wharton from South Carolina. I believe if Andrews goes at #10 then Starks would look real good in the second round. He’s big (6-7, 350), mobile and had a good Senior Bowl. If the Steelers look for a running back with their first pick, the two names mentioned most are Kevin Jones and Stephen Jackson. Either one would be an excellent pick with lots of upside but Jackson from Oregon St. is more of a banger and makes more sense with what Whisenhunt will be doing with the offense. A combination of Jackson and Jerome Bettis (after he renegotiates his huge contract down) could wear down defenses all year long. I wouldn’t look for the Steelers do too much adding to these to positions through free agency, as they are low on big dollars to lure a major free agent their way. The draft, as deep as it is, should be more than sufficient.
• On defense, its not much of a secret that the Steelers will be looking to add a cornerback or two and another linebacker to possibly replace Jason Gildon. Now the Steelers have possible Gildon replacements on their roster (Alonzo Jackson and James Farrior) as well as Clark Haggans who could be resigned. Who knows? Maybe the Steelers will keep Gildon. I doubt it though. It does not look like the Steelers will use their first round pick on a linebacker after using a second on one last year. There are some good players in later rounds though and I would look for the Steelers to go in that direction. As for cornerback, the Steelers are lucky this year as it looks like this might be a deep draft’s deepest position. They could select one in the first round, second round or third round that all would be pretty close in talent. I could start mentioning names of quality corners but I think I would run out of space. Regardless, look for the draft to include at least one. As for free agency, the Steelers have already signed one, Terry Fair, who was a former first round pick. Fair is a high upside, no downside player for the Steelers as he is signed to a veteran’s minimum contract. He’s also a player that, if healthy again, could immediately challenge for a starting spot. I like his signing a lot and if he can stay on the field I believe he could make significant contributions as a nickel or dime corner. If he starts, he’s either all the way back physically or the Steelers are having major problems at corner.
• I’ll be doing a full first round mock draft real soon but I thought I would end this article with another one of my Steelers three round mock drafts. Hope you like it and I’ll be back soon!

Steelers Mock Draft - First 3 Rounds
1. Steven Jackson RB Oregon St.: With the Steelers likely missing out on the talented right tackle Shaun Andrews, Jackson becomes a solid pick here and definitely not a consolation prize. With speed, power and elusiveness, he’s a good all around back that can wear defenses down and then break a big one with one missed tackle. Could be the best Steelers running back in memory and that’s saying a lot.
2. Ricardo Colclough CB Tusculum: This small school corner plays with big league ability. He’s got good size (just under six foot) and runs in the 4.4’s and had a great showing during both the Senior Bowl practices and the game itself. He’s not afraid of contact and will be a great special teamer as well. If he’s still available in the second round, he’s a great pick here.
3. Jerricho Cotchery WR N.C. St.: A good sized (6-1 200) wide receiver will give the Steelers a little insurance in case Plaxico Burress bolts in free agency. He was Philip Rivers favorite target and while not having good speed, he’ll go out and get everything thrown his way (a noted deficiency for Burress). He plays more of Hines Ward’s type of game than Burress’s, as he is more physical and a better blocker.

Tim Campion