Kordell Stewart rumor?!?!

There is a rumor floating around league circles that the Steelers are interested in signing the enormous "growth" on Kordell Stewart's face...Supposedly, they are interested in promoting "it" to the active Super Bowl roster and they would like "it" to cover Larry Fitzgerald...

On a side note...the Queen himself...Kordell "I'm a little Gay" Stewart picked the Cardinals to beat his former team in the Super Bowl.

(Matt Leinart must have agreed to slap his ass Cowher style...)

It's Official: Lebeau NOT retiring after Super Bowl!

Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator put all retirement rumors to rest today in Tampa. He addressed the rumors in a team meeting and told his players that he will be returning for the 2009 season. Lebeau said, "the way they're playing, they're going to have to run me out of here."

Rumor has it...Lebeau to retire after Super Bowl

The rumor that Dick Lebeau is going to retire after the Super Bowl has been permeating through league circles. That rumor was confirmed today by Tim Ryan of Sirius NFL Radio.

Leabeau has put together an almost certain Hall of Fame career as a player and a coach. As a player, Lebeau was drafted in the 5th round of the 1959 draft by the Cleveland Browns. He was then cut by the Browns and signed as a rookie free agent by the Detroit Lions.

As a defensive back for the Lions, Lebeau had 62 career interceptions with 762 return yards and 3 touchdowns during his 14 year career. He also holds the NFL consecutive game appearances record for a cornerback with 171 games.

As a coach in the NFL, Lebeau has won 10 divisional championships, 5 AFC championships, and 1 Super Bowl.

Additionally, Lebeau is credited with inventing the zone blitz. Lebeau has been involved with the NFL for over half a century and is beloved among his Pittsburgh Steelers players and many of them call him "coach dad". It will be a sad day when he finally hangs it up and it may happen sooner than most of us would like.

Tomlin set the tone in training camp

On July 27, 2008, Mike Tomlin set the tone for the entire season. Displeased by Casey Hampton showing up to training camp overweight and out of shape, Tomlin promptly placed Hampton on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list. Hampton was only permitted to work out with the team, but was not permitted to practice.

Tomlin said, "he's not in any kind of shape to play football". When Tomlin was asked if he was concerned that Hampton would not be ready for the start of the season, he flatly answered with, "yes, I am ".

It was then that the team realized that they must respect the 2nd year head coach. Tomlin was not afraid to discipline the 3-time pro bowler...or anyone else. Defensive captain James Farrior said of the incident, "Doing this to a player of Casey's stature sends a message to everyone else -- nobody is safe." Hines Ward commented on the situation by saying, "It doesn't surprise me with Tomlin. It doesn't matter who you are with him. You have to perform."

Tomlin finished by saying, "I don't send messages, I take action."

Mike Tomlin promptly earned the respect of the team, even the veteran leaders. The Pittsburgh Steelers want to play hard for Mike Tomlin as well. Through all of his discipline and his tough demeanor, Tomlin as voted one of the top 5 NFL coaches to play for by the players. His leadership and the positive effect he has on the players is more evident than ever.

I believe Mike Tomlin deserves a lot of credit for the Steelers having the opportunity to try to win their 6th Super Bowl. His discipline is the key ingredient for what elevated the team to its full potential. Tomlin built this foundation in training camp and he hasn't looked back since.

Can Larry Fitzgerald be stopped?

With 3 post season games under his belt and 1 to come, Larry Fitzerald has already broken Jerry Rice's single post season receiving yardage record with a whopping 419 yards. Fitzgerald also became only the 3rd receiver in NFL history to have 3 touchdown catches in an NFL Championship Game. Did I mention that he has 5 consecutive 100 yard receiving games dating back to week 16 of the regular season?


Can Fitzgerald be stopped?

The answer is yes.

In fact, Fitzgerald had 9 games during the season that he was held under 100 yards, and he had less than 80 yards in 8 of those games. So, what's the secret?

Seven of the nine games that Fitzgerald was held under 100 yards came from defenses that finished the season ranked in the top 14 in the NFL. Four of the games that Fitzgerald was held under 100 yards came from teams that finished the season ranked 3, 5, 6, and 8. See a trend?

The only head scratcher on the list was the St. Louis Rams. The Rams featured the NFL's 28th ranked defense and 19th ranked passing defense. The Rams held Fitzerald under 100 yards twice this season and only allowed him to score 1 touchdown. Tye Hill and Fakhir Brown found a way to contain him and only allow him to catch 12 balls for 154 yards in the two meetings combined.

In the seven games that Fitzgerald piled up over 100 yards, five of the games came against defenses ranked 16, 25, 29, and 32 twice.

Fitzgerald only had 100 yard games against two teams with defenses ranked in the top 11. (109 yards against #7, Washington, and 101 yards against #11, New England.