Steelers

13 Mar 09 -A day after the Steelers Owner Duane Wingate promised the Steelers were not done wheeling and dealing he made good on that prediction - the Steelers worked with the upstart Arizona Cardinals to move further up the draft board. The Steelers sent MLB Nick Barnett to the Cardinals to move up to the 4th spot in the draft from spot #9. They also acquired a 7th round pick the Cardinals 7th round pick in the transaction.

“It was a big price to pay. But we have our eyes on a player who probably wasn’t going to be there [at] the 9 and we wanted him. Plus have you seen the moves the Lions are making? We were already a good deal behind in talent, now we may be even further behind. So we’re just trying to keep the gap closable!”

“Besides,” Wingate added “Barnett was a stud for us last year and we’ll miss him. But with some new additions we had plenty of depth. He’ll get to go and finish his career starting for the Cardinals where he’ll be a beast for them. Here he was facing stiff competition.”

The question is… whom are the Steelers targeting. Word on the street is that the Steelers are looking to draft a franchise halfback to spell Thomas Jones and Willie Parker. McFadden, Slaton and Forte are all said to be on the Steelers radar. “Don’t forget about Johnson” warned Wingate.

Others have speculated that QB Matt Ryan or perhaps Joe Flacco is in their sites. Still others have penciled in world-class WR Crabtree, Dejean Jackson or Donald Royal as the Steelers target. The only sure bet seems to be that the Steelers are looking offense for this draft.

When asked if the Steelers would still continue to build their defense, Wingate responded, “Well if we wanted to, this is the draft to do it. Dorsey is a stud, along with a few other D-Linemen and LBs we’ve targeted. And the CBs aren’t bad either. But without tilting our hand too far our defense seems to be set for a while. It’s time for us to find some playmakers on the offensive side of the ball.”

“And let me add this, we’re still not done. We mentioned we would move down for the right possibility and we still will. We might move down one spot or 20, we’re open! If there’s a team out there looking to get into the top 5, we’ll entertain offers for the right package, no doubt about it.”

What’s next for the Steelers?

14 Mar 09 -Another day, another trade for the Steelers. A day after moving up to the 4th pick in the draft, the Steelers leveraged that pick to acquire Matt Schaub for the future of the QB position.

Steelers VP of Operations gave his thoughts, “We feel fortunate to land Schaub. Of all the young QBs in the league and entering the league, we had him as #2 on our board. We wanted him and the Packers were fortunate to have depth so we made the deal.”

The deal broke down like this:

Packers Get:

Steelers 1st (4th overall) from Cardinals in exchange for pick from Panthers
RG B. Williams, 86

Steelers Get:

Packers 1st, 8th overall
QB Matt Schaub

“So is a QB controversy brewing in Steeler Nation. We have Hasselbeck, he’s the present, Schaub’s the future” said Wingate. “That said, we would consider trades for either player at this point.” He continued. “One thing this season has taught me is to never say never. We’re still talking trade possibilities with other teams and don’t be surprised if we pull of another deal.”

30 Mar 09 - For those who have been waiting for more offense in Pittsburgh, it is coming. And it is coming in a lot of packages. For the running game, nearly 1700 yards and 20 touchdowns. D’Angelo Williams arrives from the Cowboys in a trade that landed the Cowboys the 8th overall selection and dropped the Steelers out of the 1st round entirely.

“We were in the catbird seat on that one. We had a great backfield, but wanted to upgrade and get a bit younger,” said Duane Wingate, Head of Football Operations, “It cost us the 8th overall but we also picked up another pick (the 4th rounder that used to belong to the Jets, #70 overall). Willie has been great for the franchise, but he’s got some mileage and is getting a bit older. Combine that with the expected rise of Rashard Mendenhall and we just felt we needed to address that situation.”

And address it they did; merely minutes after pulling off that deal they sent Willie from one side of the state to the other. He left to

play for the Eagles. From the Eagles came Center Jason Brown who is just 25 and allows the Steelers to start rebuilding depth on the Oline.

“Jason is going to be a star in this league. At 25 he’s rated an 88 and a starter. He’s going to be around for a long time and will compete w/Jamaal Jackson for the starting Center spot. Jamaal can back up both Tackle positions, so it really creates a lot of coverage for us. And for Willie it’s gets him back into the lineup regularly, here he was going to be challenged to get on the field with D’Angelo in town” explained Wingate.

Add these two on to the trade for QB Matt Schaub last week and the production starts to look a lot better. “With Schaub we get a guy who threw for 3,000 yards in just 11 games. He has thrown at 60% plus accuracy since he entered the league and he is loaded with offensive weapons. He’s only going to get better. In our system, where he can be more selective he will flourish. He will be just what we need.”

“At the end of the day the trade for D’Angelo gave us another pick in the deepest draft in NML history. We also got a back that is far better than any that are going to be available in this draft anywhere, even with the #1. The Cowboys once again get back into the top ten where they can put the finishing touches on a successful off-season.”

When asked if he knew who the Cowboys were targeting with that pick he threw in “I have it on good authority they are looking to bolster the defensive line. So if you see someone you’re targeting, you better trade up!”

When asked what’s left for the Steelers Wingate mentioned he is still ready to deal. “We have a lot of depth and plenty of picks. If someone out there is looking to shop an impact player, we’re willing to listen… even if it’s an offensive player.”