What an awesome beginning to the 2010 Offseason for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Let’s take a quick look at what’s been going on.

1) Sign Casey Hampton to a 3 yr deal worth 21 million

2) Franchise KICKER Jeff Reed

3) Negotiations with Ryan Clark failing.

4) Ravens trade for Anquan Boldin; sign Donte Stallworth

5) Bengals sign Matt Jones / interested in TO / Brandon Marshall

6) Browns resign Josh Cribbs.

7) Still nothing on Limas Sweed and his status for next season.

8) Free agency visits from Bodden, Arnaz Battle

9) Ben Roethlisberger AGAIN accused of sexual and drunken douchebaggery

So let’s take stock here. The reason why the Steelers missed the playoffs was the fact that they choked it away in their division. 4 losses to the other 3 teams including the disaster @ Cleveland. All of these teams are on track at improving at least on paper. The Steelers? Just business as usual.

The Browns have brought in Mike Holmgren and resigned Steeler killer, Josh Cribbs.

The Bengals are taking swift steps to improving a once potent passing game. They are in the hunt for the services of Brandon Marshall and a cheaper, potentially hungrier, Terrell Owens. Matt Jones adds to the group although we have no idea in what capacity. Still, it’s the effort.

Ditto the Ravens. You can’t ignore that they have gotten better. Ray Rice is a premier young talent who gives this defense fits. Joe Flacco might not be an elite QB in the league but his checkdowns and arm strength could give the Steelers fits for years to come. Add now, Anquan Boldin. Anquan Boldin is a physical established weapon who can carry a team.

A thing about Boldin is that he can catch the ball anywhere on the field. This is a huge difference from Mason, who basically has his 5 yard window somewhere about 12 yards from the LOS and that’s where he'll be all game. That makes him much easier to control. Boldin can line up anywhere; he can take a 6 yard slant and put Farrior on the ground and keep running. They have not had that dimension ever in Baltimore. He’s a willing blocker and you can believe he’d drink the Ray Lewis Kool-Aid as soon as he dons the purple jersey.

The acquisition of Boldin and deep threat, Stallworth shows the Ratbirds are taking steps to become a very complete football team. This isn’t the same team trotting out Mason, Heap and McGahee that was easy for Dick Lebeau to game plan against. Now add Rice, Boldin, Stallworth and that 260 pound fullback and a great offensive line. They had the talent last year to just line up and beat us.

The Steelers have a defensive coordinator that’s leaving within a couple years, a very very old d-line, and a suspect secondary. The rest of the division is pushing the Steelers to make some moves to stay dominant. If we're going to let Clark walk, The Steelers must address the secondary with multiple picks. Otherwise that 2-4 record in the division might be the same.

Hampton does help but he’s not exactly the Casey Hampton from 2005 either. He’s a two down player making 7 million a season. He offers nothing rushing the passer or collapsing the pocket. He is still out of shape. Is he going to motivated after receiving another contract year? Or will he continue to decline as all players at that age do?

Moves are needed to improve this defense whether it be trading up in the draft for Eric Berry or Rolando McLain or signing someone better than the target bin. This means pushing to sign a Leigh Bodden or going after a Richard Marshall. This means not relying on a healthy albeit injury prone, Troy Polamalu returning to the lineup. This mean’s not trotting out excrement like Tyrone Carter or Ryan Mundy. This team can not stand pat with the aging defense and random tenders to youngsters who can’t seem to overtake the veterans.

We just can’t ‘trot James Farrior, Brett Keisel and co out there for the next 3 years (as is clearly the plan based on extensions) and expect to dominate the division as it has been in years past. We are a team that missed the playoffs, and we are re-signing aging players who are on the downside of their careers to INCREASES in salary to stay and play poorer each year. I mean, for fucks sake, James Farrior can’t even tackle a 200 lb running back anymore

Now, the other caveat to this is now the eruption of yet ANOTHER offseason with a Ben Roethlisberger controversy. Sure, he might be innocent but the kid can’t behave himself and has proven to be a constant offseason distraction. As the highest paid player EVER for the 6 time superbowl champions, Roethlisberger needs to get a clue. Hang out with different people. Go to some finer establishments and stop acting like a 21 year old college senior. The time has come and gone and you need to realize that as have all of us in our late 20s have.

The Steelers might feel pressure to shift some of the focus away from Roeth by making some sort of splash. Still, Ben just can’t seem to behave himself and is a CONSTANT offseason distraction if nothing else. In fact, who knows what’s going to happen next offseason. Or what happens if the bad Ben returns to regular season form with 20 ints. You think the Steeler brass will be standing pat with consistent nonsense at 15+ million a year? It’s a bit concerning. Add the other issues of terrible line play, Limas Sweed, no viable backup to Mendenhall. It’s not a rosy time right now. With the holes in play, it’s not going to take one draft class to fix it. Furthermore, since the Steelers don’t believe in playing youth, how long will these picks are rotting on the bench. Is signing Arnaz Battle really a reason to piss away the obvious skill of Sweed?

The good thing is that the offseason is just starting and there is plenty that can be done. At this time though, this is probably as bad as it gets. Look around the league. Detroit gives up nothing to get a talent young player in Chris Houston. Jets give a 3^rd for Antonio Cromartie – not the best corner in the league would easily be our #2. Yet what will we do about that secondary of ours? Naturally resign Townsend, Carter and take some young players in the draft and watch them sit. Now obviously, the sky isn’t falling but it sure as shit might be. Still though, can we please try a more progressive approach than keeping the good guys around? It may not be broke, but it sure as fuck is aging and becoming much more inefficient.

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