Bleacher Report - Articles by Rob Hughey

Pittsburgh Steelers Hope to Mine More Gold in Cajun Country

Rob Hughey — Thu, 07 May 2009 12:45:33 -0400

The recently celebrated six-time Super Bowl Champions are at it again. The Steelers used two of their three third round picks on Louisiana products. Wide Receiver Mike Wallace out of Mississippi and corner back Keenan Lewis from Oregon St. were recently added to the Steelers long and talented list of Cajun Country stars.

Pittsburgh has been fortunate enough to find some of the best talent from the state of Lousiana.

The long tradition started in 1970, when Pittsburgh used its first pick on a country boy out of Louisiana Tech named Terry Bradshaw. All Bradshaw did was guide the Steelers to four Super Bowls and a piece of immortality.

In thirteen NFL seasons Bradshaw was a three-time Pro-Bowler and two-time Super Bowl MVP. Bradshaw was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1989.

In the 1984, Pittsburgh used their first round selection on Louis Lipps. Lipps, a college star at Southern Mississippi, started his football as a boy in New Orleans, Louisiana. Lipps was a two-time Pro-Bowler, and 1984 Offensive Rookie of the Year.

He was known for being one of the best Steelers on some mediocre clubs of the 1980s. Lipps finished his career as the Steelers all-time leader in receiving yards at the time of his departure.

Pittsburgh chose QB Bubby Brister in the third round out of Northeast Louisiana University in 1986. Brister played seven seasons for the Steelers and was in and out of the starting lineup for most of them. Brister wasn't the most accomplished Steeler, but may be one of the most remembered.

Alan Faneca was drafted in the first round in 1998, and became the anchor to some accomplished Steeler fronts through the turn of the century. The eight-time Pro Bowler, who was born in New Orleans, played his college football at LSU. The five-time All-Pro helped lead the Steelers to a title in Super Bowl XL.

In 2003 the Steelers went after another Louisiana product in corner back Ike Taylor. Taylor was a fourth round choice from the University of Louisiana Lafayette.

The New Orleans native has become a two-time Super Bowl Champion. Taylor has eight career interceptions, but his most famous one might be that off of Matt Hasselbeck in Super Bowl XL. The pick snuffed out a potential go-ahead Seahawks drive.

Keenan Lewis, who worked out with Taylor before the draft, hopes to follow in the accomplished line of Cajun Steelers. Lewis' high school teammate, Wallace, looks to crack the line-up as a return man, and or a deep play threat.

If Either of these two players pan out it could help for another Super Bowl run. Regardless of the outcome, one thing is for sure, the Steelers have definitely fallen in love with talent from the Sugar State.

2009 AFC South Regular Season Predictions

Rob Hughey — Wed, 06 May 2009 13:39:10 -0400

The 2008 AFC South featured a power struggle at the top between perennial winners the Indianapolis Colts and the upstart Tennessee Titans. Some regard this is as the top division in the AFC. 2008 saw the Jacksonville Jaguars take a step back and the Houston Texans take a competitive step forward.

The defending champion Titans made little moves this off-season. Their biggest move might be the huge loss in DT Albert Haynesworth. They did manage to get Kerry Collins some help by bringing in WR Nate Washington from Pittsburgh. The Titans also grabbed WR Kenny Britt out of Rutgers.

The Jags beefed up a depleted offensive line by drafting highly touted tackles Eugene Monroe and Eben Britton. They finally said good by to WR Matt Jones and Jerry Porter. The Move cleared up roster space to sign aging veteran Torry Holt from the Rams. The Jags also locked up RB Maurice Jones-Drew to a long term deal

The Colts also said good-bye to perennial all-pro Marvin Harrison. Indy did manage to hang on to center Jeff Saturday, who flirted with becoming a free agent. Second round pick Fili Moala and late round selection Terrance Taylor should provide some good depth to an inconsistent defensive line.

This is a make or break year for Head Coach Gary Kubiak. He shored up the quarterback position by making Matt Schaub the starter. Sage Rosenfels was dealt to Minnesota for draft picks. Houston added more young stars on defensive by drafting LBs Brian Cushing and Connor Barwin with their first two picks.

AFC South

Indianapolis Colts 11-5

Houston Texans 9-7

Tennessee Titans 7-9

Jacksonville Jaguars 6-10

Move Over Pats, You Have Company In This Decade

Rob Hughey — Wed, 06 May 2009 10:41:52 -0400

First there was Lombardi's Packers of the 60s, then there was the Super Steelers of the 70s proceeded by the Montana-led 49ers of the 80s, and of course the larger than life Cowboys of the 90s.

All of these historic franchises have been defined by their ten-year window of excellence. All was assumed the Patriots of the '00s would be the first great edition or "Dynasty" of the twenty-first century.

But no so fast...the Pittsburgh Steelers are staking a claim to being the "The Team of the Decade," or at least crowding into the conversation.

Sure the Pats have amassed three Lombardi Trophies, one ahead of their counterparts from the Steel City. But Pittsburgh still has a year remaining in the aughts.

The Steelers haven't looked better coming off an impressive 12-4 campaign and mowing through the toughest regular season schedule since their predecessors did the same in 1979. Another Lombardi Trophy next year would also give them three out of four just as the Pats did in the early millennium.

Everyone also wants to make a big fuss about the 2007 Patriots becoming the first team to go undefeated in a regular season (16-0). People soon forgot about the 2004 Steelers who nearly accomplished that same feat (going 15-1).

The 15-1 mark was a then AFC record best, and one could argue that it could have been better if not for one disastrous September Day in Baltimore. However, both the Steelers and Patriots' historic seasons ended in disappointment.

Everyone likes to point to the AFC Championship game victories that New England hold over Pittsburgh, 24-17 in '01 and 41-27 in '04. Yes, both were big victories, but the Patriots have the "spy-gate" clouding those two monumental victories.

Another key stat is division titles, which the Pats hold six and the Steelers five. Pretty close considering the putrid AFC East the past decade. The Steelers have had to contend with the upstart Bengals and an always competitive Baltimore Ravens club.

The Steelers have also made this run with two different head coaches. This is something that only the Cowboys of the 1990s did when Jimmy Johnson was forced out for Barry Switzer.

The Mike Tomlin led Steelers show no signs of slowing down either, in inking key members to the past success. Ben Roethlisberger, Hines Ward, James Harrison, and Troy Polamalu all just recently signed long term deals.

OK, so maybe the Steelers might go down with the likes of the Dolphins of the early 70s, or the John Elway Broncos of the late 90s, but that's not too shabby either. But don't be surprised if there's an AFC title tilt in late January, which in my opinion would be the title game to settle this dynasty tug-of-war.

2009 AFC East Regular Season Predictions

Rob Hughey — Tue, 05 May 2009 21:57:23 -0400

The dust has barely settled from a fantastic 2008 season, but it's never to early to start throwing out predictions. So I figured I would toss around some of my own. Lets start in the AFC East. The East Plays the AFC South and the NFC South in the leagues rotating schedule.

In the East the consensus favorite is The New England Patriots who return two-time Super Bowl MVP Tom Brady. The Pats made some splashes in free agency by signing the ageless Fred Taylor along with journeymen receiver Joey Galloway.

The biggest move in the division might have been made by the Buffalo Bills, who signed controversial wide- receiver Terrell Owens. They also drafted play-makers on the defensive side of the ball in DE Aaron Maybin from Penn St. and CB Jarius Byrd from Oregon.

The New York Jets, and new Head Coach Rex Ryan, produced some fireworks of their own trading up to the 5th spot in the draft to take QB Mark Sanchez from USC. They used a day two draft pick on Big Ten sensation RB Shonn Greene from Iowa.

Also coming over from Baltimore, along with Ryan, are highly touted free agent LB Bart Scott and S Jim Leonard. The reigning champion Miami Dolphins might have had the quietest of any East Team.

They didn't make any big moves in free agency, but they did get better through the draft. The Fins addressed a weak secondary by taking CB Vontae Davis from Illinois in Round 1, and CB Sean Smith from Utah in Round Three. They're best pick may be QB Pat White from West Virginia who was brought in to run the "Wildcat" offense.

AFC East:

New England 11-5

Miami 9-7

N.Y. Jets 6-10

Buffalo 4-12