Preseason Preview: What I Want To See from the Steelers VS Washington

Week two of the NFL Preseason kicks off for the Steelers tonight, when they travel to Washington DC to take on the Redskins.

As the preseason goes, this is the second worst week of the preseason.  Week one, is exciting because, to be honest, it is the first football we have seen since the Super Bowl.

Week three is exciting because that is the real final dress rehearsal for the regular season, when starters normally play at least the first half.

Week four is when the soon to be cut players get to show why they shouldn't be, and week two is people trying to avoid first cuts.

Tonight, without Big Ben starting, the first question is not, who will be the starter, but how much playing time is Dennis Dixon going to get with the first team?

Everyone knows that Charlie Batch is a capable backup.  Dennis Dixon, entering his second season, should get some playing time with the first unit, IF, Mike Tomlin believes he is even close to competing with Batch for the No. 2 spot.

Willie Parker and Rashard Mendenhall are both going to dress for the game tonight.  It will be the first time since week four of 2008 since they were both available for the same game.

The real question is, will Isaac Redman get any playing time with the first unit? Mike Tomlin said last week he would like to see him against the "varsity" team. Does that mean that Redman may actually have a chance to take playing time from Parker or Mendenhall?

Hines Ward should not even dress for this game. I have no question on what he can do. I would like to see the combination of Holmes, Sweed and Wallace with the first team, against the Redskins first team.

The Offensive line.  The line did not play great last week, but there was not a lot that the first team even tried to do. It appeared to be straight up blocking, with nothing mixed in.

I am probably going to have to wait until next week, to see how they really do in a dress rehearsal.

As for the defense.

I would like to see how Ziggy Hood does with the first unit. I am not expecting to see him play as good as Aaron Smith, but I would like to see him against the Skins first team.

Not only that, I would love to see Sonny Harris, and how he is coming along against starters.

As for the Line backers, I stated last week that Keyaron Fox and Bruce Davis are two to watch in the future, and that they could be the next great Steelers LB's that you haven't heard of.

When it comes to the secondary, I need to see more of Keenan Lewis. There are reports that he may be cut. I would like to see him get more playing time before I am ready to throw in the Terrible Towel in on him.

I find it hard to believe that Pittsburgh is going to just cut a third round pick, even though they have done so before.

And last, but not least, I can't wait to see Daniel Sepulveda booting 50-yard punts again. I didn't think it would be possible to miss a punter, but he really makes a difference on special teams.