Troy Polamalu's Younger Brother Might Be Good at Football, Too

Man, I didn't even know Troy had a younger brother. According to his Steelers.com profile, Troy only has one brother, Sakio, and three sisters. But then I remembered about Troy's name change.

Early in 2007, Troy changed his name from Troy Benjamin Aumua to Troy Aumua Polamalu. Polamalu was his mother's maiden name, who I believe Troy lived with after his parents divorced. They split right after Troy was born, so Troy wanted to honor his mother's side of the family. If his father's last name was Aumua, like the kid in the above video, perhaps the two Aumua's are half-brothers.

Gotta love blogger research and speculation.

Still, the kid mentions that Troy was a huge influence in his football life, so it appears that the two have some sort of relationship.

Most of this video is just Russell going through drills and sprints, and any useful information comes after the 6 minute mark. He's a senior in HS, so if Troy can quit getting concussions for the next 3-4 seasons, we could potentially see an all Aumua defensive backfield in Black and Gold.

He's gotta be better than Anthony Smith, right?

What's The Deal With Ryan Mundy?

Has anyone noticed the lower leg injury to rookie Ryan Mundy? The question comes from Anon on yesterday's ill-excuse for a post. See, all anonymous commenters are not horribly misguided.

The Trib took it serious, wondering if the injury was worse than originally thought. The Beaver County Times had a concerning little note, saying:


[Mundy] will miss at least the next two preseason games with a lower leg injury. He may even be a candidate for the season-ending injured reserve list.


The Post-Gazette finally chimed in with a blurb, calling the injury a high ankle sprain.

So, is it time to pay attention? I know Charlie Batch and his collarbone take precedence over a rook, but this could hurt our defensive backfield moreso than anyone cares to think. Last week, I was ready to anoint Mundy as Troy's perfect partner in the secondary. I hope this injury doesn't derail that sentiment.

Early reports have Mundy missing a few preseason games, but is that the extent of the injury? The Beaver County Times piece, which mentions season-ending IR as a possibility, had me the most worried. Take a look at our secondary. Troy still has yet to practice, and he did little more than stand around in a jersey at St. Vincent this weekend. Barring any freak accidents, Troy should be back soon, solidifying the Strong Safety position. Free Safety is a crap shoot, with perennial stopgap Ryan Clark poised to start. Backing him up is Anthony Smith and Tyrone Carter. Mundy, in my mind, was the cute pick to come outta nowhere either this season or in the very near future and team up with Troy to create a formidable backfield. Now, Clark, Smith and Carter aren't total scrubs, but there must be concern when your safeties are either injured or career backups.

Am I putting too much thought into this, especially concerning Mundy? I mean, he is a rook...a late-round rook with a history of injuries at that, and the starting job was in no way his. He got bumped...his leg was sore...and he might miss a few games. Or, the cheap shot did more damage than originally thought, Mundy loses out on an injury-filled rookie year and never reaches any of the potential that made the Steelers draft him in the first place (for reference, think of Willie Reid and how his rookie injuries have slowed what was expected to be a decent Steelers career at worst).

So yeah, Mundy's injury has yet to be completely revealed, and we're stuck with a time frame stretching from a few weeks to possibly an entire season. Should we be concerned, or are you confident with a Clark/Smith/Carter/Townsend(?) chorus line at FS?

Steelers Select Ryan Mundy

In what should be their final pick in this year's draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers selected S Ryan Mundy out of West Virginia.

The first words I saw when Googling Mundy was "injury prone."

Still, Guaranthony Smith might start hearing footsteps with this pick.

Mundy is originally from Wilkins Township, PA.

Barring some trade that gives us a 7th Round pick, the Steelers can close up shop early and start thinking about the upcoming season.

Rodney Harrison's Brain Sucks

In response to Anthony Smith's guaranteed win, Rodney Harrison said this:

I don't even know who the guy is, but obviously he has to be a young guy to come out and say something like that. We have a great deal of respect for Pittsburgh and everything they've done and everything they stand for. When I was a young guy, I never came off talking about things I really didn't know about -- especially a young guy that's been in the league probably a year or two. That's something that he's going to have to deal with, and we're going to do our talking on Sunday.

What that means is Harrison will be taking extra doses of steroids while looking at Smith's picture this week.

Looks like Harrison wasn't reading up on the league during his 4-game absence. All Smith's done is record 49 tackles (41 of 'em solo), an interception and forced fumble while primarily serving as a backup and replacement for Ryan Clark.

Hmmm. I guess that HGH affects your mind as much as it does your body.

Dick.

Anthony Smith Guarantees A Win, PSaMP Approves

Did you hear? Anthony Smith guaranteed a win over the Patriots! Oh my gosh! Bulletin board material! Why would he do that? He's going to motivate New England.

Gimme a break. I fully agree with everything Smith said, and actually don't mind that he said it. I know I'm not a football player, but I predicted a win as well. And who cares? This is football, not some pansy inter-team love fest.

Let's look at Smith's reasoning:

"I think we were facing great receivers last week too and we shut them
down,'' Smith said. "Those three guys, I don't think it gets much better than
Cincinnati's corps of receivers. We've already seen the best."

Smith added a little more lumber to the fire when he said New
England's receivers haven't been hit the way they will be hit on
Sunday.

"They said Baltimore was their most physical game but I think we
hit harder than Baltimore, so they haven't seen nothing like us yet.

"They should be worried about us. We never worry about receivers.
We're the ones doing the hitting. They have to run routes. We're attacking them,
they're not really attacking us."

Perfectly put. New England's receivers are constantly put on a pedestal my the MSM because they have Randy Moss, put up flashy numbers and have yet to be fully challenged. Remember, Pittsburgh's pass defense is #1 in the league right now. The Patriots haven't played us yet, so every pass defense they've seen is below Pittsburgh.

Sure, Baltimore fields a pretty good defense, and they were awfully physical against the Patriots. However, Baltimore was repeatedly owned by the Steelers on both sides of the ball in our meeting earlier this season. The Patriots played a Baltimore team that is obviously fed up with their head coach and isn't afraid to physically show that displeasure. That all came to a head when the Ravens stopped the Patriots on 4th and short, only to be emotionally exhausted by the timeout called just prior to the snap. Although Defensive Coordinator Rex Ryan called the timeout, you could see every Baltimore player glaring through Billick's soul. There's not that type of dissension in Pittsburgh. This defense is as solid as it gets.

Randy Moss, Wes Welker and Donte Stallworth have no idea what they're about to go through. Sure, all three have played against the Steelers before, but not on a team that was threatening to go undefeated. You can't simulate that kind of defensive motivation.

But back to Smith. I'm glad he stepped out and guaranteed a win. So many teams keep losing to the Patriots because they sit in awe of New England's magnificence rather than trust their own system. Most teams are already beat before the game begins because they know they only have a minute chance of winning. Anthony Smith is bringing the fight to the Patriots. There's no sitting back and quietly accepting a loss. Its time to get into their heads for once. He's doing it now and he'll do it on Sunday. Its not arrogance...its confidence.

12 straight teams haven't showed that much.

Monday Morning Chrysler New Yorker

For those of you (in Cincinnati) wondering, we are dey.

Actually, with this being the 7th consecutive win by the Steelers at Paul Brown Stadium (including the infamous Kimo/Palmer knee injury playoff game), the team should officially change their name to the Pittsburgh Deys. Pittsburgh fans have cheered the Steelers for 75 years, I can see another 75 years of rooting for the Deys.

Big divisional win for the Deys...I mean Steelers. Coming off the debacle in Denver, the team needed to prove that they could win on the road against a far inferior D. The 24-13 win appeared to prove that point.

Tale of the tape: Balanced, low-risk win. Underlying theme: Enough muscle to make Magnus Samuelsson proud.

Sure, the Denver game featured guys named Polamalu, Hampton and Ward, but they hardly showed up. The rust was gone for all of these players on Sunday.

There wasn't a bunch of highlight-worthy clips, just pure football dominance. Several of the post-game shows (CBS, Fox) merely mentioned the score, then moved to sexier highlights with tight scores and big plays. Go ahead, CBS and Fox, show those Peyton Manning or Brandon Jacobs highlights. We'll see how far those take their teams come late-December. Personally, I'll put my money in a D that still refuses to concede 100 yards to any particular rusher.

With that being said, we dissect.

Benji. Needs to be said...that movie ruled. It was on TV the other day and I watched it so hard. Cinematography at it's finest. On to our Benji...#7 made plays when he needed to against Cincy. Ben tried to go down field too much in Denver, and the risk/reward ratio is very slim with a D that houses Dre Bly. In Cincy, Ben toned down the passing attack, kept the deep ball to a minimum, and used his feet to extend plays. I don't care who you are, that recipe is perfect for Big Ben. The deep ball to San Antonio worked because Ben pulled the defender away with a solid pump fake. With that fake, the reward end of the risk/reward ratio skyrocketed. Ben kept the pump fake working all game, especially on Hines' first TD, when he was wide open in the front corner of the endzone. Mix all that with the beautiful escapability that caused the Bungles so many headaches, and Ben kept it simple enough to make the game manageable, then made the plays to put it away. 19/26 for 230 yards and 2 scores. The interception comes with the territory (escaping the pocket and forcing a play), so Ben ends with 4 out of 5 motorcycle helmets.

Heir-Bus. Saying this has gotten so old/cliche, but how did Willie Parker get no playing time at UNC and slip to free agency? I saw an interview with Art Rooney II, and he said that in today's NFL, a WR with John Stallworth's skill would not slip to the 4th round, as he did in '74. Apparently, Rooney was wrong, because no NFL team (aside from the Steelers) even knew who Willie Parker was when he left the Tar Heels. That allowed the team to pick up Parker without using a draft pick, and now every other team is left scratching their heads. 22 rushes for 126 yards and a score. Those are mind-boggling numbers for an undrafted free agent. The only active undrafted free agent RB with more career rushing yards than Fast Bill is Priest Holmes. Its only a matter of time before Willie overtakes Holmes. He deflated the Bengals with or without blockers in front of him, and his speed just destroyed any hope of a Cincinnati win. 5 of 5 motorcycle helmets for the Heir-Bus.

Dan Sepulveda. 1 punt. Little Sepulveda involvement means good things are happening. 4 of 5 helmets for the 37 yard punt.

Anthony Smith. Nothing but good things to say about Smith. Its unfortunate that Ryan Clark is battling spleen issues. However, games like this might ease the transition from Ryan Clark to Anthony Smith at Free Safety. Smith had 10 tackles, leading the team. Plus, when Anthony Smith hits you, you'll feel it. The dude was poppin' errbody that touched the ball, and even Ocho-Cinco was seen congratulating Smith on a solid hit. Troy Polamalu didn't want the team to get rid of Chris Hope after the Super Bowl, citing chemistry between the two safeties. Hopefully, Anthony Smith can keep playing at this level to create his own chemistry with #43. 5 of 5 motorcycle helmets for a well-executed game.

Everyone Else. Yeah, I usually only pick a few players to highlight, but the whole team played an outstanding game. Jeff Reed made the FG he was given, Casey Hampton was regularly spotted in the backfield disrupting plays, Hines had 2 TDs. James Harrison played an outstanding game, what with 5 tackles and the forced fumble/fumble recovery. All facets of the team were clicking, save for Special Teams coverage on ensuing kicks. I know Glenn Holt had 5 kickoff returns, but there is no reason that he should gain 141 return yards. As long as the entire team tightens up Special Teams coverage and gets more pressure on guys like Carson Palmer, then Pittsburgh needs to be looked at as an elite team in the AFC. None of that "Second Tier" bs behind Indy and New England. The Steelers are 5-2 and are looking good in the AFC North. 4 of 5 helmets for everyone else.

Bring on the Ravens and Jesus Lewis. I can't wait for the divisional lead to be even greater.

Polamalu Deal is Near

We can almost stop holding our breath.

Steel City Insider Jim Wexell is reporting that a contract with safety Troy Polamalu is nearing completion. JJ Cooper at the Fanhouse has the scoop. Ryan, over at Heels, Sox and Steelers, is also reporting on the news.

This could be huge. Troy is currently making less money than Ryan Clark, who is in danger of losing his job to 2nd-year safety Anthony Smith.

Wexell keeps saying to check back with the Insider, since an announcement could be made any time.

Also, a deal may be imminent with 2nd rounder and PSaMP fave LaMarr Woodley. However, the Steelers might delay one of the two announcements so that either one is not overshadowed.

And I needed an excuse to post this kickass pic. Troy should use the trophy to crush guys like Ed Reed, Brian Dawkins, Adrian Wilson, Dawan Landry and Kerry Rhodes, all guys that are ranked above Polamalu at the safety position, as written by Clark Judge. Judge could also get smacked.

Badass Mike Tomlin Uses Pencils, Not Pens

Spring practices are over, which means Mike Tomlin's first offseason camp has wrapped up. Since the drills are over, Tomlin needed to create a preliminary depth chart for his first team. Tomlin did just that, but stressed that the selections are written in pencil, to show that no starter's job is safe.

"No job is secure," Tomlin insisted. "This is not a security business and if they are looking for security, they need to find a new line of work."

Bad. Ass.

If any Steeler wants to see their name written in pen, they need to put forth the effort required, and prove to the new coach that they have what it takes. Tomlin isn't Coach Cowher. He's made that abundantly clear. He's a rookie coach who is trying to turn around a .500 team. But what about the Super Bowl? That's in the past, too. Pittsburgh is no longer the reigning champ, and needs to understand that they can be just as bad as the next team. Or just as good.

Those of us who have been around the Steelers long enough know that several players are sure-fire starters. Hines Ward, Ben Roethlisberger, Troy Polamalu, Jeff Reed and Willie Parker would really have to mess up to be replaced in the starting lineup. For the rest of the team, though, they only need to look at their names written in pencil to see that it can easily be erased.

Here's some of the starters that Tomlin has "penciled" in.

Chukky Okobi at Center. Although the team brought in free agent Sean Mahan, Okobi will open training camp as the first stringer.

Ryan Clark over Anthony Smith at Free Safety. Consensus says that Smith has a good shot at taking Clark's starting spot. PSaMP is a huge Anthony Smith fan. He's a big hitter who can make fans forget that Chris Hope was ever on the team.

Max Starks over Willie Colon at Right Tackle. Starks was the starter last year, but Colon has looked good. Starks is a beast, but needs to work to prove that he deserves to stay in the starting spot.

Deshea Townsend over Bryant McFadden at Right Cornerback. Townsend is getting older, but can still provide veteran leadership to our young CB corps. PSaMP is a McFadden supporter, but still admires the longevity of the undersized Townsend. Plus if the Steelers get rid of Deshea, Hines Ward is gonna have to look for a new roomie at training camp.

Ike Taylor over every other corner at Left Cornerback. Taylor is on Tomlin's good side, after Bill Cowher benched the former starter last year. Taylor needs to show that last year's struggles were a fluke, and he needs to live up to the big contract he signed.

Training camp starts next month, and these "starters" still need to work to have the pencil changed to pen. PSaMP likes Tomlin's message, and it appears that he has the team focused on coming into the season strong after last year's debacles.

He's young. He's a rookie. But Tomlin's showing that he isn't about to take any shit.