The most underrated Steeler, 2016



. .. and before then

The Pro Bowl nominations were announced yesterday, and while five Steelers made the team, one whom I think is deserving did not.

That is linebacker Lawrence Timmons, who leads the Steelers with 98 tackles, 65 of them solo.

His 98 total is about 30 more than the next person on the list, his 65 about 22 more than anyone else.

Why didn't Timmons make the roster? Probably because the defense on which he plays stinks. Yes, it has been better the last few weeks since the Steelers' schedule is so weak. Yet, we all know that even if they get into the playoffs, Tom Brady will pick them apart and the Pats' defense will make Roethlisberger look like he usually does in the postseason: inept [check out the postseason numbers on pro-football-reference.com]

In addition, Timmons is not one of those guys who blows his own horn. He is not a darling of the media, which is how people become stars.

He is just a damn good inside linebackers.

Timmons' resume

Timmons was drafted in the first round of the 2007 draft, and he became a starter shortly after that. He recorded 65 tackles in 2008 and 78 in 2009. He then became the Steelers' leader with 135 in 2010, and he has been one of the top tacklers since that time.

Timmons never misses a game, unlike a guy who tries to line up beside him, yet the Steelers are going to cut him after the season is over because he is making more than $10 million a year, $11 million guaranteed.

So, if you eliminate Jarvis Jones and Mike Mitchell from the defense, which they will for ineptitude, and James Harrison because he set the sack record, that would give the front office some cap room without killing Timmons. In fact, they could probably restructure Timmons' contract for a year.

Vince Williams is supposed to be his replacement, and he has been decent as he has had to replace Ryan Shazier on many occasions, including four games this year. However, Williams is a sixth rounder for a reason. He is just not a great regular-rotation guy.

Nevertheless, Timmons is the man, and he has some gas left in the tank. They should try to narrow down his contract a little and try to keep him around for another season.

Timmons will not make the Hall of Fame, nor will any of his defensive teammates. Nevertheless, he has made a major contribution to their defenses over ten years and was a member of the Super Bowl team that defeated the Cardinals.

Congratulations, and thank you, Lawrence. You have been a great role model for young players, unlike most of those players who are in the Pro Bowl.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Remembering the toughest loss I ever experienced in approximately a quarter-century of coaching football. George Pasierb was a great coaching adversary.

Image
R.I.P. George Pasierb, 1946-2020 Shade-Central City High School football coach Photo: Tribune-Democrat No high school football fan could ask for anything better than this. On a beautiful sunny, warm afternoon on Saturday, October 30, 1982, in Nanty Glory, Pa., the battle featured a clash of two undefeated titans of the Appalachian Conference.  One was the preseason unanimous favorite to win the title, the other a veritable surprise that season, one that had built an 8-0 record entering that game.  This battle lived up to the pre-game hype, ending in a one-point decision that was not certain until the final play of the game.  I thought of this because the coach of the powerful Shade-Central City High School Panthers, George Pasierb, passed away earlier this week. He coached the Panthers for 20 years, but his best team was arguably that 1982 team that battled the Blacklick Valley Vikings on that Saturday afternoon before more than 3,000 ebullient fans.  And, the one-po...
Read more

Why did Tennessee-Chattanooga hire trainer Tim Bream despite his role in the alcohol-induced death of Tim Piazza at a Penn State frat?

Image
… was a live-in advisor at the fraternity On paper, Tim Bream has an impressive resume. Actually, very impressive — up to a point. That seems to be when Bream’s life appears to careen out of control. Bream, who resigned as Penn State trainer in Feb.,  was a graduate of Penn State with a bachelor’s degree in physical education, specializing in athletic training. He then attended West Virginia as a grad assistant trainer, where he received a master’s degree in Physical Education with an emphasis on Sports Science. All of this information is from his bio on the Penn State athletic site. He then worked his way up the ladder impressively, working at Syracuse, Vanderbilt, and finally at the University of Richmond, where he was the Director of Sports Medicine and Head Athletic Trainer. Then he received his big break, being name as Assistant Athletic Trainer for the Chicago Bears in 1993, and four years later, Head Athletic Trainer. He was with the Bears for 19 years when inexplicably,...
Read more

Why did Mike Tomlin start hiring black coaches after 15 years?

Image
Brian Flores … hiring Flores probably rankled Goodell To place this into context, understand that the only reason that the Steelers hired Mike Tomlin 15 years ago is because he was black.  Why? He had never even been a coordinator anywhere, never in the NFL. The only reason that he was interviewed was because of the “Rooney Rule.” That rule is one named after the late Dan Rooney who led the effort to force every NFL team to interview at least one black coach when it had head coaching openings.  The Steelers had focused their coaching search after Bill Cowher left on Ron Rivera, then a defensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears. Their interview with Tomlin was a peremptory one, something to satisfy the smell test.  After all, why interview a guy who was just a defensive coach? Coordinators are the people who are hired for the big gig.  Tomlin, though, is a great talker, and he wooed Dan Rooney so much that he was hired for the position.  Which begs the q...
Read more