53-man Roster

Here's how I think it will shake out. And, I'm officially in love with Stefan Logan, even if he's only 5'3" or whatever.

First of all, I was e-mailing my buddy Joel this morning and we decided that the Steelers have a good problem when it comes to roster cuts: They have too many good players, so they need to make some tough decisions. At every position but offensive line, we have tons of quality depth. Hopefully, some guys clear waivers and we can sign them to the practice squad, but I wouldn't hold my breath.

Quarterbacks (3): Ben Roethlisberger, Charlie Batch, Dennis Dixon.

Mike Reilly will get cut and hopefully clear waivers, because I'm not 100% sold on Dixon. But, this is how I think it will play out.

Running Backs (6): Willie Parker, Rashard Mendenhall, Mewelde Moore, Issac Redman, Carey Davis, Stefan Logan.

Davis is the fullback, Shortbus hits the road. It's very possible that they cut Davis and keep Shortbus.

Wide Receiver (5): Hines Ward, Santonio Holmes, Limas Sweed, Shaun McDonald, Mike Wallace.

Given the fact that we've already released a few receivers, we might only keep four. But, I think Tomlin will want McDonald's veteran presence, even if he hasn't looked all that great thus far. I think he'll come around once the bullets start flying for real.

Tight End (3): Heath Miller, Matt Spaeth, David Johnson.

They love Johnson's blocking. No one else has really established themselves. They're going to keep three guys. The other two people that they will keep are pretty much no brainers.

Offensive Line (9): Trai Essex, Justin Hartwig, Max Starks, Chris Kemoeatu, Willie Colon, Doug Legursky, Jason Capizzi, Kraig Urbik, Tony Hills.

Scary, right? That's what we have to work with. DFS was placed on injured reserve today. Yay!

Defensive Line (6): Brett Keisel, Aaron Smith, Casey Hampton, Chris Hoke, Ziggy Hood, Travis Kirschke.

They may swap out Nick Eason for Kirschke because he's younger, but they only play three at a time in their base defense, so they can't keep seven because they have too many good linebackers.

Linebackers (9): James Harrison, James Farrior, LaMarr Woodley, Lawrence Timmons, Keyaron Fox, Donovan Woods, Andre Frazier, Arnold Harrison, Patrick Bailey.

Bailey is a special teams ace and was the 2008 Steelers Rookie of the Year. Harrison is a great back-up that can play all four positions. Frazier can back up James Harrison and Farrior, he's great on special teams, is really good in general, and will probably make the roster because this is the first time in a long time that the Steelers don't need to place him on IR. Woods is another great back-up that can play a lot of positions and is good on special teams. Let's just hope his hamstring injury doesn't linger.

Also, the Bruce Davis Experiment is over. They cut him today.

While we're here, I noticed something against the Panthers:

1. This is a different defense without James Harrison. It's still a great defense, but it's not a pressure defense. Harrison makes the line and Woodley better. We need him. He better be ready for the regular season.
2. Given that, anyone that thinks Harrison didn't deserve Defensive Player of the Year last year can suck it.

Defensive Backs (9): William Gay, Ike Taylor, Deshea Townsend, Keiwan Ratliff, Joe Burnett, Tyrone Carter, Troy Polamalu, Ryan Clark, Ryan Mundy.

I was convinced all day that Mundy wouldn't make the roster, but we need four safeties. Also, the Steelers did me a favor and released Anthony Madison. I think that he's going to come back to haunt us covering kicks for another team. He's a great special teams guy and we maybe should've kept him.

Special Teams (3): Greg Warren, Danny Vulva aka the Sepulverizer, Jeff Reed.

Any questions on that? Seems pretty straightforward.

We may keep ten linebackers and nine defensive backs, but that's how I think it will shake out.