hammb wrote:If the Steelers want to repeat as division champs they need a healthy, happy Hines Ward. That guy is phenomenal, and I'm hoping he holds out for the yaer!He is so underrated by many NFL fans its not even funny. He runs great routes, catches everything, and is the best blocking WR in the NFL. He gives it 100% on the field and is a good leader as well.
I'm not convinced how much Baltimore will really be improved this year. I suppose if 8-ball Jamal can stay outta prison this season they'll have him for most of the year. They added Mason, which is scary, but Boller is still going to be terrible. Their defense is always fantastic, but I just don't worry too much about any team being led by Kyle Boller.
Cincy could be vastly improved this year. Their offense with Chad Johnson & Rudi Johnson with an improving Carson Palmer could be deadly. They've also got a good, young OL, which is the key to any good offense. Their defense was awful last year, but drafting David Pollack will give an instant pass rush. That kid has a great motor, and was a fantastic pick, IMO.
I'm afraid it'll be Pittsburgh & Cincinnati duking it out this year for the division. I expect Baltimore to be a touch behind them, and Cleveland bringing up the rearI expect improvement on gamedays from the Browns, but I'm not yet convinced how much it will show up in the record. 6-10 should be a realistic goal, better than that is gravy.
can't argue with this assessment. I expect Cincinnati to be on Pittsburgh's heels the whole way, possibly getting a wild card spot. I also predict the browns will jump up and beat pittsburgh once this year.
Ward is easily my favorite player. I have a couple football cards and a shirt signed by him, as well as a football signed by the whole team from 2002. I also have one from '95 but no Hines yet on that one. I really can't blame him for holding out right now. He has put the team ahead of himself for years at the request of management and they still haven't ponied up. He's scheduled to make between 1 and 2 million dollars this year which puts him at about 40th among receivers. That's insane. This guy is easily top 5 in the league for all the reasons hammb mentioned. The management knows this and hines is a reasonable guy not represented by drew rosenhaus. I expect him to be in camp within a week.
