Leftover Santonio Thoughts

Here are some leftover thoughts of mine on the Santonio Holmes trade as I read through all of the news pieces and opinion columns on the trade today:

· Everyone, and I mean everyone, agrees that the Steelers did not receive fair value for a player of Holmes’ caliber. However, it was reported that the Steelers were going to release Holmes and his problems anyway and thus I am sure other teams either knew this or suspected this, thus lowering the Steelers’ bargaining power.

· I said yesterday that this is a ploy by the Steelers to once again act as though they are above other NFL organizations. I said this in a derogatory manner. I actually like this about the Rooneys and the Steelers organization and believe they are one of the best owners in the business. I just think fans need to realize that winning and money come first, then character and perception. The Steelers feel as though they can win without Santonio, and they are probably right, so his antics were not worth putting up with.

· The Steelers cannot win, at least not immediately, without Roethlisberger, so do not expect to see him as the next one packing his bags. This does, hopefully, send a message to Ben that everyone is fair game to be shown the door if their conduct does not meet professional standards. There is some hypocrisy involved, but I would rather the Steelers value winning first, while doing their best to employ good citizens when possible.

· Ed Bouchette, who covers the Steelers inside and out, basically said on his Pittsburgh Post Gazette blog that many of his teammates would be happy to see Santonio leave. Never have I, or anyone I have talked with, ever heard that Holmes was not a well-liked teammate. He certainly seemed to get along with Roethlisberger and the two had a strong chemistry on the field. I will take Mr. Bouchette’s words as truth, however, as he is in and around the team almost every day. If Holmes was not liked inside the locker room and was behaving as poorly as he was off the field, it makes the trade much easier to understand.

· I said a little while back that the Steelers must have been lying to Randle El that he would be the #3 WR. They were not lying to him; they must have known all along that Santonio could be gone at any minute. Mike Wallace will step into Holmes’ #2 role and deep play threat immediately. Hopefully the production will not drop off too much, but the Steelers must look closely at receivers in the draft now to fill the void in production of a #3 WR and another home run threat that they lose with Wallace’s increased role.

· Finally, I am still a big critic of this trade. At the very least, the Steelers got absolutely minimal value for a very important player in their pass-happy system. They have significantly weakened their chances at a seventh Super Bowl this upcoming season, and more importantly, have taken a weapon away from their franchise quarterback. Maybe that was the intent, however, to show Ben Roethlisberger that they are done catering to him. It is time for Roethlisberger to take ownership of his team and his actions if there is going to be a longtime marriage between him and the Steelers’ organization.