What about Bob?

(Photo from Steelers.com)

Yesterday, the Steelers made their long-awaited trip to the White House (at least most of them did) and helped President Obama make care packages for the troops overseas. Here is some video of the event.

Obama is a Chicago Bears fan, but acknowledged he was rooting for the Steelers during the Super Bowl. Steelers president Dan Rooney campaigned for Obama in Pennsylvania, and two months ago Obama named him the ambassador to Ireland.

-Chris Mascaro

Do you think anyone has ever declined an invitation to the White House twice?

Steelers' linebacker James Harrison, the NFL defensive player of the year, told WTAE in Pittsburgh that he will not attend the customary gathering of the president and the Super Bowl champs scheduled for Thursday. Harrison, who described the invite as "no big deal" also skipped the Steelers' 2006 visit to the White House after winning Super Bowl XL.

(The first championship team Obama hosted at the White House was the UNC men's basketball team [pictured right], who he famously worked out with during the campaign and also picked in his bracket.)

Said Harrison: "This is how I feel — if you want to see the Pittsburgh Steelers, invite us when we don't win the Super Bowl. As far as I'm concerned, he [Obama] would've invited Arizona if they had won."

Of course he would have James, that's the whole point of the visit.

Harrison, if you remember, made this play right before halftime of the big game.

-Chris Mascaro

(AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

The man with the longest play in Super Bowl history just got paid — big time.

According to ESPN.com's John Clayton, Pittsburgh linebacker James Harrison signed a six year, $51.175 million deal on Monday that includes $20 million in bonuses.

Harrison, 30, went undrafted out of Kent State, but has transformed himself into one of the premiere linebackers in the NFL. Last season he won Defensive Player of the Year honors after racking up 101 tackles, 16 sacks and seven forced fumbles.

In the Super Bowl, he returned an interception 100 yards as the first half expired to give the Steelers a 17-7 lead in a game they eventually won, 27-23.

-Chris Mascaro

Not even two months after celebrating the franchise's record-setting sixth Super Bowl title, Dan Rooney has been nominated as the United States ambassador to Ireland.

Rooney, a lifelong Republican, was a big supporter of Barack Obama during the Presidential campaign.

The pride of Hofstra signed a one-year deal worth $2.2 million to remain with the Stillers in 2009.

Colon, a fourth-year tackle, was a fourth-round pick in 2006.

(Blogger's note: I went to junior high with a kid named Willie Colon. No relation. I'm pretty sure I once beat him in a race at the Highlands (White Plains) School playground. Not that this has anything to do with anything.)

The Stillers' right tackle, who is believed to be the first former Hofstra player to win a Super Bowl (someone please correct me if I'm wrong on that), has been given a contract tender by the Stillers that would give the team a first-round pick if another team were to sign him to a contract.

Translation: Colon will continue as the Stillers' starter at right tackle.

We did a piece on Colon for Chicago Norm's award-winning section on Super Bowl Sunday.

The Stillers' Super Bowl MVP, who caught the winning touchdown in a breathtaking comeback win over the Cardinals, will have to fork over $10,000 to the NFL for what happened after the catch.
Several seconds after making a brilliant catch in the right corner of the endzone, and barely getting his toes down to stay in bounds, Holmes did his best imitation of LeBron James and tossed the ball in the air the way James does chalk dust.

Holmes was not penalized on the play for using the ball as a prop. Had officials seen it, he would have drawn a 15-yard penalty that would have been assessed on the Steelers' ensuing kickoff. The Cardinals wound up falling short on their next possession, when Kurt Warner fumbled.

That fumble also created some controversy, because the replay officials did not call for a referee's review on the field. The play was a fumble, but NFL director of officiating Mike Pereira admitted several days after the game that the play should have been looked at on the field.

I still have trouble wrapping my arms around the fact that this man looks like this and plays in the NFL.

But it's Steelers kicker Jeff Reed, and he's in a bit of trouble these days.

According to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Reed was arrested early Saturday morning and charged with criminal mischief and disorderly conduct after throwing a tantrum over an empty paper towel machine at a Westmoreland County convenience store.

According tot he paper, Reed, 29, went in to the men's restroom at Sheetz on U.S. Route 22 in New Alexandria borough shortly before 3 a.m. After discovering that the paper towel dispenser in the bathroom was empty, Reed started loudly banging from inside the bathroom, state police said. He damaged the towel dispenser.

When Reed left the bathroom, he spoke to a Sheetz employee using loud and profane language. He continued to use profane language outside the store, police said.

...

the word that keeps popping to mind: Dude!!!

(AP photo)

Myron Cope, the legendary Pittsburgh Steelers announcer, has been gone for almost a year now, but his memory remains through his invention of the Terrible Towel.

On Inside the NFL last night, there was a segment about what the towel means to the Allegheny Valley School, a school/home for people with special needs. In 1996 Cope gave the AVS the trademark to the towel, meaning that all the royalties would go directly to the school. Since then, the AVS has received more than $2.5 million.

Why the AVS? Cope's son, Danny, is mentally disabled and spent many years living there. Elizabeth Cope, Myron's daughter, appeared on Inside the NFL with her brother last night. Needless to say, it was a heartwarming piece.

Wave your towels proudly, Pittsburgh.

*To make a donation to the AVS, visit its website here.

**If anyone can find the video of the segment, please post it below.

(Photo by Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press)

... but not on the appendage you might think.

Ward suffered a sprained MCL of his right knee in the AFC Championship Game, but it wasn't the knee he had fixed. It was a previous problem with his shoulder. An arthroscopic procedure. He'll be fine.

The knee? No surgery required. The MCL is considered the "best" knee injury of all, since it usually will heal on its own.

The Steelers certainly hope not.

Holmes has gotten into a bit of trouble over the years, most recently in October, when he was picked up for possession of marijuana in downtown Pittsburgh. Holmes also admitted this week he sold drugs while growing up in rural south Florida.

Looks like Mike Tomlin has done a good job of getting inside Holmes' head and straightening him out.

But let's see what happens moving forward.

It was the subject for my column in today's newspaper.

Even after his MVP performance, Stillers receiver Santonio Holmes hasn't completely seeped into the consciousness of our sporting public.

Just a couple minutes ago on the NFL network, analyst Jim Mora, the former Saints and Colts coach, referred to the Stillers' MVP as Sanantonio Holmes.

... I'd have taken Ben Roethlisberger over Santonio Holmes.

Not taking anything away from Holmes' 9-catch, 131-yard, 1 touchdown performance. He was brilliant, no question.

I just thought Roethlisberger was more of a factor from the start of the game to the end. And while Holmes did an unbelievable job getting both feet (toes, actually) in bounds on the game-winning catch, the fact that Roethlisberger threw the ball in a spot where only Holmes could catch it - and not any of the three defenders around him - was as much a part of that play as Holmes' tip-toe dance to stay in bounds.

Roethlisberger was mum about a report by Mike Florio on Profootballtalk.com that he recently underwent an X-ray on his back.

At a press briefing earlier today, Gregg Rosenthal of NBCSports.com and Rotoworld.com asked Roethlisberger if he wanted to comment on the report. He replied: "Nope."

Rosenthal asked if the report was true.

"Didn’t you just ask me if I was going to comment on that?” Roethlisberger replied.

Roethlisberger is not listed on the injury report, and is expected to play on Sunday.

Tampa -

The Stillers' hard-hitting safety credits the Giants coach for helping to jump-start a career that now sees him in the Super Bowl.

Before joining the Steelers, he played two seasons for the Washington Redskins and before that, he began his career with the Giants. Clark was signed as an undrafted free agent in 2002, when he played in six games and spent the majority of the season on the practice squad. The following year, Clark played in all 16 games with four starts.

Coughlin arrived in 2004, reviewed tape of the previous season and released Clark on
May 27, two months before training camp began.

“To be cut and hear Tom Coughlin say, ‘Maybe you can play in this league – you should really focus on being a special teams player’ - it kind of lit a fire under me,” Clark said. “That was his honest opinion and honest assessment of who I was. I wasn’t angry at all. I actually took heed of it and when I went to camp with the Washington Redskins, I tried to excel at that and play really hard on kickoffs, block really hard on the punt returns. That’s probably some of the most sound and best advice that I got, because doing those things on special teams let people know that I was a tough guy and maybe we should give this guy a shot – he can run a little bit. That was what compelled me to get my opportunity to start.”

Tampa -

The last time Polamalu faced the Cardinals, he spent four hours the morning of the game praying at a monastery outside Phoenix.

The services began at 3 a.m. and lasted until 7 a.m. The game was scheduled for 2:30 p.m. that afternoon.

The Steelers lost, 21-14, but Polamalu had a terrific game.

As always, a fresh and unique insight from NFL.com's Thomas George, who invariably digs out fascinating nuggets about his subjects.

George's lede:

TAMPA, Fla. -- The last time Troy Polamalu confronted the Arizona Cardinals, his immediate pregame preparation was astonishing. Polamalu, the Pittsburgh Steelers' Pro Bowl safety, describes it simply as divine.

The Steelers were in Phoenix on Sept. 30, 2007 for a regular-season bout against the Cardinals. Polamalu rested as he was driven into the early morning for more than an hour to Florence, Ariz. Polamalu is a Greek Orthodox Christian. He journeyed to meet what he calls his Abbot Father Ephraim and to worship in a monastery. The services began at 3 a.m. MST and lasted until nearly 7 a.m MST. Then the trek back to Phoenix.

Then kickoff at 2:15 p.m MST.

It's easy when comparing running games to simply look at gross yardage amassed, and it should come as no surprise that the Steelers won that battle in the regular season, 1690-1178.

Arizona relied mostly on the pass in the regular season and rushed a league-low 340 times. Edgerrin James began the season as the starter and had a fairly productive first three games (248 yards on 62 carries - exactly four yards per carry). But after struggling the next three games, he was put on the shelf in favor of Tim Hightower (which may have been his saving grace ... more on that later).

Hightower became popular in the fantasy football circles with his goal line prowess and he finished with 10 touchdowns, but he averaged just 2.8 yards per carry on the season and ran for more than 37 yards in a game just once (he had 109 against a porous St. Louis defense).

Arguably the most improbable thing the Cardinals have done this postseason is maintain a consistent running game. James and Hightower have each averaged 3.9 yards per carry, and the Arizona line has opened some nice holes.

James not having to carry the load all season has seemed to give his legs some new life. Including the postseason, James has well over 3,000 carries, which can obviously take a big toll on a man's body. He has found the Fountain of Youth in the playoffs, but I think that ends against the league's second best rush defense.

So you'll get my answer now: I think the Steelers have the more potent rushing attack. But not by much.

Willie Parker missed five games this season with injury and is clearly the most talented back playing on Sunday. But Parker caught just three passes all season and one in the playoffs, so I think the most valuable back Pittsburgh has is Mewelde Moore.

He had 40 catches on the season, and serves as a crucial safety valve for a guy like Ben Roethlisberger, who is constantly running for his life.

Pittsburgh (generally thought of as a power rush team, though they had 46 more passes than runs this season) averaged just 3.7 yards per carry, and the big-play capability Parker showed with his Super Bowl record 75-yard touchdown run wasn't really there this season. Both he and Moore had four rushes of 20+ yards, but their longs were 34 and 32 yards, respectively. So they're a better rushing team than Arizona, but don't expect them to have a bonanza in Tampa.

The one nice thing in Pittsburgh's favor is that their backs had zero fumbles on the season (Roethlisberger had four and lost two), which is quite a remarkable feat. The Cardinals led the league in fumble recoveries with 17.

(Photos by Mark Humphrey [Parker] and Gail Burton [James] / Associated Press

Back with another installment of Super Bowl Fun Facts. Let's get some input from you readers to see if you can stump the "What about Bob?" bloggers.

1. How many Super Bowl-winning coaches are active?

2. Who has the most career rushing yards in Super Bowl history? (Hint: He also had the most attempts, and played in four Super Bowls.)

3. Ten teams have advanced to the Super Bowl the year after winning it. Of those 10, only three have lost. Name them.

And here are two Mike Francesa favorites to finish up:

4. Who is the only player to play in a Super Bowl in three different decades? (Hint: 60s, 70s and 80s.)

5. What four universities have had a Super Bowl winning quarterback and a President of the United States?

Continue reading "Super Bowl Fun Facts #5" »

Before the big live chat at 2 p.m., here are some more Fun Facts to stew over...

1. Who are the only two players to win back-to-back Super Bowl MVPs (hint: both are quarterbacks)?

2. Who were the only co-Super Bowl MVPs?

3. Who has the longest reception in Super Bowl history? How long was it?

4. What stadium has hosted the most Super Bowls? How many?

This last one is a Mike Francesa favorite...

5. Who caught Johnny Unitas' last Super Bowl pass?

(AP Photo)

Continue reading "Super Bowl Fun Facts #3" »

I could understand Anquan Boldin complaining about his contract and lack of playing time early in the season. But when your team just earned its first-ever trip to the Super Bowl, it's probably not the right time.

Boldin tried to bolt out of the locker room yesterday without speaking to the media, but a few reporters (including one from the San Francisco Chronicle) got him before he left.

When asked if he wanted to stay in Arizona, Boldin responded: "Next question."

I believe there is a jealousy issue too, as his teammate has become the best receiver in football during this postseason run. But Boldin must get over it for the good of the team.

(Also, in addition to the Whisenhunt thing, I have a feeling we're going to be hearing a lot about the fact that the game will be played in the Eastern Time Zone ... just a hunch.)

***UPDATE***: Turns out Boldin is still yapping about his argument on the sidelines with offensive coordinator Todd Haley.

(Photo by Brian Bahr, Getty Images)

The city of Pittsburgh on the morning of the AFC Championship Game after a fresh coat of snow.

It's all Stillers all the time.

(photo from Flickr.com)

Not a great story to come out three days before your team will host the AFC Championship game, but this Outside the Lines piece by Mike Fish of ESPN.com about Dr. Richard Rydze, a former member of the Steelers' medical staff who parted ways with the team in the summer of 2007 after 22 seasons with the club, is a very interesting one.

Rydze and the Steelers severed ties about four months after it was discovered that he had used his credit card to purchase $150,000 worth of HGH (Human Growth Hormone) and testosterone from a Florida pharmacy in 2006. HGH, of course, is banned by the NFL.

Rydze said that he regularly used HGH on patients with tendon injuries as a way to help them heal faster, but insisted that he never gave it to any of the Steelers.

"It does seem to make you heal better, quicker. So we were using it with various orthopedic patients," Rydze told ESPN. "It was never done in athletes. It was never with any Steelers."

The story delves much deeper into Rydze's feelings on HGH, other athletes he may have treated with it, and how it relates to the Steelers.

How often do you see a player blossomg into a star at age 30?

How about like almost never?

Harrison is the exception.

Here's a column I wrote from today's newpaper on the Stillers' star linebacker, who became the first player in NFL history to win Defensive Player of the Year honors after getting into the league as an undrafted free agent.

Turns out the injury Ben Roethlisberger suffered in Week 17 against Cleveland was more serious than first reported. Here's the story from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Roethlisberger was 17 of 26 passing for 181 yards and a TD in Sunday's 35-24 win over San Diego.

Time to have some fun with BBiB! and Black N' Gold. Big Ben Roethlisberger was caught stretching at practice today before the Steelers play the Chargers in the playoffs this weekend.

Or was he? You decide.

(AP Photo)

Chicago Norm forgot to put this one on today's birthday list.

Happy 36th to the Immaculate Reception, that most famous of all playoff "catches" that Franco Harris made that, to this day, John Madden insists was not a completion. Stillers fans will never forget this moment, will they Black N Gold?

(fyi: We had a video from YouTube posted of the play, but we were gently reminded from our neighborhood NFL executive that posting such videos is a no-no. We apologize for our error. The NFL has trademark rights and all that stuff, so only they can show it. I suppose you can find it on NFL.com or Profootballhalloffame.com)

Or perhaps Bob's Blitz, because he probably doesn't give a hoot if he does something that's forbidden by the NFL. Hey, it's all about page views! (Memo to Blitz: Don't screw with the NFL. They'll squash you like a bug.)

... I am not up in arms about the controversial instant replay decision near the end of the Ravens-Steelers game in Baltimore on Sunday.

With 43 seconds left in Pittsburgh's 13-9 win, Ben Roethlisberger threw what appeared to be a touchdown pass to wide receiver Santonio Holmes. Referee Walt Coleman's crew ruled, however, that the ball had not crossed the plane of the goal line when Holmes established possession.

A booth review was called because the play occurred inside the last two minutes, and Coleman overturned the call and ruled it a touchdown.

"Walt Coleman determined via high-def video review that the receiver had possession and two feet down with the ball in the goal line, meaning it broke the plane,'' an NFL spokesman told the Pittsburgh Post-Dispatch in an e-mail.

The spokesman said Mike Pereira, the NFL's vice president of officiating, backed the Coleman ruling after replay.

Coleman explained after the game that Holmes "had two feet down and completed the catch with control of the ball breaking the plane of the goal line."

Was there absolutely, positively, unequivocally indisputable evidence that the initial call should have been overturned. It's debatable, but Coleman, who had the best replay view of anyone, thought that to be the case.

At the very least, the Steelers would have had a chance to kick a field goal to send the game into overtime - or take the risk of going for the win by trying to score from inches away - had the initial call been upheld. But if Coleman's view of the replay prompted him to overturn the call, I just don't have a problem with it.

Sorry I'm not angrier over this one. It would have made for a more compelling argument. But I just didn't see it.

Think those Pittsburgh fans aren't loving that come-from-behind win over old-time rival Dallas? Check out this YouTuber who breaks down the Steelers-Cowboys rivalry in an easy-to-understand format.

As Troy Polamalu raced into the endzone after picking up a loose ball on the final play of yesterday's Steelers-Chargers game, I rejoiced the way countless others did while watching the play.

We had all picked the Steelers to cover, and after an atrocious week of picking games, at least this one game through.

And then it didn't.

The only difference between me and the rest of those who had picked the Steelers to cover: I didn't have any money on it, only pride. (We just pick the games against the spread here at Newsday. We don't be on them. Actually, I can't speak for Rock and Boland, but I never bet on NFL games.)

In the end the Steelers won, 11-10. But the final score should have been 17-10 or -- pending an extra-point kick that never happened -- 18-10. The Steelers were favored by four (in some cases, it was five.)

The explanation from referee Scott Green, who admitted Polamalu's touchdown was incorrectly taken away from the Steelers, was as confusing as the play. The replay booth reviewed the play while the Steelers lined up for the point-after kick. And after the review, Green explained there was an illegal forward pass by Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson, the penalty was declined and the result was a touchdown.

But the official then reversed the call, disallowed the touchdown and announced the game was over for an 11-10 Steelers victory.

But replays clearly showed San Diego's Philip Rivers completed a pass to Tomlinson, who then lateraled to wide receiver Chris Chambers. The ball was pitched back and fumbled by Chambers, and Polamalu recovered at the 12-yard line and ran in for the touchdown.

Green told a pool reporter the officials' call was wrong.

"We should have let the play go through in the end, yes," Green said. "It was misinterpreted that instead of killing the play, we should have let the play go through."

Green said the confusion occurred because there was a misunderstanding about whether Tomlinson's pass or Chambers' pass was in question.

"The first pass was the one that was illegal, but it only kills the play if it hits the ground," Green said. "That was incorrect to have killed it at that point. The ruling should have let the play go on."

NBC analyst Cris Collinsworth said during halftime of last night's Cowboys-Redskins game that the Tomlinson's pass was legal.

"The first of those dipsy-doodle things was ruled an illegal forward pass that should not have ended this play, so this should have been a Pittsburgh Steelers touchdown," Collinsworth said. "But despite the fact that point differential is the seventh tiebreaker (for the playoffs), this score will not be changed."

I'm sure we will have more on this as the day progresses.

La Monica in 'da house, compliments of Big Daddy Glauber. He has allowed me access to his blog nowadays in an effort to 1) make his life somewhat easier; 2) bring parity to the world; 3) counteract the Stapler's addition to The Final Score; and oh yeah 4) give our readers more things to read and react to.

While I just ended that last sentence with a preposition, I promise never to campaign to change the name to "What about Bob (and Mark)?" This is Glauber Nation, and I'm just the assistant clock coach.

Anyway, back to something relevant to the headine. Did anyone else see Troy Polamalu's amazing interception of San Diego's Philip Rivers as it happened? It was a diving, one-handed pick of a tipped-ball that was less than an inch away from touching the ground. Best pick I've seen since Jason Sehorn's rolling, one-man tip drill against the Eagles in the 2001 playoffs. (It even comes close to this Charles Woodson classic.)

Steelers fan or not, you have to love the way Polamalu plays the game: cajones to the wall. My words won't do the display of athleticism justice, let's just take a look at the photos (click each one for a larger size image), then watch the video clip below.

(AP Photo)

(Getty Images)

And I found the video.

The Stillers scored a huge victory over the Redskins last night, but at what cost?

Ben Roethlisberger suffered a slightly separated shoulder and Byron Leftwich had to finish up.

Stillers fans from Black N Gold to BigBenisBack! are keeping their fingers crossed the big fella can get back in the lineup lickety split. In the meantime, Leftwich did a fine job in relief.

Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is preparing for a huge road game on Monday night against the Redskins. One of his biggest concerns: the home team’s cheerleaders.

“I’m not a big fan of playing there because it is loud, they’re really good at home and they try to make their cheerleaders stretch in our tunnel before we come out of the locker room,” Roethlisberger said. “That’s just not good.”

Well, it may be good for some people, but not for football players getting ready for a game.

Roethlisberger said he has seen the cheerleaders do their pre-game warmups prior to exhibition games.
“It can be [a distraction], let’s be truthful,” he said. “I’ve heard a rumor that they’re not allowed to do it any more.”

(We'll end the week on that note and with that picture. You've been very patient in dealing with that unfortunate image of Mike Singletary dropping trow at halftime of his first game as an NFL head coach. Enjoy Halloween.)

... looks like Willie Parker will be ready for Monday night's game against the Redskins at FedEx Field.

Parker has missed the last month with a sprained left knee, and he had hoped to be back by now. He re-injured the knee in practice a couple weeks ago, but yesterday practiced for a second consecutive day.

The lick he put on Bengals linebacker Keith Rivers, which resulted in Rivers breaking his jaw, will not result in any disciplinary action against Ward.

The NFL has looked at the hit repeatedly, and determined - as we did - that it was completely legal.

Again, we are in no way happy that a player got hurt as a result of the block. But we stand by our initial take that the hit was perfectly within the rules.

The Steelers' stud running back will miss this week's game - and possibly more - with a bum knee. Rookie Rashard Mendenhall takes over.

I liked Mendenhall a lot coming into the draft, and his selection makes a lot of sense in light of Parker's injury. But the kid is still not up to speed with blitz pickups, and his ball security leaves a lot to be desired.

Big Ben took part in practice yesterday and felt pretty good afterward.

Roethlisberger had missed a couple days last week because of a slightly separated throwing shoulder, although he played against the Browns. He expects to be in the lineup Sunday in a huge game against Philly.

Big Ben has a sore shoulder that will limit him in practice this week.

Evidently, that leaky line that BBiB! continually complains about allowed one too many hits on the QB, even though the pass protection was generally sound.

The Steelers safety battled through knee injuries much of last season and missed four games, missed the team's first two practices yesterday because of another injury: a pulled hammy.

Polamalu, a tireless worker, did everything possible to get ready for training camp, but pulled the muscle a few days before the Steelers reported.

Bummer.

Not to worry, Black N Gold and BBiB! The injury doesn't imperil his availability for the season.

The Rooney family is going through some issues deciding what's the best direction for the financial future of the Steelers.

Team owner and president Dan Rooney, one of the most important and influential owners in the game, is hoping to keep the team in the family and in Pittsburgh for the foreseeable future.

Other family members wonder if it's not a better deal to sell the team to an outside entity.

Nah.

But we figured we'd give Black N Gold one more tweak, since we got him with the Troy Polamalu "career in doubt" headline.

Anyway, Mendenhall, the Steelers' first-round draft pick, went down with a tweaked hammy in practice.

All is well, B N G. He'll be back in no time.

Similar situation last year with first-round pick Lawrence Timmons, who went down with a groin injury in his first mini-camp.

Nah.

Just wanted to give Black N Gold and BBiB! a scare.

But Polamalu wasn't able to practice in mini-camp this weekend, because he's still rehabbing from a knee problem that gave him trouble last season. Polamalu expects he'll be ready for the start of training camp.

Black N Gold brought up a very valid point in wondering why the Steelers would be so quick to release marginal receiver Cedrick Wilson the day after he was arrested for assaulting his former girlfriend, and why the Steelers made no such move with Pro Bowl linebacker James Harrison, who was also arrested on assault charges.

Steelers chairman Dan Rooney tried to explain.

"We're extremely disappointed with this incident,'' Rooney told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette this morning. "The Steelers do not condone violence of any kind, especially against women.

"The majority of our players are good citizens and make numerous positive contributions to the community. Unfortunately, these kinds of incidents reflect poorly on all our players and many innocent and good people are considered guilty by association, they get thrown into the pot, so to speak."

Rooney said Wilson, the team's No 4 wide receiver, was released because of the circumstances involved and that they differed from those of Harrison, who was arrested March 8 for assaulting his girlfriend in Ohio Township.

"I know many are asking the question of [why] we released Wilson and Harrison we kept,'' Rooney said. "The circumstances -- I know of the incidents, they are completely different. In fact, when I say we don't condone these things, we don't, but we do have to look at the circumstances that are involved with other players and things like that, so they're not all the same."

In Harrison's case, Rooney said the player was trying to take his son to be baptized, while Wilson had a previous incident with his girlfriend, although she was charged, but Wilson was not.

"What Jimmy Harrison was doing and how the incident occurred, what he was trying to do was really well worth it," Rooney said of Harrison's initial intent. "He was doing something that was good, wanted to take his son to get baptized where he lived and things like that. She said she didn't want to do it."

Listen, I think the world of Rooney, and I understand he wants to make some sort of statement here. And I think you know by now how much I personally detest hearing about a man striking a woman. But I still find it questionable that the Steelers would take such quick and decisive action in Wilson's case, while treating the Harrison case differently.

Yes, there are differing circumstances. And, in the end, Wilson's release might be appropriate. But with two cases involving a similar crime, why is a bit player kicked off the team immediately, while a star player gets the benefit of the doubt?