Polamalu and Mitchell look to forge bond

Pittsburgh Steelers One item was clearly out of place in the Pittsburgh Steelers' locker room on the final day of minicamp. But Mike Mitchell said there was nothing to read into the Carolina Panthers helmet hanging in his locker on Thursday. "Pittsburgh Steelers It means I haven't found a house yet to put it in my basement," Mitchell said. The Panthers mailed Mitchell a helmet that many of his former teammates had signed, and there is some significance to the keepsake from the season he spent in Carolina. "That group that we had there last year I think the biggest thing that made us so successful is we were genuinely friends off the field and really cared about each other," Mitchell said. The Steelers' defensive players have generally been a tight group and that bodes well for the transition Mitchell is making on the field and away from it. Mitchell becomes just the third free safety to play regularly with Troy Polamalu, joining Chris Hope and Ryan Clark, and the two started to get to know one another during minicamp. "He's a super nice guy," Mitchell said. "It's humbling for me to see that because for him to be one of the best safeties to play the game he's a super humble guy. The way he treats people and goes about his business I admire that a lot. It's not even a football thing it's a personal thing I've noticed." Pittsburgh Steelers  Much has been made about the rapport Polamalu and Clark developed and how much it helped the two on the field. There is no reason to think that Polamalu and Mitchell won't build a similar friendship. Polamalu is a super nice guy when he is not chasing down running backs as if they stole something from him or soaring over the line of scrimmage and landing in the laps of startled quarterbacks. The eight-time Pro Bowler is one of the biggest pranksters in the Steelers' locker room, something that also endears him to teammates. Mitchell, meanwhile, is an engaging guy who wants to be great and relishes the opportunity to play with a safety of Polamalu's caliber. He is, in fact, a lot like Clark though with the volume turned down. "What made Chris Hope and I very successful on the back end is that we were great friends. The same thing with Ryan," Polamalu said, Pittsburgh Steelers "With any other team, it's just plug-and-play. But the strength of this organization has always been in the camaraderie and the relationships of the players off the field, Pittsburgh Steelers and then we stand up for one another on the field. So we have to develop those relationships." It will be a process with Polamalu and Mitchell and one that really starts when the Steelers report to training camp on July 25th. But Mitchell is confident that he and Polamalu will get to know one another well enough for them to thrive together on the field. "It's just us hammering out reps together," Pittsburgh Steelers Mitchell said. "I think you need a little adversity too because you can't really tell who a person is or how they're going to respond until you get into tough situations. Pittsburgh Steelers It could be a game until we really are on the same page now but it's a process of growing together so we can get to a point where I just know how thinks," Pittsburgh Steelers.

Pittsburgh Steelers Improve Team

Pittsburgh steelers must be added talent rookie, the Steelers secondary sucks!  They have to get some young talent on their NFL network!  If they don't improve their secondary, they will not make it back to the playoffs! Sound familiar? Sure it does. Those words normally are followed by stats that say how the Steelers pass defense dropped from first in 2008 to 16th in 2009. Another brilliant observation is, Will Gay was destroyed last year, we really miss Bryant McFadden. There are a couple of things that all of the "sky is falling" fans have forgotten. Troy Polamalu. First and foremost, when Polamalu was playing, the Steelers pass defense looked as good as it did in 2008. Did Will Gay forget how to play when Polamalu was not in the games? No, with Polamalu playing in the secondary, it makes ALL of the defensive backs play better. Do you not think Polamalu had anything to do with McFadden playing great in 2008? Lets take a look at the Steelers defensive backs for 2009. Ike Taylor is in his seventh year with the Steelers. He did not become a full time starter until 2005. It was his third year in the league, he joined the Steelers in the fourth round of the 2003NFL news. Then we have Deshea Townsend. Townsend joined the Steelers in the fourth round of the 1998 draft. He did not earn a starting job until 2005. This means the Steelers HAVE to draft someone to help the secondary this year, right? WRONG! The Steelers spent two draft picks in 2009 on their secondary. The third round brought Keenen Lewis. Lewis, who is 6 foot tall, is being groomed to be the eventual replacement for Ike Taylor. Taylor still has some years left in his tank. No, he can't catch. He never could. He still defends the oppositions best receiver, and normally, does a better than average job against them. You may be asking now, well Ike did not do that great last year, what about that? Remember, POLAMALU. The fifth round brought the Steelers the speedy Joe Burnett. Burnett is expected to eventually take over the Nickel position, to cover the faster slot receivers. Now you may say, well neither of them played fantastic last year. Two points. 1. Steelers rookies NEVER play amazing, because of the scheme they need to learn. It is a big transition going from college to the NFL teams. 2. Do you remember Troy Polamalu's rookie season? He stunk too! Very annoying.