Santonio Holmes just loves his iPod

Santonio Holmes kicked off an airplane? Because he did not want to turn off his iPod?

A part of me hopes this report is not true; but a part of me . . . the mean-spirited, small-minded place that hates the New York Jets hopes that it is true.

Ourlads on Maurkice Pouncey

One of our favorite resources for player evaluation is Outlads Scouting Service, and here is what they had to say about the Steelers' first round draft pick:

Three-year starter that is a good athlete and plays with a good base. Exhibits impact, pop, and surge.

Gets some movement on short yardage and goal-line run plays. A knee bender with leg drive. Has the ability to regain body control and balance in pass pro.

Plays with attitude and aggression.

Can shadow pass rushers. Quick to react and recover to blitz pickup. Light feet and works to finish. Has the ability to quick position a defender with base leverage to run his feet on contact in the run game. Functional play strength and balance. Power in his hips and legs. Can block a moving target on pulls. Good lateral agility and quickness. Rimingon Award winner in 2009.

In a nutshell, he is smart, tough, motivated, and has a passion for the game. OSR: 34/40. (A-32 1/2, H-10, BP-26, 10-1.80).

NFL to announce schedules

With Ben Roethlisberger dominating the news (at least for Steelers fans) it is not surprising that this item from the league has not received much attention:

The complete NFL schedule will be unveiled exclusively on NFL.com on Tuesday, April 20 at 7:00 PM ET. At the same time on Tuesday, NFL Network will feature a two-hour special, NFL Total Access: 2010 Schedule Release Presented by GMC Sierra. It is a perfect occasion for “two-screen” experience with the NFL.

For fans who want to see their team’s entire schedule immediately, NFL.com is the place to visit on Tuesday at 7:00 PM ET. NFL.com will be the first site to have the complete team-by-team and weekly schedules of all 256 regular-season games, listing opponents, sites and times. NFL.com will include a new interactive application giving fans a voice through fan forums, rating the schedules and answering poll questions.

Fans can now view NFL.com’s interactive schedule for the 2010 season at www.nfl.com/schedules/interactive. The interactive map charts team travel according to their schedules with travel distance, weather and additional information. Fans can rate their favorite team’s games, overall schedule toughness, answer additional poll questions and post comments.

With that announcement, and the draft beginning just a couple of days later, perhaps we can all get back to talking about football.

Color me doubtful: Update

Now you can just color me stunned.

In this new context, i.e. cutting Santonio Holmes versus getting something, the deal with the New York Jets looks terrific; and (as alluded to in Ed Bouchette's piece for the Post-Gazette) places the signing and re-signing of wide receivers during the offseason in an entirely different context. Additionally, one can only wonder if wide receiver is now part of the mix for the Steelers' draft strategy.

One last thing: Limas Sweed is the luckiest guy on the face of the earth.

Original Post
I love the work that Pro Football Talk does (not to mention John Clayton of ESPN who reportedly confirmed the story), and a trade of Santanio Holmes is hardly beyond the realms of possibility, but a fifth-round pick for a first-round talent? Yes, the Steelers could be trying to send a message ~ i.e. that nobody is untouchable ~ to their quarterback but why in the world would the Rooney family (for a move like this is no "football move") simply dump such a talented player in the street?

Dealing Mr. Holmes is one thing, but discounting his value so steeply would just be bad business.