With all the hate Ben Roethlisberger seems to get, it is surprising when you seen a panel on NFL.com unanimously pick him as the best QB from the 2004 class. Some hate can be understandable considering all of Ben’s off season controversy, however, even before all that he never seemed to get the respect for his play that he deserved. We know that saying he is better than Philip Rivers and Eli Manning is notable but not saying much overall, it is still nice to see some acknowledgement.

You know he’s busy being the US ambassador to Ireland, but with the lock out dragging on and on, who can’t help but hope that Steelers Owner Dan Rooney would join in on the negotiations? When asked if he would be participating, he replied: “Nope. Art`s involved. He knows what to do.” It is a shame, because while Art Rooney can surely hold his own, Dan is the kind of old school owner who you feel could really get things done. He’s seen it all in his years with the NFL and has been present for nearly every big negotiation, moment, or occasion. We’re not saying he would be able to swoop in and save the day, but at this point he couldn’t hurt, could he?

Steelers linebacker James Harrison has been making it a point to share his opinion on the recent rules changes concerning player safety. He makes a lot of good points about the inconsistent way that many calls were made last season. With more strict rules set for next season, why should we believe things are going to get any better? Check out the video:

The Steelers may be one of the teams best equipped to deal with a short off season caused by the NFL lock out. Former Steeler Kevin Greene (now linebackers coach with the Packers), and James Farrior both feel that the Steelers and Packers are at an advantage because they have talented veterans on defense that know their schemes well- not to mention both teams played into February. Former Steelers’ safety Chris Hope perhaps put it best, when he recently said, “It should be illegal for any of these rookie quarterbacks to line up against the Steeler defense early in the season if they have limited practice time.”

Charlie Batch, Max Starks, and Ryan Mundy were among Steelers players who recently participated in a basketball game to raise funds for Community Day School in Squirrel Hill. Check out the video to see some of the action (We think the guys should probably stick to playing football):

NFL.com is currently asking fans to weigh in on who was the team of the 2000′s- the Patriots or the Steelers. The Patriots won three Super Bowls in that time, appearing in four. The Steelers won two and appeared in three. The two teams certainly dominated the decade, however, the edge probably goes to the Patriots. It pains us to say that as certified Patriots haters stuck in New England, but it is hard to argue. Then again, when you factor in the spygate scandal and general shadiness of the Patriots, maybe the Steelers really were more impressive over the last ten years?

Apparently Ike Taylor so badly wants Troy Polamalu to come train with him and teammates in Florida, that he is willing to give up his bed: “He can bring his whole family. Him and his wife can stay in my bed, I’ll stay on the couch. That’s how bad I want him here. He can put his clothes in my room and I’m on the couch.” Ike may actually be on to something- Troy, who chooses to spend his off seasons training by himself in California, has not played an entire season since 2008 because of injuries. Meanwhile, Ike, William Gay, and James Farrior (the other players training at the Tom Shaw Performance Camp in Orland) have been remained remarkably healthy and injury free.

It is being reported that Redskins owner Dan Synder told Sirius/XM Radio that his team had a deal in place with the Steelers to trade their 16th overall pick in last month’s draft. However, the deal apparently fell through when the player that the Steelers wanted to select had already been taken. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to put everything together and determine that they Steelers wanted to select OG Mike Pouncey, who was selected the spot ahead, at # 15 by the Miami Dolphins. We guess this report saying the Steelers would “exhaust all options” to draft Mike Pouncey wasn’t as far off as we thought.

UPDATE: Steelers writer Jim Wexell has since apologized for generating this, now apparently false, story. Read more here.

Hines Ward was on the Tonight Show last night. Yeah, the discussion was mostly about Dancing With The Stars, but he does talk a bit about not having an ACL in one of his knees, and also about his run in with the law last week. Check out the clips here:

Part 1:

Part 2:

We really didn’t think there was a chance the Steelers wouldn’t re-sign Ike Taylor, especially after the team didn’t address the cornerback position until the third round. But in a recent blurb, the Trib’s Scott Brown says that Taylor isn’t going to take it to the Steelers and that the team won’t low-ball him either. It is nice to hear that Ike and the Steelers have a good relationship and that they should be able to work out a fair deal- which also means that it shouldn’t be too difficult to hammer something out and get him back on the field (that is when, you know, this stupid lockout is over with).