Time may not be on Steelers' Smith's side

[LLT]

Time may not be on Steelers' Smith's side
Monday, August 1, 2011 11:45 pm
Mike Bires
Timesonline.com


LATROBE — The other day at camp, the NFL’s best set of defensive ends waited for their turn to take the field.

Standing side-by-side: Cameron Heyward, the rookie first-round draft pick; Ziggy Hood, the No. 1 pick in the 2009 draft; Brett Keisel, a Pro Bowler last year; and Aaron Smith, the fourth-oldest player on the team who for years has been regarded as one of the most underrated defensive ends in the league.

“That’s a blessing to have four guys like that on your team,” defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau said. “Those are some very good athletes right here. There will be plenty of (playing) time for all of them. It’s not a problem at all.”

Smith, 35, can only hope he doesn’t have any problems in his 13th season with the Steelers. For seven years (2000-06) when he was in his prime, Smith was a consistent force on the Steelers’ defensive line. He never missed a game during that stretch. But in three of the past four seasons, he’s missed 26 regular-season games due to knee, biceps, triceps and rotator cuff injuries.

Read More: http://www.timesonline.com/sports/steelers/time-may-not-be-on-steelers-smith-s-side/article_b5a86da3-98fe-5710-9957-0f7bbd0323f8.html

[Austin87]

Between Keisel, Hood, Smith and Heyward we have an amazing defensive line.

[Aussie_steeler]

Between Keisel, Hood, Smith, HAMPTON and Heyward we have an amazing defensive line.

Sounds even better when you add Casey into the fold. It does look very impressive from a stopping the run perspective

[Austin87]

LOL, can't believe I forgot about Casey.

[Aussie_steeler]

LOL, can't believe I forgot about Casey.

Dont worry - you just mis placed him for a minute. Its easy to not see Casey behind all that beef that you listed

[43Hitman]

As always Aaron seems to have the right attitude about it. To me he sounded like he is willing to restructure and play back-up to stay on the team.

[tube517]

Hampton, Hood, Heyward = TRIPLE H

I hope Smith can come back for one more trip to the dance

[steelreserve]

If past history holds true, I don't see Heyward contributing a hell of a lot this year, but he'll be a key player when Smith retires and what they're really getting him ready for is taking over for Keisel in a couple years. Also, I think Smith stays a starter but we basically have 4 starting DLs ... because I've seen this for long enough to know that for any given game after about Week 2, at least one of our defensive linemen will be out with a nagging injury that takes 3-4 weeks to fully recover from.

[pepsyman1]

The only thing we need now is Casey's replacement. They haven't done anything to address nose tackle in years, I hope they find one before Big Snack has to call it quits

[Pittsburgh43]

Triple H - I like it! lol Aaron Smith is a great guy and I hope nothing but the best for him. Really hoping he contributes in a big way this season and gets another ring.

Best D-Line in the NFL. Hands down.