Return of the Silverback

James Harrison, The Silverback, has returned to the Steelers.

Harrison was instrumental in helping the Steelers forge an identity of ferocity during his best years here, 2006-10. Harrison was hampered by a balky knee, bad back and other injuries in 2011 and 2012, his final year with the Steelers, and he was out of position last year with the Bengals' 4-3 scheme. He just wasn't himself.

He may not have the sheer explosiveness and mobility he once had, but he is reportedly in great shape, and he can surely add something to the team. His menacing presence can only amplify what has already been the boost added by assistant coach Joey Porter's intensity.

No doubt, he's baaad.

Perhaps more importantly, James Harrison has an incredible work ethic. His advantage on the pass rush always was his leverage, power and explosiveness. If he can impart any of his tricks of the trade to Arthur Moats, Jarvis Jones, Terrance Garvin, Ryan Shazier and Howard Jones, all the better.

Post-Carolina Observations
Kudos to the Rushing Defense: Carolina does not have a great offensive line, was depleted by injury at the running back position for this game and attempted just five runs in the first half. Still, the Steelers' front seven was active and got after it. Surrendering just 42 yards rushing is a good game by almost any measure.

Surprise Performance of the Night: Steve McLendon -- Where did that burst come from all of a sudden? And where's it been? Maybe a function of a subpar OL? Yet Ryan Kalil, Carolina's center, is an accomplished veteran with good technique and is known to be a pretty good NFL center. Tunch Ilkin observed that just about all the Carolina offensive linemen are fairly light in the core, but still ... kudos to Steve McLendon. Keep it going.

Unsung Hero of the Night: Brad Wing -- Wing's a left-footed kicker, and his spinning 59-yard punt with 11 minutes left in the fourth quarter following a Carolina touchdown that made the score 23-13 was crucial. The punt came down at an awkward angle for inexperienced returner Philly Brown, who muffed it, and Robert Golden recovered the ball in the end zone for the Pittsburgh touchdown that put the game out of reach. Wing averaged 46 yards per punt on three punts, including one he nailed inside the Carolina 20-yard line.

Unsung Hero of the Night II: Cody Wallace -- Wallace had no trouble at all stepping in for the injured Ramon Foster. He may not be quite as strong as Foster, but as we saw last year when he started at center for four games, he can play more than capably.

Footnote: Le'Veon Bell has 315 yards rushing and 146 yards receiving to lead the NFL in all-purpose yards overall and all-purpose yards from scrimmage (461). He had 146 yards on 21 carries Sunday night. When he gets at least 25 touches in a game, good things happen.

A thought: Maybe the Steelers knew the NFL was about to change its Drug Policy related to marijuana when Mike Tomlin refrained from suspending Lev Bell and LeGarrette Blount after the McKnight Road incident in August. Something could still happen down the line. Granted, it's not a good look to show up for work high, but Bell and Blount sure make it appear as though it's working for them. Maybe the game slows down for them; who knows? Maybe the weed helps Bell to see things better and helps him show the patience he is becoming famous for when following his blocks and setting up his runs. Who knows?

DaBody52

Arthur Moats ‏@dabody52  9h

It's official I'm a Pittsburgh Steeler! Definitely enjoyed my time in Buffalo & all the support that I received from the fans! Thank you!

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For some reason, Joey Porter's Pit Bulls have a good feeling about new signee Arthur Moats ("DaBody52" on Twitter). He should be a welcome addition at linebacker.  Maybe part of the reason the Steelers signed him is for help on special teams, where he was a mainstay for the Bills. Surely, however, the Steelers want to see what he can do at linebacker, where the team needs major help, whether they want to admit it or not.

Moats is not likely to provide major help immediately, but he should help. Reading the tea leaves, it appears he will play inside linebacker, mostly, at the position formerly occupied by Larry Foote, where Moats will compete with Vince Williams for playing time.  The Steelers had considerable trouble stopping the run last year. Not all of that difficulty can be ascribed to the front three; the absence of Foote hurt the run defense. Maybe Moats can help. Somebody needs to help.

Interestingly, Moats has a body type (listed at 6'0", but call it 5'10", and 250) similar to James Harrison, so maybe he plays with leverage. He had success in college as a pass rusher (the Buck Buchanon Award winner) at Division II James Madison University, which is ancient history for the 26-year-old, but still: It is not inconceivable the Steelers might try him at Jarvis Jones's spot, as a backup to Jones.

Then again, it's entirely possible Dick LeBeau will continue to expand the scheme of three safeties on the field at one time, along with two corners and three linebackers (Jones, Timmons and Worilds). The four safeties to get playing time will be Troy Polamalu, Mike Mitchell, Will Allen and Shamarko Thomas.

We expect to see more three-safety sets this year, with Shamarko playing closer to the line of scrimmage and disrupting crossing patterns.

One thing, though: There's not much height back there, or in the linebacking corps. Listed at 6'0", Mitchell's the tallest of the safeties. Who covers the tall tight ends and receivers so prevalent in the league these days?

The Big Linebacker Question

When healthy, LaMarr Woodley proved he can be a dominant player, a beast, good enough that the Steelers signed him to a $61.5 million contract.

It remains to be seen how long Woodley's latest calf injury (the other calf) will keep him out of the lineup. If it's the rest of the season, he will have missed five games this year.

Woodley missed three games with a hamstring injury in 2012 and six games the year before that.

In the 11 games in which Woodley has appeared this season, he's had five sacks and been in on 36 tackles (20 solo tackles; 16 assists). There were four games in which he had zero tackles.

The Steelers' decision last off-season to move on from James Harrison signaled a changing of the guard in the linebacker corps. After years as one of the great Steelers, Harrison's age and salary conspired against his future employment with the Steelers. Age and salary had caught up previously with outstanding linebackers such as Joey Porter, Jason Gildon and Greg Lloyd.

The same may be happening with LaMarr Woodley. Already.

The seventh-year veteran is only 29, but that means the wrong side of 30 is just around the corner. His 2013 salary is $3.6 million. His 2014 salary is to be $8 million (with a $14 million salary cap hit).

The Post-Gazette's Ed Bouchette has been talking about that issue lately. In his Q-and-A on the Post-Gazette's website the other day, he was asked about it the other day:

• Question: Ed, Since it will cost the Steelers $14 million to cut Woodley, he does not seem like a reasonable cap casualty, so where does that leave this team? Should they cut Troy? How can they resign Worilds with so much dead money in front of them?

• Ed Bouchette: I keep hearing about that $14 million figure, but that would be if they cut him before June 1. If they designated him for June 2 or cut him then, he would count only $5.5 million on their cap this year and SAVE them $8 million in cap room and real money.