Jonathan Dwyer News

First down. Fourth down. First quarter or overtime. The Pittsburgh Steelers rookie running back figures the best chance for his team to be successful is with the ball tucked under his right arm and his legs churning upfield.

I know the start of NFL training camps is a couple of months away, but I just couldn't resist from looking down the road to see which training camp battles will be the most intriguing for the Pittsburgh Steelers .

Pittsburgh had one of its worst rushing seasons in team history, and even when one back got rolling, chances were, injury would strike at any time.

Ben Roethlisberger didn't entirely like the offense, its nuances and terminology.

If they're actually going to do that, a lot of the groundwork for a different kind of surprise season - this time a pleasant one - will be put in place during May and June at a closed-to-the-public practice field on the South Side.

OK, so we know the Steelers are all the way "up against" the salary cap right now, which limits them from making any roster moves other than league-minimum types.

It'd be tough to make a physical comparison between Steelers rookie running back Le'Veon Bell and Bears veteran Matt Forte.

Yep, Everson Walls didn't seem to be destined for NFL greatness. Nonetheless, the Grambling State product brought one thing to the Dallas Cowboys in 1981 that every premier corner has: Walls had passing-game intuition to the nth degree, and capitalized on that trait with a complete willingness to gamble.

A player, once thought to make a return to his last team for training camp, got a tryout with their division rival today, for the same team who recently signed another discarded Steeler.

It has almost become expected to see the Pittsburgh Steelers in the postseason every year.

A Pro Football Focus analysis reveals the Steelers' top two running backs in 2012, Isaac Redman and Jonathan Dwyer, faced eight defender fronts 25 percent of the time.

At the conclusion of the 2013 NFL Draft, many said that the Pittsburgh Steelers had arguably the best draft out of all the teams in the league.

Isaac Redman, an undrafted free agent running back out of Bowie State, achieved cult hero status among fans a few years ago for his preseason "Redzone" prowess.

Pittsburgh Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert said before the draft that he did not expect any rookie to have an impact on the Steelers' 2013 season.

Rarely do offensive rookies make a huge impact during their first year in the league, Sure, every now and then you get an Andrew Luck, Adrian Peterson or Randy Moss , but it's more common to see rookies struggle to make a big impact in year one.

Many in Steeler Nation have searched for a silver lining in the 2012 season, attributing the Steelers 8-8 season to Ben Roethlisberger's missed games due to injury, injuries to the offensive line, or by trying to find one or two plays in the losses to the Oakland Raiders, Baltimore Ravens or the Tennessee Titans that, had things been different, ... (more)

Hot on the heels of a draft that many on BTSC are either very happy with or very angry with the picks, the Steelers are holding their Rookie minicamp , showcasing many of these players they drafted and some of the ones they signed as UDFA's . Many names have stood out so far, making the Steelers front office look very smart in their drafting .

The usual writer of Weekend Checkdown, Mr. Ivan Cole, is laid up this weekend, so there's been a pitching change.

Now that the Pittsburgh Steelers have their draft class in the fold, the next step in the offseason will be the long-term project of shaping this roster into one that can compete in 2013 and hopefully put the team in position to win another championship.

Le'Veon Bell has yet to carry the football for the Pittsburgh Steelers, yet there is a lot of buzz around the young running back and his ability to be the featured back.