Friday, September 28th, 2007 by Adam Wagner
Ward Injury Opens Gates
During training camp, Cedrick Wilson complained that he wasn’t getting enough looks from quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. Now, he has a chance to prove that he deserves what he was asking for.
Hines Ward’s knee injury will keep him out of Sunday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals, one of the more intriguing and very likely more intense games on the NFL’s schedule for the day. Santonio Holmes will serve as the role of the number one receiver while Wilson and Nate Washington will likely switch duty up in the two spot, with Wilson likely seeing more time due to his better fit in the traditional Ward role.
Considering that the game has a very good chance to be an intense, high-scoring contest in which the Steelers’ offense could rely on Roethlisberger’s ability to complete a pass, Holmes will have his first legitimate chance to fill the shoes the Steelers thought he might when they drafted him in the first round last year and Wilson and Washington will have the opportunity to show that they deserve larger roles in the offense.
That is not to say that Ward will be Wally Pipped by either Wilson or Washington (both are seemingly plagued by dropitis), but if either one has a good day it could lead to an expanded role for at least a couple of weeks, especially if Ward doesn’t come back. The Steelers have turned into a team that actually uses passing and Roethlisberger’s right arm as a legitimate counterattack to Willie Parker and the running game, as the Steelers have 60 first downs, with 29 each by rushing and passing and two by penalty.
Holmes, however, has begun to look more and more like a legitimate number one wideout since the end of last season, flying sort of under the radar despite being one of those players who is so underrated that he’s overrated. Considering the national stage that this game will likely be on due to various story lines and the resurgence of the Steelers, Sunday could serve as Santonio’s coming out party.
Also, it is not likely that Willie Parker’s legs will hold up to the number of carries that he has received so far. He will begin slowing down eventually and it will be imperative at that time that the passing game has developed multiple legitimate threats who Roethlisberger has complete confidence in and Ward’s injury will allow him to develop the necessary chemistry with options C and D (Wilson and Washington, assuming Ward and Holmes are A and B).
This team has a chance to be elite, as Roethlisberger has many different offensive weapons (Ward, Heath Miller, Matt Spaeth, Willie Parker, Najeh Davenport, Dan Kreider, Carey Davis, Wilson, and Washington) and the improved play on the offensive line has kept Roethlisberger upright long enough that he can make plays. The first sort of test comes Sunday, as both Arizona and Pittsburgh should be pumped for the game, despite the most significant controversy so far this week being Chukky Okobi saying that he would not have been cut if Bill Cowher had still been coach (there was a reason you were cut, Chukky, and it may have had something to do with sitting on the bench for basically the first five years of your career). Both of these teams are going to desperately want this game and, if it comes down to it, will Ben be able to find a receiver not named Ward in the clutch?
It could play a large role in that resurgence, which will truly become a story line if the Steelers are able to hit the bye undefeated at 5-0.
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