No Country for Old Men...Really?

30 is the new 20, at least in Pittsburgh. With yesterday's 11th hour contract extension to defensive end Brett Keisel, the Steelers have now locked up their fourth 30+ greybeard longterm over the last two off seasons.

Clearly, the statement is obvious: with Big Ben coming into his prime years, the front office is purely committed to maintaining the integrity of the current roster over the next several seasons, with the expectations of a few more Lombardi Trophies displayed in the Great Hall by, let's say, 2013.

This logic is somewhat of a reversal of old Steeler thinkology, with the previous mentality placing focus on acquiring and developing young, undervalued talent, grooming these players to be starters in their mid to late 20's, and then eventually replacing them with new youth once they hit their 30's. The previous strategy is excellent for maintaining a consistently competitive product. Consider that the Steelers have only experienced 3 losing seasons since 1992, while qualifying for the post season 12 times during the same period, and you would agree that the crop rotation strategy employed by the Cowhers and the Donahoes of the past has yielded good fruit.

This philosophy is why the team rarely used the franchise player tag or sought after high profile free agents. It's also the reason for that old tired argument of how the Steelers let all their 'good' players leave via free agency. The logic was simple: why overpay for a high mileage vehicle when the system will produce a low priced, low mileage vehicle ready to fill that spot in the driveway? The Rooneys, contrary to the not so humble opinion of the throngs of armchair GM's throughout Steeler Nation, are not cheap. They are, however, smart with their money, and above all else, employers of smart guys who understand how to work the NFL salary cap.

Remember names like O'Donnell, Lake, Thigpen, Kirkland, and Gildon? These were all guys that the Steelers let get away as they approached senior status, with considerable ire from Steeler Nation in most of these cases. How many Pro Bowl seasons did this group collectively yield in their post Black and Gold years? The number is ridiculously low.

So why the change in course? Perhaps it all started with Jerome Bettis, and his re-structuring to finish out his career in Pittsburgh. Perhaps it was Hines Ward's highly publicized tantrums in 2005. I think it has a lot to do with #7, and the belief that when he's on your team, and healthy, your team will always have the potential to win a Superbowl. Like I stated earlier, I think the front office boys truly believe that Ben and his core group is so strong that it's worth risking the future developmental piece for a chance at some more hardware.

With that comes my final point. This new philosophy does not come without a price tag attached to it. The downside to retaining so many longbeards is lack of locker room space for the young guys. We've all heard about how the team's recent drafts are busts once you factor out 1st rounders and undrafted free agents. Are these drafts really busts, or is the problem that the team has little or no room for the picks? A guy like Bruce Davis is a classic example. A second year OLB (3rd round pick) out of UCLA. The guy simply can't get on the field due to depth at that position. Should he get cut this year, it'll go down as another bust. I guess this is the plight of the sapling in the rain forest.

Time will only tell how the new philosophy will stand up. For today, I praise the team for retaining one my favorite players and one of the core pieces in a great defense.