Steelers' Work Never Done
Pittsburgh Facing Interesting Decisions In Offseason
By Jerry DiPaola

It's no disgrace to finish a season short of a Super Bowl championship. After all, 30 other teams shared the Steelers' fate. But offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey is far from satisfied. And that says something about the Steelers' level of commitment.

Of all people, Mularkey, perhaps the most effective assistant coach in the NFL this season, ended the year with a bitter taste in his mouth.

"There is always room for improvement," he said. "If you don't win the Super Bowl, there was something wrong there. Some of the players kid me that I'm never satisfied and I'm not. Maybe that's a bad trait, but I have this bad disease of perfectionism. It has to be exactly right."

The Steelers enter the off-season with a team that won 13 of 16 regular-season games and the AFC Central championship, but with a lot of work left for president Dan Rooney, director of football operations Kevin Colbert and his scouts and coach Bill Cowher.

The key issues are whether or not to re-sign outside linebacker Jason Gildon and inside linebacker Earl Holmes, the only starters eligible for unrestricted free agency. Gildon, a two-time Pro Bowler, fits perfectly in the Steelers' 3-4 defense, and the Steelers, New England Patriots and

Houston Texans are the only teams that run that scheme.

Holmes, who has been pushed in and out of the dime defense the past few seasons, could move on, if he finds a team willing to pay him as an every-down player.

But, more important, is the Steelers' need to re-sign key players whose contracts are set to expire after the 2002 and 2003 seasons. Quarterback Kordell Stewart, tight end Mark Bruener, strong safety Lee Flowers, Pro Bowl guard Alan Faneca and offensive tackle Wayne Gandy are likely to be chief targets.

The Steelers don't want to let Faneca and Gandy, especially, to reach free agency a year from now – because at that point, they would become more difficult to sign. Stewart, who already was given an $8.1 million signing bonus three years ago, appears to be the quarterback of the future.

In the next several weeks, coaches and front-office personnel will hold meetings aimed directly at plans to extend Stewart's contract.

The secondary should be a priority, in terms of finding quality backups at cornerback where Deshea Townsend and Jason Simmons are able to depart, if they get offers in unrestricted free agency.

Then, there's the tricky area of special teams where the Steelers might want to think about bringing in some serious competition for kicker Kris Brown, who led the NFL with 14 unsuccessful field-goal attempts in the regular season, and his four misses against the Baltimore Ravens at Heinz Field led directly to one of the Steelers' three defeats. There are some solid free-agents kickers available, including Jason Elam of the Denver Broncos and Mike Hollis of the Jacksonville Jaguars, but the Steelers might not want to meet their price tags. They might have to deal with Brown's inconsistencies for another season. Of lesser import are the Steelers' restricted free agents, including defensive end Aaron Smith, a tough guy whose 7 1/2 sacks were the most by a Steelers down lineman in six years, and backup running back Amos Zereoue, who gave the team an elusive, complementary force along side Jerome Bettis. Restricted free agents seldom leave their NFL teams, but the Patriots tried to sign RFA Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala last year, and the Steelers had to match their offer to keep him. Smith and Zereoue could attract some attention around the league, and the Steelers will pay attention to it. Perhaps, they'll even be proactive and sign them to long-term contracts at a time when their contract demands won't be outrageous.