Now I shall give Steelers fans a nightmare

[WilliamPitt]

Hines Ward continues his holdout. Steelers management holds fast. Situation becomes untenable.

Patriots swoop in, buy contract + more, put the flying Elvis on Ward.

Steelers fandom commits mass ritual seppuku while watching playoff hopes swirl down the spout.

[livetohike]

1. We were hoping to escape your attention Will

:-).

And you are right. That scene would be a nightmare.

[JohnKleeb]

2. That would not be good

and another one of my sports teams would suck so it would be nothing new for me.

[Ravenseye]

3. My Sword...Where'd I put my Sword...

*shink*

GAAAAAAARRRRRGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH

Peehhhhhh

*thump*

[the other one]

4. 2005 Steelers - Non-Factor in the playoff race.

Sorry Pittsburghers. Cowher has a notorious history of coming up big when there are low expectations, and choking hard when expectations are high. And Cowher has gone a long way to prove that home-field means nothing in the playoffs.

Pittsburgh to finish a lusty 8-8.

The Bengals(?!?) win the division.

[dr.zoidberg]

5. The Steelers deserve it.

They managed to get Ward to come to camp with the promise that they would work out a deal. It hasn't happened yet. The worst thing is that it appears that the Steelers lied to Ward. This is unusual because I had always heard that the Steelers had always been fair to their players.

[theboss]

14. That's not really the case

Ward has one more year on his contract. He wants an extension, which is fair enough. Last year, he was promised by Cowher and Rooney that they would "take care of him." All of this is perfectly good.

The Steelers offered him a $9 Million signing bonus (I believe that's the number). For the Steelers, this is beyond generous. They simply don't spend that kind of money.

But Ward wants Marvin Harrison money.

Frankly, I love Ward to death, but he's not Marvin Harrison. He's incredibly valuable to the Steelers, but his value on the open market is not the same as Harrison's. Away from Pittsburgh, I don't think Ward's even an All Pro, because no team will use him the same way. Harrison can go anywhere and catch 120 balls. Ward is an 80 catch guy, who blocks like a guard.

[DaveinMD]

8. I agree with this

but it may be Baltimore instead. I hope not as I hate their collective guts.

[Baclava]

6. I echo the players sentiments...

It's about to get ugly...

"I think that's what it boils down to," Bettis said. "It's a situation where they're leaving him no choice. He wants to be here."

"It's disappointing in a sense that the organization said last year they're going to take care of him and it wasn't resolved," Bettis said. "I think they could have gone through this process a little bit earlier. They didn't necessarily have to drag it this far.

"We miss everything. He's definitely the heart and soul of this football team. You need playmakers out there. He's one of the guys who's a playmaker."

"If an organization can ask you to take a pay cut, then you should be able to ask for a raise," Bettis said.

Joey Porter lays it on the line too...

Said linebacker Joey Porter, "We can't win without him. He's worth whatever he's asking for. It's obvious we need him."

[DaveinMD]

7. the Pats

have some good young cheap receivers. They won't buy anyone on the market.

[WilliamPitt]

9. Yeah, but

Hines Ward, man. Hines Ward. I haven't seen a playmaker like that in a long time, and he would fit the Belichick program and mindset seamlessly.

[DaveinMD]

10. not worth the money

he is nice receiver but only had 4 touchdowns. He is not a receiver who teams double cover. The Pats won't give him big money.

[RummyTheDummy]

11. No thanks

No. 1, the salary cap would preclude it. No. 2, Ward is a crybaby. Anyone see him break down like a little baby after Bettis called a team meeting and announced his 30th retirement? There's no crying in football.

[sniffa]

12. he's not a beLichek guy

[theboss]

13. I'm worried about Ward, but that's not possible

This isn't baseball in 1918. You can't just buy someone's contract out.