Pittsburgh Steelers' veterans keep rookies’ heads in the game
Pittsburgh Steelers’ Hines Ward’s message to the rookies was simple. In a note left on the door to the locker room before the AFC Championship Game against the New York Jets, Ward bluntly wrote, “Don’t play with my money.”
Even though it isn’t all about the $142,000 that the team’s players receive upon winning the Super Bowl, Ward’s message to the younger Steelers was for them to comprehend the fact that a chance at the Super Bowl title doesn’t occur often. The rookies can
lose sight of key factors when they are successful, such as being focused and prepared.
The players who read the note obviously got the message, winning the championship game 24-19 and advancing to Super Bowl XLV at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
"We all have to put our hands in the pile to be held accountable -- young and veteran guys," Ward said. "So you will hear a lot of veterans tell the young guys 'Don't play with my money.' But I think our young guys have risen to the occasion and made plays."
The rookies are lucky to have powerful leaders such as Troy Polamalu, James Farrior and, off course, Ward. With the help of motivating trainers, the novices are beginning to play like the veterans that they have been admiring since they could walk. After
all, Ward, a four-time Pro Bowler, three-time Steelers’ Most Valuable Player (MVP), two-time Super Bowl winner and a Super Bowl MVP, started playing for the Steelers since 1998, almost 13 years ago.
Of course, the rookies can learn much more from Ward than just his playing style. Although he has been called the dirtiest player in the National Football League twice, as recently as in year 2009, Ward is a lot gentler than the way that he plays. The first
time he went to his birthplace, Seoul, South Korea, Ward donated $1 million to create the Hines Ward Helping Hands Foundation, which is "a foundation to help mixed-race children like himself in South Korea, where they have suffered discrimination."
Ward’s mother is Korean and his father is African American.
Moving back to the Super Bowl, the Steelers are getting enormous help from their rookie players. Maurkice Pouncey, Antonio Brown and Emmanuel Sanders can be credited for bringing the Steelers to where they are now; the Super Bowl contenders. And they will
let nothing stand in their way from winning the Lombardi Trophy.
Second year players such as Ziggy Hood and Mike Wallace are also being credited with contributing in a big way to the team’s status. Hood has had 30 tackles and three sacks this season, while Wallace has had 60 receptions for 1,257 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Here it is important to mention third year player Rashard Mendenhall. This is the first time in his three-year professional experience that Mendenhall is playing for the playoffs. He has had 47 rushing attempts for 167 yards and three touchdowns in the
two playoff games this season against the Baltimore Ravens and Jets. He suffered a shoulder injury during the 2008 season, while his team won Super Bowl XLIII.
If you have been with the Steelers for at least two years, you already have a Super Bowl ring in a display case at home. If you’ve been around for six years, you have two display cases with Super Bowl XL and Super Bowl XLIII written on them. If you joined
after the 2008 season, now’s your chance. Go for it.
That’s one of the ways the veterans are keeping the rookies motivated. They poke fun at the rookies about not having any winner jewellery, and judging by their playoff run, the strategy seems to be working.
"We're really hungry," Wallace said. "I'm pretty sure the other guys will bring their rings out before we go to Dallas. So we're extremely jealous -- but jealous in a good way, not in a bad way. We just want us some [rings]."
Super Bowl XLV will start at 6:29 PM ET at Cowboys Stadium with the Steelers facing the Green Bay Packers.
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