Many in the Pittsburgh Steelers organization have spoken out about focusing more on running the football in 2010-11.
It began when Steelers president Art Rooney said in January, "We need to figure out how to get better running the football."
It continued in March when coach Mike Tomlin affirmed his intent to improve his ground game.
"We've got to run the ball more effectively in critical situations because that's how we desire to play football, and it increases our chances of winning," Tomlin said. "It makes us a more dominant football team."
"I predict we'll be more balanced," said WR Hines Ward. "Look for RB Rashard Mendenhall, for us to use a lot of him. Rookie RB Jonathan Dwyer looks like he's coming on strong. Who knows? I would like to be a more-balanced team, I think it complements our defense and makes us a better ball team."
This is obviously good news for those considering protecting Mendenhall in keeper leagues, and should move him up draft boards heading into the summer. It remains to be seen if the running game will still be as big a factor once QB Ben Roethlisberger returns from his suspension.
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