A Few From the Bay

I thought I would take a moment and share a few new acquisitions that recently came to my door via the E of Bay.  I have been on there way too much lately, partially because of trying to unload some of THE CUP cards I picked up, the other part because it becomes addicting.

I received three cards in the mail last week that all will find their place into my PC.  Here they are in no particular order...

The first one is this 2010-11 Certified Mirror Red Dual Sweater #'d/150 of former Dallas Star and current Pittsburgh Penguin James Neal.  I have always liked James Neal.  He's been on my fantasy team quite often and always seems like the guy that doesn't make a lot of noise and just lets his game speak for itself.  I like that.  I haven't gone crazy yet and started a PC of him or anything but it's an option.  I just wish Crosby would get healthy.  I think that line would do amazing things. 

Panini did an interesting thing on these cards.  The swatch cut outs are positioned into the card design so that depending on the sweater color, it may or may not blend into the card.  When I first bid on this, I had no idea it had the GU pieces in it.  Wasn't I surprised?

The second card that came was this 2011 Topps Game Day Autograph of Emmanuel Sanders.  As you can see, it's a sticker auto and Mr. Sanders isn't going to win any penmanship awards anytime soon.  But it's a great looking card in my opinion of an up and coming Steeler.  He was a 3rd round pick in last years draft and hasn't quite broken into the full time roster for Bruce Arians offense, at least yet.  He still plays a role as could be seen in last week abysmal showing by the "black & yellow".  He hauled in two passes for 20 yards, one of which for six.  Here's hoping for more to come. 

Apparently there are four different versions of each of these autograph cards in the Topps set.  Each one features a write up on the back talking about a different moment in a particular game from last season.  These "Game Day Moments" are broken down by quarter.  This card here is 2nd quarter.  I'm not sure on scarcity or whatnot of each version.

Finally, we got this 2010-11 Limited Phenoms Autograph #'d/299 of my apparent "man-crush" Eric Tangradi.  I believe this makes 10 Tangradi autos, or maybe 11, I lost count.  Invariably, it means he will either be traded, retire, or suffer a career ending injury because that is my luck.  I know I always say that but I have a bad track record.  Hopefully he can recover from that concussion he got back in February, make a big impression in the Prospects Tournament coming up, and strap the skates back on for the Pens.  His size and presence on the ice are key to him maximizing his potential.  He just needs to get tougher along the boards, own the paint, and master the art of being a "pest" in front of the net.  Lots to handle but I think he can do it.

I really like these cut out style cards.  I think the concept is cool as it makes the card look more like a focal piece for display.  They did a really good job with the Crown Royal Scratching The Surface ones with the rink inset and the material patch with the team logo on these is really well done too.  I can't believe I'm saying this but, good job Panini.

Random Steeler Monday - Draft Update

For today's installment of RSM, I am not going to feature a particular card(s) of any player.  Why?  Well for the most part, the players I wanted to talk about don't have cards that feature them as a Steeler yet (that I know of).  They will...at least, most of them will. 

One hurdle for many NFL teams has always been the signing of draft pics after the draft.  With all the lucrative marketing/advertising deals and the prevalence of the Jerry Maguire mentality of agents, teams are having to pay premiums for unproven, and sometimes inferior talent.  While I have never been the type of fan that watches the draft coverage from beginning to end in hopes of finding the next big thing, I do always follow my Steelers and how well they address their pressing needs.  This year was no exception.

So far,  three draft picks have been signed out of the seven that were drafted.  That's not bad considering it is only June.  I am predicting there will be at least one hold out here but I hope it isn't going to be 1st rounder Maurkice Pouncey.  The offensive line is always in need of an upgrade and I think Pouncey's size and understanding of the game will be extrememly beneficial to the Steelers offense, regardless of whether they put him at guard or center (which I think he is going to be used as right guard for now).

But that's not who I wanted to talk about.  It's the three draft signings.  The photos are all picks that I would love to see of them on cards when they don the Steelers uniform.

First, we had the 4th Round pick, Offensive Linebacker, Thaddeus Gibson out of Ohio State.  Gibson's deal was for 3 years but I can't speak to the terms since that info is usually kept quite.  A rough estimate is going to say no more than $2 million.  So far we have yet to see Gibson because some class requirements at OSU prevented him from participating in the Steelers OTA's.  I am not too sure on this pick.  I haven't read a whole lot about him and also haven't heard any "rave" reviews of his performance while at OSU.  Even Keith Butler could only say that the thing that impressed him the most was his ability to improve during the season.  I just hope that missing OTA's doesn't cause him to take the whole 2010 season to "improve".  If he does make the team, he will more than likely spend the majority of his time on the special teams squad.

The second pick signed was 7th Round selection, Doug Worthington, Defensive Lineman out of...yep...you guessed it, Ohio State.  The talk I hear on this one is that it's a three year $1.25 million contract with a $33,000 signing bonus.  What you say?  $33,000 is nothing?  I agree.  That doesn't even pay for the gold infused pen and ink they use to sign on the ancient Egyptian papyrus scrolls, which is customary for NFL contracts these days, does it?  Either way, this is a great if not for one thing...line stuffing.  Worthington has the size and speed to quickly fill in the gaps on the line and prevent the opposing running game from getting off the ground.  I see Doug being used in this capacity, possibly on third down and short situations and possibly goal line scenarios. 

Finally, today, it was reported that 3rd Round pick Emmanuel Sanders inked his own deal to become the third draft pick signed.  That is, if you believe his Twitter from earlier in the day (Or is it Tweet?  Is the past-tense called Twatted?  I haven't jumped on that bandwagon yet.).  Sanders is a Wide Receiver out of SMU (Southern Methodist).  With the departure of Sansmokio for "greener" pastures, the vacancy is looking to be filled by anyone with the capability to step up.  Sanders has those skills.
He is being compared to Mike Wallace, who as we saw last year, has both tremendous speed and pass catching ability.  The thing that impressed the Steelers most about Sanders, though, was his leadership abilities both on and off the field.  This is one thing you can be sure they need right now in Pittsburgh.  I am all but positive he will earn himself a roster spot, possibly a 4th or 5th WR but most definitely as a return specialist.  As you can see by his Twitter post in the link above, he looks to be quite excited about the idea of playing in Pittsburgh.  I hope that translates onto the field.