If you listen closely, you can hear Bruce Arians laughing.
Arians’ revenge upon the team that unjustly fired him is now complete in the form of recently acquired left tackle Levi Brown. The Pittsburgh Steelers had high hopes for the former top ten pick, penciling him into their starting line-up before he even stepped foot off the plane from Arizona. So confident were they in their new left tackle that the man he replaced, inept Mike Adams, wasn’t even dressed for Sunday’s game against the Jets.
Naturally, Brown got hurt in pre-game warm-ups and was unable to play.
Yesterday, word came out that Brown didn’t just stub his toe on some loose turf, he somehow inexplicably tore his triceps doing pregame stretches. How fat and slovenly do you have to be to tear your tricep loosening up? A tore triceps, as Steeler fans no doubt know, is a serious injury that ends your season. So without taking a single snap in the Black and Gold, Levi Brown’s career is Pittsburgh is already over.
How do the Steelers plan to deal with this setback? By doing nothing. Team sources say they have no plan to bring in any unsigned free agent lineman to replace Brown. Mike Adams may not have his starting job back but he’ll be dressed from here on out as the team’s top back-up at tackle. Heaven help us all.
More to the point, heaven help Ben Roethlisberger. I would imagine the Steelers will stick with Sunday’s line – Kelvin Beachum at LT, Marcus Gilbert at RT – for the time being. I’ve been a big Beachum fan but he hardly distinguished himself against the Jets. He was flagged for three holds and he and his partner in crime Gilbert teamed to allow the majority of the 4 sacks and 8 QB hits on Big Ben. If they don’t gel and gel awfully fast, Ben isn’t going to make it to week ten.
Next time the Steelers decide to deal with Bruce Arians, they damn well better ask to show them the Carfax first.