• With the loss of so many veteran leaders, there are some pretty big shoes to fill on both sides of the ball. Jerricho Cotchery, now the oldest Steeler receiver on the roster at the ripe old age of 29, is ready to take a leadership role in the offense.

“I’ve had 1,000-yard seasons. I’ve had the numbers. I’ve had many other things, but I want to win a championship,” Cotchery said. “Meeting the head coach and knowing what type of quarterback was here, that’s what drew me here last year. … I just love being here and I just wanted to come back to it.”

I like the sound of things, Mr. Cotchery. Now please go have a nice long chat with Mike Wallace.

• Isaac Redman feels like he is ready to carry the workload on offense. I’m glad there will be more of a focus on the ground game and that Redman will get a chance to prove himself. I know he had a few fumbling issues last year, but he was one of the few bright spots in that Playoff Game That Shall Not Be Named.
• There are pretty big shoes to fill on defense since James Farrior’s release. While Farrior’s leadership is difficult to replace, linebacker’s coach Keith Butler isn’t short on talent at linebacker. He had high praise for third-round draft pick Sean Spence.

“He’s coming along well. A very sharp young man. He’s picking up our system as good as anybody has at this point,” Butler said.

“He’s showed me some things … I wouldn’t say he’s not going to play. The fact of the matter is, since I’ve been here, we’ve never had a rookie start for us — not Lawrence Timmons, not LaMarr Woodley, not anybody. So we’ll see with him. He may not start, but he’s probably going to get some playing time.”

I wouldn’t expect Spence to start, but I love having young talent at linebacker.