Steelers Have a Real Weapon in Wallace

[mesaSteeler]

Steelers Have a Real Weapon in Wallace
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...googlenews_wsj
By ADITI KINKHABWALA

PITTSBURGH, Pa.—For nearly two years, Steelers receiver Mike Wallace had cultivated the faux- hawk. Hair short on the side, arcing high in the middle, it was stylish. It was fun. It was despised.

"Mike's grown up a lot," quarterback Ben Roethlisberger said this week, looking diagonally across the Steelers' locker room at his young and now flat-haired playmaker.

The 24-year old Mr. Wallace has had a breakout second season, leading the Steelers with 60 catches for 1,257 yards and 10 touchdowns. No one in the NFL had more 100-yard games than his seven. He had 15 catches of at least 40 yards and has a very simple message for the Jets and their all-world corner, Darrelle Revis.

"I'm not Reggie Wayne. My name is Mike Wallace," he said.

It really is a mix of absurd confidence and a genuine humility with Mr. Wallace. Mr. Wayne, of course, is the Colts' five-time Pro Bowl receiver, who caught just one pass for one yard while being blanketed by Mr. Revis in the Jets' wild-card win in Indianapolis two weeks ago. And Mr. Revis, of course, may not even be on Mr. Wallace in Sunday's AFC title game in Pittsburgh.

It was Antonio Cromartie who covered Mr. Wallace in the teams' Week 15 meeting, when Mr. Wallace had seven catches for 102 yards, and it's the speedy Mr. Cromartie who seems most likely to shadow him again this time. But no worries: Mr. Wallace has a warning ready for him.

"I might be a little bit faster," he said.

Mr. Wallace was shorn back in October, two months before he hit the 1,000-yard receiving mark, a task that Mr. Roethlisberger had made him promise to complete by the time he hit that milestone. But Mr. Wallace has accelerated almost everything this year, in no small part because of moving his locker next to Hines Ward's.

"Every day I'm on him," Mr. Ward said.

"Yeah, because I'm such a wild child," Mr. Wallace said, rolling his eyes.

The Mississippi product is in fact not that, Mr. Ward said once the younger receiver had walked off. Mr. Ward sees an incredibly raw talent, one with blazing speed that can't be taught and the sort of fluid hips that can shake corners at the line of scrimmage.

Where Mr. Wallace is a natural at go routes and posts, but he's worked in more digs, curls, screens and even reverses recently. What he's learning from Mr. Ward now is how to run those routes cleaner and how to make them all look the same to defenders.

"They're better," Mr. Ward said, even as it was clear he doesn't sugarcoat when it comes to Mr. Wallace. Defensive backs in the NFL have quick feet and better closing speed than in college and he tells Mr. Wallace that if he runs a sloppy route, he just makes it easier for those defenders to catch him.

"It's hard to teach a guy how to slow the game down," Mr. Ward said. "That's what Mike is starting to do now."

Enough so that he has a strong read on the defenders he may see Sunday. Mr. Cromartie, Mr. Wallace said, is "more of a downfield guy.''

Mr. Revis, he said, is more likely to be physical at the line of scrimmage. That's exactly what Jets defensive coordinator Mike Pettine said this week would be the plan against Mr. Wallace, to try to jam him at the line. To which Mr. Wallace unsurprisingly said, "That's a nice try for them. I like the matchup with whoever's on me. I'm ready."

And well-coiffed too.

[Fire Arians]

wallace is going to be great. unlike other ultra-talented wr's he's not a prima donna and puts in work and stays grounded, with a healthy amount of confidence. I was wrong to say he was gonna be a 'good' player, he's destined for much more than that. most young wr's that have accomplished what he had this year would have gotten a big head and probably wouldn't listen to what hines was trying to teach them.

anyone think if other teams knew how well he would have panned out that he woulda gone in the 1st round? ;)

[SH-Rock]

Originally Posted by Fire Arians

wallace is going to be great. unlike other ultra-talented wr's he's not a prima donna and puts in work and stays grounded, with a healthy amount of confidence. I was wrong to say he was gonna be a 'good' player, he's destined for much more than that. most young wr's that have accomplished what he had this year would have gotten a big head and probably wouldn't listen to what hines was trying to teach them.

anyone think if other teams knew how well he would have panned out that he woulda gone in the 1st round? ;)

The Raiders selected Darius Heyward-Bey and look how good he was? The only receiver that I can think of that is close to Wallace in terms of overall WR is Percy Harvin.

[dave n'at]

way too many Mr.'s in this article, it weirded me out a bit. interesting to know that Wallace has more 100 yd games than anyone else though, quite the feat for a 2nd year receiver. if Hines can teach him to run routes as smoothly as he does, with that speed, he might be the best in the league one day. especially since he's still so young.

[skinart82]

I had to actually quit reading the Mr. part and just say the last name!

[3rdandlong]

Who's writing this article, a 10 year old? What's with all the "Mr.'s"?

[mesaSteeler]

Originally Posted by 3rdandlong

Who's writing this article, a 10 year old? What's with all the "Mr.'s"?

It's the editorial policy of both the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times. Why they do it I don't know.

[stlrtruck]

Mike Wallace is like a sharp knife in the hands of ray lewis, he'll kill ya!

sorry couldn't resist...

Seriously, Wallace is getting into his role very well to the point that he's running Holmes' old routes and doing them just as well if not better.

[Atlanta Dan]

Originally Posted by mesaSteeler

It's the editorial policy of both the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times. Why they do it I don't know.

P-G does it as well for front page stories that I guess are "news" and need to be more formal

"Mr. Roethlisberger" appeared a lot during P-G stories on the Milledgeville unpleasantness last spring

And Mr. Polamalu, Mr. Harrison, Mr. Ward and Mr. Woodley appeared in a P-G story today on players using twittter
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11022/1119913-96.stm

[Atlanta Dan]

Originally Posted by mesaSteeler

it was stylish. It was fun. It was despised.

Sounds like a description of the Jets trash talking