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Steelers Should Honor Lance Moore’s Request To Be Released

By Craig Gottschalk

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Let’s be honest, the Steelers made a muck of things this past offseason when dealing with their own free agents and then finding an acceptable replacement.

The front office lost the free agent battle with Jerricho Cotchery to the Carolina Panthers during the 2014 offseason. The price the Steelers offered wasn’t quite enough to keep Cotch in Pittsburgh and give up the chance to be with family in the Carolina’s. Cotch was a valuable piece to the Steelers offense – he owned the slot, and worked it well.

The Steelers brought in Lance Moore from the New Orleans Saints to fill those slot receiver shoes. No one really expected Moore to light up the field, but no one expected him to see so little of the field as well.

14 reception, 198 yards, 2 touchdowns.

Now just after one season, Lance Moore wants out.

You know, I don’t really blame him for wanting to go and being vocal about it.

Moore did not make it onto the field until Week 3. The excuse? Well according to offensive coordinator Todd Haley, Moore “wasn’t quite ready” over the course of training camp and into the first week of the season to take game time snaps.

Just what kind of offense is Todd Haley running here? A Dick LeBeau kind of offense where a player needs to study up for years before being able to come off the bench? Absolutely not. It seems equally absurd to think that Moore wasn’t physically ready to go, unless he was hampered by an injury – in which case, why would Haley or anyone in Pittsburgh keep quiet about? Did Haley have a beef with Moore?

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Even when Moore was ready he rarely saw the field. In the over 1,100 offensive snaps the offense took, Moore was on the field for just 264 of them. He was targeted 26 times in those 264 snaps.

Hey at least he had more snaps than LeGarrette Blount! (And Heyward-Bey!)

And, that right there is why I think the Steelers should honor his request. There was an unreported “problem” between Blount and his offense. Someone just doesn’t walk off the field in the middle of a game unprovoked. Something was stirring/brewing/festering for weeks – Playing Time.

How many snaps did Blount have up until he was dismissed? 134. Not much for a guy who seemed like he was told if not promised that he would have a much bigger role – perhaps even an evenly shared one – next to his compadre, Le’Veon Bell.

In no way am I justifying Blount’s actions. He’s a jackass and jagoff for what he did, which includes what looked like a shove of his own offensive coordinator.

Jun 17, 2014; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers receiver Lance Moore (16) participates in drills during minicamp at the UPMC Sports Performance Complex. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

But, the relationship here appears similar in nature: Moore was brought on for a specific role, he didn’t get much time in that role, there appeared to be issues of perhaps a personal nature between player and coach, and now she wants to leave.

I say let him. Let him walk before this turns into a bigger mess in mini-camps, training camp, and the regular season. It’s obvious that Todd Haley has other plans.

It appears obvious that Haley has a problem with Moore and that perhaps Moore has problems with Haley.

Haley rarely uses the middle of the field and crossing routes. He continually draws up plays that focus outside the numbers on the field. Throwing in a crossing route once in a blue moon? Then put Markus Wheaton in the slot to run it.

I like Lance Moore. I had hopes he could fill that role Cotchery had on this squad. Todd Haley had other plans. It’s part of the business, I guess, but the Steelers would be wise to not let this fester into another LeGarrette Blount situation.

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