Steelers Send Three to the Cardinals. Sort of.
By dave buzard
Over the weekend it was reported that the Steelers were again sending players to Pittsburgh West. Three unrestricted free agents went the way of the Wizz and became Arizona Cardinals. The names of those men were Will, Willie and William Gay. The little cornerback with the big identity crisis signed a whopping two year deal with Arizona. The Cardinals, by the way, seem to have their own identity crisis in so far as they go out of their way to poach former Steelers. But I digress….
Will, Willie and William Gay each spent 5 years with the Steelers. As far as my research goes, which is not at all scientific but tends to be as accurate as Super Douche Jason LaCanfora’s, William was far and away the best player of the three. William’s tenure with the Black and Gold appears to have been year one and year five of the shared career. William was drafted out of the University of Louisville by The Home Team and had an outstanding training camp and pretty solid rookie season. The Rookie William Gay looked like he understood the pro game and would fit in long term. The Fifth Year William Gay was a 15 game starter for the Steelers and did very well covering slot receivers. William Gay found himself tied for the team lead in interceptions (Holy Crap! 2…. 2 interceptions!?!?!? That was tops!?!?!?). William Gay had to cover whoever the second best wide out was on any given Sunday, Monday, or Thursday. Hey, a guy using three names SHOULD be able to play any day of the week. William Gay was the starting cornerback, not from Swaggin’ University, on the stingiest pass defense in the league last year. I’m going to miss William Gay.
Willie Gay was also selected in the fifth round of the 2007 draft. He also attended the University of Louisville. Willie Gay had a stellar rookie training camp but stumbled once the season got under way. Willie Gay’s first season should have been William Gay’s second season but that pesky multiple personality disorder got in the way….. He got lit up a lot on pass plays, looked more than a little lost out there, wasn’t even a great special teams player. Willie Gay faded into obscurity and has not been seen since.
Will Gay was not much of a player at all. Will Gay appeared in only four games in the 2010 season. He was beaten out of his starting gig by Steeler/Former Steeler/Steeler/Former Steeler Bryant McFadden. Will Gay couldn’t have beaten Delton Hall out of a starting job. Will Gay lasted but a season and a half before he got a cryptic message from Lee/Lethon/Lee Flowers. The message: “Pick a name. ANY name. Stick with the name”.
Too bad really, I was dying to see what Billy Gay was capable of.