FanHouse Chris Kemoeatu

As we have done since the FanHouse began, I'll be taking a look every week at some aspect of line play. You can read more features in the series here. Check back every Thursday for a new Between The Lines.

For three years I rewatched every Steelers game with an eye on the offensive line. And a good bit of the time, it wasn't pretty. Whether it was a debacle against the Raiders in 2006 or the mass of confusion against the Eagles in 2008, there have been plenty of lowlights.

After watching the Steelers win the Super Bowl last year despite a struggling offensive line, I kind of figured that if everything went well, Pittsburgh could figure out a way to do it again. They had enough defense and enough skill position players on offense to make up for the offensive line's problems.

The Steelers are 1-2, without Troy Polamalu, and face a huge test against the Chargers on Sunday night. The biggest story line heading into the weekend? Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers' offensive line headlining a WWE Raw (!) event Monday night.

Evidently, there are concerns that Big Ben and his five fat friends aren't taking their day jobs seriously. Because everyone knows that true professionals think about football every waking moment.

In any event, left tackle Max Starks isn't worried. Via the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:

There's been a lot of talk about how offensive coordinator Bruce Arians has changed the Steelers' approach. The battering ram of Jerome Bettis up the middle has been replaced by more three wide receiver sets and a reliance on the passing game.

But it's not as different as you think, which is what Chris Brown has pointed out over at the New York Times' Fifth Down Blog. Brown breaks down the Steelers' offense and finds that the Steelers are still relying on the same running plays that they used when Ken Whisenhunt was coaching the team, the only difference is the formations that they are running them out of. Where Whisenhunt would use a fullback, Arians is much more likely to use a tight end or H-back. Partly that's because of philosophy, but it also partly because the Steelers' haven't had a fullback who can block it effectively since Dan Kreider left.

The early reports on the Steelers' 2009 draft picks is very favorable. Mike Wallace has shown speed. Frank Summers is just as big as everyone expected and Ziggy Hood has shown an outstanding motor.

Of course, there's yet to be a draft pick who's publicly been called out for disappointing at offseason workouts, so as always, we won't know very much until they put the pads on for real in two months. But if history is any kind of guide, expect Hood, the Steelers' first-round pick, to do quite well, while several of the later-round picks will fail miserably.

The Steelers have apparently decided that last year's offensive line was good enough to keep around.

After franchising Max Starks, tendering Willie Colon and re-signing Chris Kemoeatu, the Steelers brought back a fourth member of the gang on Tuesday, signing backup Trai Essex to a three-year, $2 million deal. The deal means the Steelers will likely open the season with the same top six linemen as the group that dressed for the Super Bowl.

It's worth noting that the rest of the NFL appears to have the same opinion as the Steelers fans of the Steelers offensive linemen. Essex's deal is one of the smallest free-agent contracts any offensive lineman has signed this offseason, while Kemoeatu's five-year, $20 million deal is paltry for a starting offensive guard.

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The Steelers won the Super Bowl this year with one of the league's worst offensive lines. So with no real good options now that Jeff Saturday has signed with the Colts, the Steelers kept the old gang together by re-signing Chris Kemoeatu to a reasonable five-year, $20 million deal (with only a $3.885 million signing bonus).

By locking up Kemoeatu, the Steelers will bring back the same five offensive linemen who were on the field for the Super Bowl. If you're a pessimist, it's worth nothing that that offensive line is the same group that gave up 49 sacks during the season and averaged only 3.7 yards per carry on the ground.

On Thursday, the Steelers parted ways with guard Kendall Simmons. It was a surprising move; not so much because of Simmons' on-field contributions -- he's been nothing more than replacement level for the last three seasons -- but because starting left guard Chris Kemoeatu was headed for free agency and Simmons' replacement, Darnell Stapleton, has only 12 career starts.

Then, on Friday morning, the New York Daily News reported that the Jets had offered Kemoeatu more than $4 million a year. By this afternoon, however, the Steelers had re-signed Kemoeatu, their former sixth-round pick, to a five-year, $20 million deal, which includes a $4 million signing bonus.

Last offseason, the Steelers slapped Max Starks with the transition tag, and at the time, most people didn't know what to make of the move. Starks, the team's starting right tackle during the 2005 Super Bowl season, had lost his job to Willie Colon, and paying a backup more than $6 million to ride the pine didn't make much sense.

It turned out to be a great move, however, because left tackle Marvel Smith missed most of the season with a back injury, and Starks, who will never be mistaken for Jonathan Ogden, played well in his absence. So well, in fact, that Pittsburgh franchised him Thursday afternoon.

If you thought there was any chance that Chris Kemoeatu was coming back to the Steelers, there are some pretty strong signs that he will be heading elsewhere in today's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

The Steelers already have Kendall Simmons (back from an Achilles injury) and 2008 starter Darnell Stapleton under contract for 2009. They also have a starting right tackle (Willie Colon) who almost every scout/player personnel man not employed by the Steelers believes would be better off playing guard. So the only real reason to bring Kemoeatu back is if he's willing to agree to a very reasonable deal.

But if you listen to Kemoeatu's agent, it sure sounds like he's expecting a landmark offer. And he hopes it comes from the Steelers.

As they create room in the trophy case for a sixth Lombardi Trophy, the Steelers also have some decisions to make. Four of the team's top five offensive tackles are free agents (although Willie Colon is only a restricted free agent), as are starting cornerback Bryant McFadden and No. 3 receiver Nate Washington.

But according to Sports Illustrated's Don Banks, the Steelers have already decided on their top free agent priority. Banks says the Steelers plan to try to re-up McFadden before free agency begins on Feb. 27. With $19 million in cap room, Pittsburgh has some room to get McFadden under contract while also either re-upping Max Starks or trying to bring in free agent offensive line help.