Looking At 2006 In The Rear View Mirror:

Following a Super Bowl season where everything went perfect, the Pittsburgh Steelers didn't get many breaks in 2006.

Starting off with Ben Roethlisberger trying to impersonate Kellen Winslow Jr. on a motorcycle, then his appendicitis, and then the gloomy cloud of Bill Cowher's pending retirement looming, there were too many distractions for the Steelers to focus on football.

In reality, the Steelers were virtually the same team as the previous year, only they endured a tougher schedule, more injuries and more distractions.

There were a couple of key changes on offense with Jerome Bettis' retirement and Antwan Randle El's departure to Washington, but by the end of the season the Steelers had resolved those issues.

First-round pick, Santonio Holmes, looked like a capable replacement for Randle El's big plays and has flashed potential to be a more complete receiver. He finished the season very strong, catching 16 passes for 320 yards (of his 824 receiving yards) in the last four games.

With Bettis out of the way, Willie Parker shouldered a full load and handled 337 carries. He only 287 career carries prior to last season.

Parker started slow and only averaged 3.8 yards-per-carry in September and October. But like the rest of the team, he finished strong, collecting 930 rushing yards and eight touchdowns in the last two months of the season.

The Steelers are clearly a different team under Roethlisberger than they are with anyone else. Once he finally got back in the feel of things by mid-season, the team turned around their losing season.

At one point, the Steelers were 2-6 but finished 6-2. Their only two losses in their last eight games were at the hands of the Baltimore Ravens. The Steelers were outscored 58-7 in those contests.

On defense, Pittsburgh had a rough go in the secondary. Veteran safety Chris Hope was their big free agent loss on defense but Anthony Smith shown good promise as a rookie.

The secondary was maligned last year, particularly starter Ike Taylor, who was benched mid-season, but part of the problem was the drop-off in pass rush. They weren't getting enough pressure on opposing quarterbacks, which left the secondary exposed.

The performance by the outside linebackers was clearly lacking. Joey Porter wasn't very productive, which left the Steelers short for sacks.

Without sacks and a penchant for mistakes (-8 turnover ratio), the Steelers were making more mental mistakes than they could afford to make.

With a renewed focus, those things can be corrected.

Using Letters To Break Down Numbers: Sacks & Turnover Ratio

For a team that has typically played smart football under Coach Cowher and preyed on their opponent's mistakes, the Steelers were out of their element last year.

The Steelers had 47 sacks in 2005, but only 39 last year.

39 is still a good total and in the upper echelons of the league, but for Pittsburgh, that small drop-off indicated a drop in ferociousness.

In 2005 and 2004, the Steelers were a physical, dominating defense that you wouldn't want to face on Sundays. Last year, opponents didn't mind so much.

In 2005, the Steelers were careful with the football and had only 23 giveaways, which was the seventh-lowest total. Last year, the Steelers had 37 giveaways - including 23 interceptions - which was the fourth-most in the league.

The good news is that these two areas of weakness are typically an area of strength for this team, which indicates that last year was an aberration.

Back To The Playoffs?:

The Steelers franchise hasn't needed to make many head coaching hires but after Cowher's retirement, they were pressed into action.

They hired Mike Tomlin, who has impressed as a defensive coach since coming into the league. He will be one of the league's youngest coaches but he has the look of a winner. He is calm, poised and knows what needs to be accomplished.

The Steelers recognized that their pass rush needed to be addressed, particularly their outside linebacking spots, and they used their first two draft selections to fill that need.

Lawrence Timmons and LaMar Woodley will step into the rotation right away, with Jerome Harrison and Clark Haggans starting ahead of them. Few teams can evaluate linebackers better than Pittsburgh and with six good players, this looks to be as deep a unit as anywhere in the NFL. With so much depth, the Steelers will be constantly cycling in fresh bodies.

The Steelers are solid up front on the defensive line with anchor Casey Hampton and Brett Keisel, who enjoyed a breakout season last year. Aaron Smith is also very solid at the other end position.

It looks like the Steelers will be able to get to - or rattle - opposing quarterbacks more frequently, which means their secondary should get the help it needs.

Coach Tomlin has been working with secondaries throughout his NFL career and he has spent extra time tending to this unit so expect them to bounce back. There are very good players all the way around in the secondary, so the problem does not stem from a lack of talent.

You can expect the rushing defense to be as good if not better, and they didn't allow a 100-yard rushing effort all of last season. If the passing defense improves, the Steelers should be smashmouth again.

On offense, the Steelers are undergoing a number of changes on their offensive line. A failure upfront could undermine any success the Steelers plan to have, which is why they are spending so much time evaluating who should make the final five.

Center Jeff Hartings retired and left guard Alan Faneca, who has made the last six Pro Bowls, is a malcontent at this point. He wants a new contract, won't get it and already stated he's done playing for the Steelers after this season.

Marvel Smith will start at left tackle, but the other three positions are open.

The Steelers gave center Sean Mahan starter's money but are also paying Chukky Okobi close to starter's money, which presents an interesting situation at center. Kendall Simmons has been decent at times at right guard and right tackle Max Starks is a borderline starter.

There isn't much depth at the tackle positions, which is a concern.

The Steelers hired Bruce Arians as their offensive coordinator and he has implemented a deep passing game, which caters to Roethlisberger's physical tools, but if the offensive line is in shambles, it won't work.

With Roethlisberger, Parker, Hines Ward, Santonio Holmes and Heath Miller, there are plenty of good parts on this offense. The only reason they won't be good enough to make a run at a wild card spot is if the front five isn't cohesive.

Biggest Weakness: Offensive Line - There is more uncertainty at this position than there has been in about five years.

Offensive X-Factor: Santonio Holmes - While the downfield passing system is built more for Roethlisberger, expect Holmes to also be a huge benefactor.

Defensive X-Factor: LaMar Woodley - The Steelers are looking to him (and Timmons) to get at the quarterback and improve on their weak production from the position last year.

Fantasy Market: Buy Low

Santonio Holmes finished strong and now plays in an offense that will allow him to flash his downfield speed and yards-after-the-catch ability. The gameplan won't change a whole lot; the Steelers will still be run first, but don't be surprised if Holmes finishes with more receiving yards than Hines Ward this year.

"Vegas" Dave Golokhov hosts "Hardcore Fantasy" on Hardcore Sports Radio, channel 186 on Sirius Satellite Radio. Catch it weekly on Saturdays at 12:00 PM ET.