Tiki Barber to the Steelers would be dumb

The Steelers have a core of veteran stars; Tiki Barber would fit right in. The Steelers have a good back, Rashard Mendenhall, but no back-of-the-future type who Barber would be robbing playing time from. And one NFL source tells me Barber really wants a shot to play in Pittsburgh. I'm also told that wherever he goes, Barber won't be content to be a mopup guy or insurance policy; he wants to play a lot. We'll see where he ends up this summer, if and when football happens, but Pittsburgh's my guess.-Peter King Sports Illustrated

That's what Peter King wrote about Tiki Barber coming to the Pittsburgh Steelers. I couldn't disagree anymore with King's analysis. Barber won't be content for a mopup role or insurance policy? When the hell is he going to get snaps. Over Rashard Mendenhall? I'm no Mendenhall fan but he's a pretty good player. Mendenhall needs to get at least 20-25 touches a game by either running or catching the ball.

So what would Barber's role on the team be? Would you want him to be the Steeler's full-time third-down back? I wouldn't. Besides that I guess he would just be a backup in a mopup role. Didn't Barber just say he doesn't want that?

Any team willing to give Barber a shot would probably give him a contract offering the league minimum. But at 36, Barber has, what, a year, maybe two years left? That means clearing a spot on the 53-man roster, taking a roster spot away from someone that can contribute on special teams. It takes away a roster spot from a young promising player that the Steelers could groom in their system.  Instead, the Steelers get Barber, who's closer to 40 than 30, and hasn't played a meaningful game in nearly five years. It doesn't make sense.


In fact, Barber to any NFL team doesn't make any sense to me. He hasn't played since 2005, that's 6 years ago! Why in the world would any team wants him? I would rather have a younger back that could contribute on special teams and in other areas.



Not to mention that Barber's life is a mess. He suffers from depression, has character issues, and clearly wants to come back to the NFL for a quick padyay. Barber was a good playerSteelers have bigger needs and do not need to get involved with this bum.

No thanks Tiki!