You may have read the nugget Ed Bouchette wrote in a recent post about the Steelers using the Rashard Mendenhall and Isaac Redman Saturday night against the Giants in a Pony backfield reminiscent of the the way Franco Harris and Rocky Bleier were used in the same backfield in the 70\’s. Offensive coordinator Bruce Arians used the Pony backfield while coaching in Cleveland and threatened to use it after Mendenhall was drafted in 2008. If Arians truly was going to use it that year we will never know as Mendenhall was lost early in the season with a fractured shoulder against the Ravens. Bouchette wrote about the Pony backfield soon after Mendenhall was drafted and quoted Arians as saying, “It\’ll be a package. It won\’t be the focal point of the offense because you\’d beat the two guys up. But it gives you another package.” Bruce actually used it 3 times with both Mendenhall and Redman on Saturday and I spliced together the footage below. The first play was all blown up, but the other two plays that Redman carried on went for positive yardage. It is just one more thing defenses need to prepare for as I think the opportunities are endless of the type plays you can run out of this to both backs including screens. Yes, I said it, screens. Keep your eyes peeled for more of this in preseason. Perhaps Bruce will be giving us a pony this year.
