The 2012 NFL free agency signing period is in full swing now and a lot of the major signings are now behind us. The Pittsburgh Steelers have yet to lose any of their own unrestricted free agents up until this point and as usual they have yet to sign any unrestricted free agents to no ones surprise.
General Manager Kevin Colbert has been on board since 2000 and I thought it would be fun to go back in time to look at the unrestricted free agents that he did sign since that time. The table below only represents free agent signings during the key signing periods. It does not reflect players that were signed just prior to the start of training camp or after camp got rolling. It also does not reflect the few trades made during the prime free agency signing period.
The G & GS stands for games and games started and those totals only games after the player was signed as an unrestricted free agent.
I don\’t need to tell you that the two biggest signings that Colbert has made over this span of time were James Farrior and Ryan Clark as they both were definitely homeruns. Jeff Hartings, Kimo von Oelhoffen, Justin Hartwig and Mewelde Moore certainly paid dividends as well. Feelings might be mixed in regards to Tommy Maddox, but I say it certainly was worth it considering his cost. Although he hasn\’t started very many games, Charlie Batch has also served well as a backup and veteran leader over the years and Larry Foote looks to finally become a full-time starter since his return inside in 2012 after the release of the aforementioned Farrior. Foote has logged quality time as a back-up and special teams player over the years.
While there were many solid full and part time signings, there were also a few clunkers. Kent Graham, Sean Mahan and Duce Staley come to mind quickly. If Farrior was the best decision made by Colbert, then Mahan had to be the worst. It seems like a dream that Kevan Barlow was even temporarily on the roster. Remember all of the fans that were excited when the former University of Pittsburgh product was signed?
Have fun with the list and please let me know if I missed anyone that should have been on it. I hope ii doesn\’t bring back too many bad memories.
| DATE | POS | PLAYER | PRIOR TEAM | G | GS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2/14/2000 | NT | Kimo von Oelhoffen | Bengals | 95 | 94 |
| 2/22/2000 | DE | Chris Sullivan | Patriots | 15 | 2 |
| 2/28/2000 | G | Rich Tylski | Jaguars | 28 | 26 |
| 2/28/2000 | QB | Kent Graham | Giants | 14 | 5 |
| 5/30/2000 | S | Brent Alexander | Panthers | 64 | 64 |
| 3/8/2001 | C | Jeff Hartings | Detroit | 91 | 89 |
| 3/23/2001 | S | Mike Logan | Jaguars | 73 | 17 |
| 4/20/2001 | LB | Mike Jones | Rams | 21 | 1 |
| 6/12/2001 | QB | Tommy Maddox | XFL | 43 | 32 |
| 3/25/2002 | K | Todd Peterson | Chiefs | 10 | 0 |
| 4/5/2002 | LB | James Farrior | Jets | 154 | 154 |
| 6/13/2002 | WR | Terance Mathis | Falcons | 16 | 0 |
| 6/17/2002 | QB | Charlie Batch | Detroit | 31 | 7 |
| 3/5/2003 | LB | Clint Kriewaldt | Detroit | 74 | 2 |
| 3/17/2003 | T | Todd Fordham | Jaguars | 11 | 6 |
| 3/19/2003 | TE | Jay Riemersma | Buffalo | 22 | 9 |
| 3/6/2004 | P | Chris Gardocki | Browns | 48 | 0 |
| 3/9/2004 | RB | Duce Staley | Eagles | 16 | 11 |
| 3/10/2004 | DT | Travis Kirschke | 49ers | 92 | 18 |
| 5/26/2004 | CB | Willie Williams | Seahawks | 20 | 11 |
| 3/8/2005 | WR | Cedrick Wilson | 49ers | 47 | 14 |
| 4/5/2005 | S | Tyrone Carter | Jets | 89 | 22 |
| 3/14/2006 | S | Ryan Clark | Redskins | 80 | 78 |
| 3/16/2006 | DE | Rodney Bailey | Seahawks | 12 | 0 |
| 3/10/2007 | C | Sean Mahan | Buccaneers | 16 | 16 |
| 4/17/2007 | DT | Nick Eason | Browns | 55 | 11 |
| 5/10/2007 | RB | Kevan Barlow | Jets | 0 | 0 |
| 3/3/2008 | RB | Mewelde Moore | Vikings | 59 | 4 |
| 3/12/2008 | LB | Keyaron Fox | Chiefs | 45 | 3 |
| 3/18/2008 | C | Justin Hartwig | Panthers | 32 | 32 |
| 4/24/2009 | CB | Keiwan Ratliff | Colts | 9 | 0 |
| 5/1/2009 | WR | Shaun McDonald | Lions | 4 | 0 |
| 3/8/2010 | WR | Antwaan Randle El | Redskins | 16 | 0 |
| 3/8/2010 | WR | Arnaz Battle | 49ers | 25 | 0 |
| 3/8/2010 | T | Jonathan Scott | Bills | 29 | 15 |
| 3/8/2010 | S | Will Allen | Buccaneers | 30 | 0 |
| 3/15/2010 | LB | Larry Foote | Lions | 31 | 5 |
