Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2001

Steelers wideouts on the rise

Burress, Ward emerging as potential fantasy starters

By Jeff Agrest, Senior editor

What does that tell you about the state of Pittsburgh’s passing game?

It certainly has come on of late, with QB Kordell Stewart breaking the 200-yard mark in consecutive games for the first time since 1998. But while Stewart remains backup material in fantasy leagues, his receivers, Plaxico Burress and Kordell Stewart, are rising in value.

In the last two weeks, Burress recorded the first TD catch and 100-yard game of his pro career. Ward has been a fairly productive yardage-league receiver all season. He scored his second touchdown of the year in Week Seven and had 97 yards receiving Sunday.

And in case you weren’t sure the Steelers’ passing game was bordering on a breakout, along came the Ravens, who changed their usual defensive scheme against the Steelers to pay more attention to the pass. Defensive coordinator Marvin Lewis moved SS Corey Harris out of the box to help in coverage.

"The offense did a great job," said Steelers OLT Wayne Gandy, who missed the game with a hamstring injury. "We passed the ball. Everybody wanted to see if we could pass the ball when we were behind. We were able to do that. Kordell, Plaxico and Hines, they’re really coming on. If they can match us as far as running the ball, we can do some things offensively."

Between Burress and Ward, Burress is the more intriguing. After an awful rookie season, his fantasy value was in the dumps. But thanks to some motivational speaking from head coach Bill Cowher, Burress might be on the verge of something big.

Before Pittsburgh’s Week Seven game against Tennessee, Cowher called out Burress for not fighting for underthrown passes. Sure enough, Burress turned his game up a notch, catching a season-high six passes for 151 yards. He’s also not dropping the ball as frequently.

Burress’ size (6-5, 228) makes him a prime scoring threat, and he was much ballyhooed coming out of Michigan State. Ward, the Steelers’ leading receiver with 42 catches for 428 yards, is a better yardage-league threat, but his involvement in the offense makes him a viable option in scoring leagues.

Neither was ranked in the top 30 on PFW’s final WR draft board (Burress was 35^th, Ward was 65^th). But given the emerging Steelers passing game, both can be considered for starting spots in your league.

GAME-BY-GAME STATS (catches-yards-touchdowns)

Week       Burress          Ward
1                 2-24-0          7-82-0
2                  BYE             BYE
3                 2-19-0          9-79-0
4                 3-37-0          8-68-0
5                 3-39-0          4-38-1
6                 3-26-0          3-44-0
7                6-151-0          2-20-1
8                 4-56-1          9-97-0
TOTAL    23-352-1       42-428-2

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