Now about Steely McBeam?

Steelers owner and Hall of Fame member Dan Rooney has a new book out commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Pittsburgh Steelers and among other things why he chose this moment to desecrate it by debuting a mascot. Rooney has long been a man of quiet dignity more likely to carry water than stir the pot. His book contains a little pot stirring, however.

In his book, Rooney revisits possibly the most painful decision in Steeler history in the 1983 draft when they passed on Pittsburgh native Dan Marino. Well most painful since they decided to cut Johnny Unitas in 1955. En route to breaking nearly every passing record in the NFL, Marino went on to lose the same number of Super Bowls the Steelers did during his career.

"I couldn't bear the thought of passing on another great quarterback prospect the way we had passed on Dan Marino in 1983, so I steered the conversation around to (Ben) Roethlisberger," Rooney writes in the book.

Leading into the draft, there was some talk of the Steelers taking either cornerback DeAngelo Hall or Dunta Robinson. While it also seemed likely that one of big three quarterback prospects - Eli Manning, Philip Rivers, or Ben Roethlisberger - would fall to us, there was speculation that Cowher liked Rivers more than Roethlisberger. Manning was expected to be the first overall pick.

When Atlanta took Hall and Houston took Robinson, those hoping for a quarterback appeared to be out of the woods. Then again, we don't know what happened after that. Did Cowher continue to lobby for a defensive player or tackle/guard Shaun Andrews who had also been mentioned instead of Roethlisberger considering that his choice - Rivers - was gone.

Many people feel far to confident into their readings about what goes on in these back rooms. I don't mind speculating, but I don't have much confidence in those speculations - even my own. When coaches come out and talk to the media, you can't believe them either. They could be spinning for the present or for posterity.

Am I more inclined to believe something that Dan Rooney put in a book over Bill Cowher or Kevin Colbert? Yeah.

Dan Rooney is in the Hall of Fame. Name on the door. Denny Crane. If Rooney has ever cared what people thought about him, he's kept it pretty well hidden.

Still back to the idle and reckless speculation, it would be interesting if there was tension over drafting Roethlisberger between the front office and Cowher. How did this affect Cowher's decision to move on? Cowher had only made the playoffs two out of the past five years and had four starting quarterbacks (three different to start the season) over that period.

Had the Rooney's lost confidence in his ability to handle the position? Did he resent that the Rooney's were forcefully imposing their will on a 1st round draft choice? Did he feel marginalized? Subsequent contract negotiations for an extension seemingly never got off the ground. It does seem possible that the 2004 NFL draft played a pivotal role in why Bill Cowher is no longer the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

These and many more questions will never be answered...