THE 50-YARD LINE

He has been the talk of Pittsburgh for the past 24 hours. He is your Pittsburgh Steelers newest safety and biggest splash (thus far) of free agency. He is Mike Mitchell. Mike Who? Mrs. Black-N-Gold must admit she wasn't familiar with the former Carolina safety so she decided to find out a little more about him. Mike Mitchell is 26 years old (turns 27 in June) and was drafted in the 2nd round, #47 overall, by the Oakland Raiders in the 2009 NFL Draft out of Ohio University. Because the Kentucky native was not invited to the Combine, not many expected him to be drafted at all, let alone on Day 1. During his career, Mitchell has recorded 205 tackles, 7 sacks and 6 interceptions. He joined the Panthers last season on a 1 year deal and achieved career numbers: 14 starts, 74 tackles, 4 interceptions, 3.5 sacks and 2 forced fumbles. His big season in Carolina could be attributed to the fact that he played on the #2 defense in the NFL. Carolina was second in the league in total yards allowed, rushing yards allowed and points allowed. It is also worth mentioning that it certainly helped his cause having DE Greg Hardy and his 15 sacks and fellow DE Charles Johnson and his 6 sacks. If the Steelers expect Mitchell to put up similar numbers during his tenure in Pittsburgh, they'll need to get after the quarterback and force their opponents into mistakes. Speaking of mistakes, it is also noted that Mitchell led all safeties last season with 18 missed tackles. Plus, he is a bit of a hothead, accumulating over $45,000 in fines last season. Mitchell has even gone as far as to suggest that Commissioner Roger Goodell has targeted him for his transgressions. Mitchell has said that he's been fined over 10 times during his 5 year career. The Steelers just inked Mitchell to a 5 year deal worth $25 million, $5.25 million of it guaranteed. He may want to tone down the attitude and keep his money and his wits about him. Only time will tell if the Steelers and Mike Mitchell are a match made in Black-N-Gold Heaven. We certainly hope so. Let's Go Steelers!!!!!!