(Photo via Todd Haley on Twitter)
Last month, Maurkice Pouncey posted a photo of himself with Alejandro Villanueva, David DeCastro and Andrew Luck. DeCastro looked noticeably slimmer in the photo. Pouncey also has dropped a ton of weight since retiring, which tends to happen for offensive lineman once they call it a career.
Todd Haley posted a photo of himself with Villanueva and DeCastro on Twitter on Friday night, and Villanueva looked a lot thinner, as well. It appears that Villanueva might retire after playing with the Ravens for one season.
"Had great night with two of my favorites Al Villanueva and David DeCastro," Haley tweeted.
DeCastro was released by the Steelers this past June due to an ankle injury. DeCastro said he had to get surgery on his ankle for a third time. DeCastro sat out the entire 2021 season and hasn't officially retired yet, but it seems like his playing days are over.
The Steelers had one of the best offensive lines in the league from roughly 2014-2019. After Mike Munchak left for Denver following the 2018 season things started to go downhill, as age just caught up. It truly was a special group with Villanueva, Ramon Foster, Maurkice Pouncey, David DeCastro and Marcus Gilbert.
Haley was also a great offensive coordinator, as well. The numbers back it up. He prolonged Ben Roethlisberger's career also. I mean, the Steelers scored 42 points against the Jaguars in a losing effort in the AFC Divisional Round game in 2017, and Haley was fired a few days later.
The move to get rid of Haley was essentially directed by Roethlisberger, as his relationship with Haley started to sour. All things considered, I don't think Haley got enough credit for what he did in Pittsburgh by the fans and media.
Haley is now the head coach of the Tampa Bay Bandits of the USFL. In the 13th round of the USFL Draft, the Bandits and Haley selected former Steelers wide receiver Eli Rogers.