It had to sting the Pittsburgh Steelers just a bit when New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator Rob Ryan recently crowed that cornerback Keenan Lewis was the best free-agent pickup in the league this offseason.
Salary-cap woes forced the Steelers to say goodbye to Lewis, knowing they had Cortez Allen ready to transition to the starting lineup opposite Ike Taylor.
That plan took a short-term blow when coach Mike Tomlin revealed that Allen underwent "minor" surgery on his right knee Friday.
"We wanted him to get the surgery done now, so he can begin rehabilitating immediately," Tomlin explained. "We look forward to ... having him back on the field in a couple of weeks."
Next up on the depth chart are journeyman William Gay, unproven Curtis Brown and fifth-round draft pick Terry Hawthorne. The talent drain in Pittsburgh leaves cornerback as perhaps the biggest of the team's growing number of question marks on defense.
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