Rise ‘n Grind: So long, Troy Polamalu

SO LONG, TROY: Troy Polamalu was one of the best. Not just one of the best safeties, one of the best players, period. For Steelers fans, he’s another “institution” in a city that reveres them like no other. For all of us, it was a privilege to have seen him play. Polamalu was the Defensive Player of the Year in 2010. He went to eight Pro Bowls, and was a four-time, first-team All-Pro. Behind the Steele Curtain has a nice tribute to Polamalu.

SAFETIES: Speaking of safeties, Polamalu’s greatness is also a reminder of just how hard it is to find good help at that position, much less great players. The New York Giants don’t even have a free safety on the roster right now, and they’re not really sure how to fix it.

BANNER DAY: The Colts thanked a legend of their own, Reggie Wayne, with a giant banner at the stadium.

PEANUT: The Panthers made a low-key free agent signing on Thursday. They added Charles Tillman to the secondary. Does Tillman have enough left in the tank to contribute this season?

EXHIBITION PLAY: The NFL released the preseason schedule, and I’m sure you’re as excited as ever. Actually, it is kind of a relief to see football on the horizon. I always look forward to the first preseason game, even if I should know better, and am totally tired of exhibition play by halftime.

OPTIONS: The Colts picked up Andrew Luck’s fifth-year option, the definition of a “no duh” move. Teams have until May 3 to decide on the fifth-year option for their first-round picks from 2012. It’ll be especially interesting to see what Washington decides to do with RG3.

CENTERED: Florida State’s Cameron Erving is the top center in the draft this year, and he really doesn’t have that much experience at the position. Stephen White took a closer look at Erving’s NFL future and saw a good player who has some work to do.

THE 300: The best player in the draft isn’t one of the quarterbacks that everyone’s talking about. It’s actually USC defensive tackle Leonard Williams. Mocking the Draft ranked the top 300 players available this year.

TRADE TALK: There’s so much Marcus Mariota trade speculation that someone made a Mariota filter for the Eagles subreddit.

FUTURE DRAFT BUSTS: Defensive ends Dante Fowler, Jr and Shane Ray are both projected to get picked early in the first round of the draft. The teams taking those players could end up disappointed. Football Outsiders’ SackSEER prediction formula sees both candidates putting up disappointing results as pass rushers in the NFL.