Steelers rookie LB Sean Spence finding his way

Associated Press

PITTSBURGH

Sean Spence walked toward his locker during his first day as a Pittsburgh Steeler last month, saw the number hanging from the hook and couldn’t quite believe it.

Did the Steelers really give him No. 51, the same number worn by longtime defensive captain James Farrior?

Yep.

“I didn’t have a choice,” Spence said.

Don’t get him wrong. The rookie inside linebacker out of Miami (Fla.) is hardly complaining.

It’s just he knows what No. 51 meant to the franchise over the last decade. All Farrior did in his 10 years with the Steelers was make a couple of Pro Bowls, help the franchise to a pair of Super Bowl victories while leading a unit annually among the best in the league.

No pressure or anything.

Spence is only too aware of Farrior’s legacy and happily embraces it, though he also thinks trying to draw some kind of meaning out of being assigned Farrior’s number is a stretch.

“I’m happy to have it but I think if they would have drafted another linebacker they would have got the same number,” Spence said. “Luckily they drafted me.”

Besides, the number is the only thing Spence and Farrior have in common at the moment.

First off, there’s the hair.

Farrior, released by the team as part of a salary cap purge in the offseason, regularly shaved his head. Spence’s helmet sits atop bushy dreadlocks.

Then, there’s the body. At 5-foot-11 and 230 pounds, Spence is 3 inches and 15 pounds lighter than Farrior.

“Hey, I’ve never been the biggest guy in the room,” Spence said with a shrug. “I never let that bother me and I’m not going to let it happen now.”

It’s why Spence saves the comparisons for others. Besides, he’s got time. Spence will spend this season learning behind veterans Lawrence Timmons and Larry Foote while making contributions on special teams.