Personal Baggage, Position Work Against Holmes Seeing Big Deals

Steelers WR and Super Bowl XLIII MVP Santontio Holmes' position and off-the-field problems "will likely relegate [him] to the fate" of other Super Bowl MVPs like Deion Branch, Dexter Jackson and Desmond Howard, who were unable to "cash in on that success with national endorsement deals," according to Rich Thomaselli of AD AGE. Baker Street Partners VP & Exec Creative Dir Bob Dorfman: "There's nothing doing with Holmes. He's not terribly charismatic anyway, and then there are his off-the-field issues." Thomaselli noted Holmes was arrested in '06 for disorderly conduct and was suspended for one game by Steelers coach Mike Tomlin earlier this season after being charged with marijuana possession. Holmes also admitted last week to dealing drugs in his hometown of Belle Glade, Florida, while in high school. But even without off-the-field issues, Holmes' position "works against him." Dorfman: "For a wide receiver to cash in, it would take somebody with a larger-than-life personality, with a great back story ... and somebody who is charismatic" (ADAGE.com, 2/2).

New T-Shirts Inspired By Steelers Super Bowl XLIII Victory

SHIRTING THE ISSUE: In Pittsburgh, L.A. Johnson reports Pittsburgh-based CommonWealth Press Owner Dan Rugh has created two new T-shirts, inspired by the Steelers' Super Bowl XLIII victory, with the slogan "Yes We Did." One version of the shirt features six hash marks, representing the team's Super Bowl titles, an "outline of the Lombardi Trophy and a silhouette of football players bearing the numbers of famed Steelers with the 'Yes We Did' slogan." The other shirt features Steelers coach Mike Tomlin's likeness with the slogan (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 2/4).

COUNTERFEITERS CAUGHT: In Pittsburgh, Sherman, Blazina, Sostek & Schmitz report local police yesterday by 1:00pm ET had confiscated 15,000 counterfeit merchandise items, including T-shirts and hats, from "street vendors looking to make a quick buck" during the team's Super Bowl parade. Police were working with the NFL to "identify illegal merchandise" (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 2/4).