AARON SMITH OUT THREE MONTHS

If you thought the Steelers' defense had problems playing without Troy Polamalu, that was just the beginning. Their concerns just multiplied with the news that DE Aaron Smith could be out up to three months due to pending surgery on his right rotator cuff on Friday. That would put his return sometime in the mid-January range, which means Mike Tomlin could have a decision on his hands: to IR or not to IR. Interesting.While Smith does not get the "national" praise that Polamalu receives, make no bones about it - this is a tremendous loss for the defense; if it's not as big as losing Polamalu, it's pretty close.Rookie Ziggy Hood will be part of the rotation in Smith's stead, but being that he is not quite ready for prime time, it's not going to be his gig exclusively. Travis Kirschke and Nick Eason will also be in the mix.In other injury news, it looks like safety Troy Polamalu and RB Willie Parker will be back in action for Sunday's game against Cleve...