PITTSBURGH -- You probably know that Hines Ward is a Pro Bowl wide receiver, is the best blocking wide receiver in the game and is capable of running or passing with equal dexterity.

What you probably don't know about Ward is that he's a lousy prognosticator.

After high school, Ward thought he'd be a quarterback at the University of Georgia.

And after leaving Athens as a receiver, he thought he'd be drafted by his hometown Falcons.

	Ward (86) has had a lot to celebrate the past two seasons.

And after being drafted by the Steelers, Ward believed the coaching staff was easing him out of their plans by drafting wide receivers Troy Edwards and Plaxico Burress in the first round of subsequent drafts.

And after Edwards was traded prior to this season, Ward predicted that his receptions, on the heels of catching a team-record 94 passes last year, would be drastically reduced.

"I'd like to catch 100 balls," Ward said on the first day of training camp. "But with the emergence of Plaxico, and with Antwaan (Randle El) and Terance (Mathis) here, my attempts will probably be lower than last year." Once again, Ward is wrong. Through 14 games, he has 101 catches for 1,205 yards and 11 touchdowns. That's not a bad season for a guy who was rushed to the hospital for an emergency appendectomy two weeks before the opener.

"He's good at so many things," quarterback Tommy Maddox said. "He plays the game hard, he practices hard and he's very prepared for the game. He studies his opponent. He does all the little things right, and I think that's why he's so successful."

Ward learned to take care of the little things because he was insecure about his receiving skills. Until now, Ward had felt like a novice at the position. He went to Georgia as a quarterback but played tailback. As a sophomore, he played the first two games at wide receiver, went back to tailback for a game, and because of injuries, he finished the (bowl) season as the starting quarterback.

"I went back to receiver my junior year and that was probably my best year at that spot," Ward said. "I didn't have a position coach my senior year, so it was basically me just freestyling."

Despite flashing game-breaking skills and versatility at Georgia, Ward entered the 1998 NFL draft as a question mark. Because of a childhood accident, Ward doesn't have an anterior cruciate ligament in one knee. He was a medical question mark and a question mark for scouts who weren't turned on by his computer numbers.

	“	I'm a great student of the game. I take a little bit of everything from everybody and try to implement it in my game. That's what you've got to do. You've got to learn because everybody's fast in this league. ”
		— WR Hines Ward

"And I never really played the position, so I really wasn't as polished a receiver as the others," he said. "Then I came to Pittsburgh as the fourth receiver in the four-WR sets, played a lot of special teams and just got better."

As a rookie, Ward made his mark as a hard hitter on special teams and then caught 61 passes as a starter his second year. The Steelers drafted Burress in the spring of 2000, so Ward alternated with Edwards that year and his production dipped to 48 receptions.

Ward's breakthrough season came last year, his fourth, when he started all 16 games. He caught 94 passes for 1,003 yards and was named to the Pro Bowl, where his insecurities again prodded him into learning.

"I was nervous because I never thought of myself as really a Pro Bowl player. Yes, I had a pretty good year, but being on a predominantly running team, it was tough for me to say that I really belonged with those guys," Ward said. "Being in Hawaii with Tim Brown and guys who have done it year-in and year-out, I found myself calling them Mr. Brown. As it turned out, some of them were big fans of mine and told me how they loved how I hit people. They all told me that consistency was the way you judge a player, doing it every year."

Ward's comeback was even better. He's been among the NFL's most productive pass catchers this season. His versatility is reflected in 142 rushing yards, fourth on the team, and several of those carries came out of the shotgun formation. The triple-threat from Forest Park, Ga., is a valuable pawn in the type of chess game favored by coordinator Mike Mularkey. And Ward's blocking?

"Hines is like a pit bull," Steelers wide receivers coach Kenny Jackson said. "If he latches on to you, it's over. It's his makeup."

So how exactly did Ward go from "freestyling" his way through a new position in college to being one of the best all-around receivers in the game?

"I'm a great student of the game," he said. "I take a little bit of everything from everybody and try to implement it in my game. That's what you've got to do. You've got to learn because everybody's fast in this league. Doing the little things is the equalizer."

Jim Wexell writes for SteelCitySports.com.

Material from Pro Football Weekly.
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