Take a good look at that Super Bowl XL team picture because it's about to change.

The Steelers would love to keep their NFL championship team intact and sign all of their players who will become free agents a week from tomorrow, Kevin Colbert said yesterday. It's just not realistic.

	Free agent game Unrestricted (players are free to sign anywhere and club does not retain any rights to him): QB Charlie Batch, RB Verron Haynes, DE Brett Keisel, LB Clint Kriewaldt, WR Lee Mays, WR Quincy Morgan, WR Antwaan Randle El, CB Deshea Townsend, TE Jerame Tuman, DE Kimo von Oelhoffen. Restricted (club maintains right to match any deal provided it makes a qualifying offer): WR Sean Morey, CB Ike Taylor. Exclusive rights (club maintains exclusive rights provided it makes a qualifying offer): RB Willie Parker, LB James Harrison, DE Shaun Nua.

"We're not going to sign everyone," said Colbert, the team's director of football operations who arrived in Indianapolis yesterday to prepare for the start of the annual NFL combine workouts. "We may have to move on without some of the players who helped us win a championship. That's the way the game is today."

The Steelers have talked to all 10 of their impending unrestricted free agents and their two restricted free agents. Some negotiations are ongoing. But, Colbert said, the Steelers will have to make moves before March 3 to get under the new salary cap, which is expected to be around $95 million for each team.

Even that is unsettled because the players association and NFL management are working to try to extend the collective bargaining agreement set to expire after the 2007 season. If they do not, there will be uncertainty about how much to pay players because the signing bonuses can only be pro-rated over four years, not six.

"We're anticipating having cap issues once that final number is determined," Colbert said.

The Steelers aren't likely to make much of an attempt to sign anyone else's free agents, at least not any big ones such as Baltimore running back Jamal Lewis, who yesterday expressed a desire to sign with the Steelers after he becomes a free agent March 3 ("Bill Cowher has always complimented me whenever we played them," Lewis told the Baltimore Sun.)

"Just looking at our history, we never have been [real active] and I don't think we'll change from that," Colbert said. "We don't anticipate that. We'd like to get as many of our own guys back as we can, and add to it as necessary, and then go to the draft and get players that way also."

Colbert would not speculate as to which players the team might sign or lose. Wide receiver Antwaan Randle El should be their most desirous free agent.

"Nobody knows at this point," Colbert said. "Obviously other teams cannot contact a player until it starts, so you don't know where the market's going to be. I can look at it collectively and say we'd like to get all of them back; realistically I don't think it's possible. We haven't eliminated anybody. Who's to say we won't sign one guy?

"I'm serious when I say we'd love to have everybody back. To a man, our free agents all want to stay. Now it's a matter of can we do it? It is unrealistic to think we can get everybody back."

The Steelers likely will release quarterback Tommy Maddox next Friday. They also want to reduce center Jeff Harting's $4 million salary before they must pay him an additional $750,000 roster bonus by March 8. Cornerback Willie Williams, who played little last season, probably will go to save his $1,235,000 salary. And, of course, Jerome Bettis' retirement will wipe his $5,351,000 salary from their books.

The Steelers will issue their two restricted free agents qualifying offers early next week to protect their rights to them. Although the league has not yet announced the required amounts, cornerback Ike Taylor likely will be offered the one-year tender of about $1.7 million and special teams captain Sean Morey will be offered a lower amount. The Steelers could match any contract another team might give to either restricted free agent, or, in Taylor's case, decline and receive a first-round draft pick in return. The Steelers expect both restricted players to stay.

Even though defensive end Kimo von Oelhoffen turned 35, they want him back, both for his level of play and his leadership. They also want Duce Staley to fill the role Jerome Bettis played last season as the backup halfback to Willie Parker.

"Obviously, we achieved the ultimate reward," Colbert said of the Steelers Super Bowl victory. "You're definitely happy where you are, but you're also realistic knowing it's going to change.

"It's our challenge to maintain that, however we have to do it through free agency and the draft."