Gene J. Puskar, Associated Press Steelers first-round draft pick Santonio Holmes did not respond when Ben Roethlisberger reached out to him after his second arrest. Click photo for larger image.

Here's some unsolicited advice for Steelers No. 1 draft choice Santonio Holmes.

I'd love to give it to Holmes personally, but, with him not even taking calls from Ben Roethlisberger, what chance do I have of getting through?

This will have to do.

Get a contract done this week and be in camp on time Friday afternoon.

Holmes needs to get to Latrobe to start mending the fences he damaged with his two arrests in a three-week period in late spring. He needs to do it with Bill Cowher. He needs to do it with Roethlisberger and his other new teammates.

It's not as if Holmes won't end up with a good contract. Players are slotted based on their position in the draft and are paid accordingly. It's also not as if the Steelers aren't going to be fair with Holmes. Dan Rooney is on record as saying the kid deserves a second chance. Like all pro sports teams, the Steelers are big on second chances, especially for a player with extraordinary talent.

The team could insist that Holmes takes less money in a signing bonus and gets more next spring in a roster bonus if he stays out of trouble. Or it could insist on a contract clause that calls for repayment of a portion of his signing bonus if he has additional legal problems. How can Holmes say no? What leverage does he have after his arrest in Columbus, Ohio, on domestic-violence charges June 18 and his arrest in Miami for disorderly conduct Memorial Day weekend?

The guess here is Holmes' contract will be done before Friday. He -- or at least his agent -- will realize he has far more to lose by being a training-camp holdout. He also will realize he'll be able to more than make up for the money he loses now if he turns out to be as good a wide receiver as he and the Steelers think he will be.

Make that Aug. 15 court date go away under any circumstances so you don't have to miss any preseason practices.

There still seems to be a chance the domestic-violence charges against Holmes will be dropped before the court date. Lashae Boone -- Holmes' alleged victim and the mother of one of his three children -- has said she doesn't want to proceed with the case.

But even if the charges aren't dropped, there's no reason there has to be a trial. Holmes could plead guilty to a lesser charge. Columbus prosecutors can't be expecting jail time, not without cooperation from the alleged victim. It's not hard to imagine Holmes getting off with a fine and community service. If he does and is able to go through training camp without an interruption, he should consider himself fortunate.

Of course, pleading guilty to a crime could result in additional punishment for Holmes from the NFL. It could impose its own fine or maybe send him to one of those anger management/sensitivity classes that did so much for baseball's John Rocker and Ozzie Guillen. In the worst-case scenario, the league could suspend Holmes for one game.

Even that unlikely suspension would be better than missing a significant portion of camp. If Holmes is sitting in court instead of practicing at St. Vincent College, he won't be ready for the first game, anyway.

The guess here is Holmes won't miss any camp time.

Make peace with Big Ben.

It's still hard to believe Holmes didn't respond when Roethlisberger reached out to him after his second arrest. "I called him a bunch of times and left a bunch of messages for him, and he has never called me back, so I don't know how to take it," Roethlisberger told the Post-Gazette's Paul Zeise two weeks ago. "The ball is in his court ... "

What was Holmes thinking?

Didn't they teach him at Ohio State that the most important thing he can do is to keep his quarterback happy? The quarterback decides where to throw the football. The quarterback can make you a star.

And Holmes turned his back on Roethlisberger's helping hand? When Roethlisberger was trying to be a good leader and a good teammate? When he was trying to do what Jerome Bettis had taught him? At a time when he was dealing with some fairly significant issues of his own?

Here's hoping Holmes merely was too embarrassed to return Roethlisberger's calls. In any case, he needs to find Roethlisberger as soon as he gets to camp, apologize to him and thank him for his support.

The guess here is Big Ben will accept Holmes' apology unconditionally and the two will get along just fine, especially if Holmes catches all of the passes thrown his way.

It's not as if Roethlisberger wasn't young once.

It's not as if he didn't make a foolish decision or two.