It might not carry the same bold swagger as his, "We will unleash hell in December" message issued late in the 2009 season. And it remains to be seen if the directive proves to be more prophetic than that one, which ended up ringing hollow when the Steelers immediately lost their next two games to culminate a five-game losing streak. But Mike Tomlin had a bold message for those questioning the decline of the Steelers after so many key losses and defections in the offseason. "That's March talk," Tomlin said. "I'll see you at stadiums in the fall." Tomlin was not pretending to dismiss what lies ahead for the Steelers in 2013, perhaps even beyond. They have already lost three key starters in free agency -- Mike Wallace, Rashard Mendenhall and Keenan Lewis -- and released two others who were still under contract, Pro Bowl linebacker James Harrison and guard Willie Colon. What's more, they are not expected to re-sign two other starters who are unrestricted free agents -- tackle Max Starks and nose tackle Casey Hampton. "I acknowledge that we have a ways to go in a lot of areas," Tomlin said Tuesday at the AFC coaches breakfast at the Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa, site of the NFL owners meetings. "We're a team in transition, as we always are. Players are ascending, players are descending. We're acquiring players and losing players. I think that's part of this time of year. I think that includes some unfortunate transactions, if you will, and you can characterize James [Harrison] as that. "We respect what he's done throughout his career in Pittsburgh, but we also acknowledge that change is part of football and we look forward to moving forward with a new a cast of characters that will be challenged to deliver in ways that he did."