Tim Benz Columns category, Page 98
‘U mad, bro?’: Steelers fans want more faith; Pitt fans want more coverage; Pirates fans want more wins
The Steelers season is just starting. The Pirates season is finally ending. Pitt’s fan base is starting to wake up. And the emotions from all sides are equally raw. That’s abundantly clear in this week’s “U mad, bro?”. After their win Sunday over the Buffalo Bills, this Twitter follower remained...
Tim Benz: Pirates’ inability to finish a sweep is something to behold
I have 15 windows open on my browser as I write this post about the Pittsburgh Pirates. The first one is the Google Doc I’m using to write my initial draft. The next 13 are box scores of the 13 losses from the Pirates this year as they have unsuccessfully...
Tim Benz: Cameron Heyward, pass rush prowess, special teams adventures tell the story of Steelers’ upset win over Bills
Uh, oh. The Steelers are going to be that kinda team again in 2021, aren’t they? That “30-Minute Men” team we talked about at length last season. Especially during that opening stretch of 2020 when Mike Tomlin’s crew won 11 in a row, largely by playing “above the line” football...
Tim Benz: Dawna, the 3 horses and Flight 93’s ‘ambassadors’ of heroism
There is a language at the Flight 93 National Memorial in Stonycreek Township. A way of talking. No one actually whispers, but no one uses their full voice either. Every conversation is in hushed tones. Emotions seem to be communicated in the silence in between thoughts. And that’s just the...
Tim Benz: AFC North media members are bullish on prospects for Ravens, Browns, even Bengals
As the Pittsburgh Steelers prepare for the start of the 2021 season in Buffalo on Sunday, it seems like a good idea to check in with their competition within the AFC North. To do that, I got in touch with some media colleagues in each city to get their perspectives...
Tim Benz: Twitter shame-police are making me defend Notre Dame’s Brian Kelly
So it’s come to this. Twitter has fallen so deep into the ninth circle of hell that it has forced me to side with the head coach of Notre Dame football. And, yes, that head coach is still Brian Kelly. I need a shower and I haven’t even gotten to...
Wilmer Difo’s Wrigley Field pop-up mishap comically foreshadowed by ex-Pirate Sean Casey
During a radio appearance on WDVE on Thursday, former Pirate and Upper St. Clair native Sean Casey told a laugh-out-loud story about playing at Wrigley Field. Little did he know that the punchline would be recreated by his hometown team later that night. The Pirates are in the middle of...
First Call: Jordan Berry finds new team; Steelers will like this ESPN prediction; Bills’ Josh Allen ripe for regression?
Ex-Steelers punter Jordan Berry already has a new job. It comes with an ironic twist. Steelers fans will like one bold prediction from ESPN.com but probably will hate a second one. Also, a statistical warning for the Steelers’ opening opponent. And those who remain from the Robert Morris hockey program...
Tim Benz: Adam ‘PacMan’ Jones calls Steelers ‘dirtiest’ team in the NFL during hilarious rant
The rivalry between the Steelers and Bengals may not be as bloodthirsty as it was five or six years ago. But you’d never know that by listening to former Bengal Adam “PacMan” Jones. The former Cincinnati defensive back has made no bones about continuing his disdain for the Steelers into...
Tim Benz: ‘Dwayne Train’ preseason hype showed a lot of deep-rooted scars for Steelers fans from ugly quarterbacking history
Quarterback Dwayne Haskins’ stint with the Pittsburgh Steelers has gotten off to a decent start. Most days he looked sharp in training camp. Then, during the first three preseason games, he was a lot better than I expected (28 of 42, 271 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT, 92.5 passer rating)....
Tim Benz: Steelers appear to have drafted an impactful rookie class. Now they have to count on it for success in 2021
The Steelers appear to have drafted a very productive class of rookies, many of whom could see extensive playing time in high-leverage situations. On offense, first-round pick Najee Harris will be the featured running back. Third-round selection Kendrick Green should start the year at center. Second-rounder Pat Freiermuth already is...
Tim Benz: With preseason games over, Steelers still have 3 big issues to address
For the most part, the Pittsburgh Steelers appeared to have a very positive training camp and a solid preseason. Friday night’s 34-9 dud of a loss to the Carolina Panthers in the preseason finale aside. It appears as if a lot of questions surrounding the team’s depth — and even...
Tim Benz: Little details of Pat Freiermuth’s game could lead to a big impact on Steelers offense
The big picture on Pat Freiermuth is that the Steelers hope he will be an answer at tight end for years to come. Freiermuth’s measurables are impressive. He’s 6-foot-5, 251 pounds with 9 7/8-inch hands. And with a 4.72 40-yard dash, he’s fast enough for a tight end of that...
Tim Benz: If Steelers fans are giving Dwayne Haskins a chance to improve, they should give Mason Rudolph the same shot
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin often says that his team “has no time for hypothetical conversations.” Former head coach Bill Cowher famously stated his disdain for the “what if” game. Well, I have a disdain for the annual fourth preseason game of the NFL season. Yet the Steelers are...
Tim Benz: Steelers answering questions about thin roster spots as preseason wins mount
It’s always wise to caution putting any stock in the results of Steelers preseason games. Especially with this 3-0 start in 2021. After all, the Steelers are playing nothing but NFC teams that finished out of the playoffs — and with sub-.500 records — in 2020. Over the first two...
Tim Benz: Derek Schooley hopes to build Robert Morris hockey from the ground up — again
Here’s a challenge. Recruit for a college hockey team that doesn’t exist. Here’s another challenge. Do it twice in less than 20 years. That’s the task facing presumptive current Robert Morris men’s hockey head coach Derek Schooley. Wait a minute. Is that a thing? “Presumptive current head coach.” It feels...
Joe Schobert’s laid-back personality may have factored into trade to Steelers
The football X-and-O theories about why the Jacksonville Jaguars were willing to give former Pro Bowl linebacker Joe Schobert to the Steelers for a meager sixth-round draft choice have been well-discussed. The premise is that new Jags general manager Trent Baalke and head coach Urban Meyer didn’t see Schobert as...
Tim Benz: Steelers are right to see value in Joe Schobert that Jaguars did not
I’m still struggling with the Jacksonville Jaguars’ decision to trade linebacker Joe Schobert to the Pittsburgh Steelers. During the 2020 NFL campaign, Schobert’s lone season in Jacksonville, the linebacker wasn’t as good as he had been during the previous four years in Cleveland. OK, I get it. However, look at...
Robert Morris hockey players feel ‘double crossed,’ doubt school’s sincerity about reinstatement plan
The Robert Morris men’s and women’s hockey programs are about to enter another postseason overtime period. The clock isn’t reading 20 minutes. It’s reading four months. For a second time, Robert Morris University officials have given both teams nothing more than a foggy possibility as to whether they will be...
Tim Benz: Improving QBs and run game, sluggish defensive moments as Steelers win again in preseason
If we strip away some of the over-analysis and hyper-excitement assigned to Steelers preseason games, a few basic tasks exist for specific players and overall position groups: Build on positive momentum where it exists, and improve on previous shortcomings in limited opportunities. Painting with a broad brush from the 16-3...
Under-the-radar Steelers defensive lineman draws praise from Mike Tomlin
One of Mike Tomlin’s most tried-and-true touchstones when it comes to coaching axioms is to analyze the development of players between their first and second seasons. Just look at recent Steelers Hall of Fame inductee Troy Polamalu. He looked like a complete bust as a rookie in 2003. He was...
First Call: How much did Ben Roethlisberger consider retirement? Hines Ward’s Hall of Fame odds
Former Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward is up against some longshot odds of getting into the Hall of Fame. How seriously did Ben Roethlisberger consider retirement last winter? Some Baltimore Ravens are banged up, and we rank the AFC North wide receivers. All of that in Tuesday’s “First Call.” Big...
Tim Benz: Mike Tomlin can call T.J. Watt’s contract situation just a ‘brushfire,’ but the Steelers may eventually feel the heat
For the time being, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin says he’d be wise to avoid fanning the flames surrounding T.J. Watt’s in-person holdout. On Tuesday, Tomlin was asked how the decision was made to get the star outside linebacker to attend training camp practices but only to do individual drills with...
Tim Benz: Steelers shouldn’t feel obligated to trade James Washington, but one city looks like a logical landing spot
On Saturday, Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin denied an ESPN report that wide receiver James Washington has requested a trade. It appears that Washington feels he won’t get much of a chance to show his abilities in the final year of his rookie contract playing behind fellow receivers JuJu...
Dermontti Dawson paved the road to the Hall of Fame for Steelers teammate Alan Faneca
As Alan Faneca awaits his Pro Football Hall of Fame induction, it’ll be easy for Pittsburgh football fans to conjure up memories of another Steelers Hall of Famer. Former center Dermontti Dawson. Both Dawson and Faneca have secured their spots as elite NFL offensive linemen. Both got to play in...
