Joe Rutter stories, Page 11

INDIANAPOLIS — If the 2024 NFL season started today, Nate Herbig would be the starting center for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Given that Herbig has taken just 47 career snaps at the position and none since 2021, he is the replacement for recently released two-year starter Mason Cole on paper only....

INDIANAPOLIS — While he has “full faith” in Kenny Pickett resuming his role as the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback, general manager Omar Khan is committed to providing competition for the starting job. And he hopes it involves Mason Rudolph. Khan said Thursday at the NFL Combine that he has begun negotiations...

INDIANAPOLIS — Pittsburgh Steelers players like the working environment created by head coach Mike Tomlin but don’t think much of ownership or the way their families are being treated on game days. That was the takeaway from the NFL Players Association’s second annual team report card that was released Tuesday...

INDIANAPOLIS — Quarterbacks dominated the conversation Tuesday on the first day of the NFL Combine, and most of the talk had little to do with the incoming class of passing prospects. The future of two quarterbacks loosely connected to the Pittsburgh Steelers — Chicago’s Justin Fields and Denver’s Russell Wilson...

INDIANAPOLIS — The late-season rumors about Mike Tomlin leaving the Pittsburgh Steelers with a year remaining on his contract turned out to be unfounded. Tomlin’s longtime rival in the AFC North didn’t believe the speculation anyhow. Like a lot of people, John Harbaugh didn’t think Tomlin was going anywhere, and...

February began with college football’s top prospects descending on Mobile, Ala., to take part in the Senior Bowl. It will end with another congregation in a confined environment, this time the annual NFL Combine in Indianapolis. Prospects begin meeting with NFL coaches and executives as early as Tuesday, with on-field...

Size mattered to Omar Khan and Andy Weidl when they conducted their first draft as executives atop the Pittsburgh Steelers organizational food chain. With the four picks they used over the first three rounds in 2023, they selected an offensive and defensive tackle, a tall cornerback and a massive tight...

On a day when the NFL salary cap officially was increased by $30 million, the Pittsburgh Steelers took a step toward lowering their figure by releasing veteran center Mason Cole. Cole had started all 34 regular-season games the past two seasons in the middle of the offensive line and had...

After spending the past three seasons as the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterbacks coach, Mike Sullivan has transitioned into a role as senior offensive assistant. Sullivan’s new title is listed on the Steelers official website. Sullivan remained with the organization and agreed to a new role when the Steelers hired former Los...

The Pittsburgh Steelers made it official Friday when they submitted their formal application to host the NFL Draft in the 2026 or 2027 season. Bids had to be submitted by Friday, and the Steelers made their announcement on social media with a brief video. Tagged in the post on X,...

For a team that won 10 games and played in the Peach Bowl, Penn State was rewarded Tuesday in the number of players selected to attend the annual NFL Combine. The Nittany Lions will have 10 former players attend the pre-draft event, which will conduct testing Feb. 29-March 3 at...

A day after the NFL season concluded with the playing of the Super Bowl, the Pittsburgh Steelers made roster moves aimed at reducing their salary cap for the 2024 season. The Steelers released quarterback Mitch Trubisky, right tackle Chuks Okorafor and punter Pressley Harvin. Trubisky spent two seasons with the...

After decades of treating gambling like a pariah, the NFL has pushed all of its chips into the center of the table. The league is all in when it comes to Las Vegas — the world’s gambling mecca and host city of Super Bowl LVIII — and partnerships with sports...

Caesars sportsbook executive Adam Pullen has taken sizeable bets in his two-plus decades establishing the betting lines for the Super Bowl. Just not a six-figure wager on which side a coin will land. That changed when a gambler visiting the famed Las Vegas casino plopped down $100,000 on the outcome...

Cameron Heyward’s hard work on the field and dedication to improving the Pittsburgh community off it was rewarded Thursday night when the Steelers defensive lineman was named the NFL’s Walter Payton Man of the Year. Heyward was announced as the winner out of 32 finalists — one from each team...

The Pittsburgh Steelers are moving closer to completing their offensive coaching staff, agreeing to a deal with former New York Jets assistant Zach Azzanni as wide receivers coach, according to a source. The Steelers also are hiring former Los Angeles Chargers assistant Tom Arth as quarterbacks coach, a move that...

Frisman Jackson, the Pittsburgh Steelers wide receivers coach the past two seasons, will not have his contract renewed, according to a source. The Steelers are searching for a replacement, which will be the fourth at the position since wide receiver coach Daryl Drake’s death during the 2019 training camp. Ray...

Given team president Art Rooney’s II desire for the Pittsburgh Steelers to feature a strong running game, it’s not surprising that he signed off on coach Mike Tomlin hiring Arthur Smith as offensive coordinator early last week. Smith’s tenure calling the plays in Tennessee, when he relied on bell cow...

Three days after the Pittsburgh Steelers completed their courtship of Arthur Smith, the organization announced his hiring Friday as offensive coordinator. Smith, 41, spent the past three seasons as head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. He previously spent two years as offensive coordinator for the Tennessee Titans. The Steelers interviewed...

By planning to hire Arthur Smith, the Pittsburgh Steelers are getting an offensive coordinator who excelled in that role for two seasons with the Tennessee Titans but didn’t enjoy the same kind of success in three seasons as a head coach in Atlanta. The Steelers have agreed to hire Smith,...

Acknowledging there is a sense of urgency throughout the organization, Pittsburgh Steelers president Art Rooney II said Monday the franchise needs to get back to winning games in the playoffs. The Steelers haven’t won a postseason game since the 2016 season. The seven-year drought is the longest for the franchise...

Art Rooney II is open to Kenny Pickett getting another shot to be the Pittsburgh Steelers starting quarterback. The Pittsburgh Steelers team president also is open to the organization bringing back Mason Rudolph provided he can be coaxed out of leaving in free agency. What Rooney isn’t open to is...

Mike Tomlin is going outside of his comfort zone — and the organization — to find his next offensive coordinator. Not since Todd Haley was hired in 2012 have the Steelers looked beyond the walls of 3400 South Water Street for the person in charge of leading the offense. The...

For only the second time since 1999, the Pittsburgh Steelers will go outside the organization to find their offensive coordinator. Coach Mike Tomlin said Thursday that he wants to bring in a newcomer as the full-time replacement for Matt Canada, who was dismissed in November midway through his third season...

If Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin were placing a help wanted ad for a new offensive coordinator, he likely would include the following phrase: “Those without previous experience need not apply.” Tomlin said Thursday at his end-of-season news conference that he wants his next offensive coordinator to have NFL coordinating...