Tim Benz stories, Page 12

The Pittsburgh Pirates can’t hit. Some feel like it took too long to promote Paul Skenes. The Penguins fired an assistant coach. And the Steelers essentially admitted they shouldn’t have drafted a running back in the first round three years ago. There is plenty of room for grumbling in Pittsburgh...

Thursday’s “First Call” takes a look behind the curtain as to what it may have cost the Pittsburgh Steelers to land Brandon Aiyuk in a trade with San Francisco. A former Steelers pass-catcher is back on the open market. A second former Steelers front office alum is in the hunt...

Pittsburgh Pirates fans are just going to have to twiddle their thumbs and wait for first-round pick Paul Skenes to show up for his Major League debut Saturday. That wouldn’t be quite so bad if all of Pittsburgh wasn’t also waiting for the rest of the team to show up...

Wednesday’s “First Call” features a former Pittsburgh Steeler up for an important post in New England. The Steelers are welcoming a new running back. A local product plays a big role in New York’s win over the Carolina Hurricanes in Stanley Cup playoff action. And a former WPIAL star looks...

For a moment, former Pittsburgh Pirates first-round draft choice Cole Tucker may have gotten lost in a memory. Sitting on the visitor’s bench at PNC Park on Monday afternoon, now as a Los Angeles Angel, Tucker looked out at what used to be his home field and talked about what...

The latest forecast of what could become the college sports landscape came last week from Yahoo.com’s Ross Dellenger. He outlined the prospect of a compensation model for power schools of $300 million each over the next decade via a $17 million- to $22 million-per-year revenue distribution cap for athletes. That...

At 17-19, not much has gone right for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2024. At least not since that 11-5 start. At least not before they got back-to-back series on the schedule against the lousy Los Angeles Angels after facing the even worse Colorado Rockies. The hitting has been bad for...

Tuesday’s “First Call” finds a dismissal of some Najee Harris trade talk. A Duquesne wide receiver is getting a shot with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Joey Porter Jr.’s cousin won’t be joining him in the Steelers’ defensive backfield after all. And we give you the Antonio Brown joke that made it...

During a recent episode of “The Carton Show” on FS1, retired Pittsburgh Steeler Willie Colon said his former coach Mike Tomlin is in hot water. “I love Mike Tomlin. But I have to officially say he is on the hot seat,” Colon said. “When you talk about his overall record,...

Monday’s “First Call” has an honor for a former Pittsburgh Penguin. Chase Claypool gets a familiar number with his new team. Paul Skenes isn’t the only Pirates pitching prospect worth tracking in the minors. And a pair of ex-Buccos pitchers are tearing it up in the National League. Selke for...

Last week, Todd Reirden was fired as one of Mike Sullivan’s assistant coaches with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Given that one of his duties was overseeing the Penguins’ shockingly disappointing 30th-ranked power-play unit (15.3%), that shouldn’t come as a surprise. During this week’s “Madden Monday” podcast, Mark Madden of 105.9 The...

In Friday’s “First Call,” are the Pittsburgh Steelers really planning to have Justin Fields return kicks? The pickings are getting slim at wide receiver if general manager Omar Khan is planning to make a move. A former Pitt Panther is getting a look from the Steelers. And No. 66 is...

There’s no glaring criticism of the future to be made about Thursday’s decision by the Pittsburgh Steelers to decline Najee Harris’ fifth-year option. In either direction. By rejecting the option, if Harris gets hurt or underperforms in 2024, his contract will expire, and they can let him walk and get...

I’m not sure the phrase “swept by the Oakland A’s” really needs much contextualizing, but let’s do that from a Pittsburgh Pirates’ perspective as they return home from a brutal California swing. Not only did the Pirates lose three in a row against the vagabond franchise from Oakland, but they...

On Sunday, the Pittsburgh Penguins announced that they would not renew the contract of AHL head coach J.D. Forrest in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. It didn’t take long for people to start doing some simple calculations as to who may fill that job. A name that was immediately advanced was Sheldon Keefe. Discussion...

Despite a draft that has gotten positive reviews, not all Pittsburgh Steelers fans are happy about the organization’s efforts last weekend. Others just didn’t like my coverage of it. We also have some angst over the Steelers’ QB situation, baseball pitch counts and general disdain over how the Pirates “have...

Thursday’s “First Call” finds a reported sticking point between Kyle Dubas and Mike Sullivan regarding the Pittsburgh Penguins’ coaching staff. Troy Fautanu’s agent has a theory on his client’s alleged knee red flags. The Steelers have their options when it comes to Najee Harris’ fifth-year option. Pressley Harvin III has...

In Wednesday’s “First Call,” another wide receiver is available for the Pittsburgh Steelers to sign if they want him. The NFL may get an 18-game season sooner than you think. It turns out that the Steelers are very fortunate Roman Wilson was still on the board when they selected him...

Pittsburgh Steelers general manager Omar Khan has developed a reputation for being more aggressive than his longtime predecessor and mentor Kevin Colbert. Fans of the team sure do love yelling “Khan Artist” and sharing social media clips of Omar from “The Wire” with Khan’s face edited onto them. For all...

Everyone in Pittsburgh seems to love the first-round NFL Draft selection of Troy Fautanu. But let’s get the opinion of someone who covered Fautanu during his entire career at the University of Washington. Dick Fain hosts the afternoon show at 93.3 KJR in Seattle with Dave “Softy” Mahler. He is...

In Tuesday’s “First Call,” a former Steeler has everyone playing a guessing game about who the club may be trying to acquire via trade or free agency. Bill Cowher is staying on CBS’ NFL pregame show as other significant changes are happening. The Steelers are bringing a former Baltimore Raven...

At least one report says the Pittsburgh Steelers did make a trade inquiry about Denver receiver Courtland Sutton. Another supposed Steelers draft target says he was expecting to wind up in Pittsburgh when his phone rang in the second round. A cousin of Joey Porter Jr. is getting a camp...

We’ve spent a lot of time getting to know the Steelers’ new draft class based on how they performed at the college football level. But what will make them good fits in Pittsburgh, specifically with the current roster constructed as it is? Let’s go pick-by-pick with some subtleties and nuggets...

According to Mark Madden of 105.9 The X and TribLIVE, the Pittsburgh Steelers checked some important boxes when it comes to the NFL Draft. Specifically, adding a lot of talent up front on offense by drafting Washington tackle Troy Fautanu and West Virginia center Zach Frazier. “I think they did...