Tim Benz stories, Page 138
Tim Benz: Steelers-Ravens slog shows NFL must streamline its covid-19 contingency plans
Steelers fans all over the country are wondering the same thing right now. How long are Thanksgiving leftovers safe to eat? Can they keep until Tuesday night? Or, uh, Week 18? That’d be a week after New Year’s Day. So you might want to freeze them now if that’s the...
Madden Monday: Ultimate chaos theory scenario for Steelers-Ravens, pounding Pitt athletics
Of all the doomsday scenarios, hypotheticals, and “what ifs” about what could happen with the oft-delayed Steelers-Ravens matchup, here’s an absolute doozy. Mark Madden advanced it during our “Madden Monday” podcast. What if the Steelers-Ravens game still can’t be played Tuesday? And, as a result, both teams finish with only...
First Call: Game-by-game odds of Steelers going 16-0, how Steelers can qualify for playoffs this week
Wednesday’s “First Call” gives us game-by-game odds of the Pittsburgh Steelers going 16-0. There’s a long-shot way the Steelers can clinch a playoff spot this weekend. And we get a look at some plans to handle the Baltimore Ravens rush attack. What it will take? ESPN.com did a deep statistical...
U mad, bro?: Fans all over the map about how Steelers rate, stack up to Chiefs
Are you mad that the government doesn’t want you congregating for Thanksgiving? Yeah. I get it. But that’ll result in fewer angry debates at the dinner table. So that’s a plus. Instead, you can just get mad on Twitter like we do the other 364 days of the year. To...
Tim Benz: With Penguins waiting to return, Robert Morris carries the flag for Pittsburgh hockey
Under the coronavirus cloud, the NHL is still trying to figure out a way to return to play for the 2020-21 season. Well, let’s be honest. We can pretty much drop the 2020 part of that equation at this point, can’t we? But even without the Penguins on the ice,...
First Call: Steelers-Ravens line jumps, Bud Dupree on perfect record chase vs. Super Bowl, Antonio Brown evolving with Bucs
Tuesday’s “First Call” looks at shifting gambling lines for the Steelers-Ravens game. Bud Dupree on the topic of a potential 16-0 Steelers season. A rare quiet game for Aaron Donald. And Antonio Brown gets stats with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Opening up The gambling line for the Steelers-Ravens game opened...
Ravens looking to replicate ‘2005 Steelers-esque’ turnaround
As the Steelers get ready to host the Baltimore Ravens Thanksgiving night at Heinz Field, a question persists. Are they more like the Steelers than we ever want to admit? No, not the unbeaten 2020 Steelers. I meant the 2005 Super Bowl champion Steelers. This year’s Steelers are 10-0, including...
Tim Benz: Sorry, ESPN. There’s no such thing as an ‘overrated’ 10-0 NFL team.
ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith put a burr under the saddle of Steelers fans Monday. On his “First Take” program, Smith was asked if he’d “lean towards calling the Pittsburgh Steelers underrated or overrated.” Smith — who often professes his fondness for the Steelers —said if he had to choose only...
Madden Monday: Why people nationally aren’t buzzing about Steelers the way they should
It’s probably the impending sense that no NFL team can go unbeaten. After all, if the locomotive that was the 2007 New England Patriots (18-1) couldn’t finish the job in the Super Bowl, maybe it can’t be done. Perhaps it’s a lack of faith in the level of competition faced...
First Call: Ravens ruffled before Steelers game. Le’Veon Bell helps K.C. Vanessa Hudgens with Cole Tucker?
The Ravens look flustered. The Steelers’ “MAC guys” looked happy. And Le’Veon Bell is looking to contribute in Kansas City. Plus, we’ve got hockey back in Pittsburgh. And a blossoming celebrity romance for a Pittsburgh Pirate. Maybe. All that and more in “First Call.” Ruffling the Ravens Not only are...
Tim Benz: Steelers’ turnover-happy defense, opportunistic offense key ‘Feats of Strength’ vs. Jaguars
Welp, the Steelers did it. They had three straight “trap games.” But they managed to avoid all the traps. In Dallas. At home against the Cincinnati Bengals. Then, on Sunday, they plowed through Jacksonville with a 27-3 victory over the Jaguars. The teams have a combined 6-23-1 record. So it...
Tim Benz: ‘MAC school’ potholes for Steelers to avoid in Jacksonville
Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin was emphatic when trying to dismiss the notion that his 9-0 team could be stepping into a “trap game” against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday afternoon. “We are not a Big Ten team playing a MAC opponent this week. Every time we step into a...
First Call: Steelers’ playoff lock jinx? Penguins get Mario Lemieux’s hard sell on alternate jersey
It’d take a meteor hitting the Earth to prevent the Steelers from making the playoffs this season. Or just a bad flashback to 2018? Hmm. The Steelers were hoping for a little help from the Las Vegas Raiders against the Kansas City Chiefs this week. That’s looking like a long...
U mad, bro?: Steelers fans bristle over run game debate, Cincinnati attacks on Bud Dupree, question ILB snaps
Here’s how I know things are going well for the Pittsburgh Steelers. I start digging through my tweets, emails, column replies and various other interactions, and I actually have to … dig. No, seriously. I had to work a little bit, just to find a few juicy complaints for “U...
First Call: Antonio Brown’s bike incident could have personal conduct consequences, WPIAL star up from Ravens practice squad
Wednesday’s “First Call” has some troubling news for former Steeler Antonio Brown. A former WPIAL player is up from the Baltimore Ravens practice squad. And a Bengals signing bust. Oh, boy, A.B. Former Steeler Antonio Brown may be in more trouble than we thought. Well, that’s depending on how much...
Jaguars coach Doug Marrone gushes about Steelers memories, Rooney family
Recent memories that Steelers fans have of Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone are mainly negative. He was the guy on the sideline as they plowed through Heinz Field with upset wins twice in 2017. Once in the regular season 30-9, then again in the playoffs 45-42. Meanwhile, Marrone’s earliest...
Tim Benz: Mike Tomlin won’t let James Robinson be a surprise for Steelers defense
During his Tuesday press conference, I think Mike Tomlin finally had an appreciation of what it’s like to be a sports talk show host. On light content days, sometimes you’ve got to say a whole lot about not much to fill the time. Hence his glowing monologue about Jacksonville Jaguars...
Duquesne players counting on experience to guide them through tricky season
There’s nothing easy about life for college sports in 2020. Just look at the Pitt and Penn State football teams. Now college basketball is trying to launch amid the coronavirus pandemic. In the case of Duquesne, the pre-conference schedule is still being worked out. The UPMC Chuck Cooper Fieldhouse isn’t...
Tim Benz: Steelers, Chiefs need to avoid AFC ‘middle class’ uprising
Having a strong middle class is usually a good thing. Not if you are the 2020 Pittsburgh Steelers or Kansas City Chiefs, though. Elsewhere in life, that’s true. Economics. Politics. Education. You know, less important stuff than the AFC playoff picture. However, there seems to be a rising middle class...
First Call: New reports of an off-field Antonio Brown incident, Steelers won’t get Jaguars starting QB
Former Steeler Antonio Brown is already back in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. A Baltimore Raven is catching some flak from his own fans. Even less reason for Steelers fans to worry about the Jacksonville Jaguars. And a bus is the reason why coaches of the Kansas City...
First Call: Bengals fans lash out at Bud Dupree, Patriots’ trick play burns Baltimore, Browns gut gamblers
Monday’s “First Call” features some Bengals fans wagging their fingers at Steelers linebacker Bud Dupree after their team lost at Heinz Field. The New England Patriots spring another trick play on the Baltimore Ravens. The Cleveland Browns ruined a bet. And the Jacksonville Jaguars gave the Steelers a few things...
Madden Monday: Can Steelers fans start obsessing about Chiefs the same way they did with Patriots?
It’s time to stop wondering “how” and time to start wondering “how many.” In other words, forget how the Steelers managed to get to 9-0. Now let’s focus on how many in a row they will win before that streak is snapped. It’s time to stop asking “when” and start...
Tim Benz: Big Ben, 3rd down ‘D’, special teams among Steelers ‘Feats of Strength’ during Bengals beatdown
Now that was a 60-minute game for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Well, maybe 50-55 minutes. But close enough as they smoked the Cincinnati Bengals, 36-10, Sunday afternoon at Heinz Field. For perhaps just the second time this season — despite nine wins in nine tries — the undefeated Steelers were better...
First Call: Mike Tomlin reveals plan for Ben Roethlisberger, Mike Sullivan confirms plan for Kasperi Kapanen
What are the Pittsburgh Steelers planning to do with Ben Roethlisberger on Sunday? We find out in Friday’s “First Call.” We also get some Penguins news, a little rumble surrounding the Baltimore Ravens, and some good news for a Penn State/WPIAL alum. Here’s the plan According to Jay Glazer of...
With or without Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers pass rush will be enough to beat Bengals
For the unbeaten Pittsburgh Steelers (8-0), Sunday’s home game against the Cincinnati Bengals (2-5-1) appears more dangerous than it did a few weeks ago. • The Steelers looked highly vulnerable scratching past a bad Dallas Cowboys team that is now 2-7. • The Steelers have practiced all week without quarterback...
