First Call: Vikings star will reportedly miss Steelers game; new Pirate makes good 1st impression; praise for Duquesne hoops player

Tuesday’s “First Call” has some ugly statistical framing of the Steelers rush defense against Bengals star Joe Mixon Sunday. However, that unit may get a bit of a break in Week 14. We’ll tell you why.

Also, some praise for Duquesne basketball. And the newest Pittsburgh Pirate appears to have a sense of humor.

And a sense of how to use Twitter.

Mixon makin’ moves

How good was Joe Mixon’s performance against the Steelers Sunday?

Consider these numbers from the Cincinnati Bengals running back, as tracked by Next Gen Stats.

Joe Mixon gained a career-high 142 rushing yards outside the tackles in the #Bengals 41-10 victory over the Steelers, the 2nd-most in a game this season.

Mixon now has 727 rushing yards outside the tackles this season, trailing only Nick Chubb (728).#PITvsCIN | #RuleTheJungle pic.twitter.com/fHADoB4lSU

— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) November 28, 2021

I’m going to tell myself that never would’ve happened if Stephon Tuitt and/or Tyson Alualu were playing. And if T.J. Watt was 100% healthy.

I’m going to tell myself that. Let’s see if I can convince myself — or any of you — of that.

How am I doing so far?

Mixon wound up with 165 yards rushing. The Steelers are yielding 174 rush yards per game over the last four contests.

Down the road

According to Minnesota Vikings coach Mike Zimmer, running back Dalvin Cook didn’t tear a labrum as initially reported. Zimmer claims Cook is day-to-day.

However, whatever the shoulder ailment is, Cook is likely to miss the next two games according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. That includes the franchise’s home game against the Steelers on Thursday, Dec. 9.

Vikings’ RB Dalvin Cook (shoulder) is expected to miss at least the next two games - Sunday at Detroit and the following Thursday against Pittsburgh - with the hope being that he can return the next week for the Monday night Dec. 20 game at Chicago, per source.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 30, 2021

Cook was injured Sunday during a loss to the San Francisco 49ers. He is fifth in the NFL in rushing with 773 yards.

His absence would be a relief for the Steelers and their struggling run defense.

Clever introduction

Some Pirates fans were unhappy with Monday’s trade of catcher Jacob Stallings. After all, he just won the Gold Glove. He was a team-leader and all-around good guy, and he had a penchant for timely, clutch hits.

Not to mention, he was second on the 2021 team with 53 RBIs.

But Stallings was dealt to Miami as part of a four-player trade. Pitcher Zach Thompson and prospects Kyle Nicolas and Connor Scott are coming to Pittsburgh in exchange. And Thompson went a long way toward quickly endearing himself to the Pirates fan base, tweeting this little league photo.

Hey @Pirates, it’s me again pic.twitter.com/jxGEf7K2Yr

— Zach Thompson (@zachthompson11) November 30, 2021

Sadly, Thompson’s birthday card money the year that photo was taken would probably double the Pirates’ current payroll.

Thompson appeared in 26 games for the Marlins in 2021, starting 14. The 28-year-old right-hander was 3-7 with a 3.24 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP.

Lovin’ Leon

Duquesne’s Leon Ayers III has been named the Player of the Week for Atlantic 10 men’s basketball.

???????????????????????????????????????? @lee_ayers1 #GoDukes #A10MBB Player of the Week pic.twitter.com/Y4hE69Vabi

— Duquesne Basketball (@DuqMBB) November 29, 2021

The transfer from Mercer matched his career high in games against Bradley and American.

Ayers had 23 points, seven rebounds and four steals in 34 minutes off the bench in the 78-70 win over Bradley at the Paradise Jam in St. Thomas, V.I. He followed that with 23 more points to go along with six rebounds in DU’s 88-79 win over American on Sunday.

For the week, Ayers III shot 56% (14 of 25) from the floor and was 16 of 17 (94.1%) from the foul line in the two games.

Duquesne (3-4), winner of two in a row, returns to action on Wednesday night vs. Bowling Green (3-4) at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse at 7 p.m.

The men’s game will be preceded by the Duquesne women vs. Canisius at 4 p.m.