Thursday, January 24, 2019
Wednesday, January 23, 2019
Monday, January 21, 2019
Business as usual won't cut it for Steelers
By John Steigerwald
https://triblive.com/sports/columnists/johnsteigerwald/14526230-74/john-steigerwald-business-as-usual-wont-cut-it-for-steelers
January 20, 2019
Antonio Brown arrives at training camp in a helicopter.
Art Rooney II is right.
Things could have been a lot different in the AFC North if not for the kicker. There was that blocked field goal in overtime in Week 1 that led to a tie, and then there was that loss by three points when the kicker missed two field goals and two extra points.
Art, of course, was talking about Chris Boswell, who, according to him, went from one of the best kickers in the league in 2017 to one of the worst this season.
I, of course, am talking about Zane Gonzalez.
He was the Cleveland Browns’ kicker until they cut him at the start of Week 3. Gonzalez had a tough two weeks to start the season. He had a 43-yard attempt blocked by the Pittsburgh Steelers’ T.J. Watt in the opener with nine seconds left in overtime. That game, you may remember, ended in a 21-21 tie. The next week, Gonzalez missed two field goals and two extra points in a 21-18 loss to the Saints in New Orleans.
If he makes those kicks, the Browns finish 9-7. It would have meant that, instead of giving the Steelers a division championship by beating the Ravens in Baltimore in the last game of the season, they would have won the division themselves. They lost that game 26-24 after the Ravens intercepted a Baker Mayfield pass in field-goal territory in the last seconds.
So Rooney probably shouldn’t try to console himself or his fans, as he did while making the rounds in rare talks with the media last week, by playing the woulda-coulda-shoulda game. The Browns had just as many couldas.
And they shoulda started the season with Mayfield at quarterback instead of Tyrod Taylor, who left for good with a concussion in the second quarter of their third game.
That coulda meant a 2-0 start.
Rooney bristled at the idea that his franchise had turned into a circus when it was suggested at his press conference Wednesday.
“It’s nonsense,” he said. “We didn’t achieve our goal of winning the division, but we finished a half-game out and had a lot of opportunities to get there.”
Again, so did the Cleveland Stinking Browns.
They played in four overtime games and lost three of them. The tie with the Steelers looked like a fluke because, at the time, nobody believed they were close to being as good as the Steelers.
They were and they are going into next season.
And it’s about a lot more than the kicker.
No need here to drag out all the circus acts from 2018. They’ve become part of Steelers lore and will live forever, but the first act was Antonio Brown showing up in a helicopter.
After flaming out at home to Blake Bortles and the Jacksonville Jaguars in their last appearance of the 2017 season, it would have been a nice touch if the coach, Mike Tomlin, had told his players it was time for a little humility.
You know, how about displaying a “We mean business” attitude and a focus on the team instead of starting the season off with the biggest and most ridiculous “Look at me” moment in Steelers history?
It’s hard to believe that nobody in the organization had been aware of Brown’ s plan for the big entrance. Would it have been too much to ask if he could just shut up and show up? Maybe change the tone a little bit?
The next decision for Rooney is whether to go with business as usual and give Tomlin, who has two years left on his contract, an extension. That’s been the Steelers way.
After what you’ve seen going back to that loss to Jacksonville almost exactly a year ago, does now strike you as a good time for business as usual for the Steelers?
Didn’t think so.
John Steigerwald is a freelance writer.
Saturday, January 19, 2019
Wednesday, January 16, 2019
Tuesday, January 15, 2019
There's an easy way for Penguins to improve power play
By Mark Madden
January 14, 2019
Derek Forbort #24, Jeff Carter #77 and Anze Kopitar #11 of the Los Angeles Kings celebrate as Evgeni Malkin #71 reacts after Kopitar scored a second-period goal during the game at STAPLES Center on January 12, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NHLI via Getty Images)
The Penguins power-play unit ranks fifth best in the NHL with a conversion percentage of 25.8. It’s No. 1 on the road with a mark of 33.9.
But there are definitely flaws.
The minor problem: It doesn’t get enough opportunities. The Penguins have been on the power play 128 times. That’s sixth fewest in the NHL, only three more than third fewest. That’s odd, given the team’s skill. Either the Penguins don’t maneuver through traffic enough, or the referees don’t call enough or (most likely) a bit of both.
The major problem: The Penguins have allowed 10 short-handed goals, including one in each of their last two games. That’s most in the NHL.
That’s embarrassing. It could be crippling. It probably won’t be fixed.
The Penguins are 33 for 128 on the power play. Subtract those 10 short-handed goals, and they’re 23 for 128 for a 17.9 conversion percentage. That would rank 19th in the NHL. The Pens undo 30 percent of their power-play success by conceding shorties.
The Penguins power-play personnel are weak defensively.
Kris Letang is excellent defensively 5-on-5. But he takes chances when he plays the point with the man advantage. Letang’s blind, backhand pass led to a turnover, an odd-man rush and a short-handed goal by Los Angeles’ Anze Kopitar Saturday night.
But Letang must try to create on the PP. That’s his job. He can’t be conservative.
Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel play the half-walls. They’re counted on to help defensively when the puck turns over in fashion opportune for the other team. The former isn’t always committed to it, and the latter isn’t any good at it. Sidney Crosby has defensive commitment and quality, but he plays down low. He’s furthest away.
The easy fix is to use two defensemen on the power play: Letang and Justin Schultz, when he’s healthy.
But who would coach Mike Sullivan yank off the No. 1 power play?
Malkin, Kessel and Crosby have to be on it. Patric Hornqvist is the net-front presence. Anyway, he plays down low and has a long way to go to get back. Same goes for Jake Guentzel when Hornqvist is hurt and Guentzel deputizes.
Personnel aren’t the issue. Puck management is.
The Penguins power play works high too often and too predictably. Getting the puck low emphasizes Crosby’s main strengths — and emphasizes Crosby, period. Crosby is fourth on the Penguins in power-play points and power-play assists. If it’s an exaggeration to call Crosby the unit’s fourth option, it’s only a slight one.
Crosby’s preferred spot on the PP is the right half-wall, but he’s rightly surrendered that position to Malkin for the good of the unit. Crosby is hockey’s best player down low — as long as the puck gets to him.
You’d figure the power play would funnel through Crosby more often. It doesn’t. Perhaps it should.
So the Penguins won’t change the power play’s participants. They probably won’t tweak the unit’s modus operandi. (It operates oddly in the first place. The Penguins’ PP almost never grips it, rips it then crashes the net looking for loose pucks. It constantly searches for the kill shot. It rarely makes the opposition scramble for most of the two minutes, but the puck ends up in the net a lot.)
Since tangible change is not likely forthcoming, the Penguins power play just needs to quit making mistakes.
They need to do so quickly, before Sullivan’s head explodes like that guy in the movie “Scanners.” Sullivan is mostly good at keeping his frustration from bubbling to the surface. But that’s challenged when all those short-handed goals are mentioned.
The power play needs to keep it simple. Make more easy plays. Use the defensive “conscience” Sullivan talks about. But that’s not the Penguins’ way.
Mark Madden hosts a radio show 3-6 p.m. weekdays on WXDX-FM (105.9).
Monday, January 14, 2019
Antonio Brown the Steelers' greatest receiver? Not so fast
By John Steigerwald
January 13, 2019
Lynn Swann and John Stallworth
Antonio Brown, the greatest wide receiver in Steelers history …
Hold on a minute.
It seems to have become a requirement to include the declaration that Brown is the Steelers’ greatest receiver ever in any story about his most recent immature, narcissistic, selfish, stupid behavior.
If you’d like to make the argument that he’s the Steelers best wide receiver ever, go ahead. There are plenty of stats to back you up. Multiple 100-catch, 1,000-yard seasons. Touchdowns. He’s among the NFL all-time greats if if we’re talking about stats.
But could we please acknowledge the obvious fact that NFL passing and receiving numbers have been ridiculously inflated over the last 10 years?
To say that Brown is the Steelers’ best receiver ever is, of course, saying that he has surpassed both Lynn Swann and John Stallworth. If we’re going by raw numbers there is no argument, but we’re talking about different eras.
Ben Roethlisberger threw 675 passes this season.
Terry Bradshaw led the NFL in just about every important passing statistic in 1978 and he threw the ball 368 times. He had four games with more than 30 attempts and never more than 33. This season, Roethlisberger had three games with fewer than than 30 attempts — and it was 29 in two of them. He threw more than 50 passes three times.
In 1984, when he was 32, John Stallworth caught 80 of the 443 passes thrown by Mark Malone, David Woodley and Scott Campbell, none of whom is expected to make the Hall of Fame. That’s actually a slightly higher percentage of catches than Brown’s 104 of Roethlisberger’s 675 this season.
Only someone who never saw Stallworth or Swann play or has no appreciation for the huge difference in eras would believe Brown is the undisputed best wide receiver in Steelers history.
Of Brown’s 104 catches this season, 78 were on passes thrown behind the line of scrimmage to 10 yards “down” field. Those stats aren’t available on Swann and Stallworth, so you’ll have to trust me or someone else who saw most of their games: They didn’t make their living catching passes within 10 yards of scrimmage. Or, I guess you could try YouTube.
Swann averaged 19.7 yards per catch in 1978 and 16.3 for his career. Stallworth averaged 19.5 in 1979 and finished at 16.2. Brown has averaged over 16 once — in 2011 — and has averaged 13.4 for his career.
Back then, the Steelers meant business when they threw the ball. There were no five wide receiver sets on third-and-2.
Brown does nothing better than either Swann or Stallworth. All three could make the acrobatic catch and were great runners after the catch. Brown is the only one with the advantage of gloves as sticky as gaffer’s tape. That comes in handy on those one-handers.
Would Brown have been great in the Swann/Stallworth era?
Probably.
But he would have had to survive the first four years against the bump-and-run when defenders could knock a receiver on his butt anywhere down field before the ball was in the air. Swann and Stallworth dealt with that from 1974-1977. And the league didn’t have much of a problem if those hits were to the head. Including helmet to helmet. We’ll never know if Brown would have been tough enough.
And then there is the Super Bowl. The Steelers, speaking of different eras, completed a total of 18 passes in Super Bowls IX and X. Stallworth only caught three passes in IX for 24 yards but had 11 catches in four Super Bowls for 268 yards. That’s 24.4 per catch.
Swann may be the greatest wide receiver in Super Bowl history. After no catches in his first one, he caught 16 passes for 364 yards and three touchdowns in his last three. That’s 23 yards per catch.
I’ll have to get back to you on Antonio Brown’s Super Bowl numbers.
John Steigerwald is a freelance writer.
Saturday, January 12, 2019
Ducks squander early 3-goal lead against Penguins, lose 10th in a row
https://www.ocregister.com/2019/01/11/ducks-squander-early-lead-against-penguins-lose-10th-in-a-row/
January 11, 2019
Pittsburgh Penguins right wing Phil Kessel scores past Anaheim Ducks goaltender John Gibson and defenseman Jacob Larsson during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Anaheim, Calif., Friday, Jan. 11, 2019. The Penguins won 7-4. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
ANAHEIM — Marcus Pettersson returned this week to the city where his NHL career began. The Penguins’ defenseman and the Ducks’ Swedish-born players – his teammates until a Dec. 3 trade sent him to Pittsburgh – met for dinner Thursday, one night before the Ducks and Penguins squared off.
“It’s good to see them,” Pettersson said Friday, after the Penguins’ morning skate. “They’re excited for a win. They desperately need one.”
They still do.
The Ducks erupted for three first-period goals, only to surrender four in the final period en route to a 7-4 loss. Jake Guentzel’s empty-net goal in the final minute completed a hat trick and sent the Ducks to their 10th consecutive loss before the announced sellout crowd 17,473.
For head coach Randy Carlyle, it was a first. He said he’d never experienced a streak this long as a coach.
“If I had the cure, we wouldn’t be in the situation we’re in right now,” Carlyle said. “That’s what you ask of these guys: you ask their input, and tonight we looked like a tired hockey club. We’re questioning whether we should have skated (Thursday), what we should’ve done (Thursday) versus what we did. You’re always going to be questioning yourself when you feel that your group didn’t have the energy that was necessary.”
When a reporter asked Carlyle after the game if he was worried about any repercussions, the coach snapped back in frustration: “What do you mean? What are you trying to say?”
“Don’t ask the dumb questions,” Carlyle said before leaving in a huff.
The Ducks lost seven consecutive games in November of 2011, then beat the Montreal Canadiens at home on the night General Manager Bob Murray abruptly ended Carlyle’s first stint as the Ducks’ head coach. Considering this losing streak might reach 11, the timing of the question seemed appropriate.
The Ducks (19-18-8) are about to embark on a grueling stretch. They begin a five-game trip Sunday in Winnipeg. Fourteen of their next 18 games will be played away from Honda Center. Their last win? Dec. 17 in Pittsburgh.
“They’re a great team, yeah,” Ducks forward Adam Henrique said, “but we need to learn to play with a lead, whether it’s 1, 2, 3 – at any point in the game you need to be tight and put your foot on the gas at the same time.”
With a burst of energy unseen for most of their streak, the Ducks took a 3-0 lead in the game’s first 13 minutes.
Nick Ritchie opened the scoring. Tussling with Penguins defenseman Jack Johnson in front of the net, he deflected a sharp-angle shot from Ondrej Kase past goalie Matt Murray at 1:27. At 7:41, Andrew Cogliano fed Ryan Getzlaf from behind the net for the Ducks’ second goal. Daniel Sprong – whom the Ducks acquired for Pettersson – snuck a shot through traffic in the slot at 12:23.
Though John Gibson surrendered six goals in all, he single-handedly kept the final score from looking much worse. Despite their burst of offense, the Ducks were lucky to hold a lead after the first period at all.
Gibson’s kick-save on winger Bryan Rust early in the first period was among his finest this season. Later in the same shift, Ryan Kesler dove to block a backdoor, point-blank shot by Sidney Crosby. Kesler sat out the rest of the first period to recover but returned to begin the second.
The Penguins (25-13-6) drew even with three unanswered goals of their own in the second period.
Gibson lost his stick late in a penalty kill, and Evgeni Malkin scored Pittsburgh’s first goal shortly thereafter. Guentzel slipped a shot through Gibson’s five-hole at the 4:54 mark. With Josh Manson in the penalty box at 11:24, Gunetzel was on the receiving end of a pinpoint Phil Kessel pass to set up the Pens’ third goal.
The Ducks pulled ahead 4-3 on a brilliant short-handed goal by Jakob Silfverberg at 14:39 of the second period. Henrique stripped Malkin at center ice and fed his alert teammate for the slick breakaway.
The Ducks still led 4-3 with 11 minutes remaining in the third period.
Their lead evaporated in less than a minute.
Malkin found Tanner Pearson from behind the net for the equalizer at the 9:33 mark. An unassisted goal by Kessel – who took the puck away from Ducks defenseman Jacob Larsson along the half-wall, rushed the net, and converted his own rebound – gave the Penguins a 5-4 lead at 10:21.
Pearson scored again at 16:35, forcing the Ducks to pull Gibson for the final minute. That allowed Guentzel to complete his hat trick with a 134-foot shot into an empty net, prompting a shower of headgear onto the ice.
As a crew dutifully collected the hats and removed them from the ice, the Ducks had an extra moment to ponder their next move.
What was said in the locker room after the game?
“That’s just for in here,” Henrique said.
Friday, January 11, 2019
Carl Hagelin reflects on trade, his time with Penguins
By Jason Mackey
January 10, 2019
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — One of Carl Hagelin’s best memories of Pittsburgh does not involve hockey.
Directly, anyway.
On Nov. 14, the day he was traded from Pittsburgh to the Los Angeles Kings, Hagelin said he and his best friend on the team, Patric Hornqvist, got their families together at Hornqvist’s house — steps from where Hagelin lived — that night, and they reminisced about the many memories the two Swedes made during their time together with the Penguins.
“That was nice,” Hagelin told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette after the Kings’ morning skate Thursday at Toyota Sports Complex. “Nothing special. Just at his house, hanging out. Reliving memories.”
And there were certainly plenty to relive, most notably a pair of Stanley Cups.
There’s also a good chance they talked about the morning skate before Game 6 at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, just the two of them and Matt Cullen.
“Well,” Cullen said that morning, “I know the Swedes are ready.”
That turned out to be oddly prophetic, too, as Hornqvist and Hagelin scored the only two goals of the Penguins’ Cup-clinching victory that night.
While Hagelin said it would be too tough to narrow down the list of good times, there was plenty for him and Hornqvist to talk about.
“There’s so many things that come with the Stanley Cup,” Hagelin said. “Both of those years were very different years. One when I just got traded there, and we went on a run … it was kind of unstoppable. The other year was more of us finding a way throughout the whole playoffs to win games. They’re both just as satisfying. Just different.
“Then obviously us having our first-born child in Pittsburgh, that was a pretty cool experience. Overall, those playoff games throughout the years, they’re so much fun. The fans are great. Everything around the team, everyone cares so much.”
Click on the link below to read the rest of the article:
Thursday, January 10, 2019
T.J. Watt a no-nonsense star for Steelers: 'I just want to win'
By Jeremy Fowler
January 9, 2019
(Karl Roser/Pittsburgh Steelers)
PITTSBURGH -- From assistant coaching changes to an All-Pro receiver being out of pocket, the Pittsburgh Steelers face a barrage of challenges to resolve over the next few months.
One answer to the Steelers' disorder can be found on one side of the pass rush. Outside linebacker T.J. Watt strengthened his position as a defensive building block in Year 2 with 13 sacks, tied for eighth in the league.
After struggling to close out games late in the season, the Steelers' defense could look different in 2019. More personnel is on the way, possibly at linebacker and in the secondary. Scheme tweaks may be on the table, too.
But the defense was strong in a few areas. The playmaking of Watt, Cam Heyward, Joe Haden and others helped the Steelers rank sixth in the NFL in total defense (327.2 yards allowed per game) and tie for first in sacks (52).
Watt doesn't seem to care about his numbers or his place in the leadership hierarchy.
"I just want to see us win. I don’t care who’s here, who’s at the helm of everything," Watt said. "I just want to win games. We had a great team last year and I got to see what being on a 13-3 team is all about. Now, I've gotten to see what a (9-6-1) team is all about. I just want to be a part of success. If I’m the leader, if anyone else is the leader, I don’t care. I just want to be a part of it.”
Watt's progress in his second season should be encouraging for a franchise that's had uneven draft success on defense in recent years. Corner Artie Burns, the team's top pick in 2016, fell out of the starting lineup in September. Outside linebacker Bud Dupree, the Steelers' first-rounder from 2015, has shown flashes but hasn't eclipsed six sacks in any of his first four seasons. Outside linebacker Jarvis Jones, the top pick from 2013, is no longer in the league.
Watt ended his second season on the rise. After experiencing a midseason sack lull, Watt refined his pass-rush moves in an effort to generate more consistent pressure. He finished the year with a sack in three straight games.
"I feel good. I always want to do better," Watt said. "I felt I’ve left a lot of plays out there this year. Wish that I would have played better and made some more plays, but it’s not a game where I’m going to sit here and wish I would have done this, wish I would have done that. I feel like I can make a lot more plays ... Just have to practice hard, keep refining my craft."
Watt will eventually return to Wisconsin, where he'll likely resume an 8,000-calorie-a-day diet to maintain his 252-pound frame for his third season.
Anything helps to find an edge for the end of games. The Steelers lost four games by seven or fewer points in November and December.
"We're nowhere near satisfied with where we can be as a defense," Watt said. "We’ve gotten ourselves here. We have to handle our business first. It’s just frustrating, not being able to put together as many complete games as we know we’re capable of. We understand how competitive the NFL is, and we feel we have a really good team here and we definitely feel we should have won more games than we have. But at the same time we respect the NFL, respect the process, respect everything about this game to be the best we can possibly be.
Wednesday, January 09, 2019
Tuesday, January 08, 2019
No logical connection between Roethlisberger, Steelers' circus
By Mark Madden
https://triblive.com/sports/steelers/14479263-74/mark-madden-no-logical-connection-between-roethlisberger-and-steelers-circus
January 7, 2019
Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown (Getty Images)
Mike Freeman covers the NFL for Bleacher Report. When the Steelers’ latest round of turmoil went viral, Freeman tweeted, “Three people deserve blame for the Steelers’ predicament: Ben [Roethlisberger], [Antonio Brown] and [Mike] Tomlin. But my point has been that Tomlin and AB catch all the heat while Ben skates. No player in recent NFL history has skated as much as Ben.”
So I tweeted at Freeman, “OK, I’ll bite…tell me, exactly, how you connect Ben to the Steelers’ predicament. Be specific.”
Responded Freeman, “Didn’t ask you to bite. Don’t care if you do or don’t, especially with that attitude.”
Translation: Freeman can’t do it. He can’t logically make the connection.
Nobody can, not beyond tenuous.
ESPN’s Ryan Clark, a former Steeler, said Roethlisberger isn’t a “natural-born leader” (directed by Oliver Stone) and talked about a team meeting called to discuss it. But that was years ago.
Roethlisberger isn’t always polite when talking about his teammates. Some characterize that as throwing them under the bus. Roethlisberger said, “as the quarterback and captain I have the right to do those things. I don’t feel like I abuse that situation.”
Brown reportedly was chastised by Roethlisberger at practice for running a wrong route. Isn’t that Roethlisberger’s prerogative?
Brown reportedly was told by Roethlisberger, “I don’t have to throw you the ball.” That’s true. Roethlisberger doesn’t. Wouldn’t this whole situation have benefited by Brown bring humbled more, and earlier, and by Tomlin, say, long before Week 17 of this season?
All I see is old news and action Roethlisberger should feel free to take within the context of his status as a nailed-on Hall-of-Famer, two-time Super Bowl winner, best Steelers quarterback ever and, yes, captain. (You need followers, not just leaders.)
Brown does not outrank Roethlisberger, nor is he his equal status-wise. It’s a rare exception when a receiver dictates to a quarterback.
Roethlisberger has won more with lesser receivers than he had this past season. Hines Ward was the No. 1 receiver when the Steelers won Super Bowls in 2005 and ’08. Talent-wise, Ward would be a slot receiver on the current roster. (Ward had a gigantic ego. But when the bell rang, he was all about team.)
It’s a stretch to say Brown was a mere sixth-round pick who reached prominence when he came to Pittsburgh and Roethlisberger sprinkled magic dust on him. But it’s not that much of a stretch.
It’s not at all a stretch to say Brown would be anonymous had he been drafted by, say, Buffalo or Cleveland.
We constantly hear how hard Brown works, and he does. So what? You’re supposed to. Does Brown work hard for the team or for himself? Does Roethlisberger not work hard? Brown certainly doesn’t work hard at the practices he doesn’t show up for.
So I ask again: How is Roethlisberger directly connected to the Steelers’ current turmoil?
How did Roethlisberger have anything to do with Brown missing practices, meetings and walk-throughs in the days prior to the Dec. 30 home game against Cincinnati? If Brown was angry with Roethlisberger, that doesn’t excuse Brown from his responsibilities.
How did Roethlisberger have anything to do with Brown’s prior misconduct, which is well-documented and too lengthy a resume to list here?
Freeman won’t answer. Does anybody else want to try? I’ll hang up and listen.
Pittsburgh fans are divided on the issue, if a pale horse named Twitter is any indication.
There’s certainly a race component on both sides of this street.
There’s also frequent referral to Roethlisberger twice being falsely accused of rape. That last happened in 2010. Roethlisberger was never charged, let alone tried or convicted. It’s ancient history and not at all linked to what’s happening now.
It’s often mentioned Roethlisberger led the NFL in interceptions this past season with 16. That didn’t make Brown quit on the Steelers.
Tomlin enabled Brown’s behavior. He should have tried to nip Brown’s shenanigans in the bud long ago but probably couldn’t have. Brown would have tried the same nonsense with Bill Cowher or Chuck Noll.
But there is no logical or significant connection between the Steelers’ current circus act and Roethlisberger.
To draw one is to create a straw man and in transparent fashion.
The Steelers likely will trade Brown. They also will restructure and extend Roethlisberger’s contract by March.
The Steelers have made up their minds. They picked the right guy, and logically so.
Mark Madden hosts a radio show 3-6 p.m. weekdays on WXDX-FM (105.9).
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