Thursday’s “First Call” features praise from Ben Roethlisberger for his Steelers quarterback successor.
A former Steelers wide receiver is back on the market. Two Steelers big names weren’t on the Hall of Fame finalist list. The Penguins have a lot to copy from Thursday’s opponent.
And Duquesne’s women’s team opens the home portion of its Atlantic 10 conference schedule.
Apologies to Pickett
Steelers rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett’s winning back-to-back drives opened the eyes of his Pro Bowl predecessor.
In one recent podcast “Footballin’ with Ben”former Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger admitted he may have placed the ceiling too low on Pickett.
“I seriously underestimated Kenny,” Roethlisberger said. “I think he throws the ball better than I thought. He runs a lot better than I thought, he’s quicker or just more elusive, but he handles the ball a lot better than I expected. “His decision making is really good. His leadership, his tenacity, just enough of an edge for him it seems. I apologize for not doing that voice. Kenny, keep doing what you’re doing. .
Now Roethlisberger says “the sky’s the limit” for Pickett.
Related
• Steelers return to football normalcy as Damar Hamlin injury weighs on players’ minds
• Mark Madden: With Bengals-Bills postponed, postponing NFL playoffs seems like best option
• Kenny Pickett named Steelers rookie of the year, Mason Cole honored for his work with the media
0 for 1
The Pro Football Hall of Fame has announced its 15 finalists for the Class of 2023. Steelers linebacker James Harrison was not selected. He had been a semi-finalist in his first year of eligibility.
Harrison was a two-time world champion with the Steelers and defensive player of the year in 2008. He was a four-time All-Pro with 84.5 sacks and 34 forced fumbles.
Former Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward also didn’t make it past the semifinals. It was his seventh time as a Hall of Fame semi-finalist. Ward — a three-time All-Pro — also won two Super Bowls with the Steelers and was the Super Bowl XL contest MVP.
There are now 15 finalists. Pitt’s producer Darrell Revis is on the list.
washington washing
Former Steeler James Washington went to the Dallas Cowboys this offseason. His stay did not last long.
The wide receiver was released following the recent acquisition of TY Hilton by the Cowboys. The Texas native suffered a foot injury in training camp, has only played two games and is yet to catch a pass.
Mike McCarthy, on James Washington’s release, said he was injured and his inability to play on special teams led to this. He is a good man. Let’s hope our paths will cross again. »
— Calvin Watkins (@calvinwatkins) January 4, 2023
A second-round pick of the Steelers in 2018, Washington became a free agent in the offseason and signed a one-year contract with the Cowboys.
Hilton already has five catches for 102 yards in two games.
Lessons to be learned
One complaint fans have had about the Pittsburgh Penguins this season is that they’ve been very inconsistent.
They have lost seven straight after starting with wins in four of their first five games. That bad streak then turned into wins in 14 of 18 games. Now the Penguins have lost five in a row and six of seven.
It all added up to a record of 19-12-6. That’s good for just sixth place in the Metropolitan Division.
Maybe they should take a page from the book of tonight’s opponent, the Vegas Golden Knights. They haven’t lost more than two in a row all season. They are 26-12-2. Those 54 points are the best in the Western Conference.
The Golden Knights allow 2.80 goals per game, 10th lowest in the NHL. Rookie goaltender Logan Thompson has 18 wins, tied for third in the league.
The team’s power play drops to 25%, tied for ninth in hockey. With 1,313 shot attempts, only four teams have more.
That said, the Penguins won the team’s previous game this season, 4-3, on Dec. 21. 1 in Pittsburgh.
I don’t fly
The University of Dayton women’s basketball team has won the Atlantic 10 regular season championship three years in a row.
But as the Flyers come to Pittsburgh to face Duquesne on Thursday night, the Flyers have found the 2022-23 season difficult.
Under freshman head coach Tamika Williams-Jeter, Dayton is 2-10. But at least the Flyers have won their last two games, 94-58 against Cedarville and 71-66 against George Mason.
Williams-Jeter is a producer from Dayton who was a two-time national champion as a player at UConn. She played seven years in the WNBA.
As for Dan Burt’s Dukes, they are 10-4, after dropping the Atlantic 10 opener to Rhode Island 70-63 on Saturday. Tipoff is at 6 p.m.
Tim Benz is a staff writer for Tribune-Review. You can contact Tim at tbenz@triblive.com or through Twitter. All tweets could be reposted. All emails are subject to publication unless otherwise specified.
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