Tag: Pittsburgh Steleers

NFL cracking down on deep setups by offensive tackles

The NFL is cracking down on offensive tackles setting up too deep ahead of the snap.

The Pittsburgh Steelers and every NFL team not playing on Thursday night need to pay attention to the showdown between the Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens. Not because these are two of the best teams in the AFC. Because of the officials.

Just through the first quarter of Thursday night’s game, the Baltimore Ravens have been hit with multiple illegal formation penalties on their offensive line for setting up too deep at offensive tackle.

This was a serious problem in the NFL last season, and if you don’t think it was, you don’t have a premier pass rusher who was getting mauled on every other play. The Steelers dealt with this constantly with T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith, and so this news hits home.

The league has been skewing heavily toward the passing game, and it is refreshing to see the league actually addressing this issue. It is going to take some time for teams to adjust, and there will be growing pains.

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Check out the first look at Justin Fields as a Steeler

Justin Fields looks great in a Steelers uniform.

On Tuesday, the Pittsburgh Steelers kicked off OTAs and thanks to think video on X, we got our first look at quarterback Justin Fields in a Steelers uniform throwing passes.

The Steelers worked a trade with the Chicago Bears to land Fields at the start of free agency. Fields is playing on the final year of his contract so it isn’t clear if he is a player the Steelers consider the future at the position or not but a decision on an extension could come as the Steelers get a better look at Fields in offseason workouts and the preseason.

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Steelers vs Chiefs on Christmas Day to be Netflix broadcast

If you want to watch Steelers vs Chiefs on Christmas Day, you better have Netflix.

We first heard on Tuesday that the Pittsburgh Steelers would be hosting the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas Day. The NFL will officially release the full regular-season schedule on Wednesday night. Now, according to NFL reporter Jordan Schultz, the showdown between the Chiefs and Steelers will be broadcast only on Netflix.

The NFL continues to expand its revenue streams by utilizing streaming services to televise games. This is in addition to broadcasts on Amazon Prime as well as NFL Sunday Ticket.

Steelers DL Cam Heyward fires back at fans who want him to retire

Cam Heyward has no patience for the haters who want him to retire.

2023 was a forgettable season for Pittsburgh Steelers defensive lineman Cam Heyward. An injury-riddled season forced Heyward to play basically on one leg but Heyward never gave up. Heyward posted this offseason that he underwent successful surgery and was looking forward to playing on two legs in 2024.

But this hasn’t stopped critics from calling for Heyward to retire. This comes from a combination of factors including his injury as well as his $22 million cap hit in 2024 on the final year of his current contract.

Heyward didn’t appreciate the armchair GMs and their hate for him after everything he has given this team and fired a shot at those cynical fans who want to see him gone.

As far as we are concerned, Heyward can play for the Steelers as long as he likes and we will support him no matter what. He’s the Ben Roethlisberger of the defensive side of the ball and has earned that level of respect. We can’t wait to see a healthy Heyward back on the field this season.

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Steelers LB Alex Highsmith OUT with neck injury

The Steelers will not get Alex Highsmith back Thursday night.

If the Pittsburgh Steelers are going to come back and beat the New England Patriots, they will have to do it without outside linebacker Alex Highsmith. Highsmith suffered a neck injury early in the first half and after initially being questionable has been downgraded to OUT for the rest of the game.

This is in addition to fellow starting outside linebacker T.J. Watt who took a huge hit to the head on the opening defensive drive and has been on and off the field, and you can see he is not playing at 100 percent.

Compounding this issue is the fact that The Steelers deactivated veteran outside linebacker Markus Golden before this game. That means the bulk of the snaps will be rookie Nick Herbig and neither he nor Watt are going to get any rest.

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Steelers release LB Hamilcar Rashed from PS

The Steelers announced one roster move on Tuesday.

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On Tuesday, the Pittsburgh Steelers announced they had released outside linebacker Hamilcar Rashed from the practice squad. Rashed had spent the first half of the season on the practice squad IR.

The Steelers claimed Rashed off waivers on August 10 and he was placed on the practice squad on August 30.

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Phillip Lindsay could fx the Steelers running back woes

Do the Steelers need to add a more viable backup running back?

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According to multiple reports, the Indianapolis Colts are planning to release running Phillip Lindsay due to the depth Indianapolis has at running back. Lindsay is a fascinating option for the Pittsburgh Steelers given their current running back situation.

Najee Harris is entrenched as the starter but after disclosing he is dealing with a Lisfranc injury, the need for a guy who can come in and play significant reps might be much higher.

The Steelers current crop of backup running backs are either completely untested or largely mediocre. Rookie Jaylen Warren is probably the most talented of the group but I’m not sure he can carry the load if Harris ends up on a pitch count or worse misses time.

Lindsay has proven himself as a back in this league. Linday proved in his first two NFL seasons he’s capable of producing 1,000+ rushing yards and is a capable receiving threat out of the backfield. He’s been used sparingly the last three seasons and has fresh legs.

Should the Steelers bring in Lindsay? Let us know in the comments below.

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Steelers release RB Mataeo Durant

The Steelers trimmed their roster to 80 on Tuesday.

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On Tuesday, the Pittsburgh announced five more roster moves to get to their training camp roster down to the  required 80 players by the deadline at the end of business. One of those players released was running back Mateo Durant.

Durant was signed as an UDFA out of Duke and really had strong film. Unfortunately, Durant struggled to hold onto the football in practice and showed real weakness in pass protection. Add in the emergence of Anthony McFarland Jr. and Jaylen Warren and Durant’s best bet could be to get signed back to the Steelers practice squad after he clears waivers.

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Steelers RB James Conner questionable to return with shoulder injury

James Conner has re-injured his shoulder.

It was clear early in the game against the Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers running back James Conner was holding back. He wasn’t running with the physicality or aggressiveness we are used to. And perhaps we know why. According to the team, Conner has been taken to the locker room to have his already injured shoulder evaluated. His return is questionable.

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