Beaver County Times, November 23, 2014

Busy week for LeGarrette Blount. On Monday night, he decided to leave the Steelers-Titans game early. The Steelers released him hours later.

On Thursday, he was practicing with the Patriots after signing a two-year contract with them.

There was much consternation in the Steelers Nation over the Patriots' decision to welcome back Blount, but why? It was just sports business as usual.

The first rule of sports is winning. If an organization thinks an individual can help achieve that goal, his history doesn't really matter that much.

Back in 2000, the Penguins employed a player, Billy Tibbetts, who had spent more than three years in prison on charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon (a BB gun), disorderly conduct and witness intimidation. Those charges came while he was on probation for statutory rape. He was required to register as a sex offender. When the Penguins signed Tibbetts, co-owner Mario Lemieux called him "a great story."

Long after the Penguins traded him, Tibbetts got into more trouble that involved leading police on a high-speed car chase. By then, Tibbetts had no value as a hockey player, so he ran out of chances.

But the exploits of an outlaw hockey player pale in comparison to the level of tolerance shown by institutions of higher learning.

Bobby Petrino is the head football coach at Louisville. He had been there before, but left to join the Atlanta Falcons. When the Falcons were 3-10 in the 2007 season, Petrino left. He made the announcement with a four-sentence statement that was left in each player's locker.

It was then on to Arkansas, where things got really interesting. Petrino was involved in a motorcycle accident. He would later admit a female employee of the athletic department was a passenger on the bike. At some point he acknowledged that he was involved in a romantic relationship with the woman, which certainly must have disappointed Mrs. Petrino.

Arkansas fired him, so he went to Western Kentucky, where he signed a four-year contract and stayed one year. That's when Louisville brought him back.

So after he'd walked out on several jobs and led a double life, Louisville decided Petrino was the guy for them. Why? Because the university believes he can win games.

Space limitations prevent the full recap of Todd Graham's career. But Arizona State had no problem hiring him after he walked out on Pitt without notice and had an aide forward a goodbye text message to the team.

Winning isn't the only thing. But it's clearly No. 1. Other considerations, like character, are much lower -- if they're even on the list.

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--TAKING A BREAK

Eleven games down, five to go, the open week is a good chance for the Steelers to do some evaluation and to light some candles in the hope that Le'Veon Bell stays healthy.

Their playoff chances probably hinge on winning the AFC North, so the games against the Bengals (there on Dec. 7, here on the 28th) loom large.

The Steelers' wobbly defense will probably determine how much success they have. The offense is good enough (provided Ben Roethlisberger and Bell stay healthy), but the defense has to step up.

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--MIX IT UP

Remember when people thought the Steelers needed to switch full-time to a no-huddle offense?

They didn't use it once in Tennessee on Monday. The huge numbers they piled up recently came while using the no-huddle much less than they had earlier in the season.

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--NO NEUTRAL SITE

The NFL gave some consideration to moving the snowed-out Jets-Bills game from  Buffalo to Heinz Field.

It's going to Detroit instead. It could have been fun. Presumably there would have been discounted tickets and tutorials on the names of the respective offensive coordinators for the traditional in-game cursing.

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--IMPULSE BUY

Does anything in MLB make sense?

The Blue Jays committed five years and $82 million to Russell Martin, and they didn't even really need a catcher.

After spending that amount of money, they're now looking to fill their real needs at second base, left field and the bullpen.

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--MOVING ON

So long, Ike Davis.

Those endless discussions with the umpires over called third strikes will be missed.

Beaver County Times, November 16, 2014

Can we talk? Seems like that's a question the Steelers ought to be asking, given some of the communications snafus that have come to light in the last week.

A lot of things went wrong in last Sunday's loss to the Jets, and some of them were rooted in the inability to get signals straight.

The NFL has more systems in place to communicate than the other major sports combined. Referees wear microphones. This year, there's a system that allows the entire officiating crew to communicate electronically.

The quarterback and one defensive player wear helmets equipped with radio receivers so coaches can send information to the field. The sideline is connected to the upstairs coaches booth. 

The NFL has now added Microsoft-designed tablets that transmit information. That makes the old system of faxing overhead photos obsolete, and means there can be no repeat of the classic moment when Bill Cowher tried to stuff his photographic evidence in the referee's shirt pocket.

Compare with baseball, where the plate umpire pantomimes lineup changes to the public address booth. In the NBA, referees have to be limber to act out charging calls, and they have to be mathematically adept enough to finger signal the offending player's number to the scorer's table. (They have an especially lively call for traveling, but the NBA hasn't called traveling since the '70s).

The NFL is all about the efficient flow of information. But apparently the Steelers weren't on board with that in at least two instances during the Jets game.

James Harrison wound up in a goal line offensive formation, either to block or catch a pass. It turns out he should have been on the sideline.

Harrison went into the game when it was a play designed to use fullback Will Johnson. So instead of having a player accustomed to handling the ball, they had a 36-year-old linebacker expecting to be thrown his first pass.

What happened? Communication breakdown. The Steelers sent Harrison into the game, then called a play for Johnson, who was on the sideline. 

Very late in the game, the Jets were lined up for a clock-killing kneel-down. Safety Mike Mitchell vaulted the line and launched himself at quarterback Michael Vick.

Jets coach Rex Ryan called it "bush league." Mike Tomlin admitted it was "not professional." Apparently Mitchell thought his coach had signed off on the tactic.

Tomlin said Mitchell said something to him, but he wasn't paying attention. Tomlin was apparently in that zone-out mode that parents develop when their kids start yammering about much fun it would be if rabbits could fly, and he responded to Mitchell with something like, "Uh huh...."

Next thing anybody knew, Mitchell was airborne and the Jets were understandably mad. Assuming Mitchell said something like, "Hey, coach, how about if I get a running start, jump up and wipe out this dog hater?" how did Tomlin not notice?

Things get busy on the sideline, but the Steelers have 14 assistant coaches and some of them have assistants of their own. Doesn't somebody notice that the personnel doesn't match the play, or that one of the safeties wants to be a human missile?

Between the coaches' headsets, the radio helmets and the tablets, somehow the proper messages should be delivered.

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--BEHAVING BADLY

Things have been especially nutty at Steelers headquarters this year, for reasons that have nothing to do with the team.

A pattern of media misbehavior led team officials to shut the doors the other day to offer a stern scolding, along with a request to start acting like professionals.

Spies report the first sign of trouble came when a visiting network reporter didn't heed instructions to stay in the media workroom. She set up in the lobby, feet propped up on a table, passing the time making loud calls on her phone. Then she cried when someone yelled at her.

More recently, a territorial dispute between a TV guy and a print/website reporter supposedly got physical, much to the amusement of the players. Then a radio guy was said to have insulted a player and may have threatened him as well.

The message from the team: The multipurpose nature of the Steelers compound doesn't include day care. 

Beaver County Times, November 9, 2014

So if Ben Roethlisberger throws fewer than six touchdown passes today, does it mean he's had a bad game?

Funny how quickly standards can change.

Like how did Todd Haley get so smart in two weeks? Night classes? Has he been monitoring sports talk radio?

Here we go with some Steelers observations, here we go:

--It's impossible to overstate how well the offensive line has been providing protection. Roethlisberger has praised his line, but quarterbacks always do that.

The line is giving him time. Roethlisberger was sacked on three consecutive plays on one ridiculous series on Sunday night, but overall the line has been exceptional.

Give a good quarterback time, and he's going to make plays.

--As impressive as 12 touchdown passes in two games obviously is, there's one statistic that's almost as good: No interceptions.

So many things can happen including deflected passes and route-running errors by inexperienced receivers, so you expect a turnover or two along the way for a team that's throwing the ball a lot.

Turnovers can be tipping points. The Steelers have been taking care of the ball, even though it's in the air a lot.

--Ordinarily Troy Polamalu's absence would be a major issue for the Steelers. Polamalu won't play against the Jets, and he also missed a good part of the game against the Ravens.

There seems to be little consternation about his absence from the lineup. Is that because people are so dazzled about what's happening on offense, or is it an indication that Polamalu's impact is far less than what it once was?

--Popular opinion a few weeks ago held that Dick LeBeau was obsolete. Instead, it looks like he's doing more than ever, designing schemes varied enough to allow the Steelers to get away with too much average talent on defense. 

--Mike Tomlin called out the Steelers' kick coverage team after the Ravens' 108-yard touchdown return. Tomlin was correct, but he didn't go far enough. Just about every aspect of the Steelers' special teams play has been substandard too often. (Shaun Suisham's field goal kicking is an exception).

It's good that the Steelers improvised their way into a two-point conversion after holder Brad Wing mishandled the snap, but an automatic kick shouldn't turn into an adventure. Bad special teams will eventually be costly.

--The Joe Greene number retirement ceremony was well done, but bittersweet. Greene is the only survivor of the legendary front four that was once on the cover of Time magazine. To see Greene hobbling out to the podium and to know that all his linemates are gone is another realization that 1974 was a really long time ago.

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--PEACE ON ICE

NBC hockey commentator Mike Milbury recently called for the NHL to abolish fighting. His anti-fighting epiphany has come after an interesting journey.

While playing for Boston on Dec. 23, 1979, Milbury was one of 18 Bruins players involved in a game-ending scrum that spilled into the stands at Madison Square Garden. Milbury yanked the shoe off a fan named John Kaptain, and hit Kaptain with the shoe. The NHL suspended Milbury for six games and fined him $500.

You Tube has the episode preserved, along with a bunch of Milbury fights that show him before he went all Gandhi.

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--SCALING BACK

KDKA-TV has been doing a Saturday night Steelers shows for several years, but it's been different this season.

Honey, they shrunk the show. Some elements are the same. Bob Pompeani co-hosts, this year with the personable Cam Heyward. But they no longer tape at Heinz Field's Great Hall (where audience members were shaken down for an admission fee). There is no audience since the show is done in a corner of KDKA's main studio in Gateway Center.

There's no band, either, so there's a lot less energy. They still do a cooking segment, and radio's Tall Cathy capably assists. But at 30 minutes and in a smaller environment, it's only half the show it used to be.

If the downsizing continues, next year they'll be making the tailgating treats with an Easy-Bake oven.

Beaver County Times, November 2, 2014

The Giants had the exact same 88-74 regular season record that the Pirates did, so is there something to learn from San Francisco's third World Series championship in five years?

For those who attach a dollar sign to everything that happens in MLB, it's worth noting that postseason monster Madison Bumgarner cost the Giants $3.916 million this season, or less than what the Pirates paid Charlie Morton.

The Giants were proactive and signed Bumgarner to a $35 million deal through 2017 when he had just over one year of major league service time. He's scheduled to make $11.5 million when the contract peaks in 2017. By comparison, Wandy Rodriguez was paid $13 million this past season. The Giants have two option years that guarantee $12 million per season with the possibility of $16 million in the last year. If he hits that, he'll match what the Phillies paid A.J. Burnett this season.

Pitchers can break down without warning, but right now Bumgarner's deal looks like a relative bargain on the scale of Andrew McCutchen's contract.

Beyond that, they're two different organizations. The Giants were seventh in MLB payroll. The $148 million they spent was nearly double the Pirates' payroll.

The Giants' investments aren't all efficient. They sunk $20.8 million into pitcher Matt Cain, whose season ended on July 9 because of elbow surgery. He won two games for them.

They also paid $17 million to Tim Lincecum, who had an OK season before he lost his spot in the rotation in August. In the lengthy postseason, the Giants called on Lincecum exactly once. His lone appearance was less than two innings of mop-up relief in a World Series game the Giants lost 7-2.

The most interesting takeaway from the Giants' run of success is how much lineup turnover they've had in a short period of time. The only regulars still left from their 2010 championship are Buster Posey and Pablo Sandoval. They've had three different closers.

They've been willing to stay fluid and change personnel even though they obviously have the budget to sign long-term deals.

Bumgarner is one of several top draft picks to pay big dividends for the Giants. He was the 10th player taken in 2007, five slots after the Pirates drafted Daniel Moskos.

Moskos got a signing bonus of $2,475,000. Bumgarner got $2 million. Moskos pitched 24 and 1/3 innings for the Pirates. Bumgarner just pitched 52 and 2/3 innings in the 2014 postseason.

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--SCARY ENDING

One of Bumgarner's most impressive accomplishments was the way he stayed on the mound with two outs in the ninth inning rather than sprinting to center field to strangle two of his outfielders in Game 7.

Alex Gordon hit a single that Gregor Blanco inexplicably let skip past him to the warning track. This surprised left fielder Juan Perez so much that he kicked the ball.

Gordon wound up on third, representing the tying run. Bumgarner got the last out, which allowed Blanco to avoid becoming the Venezuelan version of Bill Buckner.

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--CALL ON RESERVES

There were 62,479 people in Heinz Field last Sunday, and it's likely none of them knew that Norm Van Brocklin owns the NFL record for most passing yards in a game.

So it really doesn't matter that Ben Roethlisberger didn't get a chance to get the record. What does matter is Roethlisberger had an excellent chance to get a concussion when he was sandwiched by two tacklers while carrying the ball with 1:02 left in the game.

He said he called his own number because he wanted to spare Le'Veon Bell another hard hit. Bell had just carried the ball five straight times.

Here's a question: Why were Roethlisberger and Bell still in the game for a possession that started with 2:48 on the clock and the Steelers ahead by 17 points? Bell had been forced to leave the game earlier because of an ankle injury.

That closing time was made for backups, but they were on the sidelines while two of the team's most important offensive players were getting needlessly pounded.

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--RADIO WAVES

Commercial broadcasting began on this day in 1920 when KDKA went on the air with Harding-Cox presidential election returns.

It took at least a few weeks for someone to first say, "Thanks for taking my call."

Beaver County Times, October 26, 2014

There can be no more emphatic endorsement than the one Penguins GM Jim Rutherford gave Marc-Andre Fleury.

"As long as I'm the general manager, he'll be our goalie," Rutherford said last week.

That's bold. That's firm. That's reassuring. It's also borderline crazy.

Rutherford was an NHL goalie, so he understands the need for confidence and a comfort level in someone who plays that nerve-wracking position. He doesn't want Fleury to get sidetracked thinking about what might happen when his contract expires after this season.

But why make such a strong commitment now? Fleury was fine last year in the playoffs. He was shaky in the two prior postseasons, to the point that backup Tomas Vokoun was deemed the better option in 2013.

Fleury has the 2009 Stanley Cup on his resume but that was a long time ago. The Penguins have been passed by other organizations, and one of the reasons is the sub-standard goaltending they got in two years that should have represented prime time for this organization.

Another reason the Penguins have slipped is the salary cap has been tilted severely toward the top. The Penguins pay the stars, which doesn't always lead to a lot of balance to fill out the rest of the roster.

Their is no current heir apparent to Fleury in the organization. No doubt that heightens the urgency to get an extension done. But there's a lot of talent scattered throughout the NHL, and there are a lot of capable goalies who could improve their situation by coming to Pittsburgh.

There's a lot to like about Fleury. He's a hard worker. He's a great teammate. He's never thrown other players under the bus, even when they deserved it. If you don't think that goes a long way toward keeping the peace on a team, you weren't paying attention when Tom Barrasso played here.

Fleury's a reasonable person. He's not the type of player who would go elsewhere just to get a small bump in salary. By most accounts he's happy here, which means he probably never lets his radio drift over to sports talk.

Maybe it makes perfect sense to re-sign him. It doesn't make a lot of sense to make that commitment in October, though.

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--FASHION NEWS

Look for Pitt to start having undefeated seasons and constant sellouts now that the script logo has been restored to the helmets.

The script was banished about 15 years ago as part of AD Steve Pederson's failed quest to ditch "Pitt" as an identifier and replace it with the more formal, "Pittsburgh."

Like Todd Graham, that was a huge mistake. People see the university and its teams as "Pitt" and they like the script on the helmets. The only thing sillier than the long-standing dust-up over the helmet adornment was the administration's long-standing refusal to change, even though it was clear what fans wanted. (There's no denying the undotted "i" is abundantly cool).

The script is back. Can the glory days be far behind? Or at least the days when a win over Akron at home was considered a sure thing?

On another superficial fashion note, whatever happened to those satiny jackets that baseball players used to wear? Now MLB has players and staff outfitted in officially-licensed downscale hoodies.

The World Series managers look like they're in a sandlot tournament.

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--BIG HEADED

If San Francisco's Bruce Bochy can manage to win a third World Series in five seasons, it will give him a new baseball identity.

As things stand now, he's best known for having the biggest head in MLB. He wears a size 8 and 1/4 cap, which is just a couple of notches below the one the Pirate Parrot wears. When Bochy was traded, he would take his helmet to the new team for a fresh paint job because nobody ever had one that big in stock.

His nickname with Houston was "Headley," because baseball players never let a physical abnormality go unexploited.

That tendency was demonstrated when Joe Oliver (briefly a Pirate) played for the Reds. Oliver also had a large head, which led teammate Aaron Boone to ask someone, "What would you rather have: a million dollars or Joe Oliver's head filled with nickels?"