This is the time of year when a lot of NFL teams are selecting their starting quarterback.
For the Minnesota Vikings, it's a last-second decision brought on by a freak non-contact practice injury to Teddy Bridgewater. The Los Angeles Rams have chosen someone named Case Keenum ahead of overall No. 1 draft pick Jared Goff, who will be the team's No. 3 quarterback for at least one game.
The hapless Cleveland Browns are going with Robert Griffin III, even though the coaching staff doubts his ability to read defenses after four years in the league.
The quarterback decisions make for an interesting preseason coverage, but it's no way to run a football team.
Makes you realize how fortunate the Steelers are to have a franchise-caliber quarterback who should still have a few years left on his career.
Ben Roethlisberger has grown up before our eyes, from the indifferent and obnoxiously entitled rookie who alienated teammates to a guy who's an automatic choice for team captain. He's gone from someone whose encounters with random women drew police attention to a father of three who recently spent an off day at the zoo with his family.
He's matured from a quarterback who mostly handed the ball to Jerome Bettis to a force who can take over any game.
Sports fans seem to be blessed with a strange brand of amnesia that allows them to block out past reality, no matter how recent it is. That's why Pirates fans can complain about "only" getting to the wild card after the team has had 20 losing seasons.
And that's why people who complain about Roethlisberger don't seem to have any recollection of the Cliff Stoudt/Mark Malone/Bubby Brister/Neil O'Donnell/Kordell Stewart/Kent Graham/Mike Tomczak/Tommy Maddox succession that formed a wobbly bridge from one Hall of Famer, Terry Bradshaw, to another likely Hall selection in Roethlisberger.
One of these days, Roethlisberger won't be there. The odds are the Steelers will be one of those teams making an announcement about who will start at quarterback.
Things could be Cliff Stoudt scary again.
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--DIRECTIONS NEEDED
A lot of people want to know who coaches the Pirates on base running.
It's an issue because of the frequent mishaps on the bases. The Pirates have shown the ability to get thrown out at any of the four bases, usually at the worst possible time.
Replacing a coach would be simple, but it's not the answer.
Base running is on the players. They need to make split-second decisions, and making the correct ones has been a significant challenge.
For all the instruction they get, players have to process the information and decide when to go and when to stay.
The coaches are no more responsible for that than the driver training instructor is to blame when a teenage decides to run a red light.
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--NEVER ENDS
You see college coaches attending Friday night high school games and you realize what an endless grind college coaching is.
Recruiting never stops. Some people are naturals at sales, but you have to think that trying to convince a parade of 17-year-olds to accept a scholarship gets old at some point.
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--YOU'RE WELCOME
Cranky old guy observation: When you see kids gladly accept a baseball flipped to them by a ball girl or a player, do they ever say thanks?
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--IT'S ON AGAIN
Penn State vs. Pitt lived up to expectations.
Oh, to have a dime for every mean-spirited Tweet that was posted, and a dollar for every tasteless t-shirt that was sold.
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