If Antonio Brown actually was driving over 100 miles per hour on a suburban highway last week, it begs this question:
Why?
Was he late for an appointment? Was his Porsche fresh from a tune-up and he was anxious to test it? Did a soccer mom in a mini-van challenge him to a race when they were both stopped for a light? Was he upset that Le'Veon Bell was stealing his headlines? Did he want to make sure the police radar was functioning properly? Was it another Facebook Live production?
If your speedometer is hitting triple digits in broad daylight, there must be a reason.
At the moment these questions remain unanswered. Bell refused to speak after Thursday night's lopsided win over Carolina. When TV cameras caught him entering Heinz Field, he flipped them off three different times.
All of this might be more understandable if Brown were an irresponsible teenager. But he's not. He's 30 years old and the father of four children.
Maybe some of those kids ride a school bus every day. Wonder how their father would feel about someone racing down the highway at 100 miles per hour when his kids are in traffic?
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Jim Rutherford served notice last week that he isn't much of a Penguins fan these days.
A five-game losing streak put the general manager in a foul mood, and he spoke his mind on his radio show.
Rutherford said changes are a definite possibility, but what could he do that would make a significant difference?
The Penguins' stars are fine. Rutherford insists he and coach Mike Sullivan are on the same page, even though they seem to openly disagree on the potential of former No. 1 draft pick Daniel Sprong.
It's hard to make in-season trades because of the salary cap. The Penguins customarily spend to the limit. That means if they want to add a player with a $5 million contract, they have to eliminate a similar amount from the payroll. That makes it difficult to find trading partners.
The most likely move would be to deal Derick Brassard, who has yet to find a way to fit comfortably into the Penguins' forward rotation. Otherwise, Rutherford will probably be looking to make moves with the fringes of the roster. Will that have an impact? Doubtful.
There is still a considerable amount of talent on the roster. A sharper focus would help, and that may be coming. This group has proven it knows how to win.
It's a very long season, and mid-November is too soon to panic.
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After 15 seasons of playing for his hometown Minnesota Twins, Joe Mauer announced his retirement from baseball.
He said he was departing with a "full and grateful heart." His wallet was pretty well-stuffed, too.
The Twins paid Mauer $218 million over the course of his career.
Consider that the franchise only kicked in $195 million for their share of Target Field, which opened in 2019. There was $353.5 million that came from public funds, which included a county sales tax that took money from just about every citizen.
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Chuck Noll coached the Steelers for 23 years, and his teams won four Super Bowls. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He is one of the legendary coaches in NFL history.
Yet Fox spelled his name "Knoll" in a graphic outlining the Steelers' coaching lineage during Thursday's broadcast.
(John Mehno can be reached at: johnmehnocolumn@gmail.com)
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