Mark Madden stories, Page 27
Mark Madden: Accept objective evaluation of Kenny Pickett
Kenny Pickett has thrown seven interceptions in 12-plus quarters of play. Besides picks, just about all of Pickett’s stats rank near the NFL’s bottom. Pickett did more than any Pittsburgh Steeler to lose Sunday’s game at Miami, throwing interceptions to end potential game-winning drives on the team’s last two possessions....
Mark Madden: Kenny Pickett will get better but progress will be slow and Steelers will lose a lot of games
Ben Roethlisberger now, at 40, would have won at Miami this past Sunday. Had Mitch Trubisky played like he did at home against Tampa Bay the prior Sunday, he would have also won at Miami. Kenny Pickett started, lost, and was a big part of losing. That’s OK. He’s a...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Steelers shouldn’t trade Chase Claypool
The Pittsburgh Steelers’ alleged interest in trading receiver Chase Claypool would be a mistake. Any fan enthusiasm concerning a proposed swap is more evidence of the misguided belief that there’s some way to finagle the Steelers to a quicker fix. There isn’t. The Steelers won’t make the playoffs this season...
Mark Madden: Malkin line among many things to like about Penguins’ strong start
The Pittsburgh Penguins face a stiff early-season test as they hit the road for five games, including a particularly challenging three-game swing through Western Canada. Edmonton and Calgary are legit contenders. Vancouver is a dark horse experiencing a bad patch. But there’s lots to like about the Penguins’ 3-0-1 start,...
Mark Madden: Growing weary of several Steelers
Some Pittsburgh Steelers make me weary. Beyond the endless quarterback debate, that is. The most tiresome is receiver Diontae Johnson, the Dollar Tree version of Antonio Brown. Less expensive but less production. Less chaos, too, but still too much. Johnson got a two-year contract extension worth $36.71 million. He has...
Mark Madden: Steelers should start Mitch Trubisky — if they believe they are contenders
After Mitch Trubisky entered Sunday’s home win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the third quarter because of Kenny Pickett’s concussion, Trubisky provided the best quarterback play the Pittsburgh Steelers have had all year. Better than Pickett. Better than Trubisky’s prior outings. That’s beyond argument. Numbers don’t lie. Trubisky was...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Hard to trust goaltenders for NHL’s top contenders
My prediction for the Stanley Cup Final is the Toronto Maple Leafs over the Edmonton Oilers. Toronto is too good to not get there sometime. The same can be said for Oilers uber-star Connor McJesus. But I don’t trust either team because I don’t trust either goaltender. The race for...
Mark Madden: Steelers need to set parameters for Mike Tomlin, limit his power with personnel
The Pittsburgh Steelers are 1-4. It’s a bad team, and the organization seems broken. There’s no foolproof way to fix it, and the timetable is hardly immediate. But I’ve got a plan. It’s based on the assumption that coach Mike Tomlin has usurped almost all the franchise’s power when it...
Mark Madden: If a group of old-timers can make another Stanley Cup run, it’s the Penguins’ Crosby, Malkin, Letang
After the Pittsburgh Penguins lost to Washington in the second round of the 2018 playoffs, I’d have traded Evgeni Malkin. Malkin had a no-movement clause but would have waived it to go to Florida, a rumored destination. His family has a home there. A big package of young talent and...
Mark Madden: The Steelers stink, and a fix could be years away
The Pittsburgh Steelers stink, and the horse manure is flying. Mike Tomlin threatened changes after Sunday’s 38-3 loss at Buffalo, be it to personnel or staff. But any change Tomlin makes will be to something he put in place. Kenny Pickett’s performance in his first NFL start is being overrated....
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Pirates ownership simply can’t be trusted
The Pittsburgh Pirates lost 100 games for a second consecutive year for the first time since 1952-54. That team cracked that regretful barrier three straight times. Next year’s squad won’t lose 100. Probably not, anyway. But the Pirates’ winning percentage in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season was .317, lowest in franchise...
Mark Madden: When placing blame for Steelers struggles, start with the defense
The numbers don’t lie. Except when they do. Pro Football Focus says the Steelers offensive line has allowed the least QB pressures in the NFL. Tight end Pat Freiermuth is on pace for 947 receiving yards. Heath Miller’s best season was 816 receiving yards. Cornerback Cameron Sutton has eight forced...
Mark Madden: Plenty must go right for Penguins to find success in ’22
The Penguins have made the Stanley Cup playoffs for an incredible 16 straight years. They haven’t won a playoff series since 2018. This season’s team should maintain the former streak. Can it end the latter streak? Can it win a first-round series after losing four in a row? Can it...
Mark Madden: It will get worse for Steelers before it gets better
Here’s some real talk about the Pittsburgh Steelers, who are 1-3 on their way to 1-7 going into the bye week (2-6 at best): • Kenny Pickett erred horribly in his NFL debut. His second interception did as much as anything to lose the game. Pickett must throw that ball...
Mark Madden: Despite reputation, Mike Tomlin needs to be better for Steelers
Outside linebacker Melvin Ingram of the Miami Dolphins won AFC Defensive Player of the Month. Ingram played for the Pittsburgh Steelers last year until leaving after six games because he was unhappy with playing time. Coach Mike Tomlin granted Ingram his requested exit because, as Tomlin says, “We need volunteers,...
Mark Madden: Some Steelers are playing well, but it’s a short list
Tyson Alualu got dropped to the second string. Montravius Adams took Alualu’s spot as a starter on the defensive line in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ base 3-4 defense. This clearly solves all the Steelers’ problems. They should do no worse than 13-4. Regarding further change, coach Mike Tomlin said, “We’re not...
Mark Madden: Penguins lineup already mostly determined, but they have options
Pittsburgh Penguins training camp seems to get shorter every year. The Penguins played exhibition games in two different cities Sunday. That’s certainly hurrying things up. NHL preseason used to be longer. Players would work themselves into shape after truly taking the summer off. Now conditioning is a year-round endeavor. Sidney...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Steelers need big-money players to make big plays
In Dan Jenkins’ acclaimed football novel, “Semi-Tough,” a character named Dreamer Tatum proclaims thusly after a narrow defeat: “I learned somethin’ a long time ago about football. What could have happened, did.” Words to live by. If Cameron Sutton didn’t drop an interception or Gunner Olszewski didn’t muff a punt...
Mark Madden: The Steelers created this rotten football team, and it can’t be fixed
It’s the nature of sports fans to be optimistic, however cockeyed. To believe that a team perceived to be underperforming can be fixed. Coach ’em up. Tweak the lineup or strategy. Trade all our bad players for all their good players. Find that secret sauce that’s a cure-all, or at...
Mark Madden: Yankees fan should have cashed in on Aaron Judge’s remarkable accomplishment
Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees is making $19 million this year. He’s made $36 million during his career. He’s going to break the bank in free agency after the season. On Tuesday, he hit his 60th home run. That’s in the Yankees’ 147th game. Judge got to 60...
Mark Madden: Steelers offense has limitations, but Matt Canada deserves blame, too
The Pittsburgh Steelers just aren’t very good. But neither are the New England Patriots. If the Steelers offense is scared, scant, rotten and easy to defend because that’s what quarterback Mitch Trubisky’s limitations dictate, put in Kenny Pickett. If the Steelers offense is scared, scant, rotten and easy to defend...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Ke’Bryan Hayes’ gaffe again makes Pirates a national punchline
Ke’Bryan Hayes had no glove on. He was eating sunflower seeds. The ball was in play. A runner was rounding the base he was standing next to. Beat ’em, Bucs! The usual suspects say what happened Friday night is no big deal, that every athlete does something stupid occasionally. But...
Mark Madden: Shohei Ohtani has the showbiz market cornered, but Aaron Judge should be AL MVP
In 1941, Ted Williams hit .406. He remains the last MLB player to hit .400 or better. He led MLB with 37 home runs and was fourth with 120 RBIs. Williams led MLB in all the stats that didn’t matter then or weren’t kept: WAR, OPS, etc. Joe DiMaggio hit...
Mark Madden: No one knows when T.J. Watt will return, but Steelers have options in the meantime
The truth about T.J. Watt’s injury is we still don’t know. It’s reported that Watt’s pectoral injury doesn’t require surgery, just rehab. Watt will miss six games. That’s not official. That’s not confirmed by the Steelers. If Watt, indeed, plays again come Oct. 30 at Philadelphia, will he be 100%?...
Mark Madden: Steelers defense is just ordinary without T.J. Watt
Pyrrhic victory — A victory that comes at a great cost, perhaps making the ordeal to win not worth it. Merriam-Webster’s dictionary defined the Pittsburgh Steelers’ crazy 23-20 overtime win at Cincinnati perfectly: It just wasn’t worth it. It was Pyrrhic as can be. Not that such things can be...
