Mark Madden stories, Page 44
Mark Madden: It’s time for Titans’ season to end as NFL forges on
The Tennessee Titans have wrecked their season. The Titans defied an NFL mandate and had two unauthorized practices. Their coach, Mike Vrabel, lost institutional control. As of this writing, 23 players and staff members have tested positive for covid-19. Last week’s home game against the Pittsburgh Steelers was postponed. Sunday’s...
Mark Madden: Let’s play the Jack Johnson blame game
Defenseman Jack Johnson will no longer play for the Penguins. His contract got bought out. That solves all their problems. The Penguins would have won the last two Stanley Cups if Johnson wasn’t on the team. That’s what social media thinks. That’s what analytics geeks think. Johnson was the root...
Mark Madden: Pitt football is stuck on hamster wheel of mediocrity
Refreshing sports notes: Some test positive, some negative. They all wear a mask. But they don’t social distance; that’s not needed on the internet, or on the printed page. Yet. • Pitt football and coach Pat Narduzzi once again have proven themselves all hat and no cattle. They dropped in...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: MLB should keep rule changes and add even more
If big-time sports aren’t careful, the pandemic may inadvertently steer them into giving the people what they want. Hockey’s expanded playoff worked. Baseball’s expanded playoff is working. Baseball is slated to use the same format in 2021. Don’t be shocked if hockey sticks with a 24-team tournament. The postseason is...
Mark Madden: Steelers are inconvenienced but no punishment necessary for Titans
The postponement of the Steelers game at Tennessee is much ado about nothing. The NFL wasn’t as ready as it should have been. Nor was MLB when covid hit the Miami Marlins. The pandemic provides an unprecedented situation. Until an outbreak happens, you don’t know how you’ll react. When it...
Mark Madden: Titans need to treat covid like an injury; game against Steelers should be played
At Monday’s media session, coach Mike Tomlin said the Steelers were told to proceed as if Sunday’s game at Tennessee will be played despite the Titans’ covid outbreak. It may yet take place. But it will be played Monday or Tuesday, not Sunday. Further postponement via juggling bye weeks seems...
Mark Madden: Week 4 game at Tennessee will be true test for Steelers
The Steelers and their fans have to be satisfied with 3-0. They can’t be better. No team has ever been 4-0 after three games. But it’s tough to feel like the Steelers have accomplished much. The Steelers’ three foes to date have a combined mark of 0-9. The New York...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Don’t blame Rutherford; blame time because Penguins’ is up
When Jim Rutherford makes a trade, the analysis comes thick and fast. Occasionally, some of it is even worthwhile. Rutherford has made 51 trades since becoming Penguins general manager in June 2014. How many of those deals made legit impact? His first certainly did, namely the acquisition of gritty Patric...
Mark Madden: Penguins’ Patric Hornqvist trade had sentimental impact, but not much else
If you’re looking for deep meaning to the trade that sent winger Patric Hornqvist to Florida and took the best part of two days to complete, let me know if you find it. It’s being overanalyzed like crazy because of thirst for clicks. But in the ‘70s or ‘80s, it...
Mark Madden: NHL’s target restart date is unrealistic; March is more likely
The Pittsburgh Penguins’ offseason got frisky quick with the acquisition of winger Kasperi Kapanen from Toronto, the re-signing of forward Jared McCann (who would have been a restricted free agent) and the reported (but as yet unconfirmed) trade of Patric Hornqvist to Florida. Goaltender Matt Murray is on the trade...
Mark Madden: With ‘exhibition games’ complete, Steelers need to play better to defeat Texans
This year’s exhibition games got canceled for most NFL teams. But not the Steelers. They had two. Coach Mike Tomlin should send the NFL schedule-maker a thank-you note. The New York Giants and Denver provided the Steelers subpar foes with inexperienced quarterbacks, perfect practice fodder for Weeks 1 and 2....
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Don’t be surprised if Penguins trade newly re-signed Jared McCann
Jared McCann didn’t score in his last 25 games this season. His last goal was Jan. 14, and the meter still is running. McCann was scratched for the third game of the Penguins’ four-game loss to Montreal in the Stanley Cup playoffs’ prelim round. Six million bucks doesn’t buy what...
Mark Madden: Kevin Dotson will be more than adequate on Steelers offensive line
You can’t attend the Pittsburgh Steelers’ home opener Sunday, but you can approximate the same boozy electricity by reading these ice-cold refreshing Steelers notes. The jig is up, the news is out… • With David DeCastro and Stefen Wisniewski gimpy, rookie Kevin Dotson likely gets the start at right guard...
Mark Madden: This Steelers ‘D’ could be comparable to ’76 unit
The Pittsburgh Steelers defense in 1976 is regarded by some as the NFL’s greatest ever and is among the top five by acclamation. The current Steelers defense has a chance to approach those lofty heights. It won’t allow just 28 points over its last nine games or post five shutouts...
Mark Madden: After James Conner’s latest injury, time has come for Benny Snell football
James Conner is a great story. Pitt guy. Cancer survivor. We’ve heard the narrative umpteen times, and it is indeed inspirational. Conner even wrote a book. But the Steelers must move on from Conner as their No. 1 running back. Conner left Monday’s game at the New York Giants in...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Fans, parents should be allowed at HS football games
If a high school football game is played in the forest with no one around, does it make a sound? Of course it does: It’s the noise of parents complaining. You’re never going to shut them up. But WPIAL football parents have a legit gripe, one that transcends, “My Johnny...
Mark Madden: To reach experts’ expectation, Steelers must win 1st 2 games, sweep Ravens
In Pittsburgh, sports fans and the attendant media aren’t brilliant at much. But overrating and overestimating have proven to be specialties. The Penguins had a “great” pre-playoffs camp, whatever that means. They were “flying out there,” especially Evgeni Malkin. That provided pretext for a long playoff run. Actual evidence like...
Mark Madden: Steelers look like wild-card contender
With the Steelers season set to begin Monday, egregiously optimistic predictions ricochet around the football media. Ben Roethlisberger is back. The defense will be even better. A deep and vertical receiving corps will maximize the red zone. Baltimore and Lamar Jackson will backslide. Cleveland and Cincinnati will stink again. This...
Mark Madden: Kudos to Steelers for final roster tweaks
For the Pittsburgh Steelers, the final cuts usually offer few surprises. They could have picked the roster before training camp. You could have picked the roster before training camp. But this year, the Steelers made some wise moves at their depth chart’s fringes. The No. 3 quarterback rarely comes into...
Mark Madden: Could Marc-Andre Fleury return to the Penguins?
It’s not imminent. There are lots of moving parts. Chances seem less than 50-50. But goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury could return to the Penguins. It’s possible. You may recall Allan Walsh, Fleury’s agent, recently tweeting an altered photo that showed Fleury stabbed in the back by a sword stamped “DeBoer.” As...
Mark Madden: Islanders’ defensive style could pose problems for Penguins, rest of NHL
There’s a lot to like about the New York Islanders. The Islanders have Philadelphia on the brink of elimination, leading the Flyers three games to two in their second-round series. Both Flyers victories came in overtime, and after the Islanders had rallied from deficits of three and two goals, respectively....
Mark Madden: Ben Roethlisberger will be AFC North’s best quarterback, not worst
Former NFL general manager Mike Tannenbaum says Ben Roethlisberger might be the fourth-best quarterback in the AFC North. “I would rather see the ball in the hands of Lamar Jackson, Baker Mayfield or even Joe Burrow,” Tannenbaum said on ESPN. While he was the New York Jets GM, Tannenbaum drafted...
Mark Madden: Actions speak louder than words for pro athletes
The NBA’s players should have left the bubble and canceled the rest of the league’s playoffs. By doing that, the players would cost the league, its franchise owners and its television partners millions in revenue. The men affected have real power and could influence legit change. Or they could lock...
Mark Madden: If Penguins’ window is still open, Kasperi Kapanen trade makes sense
The Penguins’ reacquisition of winger Kasperi Kapanen is easy to evaluate. Just not right now. If GM Jim Rutherford is correct about the Penguins’ window to win still being open, and the Penguins make next season’s playoffs and win a round or two, it’s a good trade. Even if Kapanen...
Mark Madden: Could the pandemic mean end of the NHL as we know it?
As this unique version of the Stanley Cup playoffs enters the second round, it’s sobering to realize when it is concluded, we might not see the NHL for a long time. That means we won’t see the Penguins play again for an extended period. Will Sidney Crosby lose a year...
