Tim Benz stories, Page 147

As Penguins fans ready themselves for the playoffs in the coronavirus era, the presumptive hub cities for the NHL’s return to play are Edmonton and Toronto. Part of the reason Edmonton was chosen is because Canada has contained its covid-19 outbreak much better than America. And Las Vegas — the...

Thursday’s “First Call” features a pandemic problem for Gerrit Cole. Might we see robot fans at games? The potential rebooted NHL television schedule is interesting. And the Cleveland Browns appear to be out when it comes to Jadeveon Clowney. Covid conundrum for Cole Former Pirate Gerrit Cole made a simulated...

In this week’s “U mad, bro?”, fans are fired up about NFL players balking at a return to play. Also, emailers are growling at DeSean Jackson, MLB umpire Joe West and the Pirates. Most importantly, we mourn the absence of Enrico Pallazzo in this time of great American need. Jim...

We’ve been waiting for months to see what life within the NHL bubble is going to be like. Now we are getting an idea. The National Hockey League has released its return-to-play protocol for Phase 3 and Phase 4. That’s training camp and the ensuing restart of the season on...

We need games back. Now! Because we need to start talking about dumb decisions by players, coaches, executives and officials on the field. Those things are a lot easier to digest than what they are saying in quotes and on social media. Wednesday’s “First Call” takes a look at this...

In 2020, the Pirates might be able to hit enough to stay in contention over the looming 60-game sprint of a season. However, their pitchers may get hit around the yard on a nightly basis just as hard. Or worse. One X factor in how the starting rotation performs is...

In Tuesday’s “First Call,” Carey Price is back at practice with the Montreal Canadiens in advance of their series against the Penguins. The Pirates have a plan for their crowded middle infield. And Terry Francona is speaking out about the Cleveland Indians nickname. Bonjour! Carey Price joined the Montreal Canadiens...

National Football League players have recently expressed some concerns about a return to play. In some cases, they have a point. And, in some cases, they absolutely do not. In the coronavirus era, the analysis on every level is about risk versus reward. And in the NFL’s attempt to launch...

No fireworks at the Point over the Fourth of July weekend. And no “Madden Monday” podcast either. I can’t do anything about the first problem. The other one I can rectify right now. We post our weekly conversation a day late because of the holiday weekend, but Mark Madden and...

Is this for real? A fantasy sports podcast where we can actually talk about sports!? Will wonders never cease? Major League Baseball teams are reporting for spring training 2.0. So, fantasy leagues that never ended up drafting are finally doing so. Jeff Erickson of RotoWire joins me to discuss strategy...

For our Thursday post, we bring in TribLIVE Radio founding father Ken Laird for a bonus podcast. He now works at WEEI-FM in Boston. And he is a go-to guy for us this morning. Because there are a ton of topics surrounding the New England Patriots that need to be...

There’s no reason to ask if you were mad this week. Everybody got mad at something at some point. Coronavirus numbers spiked. Bars were shut down again. A partial travel quarantine went back in place. Worst of all, the New England Patriots upgraded at quarterback! Yuck! What a terrible week....

There’s one question I have after every “Breakfast with Benz” hockey podcast that I record with Brian Metzer of the Penguins Radio Network. How is it that we spend 20 minutes solving all the world’s problems, yet every week we reconvene, and the world is still an ungodly mess? It’s...

In Wednesday’s “First Call,” we look at some rebooted rumors about Antonio Brown going to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Former Steelers legend Rod Woodson has an interesting take on how the coaching world works. And Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman is ready for the Cam Newton era in New England....

It used to be that this time of year Steelers fans would be focusing on two things. 1. How can we talk ourselves into believing the Steelers are going to be better than the year before? And 2. How can we talk ourselves into thinking the Patriots are going to...

At least for the time being, it feels like we can talk about actual on-field baseball in Pittsburgh. The Pirates are supposed to start workouts at PNC Park this week, with Major League games resuming July 23. So — while we can before any more shutdowns — let’s talk about...

Tuesday’s “First Call” features Antonio Brown’s night vision with the Washington Redskins’ quarterback. Cam Newton’s new home in New England. And a little jab at the Patriots latest cheating controversy. New Newton Want a look at Cam Newton as a Patriot? Yeah. Me neither. Here it is anyway. Via the...

The Pittsburgh Steelers are still holding out hope that they will be able to play home games in front of their fans during the 2020 season. Last week, The Athletic’s Daniel Kaplan wrote that the NFL is going to allow teams an opportunity to work out their own seating volume...

When Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger admitted addictions to alcohol and pornography last week, it took a long time for that story to gain traction. Particularly on a local level. I wrote a column immediately after I found out about the news. But I found coverage of Roethlisberger’s mea culpa to...

For “First Call” Monday, we look at the NHL draft lottery drawing over the weekend and what the NFL can learn from it. Or — better said — what the NFL can learn to avoid. So the NHL had its draft lottery over the weekend, and its perceived worst-case scenario...

Ask most Steelers fans what they want to see improve in 2020, and the suggestions usually come back to something on offense. Rushing offense. Passing offense. Red zone offense. Third down offense. Scoring offense. None of those are wrong answers. But if we talk about the defense specifically, for as...

Many Pirates fans have become familiar with the story of Pirates first-round draft choice Nick Gonzales. From underrecruited walk-on at New Mexico State to NCAA batting champ to Cape Cod League MVP to seventh overall pick in the MLB draft in just three years. But his former coach at New...

For Friday’s First Call, let’s take a look at the cancellation of the NFL’s Hall of Fame Game. It was supposed to feature the Steelers against the Dallas Cowboys on Aug. 6 in Canton, Ohio. Because of the coronavirus, that ain’t happenin’. Neither is the induction ceremony that would’ve included...

When former Steelers Troy Polamalu, Bill Cowher and Donnie Shell were elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame a few months ago, the news was met with celebration in Pittsburgh. A practical Black and Gold caravan was planned to leave Western Pa. and head to Canton, Ohio, for induction...

Major League Baseball is coming back! In real life. We think. So that means it’s coming back for fantasy sports players as well. Jeff Erickson of RotoWire joins us to discuss if he’s seeing many leagues canceling because there is only going to be a 60-game season. For those that...