Breakfast With Benz category, Page 141
Might Penguins get late scheduling edge in Eastern Division race?
Here’s one thing the Penguins may have going for themselves as the 2021 NHL season rolls along. They have yet to play what appear to be the two weakest teams in the tightly compacted Eastern Division. And they won’t do so until March 11. That’ll be the Penguins’ first game...
First Call: Does Steelers RB James Conner need a fresh start?; Penguins TV ratings boost
Tuesday’s “First Call” begins with the prospect of a fresh start for Steelers running back James Conner. More problems for Steelers fan-favorite Adam “PacMan” Jones. Pitt’s basketball team has an all-too-familiar look to it. And Penguins television ratings are off to a strong start. Rejuvenating James Heading into NFL free...
Tim Benz: Maurkice Pouncey’s retirement frames an unfortunate reality for some Steelers stars
The retirement of center Maurkice Pouncey raises an unfortunate reality for this current era of Steelers. We are witnessing a batch of truly accomplished players who may never get to play in a Super Bowl. And that may dilute their position in the pantheon of Steelers legends. Pouncey was on...
Unfiltered: Tim Benz and Mark Madden discuss Penguins, Steelers, J.J. WattVideo
Tim Benz and Mark Madden return for this week’s edition of “Unfiltered” on TribLive’s Facebook page to talk about the Penguins win on Sunday and how the season is going, the outlook for Steelers future and the buzz around fans clamoring for J.J. Watt to join his brothers with the...
First Call: Steelers are favorites to sign J.J. Watt; celebrating Jaromir Jagr’s birthday
Monday’s “First Call” looks at who is chasing the Steelers to sign J.J. Watt on the gambling odds boards. A grim assessments of the Steelers by a pair of national outlets. We celebrate Jaromir Jagr’s birthday. Plus a Marc Andre-Fleury shutout. No. 49 for No. 68 Jaromir Jagr’s birthday is...
Madden Monday: Evgeni Malkin’s future; might T.J. Watt eventually follow J.J. instead of the other way around?
Last week on his 105.9 The X radio show, Mark Madden said he was hearing that Penguins center Evgeni Malkin was not going to be traded and that an extension may be looming. But during this week’s “Madden Monday” podcast, based on some new information, those assertions have been tempered....
Tim Benz: 4 questions to answer before you buy that Steelers J.J. Watt jersey
Now that three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt has been released by the Houston Texans, that news has opened the spigot for speculation that he may join the Steelers to play with his brothers, T.J. and Derek. While such a move would do wonders for social media...
First Call: Penguins may extend Evgeni Malkin; potential destinations for Le’Veon Bell, Antonio Brown
Friday’s “First Call” will quell concerns of those who were worried that Pittsburgh Penguins star Evgeni Malkin might get traded. Or, on the other hand, it might anger those who wanted to see him moved. Also, Tom Brady is scheduled for surgery. One outlet predicts that Antonio Brown is staying...
Friday Football Footnotes: Who was the ‘Most improved’ Steeler in 2020? Is Al Villanueva a ‘must keep’?
Pittsburgh Steelers fans, we haven’t done “Friday Football Footnotes” at “Breakfast With Benz” for a while, have we? Well, now is as good a time as any. There are lots of little Steelers nuggets to digest. Plus, I’ve spent way too much time shoveling the snow off my sidewalk and...
Tim Benz: If Pens fans are skeptical of Hextall-Burke duo, praise from Philadelphia may help
Some Penguins fans may be a bit slow to fully embrace Ron Hextall as the team’s new general manager because of his history with the Philadelphia Flyers. Or, perhaps better phrased, quicker to turn on him if he’s not an instant success. That said, some of the loudest approvals of...
First Call: Jets and Raiders for JuJu?; TE draft prospect for Steelers; boozin’ Tom Brady; cussin’ Bruce Arians
Thursday’s “First Call” gives us a potential destination for JuJu Smith-Schuster. Two, actually. And some money projections as well. Also, a tight end draft projection for the Steelers. Remembering the departure of a Steelers legend. And Tom Brady may have been overserved at the Super Bowl party in Tampa. JuJu...
U mad, bro?: Steelers fans defend Big Ben, City of Champions rep, rip Tom Brady
So let me get this straight, Pittsburgh sports fans. The Penguins just hired their boogeyman from the 1980s to be their new general manager. His new boss is a guy who openly jabbed the franchise on two different occasions. The power play is a mess. And Tristan Jarry is about...
First Call: Bruce Arians describes dismissal from Pittsburgh; Steelers linked to Bengals free agent
Wednesday’s “First Call” features an interesting free agency theory for the Steelers. Also, Bill Cowher’s goodbye to Marty Schottenheimer. And admission from Bruce Arians about his dismissal from the Steelers. And a new job for Antwaan Randle El. Plus, a former Pitt star earns a Super Bowl ring. And a...
Alan Faneca’s Hall of Fame-worthy account of his signature Steelers moment
As is the case with many Pro Football Hall of Famers, most of the Steelers in Canton, Ohio, delivered a “Hall of Fame moment.” That one iconic piece of video. That one unforgettable highlight which captures the player’s essence. Usually on a big stage like the playoffs or the Super...
Tim Benz: I get what the Penguins are thinking. But how is this going to work?
Like many Penguins fans in their early to mid-40s, I cut my teeth as a hockey fan in the early Mario Lemieux years of the mid-80s and became hooked on the game as they were winning Stanley Cups in the early 90s. That also means — like all Penguins fans...
Madden ‘Tuesday’: Why Penguins goalies are failing, Super Bowl fallout, Steelers ‘nuclear winter’
Our “Madden Monday” podcast had to wait a day because of Mark Madden’s trip to Las Vegas for the Super Bowl. Did Madden’s mini-vacation soften his recent harsh assessment of our three Pittsburgh sports teams, specifically the Steelers? “They are one year away from nuclear winter, which is where the...
First Call: Ex-Steeler says Big Ben must replicate Tom Brady; Kevin Colbert on Antonio Brown’s Super Bowl win
The NFL season may be over, but that doesn’t mean Steelers stories stop. In fact, as Tuesday’s “First Call” shows us, they may be coming in even more frequently now that a busy offseason is upon us. The first post-Super Bowl NFL gambling odds are out for 2021’s Super Bowl...
Tim Benz: Steelers can learn a lot from Buccaneers’ Super Bowl win … beyond just signing Tom Brady
What a world it is, Steelers fans. In our current reality, Tom Brady has been to four Super Bowls since Ben Roethlisberger has won his last playoff game. The Steelers have longer odds at the Super Bowl than the Cleveland Browns or Miami Dolphins. And their “retired” former offensive coordinator...
Unfiltered: Tim Benz and Mark Madden discuss the Super Bowl, Steelers, Penguins, T.J. WattVideo
Tim Benz and Mark Madden, calling in from Las Vegas, return for this week’s edition of “Unfiltered” on TribLive’s Facebook page to talk about the Super Bowl, T.J. Watt, the Steelers’ outlook, as well the Penguins’ troubles and GM search. Madden starts by saying that betting against Tom Brady was...
First Call: Antonio Brown, Le’Veon Bell have opposite Super Bowl experiences; audio/video of streaker
It’s an all Super Bowl “First Call” after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers blew out the Kansas City Chiefs 31-9 in the NFL title game Sunday night. We grit our teeth as former Steeler Antonio Brown celebrates earning a ring and scoring a touchdown. We lament Le’Veon Bell’s non-existent contribution. And...
Despite challenges of pandemic, Chatham hockey will start this weekend
If you’ve paid attention to college sports at all over the past year, you know the struggle it has been to get through schedules during the coronavirus pandemic. Games get postponed, moved up and canceled altogether like it’s beer league softball or rec-league hoops at the local YMCA. If the...
Tim Benz: ESPN is already hyping the 2021 season … and overhyping the Steelers
Leading up to Sunday’s Super Bowl, ESPN.com put together some projections for the Steelers and the rest of the league’s 31 other franchises in advance of 2021 season. Hey, no time like the present to start hyping the future, right? They placed every team into one of six boxes based...
Tim Benz: Super Bowl predictions and bets to make Sunday interesting — even without Steelers
Sadly for Pittsburgh Steelers fans, their team isn’t involved in the Super Bowl. Again. It’s been that way for a decade now. But most of us in Pittsburgh will still be watching the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. So if you want some Super Bowl prop...
First Call: Bruce Arians’ quote about Ben Roethlisberger; Chris Drury not in mix for Penguins GM job
Bruce Arians and Franco Harris comment on the Steelers. A perceived general manager candidate is off the Penguins’ list. And Robert Morris hockey has a rare mid-week doubleheader. All that in Thursday’s “First Call.” Bruce on Brady and Ben Former Steelers offensive coordinator Bruce Arians provided an interesting quote about...
The biggest problems facing the Penguins … besides the power play. Oh, and the power play.
At 5-4-1, things could be worse for the Pittsburgh Penguins. But they aren’t great. During Wednesday’s“Breakfast With Benz” podcast, Penguins Radio Network host Brian Metzer and I spent a lot of time drilling down on the problems facing the power play. But that’s not where the analysis needs to stop....
