First Call: Ja'Marr Chase suspension upheld; Steelers work out QBs; Pirates reportedly 'in' on Kyle Schwarber
Wednesday’s “First Call” has an update on Ja’Marr Chase’s suspension for spitting during the Steelers game Sunday.
The Steelers worked out some quarterbacks. A former Steeler is now an Indianapolis Colt. The Pirates are allegedly “in” on some big-name free agents.
And Robert Morris got an emotional win over a local rival in women’s basketball.
Nice try
Ja’Marr Chase’s one-game suspension for spitting on Steelers defensive back Jalen Ramsey has been upheld. That news was announced by the NFL Tuesday night.
ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter reports the Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver is going to lose $507,156 for the incident. He won’t play Sunday against the New England Patriots.
Former Green Bay Packers wide receiver Jordy Nelson heard the appeal. He was jointly appointed by the NFL and the NFL Players Association. The original punishment was announced Monday.
Technically, this is the first time the NFL has suspended a player for spitting. Prior to this year, punishments for such an infraction were always just a fine.
Philadelphia defensive tackle Jalen Carter got ejected for spitting on Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott before the first play from scrimmage in Week 1. He was fined a game check without a suspension for the Week 2 game at Kansas City. The league considered him missing all of the opener as a de facto one-game suspension. Carter did not appeal.
Related:
• Tim Benz: In the case of Aaron Rodgers or Mason Rudolph, it's not a 50-50 decision
• A look back at the Steelers' long and ugly history in Chicago
• Mike Tomlin: Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers won't need surgery on fractured wrist, could start vs. Bears
Depth decisions
With Aaron Rodgers a question mark (wrist) for Sunday’s game in Chicago, the Steelers are preparing to add another quarterback if necessary.
Via ProFootballTalk.com, the club worked out quarterbacks Jason Bean and Tanner Mordecai on Tuesday.
Bean was an undrafted QB out of Kansas in 2024. He was with the Indianapolis Colts last year.
In college, Mordecai spent time at Oklahoma, SMU and Wisconsin. In 2024, he was a practice squad player with San Francisco.
If the Steelers end up signing either player, they could serve as the third-string quarterback if Rodgers doesn’t play.
“It’s just about bracing it and securing it for his comfort and safety, and then it’s about how functional he is,” head coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday. “So, we don’t have the answers to that as we stand here (Tuesday), but certainly I would imagine we will get some clarity as we push through the week.”
The Steelers currently don’t have a quarterback on the practice squad.
As the ‘Worm’ turns
Former Steeler Chris Wormley is with a new team. The defensive lineman has signed with the Indianapolis Colts.
That news comes from ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler.
Veteran DL Chris Wormley to Colts practice squad, per source.
Eight-year vet has 87 career games with 11.0 sacks. @mzenitz first.
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) November 17, 2025
Wormley spent 41 games in a Steelers uniform, starting 16. He was in Pittsburgh from 2020-22. During that time, he totaled 8.5 sacks, 88 tackles (10 for loss), two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.
After leaving the Steelers, Wormley went to Carolina for a season, then back to Baltimore in 2024. The Ravens are the team that originally drafted him out of Michigan in 2017.
Change in mentality?
Jeff Passan of ESPN.com claims that he is hearing the Pirates have plans to spend some money this offseason.
Stop me if you’ve heard anything like this before.
In a recent post, Passan linked the Pirates to a number of significant plans.
For one, Passan reports that the Pirates are “in” on Philadelphia Phillies free agent star Kyle Schwarber, even though he might cost more than $30 million per year.
The MLB insider also included the Pirates with the Mets, Red Sox, Diamondbacks, and Rangers as suitors for two Japanese stars who are planning to come to Major League Baseball. Munetaka Murakami and Kazuma Okamoto are both third basemen with the ability to play first base.
Passan also insists that the Pirates were willing to spend somewhere in the neighborhood of $80 million for Seattle free agent Josh Naylor before he decided to stay in Seattle for $92.5 million over five years.
Plus, he writes that the Pirates are considering giving minor league player of the year Konnor Griffin a chance to win the open shortstop job, even though he is only 19 years old.
You didn’t stop me. You kept reading. That’s on you.
I’ll believe any of that when I see it, and not a moment before. Or, in the case of Naylor, when he himself says he had an offer exceeding $80 million from the Pirates. If he confirms that, then — and only then — will I get invested in any of those other possibilities involving Schwarber or the players from Japan.
Big one for Bobby Mo
Robert Morris beat Duquesne in a matchup of local women’s basketball rivals Tuesday night. The Colonials won at home 64-62.
It was the Colonials’ first win over the Dukes since 2009. Noa Givon led all scorers with 21 points, hitting five 3-pointers.
Myriam Traore added 13 points and five rebounds. For Duquesne, Mackenzie Blackford was the leading scorer at 16 points.
The Colonials improved to 4-0. The Dukes fall to 4-1. The game was played in front of a UPMC Events Center record crowd women’s basketball of 1,255.
RMU visits Pitt on Saturday. Duquesne is off until a Monday home date against Kent State.
Tim Benz is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Tim at tbenz@triblive.com or via X. All tweets could be reposted. All emails are subject to publication unless specified otherwise.
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