First Call: Miami GM 'shocked' to get Minkah Fitzpatrick; 2 rumored Steelers targets go elsewhere in AFC North
Thursday’s “First Call” has the Miami perspective on the Dolphins’ big offseason trade with the Steelers. A pair of potential Steelers are heading to Cleveland and Cincinnati.
Ex-Pirate Ke’Bryan Hayes had a rough night against Shohei Ohtani. And T.J. McConnell’s popularity in Indianapolis knows no limits.
Swimming with the Dolphins
Miami Dolphins general manager Chris Grier discussed the trade his club made with the Pittsburgh Steelers this offseason.
He described himself as being “shocked” that the team could get former Pro Bowl safety Minkah Fitzpatrick away from the Steelers in exchange for cornerback Jalen Ramsey.
“Honestly, I was shocked,” Grier said, according to a post on the Dolphins’ YouTube channel. “I was very surprised that we were able to get him. But I do know that Pittsburgh had liked (Jalen) Ramsey a lot for what he could do, and his skill set. He’s a very good player as well.”
Grier added that moving tight end Jonnu Smith for a draft pick was an important component of the deal.
“Getting Jonnu (Smith) for them, too, was important. The way you look at it is they got two players that they liked, and we got a player that we had coveted as well. It was a win-win, and we got a draft pick as well. Win-win for both teams.”
Coming off an 8-9 season, Dolphins fans sound frustrated with the state of their team. At one point in his media gathering, Grier said that one person sent him an email hoping that his kids “would die of cancer.”
Familiar names in the AFC North
A pair of potential signings linked to the Steelers are heading to other teams in the division.
Dalton Risner is going to the Bengals. The former Minnesota Vikings guard had considered a visit to Pittsburgh. But he got a deal done with the Bengals first, according to Fox’s Jordan Schultz.
Sources: The #Bengals are signing former #Vikings G Dalton Risner.
Risner has allowed zero sacks over the last two regular seasons, per PFF. A proven and respected veteran lands in Cincinnati to help protect Joe Burrow. https://t.co/YOpmVadY1C pic.twitter.com/uImmOhawKK
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) August 27, 2025
Also, Malachi Corley is heading to Cleveland. That’s according to Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network.
Corley was let go by the New York Jets this week. He played with Aaron Rodgers last year but did very little in his rookie season.
The Western Kentucky wide receiver was believed to be coveted by the Steelers in the third round. But the Jets traded up to get him in part because the Steelers might scoop him up first. Pittsburgh ended up taking Roman Wilson a few picks later.
Corley ended up with just three catches for 16 yards in nine games in his first and only season in New York.
Related
• Bubba Chandler shines again, Tommy Pham lifts Pirates to victory
• Beanie Bishop, Robert Woods, DeMarvin Leal among those on Steelers' initial practice squad
• Surviving roster cuts just 1st step for Steelers players who occupied the bubble
More McConnell
There is no doubting T.J. McConnell’s popularity in his adopted home of Indianapolis. The Chartiers Valley product helped the Indiana Pacers get to Game 7 of the NBA Finals this year.
On Wednesday, the one-time Duquesne Duke had an autograph signing at an Indianapolis Indians game, and you would’ve thought Reggie Miller, Paul Skenes, Larry Bird, Peyton Manning and Jimmy Chitwood from “Hoosiers” were all there too.
the line for autographs at T.J. McConnell Night at the @indyindians game ???????? pic.twitter.com/KtyMSDiYGf
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) August 27, 2025
The evening was dubbed “T.J. McConnell Night” at Victory Field. The former WPIAL standout threw out the first pitch before the Pirates’ top minor-league affiliate hosted Buffalo.
????T.J. McConnell Night at Victory Field pic.twitter.com/GsEWkb6u8w
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) August 28, 2025
T.J. McConnell threw out the first pitch at tonight’s @indyindians game ⚾️ pic.twitter.com/wz2RkByx8Z
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) August 27, 2025
The Bisons ended up winning 6-3. Cam Devanney, Nick Solak and Nick Yorke had the RBIs for Indy. Solak is now hitting .332 with an OPS of .917.
Sure ‘Sho’wed him
Shohei Ohtani got his first win since he resumed pitching for the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday. He did so while striking out nine Cincinnati Reds over five innings.
One of the victims was former Pirate Ke’Bryan Hayes. He went down on strikes three times against Ohtani.
Shohei Ohtani's 3Ks in the 2nd.
His Curveball tonight. ???? pic.twitter.com/4k3DV7ELn2
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) August 28, 2025
Hayes is now hitless in his last 13 at-bats. Prior to Wednesday, Ohtani had been 0-1 in 10 appearances with a 4.61 ERA. His ERA dropped to 4.18 with that performance against the Reds as L.A. won 5-1.
The Dodgers lead the National League West by two games. The Reds are 4.5 back of the New York Mets for the last N.L. Wild Card slot.
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.
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.