First Call: Ravens GM dodging questions about Antonio Brown, Steelers GM pumping up James Conner

Thursday’s “First Call” features attempts from Baltimore to quell rumors about Antonio Brown joining the Ravens. NFL scheduling leaks. And Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert props up James Conner as hype surrounding one of his backups swells.

Antonio who?

We all know former Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown and Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson have had some public flirtation online.

Brown needs a place to play. Jackson wouldn’t mind having a former All-Pro wide receiver at his disposal.

When asked about that potential marriage Wednesday, Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta side-stepped the topic like a draft prospect hopping around cones at the NFL Combine.

As reported by the Baltimore Sun, DeCosta didn’t even directly reference A.B. Instead, he just talked about everybody else on the Baltimore roster who is physically capable of catching a pass.

“I love Willie Snead and (Marquise) Hollywood Brown,” DeCosta said on a conference call with season ticket holders. “And we drafted Miles Boykin last year. And I think that Chris Moore is one of the best special teams wide receivers in the league. We drafted Devin Duvernay this year, James Proche. We’ve got Jaleel Scott on the team … We’ve also got all these tight ends.

“And so we think if you look at our team over the last two, three years, we’ve done a lot to address skill positions: targets for [quarterback] Lamar [Jackson], guys that can make plays. We feel really, really good about that. We love the mix of personalities and players and the upside and leadership that we’ve got. And I think Lamar’s got a great chemistry with those guys as well. We think our younger guys are going to continue to make a jump.”

If I may, let me translate that. “Right now, I’m not going to say ‘no.’ But I sure hope I don’t get talked into saying ‘yes.’”

Brown remains a free agent after burning his way through Pittsburgh, Oakland and New England over the last 14 months. He is still under investigation by the NFL for allegedly threatening a woman who accused him of sexual misconduct.

He’d likely face a suspension from the league before playing again if any team does eventually sign him.

Still the guy?

Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert joined ProFootballTalk’s #PFTPM podcast.

It was a wide-ranging interview. Colbert got into a lot of topics including his relationship with Don Shula, his wish that the draft had expanded this year, and the selection of Chase Claypool.

Perhaps most interesting, though, was his response when asked if the Steelers wanted to establish a running back by committee or if they were inclined to give James Conner another shot at being the lead horse despite his many injuries in recent years.

After all, the club did just draft Anthony McFarland in the fourth round.

“Last year they were a committee. And it wasn’t a committee by choice. That was a committee by circumstance because our starter — James Conner — was injured,” Colbert told host Mike Florio. “James had an unfortunate year. He suffered acute injuries. It wasn’t just one thing lingering. And they were real. It was frustrating for James and frustrating for us. When he was healthy, he was a Pro Bowl runner. He’s still a young runner.”

Colbert sounded much more optimistic about Conner in 2020.

“James will come in healthy,” Colbert continued. “He’ll be prepared and ready to go. We have some comfort in that.”

Colbert’s answer was very similar to one he gave the local media during the offseason about Conner’s health issues. So he has been consistent in his messaging, which is that the organization still has faith in the Pitt product.

But, obviously, with five other running backs on the team, Colbert is buffering the roster for more “acute” problems with Conner in the future.

Since we’re on the topic

Meanwhile, some love is being spread to one of Conner’s backups.

That’s the aforementioned Anthony McFarland. The incoming rookie from Maryland is said to be a speed demon.

When NFL.com’s Peter Schrager was asked for one “surprise breakout player” on the Steelers, he pointed to McFarland.

Via @PSchrags on Anthony McFarland https://t.co/Y7Qj6u2LiC

— Tim Benz (@TimBenzPGH) May 6, 2020

“He was a player at the combine that a lot of people were whispering about,” Schrager said. ”He could get Day 1 or Day 2 buzz. Well, he went on Day 3.

“But the Steelers always have that guy that no one has heard of that makes a big play during a Sunday night game. Anthony McFarland, running back, Maryland!”

Colbert fawned over McFarland in that ProFootballTalk interview linked above, calling him a “pretty easy pick” at that point in the draft.

Planning ahead

The NFL is planning to release its schedule on Thursday night.

By most accounts, the goal is to move forward with a 17-game schedule as planned, starting Sept. 10. The Super Bowl is still going to be slated for Feb. 7 in Tampa.

However, numerous reports — including one from John Clayton on 93.7 The Fan in Pittsburgh — suggests that the league is trying to frontload the schedule with interconference games.

At least for the first four weeks.

Just in case.

That way — if the season starts late — the less important games are up front and all 12 remaining games would be strictly AFC vs AFC and NFC vs NFC competition. That would help balance things out and set up more streamlined tiebreakers for the playoffs.

Some rumors have suggested the Steelers and Eagles may be the first Sunday night game of the year, with the Steelers and Cowboys playing in Week 3.

We’ll take it for now

Most years in June, Penguins fans would be hoping for a Stanley Cup Final.

This June, they’ll have to settle for something else.

As a way to raise money for its cause and keep hockey in the front of everyone’s mind this summer, the Mario Lemieux Foundation will present an NHL ‘94 online tournament.

There’s an entry fee of $19.94 which serves as a donation to the foundation. It funds cancer research and patient care. And in this case, it is partnering with NHL94.com.

The NHL ‘94 video game was wildly popular when it was first released. And Lemieux was the top-rated player in it. He had just finished his historic 1993 season.

Midway through the year, Lemieux discovered that he had Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. But he still led the NHL in scoring with 160 points, despite missing two months due to treatments.

Registration begins Friday. The tournament will be played on June 6 and June 13.