First Call: Support from Washington for new Steeler Dwayne Haskins; celebrating ‘Send it in, Jerome!’

New Steelers quarterback Dwayne Haskins is getting some support from a former teammate as he leaves Washington. And it comes from a guy who helped keep him on the bench.

We also flashback to a great moment in Pittsburgh sports. A Duquesne player gets a mid-season honor. And an update on the circumstances surrounding the death of baseball legend Hank Aaron.

All that in Tuesday’s “First Call.”

Hope for Haskins

Washington quarterback Alex Smith is wishing the best for new Steelers quarterback Dwayne Haskins.

Smith seized the team’s starting job in Week 9 after injury derailed Kyle Allen and ineffectiveness caught up to Haskins. Smith proceeded to win four of his next six starts, before suffering a calf injury himself.

Haskins got back onto the field in Weeks 15 and 16 but was eventually released by the team in part because he was spotted partying without a mask after the team’s defeat in Seattle on Dec. 20. He had also been benched in favor of Taylor Heinicke during Week 16’s loss against the Carolina Panthers.

During an appearance on the Yahoo Sports NFL podcast prior to Championship Weekend, Smith praised his former teammate for being “crazy talented” and for being a “really good kid.”

But when Smith was asked why things went wrong for Haskins in Washington, Smith seemed to think it was the result of Haskins having too many outside influences and too many people pulling him in multiple directions.

“You don’t have a chance until you have eliminated a lot of the distractions in your life,” Smith said. “All of the sudden, you’ve got endorsements, deals, agents. And you’ve got a lot of voices telling you a lot of things. In the end, though, this all comes down to playing well on the football field. Now you have to eliminate all that other stuff, cause none of it matters if you go out and can’t play at a high level. And you’ll never develop into your potential if you don’t eliminate that stuff as well.”

Does that include TikTok? Asking for a couple of guys I know.

Smith added that he is wishing the best for Haskins moving forward.

“We all have different roads, different paths,” Smith continued. “It takes different things for us to learn from and to grow. Hopefully this can be one of those experiences for him that helps him get going to wherever he wants to go.”

Smith was named NFL Comeback Player of the Year after the season. Any sort of bounceback whatsoever would be a welcome result for the Steelers after buying low on Haskins with a futures contract last week.

News about Hank Aaron

There has been speculation that Baseball Hall of Famer Hank Aaron died because of complications from a covid-19 vaccine shot. Now those close to him are refuting that story. So is the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s office in Georgia.

According to TMZ, the 86-year-old Aaron decided to get the shot publicly in an effort to tamp down concerns in minority communities that the vaccine may not be safe.

An unnamed FCME official quoted in the story said Aaron’s primary doctor will ultimately sign the death certificate. However, “there does not appear to any evidence showing a link to the covid vaccine.”

Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Andrew Young got the shot with Aaron in Georgia. He’s quoted in the story, too.

“I talked to the fella who was his driver,” Young told KSDK. “And I said, ‘Was Hank feeling any discomfort or any problem over the last few days?’ And he said, ‘No.’”

Baseball’s former home run king died Jan. 22 in Atlanta.

Send it in, Jerome!

Monday marked the 33rd anniversary of a famous Pittsburgh sports moment.

The thunderous backboard-shattering dunk by Pitt forward Jerome Lane against Providence at Fitzgerald Field House on Jan. 25, 1988.

Take it away, Bill Raftery.

"SEND IT IN, JEROME!"

33 years ago today, Jerome Lane shattered the backboard with this slam ?

(via @accnetwork) pic.twitter.com/b5UtAsUOBP

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 25, 2021

That was Sean Miller with the assist, by the way. As the WPIAL Hall of Famer told TribLive’s Kevin Gorman back in 2011, “In our house, it’s called ‘The Pass.’”

The Panthers went on to win 90-56 after a 32-minute delay. Lane had 17 points and 17 rebounds.

The Panthers ended up 24-7 in 1988, winning the Big East regular-season title. But they were upset by Vanderbilt in the second round of the tournament, thanks in part to a buzzer-beating prayer from Barry Goheen to force overtime.

Cheers for Chad

Duquesne freshman Chad Baker received some honors Monday. He was given the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week award.

The 6-foot-5 swingman scored a game-high 19 points to help the Dukes rally from a 15-point second half deficit to defeat Rhode Island last Wednesday. Baker went 6 of 7 from the field — including 5 of 5 from the 3-point arc — as the Dukes stormed back to win 71-69.

Tyson Acuff ➡️ Chad Baker for ?#GoDukes | #A10MBB pic.twitter.com/56TCFdmgb3

— Duquesne Basketball (@DuqMBB) January 20, 2021

The recruit from the Dominican Republic has helped fortify Duquesne’s roster in the wake of departures and absences from Sincere Carry, Lamar Norman and Maceo Austin. He’s started four games for the Dukes, helping to distribute those minutes and provide some scoring.

Baker became just the sixth player in school history to make five or more 3-pointers in a game without a miss. He added five assists and three steals in 34 minutes versus the Rams.

His previous high in his freshman season was eight points versus Fordham.