Something new we’ll do daily for Steelers Depot. A quick hit of some Pittsburgh Steelers and Steelers-related stories that may not require a complete and dedicated article but nuggets worth mentioning and passing on to you guys. The same as our recent Depot Daily but now late at night to better capture the news of the day.
Your Depot After Dark for Sept. 19th.
XFL/USFL Rumored Merger
Two have become one. The XFL and USFL are reportedly close to joining forces and becoming one league. According to Axios, the two leagues are in “advanced talks” to merge with the goal of it occurring for the 2024 season. The story says TV rights will be split.
“Game broadcasts of the combined league are likely to be split between Fox and XFL media partner Disney, according to the source. The USFL also has a broadcast agreement with NBC, although it’s not yet been determined if that will continue.”
The exact motivation for the merger is unknown, though finances are always tough for upstart football leagues like these. And the idea of two spring/early summer leagues may cannibalize each other in the process. The details on teams and players and all those logistics aren’t currently known but should begin to be reported once an agreement becomes official, which could happen later this week.
There is one Pittsburgh team, the USFL Maulers, who turned around their season earlier this year and made it all the way to the USFL Championship game before losing. The Steelers have signed several players from these leagues to be part of their offseason rosters, including LS Rex Sunahara and WR Hakeem Butler.
Watson Non-Ejection Explained
The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Cleveland Browns 26-22 on Monday Night Football last night, but some controversy arose on whether or not Cleveland Browns QB Deshaun Watson should’ve been ejected for making contact with an official. The play happened after his first facemask penalty, with Watson appearing to shove the official.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Media reported that the NFL ruled that the play was inadvertent contact, and in the judgment of the officials, it didn’t rise to the level of being a penalty, and clearly not an ejection.
It might have been a bigger story had the Browns ended up winning the game, but ultimately it would’ve been a tough call to eject the QB in the moment. He’s clearly making contact with the official, but it looks like the official initiated the contact in trying to hold Watson back. It’s seems like a fair ruling, but maybe Watson should worry more about his play on the field than what the refs are doing after two subpar performances to start the season.
Roethlisberger Confident In Rodgers
Ben Roethlisberger relates well. He knows what it’s like to be well into your 30s and suffer a season-ending injury early in the year. Roethlisberger blew out his elbow two games into his 2019 season while Rodgers tore his Achilles four snaps into his New York Jets’ tenure. Rodgers has vowed to return and Roethlisberger is confident he won’t miss a beat. He said as much on his latest episode of the Footbahlin podcast.
“There was never a thought or a doubt in my mind he wasn’t coming back,” Roethlisberger said. “He’s not going to go out like that. He’s going to come back and he’s going to show everyone why he’s one of the best. One-hundred percent.”
Roethlisberger admitted he wasn’t initially as sure as Rodgers was, in part due to the complicated and unique nature of his elbow injury, but Roethlisberger played two more seasons after rehabbing and recovering. Rodgers is expected to start for the Jets in 2023 and hasn’t even ruled out a 2023 comeback if the Jets make a playoff run.
PFT Power Rankings
It’s Tuesday which means it’s power rankings day. With a win, the Steelers moved up to 12th in Pro Football Talk’s list, climbing three spots from last week. They are now second in the AFC North, only behind the sixth-ranked Baltimore Ravens. The Cleveland Browns are 17th while the Cincinnati Bengals tumble all the way to 21st.
Dallas takes command of the top spot while the Arizona Cardinals bring up the NFL’s caboose.
