A Steelers Depot daily segment. A quick hit of some Pittsburgh Steelers-related stories that may not require a complete article but nuggets worth mentioning and passing on to you guys.
Your Depot After Dark for Jan 17.
Harrison Smith On Porter Injury
Minnesota Vikings safety Harrison Smith weighed in on the hit CB Joey Porter Jr. was injured on in Monday’s Wild Card loss, taking a hard shot to the back of the head by Bills LG Connor McGovern, who came running downfield in an attempt to push WR Stefon Diggs forward.
Taking to Twitter, Smith said those hits are “encouraged” by offensive linemen, and refs won’t flag them for it. But he noted the league must address these headshots going forward.
Chuck Noll Comparison
Justifying keeping New Orleans Saints head coach Dennis Allen, GM Mickey Loomis referenced Chuck Noll as part of his reason. Loomis used Noll as an example of a coach who struggled early in his career but had an organization behind him that showed patience, and he turned things around.
Noll inherited the lovable loser Steelers, who had never won a playoff game in their first 35 years. After gutting and building the roster through the draft, Pittsburgh improved their record in each of Noll’s first four seasons, going 11-3 in 1972 and winning their first playoff game with the Immaculate Reception. Two years later, Pittsburgh had their first Super Bowl.
Allen has gone 7-10 and 9-8 in his two years with the Saints, failing to make the playoffs each year. Loomis’ comparison is highly questionable, considering the Saints were 9-8 the year before Allen took over for Sean Payton.
Jason Kelce On Postponement
On the latest episode of Travis and Jason Kelce’s New Heights podcast, the two briefly discussed the Steelers-Bills Wild Card game. While little time was spent on the game and more spent on reminiscing about shoveling driveways as a kid, Jason joked that the game, moved from Sunday to Monday, shouldn’t have been postponed at all. And whoever managed to show up to Highmark Stadium should’ve rolled the ball out and played.
“I’m against postponements,” Kelce said. “You gotta play the ball as it lies…the game must go on. The show must go on. Whoever gets to the stadium. You don’t have to drive to the stadium. Walk. Whoever can get 11 people to the stadium wins. The governor of New York felt differently.”
Both spoke on being against teams playing in a dome, advocating for football to take place in the elements. You can hear the light-hearted discussion before (scrub ahead about 20 seconds from the current stamp, I can’t get YouTube to start the video past the end of their discussion about Eminem).
