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 March 26.
Two Christmas Day Games
Today’s Depot After Dark will focus less on the Steelers and more on the NFL at large during this week’s league meetings in Orlando.
Despite the NFL vowing just four months ago not to play Christmas Day games if they fall on a Tuesday or Wednesday, as it does this season, The MMQB’s Albert Breer reports the league will play two games on Wednesday, December 25, 2024.
Breer notes that the four teams participating will have Saturday games the week before, giving them an extra day before playing on an awkwardly placed Wednesday.
The 2020 Steelers and Ravens was the last game to be played on Wednesday as part of constant COVID rescheduling after a breakout in Baltimore’s locker room. Since 1949, the only other Wednesday game occurred in 2012 between the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants, a Week One game that didn’t have the downside of coming off a game like this season will. That game was pushed up a day to avoid conflict with Barack Obama’s speech.
Pittsburgh last played on Christmas Day in the 2017 season, blowing out the Houston Texans 34-6.
Week One Peacock Game
If you hate Peacock-exclusive games, the NFL says too bad. After having a Wild Card exclusive to NBC’s streaming platform last season, they’ll kick off the year with one, too. The Philadelphia Eagles season opener, to be played on a Friday in Brazil, will exclusively be shown through Peacock, the NFL announced today via NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo.
It’s still not known who they’ll play. Though Art Rooney II believes the Steelers won’t play an international game in 2024, they could, in theory, play the Eagles. They’re scheduled to play Philadelphia on the road at some point this season. While there have been rumors about the Cleveland Browns being the league’s selection, the league has not announced it.
New Hard Knocks
The NFL has two versions of Hard Knocks. The “classic” version where NFL Films follows a team around during training camp. By squeaking into the playoffs last season, Pittsburgh narrowly avoided becoming a prime candidate. But they might not avoid the camera crews entirely.
In a change this season, the mid-year “Hard Knocks” series will feature an entire division as opposed to one team, according to CBS Sports Jonathan Jones.
What division will it be? How will it be determined? How will they split up telling the story of all four teams? Those details aren’t clear. But the AFC North is arguably the best and most competitive division. Assuming the league wants to include a playoff chase angle in its coverage, there’s no better division than the one Pittsburgh plays in.
