Let's Talk Stil'rs - September 20, 2025

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
It's kickoff. Time put the Cigar Internationals Let's Talk Stealers
show sponsored by Cigar's International. Stop by our Bridgeville store today.
Parking Chair Vodka, Respect the chair. It's a Pittsburgh thing
Forest Launch in Campground Cooks Forest, PA. Your adventure starts here.

Speaker 2 (00:26):
Huddle up, Steelers Nation, It's time for Let's duck Steelers.
I'm your host, Randy the Tank Tantlinger and on occasion,
joined by the former NFL quarterback Mike McMahon Detroit Lions,
Philadelphia Eagle. I have no idea why Mike never played
for the Steelers, because we're standing on the sidelines in

(00:47):
Latrobe a couple of years ago. Tomlin looks over, recognizes
Mike McMahon, Pittsburgh guy, played at Rutgers quarterback and goes,
what are you doing here? Mike goes, I live here,
and you could Tomlin and Mike were on the same
Tomlin was on the staff with the Lions when mikey
was up with the Lions, and you could see Tomlin's

(01:11):
will spinning. Why didn't I have you here in Pittsburgh anyway?
That's the quarterback. He's too busy coaching the North Catholic
Trojans are off to a lead of four and oh
here in Pittsburgh three to eight. So you're stuck with
me this week.

Speaker 3 (01:27):
And a special guest Steelers Legends four super Bowl rings.

Speaker 4 (01:34):
He got j T. Thomas Man and you're gonna love
the conversation with JT.

Speaker 3 (01:40):
Here in a little bit, we get into the weeds
a little bit, we get into the weeds.

Speaker 5 (01:46):
That means the.

Speaker 3 (01:46):
Deep grass kids, for you newbies out there, We talk
about the Chief Art Rooney. We talk about well, a
hard subject people have talking about.

Speaker 4 (02:00):
You listen to that during the tape.

Speaker 2 (02:02):
We talk about the Steelers of the seventies, we talk
about the Jets. Well, we just have a good show
time talking with JAT at our locker room. Now, how
remiss would I be if I did not mention? Drum
roll please.

Speaker 4 (02:19):
No drum roll.

Speaker 3 (02:20):
Crickets are deafening our new locker room from the twenty
twenty five season for Let's Talk Steelers TV show on
twenty two to the point Pittsburgh and right here on
the iHeart station of power and prominence here in Wheeling,
West Virginia, Fox Sports Net Radio, Wheeling, Pittsburgh, fourteen hundred AM,

(02:42):
one oh three point nine FM. The locker room will
be at the Cigars International Bridgeville store. If you are
a cigar lover, if your grandpappy is a cigar lover,
if your uncle Larry Dad, if you want to get
into the cigar culture and family, because that's what it

(03:05):
is with cigars, you got to go to the new
Cigars International store up in Bridgeville, Pennsylvania, right or get
online Cigars International dot com.

Speaker 4 (03:17):
How easy is that?

Speaker 3 (03:19):
And great prices on all the greatest cigar brands out there.
I'm a Rocky p Patel, Guy Cio Guy Olivia Partigate.
I guess I'm a cigar. I just was in Florida
last week and I bought myself at a Cigars International
store in Jacksonville, Florida, a partigas partigus. If you're not

(03:44):
a cigar smoker and you want to get into it,
I'm gonna highly recommend get on his Cigars International and
get any partigas.

Speaker 4 (03:53):
Now, you probably want to.

Speaker 2 (03:53):
Start with a like Connecticut rap that won't make sense
to you, but it's a lighter cigar. That's our digs
for this season with Let's Talk Steelers and we'll be
taping there on Tuesdays. We're gonna have prize giveaways with
cigars and all kind of gifts, and we got so
much going on with Cigars International this year. We got

(04:17):
our Cigars International golf parties. We're gonna launch in twenty
twenty six. So look, this is the place to be.
Let's talk Steelers. So let's get this started. We'll recap
this Pittsburgh Steelers versus the Adult Seed Chickens.

Speaker 4 (04:39):
Did you expect to lose that game? I didn't.

Speaker 3 (04:45):
I thought we were going to be four and oh
after four games. I did not expect the Sea Chickens
to come in here. And I don't want to hear
about the screw up. I don't want to.

Speaker 2 (04:57):
Hear that your young unning back at a mental oopsie
and cost you the game.

Speaker 4 (05:05):
Okay, because when.

Speaker 3 (05:09):
Your defensive line is catching blocks and not penetrating the
line of scrimmage, this leads to losing to the Sea Chickens. Okay,
I'll start there. That's been over the last two weeks.

(05:30):
What's going on with the Steelers defensive line. It's not
like the talent isn't there.

Speaker 2 (05:36):
Cam Hayward, Okay, Benton I think has high upside on him.
We haven't seen the kid, the first rounder yet. But
I hate to say this because I have such deep
respect for Carl Dunbar, the Steelers line coach, defensive line coach.

(06:00):
But the game may have passed him up. The game
may have passed him up. And for you folks that
don't know football, and for you folks that do know,
especially the line play, go back and look. I invoke
the Pittsburgh Steelers of the seventies. Okay, they were penetrating

(06:24):
the line of scrimmage.

Speaker 3 (06:27):
They were penetrating that A gap, that B gap, that
C gap, that's the gaps between the center and guard, guard, tackle, tackle,
and tight end, even penetrating or blowing the offensive lineman
back off the line of scrimmage. The technique that is

(06:53):
now taught is what I call catch, grab hold fined.
Instead of penetrating the line of scrimmage and blowing it
backwards into the offensive backfield.

Speaker 4 (07:11):
And causing havoc. Let me give you an example.

Speaker 2 (07:14):
Okay, Let's say your left offensive guard, Cam Hayward blows
him back a yard two yards even into the backfield.

Speaker 3 (07:29):
And let's say the right guard was pulling to the
left to try to get outside.

Speaker 4 (07:40):
What happens to that right guard.

Speaker 2 (07:41):
He runs right into Cam and the left guard penetration.

Speaker 4 (07:45):
That's just one example the new technique of.

Speaker 3 (07:52):
The defensive lineman immediately grab on to the offensive lineman
and they're holding.

Speaker 4 (07:58):
Him and they're.

Speaker 3 (08:01):
Playing their responsibility, but then they supposed to find the.

Speaker 4 (08:05):
Ball, right. I hate it. I hate that technique.

Speaker 2 (08:10):
First of all. Is it working for your Pittsburgh Steelers
defensive line right now? I do not like this technique,
And like anything in life, I always use the pet
rock theory.

Speaker 4 (08:24):
Pet rocks.

Speaker 3 (08:25):
You people who don't know what a pet rock is,
believe it or not. In the seventies a guy made
millions of dollars because he put rocks in a box.

Speaker 2 (08:38):
And called it a pet rock. Everybody had to have
a pet rock. We gave Grandpapa pet rock for his birthday.
Mommy got a pet rock for Christmas.

Speaker 4 (08:51):
What are you gonna do with your pet rock? I'm
gonna sit it right here? What do you feed it? Nothing?
It's cheap to feat.

Speaker 3 (08:58):
The guy made millions. Well, maybe I should bring the
pet rock theory back. Hey, you're listening to Let's Talk
Steelers here on iHeartRadio. What I'm saying about the pet
Rock is it was a fad. Football's the same way, right,

(09:19):
Remember when the greatest show on turf was a passing spectacle,
And this is a passing league and people want to
see touchdowns. Okay, yeah, it is passing league. In fact,
you know it's probably a fifty to fifty ratio between
pass and run. This fad, this pet Rock fad of

(09:42):
defensive linemen not seeking to damage inflict punishment on an
offensive lineman but instead catch him, hold him, and find
the ball.

Speaker 4 (09:56):
It ain't working.

Speaker 2 (09:58):
It ain't working for your Pittsburgh Steelers. I want to
see el C Greenwood, Dwight White, Joe Green trying to
do one thing, get past the offensive lineman, find the
running back, or if the quarterbacks drop him back to pass,

(10:20):
kill him, kill him. It might be time for a
change at the defensive line coach position, but we're in season,
so that ain't happening. Hey, I want to switch over
to the locker room now, Aaron Rodgers, where are you

(10:41):
at with him?

Speaker 4 (10:42):
What are you thinking about him? Huh?

Speaker 3 (10:45):
I was sold out on him when I saw him
in Latrobe. Sure he's not as fast as he was.
He's forty Okay, I'm sixty.

Speaker 4 (10:54):
I ain't what I.

Speaker 3 (10:55):
Was at fifty or forty or thirty or twenty. But
I tell you what that risked release, that quick release.
That Rogers has, that knowledge he has, it's there, it's there,

(11:16):
He's got weapons. Darnell Washington, you gotta be pleased with Metcalf.
That man ain't em and he's from another planet. That
Medcalf their I don't know what they feed him before
games Man, but that guy's a player. Let's go inside
of Steelers' locker room this week as they get ready

(11:37):
to take on.

Speaker 4 (11:37):
The New England bean Eaters.

Speaker 3 (11:41):
And listen to Rogers and his answers to different questions
and perspectives. Then we'll be back to Let's Talk Steelers
where we'll head over to the locker room at Cigars International, Bridgeville, Pennsylvania,
and we'll talk to my good buddy JT.

Speaker 4 (11:58):
Thomas.

Speaker 6 (12:00):
Sure you're we He was asked about, you know, was
he worried about the hits you've been taking to sit here?

Speaker 3 (12:04):
It's been pretty durable.

Speaker 6 (12:05):
During his right I looked it up. You're the most
of the SAT quarterback called history like.

Speaker 3 (12:10):
You've been you know, being able to play a lot
of this way. Did you learned anything about how to
absorb that getting tackled by three pound dudes?

Speaker 6 (12:19):
I mean, nothing special. I mean I've I've broken a
couple of collar bones getting tackled before I got tackled
and cracked my knee one time. But I mean.

Speaker 7 (12:30):
Just it's just playing football great pared.

Speaker 8 (12:33):
What stands out to you about New England's defense so
far that the Saints in history.

Speaker 6 (12:39):
But they got some new players and those guys are
playing well. Both they're big acquisitions in the off season,
ninety seven and two of them off to a good
start this season. It looks like a Rabel defense, you know,
the way they fly around, different looks. They got aggressive
blitzing nature that they do, so they're they're playing good
on defense.

Speaker 7 (12:57):
I know you guys didn't start off with the touchdown
in this game, but he's got points and you've gotten points.

Speaker 6 (13:02):
On both of the opening drives and they did both games
so far.

Speaker 8 (13:04):
And what what are you guys doing well, whether it
be gameplay or anything like that.

Speaker 6 (13:09):
Specifically allowing that to ch that's for you.

Speaker 4 (13:12):
Guys to reuse prison.

Speaker 6 (13:14):
I think it's good, good play calls from Art and
then we're just executing at a high level. We still
had a chance to get more on the first first possession,
you know, we had a chance down the sideline the
pat and installed on a make a both third down,
but Bos bailed us out. And then the good good kick.
But when we go down seven nothing we get the

(13:34):
ball back. You know, we got to respond with seven
even up that game, keep the crowd in it. And
then we had a chance to and didn't.

Speaker 3 (13:40):
From your perspective, what's kind of the next step that
you'd like to see in the running game going into
this week?

Speaker 6 (13:46):
Ten plus yard runs. I think that's what Pat wants
to see, That's what Mike team wants to see, That's
what Art wants to see. You know, our backs are
slippery enough. We got to get them up to the
second level clean. So we just you know, think, just
keep it our Amy points. You know, it's not always
on the line. It's sometimes you know, the combination block,

(14:07):
sometimes the track. So we just got to be perfect
on our execution. If the track is supposed to be
a certain way, let's run that track. We're supposed to
get capture an Amy points. Captured an Amy point, and
then you know we've seen our backs on second secondary
players has been a good matchup for us.

Speaker 8 (14:23):
What have you learned about Jalen Warren just in the
time that you've gotten during the practice.

Speaker 3 (14:27):
And you know in a couple of games.

Speaker 6 (14:29):
He's a quiet guy. He hasn't seen Point Break before,
which was surprising considering it's surfing movie. Uh, he's probably
seen North Shore. I actually haven't asked him about that yet,
but he's kind of what I what I thought from Afar.
You know, I think the biggest competent I can give
him is you know, when you're behind a four straight
thousand yard rusher, you're seen as a change up back.

(14:52):
And you know he's a guy who could be a
number one back on any team in the league. So
really thankful for him. I think that played that the
ad the other day was one of the greatest catching
runs I've seen. You know, Donald Driver had a crazy
one back in two thousand and nine where a guy
fell over his back and he was drilled on the
five yard line somehow got in. But uh, that catch

(15:14):
and run and those jukes that he made was was
pretty incredible.

Speaker 5 (15:17):
Said Mike said yesterday that he feels played about this
offensive line. Do you share that sentiment.

Speaker 8 (15:23):
Do you want to see any improvement there?

Speaker 7 (15:26):
I forgot about the offensive going to Foxborough. He's been
a quarter century nightmare for this organization.

Speaker 5 (15:33):
Oh have you done at Foxborough?

Speaker 4 (15:34):
What are your thoughts?

Speaker 6 (15:39):
Well, I don't know that we've won. We lost there
a few times, so you're you're already here.

Speaker 4 (15:43):
I know you to, that's all.

Speaker 6 (15:47):
Yeah. I mean we had a chance and we were
up five last year with like two minutes left and
they had a big, big pass. We were tied with
him going in the fourth uh eighteen I believe, and
then beat by a couple of scores. I didn't play
in twenty ten. Matt Flynn played played well, but we

(16:08):
gave up one of the greatest players I've been a
part of in my NFL history, and that's when Dan
Connolly had a kickoff return that almost went for a touchdown.
Hated that it was against us, but as a lover
of the big guys, when they get opportunities to show
the athleticism, there may have been a few of us
on the sideline who had a very tiny quiet got
on that play. But yeah, I'd be nice to get

(16:30):
a win there. Aaron after the we talked about how
the Seahawks dropped a lot of too high zone coverages.
It seemed like they weren't fighting as much on play
action last week. How do you counted that as a passing.

Speaker 4 (16:40):
Attack beyond just running the ball.

Speaker 5 (16:41):
How do you counted that. We can see that.

Speaker 4 (16:43):
Okay, they're doing.

Speaker 5 (16:44):
This a little bit more often.

Speaker 6 (16:46):
You gotta run the ball. They played too high. You
gotta run the ball. And that's the the last five
or six years coming out of the Seahawks three that
went around the league. You gotta run football against these
combo coverages and two I coverages. So you run the football,
you have a chance to have some good play action stuff.

Speaker 3 (17:05):
Aaron, you're talking about how the loss would be good
for you guys. You know, in what ways would you
like to see you guys respond to to turn that
into a good thing or to reverse forth kind of thing.

Speaker 6 (17:15):
I don't like getting too binary, but winning that's a
good response. But we can't get attached to the the
binary system that our league has judged on necessarily because
it is a seventeen game season and the process has
to be great. So just dig into the details in
the process, enjoy it, practice well, and then let game

(17:36):
day take care of itself because.

Speaker 3 (17:38):
You guys have a pretty young offense and you have
to maybe repeat that message not to us.

Speaker 6 (17:42):
And that's the maybe in the room too, to not
get caught up in the I'm telling, do you guys,
so you guys get it out there so they see it. No,
we got a lot of we we have a young team,
but we have guys who played a lot of football.
John's played a lot of football, DK Isaac, you know, Kenny
G myself. So there's a lot of guys that can
echo the right message every week.

Speaker 4 (18:01):
I know you guys have.

Speaker 6 (18:02):
Only had one day practice, but how have.

Speaker 8 (18:04):
You seen the response and what have you seen from
you guys this week so far in response to practice.

Speaker 6 (18:11):
I haven't seen anybody hanging their heads. The most important thing,
like I said after the game, is it's a marathon,
not a sprint. Can't ride the ups and downs. You
have to embrace the results that happen and take a
look at your process every single week, whether it's a
win on the scoreboard or a loss. And great competitors
know that sometimes their best is not going to be

(18:33):
good enough on some days, but your best is not
just as game day performance. Your best is a weekly
accumulation of how you prepared on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday,
how you practice or Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and in the
communication that you exhibited during the week as well. So
as long as we stay on those things, game days

(18:54):
take care of themselves.

Speaker 1 (18:56):
It's kickoff time for the Cigar or inter Nation. Let's
talk Stealers Show sponsored by Cigars International. Stop by your
Bridgeville store today. Parking chair vodka. Respect the chair. It's
a Pittsburgh Thing Forest launching Campground, Cooks Forest, PA. Your

(19:19):
adventure starts here.

Speaker 5 (19:22):
Huddle up, Steelers Nation. It's Tank, my quarterback, Mike McMahon.
He's missing in action. JT. Did you ever play football
a little bit?

Speaker 6 (19:30):
All right?

Speaker 5 (19:31):
You'll do whoever you are. Hey, we're here at our
locker room.

Speaker 3 (19:35):
It's Cigars International in Bridgeville, Pennsylvania.

Speaker 5 (19:37):
I'm Tank Tantlinger. He is the legend. JT. Thomas. How
many Super Bowls you playing?

Speaker 8 (19:42):
I played in three, but I was I was sick
from the fourth. Onest I didn't play in that one.

Speaker 3 (19:46):
But I don't accept excuses, but I'll give you the
credit for the three of them.

Speaker 5 (19:51):
Well, I was four of that inspirational.

Speaker 3 (19:57):
Yes, you are a true inspiration man, JT. We're Here's
Cigars International.

Speaker 5 (20:03):
I love it.

Speaker 3 (20:03):
It's gonna be our locker room for let's talk Stealers
twenty twenty five.

Speaker 5 (20:08):
Couldn't think of anybody.

Speaker 3 (20:09):
Better place, better cigars beverages. You ever heard of that
pop up aalar rum?

Speaker 5 (20:16):
Oh? Yes, I know you have. Yeah, Pop's Bala Rum.

Speaker 8 (20:19):
I'm the ambassador of Pennsylvania for Pop's Bala Rum. And
it's the room that God drinks when he's watching his films.
Matter of fact, he drinks the dark and when he's
smoking his.

Speaker 5 (20:29):
Stokey Yeah right, similar to what Missigoon needs to smoke.

Speaker 3 (20:32):
Oh God, yeah, the Chief, the Chief, tell me about
your thoughts about the Chiefs because I love to play
that Jean did. I'm sure you saw it. Who doesn't
love Art Rooney Man.

Speaker 8 (20:44):
Well, when I was my after out for a Super Bowl,
the Chief thought I was Catholic. I went to a
Catholic school and I stoked in the Catholic diaces, you know,
after for a Super Bowl back in George.

Speaker 3 (20:56):
Yeah, I would think you were Catholic too, So he.

Speaker 5 (20:58):
So that's JT.

Speaker 8 (20:58):
So I need someone to go around to the Catholic
dioceis on Tuesday and speak while he give out money
him in a commissioner forester. So two years agter I
picked up the stadium.

Speaker 6 (21:09):
We riding around.

Speaker 5 (21:09):
He's smoking the cigar in my GLENGTHM time across smoking
it all up. I can't tell him to put it
on your card.

Speaker 8 (21:15):
And I'm hearing stories about life that I probably can't repeat.
But nevertheless, it was just a great experience that now
I got to know him. He thought was cath I'm
Baptist by religion, but he thought it was who cares
me well.

Speaker 5 (21:30):
One story was this my first.

Speaker 8 (21:33):
Year, he called me TJ. So I'm not gonna question you. You know,
call me TJ my second year. Look comfortable, I said,
mister looney, I said, I said, you've been calling me
TJ for over a year, and I say, my name
is j T. He pulled a cigar out pauls so
I'm riding robbing them. He said, well, I know your name, okay,

(21:56):
He said, I have a friend for about thirty years.

Speaker 5 (21:59):
His name is T. I said, okay. He said, I
didn't feel like switching the initials.

Speaker 8 (22:04):
I didn't feel like gas I said okay. He said, well,
by the way, on your game. Check how's your name?
I said j T.

Speaker 5 (22:12):
He said, well, you don't have any problem the do you.
I said, no, sir, he never called me. I love that.
That's that Irish witch. Yeah. Great, great guy, great leader.
He is the heart and soul the leading today.

Speaker 3 (22:28):
Yeah, you know there's two games that. For me, golf
is a lineage right from Saint Andrews, Scotland to today
at Oakmond or whatever it may be.

Speaker 5 (22:40):
We can trace that lineage.

Speaker 3 (22:42):
We full well know that football birthed in my hometown
of Latro, Pennsylvania.

Speaker 5 (22:48):
I don't care what they say in the North Side.

Speaker 3 (22:50):
They paid Doc Bryer, the local dentist, five dollars a
game to play in a YMC.

Speaker 5 (22:55):
We know all these things and that lineage of the game.

Speaker 3 (22:59):
In our lineage with Pittsburgh Steelers, we ain't no new franchise.

Speaker 5 (23:03):
We ain't the Seattle Seed chickens that.

Speaker 3 (23:05):
Come around in what's seventy eight, seventy eight. It goes
to the heart of the matter. In nineteen thirty three with.

Speaker 8 (23:11):
The chief well you think about it, he was part
of the foundation of this organizations.

Speaker 5 (23:16):
George hallis guys boot.

Speaker 8 (23:18):
The foundation and you know Dan come alone and they
built the infrastructure. You know, so when you look at
the NFL, you have to look at I'm gonna call
the founding fathers. And the chief was key, I mean
in the way the game was structured, but also in
relationship tied up with people.

Speaker 5 (23:37):
I mean he was a vance. He was four four
ahead of most teams until he dealt his players. And
how did he deal with him? Well, he do m
that's his human and the biggest thing he became here.

Speaker 8 (23:48):
You knew you were a man, and you know, me
and a black guy at that time, we come to
like you.

Speaker 5 (23:53):
Just to understand most of the guys in the seventies,
the white guys, we're from the South. You talked about segregation.

Speaker 8 (23:58):
Yeah, I said about a second our for a super Bowl,
we less than ten years off the back of the bus.

Speaker 3 (24:03):
Mm.

Speaker 8 (24:04):
So you'll think about the people say that again, Yeah,
we're less than ten years off the back of the bus.
But we had experienced separate water fountain before the first,
uh first Super Bowl here, so.

Speaker 5 (24:13):
We come out of that environment.

Speaker 8 (24:15):
So when you come here to Pittsburg, UH from the
south of law Off here that it was totally different
environment in the South for most of us. So for
some guy, it was a culture shop and you coming
in and a system or visits at the highest level
of UH.

Speaker 5 (24:32):
And so how do you deal with this, uh, this.

Speaker 8 (24:36):
Whole dynamics of coming into the world out of segregation,
UH into a very sophisticated world of finance at that
time as a twenty one twenty kid.

Speaker 5 (24:48):
And he he when I said, he missed missed Rooney
for what's African Americans? It's about our manhood being recognized, Yes, sir, yes, sir.

Speaker 8 (24:59):
Even playing for this said what about super Bowl? This
is about our manhood and be longing.

Speaker 5 (25:03):
And when you.

Speaker 8 (25:03):
Come in and someone recognize your manhood, that is so
let them say, in power to be recognized at this
level as a.

Speaker 5 (25:18):
Man aymen in respected, amen, because a lot of us
hadn't seen that. Come by yourself, you saw some bad
things growing up there. You know, like I said, we
grew up in Jim Crow. We grew up in segregation.

Speaker 8 (25:29):
We grew up in the rise, the water holes, the
fuck the dogs, all that, the KKK and and I
don't mean the cool colored cats either.

Speaker 5 (25:40):
I love that.

Speaker 8 (25:42):
Yeah, you know, we come out of there and a lot
of guys seen historic of black colleges. Think about that
this is the first time ever at twenty two dealing
with white America. Yes, sir, they go from kindergarten to
elementary school, high school, college in a black environment. Now
me and I lucky, I integrated schools at fourteen. So
I'm in white America at fourteen. But mail Blood isn't

(26:05):
the first time Mayle Blood getting to white in America
twenty two. Yeah, and but he and a lot of
guys to play in theirs, the Sam Davis in the world,
all those guys, John Stalworth, they had not been introduced
to white America. So me, I've been through College of
Florida State. I was first African American football player at
Florida State.

Speaker 5 (26:25):
I didn't know that.

Speaker 8 (26:27):
I'm a first afric American football player to play there
and graduate.

Speaker 5 (26:31):
From FA shoot. So when b n C means you know,
he he buyed down, Yeah right, yeah, right right. But
think about coming into that environment.

Speaker 8 (26:41):
As a young black African American and coming to Pittsburgh.

Speaker 5 (26:45):
In Pittsburgh a.

Speaker 8 (26:46):
Very diverse community, but it was new and to be
welcome in an organization for your man who was recognized,
and uh, people don't know that was a factor and
that I'm the girty that team and the fact that
Chuck Moles even more so, brought us together and saw
us as as a team, but got ready to communicate

(27:10):
with one voice of all.

Speaker 5 (27:11):
Of us, which was his greatest talent is to communicate.

Speaker 8 (27:16):
It was amazing Chuck Mows could actually, we're talking to
sixty guys and only talking to you.

Speaker 3 (27:22):
That's I believe you was yeah, sure right, but that's
a great communicator.

Speaker 5 (27:27):
We communicated.

Speaker 8 (27:27):
But the Wonning family and the way they embraced humanity
was so unique, and we never talked about that.

Speaker 5 (27:35):
We had great talents, but some of the Houston.

Speaker 8 (27:39):
Buffalo had great talent, and with our division had great talent,
But it was that humanity thing that was on the
good and that people missed of my cognitism.

Speaker 3 (27:50):
Up well, you always hear through the years that anybody
that's passed through the organization says it's the best organization.
It's a great organization that arcs to the philosophy that
mister Rooney preached. During the two thousand and eight season,
I made it a point from Latrobe all the way
to the Super Bowl had no idea it was going

(28:12):
to end in the Super Bowl and went to Dan,
went to Dick Lebo and others in the organization. I said,
I have to ask you one question. Why do the
Stealers continually be a winning franchise? Why do they continue
to be a great organization? And it was amazing JT.
And I'm curious what you will respond to this to

(28:33):
a letter of a person at different times throughout the season,
every single person responded, surround yourself with good people and
good things happen. It must have been the mantra throughout
the organization.

Speaker 8 (28:46):
And you know, but they only draft a certain personnel,
Andy chub Moles, I have this certain.

Speaker 5 (28:53):
Kind of people.

Speaker 3 (28:54):
We've gotten away from that a little bit, and I
don't want to go down that vein.

Speaker 8 (28:58):
It was about character most yes, sir, because character overrides talent.
Sometimes there there's some guys wasn't just talented, but the
character gave them a hard that.

Speaker 5 (29:11):
Will overcome any mountain.

Speaker 3 (29:14):
Let me talk about my friend Rocky Boy.

Speaker 5 (29:16):
No, you took the worst out of my mouth right
by Rock.

Speaker 6 (29:19):
Yeah.

Speaker 8 (29:20):
Rock is kind of a guy that you said, Well,
what you made Rock was some fastest guy wasn't the
biggest guy we had. We had defensive back sixty two,
two thirty five running four four four?

Speaker 3 (29:29):
Oh ah, where is Rock in the game?

Speaker 8 (29:35):
Whereas Rocking can get way? But we got this this
got two thirty two twenty four four. Uh, I mean
the cut on the dime and Rock in the game.

Speaker 5 (29:44):
Well, it's about the heart character, the.

Speaker 8 (29:48):
Character rocking hard and determination. But I found out I
runs the technician. Uh was talking Tom not to long ago.
He was telling me about Rock knew what head should
go down on the ground. I hain't thought about this
to negate take an.

Speaker 5 (30:03):
Extra step yep.

Speaker 8 (30:04):
And he was telling me about this, and well, some
guys talent a lot of him to take those stutter
steps with Rocks, I ain't got that.

Speaker 5 (30:10):
So he was so proficient with what hand, what foot
in front?

Speaker 8 (30:16):
And I never thought about where Franco made So may
take a stutter step to start a step to get there, but.

Speaker 5 (30:22):
Rocks I can't do that.

Speaker 4 (30:23):
That's right.

Speaker 5 (30:24):
So if I switch hands, I don't take any step.
I just go.

Speaker 8 (30:27):
And so he had come down to a point where
he studied the game and.

Speaker 5 (30:32):
Had so much hard and characters.

Speaker 8 (30:34):
But you even think about Rocky you know experience in
the war Vietnam.

Speaker 5 (30:38):
He got his FOOTBALLO. Yeah, so I just got supposed
to walk. Man got his footballock I got and come
back from it. Yeah you know character, Yeah, I thought
I'm supposed to walk.

Speaker 8 (30:48):
They can make a running and so and so when
you see the rock Man, you know when they say,
right he was he is a rock legends.

Speaker 5 (30:56):
Yeah, because I gotta tell you a secret.

Speaker 3 (30:59):
So Rocky and I work out at the same gym
a couple of years ago.

Speaker 5 (31:02):
He come in in the morning. Hey, rock every leaving alone.
By the time he was done, he was soaking wet.
He put everything into the workout.

Speaker 3 (31:11):
He wasn't there to impress anybody. There was hardly anybody
in the gym at five in the morning. That's Rocky Block.

Speaker 8 (31:17):
Well, see it's not working out, Like like who knows
you to say? You know, you say, if.

Speaker 5 (31:23):
You're not sweating, that's right. And if you ask, isn't
moving that's right? You're not working out, that's right, that's right.
Don't get me started. I see these people with this,
they got up.

Speaker 6 (31:34):
Ain't working out.

Speaker 8 (31:36):
No, no, Chuck say moving he ain't sweating? You know,
you know that's not workout you're exercising.

Speaker 5 (31:43):
Yeah, maybe maybe a certain way.

Speaker 6 (31:46):
Let's run that track. We're supposed to get it. Capture
an Amy point. It's captured Amy Point, and then you know,
we've seen our backs on the second secondary players. It's
been a good matchup for us.

Speaker 5 (31:56):
What have you learned about j Warren in the time
that he.

Speaker 6 (31:59):
Got this and you know in a couple of years,
he's a quiet guy. He hasn't seen Point Break before,
which was surprising considering it's surfing movie. He's probably seen
North Shore. I actually haven't asked him about that yet,
but he's kind of what I what I thought from Afar.
You know, I think the biggest competent I can give

(32:19):
him is, you know, when you're behind a four straight
thousand yard rusher, you're seen as a change up back,
and you know he's a guy who could be a
number one back on any team in the league. So
really thankful for him. I think they played that he
had the other day was one of the greatest catch
and runs I've seen. You know, Donald Driver had a
crazy one back in two thousand and nine where a

(32:41):
guy fell over his back and he was drilled on
the five yard line. Somehow got in. But that catch
and run and those jukes that he made was pretty incredible.

Speaker 8 (32:51):
Said Mike said yesterday that he feels played about this
offense of Blynd Do you share that sentiment? Do you
want to see any improvement there?

Speaker 7 (32:59):
I forget about the offensive on going to Foxborough has
been a quarter century night for this organization.

Speaker 5 (33:06):
Oh have you done in Foxborough?

Speaker 1 (33:08):
What are your thoughts?

Speaker 6 (33:12):
Well, I don't know that we've won. We lost there
a few times, so you're you're already here, I know
you're going to Well, that's all.

Speaker 5 (33:20):
Yeah.

Speaker 6 (33:21):
I mean we had a chance and we were up
five last year with like two minutes left and they
had a big, big pass. We were tied with him
going in the fourth eighteen I believe, and then got
beat by a couple of scores. I didn't play in
twenty ten. Matt Flynn played played well, but we gave

(33:41):
up one of the greatest plays I've been a part
of in my NFL history, and that's when Dan Connolly
had a kickoff return that almost went for a touchdown.
Hated that it was against us, but as a lover
of the big guys, when they get opportunities to show
the Athleticism.

Speaker 1 (33:56):
It's kickoff time for the Cigar International Let's Talk Stillers
show sponsored by Cigars International. Stop by our Bridgeville store today,
Parking Chair Vodka. Respect the chair. It's a Pittsburgh thing
Forest Launching Campground Cooks Forest Pa. Your adventure starts here.

Speaker 2 (34:22):
Hey, welcome back to Let's Talk Stealers. I'm your host,
Randy the Tank Tantlinger. Yeah, man, every Saturday morning right here,
Fox Sportsnet, Wheeling, Bittsburg one oh three point nine FM
fourteen hundred AM.

Speaker 3 (34:38):
By the way, FM stands for frequency modulation. Yeah, one
oh three point nine frequency modulation. I bet you didn't
know that. See you learn something by listening to talking
to Tank. Hey, don't forget Cigars International, Bridgeville, Pennsylvania, or
log onto Cigars International dot com for all your cigar

(35:03):
and needs from human ores to cutters. Two great deals
on cigars, just like the legend himself, the Chief Art Rooney.
All right, as we harken back to Art Rooney and
the Steelers of your well.

Speaker 4 (35:18):
Four time Super Bowl winner J. T.

Speaker 3 (35:21):
Thomas, your Pittsburgh Steelers number one draft choice for your
Steelers back in the day.

Speaker 4 (35:27):
JT.

Speaker 3 (35:27):
Thomas one of the greatest safeties of all time ever
play in the NFL. Well, JT stopped by the locker
room at Cigars International, Bridgeville. We'll be every Tuesday, Me,
Mike McMahon, JT. Thomas, who knows old stop by, stop
buy and see us. You might win some prizes at
Cigars International, Bridgeville. That's our locker room for the twenty

(35:50):
twenty five season of Let Stalk Stealers. All right, So
JT and I caught up after the Jets victory. We
talked a little bit, and of course he's got a
great promo happening tomorrow September twenty first at Cigars International as.

Speaker 2 (36:06):
The Steelers or on the old television playing the bust
and bean Eaters.

Speaker 4 (36:12):
No Jim Plunkett, no Tom Brady.

Speaker 3 (36:15):
Will your Steelers defensive line get some type of pressure
and penetration on the bean Eaters of Boston? All right,
let's go talk to JT at the locker room at
Cigars International. This season is going to be incredible with
this new rebuild.

Speaker 5 (36:33):
You know, JT. I've kind of said that the Steelers.

Speaker 3 (36:36):
Have it seems like they've just thrown it all against
the wall to see what is going to stick. But
let's evaluate this game against the Jets, not a top
tier NFL team. Week one is kind of feeling out
who you are. What did you like offensively that you
saw against the Jets?

Speaker 5 (36:55):
Well with the play calling?

Speaker 8 (36:57):
The play call and I think of the best I've
seen in the last four or five years.

Speaker 3 (37:03):
You know why, because you have since Bruce Arian's been here.
You have the best offensive coordinator that's hit Pittsburgh since
Bruce Arians.

Speaker 5 (37:12):
You want to know his name, Aaron Rodgers.

Speaker 3 (37:16):
Where Aaron Rodgers, He's been there, He's done that with
all that knowledge.

Speaker 8 (37:22):
What Tomlin off respect that because he brought them in here,
that's right. And I think that's one thing that the
people didn't understand. Well, why you're bringing him in for
one year? Well, you know, knowledge is power, Gus and
I heard told him to say, well what can I
tell him? He hadn't hurt him for you know. So
basically you're brought in someone that you can partner with,

(37:43):
you know, in that era of intellect, but.

Speaker 5 (37:45):
Also you bringing them with turity. You bring a guy in, you.

Speaker 8 (37:48):
Need someone to call him the pack. Nothing's gonna upset
Aaron Rodgers. They got guys that one of what's going on.
And based on the calmness of that quarterback, he's leading
with them. You know, it's it's it's like your kid,
you know, when you got your father, if daddy's here,
you ain't scared enough. You don't worry about it. And
you think if daddy's is here, you know, And that's

(38:09):
the same thing here that they got a daddy in quarterback. Yeah,
and so when you get daddy, you don't worry about
nothing when the father's in the game.

Speaker 5 (38:18):
Amen.

Speaker 8 (38:19):
So so you look at Aaron from that pot, and
I'm sure coach Tomlin see the same.

Speaker 5 (38:22):
Way that's not been experienced. Uh what situation he hadn't seen?
You know, the storm is not gonna rock him. Well,
the storm will close up. He comes himself in the storm.

Speaker 3 (38:35):
I think he likes sus He's one of these guys
that likes the storm.

Speaker 5 (38:38):
Bring it.

Speaker 8 (38:39):
Yeah, bring the storm, bring it because I see what
happens sometimes people want the storm to quiet down. No, no,
at his age doesn't matter. I'm gonna quiet down the
help the helm up the storm.

Speaker 5 (38:51):
That's right. So, and what makes the championship.

Speaker 8 (38:54):
Is the guys that can quiet down in the storm,
not quiet the storm because they don't want the storm
to go away.

Speaker 5 (39:00):
No, starting all the way you play at this level,
it's always a storm. So who has to calm down?
You gotta come down, and that's what's tough because in
the storm we get anxious with anxiety, and so we
don't know how to calm off. Still want this farm
go away.

Speaker 3 (39:16):
That's like fist fighting or boxing. You don't go in
all crazy angry. You sit there and you pick your punches,
you know. And that's what the calmness of Aaron Rodgers
brings to this.

Speaker 8 (39:27):
He makes the matured and he's not getting anxious by
the anything. You know, he's gonna be concerned, but he's
not for any anxiety about anything.

Speaker 3 (39:36):
You know what I liked and even go to Boswell's
game winning field goal, he still plays like a tenth grader.
When Aaron Rodgers made some passes, when the Boswell made
the kick at the end, you.

Speaker 5 (39:51):
Saw the joy I come out of him.

Speaker 3 (39:54):
You combine those two things that call the calm gun
fighter and that you used for exuberance, and I love it.

Speaker 5 (40:03):
And I like the word too. You know, we get
happy by by events.

Speaker 8 (40:07):
Joy is accustomed, ye see, and he I mean he
brings that. I mean, he brings the joy. That not
over the top, it's not with a lot of excitement.
But when you got a guy like that in the holler,
you know, it's not like Terry Bradshaw.

Speaker 5 (40:23):
He was like that. A guy brings the joy. He
don't worry.

Speaker 8 (40:27):
About anything, I mean, regardless situation. He thought that he
could win it, you know. And and and so when
you see that maturity and and I've sold the years
people with Terry Bradshaw. I mean this short short we
got our ass kicked in and through rivers. One were
sitting in there with some I saw him turn into
a beer guard after the game. There's another story with

(40:52):
beer and Brad. My bright white moon mother, Donni Sheield
was sitting there and Brad was sitting there crying to
his beer almost and and he said, I stunk. I
spunk up his you know. And Dwight said, we all did.
I asked, kicked and he sounds something that was very powerful,
he said, But you know what, guys, those you gotta
think a first of second a goal, he said, you

(41:14):
guys can lose what he had a bad game, he said,
but you kid win without it. And Dwight and wife
say say that again, man, and Dwight's why I said
that shit is rank and that we went on and
you know, because of that. But that was his attitude,
you know.

Speaker 5 (41:32):
And when when you get a guy like that, you
trust him. Yeah, you know you have to. You gotta
trust the guy beside you.

Speaker 8 (41:39):
You got to, I mean, you know, tut trust him
to call his own place.

Speaker 5 (41:44):
Think about that. Well, this is what I like about
Aaron Rodgers.

Speaker 3 (41:48):
If Tomlin and Arthur Smith they know what they're doing,
they're gonna trust Aaron. And you saw him against the Jets.
Man he made multiple He goes up wearing a scribbage
he sees average is like, nah, watch this, I mean
bang and his staff of his wrist bang bang bang.

Speaker 5 (42:06):
He's not a great musician. He don't care what key
you win. What you know about being a musician.

Speaker 8 (42:13):
Keyboard a wagan, It doesn't matter what key you win.
Sometimes take a lot of guys to find the key.
To find the key. After the first measure, you got
the key because and and you know, so that's a
huge asset. I think to stabilized his team because I
think I'm looking for the for the future. But I
think he's gonna be a big stabilizing In fact, look.

Speaker 3 (42:36):
If you can keep him healthy and this is a
good season, you may very well have Aaron Rodgers for
two more years from what I saw.

Speaker 5 (42:43):
But here's the thing.

Speaker 3 (42:44):
What I saw keeping him healthy that all important left
tackle position, office.

Speaker 5 (42:50):
And line I got it. We got a problem in
River City. And look, I like Broderick Jones a lot.
He's a good kid. He came into this season, he
lost some weight. I talked to him in training camp. JT.
He's a right guard or a left guard in this NFL.

Speaker 3 (43:08):
He's not a tackle in my opinion, And it bore
fruit against the Jets.

Speaker 5 (43:14):
I mean, I know, Mike's not a coach.

Speaker 3 (43:16):
Hamon's not a guy to make sudden knee jerk reactions.

Speaker 5 (43:20):
Chris Fautin, who is an athlete.

Speaker 3 (43:23):
I've watched some movement on him. You got to make
that switch right now and put Chris at left tackle
or you're not going to get through sixteen eighteen games
with Aaron.

Speaker 5 (43:33):
Rodgers because Chris has put the feet. See, he's an athlete.

Speaker 8 (43:37):
You can see it attack of today in the game
with the linebackers coming, You've got to have athletic tackle.
Oh absolutely, you know, like back in the day with
a Larry Brown, Larry those Yeah, those guys a quick
feet and swam hand.

Speaker 3 (43:51):
Even Anthony Munnos with Cincinnati, who's a massive.

Speaker 5 (43:54):
Man, quick feet.

Speaker 3 (43:56):
Yeah, and if you're going up you know, I always
use the litmus test for a defensive end or an
outside linebacker.

Speaker 8 (44:02):
Lawrence Taylor, Yeah, well that's that's another LT's that's another breed.

Speaker 3 (44:08):
Yeah, he's from playing at Pluto wherever LT came from.
But to me, that's what's got to be in your mentality,
is the offensive line coach. I need a left tackle
that can block a Lawrence Taylor right and is smart
enough to know if he's looping this way, something's coming,
whether it's j T Thomas up the C gap, JT

(44:29):
up the B gap, something else is going on. But
I'm hugely concerned right now with that left tackle position
because it.

Speaker 5 (44:36):
Happened with Broderick last year. Right.

Speaker 3 (44:39):
I mean, a bull rush is probably the biggest If
you guys know what the bull rush is. Defensive lineman
just comes in man handles the offensive lineman. It's an insult, right,
It's an insult to the offensive lineman. It means you think,
and it happened multiple times against the Jets with bra.

Speaker 8 (45:00):
I think that's gonna be the key, protecting him, giving
him the time. He's not gonna good problem. Like I say,
the situation him is deja vu. Every moment be deja
vu for him.

Speaker 5 (45:11):
With the injury.

Speaker 8 (45:13):
Well, I'm talking about Roger in terms of dja vu
to what he sees. Yeah, you know it's nothing unium.
You're not gonna throw anything that he had to say.
He's gonna adjust very and change keys.

Speaker 5 (45:23):
The problem when we have time and I think, yeah,
that's gonna be the key. You know they're gonna come
after you.

Speaker 3 (45:30):
Hear so much about the you know, get the quarterback
means two point five seconds.

Speaker 5 (45:35):
In the league to get the pass off, Yeah, which
is a split sacking of time.

Speaker 3 (45:40):
And at times he didn't even have that on Sunday,
and it's very concerning.

Speaker 8 (45:44):
Well, the thing about today the game, there's no pocket. Really,
the pocket now has moved from sideline the sideline and
as a quarterback, you have to create a pocket. That's
why I must have quarter backs now. If they're not
running a four or five, they're not alive.

Speaker 5 (45:59):
I don't think Garon's running that anymore.

Speaker 8 (46:02):
That's why you've got to secure the offensive line because
the game has changed. And when you got too linebackers,
one role is to come helpen for election to never played.

Speaker 4 (46:12):
That's right.

Speaker 8 (46:12):
That means the pocket and move from sideline the sideline
and you have to create a pocket. And that's what
change the game. Uh So to sit in the pocket
and look around the Brady days, Oh they're going yeah,
because there's no pocket.

Speaker 3 (46:26):
Well you look at this mean that you know our
guys in Alex high Smith or one on the other edge.

Speaker 5 (46:31):
High Smith had a great game. I mean he looks amazing.

Speaker 3 (46:37):
I mean these guys are cheatah speed at like you
said at six three six forty and they're running four
to three to four six guys.

Speaker 5 (46:46):
Yeah, that's terrifying.

Speaker 1 (46:47):
It is.

Speaker 5 (46:48):
What did you run five on forty?

Speaker 8 (46:50):
You find the center. We ran in forty a little
different from them. We've we've first we ran on we're
muda grass.

Speaker 5 (47:00):
It's a beautiful girl. Well but it's this grass. Okay.

Speaker 8 (47:02):
We ran in Rodale's shoes, so it wasn't no turf
and air nikes or whatever you want to call you
old black like black heavy shoe.

Speaker 3 (47:11):
It was about a four four in those shoes and
on grass it was like running floora shines floor.

Speaker 5 (47:19):
Shy before four four four that wasn't a police speed.
Now that wasn't the police speed. So so so can
we compete the day? Yeah? You know people ask more
time technology, Well they say what your time?

Speaker 4 (47:34):
You know?

Speaker 5 (47:34):
Four four? What then on the day four four did
you have been running a four to two? Yeah? Back
sot on turf?

Speaker 3 (47:40):
Yeah, you got with nikes that were custom made, it
would have been running a four.

Speaker 8 (47:44):
To the aerodynamic cut really redeale shoes on them doing grass?

Speaker 5 (47:50):
Are you just stick? You know what?

Speaker 3 (47:51):
A slow white guy full back out of La Trobe
ran six two with a wind behind me, six two
with a one behind me.

Speaker 5 (47:58):
Yeah.

Speaker 8 (47:59):
So I think the speed hasn't changed that much except
the biggest thing the NFL sees the interior lineman offices.
They're probably about twenty five forty pounds Giger, that's what the.

Speaker 5 (48:10):
Oh they're massive, these younger men. They're massive guys. To
sixty to seventy five what a couple of guys living at.

Speaker 8 (48:18):
Homes three hundred, but but to seventy five sixty five
the office line of the day, the three hundred.

Speaker 3 (48:23):
These kids are massive even you know, you look at
the running back position, right, I mean Derrick Henry was Yeah,
that was the most.

Speaker 5 (48:30):
It was an offensive tackle forty years ago. It's amazing.