September 23, 2025 • 25 mins
Labs and Tom recap the Steelers win over the Patriots and then get to this weeks questions.
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
This is asked and answered questions with Tom Upferman and
Steelers Digest editor Bob Labriola.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
Steelers twenty one Patriots fourteen. I just wanted to remind
everybody of the score out there, because if you talk
to some people in Steelers Nation, you might think that
that score was reversed and it was Patriots twenty one,
Steelers fourteen. Look, it wasn't a masterpiece, of course, but
you got the win, and Labs, this is another game
that I walk away from and I'm extremely happy with
(00:30):
who my quarterback is because Aaron Rodgers stood and delivered
when he needed to. That's why you sign a four
time MVP.
Speaker 1 (00:38):
Yeah, and I just I would like to see him
getting more help, specifically in the past protection department, because
you know what we're seeing. I think a lot of
the deficiencies or issues. Let me put it this way,
(00:59):
because some of the shoes we saw in the Seattle game,
of the Seattle game the New England game, like the
wasn't that efficient on third down during that span after
the first two possessions when the Steelers scored a touchdown
in each one, and then the last possession of the
(01:22):
game when they scored a touchdown to win the game.
During that hunk in between, the Steelers were bad on
third downs, and a lot of those situations they ended
up either getting behind the chains a little bit or
early and then trying to catch up, you know, or
they were faced with a third and whatever, which with
Aaron Rodgers, in my opinion, is makeable. All of those
(01:44):
are makeable if you give him time to be able
to look over the coverage and deliver the ball down
the field. But when the pass rush is not contained
at all, he's got to dump it off and then
you know, you're dumping it off on third and nine
and the defense can rally to the ball, make the tackling,
(02:06):
and you punt. So yeah, but Rogers at the beginning,
you know, here's here's something I'd like to remind Steelers Nation.
Remember how long have we been listening to whining and
moaning about the offense starting off slow, can't score a
(02:27):
touchdown on the opening possession of the game. When's that
ever going to change? Seventeen games in a row, seventeen
games went well. And then I looked it up, and
you know, there was a lot of validity to the
complaining because from the time Ben Roethlisberger retired after the
twenty twenty one season, until the start of the twenty
(02:47):
twenty five season. All of those games, let's see, that's
twenty two to twenty three and twenty four, So that's
three regular seasons, seventeen games each. That's fifty one games.
Only five times did the offense score a touchdown on
the opening possession of the game. They've done it now
twice in three weeks.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
And they got points on the one that they didn't
score a touchdown. Boswell kicked a field goal.
Speaker 1 (03:13):
Yeah, so you know, now all of a sudden, that
doesn't matter. Before when it wasn't when they weren't doing it, well,
it was the end of the world. Now that they're
doing better there, well, we don't want to talk about
that because can't complain about it anymore. So let's talk
about something else we can complain about. So there's Rogers,
(03:37):
you know, I like that a lot. The takeaways too.
It doesn't you know, five takeaways that's significant, you know,
some some are discounting it as luck the ball bouncing
the right way. You know, at some point, I think
(04:03):
you've got to credit the student athletes. You know, when
guys like Cam Hayward, are you know, ball searching, trying
to punch the ball out at all times, You're you're
you're forcing fumbles down by the goal line. You're making
an interception in the end zone because your defensive lineman
who gets to a point in his pass rush where
(04:27):
he senses that he's not going to get there. And
if you watch that play Brandon Eckles's interception in the
end zone, if you watch that play from the end zone,
Cam is not really making a lot of progress on
the pass rush, and then you see him he's looking
at Drake May's eyes and he just drifts over to
where to get himself where he thinks dra May is looking.
(04:51):
So when he delivers the ball, he puts his hand
up and he gets a hand on it, tips it
didn't knock it down, which is probably better that he
didn't because then mix the interception. Those are plays, Those
are effort plays. Those are plays that you know, you
teach in meetings. That's what you teach the pass rush
(05:14):
guys to do. If you can't get there, try and
get in the way, you know, to either disrupt the
pass or block his view or you know, whatever it
might be. So you know, there is some good fortune involved.
I'm not going to argue that, but you know, at
some point, I think you got to credit some people
for doing some things well and not just bitch and
(05:37):
moan about you know, whatever it is. And let me
say this too. I'm going to quote the great Myron Cope.
You know, back in the day, Myron had the only
talk show that existed. I mean there weren't there weren't
sports talk shows back then in the seventies, and people
used to call Myron show and complain about the Steelers
when they win, claim about the Steelers when they won.
(06:00):
And Myron finally said, hey, you know, they covered the spread,
which and they covered the spread, you know, looking up
and all the gambling you know bet MGM and Bett,
ESPN or whatever, all those things are that have draft
kings that have affiliations with the league. Now, the line
(06:22):
on the game was one and a half. Steelers were
favored by one and a half. They won by seven,
So you know, countra money and enjoy the win.
Speaker 2 (06:32):
Maybe we had some turncoats labs. Maybe there were people
on the Patriots side of that equation and they're mad
that the Steelers cover the spread. But exactly Myron spot on.
I mean, how could you be upset your team gets
a win, you got some extra change in your pocket.
It's a win win for you guys out there.
Speaker 1 (06:46):
Yeah, well yeah, I mean again, I don't ever get
the complaining about a win, worrying about this, this kind
of I heard this too. This won't work when they
play the Ravens twelve weeks from now or whatever, and
maybe Derek, maybe Derrick Henry will still be fumbling.
Speaker 2 (07:09):
Well three in a row. I think that's what it's
up to now. The record, by the way, that's one
and two, just for anybody who's keeping scoring.
Speaker 1 (07:14):
Well in and the Ravens now play the Chiefs, so
one of them is going to be one in three?
Speaker 2 (07:21):
Is it Christmas already? Let's get to this week's patch
of questions. Our first one comes from Eric Sheer from Downingtown, Pennsylvania.
A recent installment and asked an answer to finished with
a comment from a reader about Aaron Rodgers proving everyone
wrong in terms of being a leader. I find this curious.
After Rogers publicly shamed Calvin Austin the third for his
(07:43):
play on the end zone interception, granted Austin made a blunder,
But I think a true leader doesn't throw a player
under the bus and all the quote he's a great
kid stuff doesn't negate what Rogers did.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
Okay, this is in reference to the Seattle game and
the play that Eric is writing about was the Rogers
through the pass uh intended for Pat Friremouth in the
end zone, who you know, and I understand that this
is the way it looked. It looked like Firemuth was
(08:18):
going to get on and make the catch for a touchdown,
but Calvin Austin, who was also in the area, kind
of shot over and dove at the ball and tipped
it and that led to the interception. Okay, so afterwards,
you know, Aaron Rodgers was asked about it and he said,
(08:41):
you know, Calvin Austin is a great kid and all
that stuff, but he shouldn't have been there. Okay. We
talked about this. You and I talked about this during
our daily training camp report every day at Saint Vincent,
and I remember saying more than a couple of times,
Aaron Rodgers holds the those guys accountable, the receivers, and
(09:04):
there's nothing wrong with that, you know, Ah, I just
you know, if you're not in the right spot, you
should be told. Uh. And a lot of times I
think that rather than having the position coach get in
the receiver's face about it, which is fine, that can
(09:26):
happen too, But a lot of times, if a teammate
tells you that, you might listen to that more. You know,
you know, maybe because you know, there were there were
times that at training camp, you know, Aaron Rodgers was
throwing the ball and if people didn't get their head around,
it was bouncing off their helmets, and uh, you know
(09:49):
that that's that's a I think that's a lesson that
you remember as a player. Yes, you looked bad, uh,
And it wasn't like he made you look bad. You
look bad because of what you didn't do and.
Speaker 2 (10:04):
He was trying to make him look good. Actually.
Speaker 1 (10:07):
Yeah, So you know the idea is, if you don't
get your head around in time, you're gonna look like
an idiot. But if you do get your head around
in time, I threw the ball exactly where it needs
to be based on the coverage, and you, you know,
then just catch it and it's a big play. So
I'm sorry, I don't I don't think that I couldn't
(10:28):
disagree with Eric Moore. I don't believe that Aaron Rodgers
publicly shamed him. I think he was holding him accountable,
which is fine. He's still young player, he still has
things to learn, and as I just said, criticism sometimes
coming from a teammate. Hey, and maybe a quarterback with
(10:49):
you know, four MVP trophies. I think a receiver might
want to listen to this guy. I don't know. I
think there's a there's a hierarchy in terms of your
credentials or your resume in an NFL locker room and
a quarterback like that when he's talking to you or
(11:10):
mentions you know you you shouldn't have been there or whatever.
Get your head around quicker. I'm now referring to the
training camp or after uh, the the New England game.
Rogers said something about what Friarmouth did that was the
first time he should have sat down in that hole
(11:33):
in the coverage and not continued to the to the
sideline where he ran right into a defensive back. I mean,
that's the kind of stuff you got. You know, you
have to be aware, you know a lot of there
was a lot of criticism or whining, you know, because
Aaron Rodgers didn't sign until Mini camp and oh my god,
(11:58):
you know they haven't had enough time to you know,
get on the same page or whatever. Well, not on
the same page. Stuff that I have seen so far
has all been on the receivers. It's not like Aaron
Rodgers is not doing the right thing. These are pretty
much rules of football for receivers. You don't run into
(12:21):
the coverage, you get your head turned around properly early.
You don't go into areas you know where you're not
supposed to be, or you know there's another player there.
I mean, these are all things that are basic rules
of the sport for your position. It's not the quarterback
doing the wrong thing, it's the receivers doing the wrong thing.
(12:44):
And I have no problem with them being told about it.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
Well, I couldn't agree with you more. I thought that
this example that Eric brings up today and asked that
answered was a point in the direction of great leadership
for Aaron Rodgers and Labs. Calvin Austin was certainly in
the right spot for the game winning touchdown against the Patriots.
Speaker 1 (13:06):
Right, and who did he go to? Who did the
quarterback go to in that critical situation? And he threw
the back shoulder and Austin was expecting it and it
was a touchdown. So there you go. Do the right thing,
the ball will be there.
Speaker 2 (13:23):
Matt Vaucho from Holly Springs, North Carolina has our next question.
I like the athleticism of our inside linebackers, Patrick Queen
and Peyton Wilson, but does their size and speed take
away from their run stopping abilities. It seems in the
past we always had one inside linebacker who was heavier,
Levon Kirkland, James Ferrier, Vince Williams, and Landon Roberts who
helped control the opponent's running game.
Speaker 1 (13:46):
Yeah, you know, I'm the Steelers have had issues with
their run defense through the first three weeks of the season.
I'm not going to argue that, but I don't think
that weight made those inside linebackers that Matt listed Levon Kirkland,
James Ferrier, Vince Williamson, and Landon Roberts. I don't think
(14:09):
that that that's what made them good against the opponent's
running game. You know, I just I just don't think,
you know, weight, the weight of Patrick Queen and Peyton
Wilson is the main issue with the state of the
Steelers run defense to this point, I just don't.
Speaker 2 (14:29):
Billy Lavader from Fargo, North Dakota, seems Pittsburgh has been
drafting inside linebackers who are not heavy enough to stop
the run or shed the blockers, and they've signed a
linebacker from New England. Do you believe he'll be a
starter later, if at all, this year?
Speaker 1 (14:45):
Okay, the references to Juwan Bentley. He's sixty two, two
hundred and fifty pounds. The Steelers signed him some days
before last Sunday's game against New England. He's sixty two
to two point fifty. He came into the league with
New England. It's a fifth round pick in the twenty
(15:07):
eighteen NFL draft from Purdue. You know, Bentley is a
is a an eighth year pro. He's seven seasons with
the Patriots. He's twenty nine years old. Played in eighty
three regular season game, sixty eight starts. You know, he
has some nice stats. A couple of interceptions, eleven passes, defense,
(15:30):
four forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, two hundred and eighty
solo tackles, twenty nine hits on the quarterback. He's played
a bunch of snaps thirty six hundred and sixty five
defensive snaps. But you know, again, going back to what
I said about as the answer to the previous question,
Bentley wets two fifty Peyton Wilson weighs two forty two
(15:53):
eight pounds. I mean, you know eight pounds is you
know you sweat a lot at an afternoon practice at
Saint Vincent College. You know you lose bonds. So you know, again,
I don't. I'm not discounting Bentley. I'm just saying that
the weight issue is I don't think is the key
(16:15):
thing in this now. As for Bentley's he's on the
practice squad nine. As for his for the reason he
was signed and his future, I don't. I think Bentley
was signed more as a response to Malie Harrison going
(16:36):
on ir than he was signed to be a starter.
But I also don't believe that you sign an eight
year guy with his resume just to be a practice
squad body either. So it's a long season. We'll see
(16:56):
how it goes. I think they would want Bentley to
get a little bit more comfortable with the scheme and
some of the other assignments that are involved in playing
inside linebacker, So it wouldn't surprise me for him to
get a helmet and see some playing time. I just
don't know how quickly that's going to happen.
Speaker 2 (17:14):
Yeah, we'll see about Bentley. But I actually want to
take just a quick minute, LABS to mention another player
they got from New England. He was cut by New
England at the end of the preseason on roster cutdown day.
Jabrill Peppers had a big impact in this game against
his former team. A little revenge aspect there, and I
see a lot of snaps for him in this secondary
in the future. Labs. In fact, even out snapped one
Thornhill in this game against New England.
Speaker 1 (17:35):
Yeah, you know again, I don't disagree with you on
the Jabill Jabriel Pepper's acquisition. I think that they got
to figure out how to use him, what he can
do best, where he might fit in best. But I
definitely think he's a positive addition.
Speaker 2 (17:56):
Jonathan Early from New Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Steelers player, would you
bring from the past to help improve the Steelers of
the present?
Speaker 1 (18:04):
I like this question, Jonathan Well. I answered this one
the same way all the time. Joe Green. It's always
Joe Green. You want to bring back somebody from the
past to help this team in the future. It's Joe Green.
If you have problem, whatever your problems are, Joe Green
helps you with those. He's dominant in his position. He's
(18:25):
a charismatic leader, no nonsense, no bs. When you know,
we were just talking about teammates, maybe criticizing or pointing
out to other teammates what they need to be doing.
You know, I have read stories where you know, when
(18:45):
Joe Green came up to you in the locker room,
it's told you something. You know, you either listened or
he put the fear of God in youh So, you know,
Joe Green was a he was a generational player. He
was he was He raised the franchise from the dead
(19:09):
in terms of players. You know, Chuck Nolan obviously as
the coach, had a huge impact on making the Steelers,
turning them from you know, losers into a dynasty. But
when you're talking about the people in the locker room,
the players who accepted Nole's message and you know kind
(19:31):
of delivered it to everybody else, it was Joe Green
first last always. So yeah, that's my answer. Joe Green.
Speaker 2 (19:43):
Yeah, you know, I'm just sitting back here while you're
giving your answer, just trying to come up with somebody else,
just to play a little devil's advocate. I can't do it.
It's a perfect answer. I mean, you're thinking Franco maybe
one of the two franchise all time great quarterbacks. Now
it's Joe Green. He's the only answer for that question.
Donald Davenport from Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Speaker 1 (20:00):
Wait, let me just interrupt you here. You know, for
all the when are they going to get a number
two wide receiver? There's a couple of guys you could
pick from who you know, might be a nice addition
to that. As they say, the wide receiver room too.
But again, I'm not changing my answer would be Joe
(20:20):
Green for me.
Speaker 2 (20:22):
Yeah, they got a lot of good players at a
lot of positions, don't.
Speaker 1 (20:24):
They a lot of them in the Hall of Fame. Yeah,
that's yeah.
Speaker 2 (20:29):
Donald Davenport, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Why are the Steelers not America's team?
We've got six Super Bowl rings?
Speaker 1 (20:36):
Okay, the America's team. That whole thing was a idea
by NFL Films. They came up with it in the
nineteen seventies, you know, and at that time, the Steelers
and the Cowboys were kind of neck and neck maybe
(20:56):
for the team of the seventies and term of you know,
championships won and stuff. And so it was some time
after between Super Bowls ten and thirteen the league called
the Steelers, called Art Rooney Senior and said, hey, you
know we're going to do this. This is because at
(21:19):
the time it was all about highlight films and you
know that kind of thing. There was no NFL network
or social media or anything, and you know, highlight films
that was a big deal. We want to do this
America's team thing. And Art Rooney turned him down, said
We're not interested. I'm not interested in that. We're Pittsburgh's team.
(21:40):
And so then the league said okay, and they went
to the Cowboys and Tech shrim I believe was the
team president at the time for Dallas. You know nothing
that they loved better in Dallas than you know, getting
patted on the back, and so they loved it. They
took it and ran with it. And you know, I
Dallas is certainly run with that title. And I think
(22:06):
the Steelers image what they wanted to project was best
Furthered by turning it down.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
Got time for one more today, Let's go to CJ.
Mcmuhn from Nashville, Tennessee with our final question, what is
the difference between defensive off sides and encroachment and is
there a difference in penalty yardage?
Speaker 1 (22:35):
There is not both. There is not a difference in
penalty yardage. It's five yards for either penalty. Now depending,
you know, sometimes the referee when he gets on the microphone,
what he says might not jive with what I'm going
to say here. But the difference in the penalties is.
(22:57):
Defensive off sides is when a player on the defense
lines up in the neutral zone and he does not
correct himself. Encroachment is when a defensive player who had
lined up correctly moves into the neutral zone without making
contact with an offensive player, which draws a flag right away.
(23:18):
So encroachment happens, and that's usually also what's called a
free play for the offense. You know, if Aaron Rodgers
can get you to jump but not make contact and
get the snap off, then he knows he's got a
free play and he can take a shot down the field.
He can, you know, whatever you want to try. Ben
(23:39):
was good at that as well. So that's the difference.
Both five yard penalties.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
We got an early one this Sunday, Steelers and Vikings
in Dublin, Ireland, nine am for kickoff Labs. You and
I are going to be in here at the crack
ass of down. Who's bringing the donuts?
Speaker 1 (23:58):
You or me? I thought you were getting up to
make them.
Speaker 2 (24:03):
I might as well be with that five thirty am
local pregame.
Speaker 1 (24:05):
Show yep, well and then the the you know me
Mike and Mike pursued and Jerry Dulac. That's seven thirty
thirty am, seventh. Yeah. I will do my best to
be uh caffeinated.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
Lots of coffee, So lots of coffee this Sunday brought
to you by coffee.
Speaker 1 (24:27):
Yeah, see what you can do about getting us a sponsorship?
Speaker 2 (24:30):
Well till then we'll do maybe with coffee.
Speaker 1 (24:33):
Coffee yeah, or I was gonna say Duncan. But Duncan
that's a New England thing. They're big with the Patriots.
Speaker 2 (24:39):
Well that's all right, we can we can have some
donuts then if we already beat them, have.
Speaker 1 (24:43):
That winn and they're a coffee place too.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
Yeah, perfect, there you go. He's Bob Labriolle and Tom Opferman.
Get your questions into Labs. You can hear him on
a future edition of this podcast. As I said, five
thirty am is our local coverage Star Time and nine
thirty am is kickoff between the Steelers and the Vice
Kings this Sunday in Dublin, Ireland. This has been another
edition of Aston Answered
This is asked and answered questions with Tom Upferman and
Steelers Digest editor Bob Labriola.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
Steelers twenty one Patriots fourteen. I just wanted to remind
everybody of the score out there, because if you talk
to some people in Steelers Nation, you might think that
that score was reversed and it was Patriots twenty one,
Steelers fourteen. Look, it wasn't a masterpiece, of course, but
you got the win, and Labs, this is another game
that I walk away from and I'm extremely happy with
(00:30):
who my quarterback is because Aaron Rodgers stood and delivered
when he needed to. That's why you sign a four
time MVP.
Speaker 1 (00:38):
Yeah, and I just I would like to see him
getting more help, specifically in the past protection department, because
you know what we're seeing. I think a lot of
the deficiencies or issues. Let me put it this way,
(00:59):
because some of the shoes we saw in the Seattle game,
of the Seattle game the New England game, like the
wasn't that efficient on third down during that span after
the first two possessions when the Steelers scored a touchdown
in each one, and then the last possession of the
(01:22):
game when they scored a touchdown to win the game.
During that hunk in between, the Steelers were bad on
third downs, and a lot of those situations they ended
up either getting behind the chains a little bit or
early and then trying to catch up, you know, or
they were faced with a third and whatever, which with
Aaron Rodgers, in my opinion, is makeable. All of those
(01:44):
are makeable if you give him time to be able
to look over the coverage and deliver the ball down
the field. But when the pass rush is not contained
at all, he's got to dump it off and then
you know, you're dumping it off on third and nine
and the defense can rally to the ball, make the tackling,
(02:06):
and you punt. So yeah, but Rogers at the beginning,
you know, here's here's something I'd like to remind Steelers Nation.
Remember how long have we been listening to whining and
moaning about the offense starting off slow, can't score a
(02:27):
touchdown on the opening possession of the game. When's that
ever going to change? Seventeen games in a row, seventeen
games went well. And then I looked it up, and
you know, there was a lot of validity to the
complaining because from the time Ben Roethlisberger retired after the
twenty twenty one season, until the start of the twenty
(02:47):
twenty five season. All of those games, let's see, that's
twenty two to twenty three and twenty four, So that's
three regular seasons, seventeen games each. That's fifty one games.
Only five times did the offense score a touchdown on
the opening possession of the game. They've done it now
twice in three weeks.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
And they got points on the one that they didn't
score a touchdown. Boswell kicked a field goal.
Speaker 1 (03:13):
Yeah, so you know, now all of a sudden, that
doesn't matter. Before when it wasn't when they weren't doing it, well,
it was the end of the world. Now that they're
doing better there, well, we don't want to talk about
that because can't complain about it anymore. So let's talk
about something else we can complain about. So there's Rogers,
(03:37):
you know, I like that a lot. The takeaways too.
It doesn't you know, five takeaways that's significant, you know,
some some are discounting it as luck the ball bouncing
the right way. You know, at some point, I think
(04:03):
you've got to credit the student athletes. You know, when
guys like Cam Hayward, are you know, ball searching, trying
to punch the ball out at all times, You're you're
you're forcing fumbles down by the goal line. You're making
an interception in the end zone because your defensive lineman
who gets to a point in his pass rush where
(04:27):
he senses that he's not going to get there. And
if you watch that play Brandon Eckles's interception in the
end zone, if you watch that play from the end zone,
Cam is not really making a lot of progress on
the pass rush, and then you see him he's looking
at Drake May's eyes and he just drifts over to
where to get himself where he thinks dra May is looking.
(04:51):
So when he delivers the ball, he puts his hand
up and he gets a hand on it, tips it
didn't knock it down, which is probably better that he
didn't because then mix the interception. Those are plays, Those
are effort plays. Those are plays that you know, you
teach in meetings. That's what you teach the pass rush
(05:14):
guys to do. If you can't get there, try and
get in the way, you know, to either disrupt the
pass or block his view or you know, whatever it
might be. So you know, there is some good fortune involved.
I'm not going to argue that, but you know, at
some point, I think you got to credit some people
for doing some things well and not just bitch and
(05:37):
moan about you know, whatever it is. And let me
say this too. I'm going to quote the great Myron Cope.
You know, back in the day, Myron had the only
talk show that existed. I mean there weren't there weren't
sports talk shows back then in the seventies, and people
used to call Myron show and complain about the Steelers
when they win, claim about the Steelers when they won.
(06:00):
And Myron finally said, hey, you know, they covered the spread,
which and they covered the spread, you know, looking up
and all the gambling you know bet MGM and Bett,
ESPN or whatever, all those things are that have draft
kings that have affiliations with the league. Now, the line
(06:22):
on the game was one and a half. Steelers were
favored by one and a half. They won by seven,
So you know, countra money and enjoy the win.
Speaker 2 (06:32):
Maybe we had some turncoats labs. Maybe there were people
on the Patriots side of that equation and they're mad
that the Steelers cover the spread. But exactly Myron spot on.
I mean, how could you be upset your team gets
a win, you got some extra change in your pocket.
It's a win win for you guys out there.
Speaker 1 (06:46):
Yeah, well yeah, I mean again, I don't ever get
the complaining about a win, worrying about this, this kind
of I heard this too. This won't work when they
play the Ravens twelve weeks from now or whatever, and
maybe Derek, maybe Derrick Henry will still be fumbling.
Speaker 2 (07:09):
Well three in a row. I think that's what it's
up to now. The record, by the way, that's one
and two, just for anybody who's keeping scoring.
Speaker 1 (07:14):
Well in and the Ravens now play the Chiefs, so
one of them is going to be one in three?
Speaker 2 (07:21):
Is it Christmas already? Let's get to this week's patch
of questions. Our first one comes from Eric Sheer from Downingtown, Pennsylvania.
A recent installment and asked an answer to finished with
a comment from a reader about Aaron Rodgers proving everyone
wrong in terms of being a leader. I find this curious.
After Rogers publicly shamed Calvin Austin the third for his
(07:43):
play on the end zone interception, granted Austin made a blunder,
But I think a true leader doesn't throw a player
under the bus and all the quote he's a great
kid stuff doesn't negate what Rogers did.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
Okay, this is in reference to the Seattle game and
the play that Eric is writing about was the Rogers
through the pass uh intended for Pat Friremouth in the
end zone, who you know, and I understand that this
is the way it looked. It looked like Firemuth was
(08:18):
going to get on and make the catch for a touchdown,
but Calvin Austin, who was also in the area, kind
of shot over and dove at the ball and tipped
it and that led to the interception. Okay, so afterwards,
you know, Aaron Rodgers was asked about it and he said,
(08:41):
you know, Calvin Austin is a great kid and all
that stuff, but he shouldn't have been there. Okay. We
talked about this. You and I talked about this during
our daily training camp report every day at Saint Vincent,
and I remember saying more than a couple of times,
Aaron Rodgers holds the those guys accountable, the receivers, and
(09:04):
there's nothing wrong with that, you know, Ah, I just
you know, if you're not in the right spot, you
should be told. Uh. And a lot of times I
think that rather than having the position coach get in
the receiver's face about it, which is fine, that can
(09:26):
happen too, But a lot of times, if a teammate
tells you that, you might listen to that more. You know,
you know, maybe because you know, there were there were
times that at training camp, you know, Aaron Rodgers was
throwing the ball and if people didn't get their head around,
it was bouncing off their helmets, and uh, you know
(09:49):
that that's that's a I think that's a lesson that
you remember as a player. Yes, you looked bad, uh,
And it wasn't like he made you look bad. You
look bad because of what you didn't do and.
Speaker 2 (10:04):
He was trying to make him look good. Actually.
Speaker 1 (10:07):
Yeah, So you know the idea is, if you don't
get your head around in time, you're gonna look like
an idiot. But if you do get your head around
in time, I threw the ball exactly where it needs
to be based on the coverage, and you, you know,
then just catch it and it's a big play. So
I'm sorry, I don't I don't think that I couldn't
(10:28):
disagree with Eric Moore. I don't believe that Aaron Rodgers
publicly shamed him. I think he was holding him accountable,
which is fine. He's still young player, he still has
things to learn, and as I just said, criticism sometimes
coming from a teammate. Hey, and maybe a quarterback with
(10:49):
you know, four MVP trophies. I think a receiver might
want to listen to this guy. I don't know. I
think there's a there's a hierarchy in terms of your
credentials or your resume in an NFL locker room and
a quarterback like that when he's talking to you or
(11:10):
mentions you know you you shouldn't have been there or whatever.
Get your head around quicker. I'm now referring to the
training camp or after uh, the the New England game.
Rogers said something about what Friarmouth did that was the
first time he should have sat down in that hole
(11:33):
in the coverage and not continued to the to the
sideline where he ran right into a defensive back. I mean,
that's the kind of stuff you got. You know, you
have to be aware, you know a lot of there
was a lot of criticism or whining, you know, because
Aaron Rodgers didn't sign until Mini camp and oh my god,
(11:58):
you know they haven't had enough time to you know,
get on the same page or whatever. Well, not on
the same page. Stuff that I have seen so far
has all been on the receivers. It's not like Aaron
Rodgers is not doing the right thing. These are pretty
much rules of football for receivers. You don't run into
(12:21):
the coverage, you get your head turned around properly early.
You don't go into areas you know where you're not
supposed to be, or you know there's another player there.
I mean, these are all things that are basic rules
of the sport for your position. It's not the quarterback
doing the wrong thing, it's the receivers doing the wrong thing.
(12:44):
And I have no problem with them being told about it.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
Well, I couldn't agree with you more. I thought that
this example that Eric brings up today and asked that
answered was a point in the direction of great leadership
for Aaron Rodgers and Labs. Calvin Austin was certainly in
the right spot for the game winning touchdown against the Patriots.
Speaker 1 (13:06):
Right, and who did he go to? Who did the
quarterback go to in that critical situation? And he threw
the back shoulder and Austin was expecting it and it
was a touchdown. So there you go. Do the right thing,
the ball will be there.
Speaker 2 (13:23):
Matt Vaucho from Holly Springs, North Carolina has our next question.
I like the athleticism of our inside linebackers, Patrick Queen
and Peyton Wilson, but does their size and speed take
away from their run stopping abilities. It seems in the
past we always had one inside linebacker who was heavier,
Levon Kirkland, James Ferrier, Vince Williams, and Landon Roberts who
helped control the opponent's running game.
Speaker 1 (13:46):
Yeah, you know, I'm the Steelers have had issues with
their run defense through the first three weeks of the season.
I'm not going to argue that, but I don't think
that weight made those inside linebackers that Matt listed Levon Kirkland,
James Ferrier, Vince Williamson, and Landon Roberts. I don't think
(14:09):
that that that's what made them good against the opponent's
running game. You know, I just I just don't think,
you know, weight, the weight of Patrick Queen and Peyton
Wilson is the main issue with the state of the
Steelers run defense to this point, I just don't.
Speaker 2 (14:29):
Billy Lavader from Fargo, North Dakota, seems Pittsburgh has been
drafting inside linebackers who are not heavy enough to stop
the run or shed the blockers, and they've signed a
linebacker from New England. Do you believe he'll be a
starter later, if at all, this year?
Speaker 1 (14:45):
Okay, the references to Juwan Bentley. He's sixty two, two
hundred and fifty pounds. The Steelers signed him some days
before last Sunday's game against New England. He's sixty two
to two point fifty. He came into the league with
New England. It's a fifth round pick in the twenty
(15:07):
eighteen NFL draft from Purdue. You know, Bentley is a
is a an eighth year pro. He's seven seasons with
the Patriots. He's twenty nine years old. Played in eighty
three regular season game, sixty eight starts. You know, he
has some nice stats. A couple of interceptions, eleven passes, defense,
(15:30):
four forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, two hundred and eighty
solo tackles, twenty nine hits on the quarterback. He's played
a bunch of snaps thirty six hundred and sixty five
defensive snaps. But you know, again, going back to what
I said about as the answer to the previous question,
Bentley wets two fifty Peyton Wilson weighs two forty two
(15:53):
eight pounds. I mean, you know eight pounds is you
know you sweat a lot at an afternoon practice at
Saint Vincent College. You know you lose bonds. So you know, again,
I don't. I'm not discounting Bentley. I'm just saying that
the weight issue is I don't think is the key
(16:15):
thing in this now. As for Bentley's he's on the
practice squad nine. As for his for the reason he
was signed and his future, I don't. I think Bentley
was signed more as a response to Malie Harrison going
(16:36):
on ir than he was signed to be a starter.
But I also don't believe that you sign an eight
year guy with his resume just to be a practice
squad body either. So it's a long season. We'll see
(16:56):
how it goes. I think they would want Bentley to
get a little bit more comfortable with the scheme and
some of the other assignments that are involved in playing
inside linebacker, So it wouldn't surprise me for him to
get a helmet and see some playing time. I just
don't know how quickly that's going to happen.
Speaker 2 (17:14):
Yeah, we'll see about Bentley. But I actually want to
take just a quick minute, LABS to mention another player
they got from New England. He was cut by New
England at the end of the preseason on roster cutdown day.
Jabrill Peppers had a big impact in this game against
his former team. A little revenge aspect there, and I
see a lot of snaps for him in this secondary
in the future. Labs. In fact, even out snapped one
Thornhill in this game against New England.
Speaker 1 (17:35):
Yeah, you know again, I don't disagree with you on
the Jabill Jabriel Pepper's acquisition. I think that they got
to figure out how to use him, what he can
do best, where he might fit in best. But I
definitely think he's a positive addition.
Speaker 2 (17:56):
Jonathan Early from New Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Steelers player, would you
bring from the past to help improve the Steelers of
the present?
Speaker 1 (18:04):
I like this question, Jonathan Well. I answered this one
the same way all the time. Joe Green. It's always
Joe Green. You want to bring back somebody from the
past to help this team in the future. It's Joe Green.
If you have problem, whatever your problems are, Joe Green
helps you with those. He's dominant in his position. He's
(18:25):
a charismatic leader, no nonsense, no bs. When you know,
we were just talking about teammates, maybe criticizing or pointing
out to other teammates what they need to be doing.
You know, I have read stories where you know, when
(18:45):
Joe Green came up to you in the locker room,
it's told you something. You know, you either listened or
he put the fear of God in youh So, you know,
Joe Green was a he was a generational player. He
was he was He raised the franchise from the dead
(19:09):
in terms of players. You know, Chuck Nolan obviously as
the coach, had a huge impact on making the Steelers,
turning them from you know, losers into a dynasty. But
when you're talking about the people in the locker room,
the players who accepted Nole's message and you know kind
(19:31):
of delivered it to everybody else, it was Joe Green
first last always. So yeah, that's my answer. Joe Green.
Speaker 2 (19:43):
Yeah, you know, I'm just sitting back here while you're
giving your answer, just trying to come up with somebody else,
just to play a little devil's advocate. I can't do it.
It's a perfect answer. I mean, you're thinking Franco maybe
one of the two franchise all time great quarterbacks. Now
it's Joe Green. He's the only answer for that question.
Donald Davenport from Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Speaker 1 (20:00):
Wait, let me just interrupt you here. You know, for
all the when are they going to get a number
two wide receiver? There's a couple of guys you could
pick from who you know, might be a nice addition
to that. As they say, the wide receiver room too.
But again, I'm not changing my answer would be Joe
(20:20):
Green for me.
Speaker 2 (20:22):
Yeah, they got a lot of good players at a
lot of positions, don't.
Speaker 1 (20:24):
They a lot of them in the Hall of Fame. Yeah,
that's yeah.
Speaker 2 (20:29):
Donald Davenport, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Why are the Steelers not America's team?
We've got six Super Bowl rings?
Speaker 1 (20:36):
Okay, the America's team. That whole thing was a idea
by NFL Films. They came up with it in the
nineteen seventies, you know, and at that time, the Steelers
and the Cowboys were kind of neck and neck maybe
(20:56):
for the team of the seventies and term of you know,
championships won and stuff. And so it was some time
after between Super Bowls ten and thirteen the league called
the Steelers, called Art Rooney Senior and said, hey, you
know we're going to do this. This is because at
(21:19):
the time it was all about highlight films and you
know that kind of thing. There was no NFL network
or social media or anything, and you know, highlight films
that was a big deal. We want to do this
America's team thing. And Art Rooney turned him down, said
We're not interested. I'm not interested in that. We're Pittsburgh's team.
(21:40):
And so then the league said okay, and they went
to the Cowboys and Tech shrim I believe was the
team president at the time for Dallas. You know nothing
that they loved better in Dallas than you know, getting
patted on the back, and so they loved it. They
took it and ran with it. And you know, I
Dallas is certainly run with that title. And I think
(22:06):
the Steelers image what they wanted to project was best
Furthered by turning it down.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
Got time for one more today, Let's go to CJ.
Mcmuhn from Nashville, Tennessee with our final question, what is
the difference between defensive off sides and encroachment and is
there a difference in penalty yardage?
Speaker 1 (22:35):
There is not both. There is not a difference in
penalty yardage. It's five yards for either penalty. Now depending,
you know, sometimes the referee when he gets on the microphone,
what he says might not jive with what I'm going
to say here. But the difference in the penalties is.
(22:57):
Defensive off sides is when a player on the defense
lines up in the neutral zone and he does not
correct himself. Encroachment is when a defensive player who had
lined up correctly moves into the neutral zone without making
contact with an offensive player, which draws a flag right away.
(23:18):
So encroachment happens, and that's usually also what's called a
free play for the offense. You know, if Aaron Rodgers
can get you to jump but not make contact and
get the snap off, then he knows he's got a
free play and he can take a shot down the field.
He can, you know, whatever you want to try. Ben
(23:39):
was good at that as well. So that's the difference.
Both five yard penalties.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
We got an early one this Sunday, Steelers and Vikings
in Dublin, Ireland, nine am for kickoff Labs. You and
I are going to be in here at the crack
ass of down. Who's bringing the donuts?
Speaker 1 (23:58):
You or me? I thought you were getting up to
make them.
Speaker 2 (24:03):
I might as well be with that five thirty am
local pregame.
Speaker 1 (24:05):
Show yep, well and then the the you know me
Mike and Mike pursued and Jerry Dulac. That's seven thirty
thirty am, seventh. Yeah. I will do my best to
be uh caffeinated.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
Lots of coffee, So lots of coffee this Sunday brought
to you by coffee.
Speaker 1 (24:27):
Yeah, see what you can do about getting us a sponsorship?
Speaker 2 (24:30):
Well till then we'll do maybe with coffee.
Speaker 1 (24:33):
Coffee yeah, or I was gonna say Duncan. But Duncan
that's a New England thing. They're big with the Patriots.
Speaker 2 (24:39):
Well that's all right, we can we can have some
donuts then if we already beat them, have.
Speaker 1 (24:43):
That winn and they're a coffee place too.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
Yeah, perfect, there you go. He's Bob Labriolle and Tom Opferman.
Get your questions into Labs. You can hear him on
a future edition of this podcast. As I said, five
thirty am is our local coverage Star Time and nine
thirty am is kickoff between the Steelers and the Vice
Kings this Sunday in Dublin, Ireland. This has been another
edition of Aston Answered
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