Let's get to it:
HARVEY HECKER FROM BRADENTON, FL: It seems that Joey Porter Jr. has been assessed at least one personal foul per Steelers game. Haven't the coaches been training him adequately to avoid these penalties? I think I heard that college rules vs. NFL rules are different, but why is he still playing?
ANSWER: Quarterback is the most difficult position to play in the NFL, but in my opinion, cornerback is up there on that list as well. Joey Porter Jr. has played in all 14 games this season with 8 starts, and in those games he has been on the field for 639 snaps on defense plus 93 more on special teams. According to Pro Football Reference, Porter has been targeted 45 times by opposing quarterbacks with 22 of those being completed (48.9 percent), a 7.3-yard average on those targets, and an opposing passer rating of 71.2. Porter has 39 tackles, and his 8 passes defensed in third on the team behind Levi Wallace and Patrick Peterson, who are tied-for-first with 10. He's also tied-for-third on the team in interceptions, with 1. So far this season, Porter has been flagged for pass interference 3 times, holding and offsides two times each, and once for illegal use of hands – and none of those penalties are personal fouls. I think it's also worth noting that since the game vs. Tennessee on Nov. 2, Porter has been matched up against the opponent's top receiver, and that has had him in some one-on-one battles with the likes of DeAndre Hopkins, Ja'Marr Chase, and Amari Cooper, and opposing coaches have responded by devising ways to scheme their receivers away from him. Porter is not a Pro Bowl level player yet, but he's already a solid starting NFL cornerback, and he's a 23-year-old rookie. And it's also worth mentioning that Coach Mike Tomlin regularly has local college officials work practices during the week at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex to help the team work on playing the game clean.
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JOSHUA LEWIS FROM WINCHESTER, IN: I've been watching a lot of YouTube highlights lately, reminiscing on the "Killer Bs", and one thing I kept noticing was the deep passing from Ben Roethlisberger, and that seems to be missing from the offense this season. Do you think that's an indictment of the offensive personnel? Or the scheme?
ANSWER: Or maybe it's a result of the Steelers not having a generational, first-ballot Hall of Fame quarterback anymore. Did you ever consider that?
NICHOLAS PELCHAR FROM PURCELLVILLE, VA: What do you make of the rumors that the Steelers are going to trade for Justin Fields? He is very unimpressive in Chicago and Kenny Pickett needs time to develop.
ANSWER: Sorry, but I immediately zone out whenever I read the word "rumors."
PAUL SHARENKO FROM GLENMONT, NY: Do you anticipate an NFL team assigned to London or another European city that will compete in the United States, or do you think the goal is to eventually start a separate NFL league that would compete overseas?
ANSWER: I don't really have any reliable information on the NFL's plans for expansion franchises or relocated franchises in Europe, but it seems there would be a lot of issues attached to any attempt to include a team that would be based in Europe within the current structure of the NFL. For the purposes of this discussion, let's pretend the Jacksonville franchise would be relocated to London, as an example. Players and coaches and staff all would have to live in London, and I imagine a lot of staff would have to relocate there. Again, keeping with the Jacksonville franchise moving to London example, the other teams currently in that division are Houston, Tennessee, and Indianapolis. Those three teams having to travel to London each season wouldn't be nearly the hardship that the London franchise would experience in having to travel to Houston, Tennessee, and Indianapolis every year, along with the other five or six road trips to current NFL cities during a typical regular season. There also would be preseason game travel with 90-player rosters, too. I'm sure there are smarter people working on this and there could be a way to make it work, but right now I think the more logical long-range approach would be to have a separate European League of American Football.
DANIEL GEISSINGER FROM LEHIGHTON, PA: The NFL has been emphasizing quarterback safety with changes to what is ruled as "roughing the passer." There have been some sketchy roughing the passer flags and some missed that were legitimate. There have been many quarterback injuries this season. How many injuries were actually caused by roughing the passer and how many just occurred during the process of a football play? I am questioning the stricter rules and whether they do any good vs the value of the penalty?
ANSWER: Here are some facts I can verify: There have been 56 different quarterbacks who started games this season, and last season that number was 68. I believe the NFL sees that number as too many, and so initiatives to protect quarterbacks are likely to be expanded, in my opinion, and officials will be instructed to enforce those initiatives strictly and erring on the side of protecting the quarterback will be viewed favorably. I can't tell you how many quarterback injuries have been caused by instances of legitimate roughing the passer, but I believe the rules and enforcement of those rules are going to be even stricter moving forward.
BILL ANDERSEN FROM LOUISVILLE, KY: Ernie Holmes was a great player for the Steelers back in the 1970s. After he got into trouble for shooting at that helicopter, how many games did he play after that incident?
ANSWER: Ernie Holmes entered the NFL as the Steelers' second pick in the eighth round (203rd overall) of the 1971 NFL Draft from Texas Southern. Initially a backup to Ben McGee on the defensive line, it was believed Holmes would take over the spot at defensive tackle alongside Joe Greene when McGee retired after the 1972 season. But in March 1973, Holmes was arrested for that incident you referenced in your question regarding the helicopter. After that incident, Holmes played in 67 more regular season games for the Steelers and that included 57 starts. In the playoffs he played in 10 more games for the Steelers and that included 9 starts. Before the 1978 season, Holmes was traded to Tampa Bay, but the Buccaneers cut him during training camp. Holmes played three games in 1978 for the New England Patriots, and then he retired.
SHAWN BITTNER FROM JACKSONVILLE, NC: We signed Myles Jack to the practice squad after cutting him before the season. He is counting $3.25 million in dead money against the Steelers salary cap this year. If the Steelers activate him from the practice squad, does his old salary number come into play, either as a game check or reduction in dead money?
ANSWER: Once Myles Jack was released during the 2023 offseason, that closed the book on the contract with the Steelers you referenced in your question. Signing him to the practice squad was a completely unrelated transaction, and it would be another unrelated transaction if he is activated to the 53-man roster.
CRAIG DUMNICH FROM AVONDALE, PA: Why on the first Steelers touchdown of the game in Indianapolis, if Najee Harris picked up Mitch Trubisky's fumble why couldn't he run it into the end zone for a touchdown? They said it was a dead ball.
ANSWER: On fourth downs, only the player who fumbles the ball can recover and advance it, and the ball only can be advanced if it is fumbled backward. And since that play started as a fourth-and-goal, only Trubisky could have recovered it and advanced it. So as soon as Harris recovered the ball, it was a dead ball. But then after the review, it was ruled that Trubisky had gotten the ball across the plane of the goal line before fumbling, and so the ruling became a touchdown.
