Let's get to it:
ROBERT YEAGER FROM CANYON COUNTRY, CA: Hopefully the Steelers can win the Super Bowl this year in New Orleans, 50 years after their first Super Bowl win, which also is in New Orleans. It would be a great symbolic/anniversary win, which begs me to ask, why didn't the Steelers wear a 50th Anniversary commemorative patch on their uniforms this year for their first Super Bowl victory?
ANSWER: The Steelers in fact did wear a patch to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of their victory in Super Bowl IX. It was part of the team's throwbacks worn for the Sunday night game on Oct. 20 vs. the New York Jets. The throwback ensemble included jerseys with block numbers, helmets with gray facemasks, and the commemorative patch was on the front of the jersey. Too bad you missed it.
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WALLACE HORTON FROM HYATTSVILLE, MD: Do you think teams should use special assistants just to manage timeouts? More and more teams are costing themselves games by not using timeouts properly.
ANSWER: What I think is that there are many people who believe they could do that job because they see that job as being a math problem where there is a simple formula to follow that always brings one to the correct answer. When in reality, it's more complex than that and requires a feel for your team and the flow of the game at that particular time.
RON WILLIAMS FROM ASTORIA, OR: How many touchdowns have the Steelers scored on their opening drive in the regular season in 2024?
ANSWER: So far, none.
JAY SMITH FROM MORRISTON, FL: I would be curious to know that of the 16 games played by the Steelers so far, how many first drives started with a 3-and-out, and how many ended with them scoring points?
ANSWER: Here is a game-by-game breakdown:
• Atlanta – 10-plays, 31-yards; ended with a 57-yard field goal
• Denver – 3-and-out
• LA Chargers – 3-and-out
• Indianapolis – moved from the 30-yard line to the Colts 41-yard line; ended with a punt
• Dallas – 11-plays, 51-yards; ended with a 41-yard field goal
• Las Vegas – 9-plays, 37-yards; ended with a 52-yard field goal
• N.Y. Jets – 7-plays, 42 yards; ended with a 46-yard field goal
• N.Y. Giants – 10 plays, 57 yards; ended with a 31-yard field goal
• Washington – 3-and-out
• Baltimore – 8 plays, 28 yards; ended with a 32-yard field goal
• Cleveland – moved from the 21-yard line to the Browns 40-yard line; ended with a missed 58-yard field goal
• Cincinnati – on the third offensive play, a 51-yard pick-6 by Cam Taylor-Britt
• Cleveland – 3-and-out
• Philadelphia – 3-and-out
• Baltimore – 3-and-out
• Kansas City – 3-and-out
STEPHEN CUPRZYNSKI FROM COCKEYSVILLE, MD: Obviously Ben Roethlisberger played much longer than Terry Bradshaw, so total yards would probably go to Ben while Terry's 4 Super Bowl wins would lead that category. How do they compare in other statistics?
ANSWER: There is not a single individual career statistical category in which Terry Bradshaw leads Ben Roethlisberger. In terms of individual awards, Bradshaw was voted first-team All-Pro in 1978 and also won the NFL Player of the Year Award (MVP) that season, while Roethlisberger was voted the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award in 2004. Don't know if you're considering those "categories" though.
HERMAN KANE FROM NEW YORK, NY: I began rooting for the Steelers in the early 1950's. At the time , the Steelers were pretty consistent losers. I have a recollection, though, that they defeated the Giants, 63-7, in one of those years. Is my memory correct, and if so, how can one explain such a result given the relative strengths of the two franchises at the time?
ANSWER: The Steelers team records for most points scored in a game and the most touchdowns scored in a game came on Nov. 30, 1952. The Steelers won the game, 63-7, over the New York Giants and scored 9 touchdowns in doing so. In that game, Lynn Chandnois, a halfback/wingback/tailback who played his college football at Michigan State, got things started by returning the opening kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown. Chandnois also scored the game's second touchdown on a 1-yard run to give the Steelers a quick 14-0 lead in the first quarter. And from there, the Steelers dominated the Giants in every phase of the game. The defense intercepted seven passes, recovered two fumbles, scored on a blocked punt, and crushed the Giants physically.
Giants' starting quarterback Charley Conerly and backup quarterback Fred Benners were injured during the first half, and teams in that era only carried two quarterbacks on the roster. Kyle Rote, the emergency quarterback, had been knocked out of the game with a concussion. That had the Giants turn to Tom Landry, a defensive back and punter, to play quarterback in the second half. The Steelers scored four unanswered touchdowns in the fourth quarter: one on a blocked kick, one following a Landry fumble, and two on passes.
At a press conference on Monday, Giants' coach Steve Owen confessed he would have problems fielding a team for the next game because of injuries inflicted by the Steelers. Owen also told the press he would have to split the quarterback duties between Landry and Kyle Rote. For the Giants, the loss to the Steelers ruined their chance to win the Eastern Division and earn a spot in the NFL Championship Game.
The 63-7 loss put them one-game behind the Browns with two to play, and then a Giants loss to the last-place Redskins, 27-17, the following week clinched it for the Browns. For the Steelers, that 63-7 victory was the highlight of their 1952 season. They finished with a 5-7 record.
JIM ANDERSON FROM TOLEDO, OH: During the 2025 NFL Owners Meeting, do you think they will discuss scheduling so that a team does not have to play 3 games in 11 days in the future?
ANSWER: The 3 games in 11 days was a result of the NFL deciding to make an attempt to take over sports on Christmas Day, because in 2024 Dec. 25 landed on a Wednesday. Next year, Christmas falls on a Thursday, which should alleviate the 3 games in 11 days timeline. But my opinion is there will be no retreat from having NFL games on Christmas Day because of the ratings Pittsburgh-Kansas City and Baltimore-Houston posted this year. The following is from a story written by The Associated Press about those ratings:
"The Baltimore Ravens' 31-2 victory over the Houston Texans averaged 31.3 million while Kansas City's 29-10 win at Pittsburgh averaged 30 million worldwide, according to Netflix's first-party data released on (Dec. 31). The two games are also the most streamed in NFL history in the U.S.
"The Ravens-Texans contest has an updated average of 27.2 million with Chiefs-Steelers coming in at 25.8 million, according to Nielsen and Netflix. Both NFL games surpassed the previous mark of 23 million for last season's AFC Wild Card Round Game between the Miami Dolphins and Chiefs on Peacock.
"Nielsen also said there were 65 million U.S. viewers who tuned in for at least one minute of one of the two games, making it Netflix's most-watched Christmas Day. Netflix and the NFL said viewers from 218 countries and territories tuned in to at least one of the games."
KHARI CLEMMONS FROM PETERSBURG, WV: Can you help me understand why both OLB Preston Smith and DL Dean Lowery were healthy scratches for the Chiefs game? All I've heard is how they've been great additions to the rotation at their respective positions, and they're not on any of the injury reports. What gives?
ANSWER: It was about special teams. Because WR Ben Skowronek and CB Joey Porter Jr. both were inactive for the game against Kansas City because of injuries and both are regulars on special teams units, Coach Mike Tomlin had to juggle the game day lineup to compensate for that. Neither Preston Smith nor Dean Lowry are major contributors on special teams.
MIKE CLAPPER FROM BEDFORD, PA: When an NFL team wins the Super Bowl, it is invited to the White House to meet the President. Did the Steelers teams of the 1970s get to do that?
ANSWER: The idea of Super Bowl winners being invited to the White House began during the Carter Administration (1976-80), and the Steelers only visit came after Super Bowl XIV. Their visit actually came from a dual invitation with the Pittsburgh Pirates, who had won the 1979 World Series. So during the 1970s, only 1 of the Steelers' 4 Super Bowl winning teams was invited to the White House. The Steelers visited the George W. Bush White House following Super Bowl XL and the Barack Obama White House following Super Bowl XLIII.
