Category: NFL

Steelers break out of funk, stomp Bengals 27-3

Steelers break out of funk, stomp Bengals 27-3
By WILL GRAVES AP Sports Writer
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pittsburgh Steelers insisted they might have been winless through three weeks, but they were far from hopeless. They stressed the process of finding an identity with franchise quarterback Ben Roethlisberger out for the season with an elbow injury would take time and a collective effort from all involved.
An effort that looked an awful lot like what they put together during a 27-3 pounding of Cincinnati on Monday night.
Mason Rudolph threw for 229 yards and two scores. Running back, part-time wide receiver and occasional wildcat quarterback Jaylen Samuels accounted for 134 yards of total offense and a 2-yard touchdown run. James Conner emerged from an early funk to run for 42 yards and catch eight passes for 83 yards and a score. The defense sacked Andy Dalton eight times and held the Bengals scoreless over the final 51 minutes.
It wasn’t perfect. But it was a start. One that helped the Steelers (1-3) avoid their second 0-4 start in 51 years and reaffirmed their belief that they can find a way forward without Roethlisberger.
“It’s huge,” Samuels said. “Coming in 0-3 and coming back, getting a divisional game, that’s huge. We’ve just got to build off this game.”
With Pittsburgh’s running game going nowhere through three weeks, running backs coach Eddie Faulkner suggested to offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner that it might be time to dust off the wildcat. Samuels ran it frequently during his college career at N.C. State, and the Bengals (0-4) certainly looked caught off guard when Samuels lined up in the shotgun and started distributing the ball like a point guard. Sometimes he’d hand it off to Conner. Others he’d “throw” a “pop” pass to a teammate running in motion in front of him. Still others he opted to keep it himself, including on his third-quarter touchdown in which he strolled into the end zone after the Bengals bit on a fake handoff.
“We knew if we could get a lot of guys going sideways, it was going to mess them up a little bit so that’s what we did,” Samuels said. “It was working. … We were picking up five, six yards every play. They couldn’t stop it.”
Samuels ran for 26 yards on 10 carries, caught eight passes for 57 more and was credited with three completions for 31 yards. Conner had 14 touches for 125 yards in all, including a 21-yard sprint through the Cincinnati defense in the second quarter that gave the Steelers a lead they never came close to squandering while beating the Bengals for the ninth straight time.
WOE AND 4
Cincinnati coach Zac Taylor became the second first-year coach to drop his first four games with the Bengals. Sam Wyche started 0-5 in 1984 but helped his team rebound to an 8-8 finish. Taylor’s task of getting Cincinnati back to respectability will be far harder if he can’t figure out a way to protect Dalton.
“To be quite honest, it starts with me,” Taylor said. “I’ve got to make sure the standard is higher than what it is right now, because I haven’t done a good enough job.”
The eight sacks Dalton endured were a career-high for the nine-year veteran, who also threw an end zone interception in the fourth quarter and was strip-sacked by Pittsburgh’s outside linebacker Bud Dupree in the second quarter. T.J. Watt fell on the ball and the Steelers were off and running. Dalton finished 21 of 37 for 171 yards, stressing he felt “fine” physically and that he’s not panicking.
“Everybody is going to stick together,” Dalton said. “We have from the beginning, regardless of the circumstances of these games, we’ve stuck together. And so I don’t expect that to change.”
Tyler Boyd, elevated to the No. 1 receiver while A.J. Green recovers from ankle surgery, was held to three receptions for 33 yards on the same field where he starred in college at Pitt.
“Personally I hate being embarrassed,” Boyd said. “At the end of the day, I can take the losing. But when you go out there and get embarrassed, Monday night, prime time . I got too much pride to go out there and showcase what we showcased. It was just awful overall.”
RUDOLPH ROLLS
Rudolph was uneven at best in his first career start last week in San Francisco after being thrust into the gig for the rest of the season while Roethlisberger rehabs from elbow surgery. Rudolph was considerably sharper against Cincinnati, though he wasn’t asked to do much other than find the closest open man —usually Conner or Samuels — and keep the sticks moving. He completed 24 of 28 passes, the only deep shot a 43-yard strike to Diontae Johnson in the third quarter that broke it open.
“Our message all week was stack one (win) and then start stacking more,” said Rudolph, who was awarded the game ball by head coach Mike Tomlin.
INJURIES
Bengals: WR John Ross III left in the third quarter with a right-shoulder injury. … LT Cordy Glenn missed his fourth straight game while recovering from a concussion and Cincinnati’s protection problems continued. The Bengals have now surrendered 19 sacks through four games.
Steelers: TE Vance McDonald sat out with a right shoulder injury. Nick Vannett, acquired in a trade with Seattle last week, started and caught two passes for 28 yards.
UP NEXT
Bengals: Host Arizona next Sunday. The Cardinals won the last meeting, 34-31, in 2015.
Steelers: Welcome AFC North rival Baltimore to Pittsburgh on Sunday. The teams split the season series last year, both winning at home.
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Hurdle fired, Reds beat Pirates 3-1 in season finale

Hurdle fired, Reds beat Pirates 3-1 in season finale
By WILL GRAVES AP Sports Writer
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pirates will head into the offseason searching for a new voice after firing Clint Hurdle. The Cincinnati Reds may have found theirs during a season that offered tangible proof that years of rebuilding might finally be producing forward momentum.
The evidence came in a 3-1 victory over Pittsburgh on Sunday. Aristides Aquino finished off two scintillating months by hitting his 19th home run. Brian O’Grady and Alex Blandino went deep too to help Tyler Mahle to his first win since May as Cincinnati finished 75-87 during first-year manager David Bell, an eight-win improvement over 2018 and the club’s best record since a 76-86 mark in 2014.
“We progressed a lot from last year,” said Mahle, who tossed five shutout innings. “I think the team’s only going to get better. I think we’re on the right track.”
Filling in with Trevor Bauer sidelined by an illness, Mahle gave up three hits with five strikeouts to pick up his first victory since May 31, a span of 13 starts.
“I told (Mahle), some results or certain stats do not define a season in our mind,” Bell said. “We felt like it was a strong one and a good step for him. I’m glad he got to finish strong just to take that into the offseason.”
Eugenio Suarez went 0 for 4 to finish with 49 home runs. Michael Lorenzen worked the ninth for his seventh save as Cincinnati won in Pittsburgh for the second time in less than 24 hours after snapping a 12-game losing streak with a 12-inning victory on Saturday night.
While Aquino’s pace slowed a bit after hitting 14 home runs in August, he ended the season with 19 home runs and 47 RBIs in 56 games after connecting off Williams in the second. The 25-year-old entered the day tied for ninth among major league rookies in home runs even though he didn’t debut until Aug. 1.
“It’s been very impressive how he’s handled when he’s not hot,” Bell said. “Just steady. He’s really intelligent and has a great way about him. To me, he proved he belongs here. Just the way he handled himself when he was doing great. It’s nice to see him finish strong too.”
HURDLE FIRED
Jose Osuna delivered an RBI single for Pittsburgh. Trevor Williams (7-9) gave up two runs and five hits in seven innings. Tom Prince managed the Pirates, who parted ways with Hurdle after nine seasons shortly before the game’s first pitch.
Hurdle went 735-720 with Pittsburgh, leading the team to three straight playoff appearances from 2013-15. The club’s fortunes have ebbed since winning 98 games in 2015. The Pirates finished 69-93 this season, the franchise’s worst mark since dropping a major-league worst 105 games in 2010, the year before Hurdle arrived.
Hurdle addressed the team before leaving PNC Park before the first pitch of what Prince called one of “the tough days of baseball.”
“Some of us have been around a while and hurts a little bit,” Prince said.
BYE STEVE
Steve Blass ended his 60-year professional relationship with the Pirates on Sunday when the former pitcher and longtime analyst called his final game.
Blass joined the organization in 1960 as an amateur free agent from Farms Village, Connecticut. He reached the majors in 1964 and went on to play for the Pirates for 10 seasons, the high point coming in 1971 when he threw a complete game in Game 7 of the World Series to push Pittsburgh past Baltimore for the title.
Williams stepped off the mound and tipped his gap to Blass before throwing the first pitch.
“I was really not on the mound when that was happening,” Williams said. “I either had angelic help from Roberto (Clemente) and from Willie (Stargell) or it was just a special moment for baseball and for the Pirates organization.”
The players turned toward the broadcast booth high above home plate again during the seventh-inning stretch. The Pirates announced Saturday that Blass will be in the inaugural class of the franchise’s Hall of Fame next year.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Pirates: C Steven Baron underwent surgery Sunday to repair a fractured jaw suffered during Saturday night’s 12-inning loss to the Reds. Baron is expected to be ready for spring training.
PARTIALLY-FILLED PNC
The Pirates average attendance ticked up to 18,412 in 2019, a slight increase over the 18,316 last year but well off the 30,847 the club averaged when it won 98 games in 2015. Hurdle said before the game — and before being fired — that he carried some of the responsibility for the downturn.
“You want to peel back all the layers, you want to get raw with it, that’s where we are right now,” he said. “We need to sell more tickets.”
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Wilson, Seahawks edge Steelers 28-26 as Roethlisberger exits

Wilson, Seahawks edge Steelers 28-26 as Roethlisberger exits
By WILL GRAVES AP Sports Writer
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The faces around Russell Wilson have changed as the Seattle Seahawks rebuild themselves on the fly. One thing, however, has not. Seattle goes as its ever imaginative quarterback goes.
And in the second half in a place where the franchise hadn’t scored let alone won in two decades, Wilson’s resilience propelled the Seahawks to their best start in six years.
Wilson threw for 300 yards and three touchdowns to give the Seahawks the lead, then used his legs and smarts to protect it in a 28-26 victory that pushed Seattle to 2-0 for the first time since 2013, the year Wilson guided the franchise to its only Super Bowl victory.
Sure, it’s early. Yet the Seahawks proved both opportunistic and aggressive, hallmarks of their dominant run behind Wilson and the “Legion of Doom” defense earlier in the decade.
“Really fired up about this start,” Seattle coach Pete Carroll said after picking up his 100th victory with the Seahawks, including playoffs. “We have so much improvement. We have so many areas and ways we can get better.”
Having Wilson certainly helps. His perfect 28-yard rainbow to rookie DK Metcalf midway through the fourth quarter put the Seahawks in front by nine, and three expertly timed scrambles on Seattle’s final drive helped drain the final 5:34 off the clock.
“We were battle tested today and we found a way to win a great game,” said Wilson, who completed 29 of 35 passes while becoming the fifth-fastest player in NFL history to reach 200 career touchdown tosses.
ROETHLISBERGER EXITS
The Steelers fell to 0-2 for just the second time in Mike Tomlin’s 13-year tenure and could be without quarterback Ben Roethlisberger indefinitely. The 37-year-old watched the second half from the sideline in a baseball cap following a right elbow issue that popped up late in the second quarter when he grimaced several times after releasing passes.
Pittsburgh head coach Mike Tomlin said he had no initial details on the nature of Roethlisberger’s injury and refused to blame Pittsburgh’s performance on Roethlisberger’s absence.
“We lost a number of guys in this game, but that wasn’t the reason we didn’t win the game,” Tomlin said.
Backup Mason Rudolph completed 12 of 19 passes for 112 yards with two touchdowns and an interception, but couldn’t quite keep pace with Wilson and the Seahawks.
“I am completely confident in myself, being a leader of a team, and playing games,” Rudolph said. “That’s what it all comes down to. If (Roethlisberger is out a while), I’m ready to roll.”
SHARPER SEATTLE
A week after escaping Cincinnati with a one-point win, a game in which Carroll said his team wasn’t particularly crisp, the Seahawks took advantage of a series of mental mistakes by the Steelers to win in Pittsburgh for the first time in 20 years.
Wilson’s first touchdown pass to Will Dissly — a 14-yarder in the second quarter — came after Steelers defensive tackle Dan McCullers was called for a personal foul on a field goal attempt by Seattle. The Seahawks took the first down instead of the points, and on the next snap Wilson hit a soaring Dissly for the score.
Seattle went in front early in the second half when a pass from Rudolph to Donte Moncrief went through the receiver’s hands, smacked off his facemask and landed in the arms of Seahawks safety Bradley McDougald. Wilson found Dissly again for a 12-yard score seven plays later.
“It shows our guys we can do it, we can go cross country in the morning and play good football,” Carroll said. “They did a fantastic job.”
UPON FURTHER REVIEW
Pittsburgh trailed by two in the fourth quarter and appeared to have momentum with the Seahawks facing a third-and-20. Wilson threw a jump ball for Tyler Lockett and the pass fell incomplete. But Carroll challenged the play, claiming Steelers safety Terrell Edmunds interfered with Lockett. The 38-yard penalty was enforced after review. Three plays later, Wilson placed the ball perfectly into Metcalfe’s outstretched hands while Edmunds gave chase.
“Regardless of how I think about the play, they made the call,” Edmunds said. “So I’ve just got to live with that. Got to live with that they made the call. I’ve got to make the play down there in the end zone.”
READY TO RUN?
After managing just 32 yards on the ground in a Week 1 loss to New England, Pittsburgh managed 81 but 23 came on a burst by Benny Snell and 7 on a scramble by Rudolph. James Conner had just 33 yards on 11 carries, including 12 yards on seven carries in the first quarter.
“We can’t keep drives going,” guard David DeCastro said. “We’ve got to start faster in these games. You don’t start fast, you don’t have a chance to run the ball. Other teams get control.”
INJURIES
Seahawks: RG D.J. Fluker left in the second quarter with an ankle injury, but returned in the second half.
Steelers: Roethlisberger, Conner (knee), ILB Vince Williams (hamstring), Conner (knee) and LB Anthony Chickillo (plantar fasciitis) all exited.
UP NEXT
Seahawks: Host New Orleans next Sunday. Seattle has won the last three home meetings with Saints.
Steelers: Head west to face San Francisco next Sunday. Pittsburgh hasn’t beaten the 49ers on the road since 1999.
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Big Ben makes preseason debut, Steelers beat Titans 18-6

Big Ben makes preseason debut, Steelers beat Titans 18-6
By TERESA M. WALKER AP Pro Football Writer
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Ben Roethlisberger needed three short series to show he’s ready for the regular season, even though he wasn’t happy the Steelers didn’t score earlier.
The Tennessee Titans made it very clear protecting Marcus Mariota on a wet and ugly night was their top priority.
Roethlisberger capped his night with a 17-yard touchdown pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster, and the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Titans 18-6 Sunday night to remain perfect this preseason.
“I wasn’t as crisp as I would’ve liked to have been, but I think we got enough accomplished,” Roethlisberger said.
The Steelers (3-0) came up with four of seven sacks by halftime and had a turnover as they pummeled all three quarterbacks for the Titans (1-2). Six different Steelers had at least a sack apiece.
Roethlisberger made his preseason debut and was a bit rusty with two short series. After Stephon Tuitt sacked Mariota in the end zone for a safety, Roethlisberger then drove the Steelers 48 yards after the free kick and finished with the TD pass to Smith-Schuster.
He nearly gave the Steelers a 10-0 lead but Jaylen Samuels fell down after catching the pass on a 2-point conversion attempt. Roethlisberger spent the rest of the night watching and was 8 of 13 for 63 yards passing. Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin was content with what he got out of Roethlisberger and the rest of his Steelers in their first road trip this preseason.
“Although it wasn’t a complete body of work, we were able to get them some situational ball and watch them execute and do some things there, so a good night in that regard,” Tomlin said.
A night after Andrew Luck retired, the Titans played safe with their starting quarterback and pulled Mariota after he was sacked for the safety on his second series. Mariota was 0 of 3, including an uncharacteristic drop by veteran Adam Humphries. That proved a smart move with backup Ryan Tannehill sacked on his third play.
“We’re going to make sure we can protect our quarterback, and that’s important,” Titans coach Mike Vrabel said. “And it’s imperative that we do that as a staff and we do that as an offensive group.”
Pittsburgh is still trying to figure out Roethlisberger’s backup, and Mason Rudolph helped himself with a 41-yard TD pass to James Washington on his first throw of the game. That put the Steelers up 15-0 after the first quarter with a 159-25 edge in total offense. Rudolph finished the first half and was 6 of 9 for 75 yards.
Joshua Dobbs took over in the third quarter and didn’t get much help. One receiver was out of bounds after pushing off for offensive pass interference, and the Steelers needed review to show Trey Griffey did have control and both feet down on a catch after Dobbs scrambled to find him for a 23-yard catch. That set up a 31-yard field goal by rookie Matthew Wright.
The Titans intercepted both Rudolph and Dobbs, who was 4 of 9 for 79 yards.
TWO-SACK QUARTER
Tuitt not only got a sack and the ball back for the Steelers, the veteran going into his sixth season had two in the first quarter taking both of the Titans’ top two quarterbacks down. Tuitt smothered Mariota in the end zone for the safety, then got to Tannehill on the third play of his first series. Tuitt is coming off a career-high 5 1/2 sacks last season.
“We’re expecting big things from him,” Tomlin said. “He’s expecting big things from him. He’s had a good preseason both in stadiums and out, so that was not unlike what we’ve been looking at from him.”
SUCCOP’S RETURN
The best part of the game for Tennessee was veteran Brett Kern’s punting with a 70-yarder along with kicker Ryan Succop’s preseason debut. Succop had offseason knee surgery and wasn’t cleared from the physically unable to perform list until Monday. He kicked a pair of field goals for the Titans’ only points.
BAD MEMORIES
The Titans gave up sacks so early and often that the game started feeling like last October when Baltimore set a franchise-record with 11 sacks. Right tackle Jack Conklin said the Titans didn’t come out strong and fast in the showcase game of the preseason.
“We can’t have our quarterback getting hit,” Conklin said. “He shouldn’t have been touched nearly as many times as he did. It’s definitely things we can get fixed.”
UP NEXT
Steelers: Visit Carolina on Thursday night.
Titans: Visit Chicago on Thursday night.
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(This story has been updated to edit the punctuation on Titans coach Mike Vrabel’s quote on protecting quarterbacks.)
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Follow Teresa M. Walker at www.twitter.com/teresamwalker
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SteelersSteelers honor Drake, keep Chiefs in check in 17-7 victory

Steelers honor Drake, keep Chiefs in check in 17-7 victory
By WILL GRAVES AP Sports Writer
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The shirts read “shut out the noise.” Shutting out the pain of suddenly losing the man behind the mantra will take far longer for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Still, there was something about the game-day routine that brought a sense of relief and normalcy just six days removed from the death of wide receivers coach Darryl Drake.
The receivers walked out to pregame warmups wearing gear with “shut out the noise” emblazoned on them, the phrase Drake adopted for his group heading into the 2019 season.
The Steelers took the field with “DD” stickers on their helmets, stickers that will remain there all season. Players gathered on the sideline to kneel in prayer. A moment of silence was held just before the national anthem.
Then the ball was kicked off and Pittsburgh went back to work, keeping Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs in check in a 17-7 victory on Saturday night.
“It’s just been a very difficult week,” said Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, who attended Drake’s funeral in Tennessee along with general manager Kevin Colbert early Saturday before returning in time to lead his team to its second preseason victory in as many weeks. “If anything the game is kind of a break from that. You get lost in the things that you need to do.”
And what the Steelers (2-0) need to do over the next two weeks is figure out who will be the backup to starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. So far, Tomlin has seen little separation between Josh Dobbs and Mason Rudolph.
Rudolph guided a long first-half touchdown drive and finished 10 of 15 for 77 yards while Dobbs completed 6 of 11 for 95 yards with a red-zone interception on a night the Steelers (2-0) opted to keep several key starters on the sideline, from Roethlisberger to Pro Bowl offensive linemen David DeCastro and Maurkice Pouncey to rookie linebacker Devin Bush, who was held out because of a shoulder issue.
Asked if Rudolph, is ahead of Dobbs, Tomlin shook his head.
“Not as we sit here right now,” Tomlin said.
Not that any of it matters when Week 1 rolls around. Roethlisberger is firmly entrenched as the starter for 15 years and counting. The same is true in Kansas City, where Mahomes is coming off an MVP season.
Unlike Roethlisberger, Mahomes hasn’t yet earned the right to take most of the preseason off. The third-year pro completed just 2 of 5 passes for 11 yards in two series, a far cry from his previous visit to Heinz Field, when he threw for six touchdowns in a Week 2 win last September that served as a harbinger of the season to come.
“Yeah, that’ll all get worked out,” Reid said when asked about Mahomes’ performance. “Everyone can’t be perfect.”
Mahomes’ best play during his cameo may have been his decision to slide during an 8-yard scramble, something he didn’t do a week ago when he lowered his shoulder against Cincinnati rather than step out of bounds.
Chad Henne found Mecole Hardman for a 17-yard touchdown late in the first half for Kansas City (1-1), which managed a lone touchdown a week after putting up 38 against the Bengals. Hardman, a second-round pick, has two touchdowns in two weeks and his rapid emergence could give Reid another option to play with in what could be the NFL’s most potent offense.
Rudolph, a third-round pick a year ago who is hoping to supplant Dobbs as the top backup, was given the start instead. Playing with a group that included Pro Bowl running back James Conner and star wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, Rudolph struggled early to gain some momentum.
It wasn’t until Rudolph found himself playing with the reserves that he started to get going. He directed a 14-play, 89-yard drive in the second quarter, a series that ended with a 14-yard sprint to the end zone by Jaylen Samuels.
Dobbs started off brilliantly, hitting James Washington for a 40-yard gain. He couldn’t sustain the momentum, thanks in part to an interception in which he overthrew Diontae Johnson. The ball sailed into the arms of Kansas City’s Charvarius Ward to cut short a scoring chance late in the first half.
Johnson, a third-round pick, ended up scoring in the fourth quarter when he made a diving grab in the end zone on a heave from fourth-stringer Devlin Hodges, a catch that would have drawn a nod of approval from Drake.
“It was emotional for the receiver group,” Johnson said. “We all know what Coach Drake did for us as a whole group. We know he is with us each and every day. We’re just dedicating this season for him.”
THIS BUD’S FOR YOU?
Steelers outside linebacker Bud Dupree is entering the season with a significant amount of pressure after Pittsburgh opted to pick up his fifth-year option, but have not approached him about signing a long-term deal. Dupree provided a spark, sacking Mahomes and Henne and knocking down a pass.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Chiefs: S Tyrann Mathieu (shoulder), WR Deon Yelder (knee), WR Marcus Kemp (knee) and LB Breeland Speaks (knee) all left and did not return. Reid said Kemp’s injury appeared to be the most serious.
Steelers: RB Benny Snell Jr. (groin) and LB Anthony Chickillo (knee) left. OLB Ola Adeniyi was held out with an undisclosed injury.
UP NEXT
Chiefs: Host San Francisco next Saturday.
Steelers: Expect to give Roethlisberger his only reps of the preseason next Sunday when they visit Tennessee.
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Steelers wide receivers coach Darryl Drake dies at 62

Steelers wide receivers coach Darryl Drake dies at 62
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Pittsburgh Steelers wide receivers coach Darryl Drake, who spent more than 30 years molding some of the best players at the position at both the collegiate and professional level, has died. He was 62.
The team said Drake, who joined the coaching staff in 2018, died early Sunday morning.
“Darryl had such an impact on the players he coached and everyone he worked with throughout his entire career,” Steelers president Art Rooney II said. “He was a passionate coach and had a tremendous spirit toward life, his family, his faith and the game of football.”
Drake, a native of Louisville, Kentucky, played collegiately at Western Kentucky. He spent one season in the Canadian Football League and participated in a pair of NFL training camps before returning to Western Kentucky to pursue a master’s degree. He went into coaching as a graduate assistant at Western Kentucky in 1983, the beginning of a career that included stops in the college ranks at Georgia, Baylor and Texas.
“He had a tremendous impact on those who he coached and those who were fortunate to call him a teammate,” WKU athletic director Todd Stewart said. “WKU Football was better because of our association with him.
Drake reached the NFL as a receivers coach in 2004 with the Chicago Bears. He moved on to the same position with the Arizona Cardinals in 2013 before joining Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin’s staff in 2018. Drake’s pupils through the years include Cardinals star Larry Fitzgerald, longtime NFL wide receiver Brandon Marshall and Antonio Brown, who played for Drake in 2018 before being traded to Oakland last spring.
“Darryl was a close friend and had a tremendous impact on my coaching career,” Tomlin said. “He was an amazing husband, father and grandfather, and it is difficult to put into words the grief our entire team is going through right now. Darryl loved the game of football and every player he ever coached. We will use our faith to guide us and help his family throughout the difficult time.”
Cleveland Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens, who coached alongside Drake in Arizona, called Drake “a really good coach and an even better friend.”
“The NFL coaching community lost a really good person that always took a great personal interest in the lives of the players he coached and the staff he worked with,” Kitchens added.
Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen, who played under Drake in Chicago, tweeted that Drake “had a huge impact on me as a young player. His players loved him.”
Drake is survived by his wife, Sheila, daughters Shanice, Felisha and Marian as well as two grandchildren.
Pittsburgh cancelled practices at Saint Vincent College on both Sunday and Monday after announcing Drake’s death.
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AP Sports Writer Tom Withers in Cleveland contributed to this report.
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Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski announce

Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski announces retirement
By KYLE HIGHTOWER AP Sports Writer
BOSTON (AP) — The New England Patriots’ gentle giant has decided to hang up his cleats.
Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski said Sunday that he is retiring from the NFL after nine seasons.
Gronkowski announced his decision via a post on Instagram , saying that a few months shy of his 30th birthday “it’s time to move forward and move forward with a big smile.”
“It all started at 20 years old on stage at the NFL draft when my dream came true, and now here I am about to turn 30 in a few months with a decision I feel is the biggest of my life so far,” Gronkowski wrote in his post. “I will be retiring from the game of football today.”
Drew Rosenhaus, Gronkowski’s agent, confirmed his client’s decision to retire.
The tight end, who turns 30 in May, leaves as a three-time Super Bowl champion who established himself as one of the most dominant players at his position.
But he has been dogged in recent seasons by back, knee, ankle and arm injuries that have limited his ability to stay on the field.
It led him to hint at retirement following New England’s Super Bowl loss to the Philadelphia Eagles to end the 2017 season and again last month after the Patriots’ Super Bowl win over the Los Angeles Rams.
In his Instagram post, Gronkowski thanked the Patriots organization, coach Bill Belichick and New England’s fans for their support during his nine NFL seasons.
“Thank you for everyone accepting who I am and the dedication I have put into my work to be the best player I could be,” Gronkowski wrote.
Gronkowski’s teammates almost immediately began to flood social media with well-wishes.
“Love you man!!” quarterback Tom Brady wrote on Instagram, along with an emoji of a goat to refer to Gronkowski as the greatest of all-time. “Couldn’t be a better person or teammate!!!!”
It was a sentiment shared by receiver Julian Edelman.
“The other goat,” Edelman posted on his Instagram page.
Though he won’t have the longevity of some of his contemporaries at tight end, Gronkowski is expected to get strong consideration for the Pro Football Hall of Fame when eligible.
Gronkowski was one of Brady’s favorite targets after being drafted in the second round of the 2010 draft.
He had his fourth career 1,000-yard receiving season in 2017 and was an All-Pro for the fourth time that season.
But at times he looked like a shell of himself during the Patriots’ Super Bowl run this past season. Gronkowski finished the 2018 regular season with just 47 catches for 682 yards and three touchdowns.
He had one of his best games of the season in the Patriots’ Super Bowl win over the Rams, hauling in six catches for 87 yards, including two receptions on New England’s only touchdown drive during their 13-3 victory.
A fan favorite in New England for his gregarious and playful persona that included awkward dance moves and touchdown celebrations, Gronkowski was one of the most dominant tight ends of his era.
His 12 career postseason touchdown receptions are the most by a tight end in NFL playoff history. His 81 career postseason catches are also best among tight ends.
He’ll also retire with 79 career TD catches — regular season and playoffs — which is third all-time by a tight end behind only Antonio Gates (116) and Tony Gonzalez (111).
Brady and Gronkowski connected on 78 TD passes. It is the second-most scoring connections between a quarterback and a tight end in NFL history behind only Philip Rivers and Gates (89) and is fifth overall between quarterbacks and all pass-catchers.
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Scoring Updates: Penguins vs. Panthers, Tuesday March 5, 2019 at 7:00 p.m.

 

[table id=34 /]

STEELERS 16 BENGALS 13 4TH QTR/FINAL

The Steelers took  the lead with 8:35  left in the game on a 47-yard  field goal by  Steelers rookie kicker Matt McCrane. Bengals tied the game 2:30 later with a 32-yard field game. the Steelers regained the lead at the two minute  warning with a 35 yard field goal. The defense forced  the Bengals to turn over the ball to seal the victory. For the game,  Ben Roethlisber was 31-45, 287 yds  with 1 with one TD and an interception a pick six.   James Conner had 14 carries for 64-yards.  Ben ended the season with over 5-thousand yards passing and 16 interceptions. Matt Manroe had 3 field goals and an extra point.  The Steelers needed the Cleveland Browns to beat  the Baltimore Ravens to make  the AFC playoffs The Browns lost to the Ravens 26-24.