Football is back. It’s hard to believe that one week of the high school season is in the books. It was actually a little cool for the season opener on Friday night. That’s better than dying from the heat, which has been the case over the years. Football season is the best time of the year. Here’s to a great year.
• The Steelers sure looked good in their “dress rehearsal” against the Tennessee Titans. The third preseason game is usually the one where the starters play. Big Ben and company were most impressive. What also stood out to me was how well the defense played. I think they will be much improved.
• The Steelers are going to have some difficult cuts to make. There are a lot more than 53 players on the current roster who can and will play in the NFL. Cut down day is going to be difficult and very interesting.
• Break up the Buccos! It’s hard to believe it, but the Pirates swept the Cincinnati Reds over the weekend. They even looked pretty good in doing it. This is a lost season for the Pirates, there’s no denying it. Still, this weekend couldn’t have come at a better time for the Pirates.
• I feel for Francisco Cervelli, who requested and was granted his release this past week. Cervelli was a good player when healthy. Unfortunately, he had such bad luck when it came to injuries that he never really got to show what he can do. I’m glad the Pirates gave him the chance to move on. Cervelli had three hits in his first game with Atlanta. He’s a good guy and I hope he has great success in the future.
• The Pirates’ pitching staff has been a disaster since the All Star break. And with the latest injury to Chris Archer, it’s hard to imagine the team winning many more games down the stretch. Archer has been a disaster since coming over in last year’s trade. He was just starting to pitch well when he got hurt. It would have been nice to see if he finally solved the woes that have plagued him since coming to Pittsburgh. Now, we may have to wait until 2020 to see if Chris Archer will ever get it together.
• I don’t know how the Pirates are going to entice people to come to games next year unless the team makes massive changes and actually spends money to upgrade the roster. I think that many organizations would have canned their general manager and field manager by now, but that hasn’t happened with the Pirates. And with a few more years on their contracts, it wouldn’t surprise me if owner Bob Nutting sticks with Neal Huntington and Clint Hurdle. In the meantime, good luck getting Pirates fans excited about the future. I’m glad I’m not in the ticket sales department.
• I feel bad for the Pirates’ announcers these days. They haven’t exactly had a lot to talk about lately. That changed last week when Greg Brown and Steve Blass welcomed Mike Lange to the television booth. Lange actually called Pirates games with Blass in the 80s on the old KBL. The guys swapped some great stories during Lange’s appearance. It was thoroughly enjoyable.
• Andrew Luck’s stunning retirement announcement has taken the NFL by storm. Few ever saw this coming. Luck is in the prime of his career, but just couldn’t get over all the injuries he’s suffered the past few years. It’s a huge blow for the Colts, who once cut Peyton Manning after drafting Luck. I applaud Luck for having the guts to step away. It couldn’t have been easy to do. I hope he enjoys a great pain-free life.
