FOOTBALL FRIDAY. But does it have any juice? Poni predicted the first 300+ yard game and win from Mason Rudolph, which would be the first for the Steelers since Ben Roethlisberger was the quarterback. Chris and Donny are looking at this one like scrooges – they even wouldn’t mind seeing the Steelers get blown out. 

Tyler Boyd has called out the Steelers again. The former WPIAL star doesn’t think George Pickens would act this way in Cincy, indicating it is a problem within the Steelers culture. What kind of an indictment is that on Mike Tomlin? The guys think things like this could be more damming than any analyst or expert saying this. 

Chris Hoke had more thoughts with Cook & Joe today about what is happening with the Steelers and Mike Tomlin right now. 

Is Mike Tomlin making a mistake by playing George Pickens on Saturday? Is he trying to salvage the relationship between coach and player? Callers gave their thoughts on what is going on with the Steelers.  

Mason Rudolph will officially start on Saturday. How does George Pickens feel about him? He actually credited some of his game and in a way took a shot at the other QBs on the roster. Poni said he doesn’t want Pickens on the roster next season, along with Najee Harris and Diontae Johnson. Can the Steelers afford to do that? Chris compared Mike Tomlin to a grandfather now, more than a father or a guy their same age. The guys think Tomlin looks like a pushover in these situations more often than not. 

The guys put out the call to celebrate Donny’s 2nd anniversary as the show’s producer to celebrate with wings – we were inundated with roughly 100 wings with more outstanding as we got back from break. Then the discussion got back to Mason Rudolph starting for the first time in two seasons. Callers gave their thoughts on Rudolph starting and what we could see Saturday. 

Power Rankings.

Bill Cowher had thoughts on what is going on with the Steelers right now with Mike Tomlin and George Pickens. How can it be fixed? Why does Pickens have the Steelers by the balls in this situation? And what does it say about Tomlin that he isn’t getting much out of his other coaches? The guys credited John Harbaugh for where the Ravens are right now, given the moves he made to make his coaching staff and team better. 

KDKA TV legend Bob Pompeani joined the show. Pomp thinks fans want to see some sort of tangible discipline for George Pickens and what kind of expectations he now has for Saturday. He added that teammates shouldn’t be happy with a player doing what he did and not seeing any repercussions. Bob got into what bothers him sometimes about receivers. Is it just a problem with Pickens? Bob brought up Hines Ward and the style he played in comparison to what we see from current Steelers receivers. Bob gave thumbs up and down on multiple Christmas traditions. 

Donny Football Debrief – Happy Trails to Anthony McFarland. With that, Poni has lost an Auction House wager.

We are hearing some locker room leaders speak about George Pickens. Should players like Cam Heyward and TJ Watt be more vocal about players like Pickens? The guys wish players were harder, but would that make things look worse within the organization? There was also a soundbite from Jerome Bettis on Pickens. 

Steelers insider Ray Fittipaldo from the PG joined the show. Ray talked about some of the locker room reaction to what is going on with George Pickens and how some guys have responded. Ray said Mike Tomlin is “deeply” invested in Pickens and takes pride in projects and challenges like this. Ray thinks they will really try to make this work with Pickens and gave thoughts on if he ends up traded like Chase Claypool midway through his third season. Ray thinks it is wild that they still can’t find ways to get Pickens the ball. Ray does think this stuff and what happens in the final three weeks will play factors in what happens with Tomlin. Ray posed the question – what happens if Mason Rudolph goes out there and throws for 300+ in a win? He suggested that they could play the hot hand if that plays out. 

It seems that ESPN is now signing a different tune about the Steelers culture under Mike Tomlin. But is it just happening now? The guys threw out moments over the last decade or more that has built into what Tomlin is working with. We also heard from Shannon Sharpe calling out Tomlin for how he has let things fall down this path. 

Steelers insider Ray Fittipaldo from the PG joined the show. Ray talked about some of the locker room reaction to what is going on with George Pickens and how some guys have responded. Ray said Mike Tomlin is “deeply” invested in Pickens and takes pride in projects and challenges like this. Ray thinks they will really try to make this work with Pickens and gave thoughts on if he ends up traded like Chase Claypool midway through his third season. Ray thinks it is wild that they still can’t find ways to get Pickens the ball. Ray does think this stuff and what happens in the final three weeks will play factors in what happens with Tomlin. Ray posed the question – what happens if Mason Rudolph goes out there and throws for 300+ in a win? He suggested that they could play the hot hand if that plays out. 

We are hearing some locker room leaders speak about George Pickens. Should players like Cam Heyward and TJ Watt be more vocal about players like Pickens? The guys wish players were harder, but would that make things look worse within the organization? There was also a soundbite from Jerome Bettis on Pickens. 

KDKA TV legend Bob Pompeani joined the show. Pomp thinks fans want to see some sort of tangible discipline for George Pickens and what kind of expectations he now has for Saturday. He added that teammates shouldn’t be happy with a player doing what he did and not seeing any repercussions. Bob got into what bothers him sometimes about receivers. Is it just a problem with Pickens? Bob brought up Hines Ward and the style he played in comparison to what we see from current Steelers receivers. Bob gave thumbs up and down on multiple Christmas traditions. 

Bill Cowher had thoughts on what is going on with the Steelers right now with Mike Tomlin and George Pickens. How can it be fixed? Why does Pickens have the Steelers by the balls in this situation? And what does it say about Tomlin that he isn’t getting much out of his other coaches? The guys credited John Harbaugh for where the Ravens are right now, given the moves he made to make his coaching staff and team better. 

The guys put out the call to celebrate Donny’s 2nd anniversary as the show’s producer to celebrate with wings – we were inundated with roughly 100 wings with more outstanding as we got back from break.