JR SportBrief Hour 3

This is your operating system talking, not your computers or your phones, but your internal human operating system. I'm feeling a little overloaded. Here's how you can ease my stress. Close your eyes or softly gaze at something in front of you. Now inhale for four counts, exhale for six. Keep repeating.

Much better. Longer term, there's BetterHelp online therapy. They'll match us with the licensed therapist we can connect with via video, phone, or chat. Visit BetterHelp.com slash positive and save 10% on our first month.

This is your operating system talking, not your computers or your phones, but your internal human operating system. I'm feeling a little overloaded. Here's how you can ease my stress. Close your eyes or softly gaze at something in front of you. Now inhale for four counts, exhale for six. Keep repeating. Much better. Longer term, there's BetterHelp online therapy. They'll match us with the licensed therapist we can connect with via video, phone, or chat.

Visit BetterHelp.com slash positive and save 10% on our first month. I'm going to be hanging out here with you for the next two hours. Of course, it's been a busy day and night in the world of sports.

And we're going to talk about it. We had a Thursday night football game that's done. The Cleveland Browns beat the Pittsburgh Steelers at home the final score 29 to 17. The calls for Kenny Pickett will continue to get louder and louder and louder. And for fans of the Cleveland Browns, they're really going to think about whether or not. Can we can we stay alive until Deshaun Watson returns?

We're going to talk about the Browns in Pittsburgh. We opened up the show talking about Aime Udoka. I'm pretty sure by now you've heard the Boston Celtics have decided to suspend him for the entire season.

Yeah, last night news broke right here when we were on air. He had a relationship with a staffer, intimate relationship that was consensual, but violates team protocol and rules. And so to eliminate distractions, they got him going for the entire season.

And the reality is the Celtics made it clear in their statement. Aime Udoka, he might not return ever. They're going to evaluate his status and the situation and make a determination as to when and if he comes back at a later date. Doesn't sound too good for Udoka. If you missed a minute of the show, you can always go ahead and hit rewind on the free Odyssey app.

Real simple. You can find me online at JR Sport Brief. And the number here at CBS Sports Radio is 855-212-4CBS.

That's 855-212-4CBS. Also, and by nature of tonight's Thursday Night Football game, we'll talk about the AFC North and knowing that Cleveland beat Pittsburgh tonight. The Bengals are in some trouble at 0-2. Joe Burrow is like, I'm not even looking at social media. And then we have the Ravens. They actually signed Jason Pierre Paul. Interesting scenario. Also, Sean Payton made it clear.

If the right situation presents itself, hell yeah, I'm going to try to coach next year. Let's see what happens. So we got a lot to do. But let's get into this game.

If you watched, if you listened, here's a summary. These are two teams that are just treading water when it comes down to the quarterback position. The Cleveland Browns, depending on who you ask, they have basically sold their souls to bring in Deshaun Watson. While he's out serving his suspension, the guy who is in the NFL just to hold down the quarterback spot for any and every team. While the star is out, whether it be Andrew Luck or Brady or Garoppolo, whatever the case might be, you got Jacoby Brissette.

He's keeping the seat warm until Watson comes back. And then for the Pittsburgh Steelers, who now have a record of one and two. Everybody is just ready to bring in Kenny Pickett. It's a hard knock life.

Let him come in, earn his stripes, get knocked around and I guess either elevate or get knocked down. And at least, you know, hey, let's go get another quarterback. This is something that the Steelers have not had to deal with for ever.

They've had Ben Roethlisberger for the better part of four ever. And so for the final numbers and stats tonight, it's real simple for you. The Cleveland Browns, they outrushed the Pittsburgh Steelers tonight 171 yards to 104. Cleveland, out of a 60 minute game, had the ball on offense for 36 minutes. They dominated. They weren't going to let the Steelers get the ball.

They weren't going to give them a chance to do anything. Jacoby Brissette was able to go out there and throw for two touchdowns tonight. Nick Chubb rushed for a touchdown.

And you know what? How many times, how often can you actually show Cleveland some love? Well, they're two and one right now. I wouldn't call it an impressive two and one if you have to think about their prior two games. They barely beat the Panthers. They gave away the game to the New York Jets and they're probably going to walk a tightrope for the rest of the year.

But let's show some love to the guy helping to hold down the fort. The game, obviously, you could listen to it here on Westwood one or you could have listened to it on Westwood one. And Jacoby Brissette? He didn't waste too much time.

In the first quarter, he threw a touchdown. To who else? Omari Cooper. Take a listen.

Oh, yeah. Now it's Browns Radio Network. Congratulations, Jacoby Brissette.

People won't curse you out for an additional week. That wasn't the only pass that Jacoby Brissette decided to throw. He threw another one. This time, David Njoko, a short one. Six-seven yard pass.

Listen. First and goal at the six and a half in the backfield. Hutt left hip of Brissette. Brissette takes the snap. Back looking.

Firing up in the air. Caught. Touchdown.

David Njoko. And the Browns are back on top. And then we move on to the fourth quarter. At halftime, the Browns were able to kind of hang in there. Pittsburgh left led 14 to 13. Mitch Trubisky had a one-yard touchdown run and this was pretty much the only highlight if you wanted to think about the Steelers. That and an exciting catch by Pickens who's been telling everybody for a couple of weeks now that he's always open. Listen to what I would consider the only important Pittsburgh score.

Listen. Trubisky. It's second and goal.

We'll call it the one and a half. Mitch in the shotgun. Najee gets the call.

No. Mitch keeps. Gets to the goal line. Touchdown Pittsburgh. The kid from nearby Mentor, Ohio is in the end zone and the Steelers have tied the Browns with point pending.

Well, there you go. Steelers radio network. Mitch Trubisky able to run it in and then they got the extra point and oh yeah, by the way, they missed the kick earlier in the game. The Steelers did.

I don't think that would have made a massive difference. But then the Browns, they took over in the second half. Field goal in the third. Nick Chubb running it in in the fourth.

And then you want to know where the final score came in at 29. When the Steelers had to go for all of the trickery with the time expiring, they fumbled the ball and Denzel Ward was able to pick it up in the end zone final score 29 to 17. But in an era where everybody throws the football around, where guys are throwing 300 and 400 yards per game, when you could look at Justin Herbert and Patrick Mahomes, this was as old school and ugly of a game that you could expect.

For the Browns, it was all about control. Nick Chubb rushing for 113 yards and a touchdown. Jacoby Percette only throwing for 220 yards and had those two touchdowns.

And then meanwhile, the Pittsburgh Steelers offense, it's on life support. Mitch Trubisky 207 yards. He didn't have an interception. He also didn't throw for a score. Pickens, the man who came into the game with only two catches for 23 yards. Tonight, Pickens had three catches for 39, including an Odell Beckham-esque catch on the sideline. And that's the only highlight we got tonight. These are the only highlights that we got tonight for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

So here's the deal. You got a lot of Steeler fans who are ready for Kenny Pickett. You got a lot of Steeler fans who right now this minute, they've seen enough of Mitch Trubisky.

He's a game manager. He ain't moving a ball down the field. He's no massive threat to bust out a run and get you some points. And so I know you drafted Kenny Pickett for a purpose. You drafted Kenny Pickett for a reason. To potentially be your next franchise quarterback.

Does anybody know if he is that guy? We have no idea. But the Steelers fear confident about it. Otherwise, they wouldn't have selected him at number 20 overall.

We know that this quarterback draft for this season, pretty weak. He was the first to go. All we heard about was his familiarity with Pittsburgh playing for Pitt, playing at what was formerly Heinz Field. But is Kenny Pickett ready for the big time? Is Kenny Pickett ready to go out there and get smashed by Miles Garrett? If you're a Steelers fan, do you care if Kenny Pickett gets smashed by Miles Garrett?

And at the same time, I think we all have to be honest here. Ben Roethlisberger is gone. This isn't a Steelers team that is competing for a championship. This is a Steelers team that can basically be happy if they sniff or get to the playoffs. If we take a look at the AFC North, everybody has some type of problem, right? The Browns have the fact that DeSean is gone problem. Pittsburgh has an issue because they don't know how the hell they're going to put the ball in the end zone. The Bengals, they can't protect Joe Burrow. Like, what the hell is different between what we've seen this season so far and then what we saw to end last year?

It's like a whole lot of Joe Burrow on the ground. And then you have the Ravens. Well, Lamar Jackson is playing for his contract and, I mean, dammit, they didn't know how to play defense to end that game. Against Miami, their cornerbacks are still trying to round into play, especially Peters who just returned.

Kyle Fuller went down. Everybody in the AFC North has issues, but I can tell you this, Steelers ain't winning the AFC North. They're just trying to figure out who and what the hell is up with their quarterback situation. Good for the Steelers. Their next opponent? October 2nd against the New York Jets.

And come on now. New York Jets? Yeah, they just beat these these Browns, but it's tough when you can't score. And that's what the Steelers can't do right now.

And it's not like this season, the next couple of games get any easier for Pittsburgh. After the Jets, they take on Buffalo. That's an L. After that, they take on Tampa Bay. That's an L. After that, they take on Miami. That is an L. Philadelphia, likely L. New Orleans? New Orleans has a solid defense and I think their offense is good if Jamis isn't throwing three interceptions to end the game. L. The middle part of the Steelers season is tough, so you can ask and call for Kenny Pickett. Von Miller will eat him alive. You ready for that after they take on the Jets? 855-212-4CBS.

That's 855-212-4CBS. Tonight, Thursday Night Football on Amazon Prime. I don't know if you saw it. Maybe you did.

Maybe you didn't. The Cleveland Browns, they go out there. They beat the Pittsburgh Steelers at home.

The final score, 29-17. The Browns and Jacoby Brissett, they're waiting on the return of Deshaun Watson. And the Steelers, they're just trying to figure out how to score some damn points. Do you think it's time for Kenny Pickett? Is it time to pull the plug on Mitch Trubisky and throw Pickett out there?

I don't think so right now. And not to start a game. I think you give Mitch Trubisky another chance, another opportunity. And if he's out there stinking the joint up, I think it's less pressure.

I think it's less talked about. Slide Kenny Pickett in there if he's ready and see what he got. Give him some spot duty. Don't just completely pull the plug on Trubisky. I don't think the Steelers are going to go anywhere this season.

And I think you want to introduce this guy in small doses because it's not going to make a gigantic difference for the entire season. It's not going to alter what happens with the Steelers. 8-5-5, 2-1-2 for CBS.

That's 8-5-5, 2-1-2 for CBS. Mike Tomlin went up to the podium. We're going to hear about him. What he had to say about a potential change on the other side of the break.

And I'm going to get to your calls. It's the JR Sport Reef Show right here with you on CBS Sports Radio. Tonight, Thursday Night Football. I don't want to call it one of these slop fests because it wasn't slop.

It's dry outside but it was like an old school punch you in the mouth game. It's an AFC North game. The Cleveland Browns beat the Pittsburgh Steelers at home 29-17.

The Cleveland Browns, their fans had a chance and an opportunity to basically watch them run the Steelers. This is your operating system talking. Not your computers or your phones but your internal human operating system. I'm feeling a little overloaded. Here's how you can ease my stress. Close your eyes or softly gaze at something in front of you. Now inhale for four counts. Exhale for six. Keep repeating.

Much better. Longer term, there's BetterHelp online therapy. They'll match us with the licensed therapist we can connect with via video, phone or chat.

Visit betterhelp.com slash positive and save 10% on our first month. This is your operating system talking. Not your computers or your phones but your internal human operating system. I'm feeling a little overloaded. Here's how you can ease my stress. Close your eyes or softly gaze at something in front of you. Now inhale for four counts. Exhale for six. Keep repeating.

Much better. Longer term, there's BetterHelp online therapy. They'll match us with the licensed therapist we can connect with via video, phone or chat. Visit betterhelp.com slash positive and save 10% on our first month. Ready to improve your bottom line? The Room can match you with a top financial analyst. Trusted by small businesses, startups and entrepreneurs, The Room's virtual financial analysts are highly trained, vetted through a rigorous data-driven process and matched to fit your needs. Drive business growth with a virtual financial analyst from The Room. It's like listening to all the financial podcasts rolled into one. Get started today at trytheroom.com.

That's trytheroom.com. This is your operating system talking. Not your computers or your phones, but your internal human operating system. I'm feeling a little overloaded. Here's how you can ease my stress. Close your eyes or softly gaze at something in front of you. Now inhale for four counts. Exhale for six. Keep repeating. Much better. Longer term, there's BetterHelp online therapy. They'll match us with the licensed therapist we can connect with via video, phone or chat.

Visit betterhelp.com slash positive and save 10% on our first month. Steelers into the ground. Nick Chubb, to the surprise of no one, one of the best running backs in the game. Nick Chubb had 113 yards on the ground in a touchdown. Kareem Hunt was able to chip in 47. And the Cleveland Browns, they outrushed the Pittsburgh Steelers 171 to 104.

Okay, a discrepancy there. But at the same time, if you think about the time of possession, in a 60 minute damn football game, Cleveland had the ball 36 minutes. Pittsburgh Steelers? Barely.

Barely 23 minutes, 24 minutes. Pittsburgh is trying to figure out answers with their offense. George Pickens has been telling everybody for more than a week now, he's like, I'm open, I'm just not getting the ball. And tonight he had an Odell Beckham-esque junior type catch.

But there was nothing exciting about tonight because Pittsburgh, all season long, they've just been dinking and dunking and trying to move the chains link by link. Mitch Trubisky tonight, 207 yards, zero touchdowns and zero interceptions. And I know there are a lot of calls now for Kenny Pickett to get into the game. Kenny Pickett to make his first start. Let's bring Kenny Pickett in to save the day. He's no savior, Kenny Pickett.

He was the first quarterback selected at number 20 in the draft this past season. But let's be real. You throw Kenny Pickett out there, what is he going to do? If the goal is to move towards a championship, let's be real. The Steelers are not championship contenders. Everybody knows Mitch Trubisky is not the answer. But you don't pull the plug on him right now because as much as Kenny Pickett should start in the future, you don't want to just immediately throw him to the wolves. The Pittsburgh Steelers in next game is going to be against the New York Jets.

I'll put it to you this way. If they take on the New York Jets and Mitch Trubisky is out there, he sucks, then put Kenny Pickett out there in a dose. Let him get some snaps. Let's not give him the whole entire world to potentially be eaten alive.

And yes, it's the Jets, but it doesn't just stop there. You don't want to set an expectation that he goes out there and now you got to yo-yo the guy. This entire season, listen to me carefully, the entire season should be an introduction for Kenny Pickett. Not after three games. Let's put him out there. There's plenty of time for him to learn, to grow, and I think there's still plenty of time for the Steelers to evaluate whether or not he could potentially be the man. And if they felt that he was already, he wouldn't be on the bench right now. He would have started out the gate.

Mike Tomlin, he talked after the game and having his his finger on the pulse of everything and what people are saying. This is what he had to say about change and whether or not one was coming. It does not set my interest in reviewing this tape and looking at the totality of it and figuring out how we collectively get better. So answer that question definitively.

No. Well, there you have it. You didn't have to think too damn hard about whether or not change was coming.

If you missed it, listen very carefully again. It's change coming, Mike Tomlin. I'm not in that mindset.

I'm interested in reviewing this tape and looking at the totality of it and figuring out how we collectively get better. So answer that question definitively. No. Yeah, it's not like they're going to wake up and I don't know, bring in San Antonio Holmes. It's not like he's coming back. It's not like Franco is going to go out there and help them out on offense. It's not like we're going to wake up and Heinz Ward is going to be out there cracking skulls and and opening up holes, helping to open up holes for Najee.

That's not going to happen. So the Steelers are what they are. They have no choice but to, you know, be a little conservative right now to stay alive in these games. Mike Tomlin continued on and he actually said, I'm encouraged by what we've seen. I wasn't looking to be encouraged. I was looking to win the game. And so, you know, I would expect us to get better in all phases. And so I don't know if I share that perspective.

Well, damn, I was wrong. Let's think about the offensive play calling. Let's think about the players that are on offense. And let's also be real here. This is a team in transition.

It's going to take time. And so for anyone who wants to be overly critical of the Steelers and the organization, pump your brakes. You know, not everybody's going to kick ass and win forever. Mike Tomlin knows how to win. He knows how to lead these guys. Over the years, he's had the talent to do so. Even Bill Cowher up until now.

Well, now he has to start over. He has to earn his keep. But there's no disputing the fact players love this guy.

They want to play for him. But Kenny Pickett, let's take our time. This is a 17-game season. The third and fourth game is not ultimately going to decide Kenny Pickett's future, his fate. And then what this season looks like for the Steelers.

It's all growing. 8-5-5, 2-1-2 for CBS. It's 8-5-5, 2-1-2 for CBS. Ezra's calling from Atlanta. You're on the JR Sport Reef Show. What's up, JR?

You know, I'm hurting. But I'm going to tell you, I need Steeler Nation to understand what Kevin Colbert did before he retired, whatever it was. He tried to set up the Steelers with a quarterback situation where, you know, he thought in his mind it'll help us, but he put us in a conundrum. Because Steeler Nation has never really had to choose a quarterback going into the season.

We've always sort of known, whether it was Tommy Maddox, Cordell Stewart, you know, Ben, we always knew going into a season who our quarterback was. Kevin Colbert, on the way out, decided to sign Mitch Trubisky and then in the draft get Kenny Pickett. Now, me personally, I wanted Tyler Linderbaum out of Iowa.

Because Marquis Pouncey retired, I figured, hey, I want a solid center to continue the legacy after Damani Dawson, Marquis Pouncey. So I liked the kid out of Iowa. But when we signed Trubisky, I automatically figured there's no way we're going to go quarterback because we got this guy for two years. But Kevin Colbert was trying to look out for Steeler Nation because of Ben going away. And it kind of backfired because right now, I'm on the Kenny Pickett train. I'm on the Kenny Pickett train because you know what, the kid leaves his receivers, he throws into that window. But Kevin Colbert did not intentionally need to throw Steeler Nation into the conundrum of us having to choose a quarterback in the beginning of the season.

Well, thank you, Ezra. Here's the deal. There was going to be a conundrum.

This happens everywhere. Franchise quarterback X leaves, retires, goes somewhere else, calls it a wrap, and you move into a period of transition. It's not easy finding a quarterback. Ask the Patriots. What are the Patriots looking like now? Tom Brady is gone. You got Mac Jones.

They're pretty much nickel and diamond and moving inch to inches. Well, what you want them to do? And we can use examples of championship teams. Matt Ryan with the Falcons, he's gone. This man is throwing footballs for the Colts and they ain't going anywhere.

But let's be real. What are the Falcons doing right now? You think they love Marcus Mariota? You think they're looking at their future?

I mean, come on. Let's look at Matt Ryan. What has the Indianapolis Colts been doing since, I don't know, Andrew Luck said, I'm gone.

I don't need to do this anymore. They thought they had their guy after Peyton Manning and Luck said, I'm gone. They've been looking for a quarterback since they can't just keep plugging veterans in. When veteran quarterbacks leave, when legacy quarterbacks leave, they don't just go home or go to another team.

They typically leave a hole. It's not easy trying to fill that hole. And so we can't look at Colbert deciding to step down and a new general manager and Khan coming in and this was a failure. Welcome to life in the NFL. If you've had a quarterback for the past, I don't know, 10, 15, almost 20 years.

You're in rarefied air. This was inevitable. Inevitable for the Steelers. It's few and far in between that you can be the Packers and go from scamming Brett Favre to Aaron Rodgers. It's rare, even though he decided to call it quits soon, that you can go from basically a Peyton Manning to an Andrew Luck. A Montana to a young.

It's slim, man. And so you've been looking at Ben Roethlisberger in the face. Let's take another contemporary. Eli Manning, for as good an average as he was, he was very reliable. Eli Manning left.

He was towards the end. What the Giants been doing? Daniel Jones is supposed to do what exactly? Everybody's looking at the clock to get him on out the door now that they have a new general manager and coach. It's a hard knock life.

If you had a great quarterback and he's gone. Good luck. That's about all you can ask for.

855-212-4CBS. Randy's calling from PA. You're on the JR Sport Brief Show. Yeah. How you doing, Joe?

Very well. What's up, Randy? Hey, man, I agree with you 100%. You cannot throw Mitch Trubisky under the bus right now. I mean, he didn't do it too bad tonight, really. You really know the passes he made.

They were right on the money and a couple of drops. And, you know, he did the best he could. And you cannot pick it any more.

You can't jump a gun. Well, let me let me put it this way. I'm not going to sit here and say that I'm on the let's all give Mitch Trubisky a pass because I'm not. He is what he is.

But so is the entire team. Steelers are a team in transition. And a matter of fact, when we come back on the other side of the break, Mike Tomlin didn't just tell everyone don't expect Kenny Pickett right now.

I'm not anticipating change. Mike Tomlin. He also talked about Trubisky.

And I want you to hear that on the other side of the break. We'll play that for Mike Tomlin. It's the JR Sport Brief Show on CBS Sports Radio.

I'll get to your calls as well. It's the JR Sport Brief Show here with you on CBS Sports Radio. Thursday Night Football. The Pittsburgh Steelers. They lose. They could barely muster a first down in the second half of the game. Cleveland beats them.

Twenty nine to seventeen. The Steelers only had six first downs in the second half of the game. Steelers are obviously a team in transition.

If you didn't know that, where the hell you been? Retirements. Not just from Ben Roethlisberger, but from their center. Injuries.

Young players coming in over the past few years. This is a team in transition. Mitch Trubisky is basically here as a placeholder just to keep the seat warm for Kenny Pickett. Kenny Pickett is going to get his time. He's going to get his chance.

He's going to get his opportunity. I just don't believe it should be right now because they got a lot to work on. How about their play calling? How about their offensive weapons?

Their use of them? I mean, George Pickens is telling everybody, I'm open. Ninety nine percent of the time, Trubisky just ain't getting me the ball.

And so they have a multitude of things to work on. And tonight. The Browns just wore them out the old school way on the ground and with the clock. I want to remind you about what Mike Tomlin had to say as it relates to Kenny Pickett taking over. Mike Tomlin said that no change is coming. Listen to this. I'm not in that mindset. I'm interested in reviewing this tape and looking at the totality of it and figuring out how we collectively get better.

So answer that question is definitively no. OK, that's about change coming. Mike Tomlin was also asked about Mitch Trubisky. This is what Mike Tomlin had to say there. I thought he made some plays, man, but we all collectively came up short. And so, you know, that's how we measure performance, man. Winning is our business and we didn't handle business. And so we don't, you know, break that apart and look for the feel good. Yeah, we're trying to win. That's what everybody gets judged on. Right. Mike Tomlin's done a good job at good job at that over the past 16 years. This this might be a losing season. He doesn't know what the hell that is.

This is your operating system talking, not your computers or your phones, but your internal human operating system. I'm feeling a little overloaded. Here's how you can ease my stress. Close your eyes or softly gaze at something in front of you. Now inhale for four counts. Exhale for six. Keep repeating. Much better.

Longer term. There's better help. Online therapy.

They'll match us with the licensed therapist we can connect with via video, phone or chat. Visit better help dot com slash positive and save 10 percent on our first month. If you're feeling down and having trouble getting up in the morning, here's a tip. Brush your teeth.

That's it. Often when we wake up, our brains go into planning mode, which leads to overthinking and stress before our head even leaves the pillow. Something simple like brushing your teeth can break that cycle and jumpstart your day. This tip was brought to you by better help online therapy, which connects you with a licensed therapist via video, phone or online chat. Visit better help dot com slash positive and save 10 percent on your first month. Ready to improve your bottom line? The room can match you with a top financial analyst trusted by small businesses, startups and entrepreneurs. The room's virtual financial analysts are highly trained, vetted through a rigorous data driven process and matched to fit your needs. Drive business growth with a virtual financial analyst from the room. It's like listening to all the financial podcasts rolled into one. Get started today at try the room dot com.

That's try the room dot com. This is your operating system talking, not your computers or your phones, but your internal human operating system. I'm feeling a little overloaded. Here's how you can ease my stress. Close your eyes or softly gaze at something in front of you. Now inhale for four counts. Exhale for six. Keep repeating. Ah, much better.

Longer term. There's better help. Online therapy. They'll match us with the licensed therapist we can connect with via video, phone or chat.

Visit better help dot com slash positive and save 10 percent on our first month. Really? Lewis calling from Rochester.

You want CBS Sports Radio? What's up, Lou? Hi, Jr. I mean, I don't think it's a tribute. He's a fault. I think that the office coordinator there, Matt Canada, is like under pressure.

He is not. At the cows, a very conservative style of game plan, and he hasn't had a lot of success in college. He's been fired. Surya Adam almost every year as OC.

He ended up. This is his first job in Pittsburgh, initially started as the quarterbacks coach last year. They somehow made the playoffs with him in the office of coordinator. But he he leaves a lot to be desired, and it's likely that he's going to be the change and not picket picket seemed pretty good, actually, in the preseason. But, well, we we know we know there's a there's a difference between preseason play and what you actually get in the regular season.

So I think that goes without saying. And there is, as we just heard from Mike Tomlin, there's a little bit of blame for everybody. And you talk about a conservative game plan. There's a reason that they have to go conservative.

Because your two options at quarterback are not the most spectacular. Would it be better served if they went out there and made some risks and took more risks? Yes. Yes, and absolutely. Is it what they're built for? No, not really, because they need help on the line. It'd be nice if you got a little bit more provocative play calling. How provocative you want to get. Oh, you need to get pickens the ball.

Yes, absolutely. You have one of the better running backs in the game and Najee Harris. How's he being protected? How are they opening up holes for him? And then when you got a quarterback making decisions who is a game manager and you have another one who doesn't have experience, it is a little bit of something for everybody.

These aren't all problems that are going to get solved here in year number one. I know Steeler fans don't want to hear that. But what happens if you throw Kenny Pickett out there? He's going to help you get what, four more wins? What happens if you fire Matt Canada?

You want to get rid of him before Pickett? What is that supposed to change? Nothing.

It'll disrupt what you actually have going on right now. It's simple, folks. You got to actually start off with talent first. You can have me go out there and coach the team. You can go coach the team.

It ain't gonna make a difference if you don't have talent. John is calling from Oregon. You're on the JR Sport Brief Show. Hey, JR. Nice to talk to you. I'm a very, very old Steeler fan. I'm 78 years old and I've been watching the Steelers since I was six.

You're a young man. We've been through some ups and some downs, but my suggestion is that you use a two-quarterback system. There was a team back in the 50s called the Los Angeles Rams, and they had two very good quarterbacks named Bob Waterfield and Norman Van Brockland. And they used them both, even in playoff games.

And I think Pickett should get some experience by just doing a couple series here and there. And then maybe even rotate them, because it would give the defense something more to think about. Well, you know what they typically, and we know this already, and thank you, John, for calling from Oregon. If you have two quarterbacks, and this is the year 2022, if you have two quarterbacks, you have none.

OK? That's just flat what it is. Do I agree with you that Kenny Pickett needs to be sprinkled in as a part of his indoctrination into the NFL? The answer is yes.

But do I see them alternating series and... No, uh-uh. The world doesn't need that. Nobody needs to be yo-yo'd here. Mitch Trubisky knows his lot in life, for where he's at in his career right now. He's like, hey, this is my chance.

This is my opportunity. I grab the bull by the horns, or I'm going to be holding a clipboard somewhere, waiting on another quarterback to get hurt. And he also knows that they didn't draft Pickett, you know, just to have him sit around and watch me. They ultimately want him to supplant me and become the starting quarterback. I'll tell you this much.

It's real simple. Unless there's some massive injury, you're not just going to throw Kenny Pickett out there unless Trubisky is a complete disaster. But if he's stinking things up in the game, Kenny Pickett will replace him, Kenny Pickett will get experience, maybe Mitch Trubisky starts the next game, and the leash continues to get shorter for Trubisky. I think that's how it'll happen.

Please help me out here. What's the rush for the Steelers this season to throw Kenny Pickett out there? What's the rush? What is going to change for this regular season? I think Kenny Pickett is going to get his chance. Is it going to be six starts or seven starts? Is it eight starts? You come on for less?

I don't know. But he's going to play. Randall is calling from Cleveland. You're on the J.R. sport reef show. Go ahead, Randall.

Hey, J.R., thanks for having me on tonight, man. I just wanted to say I totally agree with you on not putting Kenny Pickett in right now. I think just let Mitch do what he has to do to win the games. I think our offensive line is the biggest problem out of everything right now. We really need to just go out and look at getting offensive lineman in the draft. And then once we do that, I honestly think we should be looking at Matt Canada once he has like a full offensive line to see what that offensive play calling can do, because the first half, he called it a pretty good game, it looked like. Not too bad. We had the lead, and then it just all fell apart in the second half.

So I just want to know your thoughts, and thanks for having me on. Well, thank you, Randall, for calling from Cleveland. You know, when you have one of your main signal callers at center in Pouncey, he's gone. When you have Roethlisberger gone, you know, man, dammit, he's been gone a long-ass time. I'm thinking about some of the more recent legacy players on that offensive line for the Steelers. Afanica, I can go back even further.

Sure, the championship squad. Willie Colon is a buddy of mine. I mean, these guys are long gone. This is a new time and a new era. What are we expecting here? Ray is calling from Pittsburgh. You're on CBS Sports Radio.

Thanks for having me on. This is Ray. Look, I was expecting this to happen to our team two years ago, actually. Ben coming back for the last two seasons didn't need to really happen, but the fact is he did.

Now we're in this predicament. This team is going to be fine, but this is the down year. It happens to all of our teams.

That's just what happens. Everybody's teams are going to go through these hard knocks because we haven't really went through any hard knocks. We wind up in a position where we were mediocre for so many years that we didn't have the luxury of picking up those linemen that we normally used to find all the time in middle rounds that were so good.

Now we don't get those. We've been getting all the skilled players, which is a beautiful thing. I've wanted to be in this situation for a long time to have a whole lot of skilled players, but now we don't have Ben to chuck the ball downfield. The OC does definitely need to go. There's no ifs, ands, or buts about it. For him to call the game that he called in the first half and just reel everything back and go back to so conservative is crazy to me.

Thank you for accepting my call. Hopefully they can get things right. It's not time for Kenny to play yet. He needs to still stay on the sidelines and just watch the game right now.

Get a better feel of how fast it is so when he does go in there he will be more ready for it. Thank you Ray for calling from Pittsburgh. Yeah man, it's going to take time for everybody.

I'm glad you're actually living in the world of reality. This is going to be a down year for the Steelers. It happens. You know what else is not going to happen? The offensive coordinator getting the boot not this early. Are they going to shift some of the offensive play calling? That's a possibility, but I don't see him just getting a boot.

That will be a complete disaster for the rest of the season and also for the development of Pickett. It's the JR Sport Brief Show here with you on CBS Sports Radio. When we come back, I'm going to take more of your calls and we're going to talk about tonight's victory by the Browns from their perspective. Is Jacoby Presette going to hold down the fort until Watson comes back? We'll discuss here on CBS Sports Radio.

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