First Call: George Pickens calls Jaguars ‘a hope defense’; former Steeler says starting CBs are ‘stealing money’
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Friday’s “First Call” sees George Pickens volley back after some eyebrow-raising comments from a member of the Jacksonville Jaguars. A former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive lineman is unimpressed with the starting cornerback combination on the team.
We look at the upcoming college football slate for Pitt, Penn State and West Virginia. We also examine what’s on the horizon for the Penguins and Robert Morris hockey.
Return of serve?
On Wednesday, Jacksonville Jaguars safety Rayshawn Jenkins complimented Steelers wide receiver George Pickens and his 18.5 yards per catch. But then he added, “Respectfully, (Pickens) hasn’t played our corners yet. … We’re smart enough to know where the key guys are and how to take away those guys out of the gameplan.”
On Thursday, Pickens responded with this assessment of a question posed about the Jaguars’ pass defense.
“They depend on their D-Line a lot,” Pickens said vis Steelers Now. “With their team having a lot of first-round picks on that D-Line, that’s what they depend on a lot. They kind of hope, hope that the guys hold up long enough, it’s kind of a hope defense.”
Presumably, by “the guys holding up long enough,” Pickens is referring to Jags players in the secondary. So far, it’s a point of debate about how that “hope” is paying off. Jacksonville is allowing 273 yards per game through the air, 31st in the NFL.
However, the Jaguars have nine interceptions, second in the NFL. Plus the team’s yards per catch average of 6.8 is middle of the pack (15th), and they’ve faced more passing attempts than any other defense (291).
According to Pro Football Focus, Darious Williams has their second-best coverage grade (85.6). Tre Herndon is 27th at 69.9, and Tyson Campbell, who is dealing with a hamstring injury, is 29th at 69.1. He was limited in practice Thursday, as was safety Andre Cisco.
Campbell played with Pickens at Georgia. He’s got the better size (6-foot-1, 195 lbs) to deal with Pickens. Williams is 5-foot-10, 187 pounds. Pickens has back-to-back games of over 100 yards.
Harsh words from Willie
Former Steelers offensive lineman Willie Colon has some concerns about the franchise’s cornerback play.
Appearing on “The Carton Show” on FS1, Colon minced no words when discussing the cornerbacks.
“If I’m worried about anything, it’s this run defense for the Pittsburgh Steelers because Travis Etienne is starting to come alive. So if I’m this run defense for the Pittsburgh Steelers, you’re going to have to knuckle up,” Colon said. “I’m not worried about the pass rush. They can get home. They’ve got to be better in the secondary because Levi Wallace and Patrick Peterson — they’re stealing money right now.”
That dollar total is roughly $9.7 million against the cap between the two players. That’s for a combined 684 yards allowed on a combined total of 46 completions on 79 attempts (58.2%). And that’s to say nothing of some less-than-stellar tackling at times in the run defense that Colon alluded to in his comments.
Wallace is a question mark this week. He was limited in practice Thursday after missing practice Wednesday because of a foot injury.
In need of a rebound
Pittsburgh’s three local FBS college football teams are in search of a turnaround weekend. Pitt, Penn State and West Virginia were all losers last Saturday.
This week, Pitt (2-5) goes to South Bend to play Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish are 6-2 and ranked 14th in the country. They are favored to win by 20.5 points according to Caesars Sportsbook. The Irish lead the series 50-21-1. Notre Dame has won the last three matchups, including a 45-3 drubbing of Pitt during their most recent meeting in 2020. The last time Pitt beat the Irish was during the 2013 game at (then) Heinz Field. That’s a 3:30 p.m. start.
After losing their big game to Ohio State a week ago, Penn State looks to bounce back at home against Indiana at noon. The 6-1 Nittany Lions are 32-point favorites over the 2-5 Hoosiers. Via ESPN.com, the Hoosiers’ scoring average (17.9 points) ranks 122nd out of 130 FBS teams. Arizona State is the only Power Five school with fewer points per game (17.0).
West Virginia (4-3) also kicks at noon. The Mountaineers are seven-point underdogs at Central Florida (3-4). They have lost two in a row. UCF has dropped four straight.
On the FCS level, Duquesne (4-3) looks to improve to 4-0 in NEC play at Sacred Heart (1-7), and Robert Morris is home at noon vs. Tennessee Tech. Both teams are 2-5.
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Weight off the shoulders
After losing to the Dallas Stars on Tuesday (4-1) and beating the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday night (4-0), the Penguins still have two games remaining on their homestand.
On Saturday, the Pens will welcome the Ottawa Senators to PPG Paints Arena, and the Anaheim Ducks come calling on Monday.
Ottawa arrives after dropping a game 3-2 against the New York Islanders. The Senators have dropped three in a row after winning three straight.
Meanwhile, Anaheim was in Boston on Thursday to face the Bruins. The Ducks won 4-3 in overtime. That was the first loss of the year for the Bruins. With Colorado losing as well, that means the Vegas Golden Knights (7-0-0) are the lone unbeaten team remaining in the NHL.
Building on momentum
The Robert Morris men’s hockey (1-2-2) team won a shootout Saturday against Holy Cross. The Colonials overcame a 3-0 deficit along the way. In the Atlantic Hockey standings, it goes down as a tie. But it was good for two points and the first celebration at Clearview Arena since the program was restored.
COLONIALS WIN!!!!#BobbyMo || #RMUnite #AHA20 pic.twitter.com/71PSU4gM0b
— RMU Men’s Hockey (@RMUMHockey) October 21, 2023
This weekend, Bentley arrives on Neville Island. The Falcons are 2-2. After losing standalone games to Boston University and Northeastern the first two weeks, coach Andy Jones’ team swept Stonehill 2-0 and 4-1 last weekend. Friday’s game is at 7 p.m. The Saturday game is at 4 p.m.
As for the women’s team, they are coming off two losses last weekend against Clarkson. This weekend they travel up to Erie to face Mercyhurst.