Mark Madden Columns category, Page 42
Mark Madden: Steelers should rest Ben Roethlisberger after locking up AFC North title
If Ben Roethlisberger is washed up, there’s nothing the Steelers can do to fix that short of inventing a time machine. But assuming Roethlisberger is at road’s end seems abrupt given a mere fistful of bad games — although Roethlisberger’s long throws have been ineffective all season on the sporadic...
Mark Madden: Shortcomings piling up for Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers offense
They don’t award a trophy for starting the season 11-0. That’s too bad, because the Steelers have zero chance at the Lombardi Trophy. It would be nice to win something. For those who didn’t know better, the Steelers had big buzz at 11-0. But those who did know better (ahem)...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: 20 years later, Mario Lemieux’s comeback still unmatched
Somebody could break Wayne Gretzky’s scoring records. Somebody could score five goals, five ways again. Somebody could score three goals in 20 seconds. (Bill Mosienko did it in 21 seconds. Look it up.) Outstanding feats come and go. They are matched or bettered all the time. Somebody wins the Stanley...
Mark Madden: Game at Buffalo will show what the Steelers are made of — one way, or the other
Sunday night’s game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Buffalo is the Credibility Bowl. The winner gets perceived to be in the AFC’s upper echelon with Kansas City. The loser is back in the pack. If the Steelers felt disrespected when many said they weren’t as good as their record, this...
Mark Madden: Steelers need more from running game to be legit contender
The Steelers have to run the ball more and better. They’re not forced to be one-dimensional. They do so voluntarily. It makes them predictable and easy to defend. If the Steelers feel they can’t run, they better figure out how to. Perhaps revisit how they did it earlier this season....
Mark Madden: College football needs better system to determine national champion
Lots of things are stupid about sports. Idiocy isn’t the sole reason why viewing numbers are down for almost every big-time league. But it certainly isn’t helping. Replay review has bogged down the pace and robbed sports of its emotion and spontaneity. We don’t look forward to big plays anymore....
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: The Steelers are better without Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown
As Pittsburgh celebrates the success of the 11-0 Steelers, take a moment to bask in the abject failure of Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown, aka the Toxic Twins. These two Einsteins finagled their way out of Pittsburgh, mistakenly thinking pastures would be greener and more glorious elsewhere. Bell went to...
Mark Madden: Sure, the Steelers are undefeated but skepticism is warranted
The Steelers are 11-0. It’s a weak 11-0. That sounds (is) absurd. But the Steelers have three wins of much note. Beating Daniel Jones, Jeff Driskel, Carson Wentz, Garrett Gilbert, Jake Luton and Robert Griffin III doesn’t add up to a championship-level resume. Those victories against rotten quarterbacks duly noted,...
Mark Madden: Forget January; the NHL shouldn’t return until October
The NHL season is scheduled to start in January … or February. March, perhaps. But perhaps October of 2021 would be the best idea. Barring utter failure of the covid vaccine or a chicken-hearted approach to returning to normalcy once it’s taken a foothold, it’s difficult to imagine that hockey...
Mark Madden: NFL has billions of reasons to trudge on through covid mess
The NFL has problems. The Steelers-Ravens game just refuses to be played. The Ravens have 23 players on the covid list, including six of last year’s Pro Bowlers. The Steelers have four players listed. James Conner tested positive and, as a cancer survivor, is at higher risk. The same applies...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: A pandemic doesn’t know how to be fair; the NFL has to make do
Since the game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens got pushed back to Sunday and then Tuesday, two themes have emerged via local angst: • Baltimore broke the rules. • The Steelers have been hard done by. The former implies that an outbreak of covid is akin to jumping...
Mark Madden: Diego Maradona had his flaws, but will be remembered as greatest soccer player ever
One game summed up Diego Maradona: Argentina’s 2-1 victory over England in a 1986 World Cup quarterfinal. Maradona scored both his side’s goals. He cheated to score the first, disguising a handball with a flick of his head. “The Hand of God.” The second involved skill that only God could...
Mark Madden: Tom Brady’s mystique is dissipating while others step into spotlight
When Tom Brady ditched New England and coach Bill Belichick to join Tampa Bay for the 2020 season, debate raged immediately: Who made who? What we’ve learned, however, should have been obvious: They made each other. Minus Brady (and eight covid opt-outs), Belichick’s Patriots are 4-6 and out of realistic...
Mark Madden: Steelers are juggernaut, whether they look it or not
Sunday’s 27-3 win at Jacksonville showed why the Pittsburgh Steelers, despite being 10-0, aren’t on top of all the power rankings and why they would be underdogs vs. Kansas City, even at Heinz Field. It was unentertaining and nondescript. The Steelers stumbled through the first quarter, put the game away...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Odds are stacked against undefeated Steelers season
Jake Scott passed away Thursday. Scott was an All-Pro safety for the 1972 Miami Dolphins, the only undefeated team in NFL history. Scott was MVP in that season’s final game, Super Bowl VII. He had two interceptions. Scott went to his grave not knowing if the current Steelers would finish...
Mark Madden: National media continues to disrespect Steelers’ Ben Roethlisberger
Former NFL executive Gil Brandt posted a Twitter poll: Who is the NFL MVP? Voting for Ben Roethlisberger (four interceptions, no losses) wasn’t an option. Kyler Murray (eight interceptions, three losses) was. Russell Wilson (10 interceptions, three losses) was. Rudy Giuliani needs to get to the bottom of this. Former...
Mark Madden: Sports consumers dwindling during pandemic
The final round of the Masters bombed on TV. Its rating was the lowest since 1957, down 51% from last year when Tiger Woods won, but also down 57% from 2018. Because of the pandemic, the Masters took place in November and not in April as it usually does. It...
Mark Madden: Can the 9-0 Steelers run the ball when needed?
When the playoffs start, the Steelers better hope they don’t have to run the ball. The Steelers very often can’t. When they can’t, they stop trying to. There isn’t much to complain about when a 9-0 team wins by 26. But I do sports-talk radio and am obligated to try....
Mark Madden’s hot take: Criticism of new Marlins GM will be frowned upon
Kim Ng is the new Miami Marlins’ GM. She is the first woman and first Asian American to hold that position in MLB. Ng is a fine hire. Her credentials are impeccable. She also has an advantage no GM in history has ever had: She is above criticism. Given her...
Mark Madden: Steelers run defense taking a hit without Devin Bush
When a team is undefeated, problems tend to be papered over. They’re mentally minimized. “What’s there to worry about? They’re 8-0.” Such is the case with the Steelers defense. There’s a lot to like about that defense. But there are a few things to worry about, too, and they mostly...
Mark Madden: Steelers should have played it safe with Vance McDonald
The Pittsburgh Steelers have been struck by covid — and a bit of irony, too. Ben Roethlisberger and Vance McDonald were among the more outspoken when the ’rona hit Tennessee before the Steelers were supposed to travel there for a game Oct. 4, forcing the Steelers’ schedule and bye week...
Mark Madden: Steelers coach Mike Tomlin lived in his fears in final moments against Cowboys
The Pittsburgh Steelers are 8-0, but I don’t trust them. Coach Mike Tomlin never has had a losing season and is a lock to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but I don’t trust him. Sunday’s victory at Dallas put those feelings in clear focus. The Cowboys...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: OHL goes way overboard with covid restrictions
The Ontario Hockey League is considered Major Junior: the top level of the sport for players aged 16-21. Seven of the 31 first-round picks in this year’s NHL Draft came from the OHL. That includes center Quinton Byfield of Sudbury, who went second overall to Los Angeles. It’s serious hockey...
Mark Madden: No one expected the Steelers to start 7-0, but how will they finish?
This is an odd Steelers season, especially for those in the sports talk genre. There isn’t much to criticize. Darn it. I never imagined the Steelers starting 7-0. Neither did anyone else, if honesty prevails. But the Steelers have so far avoided conceding a sloppy loss to an inferior team,...
Mark Madden: No chance Steelers lose to this catastrophic collection of Cowboys QBs
After defeating Cleveland, Tennessee and Baltimore — all likely playoff qualifiers — in consecutive weeks, the Steelers were due for a less challenging foe. But they never imagined Sunday’s trip to Dallas would be an absolute lock. Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott broke his right ankle. Prescott’s backup was Andy Dalton....
