As Pittsburgh Steelers fans continue to watch for any news about potentially disgruntled wide receivers, Denver’s coach is trying to dismiss headlines about Courtland Sutton.
Former Penguin Jake Guentzel has apparently made a lot of money in recent months. We take a look at the Pirates’ next opponent at PNC Park.
And we examine a difficult night for TJ McConnell and the Indiana Pacers.
All this in the “First Call” on Friday.
The ‘court’ session is suspended
Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton is not in organized team activities for the club. That will be of particular interest to Steelers fans until he signs a new contract with the Broncos.
Apparently, that’s what the 28-year-old pass catcher wants, even though he has two years left on his current contract. However, he only has $2 million left in guaranteed salary.
Given the Steelers’ wide receiver depth issues, Sutton has long been a perceived target for the Black and Gold. Reports out of Denver regarding the Draft linked the Steelers as one of the few teams to inquire about Sutton’s availability.
Broncos coach Sean Payton is acting like he’s not sweating over Sutton’s contract status.
“There is no concern. Here’s why,” coach Sean Payton said via News9 in Denver. “That will take care of itself.”
It was unclear how exactly that will happen, neither from Payton nor from the News9 report.
Sutton had 59 receptions for 772 yards and 10 touchdowns working with Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson in Denver last year.
Jake shaking it
DailyFaceoff.com projects Jake Guentzel to be the second most valuable free agent on the NHL market this summer.
Using AFP Analytics research, the website lists the former Penguins forward on a seven-year contract worth $9.25 million per season. Only Florida’s Sam Reinhardt is projected to get a better deal than that $11.3 million per year for eight seasons.
Guentzel, who finished this season with Carolina after a trade in March, scored 30 goals and scored 77 points. Reinhardt was left with 57 goals and 94 points. Only Toronto’s Auston Matthews, with 69 goals, scored more than Reinhardt last year.
AFP data says no potential free agent has done more to increase his signing value since January than Guentzel. Four months ago, he was assigned six years and $7.94 million, a net change of $17.3 million.
Meanwhile, the highest-ranked Penguins free agent player is Alex Nedeljkovic with two years at $2.3 million per season, 35th in the NHL.
The goalkeeper earned $1.5 million this season. That number shouldn’t scare the penguins, but with Joel Blomqvist perhaps ready for a promotionUnless the Penguins move Tristan Jarry, I’m betting Nedeljkovic will be somewhere else next season.
Free agency begins July 1.
More sports
• Jaylen Warren appreciates Russell Wilson’s leadership and changes to Steelers’ offense
• Tim Benz: Paul Skenes impresses without his A-level stuff, while Pirates bullpen flunks again
• Steelers’ sixth-round pick Ryan Watts takes team reps at safety and continues to refine his skills at CB
Less than perfect moment
After blowing a five-run lead on Wednesday and a four-run lead on Thursday, the Pirates now have to turn around and host the Atlanta Braves for a three-game series starting Friday.
The Braves arrive with a record of 29-18. That’s good for second place in the National League East, six games behind the red-hot Philadelphia Phillies. They have the best record in the Major Leagues at 37-14. Philadelphia and the Los Angeles Dodgers (33-19), leaders of the NL West, are the only NL teams with better records than Atlanta.
That being said, the Braves have been pretty tacky lately, going 5-5 in their last 10 games. Although they just took two of three from the Chicago Cubs. In their last four games, the Braves have won three and the pitching has only allowed five runs along the way.
Atlanta’s pitching has been solid all year, allowing just 169 runs all season. That’s the fewest in the National League and just one more than the Yankees, who lead the entire MLB with just 168 allowed.
Braves pitchers have been particularly adept in the strike zone, allowing just 139 walks, the fewest in the National League. The staff’s collective WHIP of 1.20 is third-best in the National League, trailing only the Dodgers (1.11) and Phillies (1.15).
Individually, the Braves have Chris Sale and Reynaldo López, who has a 1.54 ERA. Sale’s seven wins are the second-best marks in the National League. His 70 strikeouts are fifth. Raisel Iglesias has 12 saves, only three pitchers in the National League have more. Lopez pitches Saturday at PNC Park and Sale is on the mound Sunday.
At the plate, Atlanta’s entire team OPS is .730, fourth-best in the National League. The club has the fifth-best batting average at .250. Designated hitter Marcel Ozuna is hitting .320 (eighth in the National League) with 15 home runs (first), 47 RBI (first) and a 1.036 OPS (second).
It’s not TJ’s day
Chartiers Valley grad TJ McConnell and the Indiana Pacers have had a magic carpet ride through the first two rounds of the NBA Playoffs. But they suffered some turbulence in Boston in the first two games of the Eastern Conference finals.
After blowing a lead late in Game 1 and losing in overtime, the Pacers lost a 126-110 scoreline in Massachusetts on Thursday. That gave the Celtics a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.
Jaylen Brown led the way for Boston with 40 points on 14-of-27 shooting along with five rebounds and led the team with a plus-18 in 37 minutes.
Jaylen Brown tied a PLAYOFF CAREER-HIGH with 40 PTS to give the @celtas a 2-0 series lead in the Eastern Conference Finals ☘️
Game 3: Saturday, 8:30 pm ET on Keynote USA pic.twitter.com/N5xtkQbYh1
—NBA (@NBA) May 24, 2024
As for McConnell, he only scored nine points on 4-of-10 shooting in 17 minutes. He was -18 that night. All of those numbers were out of step with what McConnell and the Pacers have done this postseason.
The series returns to Indianapolis on Saturday for Game 3.
Listen: This week’s “Gerger Construction” fantasy sports podcast with RotoWire’s Jeff Erickson and Tim Benz
Tim Benz is a staff writer for the Tribune-Review. You can contact Tim at tbenz@triblive.com or via x. All tweets could be reposted. All emails are subject to publication unless otherwise specified.
Categories:
Penguins/NHL | Sports | Steelers/NFL | Breakfast with Benz | Columns by Tim Benz
Keynote USA
For the Latest Sports News, Follow @Keynote USA Sports on Twitter.