Recently I was thinking about my time writing about the Pittsburgh Steelers. Throughout my career doing so, I’ve essentially done it all.

Commentary, news, breaking stories, features and even took a stab at simple film room breakdowns.

The one thing I’ve never done is work on just a random thought type format.

I can’t speak for you, the reader, but I am always thinking about writing and the Steelers. Thinking about different aspects of the team and game. Thanks to reading Myron Cope’s biography I decided to put a unique spin on this type of feature.

Now, for the name of the article, anyone who is familiar with the Styx song “Renegade” should know where it came from. If not, this is where it came from…

The jig is up, the news is out
They finally found me
The renegade who had it made
Retrieved for a bounty
Nevermore to go astray
This’ll be the end today of the wanted man

The jig is up…time for some randomness.

When will opponents learn?

Earlier this week news started circulating social media how the Washington Commanders were preparing to hand out burgundy towels vs. the Steelers to counteract the Terrible Towels which are expected there in Week 10. For those not familiar with the area, there will be a strong Steelers presence in Landover, MD, and the Commanders feel like the burgundy towels mixed with the Terrible Towels will make for quite the sight.

gold towels + burgundy towels = a beautiful sight #PITvsWAS | #RaiseHail pic.twitter.com/FvhJ9zoP0v

— Washington Commanders (@Commanders) November 6, 2024

What I find the most annoying is how all these NFL organizations hand out towels/flags/banners and more to try and counteract the Terrible Towels with the assumption the Steelers fans who have traditional Terrible Towels were handed them at a game. While I found out during the Steelers Preview podcast the Steelers have handed out special Terrible Towels, pink and other colors, for different reasons, the traditional ones are purchased. And for a cause.

Please, NFL, stop trying to duplicate the success of Myron Cope’s Terrible Towel…it never works.

Najee taking notice

Not sure if you noticed this or not, but Thursday the Carolina Panthers and running back Chuba Hubbard agreed to a new 4-year extension paying him just over $8 million dollars a year.

Panthers, RB Chuba Hubbard agree to terms on 4-year, $33.2M contract extension. (via @rapsheet) pic.twitter.com/bUFfXcuj26

— NFL (@NFL) November 7, 2024

Why does this matter? Don’t think for a second Najee Harris isn’t keeping an eye on the running back market as he is slated to hit free agency after the 2024 regular season. Will he reach free agency? If he keeps playing like he is, the Steelers would be wise to try and lock him up before that happens after the season ends.

It’s all about trust

When I think about the 2024 Steelers, I think about the difference between this year and the past two seasons. For the first time, especially on offense, you see teammates who are trusting each other. Trusting each other to not just be where they are supposed to be, but trusting them to make a play. A great example of this was when Mason Rudolph took over in 2023 and started to play with a sense of reckless abandon. When in doubt, throw it deep to George Pickens…and it worked. You can feel this offense is already more “free” than they were a year ago, and while a lot has to do with the coordinator, you can feel the trust level within the group is stronger than it was in 2022 or 2023.

This isn’t 2022 or 2023

I’ve talked about how exciting it is to see a Steelers offense do what they are doing, and when I say that I’m talking about scoring points. The past two seasons the team has averaged 17 and 18 points per game. After 8 games the Steelers are averaging over 23 points per game. It might not be a big deal to many, but it is to me. This team is fun to watch again, and you never feel as if they are out of a game. No, this isn’t 2022 or 2023, and I’m glad for that simple fact.

The Bengals aren’t going away

As I’m writing this I’m watching the Thursday Night Football game between the Cincinnati Bengals and Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium. The Ravens pulled out the win, barely, but earlier Thursday I put a tweet out asking who Steelers fans were pulling for in the game. Here were the results:

Okay #Steelers fans, who do you want to win tonight?

— Jeff Hartman (@JHartman_PIT) November 7, 2024

There were several who explained their reasoning for wanting the Ravens to win, suggesting it would be good to see the Bengals knocked down another peg in the division.

It made me think, what do the Bengals have coming up after the prime time game in Week 10? Let’s take a look:

• at LAC
• BYE
• vs. PIT
• at DAL
• at TEN
• vs. CLE
• vs. DEN
• at PIT

It’s a 4th place schedule, and it’s as soft as can be. In other words, I don’t think the Bengals are going away regardless. They might be scratching and clawing for one of the final playoff spots, and they might even need help to get in, but they aren’t going away. Barring injury, they’ll be a team to be reckoned with down the stretch.

Will the defense rise up, or fall flat?

Last week in this article I talked about the offenses the Steelers defense will go against the last nine games of the regular season.

Points Per Game in following 9 games (heading into Week 9):

WAS: 29.5
BAL: 30.3
CLE: 17.3
CIN: 24.4
PHI: 24.4
KC: 24.7

Just leaving those numbers here, and wanted to say I’m excited to see if the defense can answer the bell. Everyone always talks about how the Steelers defense folds faster than a cheap lawn chair in the playoffs, and you can’t argue with that sentiment. However, what better way to prepare the defense for big games against big offenses than with the above stretch run.

Will the defense rise up? Or fall flat?

What is going on with the officiating?

It seems as though this is a reoccurring theme in this article, but the officials are missing some really big, and glaring, calls on a weekly basis. Most recently were two calls on a two-point conversion which would have won the game for the Bengals after losing by one, 35-34.

First, was a missed defensive holding call.

The #Ravens got away with a defensive holding and a roughing the passer on the failed two-point conversion, Terry McAulay said on the broadcast. pic.twitter.com/NcWLiaChnR

— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) November 8, 2024

But sometimes those plays are missed. It happens. But I have to be honest, I don’t know how these officials are missing so many blatant penalties to the quarterbacks, especially in prime time. It was Sam Darnold nearly having his helmet ripped off a couple weeks ago, and this then against Joe Burrow on Thursday night.

Unfiltered Al Michaels: “Too many games end this way. They just do. You miss calls. The whole thing. So frustrating for the fans. So frustrating.”pic.twitter.com/DkOH6xhnD2 https://t.co/HhCkRpvWVa

— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) November 8, 2024

The NFL needs to get a grip on this, and it might mean there is an opportunity for calls like these, which are blatant, to either be reviewed, or to have an “eye in the sky” lend a hand to ensure the game is called correctly.

I didn’t care who won the Thursday night game, and I am not crazy about the penalties called on quarterbacks, but they are the rules. If you’re going to have the rules, call them the way they are written, and that hasn’t been happening for a while now.

This week’s officiating assignments

It’s Brad Rogers crew who has Steelers vs. Commanders in Week 10, so let’s take a look at this crew:

Okay, as I look over Rogers’ crew, there are some notable aspects of this crew. Rogers picked up a lot of free agent officials this past season, but there are some occupations which intrigue me. Clearly, I’d like to talk with Kevin Codey. Why? Codey isn’t just listed as a “teacher”, but  he is a middle school physical education teacher. That’s the same job title I held for 16 years of my life. Would love to swap some stories about those “young adults” you deal with on a daily basis. As for Joe Blubaugh, who is a regional sales manager, I can only speak for myself when I read that and immediately think of Dunder Mifflin.

Let’s hope this crew is up to the task this weekend and doesn’t ruin what should be a good game between two 1st place teams.

That does it…the jig is up, they’ve finally found me. This renegade is outta here…be sure to stay tuned to SCN for the latest news and notes surrounding the Steelers as they prepare for the Washington Commanders in Week 10.