Pittsburg, PA

Steelers Have Fix for Last Defensive Hole

Published

9 months ago

April 1, 2025

Steelers Have Fix for Last Defensive Hole

The Pittsburgh Steelers refrained from splurging for a top-end talent on the interior of the defensive line in free agency, leaving them with a hole at the position heading into the NFL Draft.

General manager Omar Khan appears confident in the team’s current assortment of options there, however, which may have influenced that decision.

“I like the group we have,” Khan said at the NFL league meetings. “We did sign [Daniel] Ekuale, he’s done some really good things. Logan Lee is healthy, he has a chance to step up and be a part of it. But you know, I feel good about some of the guys we have on the line.”

Ekuale is the Steelers’ highest-profile addition, per se, at defensive tackle so far this offseason. He agreed to a one-year deal worth $2.8 million with the team on March 16 after starting 16 games for the New England Patriots in 2024, during which he logged 52 tackles.

The 31-year-old is entering the seventh year of his career and should provide valuable depth as a solid run defender. He is among the current favorites to start alongside Cameron Heyward and Keeanu Benton following Larry Ogunjobi’s release, but Pittsburgh rosters a bevy of other veterans such as Montravius Adams and Dean Lowry who may also push for snaps.

With Lee, who missed his entire rookie campaign last year due to a calf injury, and Isaiahh Loudermilk back in the fold as well, there’s plenty of players on the depth chart who will have opportunities to prove themselves this summer.

The issue, however, is that Pittsburgh doesn’t have a clear long-term starter in place beyond Heyward and Benton. Head coach Mike Tomlin isn’t panicking though, as he believes there’s plenty of time before the draft to sort the situation out before declaring the position as a true need.

“You know, I think that we’re open to acquiring good players at all positions, and I don’t know that we’ve placed a pecking order, if you will, on positional needs as we sit here today,” Tomlin said. “I’m not saying that we won’t, I’m just saying that there’s a lot of time between now and the Draft, and oftentimes the information that we collect between now and then, whether it’s us or the needs of other people or the depths of the pools at the positions, a lot of things go into to weighing the ‘need’ component, and so we’re just not there yet.”

The expectation is that the Steelers will select a defensive tackle with one of their first picks, as Michigan’s Kenneth Grant and Oregon’s Derrick Harmon are potential first-round targets. Furthermore, there should be enticing prospects left on the board come Day 2 as well.

While there’s still work left to do, it doesn’t appear as though Khan or Tomlin feel pressured to find a solution and will examine the circumstances closely before making a significant move.

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Pittsburg, PA

Pennsylvania hunter charged after nearly shooting person, police say

Published

8 hours ago

December 13, 2025

Press Room

Pennsylvania hunter charged after nearly shooting person, police say

Updated on: December 12, 2025 / 7:12 PM EST
/ CBS Pittsburgh

A hunter in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, was charged after nearly shooting a person, according to police.

Karen Gaus, 42, was arrested and charged with recklessly endangering another person and disorderly conduct in connection with the incident, officials said.

The Susquehanna Regional Police Department said in a news release that officers responded to Beattys Tollgate Road in East Donegal Township on Nov. 29 for a hunting complaint. Police said a homeowner was outside their residence when they heard multiple gunshots and a bullet passing by.

Officers began investigating and found Gaus nearby, who admitted that she was hunting and fired two shots at a deer in the direction of the victim’s home, according to the news release.

Gaus, according to court documents, is awaiting her preliminary hearing, which is scheduled for Jan. 12, 2026.

Pennsylvania’s firearms deer season ends on Saturday. It opened on Nov. 29 and included two Sundays: Nov. 30 and Dec. 7. Earlier this summer, Gov. Josh Shapiro signed a bill that reversed what state lawmakers called the “outdated” ban on Sunday hunting.

Before the firearms deer season began, the Game Commission said it expected more than 500,000 hunters would be out and about.

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Giants release former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver

Published

20 hours ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

Giants release former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver

The New York Giants have released former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Ray-Ray McCloud, the team announced. McCloud was on their practice squad.

McCloud was released from the Atlanta Falcons earlier this season after being sent home by head coach Raheem Morris in a mysterious exit.

“I sent him home,” Morris said. “Excused absence — home. Working through some things right now that are private with my young man, and we’ll figure those things out as we go.”

The former Falcons wide receiver room has gone through ups and downs. They fired wide receivers coach Ike Hilliward in Week 3, a coach that McCloud is close with from his time with the Steelers. Hilliard coached McCloud for two seasons.

Morris said that McCloud’s issues have nothing to do with the fact that Hilliard was fired.

“This is between Ray-Ray, the organization and us and dealing with those things,” Morris said. “Nothing to do with that. It is just more a football thing and what we got to get straightened out.”

The former Steelers wide receiver is a valuable slot receiver who can also be a key cog on returns, but has floated around the NFL over the years trying to find a long-term home.

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Fowler makes 36 saves in NHL debut, Canadiens defeat Penguins | NHL.com

Published

1 day ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

Fowler makes 36 saves in NHL debut, Canadiens defeat Penguins | NHL.com

Fowler made a pair of saves on a Penguins power play to maintain the lead, going to the top of the crease to stop a slap shot from Ben Kindel in the slot at 11:25 and pushing right to deny a one-timer from Erik Karlsson on the rebound one second later.

“He was solid. We had some good looks,” Crosby said. “He looked pretty good in there. It would have been nice to get a little bit more traffic in front of him and test him more that way. The pucks that he was able to see, he did a good job.”

Owen Beck seemed to score his first NHL goal for Montreal at 16:21, but it was overturned when the play was ruled offside on a Pittsburgh challenge.

Rust cut it to 3-1 by chipping in a backhand pass from Crosby 44 seconds into the third period.

Oliver Kapanen scored 15 seconds later, tapping in Slafkovsky’s pass to make it 4-1 at 59 seconds.

“It was good to get it back right away, you know?” Slafkovsky said. “Got back up by three goals. It gives you a little calmness on the bench too”

Karlsson pulled Pittsburgh to within 4-2 on a power play and with the extra attacker at 15:07, scoring his second this season on a point shot through traffic.

The Penguins had 34 shots on goal in the final two periods after being held to four in the first.

“For whatever reason, I don’t think we had our legs,” Rust said. “I don’t think we were executing very well. Thought we were seeing plays. It’s just our passing wasn’t crisp. That kind of thing can slow things down a lot and we can get really disconnected.”

NOTES: Crosby reached 1,719 NHL points (643 goals, 1,719 assists) with an assist on Rust’s goal and is four points behind Mario Lemieux (1,723) for the Penguins record. … Fowler, born in Melbourne, Florida, became the first Florida-born goalie in NHL history. … Fowler is the fourth Canadiens goalie to make his first NHL start against the Penguins, joining Ken Dryden (March 14, 1971), Patrick Roy (Oct. 10, 1985) and Carey Price (Oct. 10, 2007). He is the fourth Montreal goalie in the past 10 years to win his debut, following Mike Condon (Oct. 11, 2015), Charlie Lindgren (April 7, 2016) and Jakub Dobes (Dec. 28, 2024). … Canadiens forward Jake Evans did not play due to personal reasons. He is expected to join the team for a game at the New York Rangers on Saturday.

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