PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers are gearing up for their next preseason game, as they welcome the Buffalo Bills to Acrisure Stadium. When the team takes the field, most of the starters and roster regulars are expected to play.

That includes the quarterback position, which should give the Steelers their first look at Russell Wilson in a game situation. He’s been cautiously worked back into practice as he recovers from a calf injury, and he should play at least a series or two in the next preseason game.

But the question is whether Wilson will be the starter or not when he takes the field. According to NFL insider Ian Rapoport, the QB competition is still alive in Pittsburgh.

“It’s a lot more open than I probably thought,” he said. “And probably a lot more open than it would’ve been had Russell Wilson not get injured. But this is all going to play out over the next couple weeks and I for sure look forward to this one.”

With Russ out of action, Justin Fields has started in his place and he’s played well. He’s impressed at training camp and went 5/6 in the team’s first preseason game against the Houston Texans. At this point, he’s done enough to ask the question of who the Steelers’ starting QB is. Rapoport said so himself when discussing why the Steelers are still in the deliberating phase.

“Part of the issue is Justin Fields has played really well,” he said. “You know he reminds Arthur Smith of (Ryan) Tannehill a little bit. You kind of wonder, can Justin Fields do something similar and does that edge out Russell Wilson?”

As Rapoport stated, the Steelers have a few weeks to figure out their starting QB before opening their season against the Atlanta Falcons. It should be a tight battle between Wilson and Fields and while Wilson is still the favorite, this competition is far from over.

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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates continue to deal with injuries throughout 2024 and another one to a starting pitcher.

Alex Stumpf of MLB.com reported that the Pirates sent left-handed pitcher Marco Gonzales to the 60-day Injured List due to a forearm strain, which ends his season.

Gonzales has dealt with forearm strain over the past two seasons, cutting into the amount of games he has pitched.

He went on the 15-day Injured List on June 3, 2023 with a left forearm strain and that turned into the 60-day Injured List on July 26, keeping him out the rest of the season with the Seattle Mariners.

The Mariners would activate Gonzales off the 60-day Injured List and then traded him to the Atlanta Braves on Dec. 3 in a five-player trade. The Braves would then trade him and cash on Dec. 5 to the Pirates for a player to be named later.

Gonzales had a great start to the 2024 season for the Pirates, with a 2.65 ERA in three starts and 17.0 innings pitched, along with 11 strikeouts to five walks. He would go onto the 15-day Injured list on April 14 with that left forearm strain and then to the 60-day Injured List on June 3.

The Pirates sent Gonzales on a rehab assignment with the Indianapolis Indians of Triple-A on July 1. He would struggle in two starts, with a 6.14 ERA in 7.1 innings pitched, allowing seven hits, five earned runs and five walks to six strikeouts.

He then came back up to the Pirates on July 12 after they activated him off the 60-day Injured lIst.

Gonzales had a great first start back, allowing just one run in 5.0 innings pitched in a 4-1 victory on the road over the Chicago White Sox on July 12.

His next game saw him suffer a loss, allowing two earned runs in 4.2 innings pitched in a 6-0 loss at home against the Phialdelphia Phillies on July 21.

Gonzales would then play even worse the next two games. He allowed four earned runs in just 2.1 innings of work in the 9-5 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks on July 27 on the road and then five earned runs in 4.2 innings pitched in his last game against the San Diego Padres on Aug. 7 at home.

The Pirates called up right-handed pitcher Ryder Ryan and will give the franchise another starting pitcher in Gonzales’ abscence.

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