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Steelers Senior Bowl Thoughts: Top needs revealed, Pittsburgh targets breakout star

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Steelers Senior Bowl Thoughts: Top needs revealed, Pittsburgh targets breakout star


MOBILE, Ala. — The Pittsburgh Steelers love themselves some Senior Bowl players, and that looks primed to continue in 2025. With such heavy focus on the defensive line in the first two days, what happened on the third day? Here are my notes from the practices:

– Assistant general manager Andy Weidl showed up for the Steelers on Thursday. Head coach Mike Tomlin, general manager Omar Khan, and others have left to head ack to Pittsburgh. Weidl was at the Shrine Bowl last week and is now in Mobile, conducting interviews and getting to know the players. Tracking Weidl, he spent time at just about every need, including quarterback, wide receiver, running back, defensive line, and cornerback. So, it is no surprise to see the Steelers trace what are their top five needs in a class deep at three of them and shallow in two (quarterback and wide receiver).

– A member of the strength and conditioning staff, Rod Moore, was another member on the field for the Steelers. Other scouts, such as Sheldon White, remained in a booth, but Moore watched exclusively defensive linemen. At one point, he talked to Tennessee’s Omarr Norman-Lott.

– Weidl, on the other hand, spent a lot of time on the star of the week, Toledo’s Darius Alexander. Alexander is explosive and dominated the entire week. Out of the players down here, he may have been the biggest winner from the defensive line crop. He was once a day-three pick, but this is the start of a strong process that will likely get him into day two. He said he met with Weidl on Thursday night and is firmly on the team’s radar.

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– Florida State cornerback Azareye’h Thomas has only furthered his stock this year to me. He looks like a player who will end up a first-round pick. The combination of size and speed at the position, plus ball skills, is necessary in an NFL where receivers are better than ever, and man coverage is being deployed with a lot of blitz-heavy schemes. Thomas can do all of that, but not only is he a press-man corner, but he is comfortable in off-man coverage and has good eyes in zone coverage. This is a complete cornerback.

– Virginia Tech running back Bhayshul Tuten is someone who I have talked up a lot this week, and for a good reason. Tuten is a dynamic zone running back with breakaway speed. That speed is rare, and it alone puts him on the Steelers’ radar, given their needs. However, Tuten’s pass-protection ability was a nice surprise. In backs-on-backers, Tuten stunned just about everyone he went up against with great fight and surprising hand punch. That gives him some unique three-down ability that I am not sure I knew he had, but he could, an that only furthers his stock.

– I do like Miami running back Damien Martinez. He is the opposite of Tuten, and no one will confuse him for a burner. However, he does the little things of the position right. He presses the line of scrimmage and creates extra yards for himself. In terms of identification and overall technique, his pass protection is some of the best in the entire class. On top of that, Martinez is just a solid football player. The Steelers could go for dependability with someone like him rather than true speed.

– Utah State wide receiver Jalen Royals is a fun player. His thicker build allows him to create yards after the catch, and his explosiveness in and out of breaks pops off the tape immediately. Royals won consistently this week. He, along with TCU’s Jack Bech, really grabbed my attention. I like Bech’s fit a little more in the Steelers’ offense, but Royals is a dynamic weapon.

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Pittsburg, PA

Tandem Foods, Howmet Aerospace, The Neighborhood Academy and more: Pittsburgh jobs for 2/24/25

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Tandem Foods, Howmet Aerospace, The Neighborhood Academy and more: Pittsburgh jobs for 2/24/25


IT and Engineering

Ansys has an opening for a Senior R&D Engineer to focus on sparse direct solver technology targeted at high-performance computing infrastructure including multi-core, multi-node cluster and cloud systems, develop software products and supporting systems and perform complex bug verification, release testing and beta support for products.

Thermo Fisher Scientific is hiring a Senior IT Security Engineer – AI to support solutions that protect, detect and alert security threats in the company’s global network environment, develop cloud targeted tools to identify and reduce risk and monitor and analyze security events using cloud-native security tools and SIEM solutions.

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Business and Finance

Howmet Aerospace is looking for a Senior Manager, Financial Planning & Analysis to derive business insights by conducting financial and strategic analysis to help inform the decisions of executive management (salary range: $125,000-$150,000). 

Treatspace has an opening for a Chief of Staff to execute organizational momentum, serve as an action-oriented leader, empower teams to achieve goals, drive high-impact initiatives, remove bottlenecks and ensure the organization operates at peak performance.

Pittsburgh Public Schools is looking for a Budget Analyst to assist with the financial management of the district’s general fund and supplemental-funded budgets.

Marketing and Communications

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Saint Jude Parish, Sacred Heart Church is hiring a part-time Communications Coordinator to serve as the primary contact person for the administrator, staff and parishioners for all matters pertaining to the dissemination of parish information via print, audio, visual and internet modes and create special correspondences, programs, worship aids and letters to parishioners.

Horticulture

Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens seeks a Display Horticulturist, Bonsai & Japanese Courtyard Garden to oversee the day-to-day care and maintenance of the organization’s bonsai collection and Japanese Courtyard Garden and represent and speak about bonsai, the collection and the garden at Phipps and nationally. 

Health Care

Baptist Senior Family is hiring a Certified Nursing Assistant (Third Shift) to assist residents with daily living activities, mobility and exercises, support residents during meals, take and record vital signs, monitor residents’ health, build relationships with residents and their families and ensure high-quality care.

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Education

Bishop Canevin High School has an opening for a President to provide institutional leadership, including overseeing school operations, policies, identity, vision, mission and philosophy, finances, development and fundraising, facilities, marketing and public information, and resources (salary range: $85,000-$105,000).

Nonprofit

The Neighborhood Academy seeks a Director of Development to lead the fundraising program and the development team, help shape and institutionalize the development department and serve in a collaborative managerial role.

Young Black Motivated Kings and Queens is looking for a Manager of Development & Advancement to oversee the organization’s capital campaign, major gifts strategy, data integration and grant management system, secure funding and maintain relationships with donors, funders and stakeholders (salary range: $75,000-$80,000).

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Pittsburgh Youth Leadership is hiring a Program Director to lead bicycle trips, mentor participants and promote positive leadership skills in youth (salary range: $45,000-50,000).

Administrative

Trying Together has an opening for an Administrative Assistant for The Homewood Early Learning Hub & Family Center to perform technical administrative work and help oversee facility and operational functions ($20 per hour).

The Waldorf School of Pittsburgh seeks a Front Office & Family Communication Manager to provide wide-ranging support to faculty, staff, students and families, including both public-facing and administrative duties ($16.50 per hour).

The Training and Education Fund is looking for an Enrollment Specialist to provide complete information to referrals, schedule referrals for educational sessions, troubleshoot barriers to customers participation in educational opportunities, provide customer service to participants, clients other stakeholders and complete administrative functions.

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Human Services 

Pennsylvania Prison Society is hiring a Family and Community Support Manager for Western Pennsylvania to help lead agency programs that address the isolation caused by incarceration for currently and formerly incarcerated people and their loved ones.

Advanced Manufacturing

Tandem Foods has an opening for a Director of Operations to provide leadership to plant managers across multiple sites in a campus environment, including production, maintenance, scheduling, safety, warehouse operations, quality assurance, human resources, commercialization, customer service and cost control.

Omnicell has an opening for a Production Planner/Scheduler IV to schedule the factory at linear capacity to meet customer requirements, ensure that production and inventory control strategies are followed and applied, oversees all production builds and more.

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Job Fairs

Aramark is hosting a Hiring Event at PNC Park on Saturday, March 15, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., where job seekers can interview for Warehouse Worker, Server, Runner, Concession Stand Worker and Culinary positions. Register.

The Pittsburgh Veterans Job Fair takes place on Thursday, March 27, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Acrisure Stadium, where job seekers with military experience can meet with recruiters from local and national companies. Register.

Looking for more job opportunities? Check out our recent job boards.

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Matthew Stafford Could Bring Elite WR to Steelers

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Matthew Stafford Could Bring Elite WR to Steelers


PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers are working through their evaluations at quarterback, which likely includes every name in the book. But one possible trade could change the outlook for their entire offseason, and how interested players are in coming to Pittsburgh.

Currently, Matthew Stafford and his agent are speaking with other teams, trying to see what his value would be with another organization. Chances are that they are calling the Steelers, who could be interested in his talents.

If they do call, and Pittsburgh does want to make a deal happen, it could be a game changer for their outlook moving forward. Former player Mark Schlereth believes it could be the turning point that gets top-tier talent to the Steelers in free agency.

“If you’re a receiver, would you go to Pittsburgh? You’re damn right you would,” Schlereth said on his Stinkin’ Truth Podcast. “You can’t tell me, for instance, if Matthew Stafford went to Pittsburgh, that people lined up going, ‘Wait a minute, they got Matthew Stafford. They got a head coach that everybody respects. They got a defense that can ball with T.J. Watt. Yeah, I’ll go.”

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The Steelers will make wide receiver their top priority this offseason, but right now, they don’t have a quarterback to convince them to come to Pittsburgh. Last season, that hurt them with efforts to land Davante Adams, who didn’t know how to view their QB situation as they transitioned from Justin Fields to Russell Wilson.

Fields likely remains their top option this offseason. But a trade for Stafford is certainly something they’ll have conversations about. Those conversations may include his impact to bring in wideouts, completing an offense that has struggled in recent years.

Maybe Stafford could change the Steelers offense, and maybe he’s the gateway for them to acquire top wide receiver talent this offseason.

Make sure to bookmark Steelers On SI to get all your daily Pittsburgh Steelers news, interviews, breakdowns and more!



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Hockey nights in Pittsburgh will always belong to legendary broadcaster Mike Lange

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Hockey nights in Pittsburgh will always belong to legendary broadcaster Mike Lange


PITTSBURGH — All around PPG Paints Arena on Saturday afternoon there were signs of the respect Mike Lange commanded.

Commemorative stickers on the black clothing worn by Penguins personnel. His most famous goal calls on posters held by fans. Pictures and videos on the video boards between breaks. A couple of makeshift memorials. Tears during a pregame ceremony featuring Lange’s two sons and their families, some of his former broadcast partners, and the Penguins’ famous Big Three of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang.

And fittingly, as if equal parts a nod to one of Lange’s most-quoted goal calls and his first 15 seasons calling games for a woeful franchise, Penguins goalies spent the day being beaten “like a rented mule.”

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The only thing missing was Mario Lemieux, and that was by request.

Lemieux was in the building — that itself a rare occasion these days — but asked to remain in the shadows. He didn’t want to take away any of the moments that honored his late friend.

Lange, who died Wednesday, hadn’t called a Penguins game since the 2021 Stanley Cup playoffs. But if the past few days, especially Saturday, proved anything, it was that Lange cast an everlasting shadow over a city and its hockey team.

The voice of Penguins hockey for nearly 50 years, Lange was more than an influential and beloved play-by-play announcer with a flair for the dramatic. He was the first person to make the Penguins cool in Pittsburgh—and you didn’t need to be there from the start to believe it.

However, when Lange arrived in Pittsburgh in 1974, nobody, least of all himself, would have believed he’d become as synonymous with the Penguins as their greatest players.

It’s a step too far to say Lange kept the Penguins going long enough for Lemieux to arrive 10 years later and save the franchise, only for Crosby to resuscitate it two decades after that. Lange kept the franchise relevant until “Super Mario” and “Sid the Kid” took turns transforming it from beleaguered and bankrupt into a five-time Cup champion.

Calling games for KDKA-AM, a historic radio station with a powerhouse signal, Lange landed in Pittsburgh after Roberto Clemente’s death and Franco Harris’ “Immaculate Reception,” arriving with little-to-no fanfare for a franchise that felt like an outcast. The Penguins had nothing comparable to offer and didn’t even wear Pittsburgh’s black and gold colors the first time “heeeeeee shoots and scores” echoed out of radios in and beyond Western Pennsylvania.

Lange was the heartbeat of hockey until Lemieux became the heart and Crosby the soul of the Penguins. He was the reason to listen until those icons became the reason to watch.

The broadcasting gods blessed Lange with gifts similar to the ones the hockey gods bestowed upon Lemieux and Crosby. All three men had eagle eyes, preternatural instincts, and — to borrow from a Lange goal call — “more moves than Mae West.”

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Picture a prime Lemieux weaving through opposition skaters before embarrassing a goalie. Think of Crosby churning out of a corner and dragging defenders before dishing a puck to an open teammate.

Hearing Lange was the equivalent.

His goal calls are as iconic as the unforgettable moments of Lemieux and Crosby, not to mention Malkin and Jaromir Jagr. But Lange was more than a collection of highlights, rather he was a soundtrack to the best and worst of a star-crossed franchise that captured his heart as completely as he held the attention of its fans.

He was distinct, definitive and defiant.

Who dares Lord Stanley to “give me the brandy” within seconds of the Penguins’ winning the Cup? Who describes a goalie as having his pocket picked “like he was walking down Fifth Avenue”? Who gets away with turning Turtle Creek into “Turtle Crick” to rhyme it with “Arnold Slick”? Who nicks “Elvis has just left the building” to sign off on regular-season victories only to swap “Elvis” with “the New York Rangers” at the end of arguably the Penguins’ most emotional postseason series?

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Only a fearless, unapologetic original.


A tribute to Mike Lange at PPG Paints Arena featured his iconic headset. (Rob Rossi / The Athletic)

At the end of his legendary run, Lange, a chain smoker, had switched from cigarettes to vapes. Between periods, he’d leave the radio booth and find a place in every arena where he could take a hit — the nicotine somehow adding a sweetness to his voice.

His hideout at the old Civic Arena, affectionately known as The Igloo, was a small room with a small crack in the steel-domed roof. When the Penguins moved to their current arena, Lange needed a new spot where anybody who might see him would look the other way.

He found it on the catwalk. Perched from PPG Paints Arena’s highest spot, he’d create clouds while looking down upon the latest Penguins generation of fans and players — none of whom may have existed without him.

That catwalk is from where the Penguins’ five championship banners and three retired numbers hang, and that’s the company Lange deserves to keep.

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(Top photo of a view from the ice during the ceremony honoring Mike Lange: Joe Sargent / NHLI via Getty Images)





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