Friday’s “First Call” features some defensive dreams for Pittsburgh Steelers fans to ponder courtesy of Alex Highsmith. The Browns apparently have eyes on Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson.
The Penguins have a loaded weekend schedule after the trade deadline, and Pitt is in must-win territory for its basketball team.
Promises, promises
Alex Highsmith was on Jon Gruden’s Barstool YouTube channel this week. The two had an interesting conversation about how Highsmith changed his rush technique this year.
Highsmith claimed that he found success rushing out of a three-point stance less often, going more from a stand-up position with his left foot off the ground.
Highsmith also sang a familiar song about plans to diversify the pass rush, suggesting that he and T.J. Watt will rush from different places more often in 2026.
Almost exclusively, Watt attacks from the defense’s left edge, and Highsmith lines up opposite him on the right side.
“But I think we’re gonna have some cool things cooking up, whether we switch sides — there were a few plays where I was lined up inside this year,” Highsmith said on the “Gruden Goes Long” show. “We’ve got a lot of versatility. But teams do game plan with us being in the same spot. … We’ve gotta practice it more. If we practice it, we’ll be more comfortable with it, instead of just going out there in the game and doing it. I’m excited to work on that.”
Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? I feel like we hear some iteration of that speech from the Steelers every year, and it never happens.
Hopefully, new defensive coordinator Patrick Graham and Mike McCarthy will be more willing to implement what they talk about in that context than Teryl Austin and Mike Tomlin were.
Talking to Ty
If the Steelers are interested in Ty Simpson as a potential quarterback draft choice, they may want to keep an eye on how much the Cleveland Browns like him.
The Alabama signal caller was in Cleveland yesterday for a pre-draft visit, according to a post from the NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.
Former Alabama QB Ty Simpson is on a visit with the Browns, per sources.
The consensus QB2 in this year’s NFL Draft, Simpson is coming off a strong showing at the NFL combine. Cleveland owns the No. 6 and 24 picks. pic.twitter.com/fD21j1WSr6
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 5, 2026
Simpson is considered by most draft analysts to be the second-best quarterback in this year’s college talent pool. Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza is probably going to go first overall to the Las Vegas Raiders.
The Browns draft sixth overall. The Steelers are 21st. Keep in mind, Cleveland drafted two QBs last year — Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders. Plus, Deshaun Watson is still on the roster.
Helpin’ ’aht
While the Penguins were losing 5-1 to Buffalo at home, the New York Islanders were dropping a 5-3 decision in Los Angeles.
So that’s good news for the Pens. They remain tied with the Isles for second place in the Metropolitan Division. They both have 75 points, nine back of Carolina for first place.
However, the game wasn’t empty of highlights for New York. Bo Horvat buried this goal off a faceoff with only one second left in the second period.
BO HORVAT ONLY NEEDED ONE SECOND ???? pic.twitter.com/vmy5IQaZmJ
— ESPN (@espn) March 6, 2026
Both of those clubs had better watch out for Columbus. The Blue Jackets are fourth in the division, just three points back of the third and final automatic playoff spot in the Metro. They climbed up to 72 points with a 4-2 win over Florida Thursday night.
The Blue Jackets have now won 10 of their last 12. They are just a point behind Boston for the Eastern Conference’s second wild card spot.
After Friday’s trade deadline, the Penguins have to host Philadelphia on Saturday (5:30 p.m.) and Boston on Sunday (4:30 p.m.). The Bruins just beat the Pens 2-1 last weekend. The Penguins last played the Flyers on Jan. 16, winning 6-3.
More sports
• Penguins Take 5: Kyle Dubas has trade deadline dilemma. Patch holes or stay the course?
• Tim Benz: Kris Letang’s expletives sum up Penguins’ opinions on goalie interference calls
• Robert Morris has new cast, same director looking to follow a familiar script
Wrapping up
The Pitt and Duquesne men’s basketball teams conclude their regular seasons on Saturday. Both are in desperate need of a win.
The Panthers are at Syracuse at 4:30 p.m. If Pitt beats the Orange, they’ll be the last team to qualify for the ACC tournament as the No. 15 seed with what would be a 5-13 record. If they lose and fall to 4-14, either Notre Dame or Boston College will get the last spot.
Pitt has split its last four games, beating Notre Dame and Cal while losing to Stanford and Florida State. Syracuse is in a crater, having lost four in a row to drop to 6-11 in conference play. The school doesn’t have an Athletic Director, head coach Adrian Autry is in hot water, and the chancellor (J. Michael Haynie) was just named this week.
Plus, former Pitt A.D. Heather Lyke, now in an administrative position at S.U., is embroiled in an H.R. controversy there. So that should be a fun day of basketball in Central New York.
Meanwhile, at Duquesne, Saturday (2 p.m.) is Senior Day against Richmond. The Dukes have six players on their roster with senior or graduate student status.
The most notable Duke who will be recognized is David Dixon. A four-year player on the Bluff, Dixon has 127 games under his belt. He has been part of 74 wins, the most in school history for any individual player.
He and the Dukes would really like to get another one soon. They’ve dropped four in a row and want to get back on the winning track before next week’s Atlantic 10 Tournament at PPG Paints Arena.
As for Robert Morris, their next game is in the Horizon League semifinals on Monday in Indianapolis against Detroit Mercy.