The Steelers' Cam Heyward drops the Chiefs' Xavier Worthy in the second quarter Dec. 25, 2024, at Acrisure Stadium.
Time to ring in the New Year with refreshing sports notes! What does "auld lang syne" mean, anyway?
* By the time the Steelers' season ends, the only thing Mike Tomlin will win is "Hard Knocks."
* The Steelers will either lose the next two games or win the next two games. No middle ground. I'm betting the former.
* If Baltimore clinches the AFC North by winning before the Steelers play Saturday, it's logical for Tomlin to rest key Steelers. The Steelers are in the playoffs regardless. But the Steelers have looked so bad in losing their last three that it makes more sense to play their regulars and try to reclaim some small chunk of momentum going into the postseason. A win also holds onto the fifth seed and a trip to Houston, a better proposition than dropping to No. 6 and traveling to Baltimore. That's what happens if the Steelers lose and the Los Angeles Chargers win. (Houston is a playoff team the Steelers should beat. A rare breed.)
* This space proposed big changes to the Steelers if they lose out: Firing the coach and GM, not bringing back Russell Wilson, trading T.J. Watt and George Pickens. That created heated debate on X, much of it revolving around, "WHAT'S YOUR PLAN?" My response: What's the plan now? The Steelers haven't won a playoff game in seven seasons, too often collapse late in campaigns, their quarterback is 36 and will want at least $30 million per year to re-up, Cam Heyward is 35, Watt is a beat-up 30 and the Steelers have drafted at a meh level for too long. What's the plan now beyond more time in the mushy middle?
* Is Detroit coach Dan Campbell daring or stupid? There's a fine line.
* There are a lot of legit NFL MVP candidates. Joe Burrow is the best quarterback. Lamar Jackson is such a diverse threat. Jared Goff will get overlooked. They just won't give it to Sam Darnold, or to a running back even if Saquon Barkley breaks the single-season yardage record. So, it's Josh Allen's turn to win it. (Burrow will be a huge problem at Acrisure Stadium on Saturday. The Steelers need at least 28 points to win.)
* Barkley needs 101 yards to break Eric Dickerson's mark of 2,105 yards. But Philadelphia's regular-season finale against the New York Giants is meaningless to the Eagles' playoff position. Should Barkley play and go for the record, or sit and protect himself from injury for the playoffs? Whatever Barkley wants is OK, but athletes never used to think about rest. They played if they were able because it's their job.
* Some praise University of Miami tight end Cam McCormick for "chasing his dream" after using an unprecedented nine years of NCAA football eligibility. I'm assuming his dream was to never work. At least he got a master's degree. McCormick had four season-ending surgeries during his career. After nine years in college, McCormick should be able to perform them. It's "Necessary Roughness" live.
* At the conclusion of the Pop-Tarts Bowl, the winners eat the mascot: A giant Pop-Tart. Forget those stale, old-timey bowls. The Pop-Tarts Bowl should be the national championship game.
* Alabama was a 15½-point favorite over Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl, whatever that is. 'Bama didn't quite cover, losing 19-13. Alabama finished 9-4, but their arrogant fans probably still think the Crimson Tide should have been in the College Football Playoff. As one wag said on Twitter, maybe 'Bama was exhausted from all the hypothetical games it played over the last month.
* I used to believe that top programs from the "Group of Five" should get a chance to prove their worth in an expanded college football playoff. Well, Boise State did, failed, and now that doesn't have to happen anymore. Penn State played mid, did its best to keep Boise State in the game, and still won by a safe 17. Boise State's Heisman finalist, running back Ashton Jeanty, took 30 carries to get 104 yards. The "Group of Five" schools are clearly in a different, lower class. Pick another power conference team. Just not Alabama.
* Penn State and coach James Franklin are in an odd spot. They won two CFP games and are in the semifinals. But they beat two rotten foes, benefiting from idiotic bracketing that made the No. 6 seed the easiest path. If they don't make the final, Franklin will come under fire despite making the semis. It's kind of funny. (The new CFP was a failure after the first five games. They were all terrible.)
* While at Pitt, Kenny Pickett pioneered the fake slide, since putting every quarterback who slides at risk because defenders don't (and shouldn't) buy it. Now, deputizing at QB for the Philadelphia Eagles with Jalen Hurts out, Pickett forgot to let go of the football while passing and propelled the ball and himself straight into the ground. It was like he over-applied Stickum to his notoriously small hands. It was spectacular. The Eagles beat Dallas, 41-7, on Sunday. Pickett had his typical crappy stat line: 10 of 15 for 143 yards. Then he got hurt and the third-string quarterback came in and outplayed him.
* Terry Bradshaw said the Steelers made a mistake letting Pickett go. I bet Bradshaw said that before he saw Pickett make that throw.
* Pickett threw a touchdown. Mitch Trubisky threw a touchdown. Mason Rudolph threw a touchdown. Josh Dobbs led a touchdown drive. It was a spectacular Week 17 for ex-Steelers quarterbacks who were never any good in the first place.
* Sidney Crosby usurping Mario Lemieux as the Penguins' all-time assists leader is an incredible achievement. The two are very different players, and I still consider Lemieux to be superior. But the gap between the two is smaller than I'd ever imagined. Crosby is undoubtedly one of hockey's best five players ever. If he was from Ontario or Western Canada, there wouldn't be any argument.
* He has three Norris Trophies, the award annually given to the NHL's top defenseman. But Erik Karlsson is not a winning hockey player. The lazy tripping penalty he took with 7:05 left in the third period of Tuesday's 4-2 Penguins loss at Detroit gifted the Red Wings a tiebreaking power-play goal and exemplified Karlsson as more liability than help at this stage of his career. He's got no rings and that's not coincidence.
* Will Ferrell attended a Los Angeles Kings game dressed as Buddy the Elf. Is that funny or weird?
* Caitlin Clark is getting everybody's Sportswoman of the Year award. It's a fine finish to a year that saw Clark rise above being badly sabotaged by the WNBA, which capitalized on Clark by fueling racial turmoil under the guise of diversity and equality. The gold medal-winning U.S. Olympic team piled on by inexplicably not selecting her. Yet Clark remained an outright phenomenon.