Episode 2: Food Influencers & the Restaurant Game: Clout Chasing or Clever Strategy?

That music means it's time for Ray Fittipaldo Steelers reporter from the Pousca Zad who was brought to you by LG KG Western PA super lawyers. They try cases and insurance companies know it He joins us on the fan hotline which is presented by Sullivan super service providing trusted plumbing and HVAC service for over 50 years Austin I'm actually surprised that that music hasn't been flagged. It only a matter of time my friend Well, we're not getting more flags than super bowl 40 on this one Donnie. This one has been cleared for takeoff That's actually good. I'm surprised by it too, but I've heard nothing I've heard nothing but good things that we can play raise music now in the age of YouTube monetization Anytime we try to have a little bit of fun with the music. It's bam flags Get this out of here. No, we were allowed to have fun with my email in my inbox that happens all the time Music anymore. There's been a lot of instances of Donnie friendly music Why do you think mr. Brightside is no longer played on the show? People were asking about that people were wondering why is the Austin Bechtold Anthem not being played anymore? Because there were too many flags monetization getting flagged left and right Ray Fittipaldo from the Pousca Zad joins us now Ray an attendant at Steelers OTA day six are actually are you Ray? I don't know what all the rules are now because Mike McCarthy is running a tight ship over there Yeah, so today Chris Carter is down there for us today So it's a lot different from when Mike Tomman was the coach actually today there's just There's no coach or player availability you could just just watch practice and video practice for About 45 minutes of Chris is down there doing that for us today Ray is it better or worse under McCarthy than it was under Tomland availability wise Access wise it's it's not as good I will say when when we get coaches You know those guys have been really good and up front with us You know those guys are good interviews, but in terms of How much we get to talk to people The player access especially it's it's not as good that hey, you know you roll with the punches Mike McCarthy is Running a different ship and guys like me kind of adjust Ray So far who has been the newest stealer it could be a draft pick or a free agent That has wowed you in the very early football in shorts period Wow, I don't know that anyone has wild and I will say consistently From rookie minicamp through the first two weeks of the OTA. I really like what Jeremy Bernard has done. I knew that was gonna be the pick Yeah, and I know Jerry wrote about Dalyne ever. I mean, that's that's a good story too, but You know I they rolled out the assistant coaches for us this week and Adam Henry the new receivers coach He was asked, you know about bringing along Jeremy Bernard slowly and like a question of that nature and he kind of cut off the questioner And he said those days are over so they are really trying to speed up the process Of his learning of his development because I do think they have designs I'm getting a lot out of him this year. That's not to say they've shut the door On Roman Wilson, I'm sure you guys have seen what what McCarthy said about Roman yesterday You know he's showing up. He's he's trying. He's doing everything he needs to do You know to find the niche, but I just think Bernard You know a second-round pick A guy who might be a better fit for this offense. I think they have designs on getting him involved and getting him involved pretty quickly here It seems like universally It's man you wouldn't believe the veteran feel this guy has the attention to detail Like that like that's just what you hear about Jeremy Bernard. It seems like he's doing everything the right way Yeah, that's true and you know what else I like about him He's a slot receiver, but he's not like Small and like his his skill set is different from a lot of quote-unquote slot receivers and this guy is Every bit of six one and he's put together and He's just a different type of receiver than what they've had the last couple of years, you know Thinking about recent drafts like Chase Claypool bigger guy George Pickens big guy, you know Big athletes and now you know you bring in a guy like this. I know They've got DK Mecca for you know for that pickens type of a role, but Bringing him in when you have Michael Pittman in his role as like the possession guy and Bernard's gonna be like the jack of all trades. I mean it just sets up really well For this offense. I think and you know one of the steady drum beats, you know the storylines are gonna hear about going into this training camp It's just how different this Steelers offense is gonna be it's not gonna be that conservative Arthur Smith mic palman approach that we've seen the last couple of years They're gonna push the envelope. They want a lot of They want to run a lot of plays they want to get a lot of touches for their skill players and It's gonna be a much different atmosphere and a much different training camp, so I know I think fans are gonna enjoy it up It will throw up here in a couple weeks. So if they have the different offensive approach this year Ray I mean, I know we're looking way out here. We're still you know Well, not not a full three months away before they ever play a single game preseason that is but Until we get to that point is there somebody that we have been used to seeing Getting a lot of snaps in the offense that you wouldn't expect to see as many Going into 2026 if things are going to look a little bit different You know, it's hard to say because attendance I mean, it's been good like veterans have been showing up But like it like the whole team isn't together yet just because and I think that'll happen at minicip I think most everyone You know, we'll show up the one thing that we learn this week and we didn't get a definition of roles for the running backs but the new running backs coach made it clear that This is still going to be a running back by committee approach And that's that's the way it's been the last Three years with Jalen Warren and a combination of others, you know, Nudge Harris for For a couple of years then Ken came last year. They have every intention of splitting the touches between those two guys again, what we don't know Is Dowell gonna take over is like the first and second down back and is Jalen going to go back to What he did early in his career or are they gonna kind of mix and match and you know not take that role away from Jalen and No kind of pieces to get together. So that's the one thing that you know, we did learn this week I think a lot of people assumed That was going to take place, but I've been very impressed with The entire coaching staff, you know what the running backs coach said this week what the receivers coach said this week They are very much on the same page with McCarthy and what's it they have to be it's a very intricate In detailed offense and those guys got to be on their toes and they got to know what they're doing It certainly seems like they do word is Caleb Johnson fit in Unless there's an injury. I don't think he fits in at all as far as getting consistent touches go Goes you know, I know there's been a little bit of buzz about him the last couple of weeks He's you know, I think they're trying to find out about him You know what exactly his role is gonna be but you just don't see running back committees with three backs, right like there is a certain rhythm to Getting running backs going and you know fitting in the third guy. I think is It's probably gonna be a little bit difficult now having fed that if there's an injury I think Caleb Johnson is in much better position To go into a game this year rather than the last year. I think he kind of got I think he lost his confidence quite honestly after that that miss hat on the kickoff But I you know, I do think hey listen if there's an injury this year I think they we got a better a better backup plan this year than what they had last year So he's not at risk of like missing the missing out on the 53 man No, they they would not when you invest the third round pick right In any player they are not gonna move on from that guy after one year I mean look at Chase Clayton all the problems they that he had and they waited two and a half years before they got rid of him So they're gonna give these guys every Opportunity every chance to you know prove To prove their worth on this roster is Eli Hyden right going to get more of a look out of the back field or at receiver where he excelled at Navy Yeah, well, he's gonna do both And you know right now. I think he's he's learning learning both But I think his path to the roster is gonna be on special teams You know, he was working with the receivers at the beginning of the practice yesterday I know back in working many camp he was Early in practice. He was with the running back so they're trying to figure out where he's gonna fit With the office, but you can't toy around with him on offense until you know that he is Gonna have a role on special teams. So an interesting dynamic, you know, they drafted cage in Kaden region to be their returner You know, so I think if Hyden right now is going to be on the 53s. He's going to have to run down and cover punts. I think with his speed, he can certainly be a good gunner, but that certainly, in a acquired skill set, a lot of players just don't come into the NFL and get that right away. So you've got to have a nose for the ball. You've got to be a little bit reckless. And we'll see if Eli can do that. It's going to be tough for him to make it, but he certainly has the makeup. And he's got the speed, too. You don't run like in the 4/3 or 4/4, like he did. And you won't be able to play in the NFL. That guy has a place in the NFL, it's just a matter of whether he can do it this year with his Steelers. Ray, to use a 4-thrown pick on Weach-in, are they going to use them in some endarounds and have package of plays for a Mercy, only going to be a kickoff returner, putt returner. Will we be on the punt team as a gunner, too? How are they going to use him? I don't think he's going to be a-- I think he's probably just going to be a returner. And then they're going to have some plays in from week to week where they're going to try to utilize him on offense. It doesn't have to be high volume. But if you're dressing as a part of the 46 man game they roster, you can't just be a returner. So they will have special packages, special plays for him. Just sweeps, maybe throw, screens to him, get the ball in space. Maybe one or two, three touches a game. But I don't think it'll be anything that's all that extends. I mean, he has to give you a little bit more than just in the return game as a 4-thrown pick. Like they can't justify unless he becomes the greatest returner in league history, picking the guy in the 4th round and saying, well, he's only going to return punts and kicks. Well, I mean, go back to Calvin Austin's rookie season. I don't have his, you know, his stacks page in front of me. But he was basically the punter returner, I think, as a rookie. And then what did he have? Well, he was hurt as a rookie. So his second year, I should say, he wasn't that involved in the offense. I mean, he might have had like 25 touches all seasons. So listen, if you can get one or two a game for region, that's all it's going to take. You know, McCarthy is going to spread the ball around. I did a lot of research for a story that's going to publish in the paper on Sunday, just about his offense of an approach. I mean, he's going to spread the ball around to a lot of different receivers and a lot of different running backs to-- I don't know if you guys heard his interview yesterday, but just talking about the full back position and how much he loves that position. So, you know, this rally, you know, what Kowski's going to be involved in. You know, the skiers did that a little bit under Arthur Smith, but I think they're going to take it even to the next level here with Mike McCurray. And Ray, I'm glad you brought him up, talking to Ray Fidipaldo covers the Steelers for the Post Gazette. I think Riley Noah Kowski has a pretty good opportunity to be their most underrated pick of the draft. Yeah. I mean, like I said, McCarthy loves full backs. This guy played tight M and college too. So if you have to, you can motion him and he'll be able to block a guy at the end of the line of scrimmage. But, you know, he's not a fast guy. I don't want to compare him to Connor Hayward because he's bigger. I think he's a little bit faster than Connor Hayward too. So he's a better Connor Hayward? Yeah, that's what I'm trying to say. When he gets the ball in space, it might not look great, but he's gaining yards. He's John Coon, right? He's a training kid. He's Coon from Green Bay. He might be better. He might be better than John Coon. Chippen's averse, John Coon, by the way. Yep. But yeah, I just think I want to see him once the pads come on once the preseason games get going. Because I just think he's going to be this guy who catches a ball and then he turns around and look. Oh, he's seven yards, nine yards. I think that's the type of player you're going to get with Noah Kelski. I may have been listening too much into it, but we played back what James Campon said to you guys the other day. And I feel like he hinted in there that they weren't going to rush Maxi Honature into the starting lineup. It would be, yeah, Faltan is probably going to be the left tackle. We're going to basically flip the right side of the offensive line from last year over to the left side. Hope Faltan will be left tackle. McCormick will be left guard. Question marks on the right side. And he kind of opened up the door for it to be Dylan Cook or even broadrick Jones who knows at right tackle on day one and not rushy Honature into it. I think it's smart. I mean, Campon's been around the while. You don't want to hear it when a guy's a first round pick. But the auditor is pretty raw. There's a lot to work with there. But I think he still has a lot of growing and developing too. And you don't want to put guys in a situation earlier in their careers when they're kind of learning on the job and they're not doing well. I think we kind of saw that through a certain extent with broadrick Jones. Broderick, he came in like week six, played pretty well for a while. But he was moved around a little bit. And like three years later, four years later, you asked the question, what's he ready for that? Did they put him into early? So I know for a front picture, you want to see him right away. But I think the most important thing for Eonator this year is growing, developing, understanding. And then when it is this time, whether it's in October, November, or in 2027, then when it is this time, he's hitting the ground running. And he's stepping in there like and not missing a beat with the other starters. That's kind of what you envision. But I don't think he's there quite yet. So I do think it's going to take a little bit of time. How many offensive linemen do you think they will keep on the 53? Is it like eight or nine? Probably nine, right? Yeah, so I mean, it's going to depend. Does Jones start on poppers? Jones healthy. So if Jones-- Yeah, they could hide him on there. It's a good point. Yeah. So if Jones is healthy, you would have Jones croak and Fauta Tano and Max. So you would have four tackles, which can be-- you've got to juggle that a little bit. That's not easy to juggle. And you would potentially keep four interior guys as well. So you could keep eight. You could end up keeping nine, you know, guards telling me the guards in center. So they kept nine before. I think eight is sort of the magic number. But yeah, depending on Jones is availability, I think that's kind of the tale there. Yeah, I mean, I'm just thinking Fauta Tano, McCormick, Frazier, Ihanichor, Anderson, Jones, Hoffman, Cook, and then Jordan's Dunker. So that would be nine right there. Yeah. Yeah. And they could do that. Hoffman probably is safe. You know, he was with McCormick. I don't know if he's like a slam dunk. If he's going to be that guy when we do those 53 ramp projections, but yeah, they brought him in here for a reason. He's probably-- I mean, we're really getting into the weeds here. But he's probably in a camp battle with a guy like Ryan McCollum, who's been here for a few years, you know, a serviceable guy. But that might be a matter of, hey, this guy played for McCarthy's a little bit more comfortable with Brock, but we'll have to see how that goes. I saw a few of you that cover the team mention this the other day that there was talk of the nickel corner position being called the star on the defense, because that's what Jalen Ramsey will play. Give a little explanation as to what the meaning behind that was. Yeah, so B.W.R. is at the learning new terminology after 19 years. I don't know if I like this topic. But yeah, that was Joe Whit who was talking about that. It was the star. And he mentioned another position, too. But basically, he was talking about the versatility that Jalen Ramsey has. You know, what Brandon Eckles is going to still bring to the equation. They really like Brandon Eckles. And just how they're going to move these guys around the secondary. So Jalen is going to be in the slot. Sometimes he's going to be a free safety sometimes. And then there's going to be times he's going to be like a roving defensive back in the middle of the field. And what Joe Whit was saying was, he was careful not to say that Jalen Ramsey is going to become this guy. But he had Charles Woodson and Green Bay. When Charles Woodson made that transition from elite corner to elite safety. And he thinks Jalen, if he's sold out to it, can be one of those guys. A guy like Rod Woodson, who eventually finds a second home as a safety, you know, for like the final three, four, or five years of his career. So it's going to be interesting to see how Jalen does with that. I know he did it for half a season last year. They kind of had to throw that together because of the way things unfolded. But I think we're going to see that full time this year in 2026. So he's just going to be all over the place. Yeah, that's what his role is going to be. Yep. Any shot that the conversation has had with TJ Watt about moving around? Or was that a door that was firmly slammed shut? Interestingly, that has not been brought up yet with the coaches. Now, I was not in on-- I don't know if it's a new outside linebacker's coach. Did a scrum this week. I don't think he did. And TJ hasn't talked yet. But you know that's been something that's been talked about that rarely implemented, at least under Carol Austin in my tomb. You know, I think the end game is, they're probably gonna talk about it, but I think Nick Herbick is gonna be a guy. I think they are gonna use a lot of three linebacker sets. I think Herbick is gonna be a guy who's gonna be that guy over the middle, overguards and centers, maybe dropping in the coverage, maybe bludzing. You know, that what you think about with Patrick Ram defense is on third and long, okay? Is this guy gonna come? Is he gonna drop? He's gonna do a lot of creative stuff. I think Herbick is gonna be a big piece of that. Are they going to pay Nick Herbick this off season? Well, I think they have designs on keeping him, but bless him. He knows if he gets the free agency that he's sure, he's gonna make a lot of money. I don't know that he can make that with TJ's contract and out just contract. I don't know how you pay three edger usher's, that kind of money, you know? So maybe they just go year to year with it. Maybe there's an injury, maybe somebody falls off and then they do business with Nick Herbick and January and February before he gets there, but that's gonna be a difficult one. He's a talented guy. He can make a lot of money on the open market. Next March, and I just don't know if he's gonna be in a hurry to sign a second contract with the Steelers. - Seems like Joey Porter has to be number one in that priority list, right? - Yeah, for sure. And the question is when does that get done? I think we all agree it's probably gonna get done, but anytime you're talking number one corner money and those guys are making 20 million or more per season. I think Joey is certainly in the conversation of your top 10 to 15 corners in the league. So he's gonna garner that kind of money. So when does it get done? Is it something that they can get done early in camp before camp? - More and more likely like TJ and Cam Hayward and Reese Nears and it's getting done at the 11th hour. I tend to think this is one that's probably gonna get done late August, early September, right before the season starts. - Ray, I just got some breaking news here from Chef to round the Donious scene either. That the Steelers and senior special teams coach, Darius Swinton have parted ways due to violation of club policy. That just came down to the last minute. I did not see that. Okay, well I'll have to find out about that. - He didn't talk at all this week, did he? - He did not. Any crossman talk last week they bring the coordinators out to us, but yeah, he did not do a scrub this week. - Man, 16 years or well, I guess it would have been his first with the Steelers, but he's been in the league for 16 years. So he didn't even get really a maiden voyage with Pittsburgh. So that'll be something that we can follow, I guess Ray. - Looks like I got some work to do after I hang out this. - All right, Ray, well we will let you go. We appreciate you taking the time as always. - Thanks Ray. - All right guys, let's talk to you later. - Ray Filippardo covers the Steelers for the post, because that a nice little nugget there from Austin, Darius Swinton and the Steelers parting ways. And yes, he was about to enter his first season. As a Steelers special teams coach, a senior assistant on the special teams, not the single special teams coach. So you don't have to have too much fear. Call back to Annie Smith, Red alert, call him back and his gum. The fan five alarm presented by a Legion community federal credit union is back June 17 and 18, but you can donate now, make your tax deductible donation at 937thefand.com. All proceeds benefit 25 local volunteer fire departments presented by a to Z fire equipment, McVey plumbing, heating and cooling and people's natural gas. So that is just a couple of weeks away. We will be out in Wexford on the 17th and in Robinson on the 18th, a pair of 12 hour days on the air. That is how we make up for the fan five alarm marathon, a two day event in 2026 as it was previously a single 24 hour event in 24 and 25 412 928 937 0. The number if you want to hop back in, we can keep talking buckos like we were in the first hour of the show. If you have anything to get off your chest, maybe you are one of the people concerned about Paul skeens. He went into the sixth last night. He struck out 10. He had one earned run. We do have some people ringing alarm bells after that. Jared Jones makes his return tonight. If you have thoughts there, Carmen Maginsky, not happy about going to the bullpen as old friend Derek Shelton comes back to Pittsburgh for the first time since he was let go by the organization around a year ago.