Joe Starkey’s mailbag: How great will AFC North ‘Hard Knocks’ be, and what did Mike Tomlin tell NBC about Steelers QBs?

Joe Starkey / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Welcome to Joe Starkey's mailbag, where the Post-Gazette columnist and 93.7 The Fan radio host answers your questions about sports, life, Lawrence McCutcheon and everything in between. If you want to ask Joe a question, tweet him at @JoeStarkey1 or email him at [email protected]. On to the questions ...

Bobby Eroshevich, @bobbyero: Do you think this year's in-season Hard Knocks will be the highest rated in the history of the show? AFC North in season is must see TV!!

Starkey: To be honest, Dr. E, I’d completely forgotten that HBO’s “Hard Knocks: In Season” would be featuring the AFC North this season. I didn’t even know the show was called “Hard Knocks: In Season” until five seconds ago. But you’re right, with a multitude of juicy storylines in a hotly contested division (except for the Browns, of course), this is going to be incrinculent.

The show apparently debuts Tuesday, Dec. 3 at 9 p.m. on HBO and will be streaming on Max. 

A lot can happen between now and late November, but just look at the possible quarterback topics: Russell Wilson seizing the Steelers’ job, the Browns and Deshaun Watson falling apart, Watson’s future in Cleveland, Lamar Jackson chasing a third MVP, and Joe Burrow looking like himself again in Cincinnati.

The coaches might be pretty good, too. I know Mike Tomlin has been resistant to the idea of ever appearing on “Hard Knocks” — resistant being too light a word — but you can bet he’ll make for some great segments. John Harbaugh should be pretty good, too. Maybe Jimmy and Dee Haslam will provide some comic relief on the Browns, who just might be the saddest franchise in American sports at the moment. They are so pathetic that they should make for great theater. Get your popcorn ready!

Christian Svbotka, @svbotka: How many games of a leash does Russell Wilson have? Is he the guy the rest of the year after one game?

Starkey: No, Dr. C, but if that’s how good he looked after 10 months on the shelf, I’m guessing he’ll get better and keep the job even through a tough game or two.

Wilson is clearly the preferred choice here — and it was instructive to hear NBC announcers Cris Collinsworth and Mike Tirico talk about their Saturday production meeting with Tomlin. Tomlin told them, according to Collinsworth, that he “just wanted to know which quarterback gave him a chance to win a Super Bowl. Period.”

Collinsworth said Tomlin also told him and Tirico that “both are capable of being our Number 1 quarterback. It’s going to be determined on the grass. When, I don’t know. We’ll know it when we get there.”

We’re not there yet, but we all saw what happened Sunday night. Wilson appears to be the guy. Collinsworth made one more reference to that meeting, saying, “The final point was, [Tomlin] said, ‘If I go back to Justin, it’s over. We’re staying there.’”

In other words, Wilson is really going to have to screw this up to be removed from the lineup.

Ed Helinski, @MrEd315: It’s true confession time. Are you a Justin Fields or Russell Wilson guy?

Starkey: Hard not to be on Team Wilson after the other night, Dr. H, but truth be told, I was a Wilson guy before most: 

Chris Barron, @ChrisRBarron: Why was there/is there so much hate for Russ Wilson? What on earth has he done to deserve the universal scorn of the national media? Sure he can be a little annoying but he won a Super Bowl and is a border line hall of famer.

Starkey: I agree with your sentiment, Dr. B, and I think it’s largely based on how Wilson arrived in Denver a little full of himself. OK, a lot full of himself. But if that’s the worst transgression of an amazing career, I think we can all forgive him. And although he might come off as a little robotic at times, I think he’s a class act and always has been. I thought it was pretty cool the way he shouted out Fields, unsolicited, in his postgame interview with Melissa Stark on Sunday. He’s also a winner who proved NFL evaluators wrong by delivering, as you said, a Hall-worthy career as an undersized quarterback drafted in the third round.

Manko, @MikeDaFicus: (very) Hypothetically, if you were the GM of the Steelers and the Chiefs called and said “We will give you Mahomes plus our entire coaching staff for x number of 1st round picks”, how many picks would you part with? If you were the Chiefs GM, how many picks would it take?

Starkey: I didn’t want to have to think this much this early in the morning, Michael, but it’s very nice to hear from you. I mean, it’s Patrick Mahomes. I’d give up five first-round picks, at least. If I were the Chiefs, there is no amount of first-round picks I would take. Not even 20.

The quarterback is a much bigger deal than the coaches, by the way, but while we’re on the topic, how is it that Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo never appears on the yearly coaching carousel? He’s the best defensive coach in football. Surely, that would be valuable to some team out there in a league filled with star quarterbacks.

Joel Alexander, @Joel_Closer: If R. Wilson is as good as he played Sunday night, then the Steelers should make a concerted effort to sign him to a 2-3 year deal. What $ do you think he will command (?) and what pieces do you feel need to be added via the draft in the 1st couple of rounds to max this window?

Starkey: Holy bird milk, Dr. A, we’re already talking contracts and next year’s draft? OK, I’ll go there. Only because you asked nicely.

How about a deal like the one Aaron Rodgers got in New York, if Wilson has a good season? That was worth $112.5 million over three years, with $75 million fully guaranteed, which sounds like a lot but only puts Rodgers 17th in annual compensation ($37.5 million), behind even Daniel Jones. Or would Wilson, if he’s happy here and knowing he has already made a ton of money, settle for a Geno Smith-like deal? Smith, upon his resurgence in Seattle, signed a three-year, $75 million deal in March 2023.

Remember, Wilson turns 36 on Nov. 29. He’s getting up there, so I’m not sure he’s going to see $50 million a year. We don’t even know how the rest of the season will go, Dr. A. We’re getting way out over our skis here. But I am glad you asked.

Bobby, @BuStA607: The 1976 Steelers went 22 quarters without allowing a touchdown. Do you think that record is untouchable in the modern day NFL?

Starkey: Untouchable? No. But very unlikely to be broken, although the modern-day NFL sometimes gets overblown compared to the early days of the Super Bowl era in terms of offense, Dr. Bob. Teams scored nearly as many points in 1966 — the first year of the Super Bowl — as they do today. The Green Bay Packers put up 69 points in two postseason games that year, too.

Having said that, your question had me looking up the NFL’s most unbreakable records. 

How about Jim Hardy with eight interceptions in one game, or the Buccaneers with 26 straight losses? I’m not even sure the Browns could break that one.

Presto, @MattPresto: Assuming the Steelers win next week, going just 4-5 after the bye should give them a good shot at a wild card at 10-7. Two of those games are against the lowly Browns. Should a playoff win be the absolute bare minimum this year?

Starkey: Absolutely, Dr. P. Anything less than a playoff win would be a substantial disappointment. It’s way past time after seven years without one.

Runnin’ Ref Rick, @PadreRico: It occurred to me, when we heard Russ call that “Coors Light” audible at the line Sunday night, he may have been throwing some shade on his time in Denver. As you likely know Coors was founded in Golden, CO just outside Denver. You have some skepticism too?

Starkey: I did not know the exact founding place of Coors Light, Dr. Ref, but I certainly drank my share of it. This conspiracy theory seems a little too deep for me. How do we know Wilson even came up with it? Somebody really must ask him this week. Also, given that the play resulted in a Calvin Austin drop, we might never hear it again!

Oh, and if you’re going to use a beer brand as a line call, let’s go with “Genny Cream Ale! Genny Cream Ale!” I’m sure you’d agree.

Skip Bittman, @BittmanSkip: Is a New York-Los Angeles World Series good for baseball?

Starkey: I guess, Skipper, and truth be told, Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge is pretty compelling theater. I hate baseball’s economics as much as anybody, but I’m not sure I’ll be able to resist watching at least some of it.

Zack Hough, @Hoagie7187: Good Day Dr. Starkey. If Russ continues to play like he did his first game, how far can the Steelers truly go this season?

Starkey: Good day, Colonel Hough. If he plays even that well or better, all things are possible. The Steelers could challenge anyone in the AFC.

Nutting Sucks, @nuttingthoughts: You haven’t published my question the last three weeks.

Starkey: Apologies, Dr. Nutting, but I have now published your statement this week.

Thanks all.