Steelers Rival, Ravens Coach Joe D'Alessandris Hospitalized

AUG 14 - RAVENS COACH UNDERGOING TREATMENT - Baltimore Ravens offensive line coach Joe D'Alessndris had to be hospitalized last weekend with an undisclosed illness and is expected to remain under treatment for an extended amount of time.

The team described the situation as an "acute illness" and head coach John Harbaugh said the team will support D'Allessandris while he undergoes treatment.

“Coach D’Alessandris is widely respected and cherished in our organization. As he focuses on his health, we offer him unwavering support,” Harbaugh said. “In the interim, we welcome George Warhop to our coaching staff. With expertise in guiding top-level offensive linemen, his dedication and strong character will continue to develop our offensive line during Coach D’s absence.”

D'Allessandris, 70, has been with the team since 2017.

AUGUST 14 - BROWNING HURT - Staying healthy is a big goal for NFL teams during training camp and the preseason. After all, training camp and the preseason are meant to prepare for the regular season.

However, just because it is meant to help players prepare for the long season ahead, it doesn't prevent injuries from happening. The Pittsburgh Steelers ' rival Cincinnati Bengals are dealing with a training camp injury, as announced Tuesday by coach Zac Taylor. Backup quarterback Jake Browning is set to miss with a rib injury.

No timeline was given for how long Browning will be out with the injury, but losing your backup quarterback just weeks ahead of the regular season is not ideal. Especially for the Bengals, who are coming off a season where starting quarterback Joe Burrow played just 10 games before being sidelined with a wrist injury.

In Burrow's absence last season, Browning was the Bengals' starter and almost helped them make the playoffs. In the former Washington product's seven starts last season, the Bengals went 4-3, as he threw for 1,936 yards, 12 touchdowns, and seven interceptions.

As they prepare for their second preseason game, where they will face the Chicago Bears, Logan Woodside looks to be in line to inherit the snaps left up for grabs by Browning's injury.

'Rising Star!' Steelers Rookie Wilson

AUGUST 13 - WATSON PLAYING? - The Cleveland Browns will not play starting quarterback Deshaun Watson in their upcoming preseason game against the Minnesota Vikings despite his clearance for contact. Coach Kevin Stefanski revealed Monday that the plan for the Pittsburgh Steelers ' rival quarterback is that he'll play against the Seattle Seahawks.

Obviously, this is another major update for Watson as he continues his recovery from last season's shoulder injury. With the current plan, as we've written previously, Watson will receive the "vast majority" of reps with the first-team offense this week in practice, as the Browns will prepare him for his preseason debut.

AUGUST 12 - BRYANT COMEBACK - Despite being cut by the Dallas Cowboys in his first attempt at making an NFL comeback following his five-year suspension, Martavis Bryant has now landed another workout.

According to a report from KPRC2's Aaron Wilson , the former Pittsburgh Steelers receiver is set to workout with the Washington Commanders as he looks to find his way back onto an NFL roster.

Immediately following his reinstatement into the league, the now 32-year-old receiver signed with the Cowboys' practice squad in November 2023. However, he never was promoted to the 53-man roster and was instead released this past offseason.

AUGUST 11 - FALCONS SIGNING - As first reported by NFL.com's Tom Pelissero , the Atlanta Falcons have signed veteran receiver and special teams returner Jakeem Grant to a one-year contract.

The move from the Pittsburgh Steelers ' Week 1 opponent comes after they lost Rondale Moore to a season-ending knee injury he suffered during the Falcons practice Wednesday.

Grant, the former sixth-round pick out of Texas Tech, spent the last two seasons with the Cleveland Browns. However, despite spending two seasons in Cleveland, he never played a regular-season game as he suffered back-to-back season-ending injuries.

Yet, before his injury-plagued time in Cleveland, he had put together a productive career as a special teams returner. During his six non-consecutive seasons with the Miami Dolphins, Grant totaled 1,001 yards and five touchdowns receiving.

He also starred on special teams as a returner, totaling 2,206 yards and two scores on kick returns and 978 yards and three touchdowns on punt returns.

AUGUST 10 - COOPER ON THE MOVE? - In their quest to trade for San Francisco 49ers star receiver Brandon Aiyuk , it seems the Pittsburgh Steelers rival, Cleveland Browns , has upset one of their own in the process.

Following a report Friday from NBCSports's Matt Maiocco that revealed the Browns offered their current star receiver Amari Cooper in addition to a second, and a fifth-round pick to the Niners in a now rejected proposal, Cleveland may not be alone in their desire to move on.

Not long after the news broke that the Browns offered Cooper in their proposal to the Niners, the 30-year-old posted a very cryptic message to his Instagram Story.

"Lol, I wouldn't mind at all," Cooper wrote.

What wouldn't he mind? Well, he doesn't specify, but considering that the post came out Friday evening following the report of Cleveland's offer, we presume to say that Cooper is suggesting he "wouldn't mind" a trade to San Francisco.

If Cooper is indeed disgruntled by these trade talks, then things could be even more interesting for the Steelers' AFC North rivals because even if they don't land Aiyuk, the damage may have already been done to their relationship with Cooper.

AUGUST 8 - With the start of the NFL's regular season just around the corner, Bud Light, the league's "official beer sponsor," has unveiled special edition team cans.

So, if fans are looking for an adult beverage to enjoy with the team's upcoming preseason opener on Friday, Bud Light is now selling limited edition Pittsburgh Steelers -themed cans.

The Steelers will play host to the Houston Texans on Friday night. Kickoff inside of Acrisure Stadium is set for 7:00 p.m. (EST).

AUGUST 6 - NO ISSUES— One of the biggest questions heading into training camp for the Pittsburgh Steelers' rival Cleveland Browns was Deshaun Watson's health and, more specifically, how he'd adjust to throwing the football every day once again.

According to all accounts, Watson has not had any cause for concern during the first two weeks of training camp. Newly hired Browns offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey continued that trend on Monday when speaking with the media for the first time in Cleveland.

"I haven't seen him have any issues in terms of not being 100% or anything like that," Dorsey said. "I think he's doing a very good job. It seems like he's feeling well throwing the football."

While Watson is seemingly back to 100 percent following his injury, no decision has been made on whether he'll play in the Browns' upcoming preseason game against the Green Bay Packers.

AUG 4 PICKS OR PLAYERS? Will it come down to Steelers vs. Browns in a bidding war to trade for 49ers wideout Brandon Aiyuk?

Aiyuk wants to make $30 million APY. The 49ers don't seem to wish to go there, while bidders (maybe the two mentioned teams and Washington, too) might.

Would the Niners be willing to accept Amari Cooper in a swap for Aiyuk?

Would they prefer that over picks, which the Steelers might dangle?

It's a cool twist on the arms race in the AFC North. Who wins?

AUGUST 4 - CHUBB ACTIVATION? - Despite it still being under a year since suffering his gruesome knee injury versus the Pittsburgh Steelers last season, Cleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb is seemingly nearing his return to the field.

According to Cleveland.com 's Mary Kay Cabot, the Browns running back who started training camp on the physically unable to perform list looks set to be activated in the near future.

“The way you see him run and cut, it looks like he can do football activities pretty soon,” Cabot said in her recent appearance on the Ken Carman Show with Anthony Lima. “I think at some point during this camp, he will be activated and available for one of those first three games.”

Chubb's activation will certainly be good news for the Browns, who have been waiting for it since his earlier designation as a precaution. Instead of risking Chubb not being able to participate fully when the team kicked off training camp last week, the Browns decided to list him on the PUP list.

This early designation meant the Browns avoided the penalty of forcing Chubb to miss the first four games of the season, as he would have if he had been put on the PUP following the start of camp.

Steelers QB Russell Wilson Continues Gradual Return from Injury

AUGUST 2 - BROWNS SIGN STEELERS EX— As the Cleveland Browns finish up their first full week of training camp, they announced the re-signing of a former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker.

As first reported by the team’s official website, the Browns signed second-year linebacker Caleb Johnson. Meanwhile, they placed linebacker Charlie Thomas III on the reserve/injured.

Johnson spent the offseason with the Browns after signing a futures contract with the team following his rookie season. He also spent time with the New York Jets, Arizona Cardinals, and Steelers last year. However, despite being with three teams, he never made his NFL debut, as he spent all of last year on those teams' respective practice squads.

After spending the offseason with the Browns, Johnson was released in late July before now being re-signed.

AUGUST 1 - GOLDEN - While training camp is already well underway for the Pittsburgh Steelers , that hasn't stopped them from looking to add to their roster. In fact, they continue to add to their 90-man roster, as just a day after signing Tarik Black, they've re-signed veteran outside linebacker Markus Golden.

As first reported by the team's website , Golden has been brought back on a one-year deal to return to the Steelers after last season. In 16 games last season, Golden totaled 20 tackles, six for a loss, and four sacks.

Now, as he is set to return to Pittsburgh, he is projected to be more of a depth piece this coming season, as both T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith will be their starters off the edge, while Nick Herbig is seemingly next in line to see the field as their deputy.

AUGUST 1 - As EA Sports continues to promote the upcoming release of their Madden 25 video game, they are releasing their player overall ratings. One of the latest positions to have their top-rated players list revealed was outside linebackers, where Pittsburgh Steelers star T.J. Watt was unsurprisingly atop the list.

Unlike his Cleveland Browns counterpart, Myles Garrett, Watt is the highest-rated player at his position, at 97 overall. This makes him six overalls better than the next highest-rated outside linebacker, Josh Allen, who earned a 91 from Madden.

There will certainly be no argument against having Watt ranked as the best player in his position. Even while Garrett is the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year award winner, there is an argument to be made that Watt should’ve won it. Watt finished last season with a league-best 19 sacks compared to Garrett’s 14.

JULY 31 - PICKENS - Since entering the league as a second-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, it seems Pittsburgh Steelers receiver George Pickens is due to make at least one highlight play during training camp that goes viral on social media.

That play for this year seemingly came during Tuesday's practice, where the former Georgia Bulldogs star went one-on-one with cornerback Joey Porter Jr. Despite tight coverage from the former Penn State product, Pickens reeled in a SportsCenter top-10 worthy one-handed touchdown catch.

JULY 30 BIG ARM The Pittsburgh Steelers made him a first-round pick but had had enough, seen enough, of first-round pick Kenny Pickett. So now, after a trade, it is the Philadelphia Eagles who get a look.

And they are apparently liking what they are seeing at training camp.

Per ESPN's Tim McManus, Pickett - working to earn the job as Jalen Hurts' backup - has made some precision throws, and in what the writer apparently considers a surprise, has been impressed with Pickett's big arm, too.

McManus wrote, "Pickett has been pretty solid. He has a bigger arm than I was anticipating."

JULY 30 - INJURY — As the Cleveland Browns kicked off their first full week of training camp, they received bad news: They were forced to place projected starting center Brian Allen on the injured reserve. As first reported by ESPN's Daniel Oyefusi , Allen suffered a calf injury during Saturday's practice that has now seen him sidelined

Allen, the former fourth-round pick of the Los Angeles Rams, signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers ' rival this offseason after six seasons in L.A. During those six years with the Rams, Allen started 32 of his 50 appearances and even made the Pro Bowl in 2021.

However, after an injury-plagued 2022, the veteran center was surpassed on the depth chart last season, which eventually led to his release.

With Allen's move to the injured reserve, the Browns filled his spot on the 90-man roster with the signing of now-former All-UFL offensive guard Zack Johnson.