Pitt football insiders Stephen Thompson and Abby Schnable react to Saturday's road win at Syracuse. Nick Lapi and Cam Lindsey stepped up with leading linebackers Kyle Louis and Rasheem Biles out. But the offensive line was the crux of Pitt's offensive issues (penalties, not great blocking, allowed 7 sacks). It was anything but pretty, but a key play from Kenny Johnson and three interceptions kept momentum flowing.

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On the Saturday episode of the North Shore Drive podcast, presented by FanDuel, host Adam Bittner welcomes Post-Gazette sports columnist Paul Zeise to sort through the level of blame coach Mike Tomlin deserves for the NFL Week 7 loss to the AFC North rival Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday Night Football.

Was the game plan flawed from the start? Where was the pressure from the pass rush and stars like T.J. Watt, Cam Heyward, Nick Herbig, Keeanu Benton, Derick Harmon and others? Were the 3- and 4-man rushes frequently deployed simply not enough to disrupt Bengals QB Joe Flacco and star WRs Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, leading to problems in the secondary for Joey Porter Jr., Jalen Ramsey and others? And why haven't names like Benton, Payton Wilson and others developed as much as many fans had hoped under Tomlin?

Our duo tackles those questions, plus the performance of the tight ends. Who's the best player from the group of Darnell Washington, Pat Freiermuth and Jonnu Smith right now? Are they enough for Aaron Rodgers to have success in the passing game beyond DK Metcalf most weeks? And should GM Omar Khan consider trading any of them for a second wide receiver who's an upgrade over Calvin Austin III and Roman Wilson?

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Pirates insiders Jason Mackey and Colin Beazley begin their offseason analysis series by looking at the outfield. If Oneil Cruz and Bryan Reynolds improve enough, will the issues in the outfield be addressed from within? If not, who should the Pirates go after in free agency? And how close is Esmerlyn Valdez to the big leagues?

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