On the Friday episode of the North Shore Drive podcast, host Christopher Carter and Steelers insider Brian Batko look ahead to the Week 3 matchup with the Los Angeles Chargers in Pittsburgh. What will make the Steelers' offense "dam break" when it comes to Justin Fields, George Pickens and others? Can either Najee Harris or Jaylen Warren help kickstart the scoring vs. Jim Harbaugh and company? And can the Steelers' OL stem the tide of LAC's pass rush in their 2024 regular season home opener? Plus, Chris and Brian give their top picks around the NFL and final score predictions for Steelers-Chargers. For more sports, visit post-gazette.com.

On the Friday Q&A edition of his First 10 podcast, Post-Gazette sports columnist Jason Mackey analyzes the Steelers' offense through two weeks this season and its struggles despite a 2-0 start against the Atlanta Falcons and Denver Broncos. Also, what will Sidney Crosby's contract extension allow the Penguins to do during the 2024 NHL season and beyond? Jason also breaks down the chances of the Pirates ever leaving PNC Park. What gives Pittsburgh fans confidence that Bob Nutting, Ben Cherington and Derek Shelton will get changes right next season? Plus, what could MLB free agency look like for the Pirates this offseason? For more sports, visit post-gazette.com.

Post-Gazette sports editor and fantasy football analyst Chris Dell breaks down his favorite players to start and sit at every position ahead of Week 3 using his top 150 rankings cheat sheet and positional tiers, as well as his top offensive matchups to target.

Host Dalton Brown runs through the guys that Chris is higher and lower on vs. the FantasyPros Expert Consensus Rankings (ECR) and looks at top trade targets, sleepers and stashes heading into the weekend, including some Steelers-specific fantasy talk.

Chris is the founder of Bet­tingPred­a­tors.com and the for­mer fan­tasy foot­ball and sports bet­ting lead an­a­lyst for ESPN 97.5. He re­cently won first place out of 235 an­a­lysts in the Fan­ta­syPros’ 2023 Fan­tasy Foot­ball NFL Draft Ac­cu­racy rank­ings com­pe­ti­tion. He's also currently ranked first out of 200+ analysts for the FantasyPros 2024 in-season accuracy rankings. For more fantasy football content, including Chris' top 150 weekly rankings and his '30 in 30' strategy series, visit post-gazette.com/sports/fantasy-football.

Post-Gazette Steelers insiders Brian Batko and Ray Fittipaldo report from the team's Thursday practice session at its South Side facility. Why is OC Arthur Smith praising QB Justin Fields, despite criticism of his lack of statistical production? How is the defense preparing to face Los Angeles Chargers QB Justin Herbert in NFL Week 3. Are Troy Fautanu and Dan Moore Jr. still locked into the starting tackle spots this week amid Broderick Jones' recent struggles? And how will they handle the Chargers pass rushers Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack? Our duo tackles those questions and more.

On their weekly Penn State football podcast, host Adam Bittner and Post-Gazette/Daily Collegian Nittany Lions insider Joel Haas react to news from coach James Franklin that star safety Kevin "KJ" Winston will be out for the "long-term" with an injury. How long will the projected first-round NFL draft pick be out? And does Penn State have enough depth in the form of Jaylen Reed, Zakee Wheatley and Cam Miller to navigate the the coming weeks without much trouble?

Our duo dives into those topics and more. Including: How much pressure is on the team to dominate Kent State, given the Golden Flashes profound struggles so far in 2024? Will we see highly-touted prospects including Ethan Grunkemeyer, Max Granville and others in extensive duty if the Lions can get out to a big lead? How closely should we be watching Illinois' ranked showdown with Dylan Raiola and Nebraska this week, ahead of the Fighting Illini's visit to Beaver Stadium on Sept. 28? And what's the deal with No. 3 Penn State volleyball after getting dominated by No. 1 Pitt on Wednesday night?

In his weekly YouTube appearance, Post-Gazette sports columnist Paul Zeise joins host Adam Bittner to weigh Steelers QB Justin Fields' performance in an evolving NFL offensive environment. Is his lack of counting stats so far a concern? Or does it track with passing numbers that are plunging across the league? Is it unrealistic to hold Fields -- and any modern QBs -- to the pass-happy standard of retired legends like Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees and others? Is Fields opponent this week -- the Los Angeles Chargers' Justin Herbert -- a perfect example of this phenomenon? Is this even, really, a passing league anymore?

Our duo tackles those questions and more, then gets into some college football plus Pirates and Penguins talk. What's a realistic standard for Pitt and coach Pat Narduzzi now that they're 3-0? What Neal Brown's future at West Virginia after a 1-2 start? Can Penn State cover a huge number Saturday against Kent State? Has celebration of Pirates MLB debuts gotten over the top? And does Sidney Crosby's contract extension have any chance of resulting in another deep Stanley Cup run?

On his daily First 10 podcast, Post-Gazette sports columnist Jason Mackey reacts to No. 1 Pitt volleyball's electric and dominant win over No. 3 Penn State, which drew nearly 12,000 fans to the Petersen Events Center on Wednesday night. Can anyone stop the Panthers from winning a national title? And what made the atmosphere so special for the big win?

Later, Jason reacts to the Pirates' latest bullpen implosion by David Bednar and Jalen Beeks; ponders the legacy of the Penguins Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang as training camp opens this week; and wonders if the Steelers defense is facing its toughest test yet this season in its NFL Week 3 matchup with the Los Angeles Chargers at Acrisure Stadium?

On the Wednesday episode of the North Shore Drive podcast, host Christopher Carter welcomes Post-Gazette Steelers insider Ray Fittipaldo to analyze the team's situation at offensive tackle. Was benching Broderick Jones the right move for coach Mike Tomlin after Jones' numerous penalties in NFL Week 2 vs. the Denver Broncos? And what has rookie Troy Fautanu done right to earn a starting job across from veteran Dan Moore Jr.?

Then later, the duo offers thoughts on the team's QB and WR situations. Why does Justin Fields seem poised to remain the starter for NFL Week 3 vs. the Los Angeles Chargers this week at Acrisure Stadium? How is Russell Wilson's injury situation progressing? And is Tomlin serious in his belief in the receiving corps as names including Van Jefferson, Calvin Austin III and Scotty Miller have struggled for production behind No. 1 option George Pickens.