The Cook & Joe Show

The full Pomp and Joe Show, with Joe Starkey and Austin Bechtold (behind the glass), from Tuesday, September 16th, 2025

Hour 1 with Joe Starkey: We all know where this Steelers season is going. It's 9-8. The schedule has broken open for them with quarterback injuries, but the second half of the schedule is a complete disaster. The two truths are the Steelers aren't going anywhere and they're likely going to go 9-8. The Steelers have many winnable games against backup quarterbacks like Carson Wentz and Jake Browning. Trai Essex said the Steelers don't have a talent issue but a scheme issue.

Hour 2 with Joe Starkey: The Steelers played Cover 1 and Cover 3 70% of the time so far this year and Nick said they're not hiding anything. T.J. Watt has gone his last six games without a sack. Jack Sawyer and Nick Herbig are going to have to fill in for Alex Highsmith. Starkey's mailbag. Who will have a bigger impact this season, Roman Wilson or Kaleb Johnson? Pirates questions as well.

Hour 3 with Joe Starkey: Mike Tomlin address the media before the Steelers Week 3 game against New England. The Steelers don't hide their scheme very well. Mike Tomlin believes his defense is significant and talented enough to go on the field and do great things. Opponents have done whatever they wanted with the defense. The kickoff play could make or break RB Kaleb Johnson.

Hour 4 with Joe Starkey: Mike Tomlin said that Broderick Jones played "significantly better" against the Seahawks. The Steelers have spent high draft picks on their offensive line and haven't paid off at all. Who can make the Super Bowl? Brian Batko gives the Steelers a 1% chance. Jonnu Smith is on pace for 76 catches and had 88 catches last year. The Steelers need to throw the ball down field to Smith.

Jonnu Smith is on pace for 76 catches and had 88 catches last year. The Steelers need to throw the ball down field to Smith. Jaylen Warren had the play of the day with a significant gain and multiple broken tackles.

Mike Tomlin said that Broderick Jones played "significantly better" against the Seahawks. It makes it difficult for the offensive line when Aaron Rodgers can't move well. Brian Batko thinks the Steelers should bring in an assistant offensive line coach. Steelers have spent high draft picks on their offensive line and haven't paid off at all. Should the Steelers run the tush push? Who can make the Super Bowl?

Steelers reporter Brian Batko joins. The Steelers don't hide their scheme very well. Mike Tomlin believes his defense is significant and talented enough to go on the field and do great things. Opponents have done whatever they wanted with the defense. The Steelers don't emphasize speed on kickoffs. The kickoff play could make or break Kaleb Johnson.

Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin addresses the media before the Steelers' Week 3 game against the New England Patriots in New England.

Starkey's mailbag. Who will have a bigger impact this season, Roman Wilson or Kaleb Johnson? Starkey thinks it's Wilson, but doesn't say it with confidence. Who should be under more pressure: Mike Tomlin or John Harbaugh? Questions about the Pirates owner's commitment.

The Steelers played Cover 1 and Cover 3 70% of the time so far this year and Nick said they're not hiding anything. T.J. Watt has gone his last six games without a sack. Jack Sawyer and Nick Herbig are going to have to fill in for Alex Highsmith. Nick thinks Kaleb Johnson is in his own head and the game is too fast for him, at the moment.

The Steelers have many winnable games against backup quarterbacks like Carson Wentz and Jake Browning. Will there be any repercussions for Kaleb Johnson? Trai Essex said the Steelers don't have a talent issue but a scheme issue. Players are also taking horrible angles on run plays. Essex said Keeanu Benton can't play nose tackle.

We all know where this Steelers season is going. It's 9-8. The schedule has broken open for them with quarterback injuries, but the second half of the schedule is a complete disaster. The two truths are the Steelers aren't going anywhere and they're likely going to go 9-8. Would it be better for the Steelers to win six or seven games?

The full Pomp and Joe Show, with Bob Pompeani, Joe Starkey, and Austin Bechtold (behind the glass), from Monday, September 15th, 2025

Hour 1 with Bob Pompeani and Joe Starkey: The season isn't over, but the honeymoon phase is over for the Steelers. The Steelers can't run the ball, can't block for Aaron Rodgers, and the defense has been a problem. Kaleb Johnson let a kickoff go right past him and didn't attempt to recover the football in the end zone. Seattle recovered and scored a touchdown. Is the mistake worse than Will Craig?

Hour 2 with Bob Pompeani and Joe Starkey: Sam Darnold played well, JJ McCarthy played pretty bad. Mike Tomlin said he punted on 4th and 1 near midfield to get the defense on a long field and help them. Aaron Rodgers is not panicking and thinks there is time to fix issues. Is the defense REALLY this bad? Joe thinks there should be more talk about if Seattle had possession of the live ball in the end zone.

Hour 3 with Bob Pompeani and Joe Starkey: Our report card for the Steelers. Kaleb Johnson admitted he messed up and has a chip on his shoulder. Johnson hasn't been able to provide any production to the running back room during the first two games. Poni claims Austin texted him that Starkey picked the Steelers to go 6-0. The Steelers and Pitt have combined to lose 13 of their last 16 games.

Hour 4 with Bob Pompeani and Joe Starkey: Around the NFL. Bob and Austin think Jake Browning is a decent backup. Joe Burrow is out three months for the Bengals. Russell Wilson threw for over 400 yards and put up 37 points. Joe feels good about his Super Bowl pick Lions-Ravens. Bob had Ravens-Packers. Stars and stiffs for the game.

Joe feels good about his Super Bowl pick Lions-Ravens. Bob had Ravens-Packers. The Colts are the first team in the Super Bowl era to not punt in their first two games! Stars and stiffs for the game.

Bob and Austin think Jake Browning is a decent backup. Joe Burrow is out three months for the Bengals. Russell Wilson threw for over 400 yards and put up 37 points! The Chiefs are 0-2. Lamar Jackson had six touchdowns against the Browns.

Poni claims Austin texted him that Starkey picked the Steelers to go 6-0. That did not happen! Pitt struggled against West Virginia and blew a 10 point lead. The Steelers and Pitt have combined to lose 13 of their last 16 games.

Kaleb Johnson admitted he messed up and has a chip on his shoulder. Johnson hasn't been able to provide any production to the running back room during the first two games. Our report card for the Steelers! Ray Fittipaldo gave Aaron Rodgers a C. Joe gives Rodgers a C- and Bob goes with a C.

Is the defense REALLY this bad? Joe thinks there should be more talk about if Seattle had possession of the live ball in the end zone. There are tons of camera angles at games, but the broadcast didn't mention if the player was definitely in bounds and the officials didn't address it.

We hear from Steelers fans on the loss. The Steelers offensive line significantly struggled. Troy Fautanu graded by PFF as a 50 overall. Mike Tomlin said he punted on 4th and 1 near midfield to get the defense on a long field and help them. We think helping them would be keeping them off the field and the offense converts.

Kaleb Johnson let a kickoff go right past him and didn't attempt to recover the football in the end zone. Seattle recovered and scored a touchdown. Is the mistake worse than Will Craig? Kenneth Gainwell is averaging 3.3 yards per touch. Alex Highsmith could be out four weeks with a high ankle sprain.

The season isn't over, but the honeymoon phase is over for the Steelers. The Steelers can't run the ball, can't block for Aaron Rodgers, and the defense has been a problem. The Steelers have allowed over 300 yards in the last 10 games. Over the last nine games, the Steelers are allowing 28.2 points per game.

The Steelers are 1-0 but couldn't get their run game going and on the defensive side of the ball, gave up over 180 yards. They open up Acrisure Stadium on Sunday against the Seahawks.

The full Pomp and Joe Show, with Donny Football and Austin Bechtold (behind the glass), from Friday, September 12th, 2025

Hour 1 with Donny Football: Aaron Rodgers can move into 4th place on the all-time touchdown list, and pass Brett Favre on Sunday. Donny predicts Sunday will be DK Metcalf's first touchdown with the Steelers. Pitt and WVU meet in The Backyard Brawl. Ohio knocked off West Virginia last week and the Mountaineers played very poorly offensively.

Hour 2 with Donny Football: Teryl Austin said he thought his defense was physically dominated against Baltimore, but didn't think that against the Jets. The Steelers have given up 100 or more yards rushing in 10 of their last 20 games. Keeanu Benton hasn't shown what it takes to play nose tackle. Nate thinks this will be the best atmosphere Eli Holstein and Kade Bell have worked in. The offensive line hasn't had a great push through the first two games.

Hour 3 with Donny Football: Steelers-Seahawks total sits at 42.5. Nick Kostos thinks the Steelers will win and the defense plays better, but the offense plays worse. Nick is already liking the Steelers to cover in the playoffs against the Ravens or Bills! The Penguins are signing Marc-Andre Fleury to a tryout contract for the September 27 preseason game against the Blue Jackets. CBS Sports has the Steelers selecting Drew Allar 14th overall.

Hour 4 with Donny Football: Pirates broadcaster Bob Walk joined the show. The Pirates lost all three games in Baltimore by one run. Bob doesn't care what position the Pirates add bats to, they just need to add bats everywhere to change the offense. NFL Week 2 and college football game picks!

Our NFL and college football picks!

The Pirates lost all three games in Baltimore by one run. Bob doesn't care what position the Pirates add bats to, they just need to add bats everywhere to change the offense.

The Penguins are signing Marc-Andre Fleury to a tryout contract for the September 27 preseason game against the Blue Jackets. The Penguins need to be bad to get Gavin McKenna. L.C. Greenwood is a senior finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. CBS Sports has the Steelers selecting Drew Allar 14th overall.

Steelers-Seahawks total sits at 42.5. Nick leans towards the under because he doesn't like Seattle's offense. The Steelers by three is a number Nick likes. Nick thinks the Steelers will win and the defense plays better, but the offense plays worse. Nick is already liking the Steelers to cover in the playoffs against the Ravens or Bills!

Nate thinks this will be the best road atmosphere Eli Holstein and Kade Bell have worked in. Desmond Reid is one of the most dynamic players in college football. A big special teams play can be the difference. Pitt's linebackers play 95% of the snaps. The offensive line hasn't had a great push through the first two days and Nate thinks that's where a ton of questions are.

Teryl Austin said he thought his defense was physically dominated against Baltimore, but didn't think that against the Jets. The Steelers have given up 100 or more yards rushing in 10 of their last 20 games. Keeanu Benton hasn't shown what it takes to play nose tackle. Yahya Black is going to play more snaps against Seattle.

Ohio knocked off West Virginia last week and the Mountaineers played very poorly offensively. Rich Rod said WVU can't beat itself with turnovers and bad penalties. All three of Ohio's scoring drives had penalties that extended drives. All Big 12 honoree Jaheim White is out for the season and significantly hurts the running game. If WVU wins, 17-14 is Nick's prediction.

Aaron Rodgers can move into 4th place on the all-time touchdown list, and pass Brett Favre on Sunday. Donny predicts Sunday will be DK Metcalf's first touchdown with the Steelers. The Seahawks struggled to run the ball. Jaxon Smith-Njigba is their big playmaker. Donny thinks Pitt has a chance to be on upset alert. Weird things happen in this rivalry.

The full Pomp and Joe Show, with Bob Pompeani, Joe Starkey, and Austin Bechtold (behind the glass), from Thursday, September 11th, 2025

Hour 1 with Bob Pompeani, Joe Starkey, and Tyler Kennedy: Sidney Crosby's agent Pat Brisson said it's a possibility Sid could play elsewhere. TK thinks this is the first possibility it could actually happen, but also that the Sid camp wants something. TK points to trade rumors around Rickard Rakell and Bryan Rust and also the ownership group. Penguins fans call in to talk to Tyler Kennedy and get his thoughts on the roster.