11AM - Ray Fittipaldo gives Pittsburgh a 'very good chance' to win against Houston; The Numbers Game in the Texans-Steelers Wild Card Round game
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What are Ray Fittipaldo's thoughts on the Steelers' chances against the Texans?
You know what that signifies, our friend and yours. Ray Fittipaldo of the Post-Gazette joins us on the Sullivan Super Service fan hotline. Pittsburgh's trusted plumbing and HVAC provider for over 50 years. And Ray's also on YouTube. There he is, Donnie. Take a good look. He's looking good.
Fresh haircut, Ray? Fresh haircut. You know it. Got to get ready for Monday night, Donnie.
Well, where are you, Ray? In your man cave there?
I wouldn't call it a man cave. It's like a converted office that was our dining room. But like every other family, who uses a dining room anymore?
Not us.
We eat at the kitchen table.
We do. You eat at the kitchen table.
How important are Kenneth Gainwell and Jaylen Warren for the Steelers' success?
We have three separate meals for dinner. My wife goes to one room. I go to another. My daughter goes and watches TV.
You guys don't eat dinner together.
No. Do families anywhere eat dinner together anymore? The Bechtold family does.
What? Yeah. Maybe that's just because we're a loving family that enjoys each other's company. We're not.
Ray, you eat dinner together?
I mean, when we can, but the kids have too many activities. They're always on the go, so it's too hard.
So limits, everybody sits down every night at the dinner table and asks how each other's day. What is this, the Brady Bunch? Mostly just a Sunday thing. But like if, you know. Okay, a Sunday thing. That's once a week.
Yeah, like typically my dad and I will eat dinner together if my sisters are up at school or they're back right now, like depending on who's running around and stuff like that. But we always make sure that Sundays, that's the case.
That's beautiful. Thank you. Ray, I'm going to hit you right away. Who's going to win the game and why?
Wow, I thought that would be the last question.
It's the first one.
You know, I think the Sears have a really good shot. I'm going to be honest with you. I just like the fact that they're at home. I like the fact that Aaron Rodgers is playing really well. He hasn't turned the ball over a lot. Lately, I mean, his touchdown-interception ratio is really good. He's keeping them in games, and he's clutch at the end of games. So I kind of like that formula. I think it's going to be a low-scoring game, though. I don't think we're going to have the fireworks that we had at the end of the Ravens game, but I'm going to go Steelers 17, Texans 13. Ray, out of the defenses that the Steelers have seen this season, where does this Texans one rank?
What factors contribute to a low-scoring game prediction for Steelers vs. Texans?
Well, they got the Seahawks early in the season. And, you know, if Calvin Austin doesn't, deflect that football, you know, the Steelers probably put up 24 on them, at least. So the Seahawks have a really good defense, but I think this Houston defense, just the way they're structured, Donnie, like having dominant edge rushers and two dominant corners just makes them a really difficult defense to go up against. So Arthur Smith is going to have to be creative. They've kind of lived and died with Warren and Gainwell out of the backfield, being their yak guys. I think if they're going to win this game, Those guys got to get yak again, and it's going to be really hard because they are solid all over that defense.
Ray, now that you mentioned his name, give us the parameters of the already interview process here with the Titans or anyone else who might be interested. What's the date that he has to wait until, things like that?
January 14th. Any assistants involved in the Monday night game have to wait Until January 14th, the others can do January 13th. And even then, Joe, it would just be a virtual interview. And then depending on if he won, let's say the Steelers won, obviously one virtual interview and then they would have follow-ups and they would have face-to-faces in the coming days or weeks. But next week would just be a virtual interview. What percentage, Ray, would you actually put on it, him being down to maybe one of the final three, let's say, for that Titans job? Well, correct me if I'm wrong. Didn't somebody tweet like 10 names for that Titans job? Like he was one of 10 guys who were going to interview him? That's the thing.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What are Ray Fittipaldo's thoughts on the Steelers' chances against the Texans?
0:00–0:43
2
How important are Kenneth Gainwell and Jaylen Warren for the Steelers' success?
0:43–2:32
3
What factors contribute to a low-scoring game prediction for Steelers vs. Texans?
2:32–8:29
4
Where does the Texans' defense rank among the Steelers' opponents this season?
8:29–11:34
5
What are the implications of the Steelers' playoff history on current performance?
11:34–16:39
6
How does Aaron Rodgers' performance impact the Steelers' playoff prospects?
16:39–21:11
7
What are the key numbers to watch in the Texans vs. Steelers playoff matchup?
21:11–29:56
8
What is the significance of the Steelers' home playoff record against the Texans?
29:56–31:48
Speakers
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