AFC North

It's wise not to overreact to small sample sizes in fantasy football.

That is certainly the case with Pittsburgh Steelers rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett, who entered Sunday's 24-20 loss to the New York Jets for Mitch Trubisky and made an immediate impression with two short touchdown runs.

And then things quickly went downhill.

Pickett finished 10-of-13 for 120 yards, zero touchdowns and three interceptions as a passer. The first pick was a deflected deep ball that could have been caught and the third was on a Hail Mary, but the second one was far more costly with the Steelers nursing a three-point lead in the fourth quarter.

New York scored the winning touchdown on the ensuing possession.

Fantasy players may want to stash Pickett on the bench in case he lives up to expectations now that he appears to be the quarterback for Pittsburgh, but he is not someone who should be starting even after his two touchdown runs.

It's not as if Pickett was a scrambler who was making defenders miss in the open field. The scores were short runs near the goal line and the type of flukey results that likely won't be replicated on a weekly basis.

As for Pittsburgh's top two playmakers in Najee Harris and Diontae Johnson?

The quarterback change is no reason to take them out.

Yes, Johnson's day of two catches for 11 yards was disappointing, but the track record is there with a combined 2,084 receiving yards and 15 touchdown catches the last two years. Pickett will surely look his way a number of times when he is more settled into the offense, and that makes him a fantasy starter even if Sunday didn't go well.

It is also natural to expect Pittsburgh to rely more on its rushing attack with a rookie under center. That means Harris, who ran for 74 yards on 18 carries against the Jets, will still be involved in a major way.

And he should still be in starting lineups for fantasy players.

The Cleveland Browns announced All-Pro defensive end Myles Garrett won't play Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons because of injuries he suffered in a car crash earlier this week.

On Monday, Garrett was involved in a single-car incident that left him with numerous non-life-threatening injuries.

Among the 26-year-old's injuries were shoulder and biceps strains. The Browns provided more information in a statement:

Despite keeping their options open for most of the week, the Browns didn't have Garrett practice over the past three days.

He is in his sixth season with the franchise. The three-time Pro Bowler and two-time first-team All-Pro has amassed 61.5 career sacks, including three this year.

Cleveland's defensive line could be without two key starters Sunday. Jadeveon Clowney didn't practice all week due to an ankle injury and is listed as questionable.

Garrett and Clowney have combined for 4.5 of the team's seven sacks through three games. Garrett is the only player on the defense with more than two quarterback hits (five).

The Browns will look to improve their record to 3-1 if they can defeat Atlanta in Week 4.

Pittsburgh Steelers running back Najee Harris is not happy with the media amid the team's struggles to kick off the 2022 campaign, saying criticism and questions from journalists are creating turmoil within the squad.

Harris said, per Jonathan Heitritter of Steelers Depot:

"You know what it is? I think it's just the social media and the interviewers, like you guys. You guys are just kind of just breaking us apart in a way. Because you guys keep asking questions like this. We're at a point where we're building right now, we're working on it, but you guys come in here and asking questions to all the receivers and all the guys and Mitch [Trubisky] about what's not working. That's not how you build and that's not how you get better. You guys are breaking us apart and we need to find a way where we can just stay together and come together as a team and focus on what needs to matter the most."

The post-Ben Roethlisberger era in Pittsburgh has been rough thus far.

The Steelers enter Week 4 against the New York Jets with a 1-2 record and are coming off back-to-back losses to the New England Patriots and Cleveland Browns.

The Black and Gold have one of the worst offenses in the league, ranked 31st in total offense and last in time of possession. The offense also has scored just three touchdowns through the first three games of the season, and Harris blamed himself and his teammates for the issues, not offensive coordinator Matt Canada.

"The playcalling, all of that, is fine. It’s just us executing. You guys keep blaming other people. It’s us in this locker room. We all need to come together and focus on what we need to improve on," Harris told reporters.

Much of the criticism has fallen on Trubisky, who hasn't done enough to prove to the Steelers that he can be their starting quarterback for the remainder of the season.

The 28-year-old has completed 60.2 percent of his passes for 569 yards and two touchdowns against one interception in three games. He's averaging just 5.5 yards per attempt, and his performance just hasn't been good enough.

Despite Trubisky's struggles, the Steelers have not discussed replacing him with rookie Kenny Pickett, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Head coach Mike Tomlin also confirmed that he wasn't considering turning to Pickett after his team's loss to the Browns.

Tomlin has been vocal about taking a patient approach to Trubisky and the Steelers offense this season. If the team is still struggling at the midway point, though, Pickett may become an option.

Even if Pickett doesn't play this season, he's the team's future at quarterback, and it won't be much longer until he's taking snaps as the team's No. 1.

Video has been released showing the fan who threw a bottle at Cleveland Browns managing and principal partner Jimmy Haslam being taken into custody by police.

In the footage obtained by TMZ Sports, the fan can be heard asking the officer if he is "going to jail for a while."

The incident occurred late in the fourth quarter of Cleveland's Week 2 game against the New York Jets on Sept. 18. Haslam was on the field and walking toward the locker room when a bottle hit him in the leg.

Per NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, the Browns identified the fan and planned to ban him.

The suspect "appeared to be intoxicated," per a report from the Cleveland Division of Police (h/t Pelissero). He was charged with misdemeanor assault, failure to comply with a lawful order and disorderly conduct.

TMZ reported police documents stated the suspect failed to stop when authorities tried to detain him.

The Jets scored 17 points in the fourth quarter, including 14 in the final 82 seconds, to earn a 31-30 victory over the Browns.

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill said he's going to seek out an unnamed Cincinnati Bengals coach to discuss comments made during Thursday night's game.

"Whichever coach that is, I'm gonna come find you, bro," Hill told reporters. "... Me and you gotta have a mano-a-mano conversation. 'Cause at the end of the day, I felt disrespected as a man."

Hill led all players with 10 catches for 160 yards, but the Bengals scored an important 27-15 victory at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati.

The six-time Pro Bowler didn't yield any further details about the opposing coach's alleged remarks, and there were no signs of the interaction during television coverage of the contest.

Hill sent some trash talk in the direction of Bengals cornerback Eli Apple leading up to the game, continuing a rivalry that's lasted since earlier this year.

"I can't wait to go against Eli Apple," the Dolphins wideout said Sunday. "I owe you, boy. I owe you. Cheetah is here."

It's unclear whether that played a role in the bad blood with the Cincy sideline.

Meanwhile, Hill also addressed the scary injury suffered by Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who was transported to the hospital for evaluation for head and neck injuries.

"You wanna win the game, but obviously you wanna make sure that your brother is alright," Hill said. "Football is just our part-time job, but that brotherhood is something that'll last forever."

The Dolphins later announced Tagovailoa was expected to travel back with the team after being discharged from the hospital.

Miami's next game is scheduled for Oct. 9 when the Dolphins visit the New York Jets.

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens arguably authored the best catch through three weeks of this NFL season thanks to this sensational grab against the Cleveland Browns last Thursday.

Apparently Pickens has put on a better show on six occasions, though, based on his comments to reporters Thursday.

"That's probably like seven," Pickens said Thursday, per Teresa Varley of Steelers.com.

"UGA, practice for real," Pickens added regarding his time playing college ball for Georgia. "One is on YouTube, you will probably see it. A lot of them are undiscovered.

"I made even crazier catches in college. When I caught the ball, I made crazier catches before, so I knew I caught it. It was just a fact of what the world thought about it. I saw their input on the internet."

Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette found one of the catches Pickens referenced.

He also made this clutch grab against Alabama in the national championship game last January.

Pickens will have more chances to make highlight-reel catches Sunday when the Steelers play the New York Jets.

Cleveland Browns star Myles Garrett told Ohio State Highway Patrol he was speeding prior to his single-car crash Monday.

TMZ Sports obtained bodycam footage of an officer speaking with Garrett while the three-time Pro Bowler was being tended to in the back of an ambulance. At one point, Garrett said he thought he was traveling at 65 mph, 20 mph higher than the speed limit where he crashed.

According to ESPN's Jake Trotter, police cited the 26-year-old for failure to control his motor vehicle:

"According to the highway patrol, Garrett crashed his 2021 Porsche near Wadsworth, Ohio, striking a ditch after leaving the road. His car then hit a fire hydrant before overturning several times. A female passenger who was in the vehicle also was taken to the hospital with what were described as minor injuries."

Authorities also ruled the speed at which Garrett was traveling was a contributing factor in the crash.

In the immediate aftermath, Ohio State Highway Patrol Sgt. Ray Santiago told Cleveland.com's Mary Kay Cabot that officers had no reason to believe alcohol or drugs played a role. Santiago also said Garrett and his passenger were wearing their seat belts, which helped them avoid more serious injuries.

Garrett suffered a shoulder sprain and a biceps strain.

The Browns have yet to rule out the possibility he could suit up for Sunday's game against the Atlanta Falcons. Head coach Kevin Stefanski indicated the veteran edge-rusher was expected to be at the team's training facility Thursday.

The Cincinnati Bengals released a statement in response to a USA Today report Thursday showing they have the least-diverse staff in the NFL with five non-white coaches.

"This organization and its founders have a long-standing history of supporting diversity in the NFL dating back to 1946 when [team founder] Paul Brown signed Marion Motley and Bill Willis, breaking pro football's color barrier," the Bengals said.

Cincinnati head coach Zac Taylor, whose staff features 16 white coaches, said the league has a "ways to go" to overcome systemic racism within the coaching ranks.

"I know we've worked really hard here at the Cincinnati Bengals, and our ownership has done a great job of that," he said. "We've got some great coaches of a lot of different races that I think are very deserving of opportunities and I look forward to seeing them get those."

The NFL entered the 2022 season with just three Black head coaches—the Pittsburgh Steelers' Mike Tomlin, Houston Texans' Lovie Smith and Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Todd Bowles—despite the league being made up of 58 percent Black players in 2021, per Statista.

Tomlin has led the Steelers' staff since 2007, while Smith and Bowles were both internal promotion hires earlier this year. None of the 10 openings this past offseason were filled by an external Black candidate.

Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier, a former head coach with the Minnesota Vikings, was a popular interview target during the offseason but didn't land a second head coaching opportunity. He expressed his frustration with the hiring process to the Washington Post last week.

"It seems like the criteria moves," Frazier said. "One week, or one year, it's 'We want an offensive-minded guy.' Another year: 'We want a guy with a Super Bowl-winning background.' What's the criteria? Sometimes it's because he's 'a great leader.' Sometimes it's because he 'came up the same way I came up.' But the common theme ... is [an owner is going] to hire someone that looks like that owner."

Former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores, who was fired in January despite back-to-back winning seasons, filed a lawsuit in February alleging racial discrimination in the league's hiring practices.

In wake of that legal filing, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell pledged the league would work to find more effective policies to ensure equal opportunity.

"You don't take anything off the table so, if it requires an overhaul, you do it," Goodell said. "If it requires changes in other areas, you do it. I think, obviously, we haven't been successful to date so we've got to look at every one of those alternatives, and we're going to have other people look at it independently, as well as with us, and bring those ideas."

In March, the NFL announced changes to its Rooney Rule, requiring at least two interviews with persons of color and/or women when filling prominent positions and mandating every team have a woman or person of color serving as an offensive assistant.

Cleveland Browns All-Pro defensive end Myles Garrett, who suffered multiple injuries in a single-car crash this week, has reportedly been stopped multiple times by police for speeding since joining the Browns in 2017.

According to Phil Trexler and Bri Buckley of 3News in Cleveland, Garrett has been pulled over for speeding at least six times over the past six years, including two stops in September 2021 during a 24-hour period.

During those two stops, Garrett was cited for driving 120 mph and 105 mph, and he was ticketed both times, paying fines totaling more than $500.

Police are still investigating the cause of this week's crash.

Per ESPN's Jake Trotter, Browns general manager Andrew Berry said Monday that Garrett suffered cuts, bruises, a sprained shoulder and a strained biceps in the crash.

Ohio State Highway Patrol said the crash occurred near Wadsworth, Ohio, after Garrett left the Browns' practice facility in Berea, Ohio.

Garrett reportedly drove his 2021 Porsche off the road and flipped the vehicle before it came to a stop. In addition to Garrett, a female passenger also suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol added that it did not suspect Garrett was under the influence of alcohol or drugs at the time of the crash.

According to Trotter, the Browns haven't yet ruled out the possibility of Garrett playing against the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday despite his injuries.

Garrett is among the NFL's most dominant pass-rushers, registering 61.5 sacks in 71 career regular-season games since the Browns selected him first overall in the 2017 NFL draft out of Texas A&M.

He entered 2022 having recorded double-digit sacks in four consecutive seasons, including a career-high 16 last year, which netted him his third career Pro Bowl nod and second first-team All-Pro selection.

In three games for the 2-1 Browns so far this season, Garrett has three sacks, as well as seven tackles, five quarterback hits and one forced fumble.