The end of days just might be coming. And maybe pretty quickly. I mean, not the true end of days --- I don’t think we are going to die or anything; but the end of this window of what has been a pretty darn exciting time in Pittsburgh sports might just be slamming shut.
Now it seems our heroes have grown old, our news has become a perpetual downer and we are officially on the back end of what was a time in which we saw some guys perform who could give us a thrill-a-second.
I mean, when you turn to the Steelers right now there is one question that rises above all the other ones: Will Ben Roethlisberger be back next season? Many think he will, some think he won’t.
Nonetheless, and wherever your opinion stands on how much longer Ben will play there is a fundamental truth here --- we are seeing the last few games of one of the greatest players in the history of the Pittsburgh Steelers franchise.
That isn’t to be debated. Soak it all in and understand as much. It’s going to be incredibly odd to look out on that field and not see a No. 7 anywhere in the building, but those days are fast approaching.
And with it, it would seem a logical deduction that the Steelers are about to see their win total dive down. Perhaps it is just me, but I see the franchise taking a bit of a dip for at least a few seasons without Ben as the man taking the snaps.
This won’t be the end of days, but it will sure be the end of an era. And, oh yeah, it is coming soon.
Turn your eyes over to what is going on with the Penguins ---- a history-rich franchise that recently gave us three Stanley Cups and incredible memories. We danced on Carson Street and had parades down the Boulevard.
We gathered in Point State Park and tried like heck just to get a glimpse of that shiny, sparkling Cup anywhere it was toted around town in the consequent celebrations after the championships.
Now though?
Jim Rutherford isn’t the general manager anymore and the Penguins seem to be in a state of flux. The veterans --- Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang --- are aging-out right before our eyes and while the team still has a more-than-decent shot it is obvious the glory years are probably in the rear view.
They are trying to play a faster style, but can those Big Three keep up night-after-night anymore considering they are all north of 32 years old? It will be a rough go as Father Time remains undefeated for everyone not named Tom Brady.
As for the Pirates --- we all know where they are.
The Bucs are smack-dab at the start of a rebuild. Is it the right thing to do to tear it all down and start it from scratch? Absolutely, positively it is.
Will it also take a little time? You bet.
So there you have it. That is the full lay of the land with what is going on right now. We used to count on wins and high times and titles, now ---- for me at least ---- it is kind of turning into an atmosphere where you hope to be in the mix.
You turn on the television and hope the Pittsburgh team has a shot rather than counting on them to make a deep postseason run.
Sports are cyclical and this is just the natural progression in all of this.
It is a reality but, in some ways, a hard one to grasp.
You know, the really good times might be close to being over. Not for good, but at least for now.