The Pittsburgh Steelers opened the season with a 20-13 victory over the visiting Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, but Aaron Rodgers believes there was plenty of early-season rust to overcome — from his own receiving corps to the NFL officiating crew.

‘I think we did a lot of good things out there,’ Rodgers, 42, told sideline reporter Pam Oliver after the win. ‘We had a chance to be really, really explosive. We had a couple drops, a couple off targets, a couple non-calls, looked like penalties.’

And the Steelers quarterback had more to say about the officiating.

‘We had a 40-yard [uncalled pass interference penalty against Falcons star cornerback A.J. Terrell],’ Rodgers continued. ‘It could have been a touchdown.

‘We had a couple other ones — could have been big plays. So, you know, we were just a little bit off. But they got a good scheme.’

Rodgers launched his 22nd — and final — NFL season with 221 passing yards and a touchdown to tight end Pat Freiermuth. However, Pittsburgh’s offense was slowed by a pair of DK Metcalf drops and a ground game that offered little relief for the veteran quarterback.

Still, the Steelers showed encouraging signs, especially during the closing moments of the fourth quarter. Taking possession deep in their own territory, Rodgers delivered three completions on the game-sealing drive — finding Metcalf, Michael Pittman and Darnell Washington once apiece — while Pittsburgh ran out the final 4:16.

‘Being able to end the game on our terms, with Aaron on the ball, taking a knee, you know you can’t take that for granted,’ Freiermuth said.

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The star of the game may have been Steelers edge rusher TJ Watt, who scored an improbable touchdown after picking off backup Falcons quarterback Cooper Rush for the decisive fourth-quarter score as Pittsburgh made Mike McCarthy’s debut coaching his hometown team a success.

‘That’s what he does,’ longtime teammate Alex Highsmith said. ‘He’s the best in the world.’

Even if Watt didn’t play like it at times last season, when the four-time All-Pro finished with 7 sacks — tied for the second-fewest of his career — and missed several games late following a freak dry needling injury.

Watt already put a dent in that total in the opener, chasing down Rush twice as part of a defensive effort that sacked the late replacement for Tua Tagovailoa four times, swatted away six passes and never let him get comfortable.

That discomfort was never more noticeable on Watt’s second career touchdown, when he anticipated a dump off to Robinson and snatched the ball out of midair just after Rush released it. The next few seconds were chaos, as Watt scrambled downfield, briefly lost his footing and popped back up before he was touched.

‘I had no bearing at all,’ Watt said. ‘I’m sure the fall didn’t look too graceful but glad someone told me to get up and keep running.’

The ball eventually ended up in the hands of McCarthy, who grew up a few miles from downtown Pittsburgh and is well aware of the expectations that come with the job. The first of what he hopes are many victorious afternoons didn’t go particularly smoothly, especially for the offense that he was hired specifically to fine tune.

Not that it mattered when Rodgers handed him the game ball, which McCarthy called a ‘special moment’ as they started a reunion from their time in Green Bay that included a Super Bowl win. There’s also a part of him that’s ready to get all the firsts out of the way so he can lean into the rhythm of the season.

‘It’s time to move on and get team victories from here on,’ McCarthy said. ‘I’m not one for attention. So the homecoming has been great. Just glad to get this one under our belt.’

The Steelers played without cornerback Joey Porter Jr., who missed most of training camp with a back issue. He did practice during the week, though McCarthy said Porter’s absence was due to his health and not contract talks that broke down without Porter signing an extension.

A Maryland couple has been arrested following the death of their 2-month-old daughter, who suffered catastrophic head injuries. Court records and prosecutors say the father allegedly told police that “Satan” or a supernatural force had slammed a door on the infant.

Baltimore Police identified the parents as 21-year-olds Oscar Pineda and Katerin Monzon-Alvarado. They each face first- and second-degree child abuse, first- and second-degree assault, and reckless endangerment charges in the death of Aida Mikea Monzon Alvarado. The charges carry a potential maximum sentence of 55 years, and homicide counts could be added once the autopsy findings are complete, police said.

The infant was brought to Harbor Hospital on Wednesday with severe bruising around her eyes and jaw that medical staff deemed suspicious. According to charging documents cited by CBS Baltimore, further testing uncovered extensive trauma to her head and brain, along with multiple skull fractures that had not been detected during the first examination.

Investigators say Pineda claimed his daughter’s injuries resulted from “a supernatural force or Satan slamming a door on the child.” At a Friday court hearing, prosecutors said Monzon-Alvarado offered a different account, telling authorities that her 2-year-old son frequently jumps on the bed and that the baby fell to the floor.

However, the prosecutor said the severity of the baby’s injuries was inconsistent with a single fall from a bed.

Police said the mother took the child to the hospital Wednesday after the infant became unresponsive. She initially told officers that the baby had stopped responding while lying face down on the couple’s bed after being fed.

Prosecutors said Monzon-Alvarado later told investigators that the baby was “freezing and in shock” when she brought her in for treatment.

According to the charging documents, doctors found that the child had suffered major head and brain trauma, including bleeding in the frontal lobe and a subdural hemorrhage.

Hospital staff could not revive the child, and she died in the hospital.

Both parents later admitted to investigators that they noticed the girl’s bruises on Sept. 6 and that she began vomiting the following day. They said they did not seek medical treatment until she was unresponsive on Wednesday.

The pair is Guatemalan nationals, and prosecutors argued they pose “an extreme flight risk.”

Both parents were held without bail.

Amazon has halted its use of private cargo carrier 21 Air after one of the airline’s aircraft ran off a runway in Miami in a deadly crash that killed five people.

The e-commerce giant made the decision after reviewing the circumstances of the September 6 accident while assisting the National Transportation Safety Board’s ongoing investigation.

“After the tragic incident last weekend, we’ve spent time supporting the investigation and reviewing some of the surrounding circumstances, and we’ve decided to pause our operations with 21 Air, the operator of Flight 7598,” Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel said in a statement to NBC News.

Amazon will shift shipments previously handled by 21 Air to other carriers, Nantel said. Those companies include Sun Country Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, Air Transport International, ABX Air, ASL Airlines and Carojet.

The move follows a statement from North Carolina-based 21 Air, a cargo airline specializing in freight routes to and from Mexico. The company said it was continuing to support people affected by the crash while cooperating with the NTSB and business partners, including Amazon, as investigators examine what happened.

“We are confident in our safety policies, procedures and training,” the airline said.

However, former employees told CBS News that they were dismissed after raising concerns about safety practices at the cargo carrier, according to interviews and records reviewed by the outlet.

“Unfortunately, 21 Air has a long-established history of safety problems,” Karl Seuring, a pilot with more than 30 years of experience, told CBS News.

Seuring filed a legal complaint alleging that, when he brought safety concerns to a 21 Air manager, he was told: “It’s not going to change.”

According to the outlet, the pilot brought his retaliatory firing case to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which rejected his complaint against 21 Air.

Seuring appealed the decision before a federal judge in 2023 in a Department of Labor tribunal, where the case is still pending.

Documents cited by CBS show that several pilots’ safety complaints regarding putting faulty planes in the air, improper rest for flight crews and staffing pilots who could not communicate safely in English were buried by 21 Air managers.

Michael Anello, Seuring’s attorney, told a judge that another 21 Air pilot, Johnny Salmonson, was pressured to make flights that defied safety regulations regarding required rest periods.

‘The management was pushing the pilots, and the result was he was retaliated against,’ Anello said.

On one occasion in April 2022, Seuring detailed during testimony how a mechanical problem caused a plane to continuously accelerate to the point where it exceeded speeds that could damage its wing flaps.

The pilot said that during the incident he felt ‘concerned for my own safety.’

He claimed in tribunal testimony that following the incident there was ‘no debrief. No discussion. Assume it didn’t happen,’ with his captain, David Norgren.

Seuring also testified about a 21 Air plane flying from Alabama to Trinidad in the spring of 2022 that allegedly had a pressurization problem, forcing it to make an emergency diversion to Puerto Rico.

He accused the captain of the plane, Amir Anoshiravani, of having the ‘inability to take command of the operation,’ and added that ‘the first officers had to jointly intervene to get the airplane safely on the ground.’

Anoshiravani told CBS News he had ‘never come in contact’ with Seuring and added, ‘I don’t believe in lies. He has anger at the company because he was fired.’

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Bruce Joseph, another former 21 Air pilot, testified in his own Labor Department tribunal in March 2024 that on numerous occasions people were discouraged from reporting safety issues.

Joseph accused the firm’s then-director of safety of warning him not to log a safety issue without first speaking to the company’s then-CEO, Mike Mendez.

The pilot said there were only a ‘couple of occasions’ where his concerns were actually logged because he would ‘press’ the issue, but by doing so he ‘would have the wrath of Mike.’

21 Air operates about 17 planes, eight of which fly for Amazon – which has worked with the airline for nearly two years. It also transports shipments for DHL Express.

In a statement following the deadly crash, 21 Air said it is ‘devastated by the accident involving one of our aircraft in Miami on September 6.’

‘Our deepest condolences are with the families and loved ones of those who lost their lives. Our immediate priorities are supporting those affected, assisting the authorities, and ensuring that accurate information is communicated as it becomes available.

‘We are cooperating fully with the National Transportation Safety Board, the Federal Aviation Administration, and local authorities. The circumstances of the accident are under investigation.’

The five victims were identified as Rolando Aleman, 55, Yoel Rodriguez Naranjo, 53, Julio C Pineda, 75, Carlos Acosta Fajardo, 53, and Javierkys Reyes Quevedo, 47.

Joseph Carroll, 55, and Jaime Felipe Silva Molina, 37, were at the helm of the Boeing 767 when it slammed into a van, then through a fence, and onto a local street where it destroyed an SUV. They have since been released from the hospital.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation, but data from the plane’s cockpit voice recorder revealed that as one pilot was trying to land, the other repeatedly cautioned that the aircraft was going too fast.

There was then no ‘consistent verbal response to the comments about speed,’ according to a summary of the data released by the NTSB.

Data also showed that the plane touched down at Miami International Airport, and about 15 seconds later, a pilot called for a go-around – a maneuver in which a plane aborts its landing by pulling up and circling around the airport to try again.

The aircraft’s flight data recorder showed that its thrust then increased during landing, in a manner consistent with a go-around attempt, NTSB’s investigator in charge of the probe, Chihoon Shin, said at a news conference last week.

He added that ‘the speed brakes and the thrust reversers were not deployed.’

Speed brakes are flaps that are deployed to help an aircraft speed down, while thrust reversers are used to slow a plane during landing.

It remains unclear why those devices might not have been deployed, Shin said. 

A preliminary report by the Federal Aviation Administration also noted that the airport is not equipped with the Engineered Materials Arresting System, which has been installed at more than 120 airports nationwide.

The system places beds of lightweight, crushable material at the end of a runway to help bring planes that overshoot the tarmac safely to a stop, the agency said.

The Daily Mail has reached out to Amazon and 21 Air for more information. 

With the playoffs nearing, Sunday’s 2-0 Yankees victory offered a likely preview of their bullpen formula: one inning apiece from Brent Headrick, Paul Blackburn and David Bednar.

Yankees followers have already seen plenty of that trio this season, and the approach has paid off.

The question, however, is whether the club can maintain that workload. Headrick has appeared in more games than any pitcher in the majors and entered Sunday ranked ninth among MLB relievers with 73 ¹/₃ innings pitched.

Blackburn ranked fifth with 76 ²/₃ relief innings, while Bednar’s 64 ¹/₃ innings trailed only Cleveland’s Cade Smith among closers after Sunday’s win.

Before the game, Aaron Boone said he would “prefer a little lighter load along the way” for some of his high-leverage relievers. Still, he said the Yankees have tried in recent weeks to trim their usage and give them “a bit of a reset.”

Yet with New York chasing the Rays in the AL East and trying to stay ahead of the Red Sox for the top AL wild-card spot, Boone acknowledged the balance required. “Still got to be disciplined not overusing them, even when it’s the most critical game,” he said. “They’re all ready to roll. Any time we have a chance to win a game, I’m gonna go to them.”

That strategy delivered again on Sunday, when Headrick, Blackburn and Bednar combined for three scoreless innings behind a brilliant outing from Cam Schlittler.

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Blackburn, now in his first full year as a reliever, said adapting to the demands of bullpen work has taken time. But he believes he is equipped to pitch often through the season’s final stretch and into October.

“Mentally, that’s where we are and what we believe in,’’ Blackburn said. “We’ll probably pitch every day in the playoffs. We’re ready for that, and that’s a good thing for us. It’s not gonna surprise us. We know how to go out there with whatever we’ve got that day.”

Headrick, who has developed into the Yankees’ top left-handed bullpen option this season, pointed to his offseason work — getting stronger while sharpening his secondary off-speed pitches — as a key reason for his improved performances.

“To be able to contribute all season long is something we’re proud of as a group,’’ Headrick said. “We know all these games are a mini-test for the postseason, but we don’t look ahead to the end of the year. We just want to keep going.”

As pitching coach Matt Blake has noted, the Yankees have emphasized giving pitchers complete days off from throwing in an effort to keep them fresh for when it matters most.

He’s aware the plan might not work and they’ll only know at the end of the year.

But Sunday was another outing in which they got just what they wanted.

A California high school football coach was taken into custody Friday after students allegedly found a cellphone covertly recording inside a campus locker room as they changed, authorities said.

Tracy Police said Saturday that the device was traced to Jeffrey Pribble, 48, a teacher at Tracy High School, located east of San Francisco.

School website information and social media pages identify Pribble as Tracy High School’s varsity football head coach and a member of its physical education staff.

According to his Facebook page, Pribble had spent five years leading the football program and had worked as an educator in the district for 22 years.

Officials said the alleged recording device was discovered Thursday by one student and several classmates inside the locker room.

The students halted the recording, deleted the footage and gave the cellphone to a teacher, authorities said.

Later Thursday, a parent contacted Tracy police out of concern. School resource officers and detectives subsequently began investigating the incident.

Investigators determined the next day that the phone belonged to Pribble, leading to his arrest Friday, police said.

The Tracy Unified School District said Pribble has been placed on leave while both a criminal investigation and a separate district review remain underway.

According to the Pleasanton Weekly, Tracy High Principal Jon Waggle acknowledged the arrest of an employee in an email to parents.

The school did not identify the teacher or the specific allegations but noted that the district was fully cooperating with police.

“We understand that this news may raise serious concerns in the District community. The District too is concerned about the well-being of its students and staff and is committed to holding its employees to the highest professional and ethical standards,” Waggle wrote.

“Tracy High School and all our Tracy Unified schools are proud of being safe schools. The cooperation between students, parents and staff members keeps our schools safe and is important and appreciated. Thank you for your continued partnership and support.”

Tracy Police Chief Sekou Millington added that the safety and privacy of the city’s students remain among the department’s top priorities.

“Our children deserve to feel safe at school and in every space where they should be able to learn, grow, and simply be kids,” Millington said.

“Protecting the safety, privacy, and well-being of our students is a responsibility we take seriously. We are grateful to the students who brought this incident to the attention of adults and to the officers and detectives who acted quickly to investigate.”

News Media reached out to Tracy High School for more information.