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Wednesday’s “First Call” has some self-reflection from former Pittsburgh Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. Aaron Rodgers thinks the Steelers’ offense is on the right track. The Baltimore Ravens had a significant injury scare. And the Pirates are turning to Carmen Mlodzinski as a starter in Miami. Pacing ahead As the Steelers are preparing for their first preseason game Thursday at Acrisure Stadium, quarterback Aaron Rodgers was asked how the offense is progressing so far at training camp. “I think we’re right where I’d like to be. I think we’re ahead of where we were last year,” Rodgers said. Among the players, Rodgers would be the best judge of that. Given his years of experience with new coach Mike McCarthy, he knows what McCarthy’s system and McCarthy’s practices are supposed to look like this time of year. I’m not sure if all the Mike Tomlin holdovers share the same opinion. A lot of what McCarthy is doing probably feels very different, and perhaps not as clean and as up to speed as what they were used to for 19 straight years under Tomlin. And, to Rodgers’ point, he was the variable last year. He was the guy that didn’t join the team until June, and he was the one learning what Arthur Smith and Tomlin wanted to do. Naturally, he probably felt a little behind and that he was learning on the fly. But the future Hall of Famer insists some of the individuals at the skill positions are standing out. “I think you’re seeing guys take some steps and then play with confidence,” Rodgers said. “I think Pat (Freiermuth) has had a fantastic camp. I think DK (Metcalf) has had an unbelievable camp. I love both our lead backs. Jaylen (Warren), we knew about. Rico (Dowdle), I didn’t know as much about, but man, he’s a hell of a football player. And (Robert) Tonyan, I think has had a really good camp too.” The first test of Rodgers’ assessment as a collective will come Thursday against one of his former teams, the Green Bay Packers. How much, if at all, he plays — or any of the starters for that matter — is still unknown. But if things are going as well as Rodgers suggests, there should be some noticeable cohesion when second-and-third-teamers are on the field. Regrets, he’s had a few During an appearance on “The Pivot,” former Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick says he has some regrets about how he was used in Pittsburgh and how he failed to communicate concerns to the coaching staff. “When I first got there, they just plugged me in at post safety, half safety. And I played well there. After a while, quarterbacks aren’t going to be throwing you the ball a whole lot,” Fitzpatrick said at the 27:07 mark. “I kind of got pushed into that role. People forgot that what I was known for was my versatility and doing different things. I’m a good football player, so no matter where you put me on the field, I’m going to be a good football player. But I think where my capabilities are maximized is when I could do different things.” After Fitzpatrick signed a four-year, $73 million contract with the Steelers, he says their usage of him failed to generate the reward on investment needed for that kind of ticket. “They got so used to me being in that role and doing a good job of it, that they didn’t remember, or they didn’t really care to move me around, so I just got stuck in that role,” he said. “And after a while, my splash and production went down. I was still playing good football, but it wasn’t splashy football. I was having to make tackles downfield after a busted run, and it’s like, ‘Good job, but we (are) paying you $18 million, we want to see splash.’” Fitzpatrick partially blamed himself for not expressing his concerns louder to the coaching staff. “In Pittsburgh, I definitely regret the way I handled the situation,” Fitzpatrick continued. “I kind of just bit the bullet.” On June 30, 2025, the Steelers traded Fitzpatrick to Miami for Jalen Ramsey and Jonnu Smith. The Dolphins then traded him for a second time. He was initially sent to Pittsburgh from Miami in 2019. But in March, the Dolphins moved Fitzpatrick to the New York Jets for a 2026 seventh-round pick. He then signed a three-year, $40 million contract extension with the Jets. More sports • ‘Every tip from Aaron Rodgers is a great tip’: QB embraces mentorship role with Steelers • Steelers rookie RB Eli Heidenreich is all business ahead of Acrisure debut • Countdown to Kickoff: Perennial powers added to trophy cases in ’25 season Banged up in Baltimore According to Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic, Baltimore Ravens cornerback Nate Wiggins suffered an alarming injury Tuesday. The 2024 first-round pick was carted off the field after he went down in the end zone while covering a receiver during one-on-one drills. It was an injury to his left leg. Zrebiec posted that Wiggins “was in a ton of pain” and was helped off the field in a cart. According to the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, though, the Ravens may have gotten lucky. He’s reporting that the 22-year-old suffered no structural damage to the leg. No structural damage for Wiggins. Good news for Baltimore. https://t.co/K9GzVSbjfc — Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 11, 2026 ESPN.com is stating that new Baltimore coach Jesse Minter “declined to give a timetable on Wiggins or specify what he injured.” Wiggins is a valuable part of Baltimore’s secondary. Last season, he started all 17 games, had 76 tackles and three interceptions. He posted a team-high 14 passes broken up. More Mlodzinski Carmen Mlodzinski is going to start Wednesday’s Pirates game in Miami. It will be his 11th start and 27th appearance of the season. Mlodzinski hasn’t thrown more than three innings in a game since he went four deep June 4 in Houston. That was a piggyback outing, rounding out Jared Jones’ second start of the year. The 27-year-old last pitched Aug. 7. That was a start against the Mets. He gave up five earned runs in three innings and suffered the loss en route to a 6-4 Mets victory. Marcus Semien hits a 3-run homer to give Mets 5-0 lead ???? pic.twitter.com/7Cq8EOn44F — SNY (@SNYtv) August 8, 2026 That was the right-hander’s first start since May 25. Mlodzinski’s record is now 6-4. He is carrying a 3.51 ERA. The Marlins will counter with Janson Junk. The righty is 5-7 with a 4.63 ERA. Miami is 37-24 at home. Those 37 home wins are the third-most in the National League.