PITTSBURGH - Mid-week commentary on the news:
n The NFL has handshake issues.
The simple act of a post-game handshake nearly turned into a fight.
No doubt you've seen the video. San Francisco 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh, pumped after a big win, got a little carried away when he met with the Detroit Lions' Jim Schwartz immediately after the game.
Harbaugh grabbed Schwartz's hand with great gusto, then gave him a hearty slap on the back.
Schwartz took offense, then took off after Harbaugh to let him know he didn't like it.
Players were milling around, and the potential for mayhem was great.
Who was wrong?
Both coaches were. As happy as Harbaugh was with the outcome, decorum calls for coaches to dial it down for the 30 seconds it takes to visit with the opposing coach.
Schwartz was wrong because he pursued the matter on the field instead of letting it go.
The NFL didn't issue any fines because there wasn't a fight.
But there could have been. At least there's a lesson learned.
The simple act of a post-game handshake can be tricky when emotions run high.
Chuck Noll had issues with a couple of counterparts during his years with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Once Noll held onto the hand of Jerry Glanville and lectured Glanville on what he thought was dirty play by his Houston Oilers team.
Noll also developed a healthy dislike for Sam Wyche of the Cincinnati Bengals and started ignoring Wyche after games.
Noll would head to the locker room without the traditional visit. It seemed to bother Wyche, and undoubtedly that pleased Noll.
Here's the deal: It doesn't take very long. Just get through it and get off the field.
It shouldn't be a problem to be gracious, even if it's insincere.
There's one surprise in this story, though. Two NFL coaches get into a dust-up over a handshake and neither of them is Rex Ryan or Bill Belichick.
n The Steelers beat Jacksonville despite playing poorly in the second half.
We've been dissecting things to death this season, but one overview should not go unnoticed:
Ben Roethlisberger hasn't played especially well this season.
He's looked more like the Ben who disappointed in the Super Bowl than the one who led the Steelers to that stage last year.
A lot of Steelers need to pick things up, and that starts with their leader on offense.
Mehno can be reached at johnmehnocolumn@gmail.com
