Pittsburgh Steelers safety Mike Mitchell paid homage to injured teammate Troy Polamalu late in the game Sunday against the New York Jets and that didn’t go over too well with the several of the opposing team’s offensive linemen.
With the Jets in “victory formation” with a 20-13 lead Sunday, Mitchell attempted to leap over the line of scrimmage after taking a running start with eyes on disrupting the snap. Jets center Nick Mangold flipped Mitchell over onto his back after snapping the football and a small scrum between both teams followed.
After the game, Mangold made his feelings known about what he thought of Mitchell’s imitation of Polamalu with the game essentially over.
“I think it’s a dirty play, and that’s what it is,” Mangold said, according to Jane McManus of ESPNNewYork.com.
Even Jets guard Willie Colon, who spent seven years in Pittsburgh with the Steelers, took exception to Mitchell’s desperate leap.
“I think it was B.S.,” Colon said. “I love that team, I was birthed into that organization, but I thought it was uncalled for.”
