Kevin Dotson may be from Louisiana; his uncle may have been a part of the Cleveland Browns defense that nearly eliminated the Pittsburgh Steelers out of the postseason in 2002, Alvin McKinney registering a sack against Tommy Maddox and a pass defensed that led to an interception; but he may get respect as an honorary Yinzer.
After he was drafted into Pittsburgh during the fourth round of the 2020 NFL Draft, he told reporters during his conference call with the local media that the Steelers are his family’s favorite team—and he wasn’t lying. Soon after the call, he presented the evidence lying about his family’s home, draped in Steelers swag that was far beyond what he would have been supplied with as a draft kit.
Truly a dream come true!
Lifelong #Steelers fan Kevin Dotson is now a member of the Black & Gold!@kdd7696 | #SteelersDraft pic.twitter.com/P9yQMSsjuQ
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) April 25, 2020
“They’ve always been my number one team. I followed them since I was about five”, he said. “Even in my house, we have a big man cave and it’s all Steelers decked out. I’ve been following them forever”. Chances are, your house may not be dissimilar.
“My favorite player used to be The Bus”, he added, referring to Hall of Fame running back Jerome Bettis. “All of my passwords used to have 36 at the end just because of that. So now that this is happening, this is ridiculous. I couldn’t even imagine this happening”.
How many of you who grew up during the 90s and 2000s had Bettis as your favorite player? He sure was fun to watch, and his great personality continues to shine through in his second career as a football analyst.
But it wasn’t just the Steelers of old. He’s also thrilled about the opportunity that he will get—or, perhaps better stated, may get—to block for quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who is entering his 17th season in the NFL, and coming off a torn elbow.
“I’ve always been a fan of Ben’s”, he said. “It’s going to be crazy because in my mind, I’ve always thought of him as like someone I’d never meet, being one of the legends. I never thought I’d be blocking for him. So, this is going to be one of those dreams you get to play with people that you’ve always
looked up to for your entire life, pretty much”.
Roethlisberger has admitted that this hasn’t been an uncommon initial reaction to many recent players the team has drafted. That will always be the case when you go to a team that includes a superstar player that you grew up watching, whether willingly or otherwise.
Dotson comes to the Steelers at a time when their top two left guards either retired or left in free agency. The current plan is to have Matt Feiler and free agent Stefen Wisniewski compete for that job. If he wants to block for Ben, that’s the spot he needs to grab.
