Mike Tomlin doesn’t care about the outside noise. Ditto with Alex Highsmith. Two days before the Pittsburgh Steelers season gets underway, Highsmith is tuning out everything on social media. He’s not just deleted the Twitter app off his phone. He’s taken down his Twitter account.
As he posted, ironically enough, on Instagram, he’s ready to “shut out the noise,” and it led to him taking down his Twitter account. You can still find the account here but when you click on it, it says “this account doesn’t exist.”
Highsmith’s Instagram page, for now, remains active.
It’s a small gesture but one common around the league. In this day and age, it’s hard to avoid reading things about yourself and the team. The best way to combat it is by not having the platform to see it in the first place. He’s far more likely to see opinions from Steelers and football fans on Twitter than he will on Instagram, a site largely populated by cute dog videos.
Highsmith begins 2023 with a big test, facing San Francisco 49ers’ left tackle Trent Williams in this weekend’s opener. Williams remains one of the league’s top left tackles and has made the All-Pro first team each of his last two years. He’ll be one of the top players Highsmith has faced in his career.
Building off a breakout 2022 campaign is his goal. Last year, Highsmith exploded for 14.5 sacks and five forced fumbles, leading the Steelers in both categories and tying for first in the NFL in the latter one. It’s possible his sack numbers regress this year assuming T.J. Watt stays healthy and puts up big numbers, but Highsmith’s impact can still be just as consistent. Analytics suggest Highsmith doesn’t have the most impressive pass-rush win rate so if there’s one figure he can improve, it’s that.
Of course, those analytics can be put in the bucket of “outside noise.” All Highsmith needs to do is his job. If he does that, he’ll make up one heck of a duo opposite Watt and be part of the best pass-rush pair in football. Just don’t tweet at him about it. He’s not going to see it.
