Former NFL RB Brian Mitchell is not a fan of the NFL Combine or the Pittsburgh Steelers, thanks to a “stupid” comment made to him by a Steelers’ scout at the 1990 NFL Combine. Mitchell was better known in the league for his prowess as a kick and punt returner, as he made three All-Pro teams for his work returning kicks and punts. But coming out of Louisiana, Mitchell wasn’t happy with what a Steelers’ scout told him about his running style, and it made him want to “destroy” them.
“All the things that were told to me when I was going through the combine, I remember every one of them that was stupid. People would think I was mad at the team, no, your scout got you the trouble you got. It was the Steelers, the Arizona Cardinals, the Saints, every time I played them, I brought everything I had in me to destroy them,” Mitchell said on the BMitch and Finlay show.
He said a scout for Pittsburgh told him he doesn’t play with enough “wiggle.”
“One guy told me, ‘You always moving forward, you don’t do a lot of dancing,’ and I’m like, what’s the problem with that. ‘Well, you know, I think you should have a little more wiggle.’ I said, well, you find somebody with some damn wiggle then, because you play against me, I’m gonna bust that ass. And that was the Steelers’ scout.”
While the comment by the scout does sound kind of dumb (if he didn’t like Mitchell running straight ahead, he must love watching Diontae Johnson), it’s not the type of comment you’d expect someone to hold onto and hold a grudge about. But for Mitchell, it clearly pissed him off, and he channeled that when he played Pittsburgh. Something that happened three times in his 14-year career spent entirely in the AFC East. Mitchell was 2-1 against Pittsburgh in his career and caught a receiving touchdown against them in a win during his time with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2000.
In addition to three seasons in Philly, Mitchell spent ten years with Washington, who drafted him in the fifth round in 1990, and one season with the New York Giants. If he had been drafted by an AFC team, he could’ve had a few more chances to attempt to beat the Steelers, but he stuck it out in the NFC.
He’s not the sort of player you’d expect to come out with a grudge over Pittsburgh, given his limited time actually playing against the team. But it goes to show how much some interpersonal actions can matter as teams get to know potential draftees. Mitchell was annoyed about the insinuation he should change his style, and now, 34 years later, he still remembers it and his hatred toward Pittsburgh because of what he was told.
Hopefully, no one gets offended by Pittsburgh’s scouts at the 2024 NFL Combine, which begins in a little over a week.
