Former Pittsburgh Steelers guard Willie Colon certainly raised some eyebrows last week during an appearance on The Carton Show, stating that longtime Pittsburgh Steelers head coach and future Hall of Famer Mike Tomlin should be on the hot seat for a lack of playoff success.
It was rather strange coming from a former Steeler who won a Super Bowl under Tomlin and appeared in another. The entire situation took a bizarre turn Sunday night as former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson came to the defense of Tomlin during an appearance on the Nightcap with Hall of Fame tight end Shannon Sharpe.
Johnson defending Tomlin against a former Steeler brings to mind the famous words from Dr. Peter Venkman in Ghostbusters. “Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together… MASS HYSTERIA!”
Johnson pushed back against Colon’s comments in fitting Ochocinco fashion.
“For one, the only Willie Colon I know is a Spanish singer. Let’s start there, okay? So I’m trying to understand, Mr. Willie Colon, why his words and how he feels and what he’s saying holds any weight, why it holds any weight,” Johnson said, according to video via Nightcap on YouTube.
Colon played for the Steelers from 2006-2012, spending six seasons under Tomlin. In that span, the former fourth-round pick out of Hofstra started 60 of his 62 career games with the Steelers under Tomlin’s guidance, including all 16 games in 2007, 2008 and 2009 before injuries set in.
In that same span, Colon won Super Bowl XLIII with the Steelers under Tomlin, but sat out the entire 2010 season due to injury, missing Super Bowl XLV
Colon didn’t hold back on his comments about Tomlin last week on The Carton Show.
“I love Mike Tomlin, but I have to officially say he’s on the hot seat, right?” Colon said via FS1’s The Carton Show last Tuesday. “The issue with Mike Tomlin right now is he wins games he’s supposed to win, he loses games he shouldn’t lose. Go back to this year. He lost to the Patriots, Cardinals.
“He had no business losing those games, and now Steelers Nation is frustrated, right? They’re looking at an organization right now who is well above average. They have everything that can go right with them, and then they lose bonehead games. And I’m saying to myself, ‘Well, who are the Pittsburgh Steelers? Are they the bullies, or are they the dweebs?’”
The frustration is understandable, without a doubt. No playoff wins since 2016, far too many barely-above-.500 seasons to avoid a losing season and extending Tomlin’s no losing seasons streak to open his career…all of that.
But that doesn’t mean Tomlin should — or will — be on the hot seat, even with GM Omar Khan reshaping the roster in a major way this offseason, giving Tomlin a better roster to work with in Pittsburgh than he has had in recent years.
Big things are expected in 2024 for Tomlin and the Steelers due to the players added to the roster, but that doesn’t mean he’s all of a sudden on a hot seat. In fact, he’s going to get an extension to secure his future even further in the Steel City.
Colon should know that. His comments appeared more geared towards getting a rise of out his panel on TV than how he actually feels. Still, that didn’t stop Johnson from shooting from the hip.
“Tell Willie, go sit down somewhere, man. Tell Willie go sit. I know Willie Parker? I know Willie Parker. I don’t know no Willie Colon. Listen, his name holds no weight, no disrespect,” Johnson said of Colon. “Listen, I’m a Bengal. I’m a Bengal fan at heart, taking up for the Steeler organization ’cause I don’t know who the hell Willie Colon is with this.”
Johnson seems truthful stating he doesn’t know who Colon is, which is perfectly fine. Johnson did spend five seasons playing against the Steelers during Colon’s tenure, but their paths never truly crossed on the field, so it’s plausible Johnson doesn’t know who Colon is.
“…That’s no disrespect to Willie Colon. I played the game for a very long time. I played against the Steelers twice a year for a decade straight. This individual that has said what he said about Mike Tomlin and the Steelers organization, I have no clue or idea who the hell that is. And I mean that with all due respect,” Johnson added.
Typically, when you have to add “with all due respect” multiple times during a talking point, you aren’t exactly saying it with respect.
Johnson’s point when pushing back on Colon and his comments about Tomlin being on the hot seat was that he doesn’t know what he’s talking about, and then when he found out he was a former Steeler that he doesn’t know who he is, so his comments don’t hold weight.
That seems a bit harsh overall, but Johnson has defended Tomlin in the past and believes he’s a good coach who has dealt with some tough roster circumstances, namely not having a true high-end NFL quarterback in recent years that all good teams need to compete for a Super Bowl.
Tomlin might not have that now, either, depending on where you stand on Russell Wilson and Justin Fields. But he appears to be in a better place with the roster he has to work with. Pressure is on to win a playoff game, especially after Art Rooney II’s comments after the loss to the Buffalo Bills in the 2023 AFC Wild Card round, but that doesn’t mean Tomlin is on the hot seat.
Hopefully Colon and Johnson don’t become the next big-name beef battle in the media landscape now.
Check out the full segment below.
