You don’t get to the NFL by being passive or apathetic. Football is played by proud men. Alpha males. Men who were programmed from an early age that losing is for the weak and that any disrespect (even if it’s just perceived that way) be met with wrath and vengeance.
This is why the Pittsburgh Steelers will enter tomorrow’s matchup with the Cleveland Browns eager to avenge their upset loss in Week 12. They will be out for blood against their 3-9 division rivals, itching to prove the prior loss was a fluke.
The Steelers will be playing with a chip on their shoulder, and that’s not the only reason that some of them will be playing with an extra edge. One of the underlying themes of the Steelers’ season is that a bunch of key players have been playing with a chip on their shoulders for various reasons. Heck, that even applies to one of their coaches, too.
Guys who were run out of town, passed over, fired, dismissed as past their prime, or overlooked for contract extensions.
Start with QB Russell Wilson.
Wilson was so unwanted that the Denver Broncos said, “We would rather pay $38 million for you to go play somewhere else than let you stay here.” Can you imagine that? A team so disgusted with you that they would rather pay millions of dollars for you to leave than have you around. Not only that but much of the national and local media agreed that you were washed up. Now, the media have been on a “Russell Wilson Apology Tour,” with many saying how wrong they were.
How about Najee Harris? His own team declined to pick up his fifth-year option. The guy started his NFL career with three 1,000-yard seasons, the first Steeler ever to do it, and is working on his fourth. Yet, many labeled him a first-round bust, and his bosses decided he didn’t deserve his fifth year picked up. He obviously could still re-sign with the Steelers, but when a team values you, it typically picks up that option or signs you to an extension.
Cam Heyward is too old. He’s a lovable guy, but the Steelers should have drafted his replacement by now. They are also fools for giving Heyward a new contract at his age and declining skill level. Right? That’s been the narrative. Well, all he has done is play at an All-Pro level this year and anchor a defense that is near the top of the league in points allowed.
Dan Moore Jr. has been the most criticized, least popular Steeler since he was drafted and thrust into the starting left tackle spot. The fan base has called for his head vociferously, but he’s been harder to kill than Michael Myers. The team supposedly drafted his replacement, Broderick Jones, but Moore survived.
Then the Steelers drafted Troy Fautanu, which definitely signaled the end of Moore. Yet, there he is, week after week, manning left tackle while Jones has had his struggles at right tackle and Fautanu is on injured reserve. And doing it pretty darn well. The Steelers may indeed move on from Moore, but he guaranteed himself a lot of money and will be highly valued by some teams in free agency, if not the Steelers.
The list hardly ends with those four who have been critical to the Steelers’ success:
— CB Donte Jackson. The Panthers were going to release him anyway. Why would the Steelers trade for this bum? Another narrative that Jackson has turned on its head. All he has done is lead the team in interceptions. His five picks are a new career high and tied for third-most in the NFL
-LB Patrick Queen said the Ravens didn’t even offer him a contract. He is third on the Steelers in tackles while adjusting to a new team and new role as defensive signal caller.
-LB Payton Wilson won the Butkus Award, Bednarik Award, and ACC Defensive Player of the Year Award last season at NC State, and every team in the NFL passed him up not once, but at least twice, in the draft. You think he wants to make those other teams regret it?
-OC Arthur Smith. He was fired from his head-coaching job in Atlanta. And trust me when I say he was not a name Steelers fans were hoping to hear for the team’s next offensive coordinator. Many wanted the next 33-year-old prodigy who would dazzle the NFL with his ingenuity and creativity. They did not want a middle-aged, run-first guy who looks like he just finished a shift at the steel mill and is heading to the bar for a few Iron City beers.
Yes, the Steelers are playing with quite a few chips in their pile. And they are pushing them all to the middle of the table and going all in on this 2024 season. It could not be more fitting that Mike Tomlin is leading this group.
Much maligned for his recent lack of playoff success, Tomlin has been playing most hands masterfully week after week. The Steelers and their collection of castoffs and has-beens have been defying the critics and low expectations placed on them by large portions of the media and some fans all season.
Here’s to seeing the Steelers exact some sweet revenge against the Browns this weekend and seeing these proud Men of Steel continue to prove their doubters wrong. Pittsburgh is thrilled to have them. No revenge would be sweeter than raising a Lombardi Trophy and thinking about all the people who doubted you as it rains confetti.
