Mike Mitchell is currently the bane of Pittsburgh Steelers’ fans existence.
After another social media mishap, Mitchell’s bags have been packed for him, so to speak, by the entire fan base, many calling for his release.
To put it simply: players like Mitchell don’t belong on a team like the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Let me first preface that with saying that I’m not a Steelers fan but rather a football fan. With that, I have respect for the game and then players who represent it with class and dignity. But for Mitchell, I have no respect.
Let’s go back to the waning moments against the New York Jets. As the seconds were ticking off of the clock, the Jets decided to take a knee to end the game, an act that serves as a gentleman’s agreement that says, hey, we won and we don’t want to rub it in by gaining more yards.
Mitchell didn’t honor that and instead attempted to break through the line of scrimmage, a move that wasn’t respected among the league.
Sure, he could’ve caused a fumble and possibly changed the game. But when the other team takes a knee, you just accept it as life and move on.
And sure, it could’ve been viewed as playing hard to the end of the whistle, but that’s not the type of player Mitchell is. Instead, Mitchell is a safety that draws more personal fouls than he makes tackles.
And now, when his play is questioned by fans, he responds with unacceptable replies that include name calling and suggestions to ending their life.
If you ask this football fan, that’s not what the Pittsburgh Steelers are about.
Growing up, I remember the kind and warm smile of Jerome Bettis. The hard-working attitude of Kordell Stewart. The pride of Joey Porter. Those guys, to me, embody the most recent era of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Today’s crop of athletes are a far cry from the athletes of a decade ago. They may put up bigger numbers, jump higher, run faster, but they’re by no means role models.
I’d be willing to bet that if you asked football fans who the most hated team in the NFL was, many would say the Steelers. But in the same breath, they’d tell you that same team is one of the most historically respected teams in the league’s existence.
With players like Mitchell, though, that’s not the case.
Photo credit: Pittsburgh Steelers
