The Pittsburgh Steelers have a pretty good history when it comes to finding good players that are getting ready to enter the NFL, but the organization has certainly had its fair share of misses. One of the most notorious misses in NFL history was the Steelers passing on Hall Of Fame quarterback Dan Marino during the 1983 NFL Draft. Pittsburgh also had a chance to select All-Pro running back Brian Mitchell in 1990, but one of the organization's scouts bad-mouthed him at the NFL Combine.
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Steelers disrespected Brian Mitchell at the 1990 NFL Combine
Steelers' Scout Disrespected All-Pro Running Back Brian Mitchell At The NFL Combine
The NFL Combine is a place for incoming NFL players to show their athletic prowess to all 32 organizations. Teams already have film on all of the players, but getting to meet all of the players and form relationships with them is what usually draws an organization to a prospect.
Throughout the combine, teams and their scouts spend time interviewing a lot of the prospects to see if they would be a fit, and during this portion of the 1990 NFL Combine, a Steelers scout took the time to disrespect Mitchell, who told the story on his radio show BMitch & Finlay.
"One guy told me 'you're always moving forward, you don't do a lot of dancing.' I'm like 'yeah, what's the problem with that?' [He said] 'I think you should have a little more wiggle'. I said 'go find someone with more wiggle then, because you play against me, I'm gonna bust that a**.' That was the Steelers scout."
Mitchell wound up being drafted by the then-named Washington Redskins in the fifth round of the 1990 NFL Draft. During his time with Washington, he played the Steelers twice. Washington and Pittsburgh split those games, but the Steelers loss was a blowout with a score of 41-14. Mitchell didn't have any carries or receptions in his first matchup with Pittsburgh during the 1991 season, but he did have three returns for 35 total yards in the Washington victory.
Washington Commanders
Steelers allowed Brian Mitchell to return a kick for a touchdown in 1997
Mitchell got his revenge on Pittsburgh in 1997. Washington lost the game 14-13, but Mitchell did everything he could to win the game. He wasn't featured much on offense, as he had five total touches for 18 yards. However, he scored Washington's only touchdown of the game on a kickoff return which he took the length of the field. Mitchell was still motivated from the comment made by the Steelers scout nearly eight years earlier.
"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, it's your scout. The Steelers, Cardinals, Saints - every time I played them I brought everything I had in me to destroy them."
Mitchell was released from Washington following the 1999 season, but found a new home with the Philadelphia Eagles from 2000 through 2002. He matched up with the Steelers once during his three seasons with the Eagles, which resulted in a 26-23 victory for Philadelphia. Mitchell had four touches on offense, and helped the Eagles to victory by scoring a touchdown.
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Steelers sacrificed two touchdowns to Brian Mitchell throughout his career
The touchdown was monumental, as the Eagles found themselves down 10 points with just under four minutes to go in the game. They needed a miraculous comeback, and Mitchell delivered. He caught a touchdown from Donovan McNabb with two-and-a-half minutes left to bring the Steelers lead down to three. David Akers would go on to kick the game tying field goal, and then the game winning field goal in overtime.
Mitchell would end his career after playing with the New York Giants in 2003. He was named to an All-Pro team three times during his career, all as a return specialist. He still holds the NFL records for most kickoff return yards and punt return yards, and return yards in total. He was never extremely effective on the offensive side of the ball, but it's safe to say the Steelers missed out on one of the best return men in NFL history.
What do you think of Mitchell's interaction with the Steelers at the NFL Combine? Let us know in the comments below!
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