The Pittsburgh Steelers got a much-needed victory against the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. The Steelers won 24-16 after a controversial taunting penalty turned a dominating performance into a game that came down to a nearly botched onside kick recovery. The black and gold had just opened the half with a 21-play drive that resulted in a 21-7 lead, and they were about to get the ball back against a reeling Carolina defense after forcing the Panthers into a punt.
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - NOVEMBER 28: Marcus Allen #27 of the Pittsburgh Steelers warms up prior to the game against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium on November 28, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
On 4th and 27, Marcus Allen ran onto the field with the punt return team and instead of taking his position, skipped over to the Panthers sideline and blatantly taunted them. Allen has been ripped by fans and the local media, but has seemingly escaped any public criticism by his head coach, Mike Tomlin. Allen has not been fined, he still has a job and Tomlin’s only reaction after the game was that he seemingly didn’t see it.
Ray Fittipaldo, who covers the Steelers for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, joined The PM Team w/Poni & Mueller on Monday to discuss the black and gold and the Allen controversy. The veteran reporter chimed in with his opinion on how Tomlin and the Steelers would handle the former fifth round draft pick:
“I thought it was one of the most selfish plays I have ever seen,” Fittipaldo began. “It was incredibly dumb. Other than that, he is still on the team, I don’t know what Mike Tomlin has in store.”“Should he be,” Andrew Fillipponi interjected.
“That’s not how Mike Tomlin handles stuff,” Ray Fittipaldo responded. “We might not even know about any of the discipline that takes place. I gotta tell you, three games left, I think the way the Steelers usually handle these things, he’s an unrestricted free agent they will just let him walk.”
The Steelers are 6-8 and ultimately won the game, but the penalty was a microcosm of the season. It was a self-inflicted wound that led to making the entire team’s job harder. Tomlin compounded the issue with an unforced error at the press conference that stirred rather than squashed any potential controversy surrounding a special teams player that had no business nullifying a defensive stop that he was not part of in the first place.
“I guess I take his word for it,” Fittipaldo continued. “I’m sure he was busy trying to figure out what they wanted to do on offense. He’s going to have the same opportunity to answer those questions. By that time, I’m sure he’s going to have seen the play 20 times. He was acknowledging the penalty put the defense in a bad spot. They were so lucky they didn’t score a touchdown, the defense really saved Marcus Allen’s bacon.”
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Fittipaldo then dropped a bombshell on Fillipponi and Chris Mueller. He revealed that he had spoken to Allen immediately after the game about the play and why the former fifth rounder was allowed to continue to play in the game:
“I asked Marcus Allen after the game, what did Mike Tomlin say to you after it happened,” Fittipaldo concluded. “He told me Mike said, ‘Keep on trucking.’ The way I took that was you made a mistake, go out there play, make up for that mistake. I tweeted that after the game but did not include it in my story. I can’t tell you a lot of other coaches wouldn’t have handled it the same way.”
What did Tomlin say to him after the penalty? "He said you have to keep on truckin'."
— Ray Fittipaldo (@rayfitt1) December 18, 2022
The veteran reporter makes a fair point that the modern NFL is a different game. It wasn’t that long ago a play like that would not only cost a player his game check and his job with the team. The modern player does things that would have gotten him more than cut a decade ago. A player who jogged over to the opposing team’s huddle to laugh at them, would not have to worry about a flag, he would have to worry about his safety. If he had done that when Steve Smith played for the Panthers, he might have ended up in the hospital.
What do you think, Steeler Nation? When Mike Tomlin has his press conference, what do you want to hear about the play? Please comment below or on my Twitter @thebubbasq.
