Steelers Didn't Need Bulletin Board Material. Now They Have it
This upcoming Sunday will mark the meeting number 139 between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cleveland Browns, establishing it as the oldest rivalry within the American Football Conference.
There's really no need for more introduction to a bi-yearly match-up that features two industrial cities close in proximity that would go to war over their respective football teams. When it's Steelers-Browns week, nothing else needs to be said. You simply know business needs to be handled on a different level that week.
Handling business is exactly what Pittsburgh has done as of late when it comes to the Browns, as Cleveland has emerged victorious from their match-ups just six times since the turn of the millennium.
A heated rivalry will provide heated moments. Whether it be James Harrison body-slamming a Browns fan who ran on the field, Joey Porter punching a Browns player prior to a game (or anything else he's done, really) or the Myles Garrett/Mason Rudolph incident, a Steelers-Browns match-up typically delivers in terms of entertainment.
Although the two teams have met since Garrett was suspended for hitting Rudolph in the head with a helmet, Sunday will mark the first time Garrett will share the field with a Steelers offense who still carries a handful of the same starters from 2019. Garrett's conduct, as expected, was going to be a media-driven storyline prior to the divisional week six meeting, yet Browns running back Kareem Hunt took it upon himself to douse a bit of fuel on the fire:
Hunt and Garrett bonded over "shared adversity" in the offseason, according to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. In 2019, Hunt served an eight-game suspension for violating the NFL's personal conduct policy after a video was released showing Hunt shoving and kicking a woman.
A 4-0 Steelers football team needs no additional reason to show up on Sunday. No extra words need minced, no bulletin board material needed for a Tomlin-led team with experienced veterans across the depth chart heading into an important game.
Now they have it.
It might've been bound to happen, in terms of a player on either side saying something in regards to Garrett or Rudolph that would make headlines. That just wasn't going to be provided by somebody in black or gold.
"They're a 4-1 team," Tomlin said Tuesday. "We're trying to remain undefeated. We're not looking for that low-hanging fruit or that reality TV storyline and so forth. This is a big game here in 2020."
"You know, he's a generational-type football player," said quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who just recently was dethroned as the all-time wins leader at FirstEnergy Stadium despite playing there once a season.
"He's really, really good. He's a guy that we have to know where he is, and we're going to have to have multiple guys blocking him because he's a gamechanger. He's that good."
AllSteelers Publisher Noah Strackbein hit the nail on the head when talking about Hunts' comments:
"If there's one thing you always know about the Steelers is that they only look forward," said Strackbein. "Dreading on the past leads to the same mistakes you've made before. Looking ahead leads to adaptation and success."
Although you won't hear current players on the roster respond, former players have done a pretty solid job of making what likely is a shared feeling around the current locker room known.
For a team that's undefeated and currently is tied for the league-lead in sacks at 20 despite playing one less game while finally finding their rhythm offensively, bringing any attention other than what should transpire for x's and o's come game time likely isn't a good strategy. However, the franchise with six Super Bowl titles remains focused on the game. The franchise with an empty trophy case that clings to glory days from the 1950s continues to talk.
Hunt's comments will serve as the cherry on top of what many in Pittsburgh believe should be a sweet sundae. The Steelers didn't ask for it, but they'll take it.
Donnie Druin is a Staff Writer with AllSteelers. Follow Donnie on Twitter @DonnieDruin, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.
