All Love From Cam Heyward on Stephon Tuitt's Retirement

Cam Heyward couldn't be prouder, and has good news to share about his former Pittsburgh Steelers teammate.

PITTSBURGH -- Pittsburgh Steelers defensive captain Cam Heyward put some effort into getting Stephon Tuitt to return to the NFL, but after realizing his former teammate's purpose is moving to the next chapter of his life, he couldn't be happier. 

Tuitt announced his retirement following a year absence from the game. He now starts a new journey following graduation from the University of Notre Dame. And Heyward couldn't be prouder.

"I've known Tuitt before he was drafted. To see where he came from," Heyward said. "He was playing brother with my other brother playing basketball. He was the little kid playing gameboy. We'd always say he was going on basketball trips for football. He really came out of his shell. To see the type of man, the type of teammate he was. I was able to rely on him so much. We were able to do a lot of special things. ... We created a lot of havoc together, and had a lot of fun doing it."

"I just want to say, I'm proud of him for graduating," Heyward added. "That was something that was really big and monumental in his life. Something he could look back on. ... Something he was very proud of." 

Heyward said he gave Tuitt his opinion about returning to the Steelers, but ultimately had to let him make the decision. 

"I don't think I had to convince him," Heyward said. "My main thing was, you get in the locker room, you feel the brotherhood and you feel everyone is here for you. It wasn't just myself. Tyson [Alualu], coach [Karl] Dunbar, Mike [Tomlin], Kevin [Colbert]. We all went out of our way to make sure he knew that."

But Heyward has good news to share. He mentioned that the unforgettable smile of Tuitt is still around, and he's doing well a year after the tragic loss of his brother.

"There's still that. ... He's still Stephon," Heyward said. "He's still happy go lucky, loves to have a good time, wears his heart on his sleeve."

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