Steelers President Art Rooney II Denies Mike Tomlin 'Envelope' Story: Very Certain Nothing Happened

PITTSBURGH -- Over the last several days, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin has been under fire for a story James Harrison told on former teammate Willie Colon's "Going Deep" podcast. The interview, which lasted an hour and a half, included Harrison telling Colon about the time he was fined $75,000 by the NFL.

Harrison recalls the play he was fined for a hit on Cleveland Browns wide receiver Mohamed Massaquoi that resulted in a concussion and the $75,000 fine. As he ran off the field, Harrison said Tomlin handed him an envelope, but wouldn't say what was in it.

"And I ain’t gonna lie to you, when that happened, right? The G-est thing Mike Tomlin ever did, he handed me an envelope after that," Harrison said. "I ain’t gonna say what, but he handed me an envelope after that."

The insinuation appeared to be that Tomlin paid Harrison to make up for the looming fine coming down the pipe.

Steelers president Art Rooney II has since released a statement claiming he knows this event did not happen.

“I am very certain nothing like this ever happened," Rooney II said. "I have no idea why James would make a comment like this but there is simply no basis for believing anything like this.”

New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton appeared on 105.7 The Fan and shared his thoughts on the situation.

“If people are waiting for the league to investigate that, they shouldn’t hold their breath," Payton said. "I think what took place with us back in [2012] in so many ways was a sham, and yet there wasn’t a lot we could do with it. The players were vindicated, but from a... coaching standpoint, there is no union. There is no representation.”

Payton was suspended for an entire year for his involvement in "Bountygate".

“I would be shocked. That’ll be something that’s tucked away under the rug at Park Avenue," Payton said. "They’ll look into it briefly. Listen, don’t get me started on that. I lost $6 million in salary, and honestly it was something that I’ll never truly get over because I know how it was handled and how it was run and the reasons behind it. That’s just the truth."