12/23/25 12:45:00
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12/23 12:43 CST Steelers coach Mike Tomlin says he supports suspended wide
receiver DK Metcalf after fan incident
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin says he supports suspended wide receiver DK Metcalf
after fan incident
By WILL GRAVES
AP Sports Writer
PITTSBURGH (AP) --- Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin doesn't condone the
actions that led to wide receiver D.K. Metcalf's two-game suspension by the NFL
following an in-game altercation with a fan, but added Metcalf has his full
support during the appeals process.
The league punished the two-time Pro Bowler by forcing him to sit out the
first-place Steelers' final two games and fining him for taking a swipe at
Detroit Lions fan Ryan Kennedy in the second quarter of what became
Pittsburgh's 29-24 victory.
Tomlin said Metcalf shared his side of the story with him, but declined to get
into specifics.
"I won't discuss what he and I discussed," Tomlin said. "I think I've been
pretty clear there."
Former NFL wide receiver Chad Johnson said on a podcast late Sunday night that
Metcalf told him Kennedy used a racial slur and verbally disparaged Metcalf's
mother, an allegation that Kennedy denied through his attorneys on Monday.
Tomlin cited Metcalf's appeal hearing and what he described as "legal
ramifications," though he did not define what those might be. An email to the
attorneys representing Kennedy by The Associated Press was not immediately
returned.
Metcalf remained in the game and finished with four receptions for 42 yards.
Kennedy left his seat to meet with stadium security at Ford Field but was
allowed to return.
Asked if the Steelers have any in-game protocols in place to try and mitigate
interactions such as the one between Metcalf and Kennedy, Tomlin said, "We
certainly may, but I might not be privy to it because my eyes and attention is
(on) what's going on on the field" and made it a point to credit the team's
"top notch security group."
Tomlin would not elaborate on what his reaction was to seeing the video of the
confrontation, though he acknowledged what he called the rise in "volatile
rhetoric" in sports at all levels.
"Not only (in) our business, (but) college, youth sport parents," he said. "I
think it's just a component of sport that's developed and developed in a big
way in recent years, and it's unfortunate."
There were reports that when Metcalf played for Seattle, he reported Kennedy to
team personnel when the Seahawks visited Detroit. Tomlin did not speculate when
asked if there's anything more teams can do to protect players in those
situations.
"Me speaking on it and speaking on it in detail and particularly expressing my
opinion regarding things doesn't help the circumstance in any way," he said.
Metcalf's suspension means Pittsburgh (9-6) will be without its top pass
catcher as it tries to lock up the AFC North title on Sunday in Cleveland. His
absence means Roman Wilson, who has been a healthy scratch the past two weeks
as the Steelers have opted to go with experienced veterans Marquez
Valdes-Scantling and Adam Thielen, will likely get an opportunity to return to
the lineup.
Tomlin did not rule out the return of star outside linebacker T.J. Watt, who
has missed each of the past two games while recovering from surgery to repair a
partially collapsed lung sustained during a dry needling treatment. Tomlin said
Watt has been in the team facility lately and is "hopeful" Watt will be cleared
to practice.
The Steelers need to win one of their final two games or have Baltimore lose
one of its final two games to win a division title for the first time since
2020. The longtime rivals are scheduled to meet in Pittsburgh in Week 18.
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