The Pittsburgh Steelers' locker room has not been free of drama throughout the Mike Tomlin era. Dating back to when he started in 2007, up until recently, the tension in the locker room has been reported on and in the public eye constantly. Recently, a running back who played for the team during this time period joined Andrew Fillipponi and Chris Mueller on 93.7 the Fan to talk about his brief stint with Pittsburgh and spoke genuinely for maybe the first time regarding the reputation he had gained in the city following his departure.
LeGarrette Blount knew his role when he signed a two-year deal with the franchise in 2014. Second-year ball carrier Le'Veon Bell was the team's starter and Blount knew that, he told Fillipponi and Mueller:
"I knew they wanted someone to come over that's older and be a mentor-type guy," Blount said.
The Steelers ended up finishing the season with a record of 11-5, an AFC Divisional Title, but lost in the wild-card round, with Bell out due to injury.
Blount, who was waived following what seemed to be an early on-field departure in the team's Week 11 win over the Tennessee Titans, thinks the outcome of the season would have been different if the franchise didn't let him go. It should have been a 1-2 punch:
"I think if you do that with me and Le'Veon, you have a different turnout in the season."
Blount went on to address what has been hanging around in terms of Pittsburgh moving on from him mid-season. He was shocked on what he heard shortly after he left town:
"Once I leave, ya know, once I left the team and went elsewhere, I see reports and stuff come out about, 'Oh yeah, he was cancerous, we don't need a cancer like that on the team,' and I'm like, 'Bro, you were just...'"
He acknowledged that some of the guys on the team including the top running back in Bell and wide receiver Antonio Brown, backed him up:
"I did hear from interviews from other guys on the team that was like, 'He was cancerous.' Then I seen an interview from Le'Veon and a few from AB and an interview from all these other guys like, 'Nah, he wasn't cancerous. He did right by Le'Veon. He put in the work. He deserved to play. They didn't treat him right.' I had that backing as well."
The comments from certain former teammates helped him feel better about his release and ultimately, he felt disrespected by then-offensive coordinator Todd Haley:
"That made me feel a lot better about my decision, even though I probably didn't do it in the most ethical way, but everyone gets to a point where it's like, 'Bro you know what, respect goes a long way.'"
Blount said that he was told that his involvement in the offense would come. He wasn't afraid to admit that he went to Haley and asked why he wasn't getting touches:
"When I'm going to Todd and asking you, 'What's going on? Why am I not playing?' And you're telling me, 'Yeah, we're going to make sure we get you in there, we're going to make sure to put this together for you,' only for me to go out there and not have zero carries."
The former Steelers running back claims that he walked off the field as Ben Roethlisberger was taking a knee and that should have been acceptable because the end of the game was seconds away, but it apparently wasn't and his release was imminent.
Blount went on to sign with the New England Patriots and led the NFL in touchdowns the following year with 18. There is no doubt Bell was looking like the best ball-carrier in the league and Blount's short stint with the Steelers might not seem relevant, but it is another interesting storyline that has arisen regarding the coaching staff putting all their eggs into one basket.
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