Surprise Surprise... Traitorson says Gilmore should be DPOY over Watt

What’s also being forgotten in this is that JH was said to have been spending around 300k just to get his body ready to play. Acupuncture and the works. So he had to put in that much extra effort just to be able to compete every week. Meanwhile like many others have mentioned there was clearly a opportunity for him to help the team. We were getting run all over every week. I’m sorry but anyone who says he should of just accepted it obviously never played a competitive sport or has a competitive bone in their bodies. Your NFL career is short. You play to win championships. It’s not a easy thing to do. He saw a opportunity to win one. Silly AF if anyone else wouldn’t do the same...

 

I get what your saying but 4 games wasn't worth flushing 14 years down the drain. He's too much of a hot head to stop and think though.

You know it would have been one thing if he went to them for the 4 games then cut all ties and said I just wanted to compete. But the media tours bashing Tomlin, defending the Patriots cheating, and now saying Gilmore over Watt. He doesn't want to be a Steeler and plays both sides whenever it fits his agenda. No loyalty but that was already displayed his last year here.

 

Tomlin doesn't have a doghouse for players not on board with his season story? Deebo knew better if he wanted playing time.

 

Just like the NBA does.

 

I understand why he was mad and I was one who thought he should be getting playing time.
I'm a Steelers fan and a team guy. When he went nuts and started doing things that hurt the team that's where I draw the line.
There's a professional line you don't cross as a player and Harrison went way past that line. He let his selfish issues cause internal team problems and that's unacceptable. I appreciate the good times with Harrison, but he's more or less dead to me.

 

There’s been good points across the board here on why he should/shouldn’t be vilified.

forum doing its work

 

Athletes compete that’s what they do especially pro athletes. Think about how small of a portion of people in this entire world are good enough to make it in pro sports. They don’t get where they are by taking a wait and see, ho hum approach to competition. Any idea how it might feel when the sport you dedicated your life to seems to be coming to a end? If you did you would do anything and everything you could to make it last. You’d be silly to just give up and would explore every option available to continue playing the game you love.

**** if you were in a 50 or older softball league or darts competition and weren’t being allowed to participate you would go somewhere you could and if you didn’t you don’t care enough about it.

 

Good point.

I'm not blind to is transgressions. He didn't handle things "professionally." I totally get that.

But we need to compartmentalize what we're talking about and not let them bleed over into each other.

He worked as hard as anyone in the league ever has to prepare himself to play at a high level. That drive doesn't get turned on and off based on playing time. He isn't built or wired to sit by, doing nothing. So during his playing days, he wanted to play. Period. If it wasn't for the Steelers, it was going to be for someone.

And if the Pats come calling and the Steelers don't want you, you go to the Pats. Rivalry be damned. He didn't court the Pats from our sideline. He wasn't disloyal. Either he played for us or he played for someone else.

Then there's life after football. He's in the media now. He has an opinion. He doesn't have to be a homer. He's speaking his mind. And he's not the only person out there choosing Gilmore over Watt. He doesn't owe us anything.

He didn't ruin or tarnish his 14 years or whatever @SDOT said he did. He just did what he felt was best for himself at the time. And now he's speaking his mind and getting paid for it. I love Ryan Clark but hate some of his opinions. But his opinions have NOTHING to do with what he did on the field. Are they based on his experience? Sure. But they do not diminish his contribution or change my memories of him as a player. Same thing goes for Deebo.

 

Play me...no. Release me...no . Play me....no. Release me...no. Ok supposedly sleeping in meetings. Hurting the team. Not playing anyway. Release him...no. Wait until his options are extremely limited and need a roster spot? Ok you’re released. So who was doing the team more harm JH or MT for not releasing a meeting sleeper and team hurter?

How long to you keep a dog chained up when he simply wants to play ball? Week after week? You probably don’t really want or deserve that dog? He was such a cancer and distraction...yet they kept him around? Wasn’t even good enough to hardly play. So why keep such a unused malcontent? Doesn’t seem to make sense to me

 

I can't figure it out either. Just seeing what sticks to the wall.

 

Great post. I agree for the most part.

However, could you imagine Hines Ward jumping ship to the Ravens with a few games to go before the playoffs? When it's possible we meet in a few weeks? Or Jack Ham going to the Raiders?

Some things are just a no no. I have no problem going somewhere else, but the Patriots are just wrong on so many levels.

Simply saying "he was just looking for a successful opportunity and successful team" whitewashes about a decade of very important history here.

I still love him as a player, and I actually don't even think he's so bad as a commentator (definitely not great but ok) but no question it drops him from the Troy and Hines Mount Rushmore of steelers greats. Sad for him at the end of the day even if I can understand his narrow-minded emotional decision making process at the time.

 

Can’t really disagree with this. On the flip side. If you want to move on fine. But these guys use the “ it’s a business “ line then when it suits them then it becomes “a love of the game” line when disgruntled about playing time.
Also can’t blame fans that have invested themselves in teams for most of their lives if they feel a player is hurting their favorite team with their selfish actions?

Also I noticed you used two sports that I currently play. And your right if I wasn’t getting playing time I’d move on, but not at the expense of sabotaging the team in the process.

 

So what. Without Silverback we can't boast about #6. It's that simple.

He left with a sour taste. So did Troy Polamalu.

 

Understood but what does it say about the HC for keeping someone on the team that you’re not using and is supposedly sabotaging the team? As far as business vs love of the game the same could be said about the owners. They preach family environment and cut players in a second. Look everyone is entitled to their opinion but what got me started back up in this conversation is people passing opinion off as fact. The biggest question to me will always be if he was so disruptive and I guess not good enough to play based on his actual PT. Why was he kept after asking and then trying to supposedly sabotage his way out? Shouldn’t the HC have what’s best interest of the team in mind?

So either what they were saying about JH is true and the HC didn’t properly handle it or maybe some of his actions were blown out of proportion which commonly happens when players are no longer part of a team.

 

Probably a lot like the AB situation. Tried to tolerate it as long as they could and finally had to do something about it?
Who knows really?
For me it’s loyalty to the Steelers organization and hatred towards anyone who does them wrong.

 

Serious question. Do we know this actually happened? I read varying stories. I wasn’t there.

I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.

I will say, Watt was horrible in the Jacksonville game, and if we had kept JH and used him, we would not have lost.

Grumble, grumble, ...

 

Nothing like the AB situation. AB was still the best WR in football and judging by JH playing time they didn’t think much of whatever he had left. If they did he would of been playing. So again the question is if he was so disruptive why was he not released. I’m betting it wasn’t anywhere near what has been reported. If so keeping him made no sense unless MT was cool with the disruption. Another big thing to consider is why was he not suspended for conduct detrimental to the team? Hmmm....makes me think there were some axes to grind after he was finally released.

You’re entitled to your loyalty but I try and look at things from both sides...not just one. I always think of the shoe being on the other foot. If everything we know is true both sides handled it terribly so I don’t know how you blame one over the other unless team always trumps all regardless of fairness.

 

To be fair & look at it from both angles where is your argument for Tomlin's decisions? Being disruptive to the team? Maybe so/maybe not considering his past tenure of being cut & bought back idk. Could it possibly be that Deebo developed an attitude that he should be playing & to hell with the rest of the team? AB took the Bengals game snub awful hard himself. Deebo just smarter on controlling what spews from his lips. Again just flinging scenarios on what actually went down between the Steelers & Harrison. Martavis wanted released not long ago but was held onto till seasons end.
What I find troubling is that a lot of Steelers have wanted out of Pittsburgh lately. Is it Tomlin or the prima-donna atmosphere that the stars create in the locker-room? They all want a chance to be great, how do you keep them all happy? The Steelers are not known for sacrificing the future of the franchise to win a few games during the season. Deebo was the established vet on the downside of his fantastic career & Tomlin had some pups to prepare for the rigors on the field.

Edit: I think that James deserved more playing time myself. Maybe his approach to getting it got in his way of getting it. Maybe Tomlin had some nefarious plan for Deebo idk.

 

Well said

 

You are correct. On all counts.

I think one point got overlooked, though. When we released him in December, he had a choice to make. He could either accept an offer to keep playing or hang up the cleats.

In December, he was not going to get many offers. Only playoff teams could use him. So there would be a small list of teams interested, and a smaller list of teams actually able to acquire and use him.

Chiefs, Bills, Titans, Jags, and Pats.

Those teams would have been at least curious. And those teams would have known they were going after a player with a chip on his shoulder AND would likely be playing us if they wanted to move on to the big dance.

The Jags weren't interested. I doubt the Chiefs or Titans came calling. Possibly the Bills.

Regardless, if everyone on that list offers you a chance to stick it to the team who said you were worthless, who would you sign with?

I seem to remember a CB we had years ago that was pretty good. Rick something? Rick Woodell? Roderick? Rod! Rod Woodson! Yeah, that's his name. I kind of forgot it because he tarnished his legacy here by signing with the Ravens, helping them beat us, and helping them win a SB.

So we should call Hot Rod a traitor and shun him as well, right? Ban him from Steeler lore. Mock him and say he's not a Steeler. Dismiss his contributions to this team. Right @SDOT ? Let's call him Traitorson as well. The name fits as well as on Harrison.

And Rod had a lot more teams to pick from than Deebo did. Please understand that I'm not comparing their situations or using Rod to absolve James of any wrongdoing, real or perceived. I'm just saying that this game is a business and a short lived on at that. Players gotta play. And organizations are rarely loyal to their players. Holding players to some strict, unwritten law that forbids them from continuing to play and get paid from a rival is wrong.

It sucks when they do it, but more times than not it doesn't work out well for them. More power to them.

 

Several players said those things were happening with Harrison. I can’t really see a good reason not to believe them. The only thing I recall Harrison disputing was about going to the hospital to see Shazier.




One team source said Harrison went to great lengths to get himself released.

Players witnessed Harrison sleeping in a recliner during position meetings and snoring loudly while outside linebackers coach Joey Porter tried to teach, the source said. Sometimes, Harrison would skip meetings altogether, and when he missed practices for various injuries, player suspicions would rise when Harrison conducted his famous power-lifting sessions the same week or day, the source said.

Harrison left the building at random times, would leave stadiums before or during games on days he was inactive and told teammates he was trying to get traded, released or placed on Injured Reserve, the source said.

The source said Harrison exhibited the behavior throughout the season, but players really started to notice Harrison checking out on game days after a Week 4 win over the Ravens.

Dupree said on his weekly radio show Wednesday night that Harrison showed no interest in mentoring him or rookie linebacker T.J. Watt.

"I don't know how many secrets about the playbook Harrison could give to [the Patriots] because I never saw him in meetings," said Dupree, according to host Paul Zeise.

 

I believe that Harrison was SDOTs favorite player. Sure some Woodson worshippers had something to say when Rod went to the Ravens, right or wrong.

 

Don't get me wrong, I hated that Woodson signed with the ratbirds. But my thoughts are usually more about the damage they will do against us on game day than their reasoning as to where they signed.