he question for the remainder of the week in the NFL will be, was Mike Tomlin in the way of Jacoby Jones during his kickoff return? In the third quarter of Thursday night’s game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens, Jacoby Jones took a kickoff return down the Steelers sideline. What seemed to be a clear path to the end zone for Jones, was not so clear after all.
With Cortez Allen on his tail, Jones had to shift back toward the middle of the field to avoid Tomlin, who was in the field of play. That change of direction seemed to allow Allen to catch up to Jones and prevented a touchdown.
- Advertisement -
As I watched the kickoff return, a question came to mind. Why is the head coach looking in the opposite direction of the action on the field? Tomlin could not have been anymore obvious in his actions. If you watch the kickoff return, no one on the Steelers sideline is even on the solid white line (on the sidelines). Not only is Tomlin the only one that is close to the field of play, but as Jones gets closer his right foot enters the field. To answer the question, did he interfere with Jones? Yes, absolutely. The intimidate thought was, maybe Tomlin didn’t realize what he did? That theory was prove wrong once Tomlin smirked as he continued to trot down the sideline.
On a day where everyone is celebrating what they’re thankful for, Tomlin pulls one of the most unethical moves I’ve seen in sports. A head coach of a professional football team is someone who players and coaches look to for guidance. If Tomlin is pulling cheep shots like this, what message does that send to his players? Thankfully, this antic did not effect the outcome of the game.
- Advertisement -
The Steelers have not had the best season and to say the least, they have under preformed. This action by Tomlin shows how frustrated he is with his team’s play that he is willing to contribute to a touchdown saving tackle. It’s a shame to see a coach that has been so successful over the past several years stoop so low like this.
