Steelers Now
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver DK Metcalf is “sick” about getting suspended for two games after an altercation with a fan in Detroit, head coach Mike Tomlin said on Wednesday — and Tomlin is sick of hearing Metcalf apologize over it.
Metcalf was suspended for two games for shoving Detroit Lions fan Ryan Kennedy on Dec. 21, nearly helping to cost his team a playoff spot when the Steelers lost the first of those games against the Cleveland Browns on Dec. 28.
With the Steelers winning in dramatic fashion on Sunday night and earning the final spot in the 2025 NFL playoffs, Metcalf is back with the team, but said little in his first media availability since returning on Monday.
He repeatedly declined to talk about what happened or give his side of the story, and repeatedly thanks his teammates.
“I feel full responsibility for my actions, and that’s it,” Metcalf said. “But I’ve got the utmost respect and confidence in my teammates for still going out there and performing to the best of their abilities.”
Tomlin, speaking on the Rich Eisen Show on Wednesday, said that Metcalf has repeatedly expressed those feelings to his teammates — to the point that Tomlin is tired of hearing it.
“Man, he’s sick about it,” Tomlin said. “I’m tired to hearing him apologize about it. It’s behind us now. It’s time for us to move on and get singularly focused on what lies ahead. Certainly, there’s a growth opportunity there as a man, but all indications are that it is happening. He’s open and non-resistant to that. So my focus is the football that’s ahead of us.”
Tomlin also said that he thinks the growth the team showed without Metcalf, with Aaron Rodgers throwing for nearly 300 yards in Sunday’s win to the combination of Calvin Austin III, Adam Thielen, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Pat Freiermuth, Kenneth Gainwell and Jaylen Warren, could be good for the team as it enters the postseason.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Tomlin: DK Metcalf Embracing ‘Growth Opportunity as a Man’ after Suspension
