One of the things that was obvious four months ago was the Yinzer smear campaign against Kenny Pickett.

Not that it’s necessarily unique to kill a guy on his way out (see: Simmons, Ben), but the volume and tenor of the anti-Pickett tweets from Pittsburgh media made it very clear that the Steelers were ahead of the narrative.

That was more or less confirmed by Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writer Ray Fittipaldo, who went on 93.7 the Fan and said this (transcription via Matthew Marczi at Steelers Depot):

“I don’t know if I want to go as far as character assassination,” but it was pretty close. The instant reaction from Yinzer media was that Pickett was an arrogant punk and a poor sport, so obviously the amplified message was that of the anti-Pickett portion of the organization:

No matter. Pickett will back up Jalen Hurts in Philadelphia. He’ll get the opportunity to compete. He’ll be treated much better by the fair and balanced Philadelphia media. Pittsburgh media carries water for Mike Tomlin and the Steelers organization because they are the greatest thing ever and can do no wrong.


I wrote this in the last column:

“It kind of flies under the radar, since our ire is directed mostly at Cowboys and Niners fans, but Steelers fans and media can be just as bad in the privilege department. They win a bunch of Super Bowls and think they’re god’s gift to football. I was going to slit my wrists the next time somebody said “one for the thumb” at WVU in 2006. Nobody deserves a decade of utter mediocrity more than the Pittsburgh Steelers and their entitled fans and media, who lack the emotional intelligence that’s pervasive in southeastern Pennsylvania and into the great state of New Jersey. I have no doubts that Kenny Pickett, playing for a real franchise with a real culture and real fans, will settle in and become a solid backup for Jalen Hurts, ready to take over for the former at a moment’s notice.”

 

h/t Ryan for sending this over