A glimpse inside the mind of the novice Pittsburgh Steelers fan

Have you ever encountered a person who can’t seem to forget all the times they have been right about something, but can’t seem to remember ever being wrong about anything? This type of delusional individual will usually attempt to deflect blame if proven wrong, preferring to credit others for their miscalculations, maybe even yourself.

This type of personality came to mind recently as I perused various statements on a Steelers based Facebook site of which I am a member. Admittedly, many of the fans on this particular site aren’t very knowledgeable when it comes to the Steelers, but good luck trying to convince them of that little truth nugget. Although the evidence of their intellectual shortcomings are plentiful, I will only refer to the maddening number of members who still can’t seem to fathom why the Steelers haven’t already traded Bell to somebody, anybody, for anything. If you don’t as of yet understand the problem with that suggestion, then rest assured you are the type of individual I am referring to. That is just another reason I am thankful for BTSC. Easily the most knowledgeable site I have encountered.

Last week as I scrolled through the previously mentioned Facebook site, one of the members posted the statistics for Mike Mitchell’s first game for the Indianapolis Colts. He included a tidbit from PFF that rated Mitchell’s performance that week as one of the three highest at the safety position. I thought to myself, ‘Good for him, but even a blind squirrel finds a nut from time to time.’

I would be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge I place little stock in PFF or their rating system. Without going into great detail, there is something about some of their ratings that just don’t pass the old eyeball test. Again, that is only my opinion.

This week that same poster is back and this time with renewed vigor. He happily pointed out that Mitchell had been named the AFC Defensive Player of the week. Then he proceeded to go completely off the rails. He howled about how Mitchell was performing at a Pro Bowl level and how the Steelers would rue the day that they released him. He felt Mitchell’s strong performance thus far proved he had indeed played with an injured foot last season, resulting in his subpar play. He even commented that Mitchell was playing for the league minimum this year.

First of all, this individual needs to slow his roll. We are talking about two games here. One against the Jets, a game they actually lost. The other against the Buffalo Bills, quite possibly the worst offense in the league. The Bills don’t possess a NFL caliber QB at the moment, and they lost Shady McCoy early in the game. Not taking anything away from Mitchell, but two solid performances doesn’t equate to Pro Bowl level. Maybe Mitchell was trying to play through an injury last year, but how is that the Steelers fault? If you are incapable of upholding your responsibilities on the football field, you owe it to your teammates and yourself to make the trainers aware. Also, what was his excuse for the previous season?

One more thing, he was definitely scheduled to earn far more than the league minimum if he played for the Steelers this season. His play on the field in no way resembled his salary. Unless you appreciate tackles made twenty yards down field because you always let your assignment catch the football, or maybe you enjoy trash talking during-the-play, only to miss the tackle altogether trying to make a knockout hit. I bear no hard feelings toward Mike Mitchell the man, and hopefully he goes on to have a successful season for the Colts, but I haven’t missed Mitchell the player not one little bit.

This is far from the first time an excitable fan has over reacted to a strong performance by an ex-Steelers player. Maybe Mitchell had been his favorite Steeler. We all have our favorite players, and sometimes the truth may be hard to visualize through the eyes of love. All any of us can do is try our best to be truthful, and admit our fallacies. You know what they say, the truth will set you free.

The same poster came up with a great idea. Why don’t the Steelers just trade Bell to the Cardinals straight up for Patrick Peterson. I rest my case!