Steelers' Patrick Queen Admits He Will Take Heat But Was Honest About Steelers Home Crowd

The Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday in Dublin, Ireland by a final score of 24-21. With the win, the Steelers improve to 3-1 as they head to their bye week. The Steelers were the "home team" for the first ever NFL regular season game in Ireland, and it definitely felt like a home game for the Black and Gold. Fans and media members estimated the crowd was nearly 70% Steelers fans, and one Steelers defender said it felt like they were home at Acrisure Stadium.

Patrick Queen had one of his best games in a Steelers uniform on Sunday. He totaled 11 tackles, including three tackles for loss, one sack, and two hits on Vikings quarterback Carson Wentz. Queen seemed to be everywhere on the field, whether he was blowing up a running play in the backfield, or chasing Wentz down on passing downs; his presence was constant. His energy, mixed with the noise and passion from the Steelers-heavy crowd seemed to spark the entire defense.

When asked about the Dublin crowd, Queen made a bold statement while speaking with the media following the win.

“It was incredible. I might get a little heat, but it’s kind of different than being home,” said Queen. “They were into the whole entire game, every single third down, we could hear them.”

Part of that “different” feel could be explained by the sheer size of the crowd. The official attendance for the game was 74,512. To put that into perspective, Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh holds about 68,400 people at maximum capacity. While the difference might not seem massive on paper, Queen and his teammates could definitely feel the boost from those extra thousands of fans.

The Steelers and the NFL did their best to make the game feel as close to Pittsburgh as possible. They even flew out the team’s public address announcer, Larry Richert, to call the game. Every Steelers fan knows Richert’s voice, especially the way he emphasizes big moments like, “It’s third down!” or the always popular, “That’s a Pittsburgh Steelers first down!” Hearing those familiar phrases booming through the stadium speakers in Ireland was a special touch that brought some extra authenticity to the day. 

Of course, it wouldn’t be a Steelers home game without Renegade. The fan-favorite Styx anthem blasted during the fourth quarter, and like always, it fired the crowd up. Even though it was over 3,000 miles away from Pittsburgh, the sight of Irish fans and traveling Steelers fans waving their Terrible Towels truly made it feel like a home game. For fans in Ireland who may never get to experience a home game in Pittsburgh, it was about a close as it could get to the real thing. 

Steelers Fans Need To Crank Up The Noise At Acrisure Stadium

Queens comments about the crowd in Dublin proves two things to be true. One, Steeler Nation is everywhere, and they travel everywhere. Any time you turn on a Steelers road game, there are thousands of Terrible Towels waving, no matter the distance. Ireland was no different. Two, Steelers fans might need to crank up the noise at home games. 

There are few stadiums around the league that visiting teams fear due to loud crowd noise. Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Lumen Stadium in Seattle, Lambeau Field in Green Bay, and the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans are some of the loudest stadiums in the league. Acrisure Stadium usually isn't in that conversation. Sure, Steelers fans are known for their Terrible Towels and Renegade helps fire up the defense in the fourth quarter, but do visiting teams fear coming into Pittsburgh? 

The Steelers will play just their second home game of the year on October 12th when they welcome in the Cleveland Browns.

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