Condemning Text Exchange Leaks Between Mike Tomlin And Former Steelers Star

The Pittsburgh Steelers have been one of the most consistent franchises in the league throughout the 21st century, and a lot of that was due to the leadership of Mike Tomlin. The former head coach has now stepped down creating an enticing job opening in the NFL world. The coach was always praised due to his ability to create meaningful relationships with his players, and this allowed him to get the most out of his roster. Since he has stepped down a ton of former players have come out to celebrate their former head coach, but that is not the case with James Harrison.

Harrison was a diamond in the rough when Pittsburgh found him as he was undrafted and was cut multiple times. He carved out a nice career for himself in Pittsburgh as he was a critical piece of Super Bowl winning teams, and he held the franchise's career sack-record for quite some time. He has been outspoken about the team's shortcomings in recent years, and after Tomlin stepped down, the former linebacker spoke about a heated text exchange with his coach during a recent episode of Deebo & Joe.

"He was into his feelings because I said that [Bill] Belichick was a better coach than him," Harrison said. "He responded with something like, '[LaMarr] Woodley was a smarter player than you.' Here's his text. He says, 'Wood was a smarter player than you, but I would never say that to anybody but you. I'm not with you for what you say. I'm always with you because of your relationship with the game and what you were willing to do. Don't act funny. I will always be with you, no matter how f**ked up you are LOL!'"

Tomlin was seemingly unhappy after Harrison went on a show and declared that Bill Belichick was a better coach than him, which isn't an absurd statement, especially since Harrison played for both coaches. The former Pittsburgh head coach apparently did not care for Harrison's comments.

Tomlin has always said that he does not listen to the outside noise, but this exchange with Harrison proves that that is not always true. It might be different since this negative comment was coming from one of Tomlin's former players, but the fact remains true that Tomlin allowed himself to be affected by something that was said in the media.

Harrison has said things in the past that might suggest that he and Tomlin did not have the best relationship. He has seemingly been rooting for Tomlin and the organization to part ways, and now that has finally happened. It is hard to believe that Tomlin would come at one of his former players like that, but it is clear that their relationship was always rocky. Harrison also briefly mentioned an incident that occurred in 2013, but he didn't go into any details on the matter.

Steelers May Have Other Former Players Coming Out With Stories About Mike Tomlin

Harrison is not the only former player that has spoken poorly about Tomlin in the media. Both Ryan Clark and Ben Roethlisberger have said some negative things about their former coach in recent years, so there is a chance that them, and other players have received messages from Tomlin that are in the same vein. Both of those specific players however, recently posted their latest positive sentiments about the long-time coach after he stepped down on Tuesday.

Tomlin's time in Pittsburgh should be celebrated, but there are going to be some negative things that come out about the former coach from time to time. It is a natural part of the cycle when there is a coaching change, and these stories are going to show some of Tomlin's true colors with certain individuals.

What do you think about Harrison's exchange with Tomlin? Let us know in the comments below!

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