Four days after a feud erupted between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens, WR George Pickens and Cleveland Browns S Grant Delpit mixed things up on Thursday night.
Midway through the fourth quarter of the game, Delpit was cited for unsportsmanlike conduct for snatching Pickens’ mouthguard from under his helmet and taking it away. For a moment, it seemed like an uncalled for move to Delpit. But he hinted at the reason on social media, releasing a clip of the moment Pickens sticks out his foot and tries to trip Delpit.
Noah Schaefer tweeted: Delpit’s purported Instagram story All 22 aerial photos show what happened after the play, a botched windback by RB Cordarrelle Patterson.
The video doesn’t seem to be on Delpit’s Instagram page yet, but you can grab the same All-22 clip for yourself. Just before the video cuts out, Pickens can be seen walking up behind Delpit and Patterson. Delpit shakes off Pickens’ block and makes a tackle, with the former cracking his jaw a bit. Pickens kicked out his left leg behind Delpit, and Delpit stumbled and stumbled as he walked backwards, but did not fall to the ground.
I slowed down the clip to make it a little more visible. The two are standing on the sideline near the 7-8 yard line.
Here is another enlarged image taken by Dave.
That’s when Delpit grabbed Pickens’ mouthguard and earned a penalty. Pickens was not punished. The yards weren’t that many, and the ball advanced 2 yards, but it gave the Steelers a first down. RB Jalen Warren made the next play, and Pittsburgh’s temporary comeback began.
That wasn’t the only mix-up between Pickens and the Browns’ secondary. Pittsburgh’s Hail Mary fell horribly incomplete, but Browns cornerback Greg Newsome ran past Pickens and pushed him out of the end zone. Both players had to be separated as security diffused the situation.
In the locker room after the game, Pickens said that the snowy weather helped Cleveland and that the Browns were not a “good team.”
Thursday’s action wasn’t the first time Pickens and the defensive backs have been in turmoil. At the end of Week 5, when Pittsburgh lost to the Dallas Cowboys, Pickens threw down Dallas cornerback Jordan Lewis after Lewis punched him in the jaw after the final play. Both players were fined for this incident.
The NFL announced the fine today, but it was for a Week 11 game. Week 12 fines will not be issued until next Saturday. Let’s see if Pickens, Delpit, Newsome, and anyone else shows up on the list. Perhaps lighter wallets will emerge.
