Mike Tomlin reveals cause behind Trai Turner scuffle against Raiders
Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin revealed the reason behind guard Trai Turner’s fight with the Las Vegas Raiders Sunday. Turner was ejected after appearing to spit in an opposing player’s face.
But Tomlin said that Turner was not the instigator. Instead, he was reacting.
“You know somebody spit in his face,” Tomlin said. “And so I understand the 15-yard penalties and so forth, gaining control of the game. Trai is not a young guy. He’s not overly emotional. He’s a flat-liner. For him to respond the way he responded, what transpired had to have transpired. I was stating that case to them. I didn’t believe he did enough to get kicked out of the football game. That’s just my opinion.”
Unfortunately, there is no evidence to support this claim. All we can do is go off the word of Turner and Tomlin. It is unclear whether Turner or anyone on the Raiders will face further punishment.
Pittsburgh lost to the Raiders 26-17 to drop to 1-1 on the year. With Turner out, Las Vegas recorded two sacks and forced an interception from quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.
The Steelers trailed for most of the game, with their only lead coming midway through the second quarter after a JuJu Smith-Schuster touchdown run put them up, 7-6. After that, it was all Raiders.
Las Vegas quarterback Derek Carr finished the game 28-of-37 passing for 382 yards and two touchdowns. Former Alabama receiver Henry Ruggs III was his top target with five catches for 113 yards and a touchdown.
Pittsburgh will get a chance to get back in the win column when it faces AFC North rival Cincinnati at 1 p.m. ET next Sunday. If the Steelers have Trai Turner back for that game, they will need him to avoid another spit scandal and any other type of altercations. He is too valuable to the offensive line.