Former Pittsburgh Steelers star joining Indianapolis Colts coaching staff

Former Pittsburgh Steelers star safety Mike Mitchell is joining the Indianapolis Colts coaching staff, according to reports that surfaced on Thursday night.

Stephen Holder of TheAthletic.com reports that Mitchell will be the assistant defensive backs coach on Frank Reich’s staff with the Colts.

Mitchell ended his career with the team in 2018 and had 28 tackles, an interception, and two forced fumbles in eight games for the team. He was drafted by the Raiders in 2009 and later joined the Panthers, Steelers, and Colts. He retired with 514 tackles, 11 interceptions, 7.5 sacks, nine forced fumbles, and eight fumble recoveries over the course of his career.

Brian Flores explains how Pittsburgh Steelers deal came about

The Steelers have a new defensive piece on the 2022 coaching staff and former Miami Dolphins’ coach Brian Flores said the deal moved swiftly.

In an interview with Bryant Gumbel of Real Sports, Flores said that it “all happened very fast” because he called Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin “to get some counsel” about his next steps last Thursday. The two men spoke again on Friday and “that conversation turned into an opportunity” with the team that Flores accepted on Friday night

Gumbel followed up on that by asking if he thinks Tomlin threw Flores a “lifeline” to join the Pittsburgh Steelers as a result of the lawsuit Brian Flores filed against the NFL and several teams alleging discriminatory hiring practices for head coaching jobs.

“I’m a very — capable coach in this league,” Flores said. “But I do feel like he saw a situation where there was — a very — experienced coach — who could help his staff, who was also a Black coach in the league. And I think — I think that — that kind speaks to what we’re talkin’ about.”

In a move that was felt throughout the league, Flores recently filed a lawsuit against the NFL on the basis of racial bias.

“This Brian Flores lawsuit against the NFL is going to resonate throughout sports and be a significant moment in the history of the league,” Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports said. “I’ve spoken to two other coaches who believe they have the receipts to be a part of the class. This could be a tsunami before it’s all over.”

Pittsburgh Steelers star defensive linemen Cam Heyward immediately reacted positively to the news that Flores was on board.

“It’s very similar to when we signed coach Munchak,” Heyward said, via Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, per Pro Football Talk. “You heard of his leadership and what he had done as head coach, but you knew the type of coach he was through his players. Even when Flores was in New England, he got the most out of his defenses.

“When you start looking at the track record, when you bring in different coaches, you start to get pretty excited.”