Steely McBeam
Well-known member
- Mar 20, 2019
- 2,135
- 0
Getty Images
Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey accepted his punishment, and served his time.
But he’s not remorseful about his role in the brawl with the Browns, which saw him go after defensive end Myles Garrett after Garrett clocked Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph with his own helmet.
“The NFL had to make a statement, and rightfully so,” Pouncey said, via Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com. “At the end of the day, the fight didn’t look good, but the fight was worth it. . . .
“No regrets. I’ve moved on now, man. Everyone had to pay their fines. Everyone had to do their due diligence. The money was worth it, trust me.”
Pouncey is back from his two-game banishment, which was shortened from an original three-game suspension, for punching and kicking at Garrett. He was also fined $35,096.
He also pushed back against Garrett’s allegation that Rudolph used a racial slur.
“Come on man, that’s not true at all,” Pouncey said. “Honestly, you guys know Mason. You guys have been around him a long time. It’s not his first time. Trust me, if he was racist, it would’ve got exposed.”
Pouncey having his guy’s back is not surprising, and he clearly built up some goodwill in his own locker room by his actions, since teammates wore “Free Pouncey” shirts while he was gone and they gave him a game ball for a game he wasn’t at.