Mark Madden: Keeping players happy not a winning formula for Steelers

On Nov. 2, the Steelers traded edge rusher Melvin Ingram to Kansas City. Ingram was unhappy with his playing time and asked out.

This past Sunday, during a 16-16 tie with Detroit at Heinz Field, edge rusher T.J. Watt left the game hurt. An MRI on Watt’s hip and knee revealed nothing disastrous. But it’s hard to imagine Watt playing in this coming Sunday’s game at the Los Angeles Chargers.

In the interim, the Steelers’ primary edge rushers are second-year pro Alex Highsmith, who has 1.5 sacks, and Taco Charlton, who has none.

Charlton was Dallas’ first-round pick in 2017. He has played 47 NFL games and has 11 sacks. He’s a bust.

The Steelers’ No. 3 edge rusher is currently Derrek Tuszka, who has played 16 NFL games and has zero sacks. He was picked by Denver in the seventh round of the 2020 draft. He’s a bum.

The Steelers could use Ingram. He has 50 career NFL sacks and three Pro Bowl selections. Ingram has pedigree and experience.

But the Steelers didn’t want him to be unhappy.

The Steelers have become a soft organization that hurts their team by trading useful players because they’re griping about playing time.

Ingram is hardly the first.

Linebacker James Harrison finagled his way to New England and a Super Bowl loss in 2017. He was sullen because he played behind Watt, then a rookie.

Harrison acted like a spoiled child. He skipped practices, no-showed position meetings and slept through them when he did attend. Harrison also left Heinz Field and went home when he was inactive for home games.

The Steelers cut running back LeGarrette Blount in 2014. Blount was unhappy about playing time. He once left the field before a game was completed.

Blount, too, went to New England. He wound up winning a Super Bowl ring.

Starting back Le’Veon Bell got hurt and wasn’t available for the playoffs. Blount was gone, so the Steelers used scrubs Josh Harris and Ben Tate at running back. Those two combined for 44 yards rushing when the Steelers were eliminated by Baltimore in the first round.

The Steelers needed to hold onto all those players. If that didn’t suit those players, too bad. They signed contracts. They’re employees, nothing more.

Ingram knew what his role would be when he signed. If the Steelers reneged on that, tough luck. (But I bet they didn’t.) That’s life in football.

The Steelers play at Kansas City Dec. 26. What if Ingram makes a play that wins that game and it costs the Steelers a playoff berth? Will it be worth keeping Ingram happy?

I never thought of the NFL as the happy business.

I never thought the Steelers would go soft, either. Players walk all over them.

It’s impossible to not question the direction of the Steelers’ organization. (I take that back. It’s very possible, as evidenced by the fact that few do.)

Linebacker Joe Schobert just said that the Steelers need to take practice more seriously. Safety Terrell Edmunds previously said the Steelers need to practice harder.

Sunday’s horrific tie with winless Detroit showed plenty of cracks. The Steelers missed tackles, dropped balls, lost two crucial fumbles, took dumb penalties and executed bad snaps.

The Steelers keep flunking Football 101.

But it’s still a great organization. Go ahead. Keep telling yourself that.