The Steelers' come-from-behind win over the Bengals on Monday night was marred by nasty injuries and unnecessarily dirty hits. One of those injuries occurred when Steelers receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster went head hunting against Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict and knocked him out of the game after a scary scene that involved Burfict getting stretchered off the field. It was a horrifying moment, yet after the game, Steelers star receiver Antonio Brown did not express remorse for Smith-Schuster's hit that injured Burfict.
According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler and The Athletic's Mark Kaboly, Brown called Smith-Schuster's hit on Burfict "karma."
As JuJu Smith-Schuster talked about his block on Vontaze Burfict, Antonio Brown kept yelling ‘KARMA’ in Smith-Schuster’s direction. Said ‘Touchdown Brown’ will pay his fine.
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) December 5, 2017
When asked about Burfict getting hit, Antonio Brown just kept saying “karma.” @TheAthleticPIT
— Mark Kaboly (@MarkKaboly) December 5, 2017
He also said that he "liked" the block.
Antonio Brown on JuJu's block of Burfict, smiling:
— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) December 5, 2017
"I liked that, I liked that."
Brown's attempt to clarify his "karma" comments didn't really make them any better.
Asked to clarify if his "karma" comments were in regards to Burfict gettin knocked out of the game, ABrown said:
— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) December 5, 2017
"I aint talking about nobody, just karma is karma. Karma is in life; you do the wrong things, you get the wrong things happen to you. Its not personal between no one."
Here's the hit that Brown says he liked:
Slo-mo look at Schuster hitting Burfict pic.twitter.com/o3RViZ44fZ
— Pete Blackburn (@PeteBlackburn) December 5, 2017
Smith-Schuster was flagged, but did not get ejected. The Steelers went on to tie the game on that drive with a touchdown pass to Brown and eventually won with a walk-off field goal.
There's always been bad blood between the Steelers and Bengals, and specifically Brown and Burfict. During a playoff game following the 2015 regular season, Burfict went head hunting against Brown and ended up concussing him. Burfict later told ESPN that Brown "faked that."
You be the judge:
This is just brutal pic.twitter.com/hBsIAJIBwO
— The Cauldron (@TheCauldron) January 10, 2016
Burfict was suspended for the first three games of the 2016 season. His list of questionable plays extends beyond the Bengals-Steelers rivalry. He's also been accused of dirty plays against Ravens tight end Maxx Williams, Patriots tight end Martellus Bennett, former Patriots running back LeGarrette Blount, and Bell. Burfict missed the first three games of the 2017 season for his illegal hit on Chiefs fullback Anthony Sherman during a preseason game. Earlier this season, he kicked at Steelers fullback Roosevelt Nix's head, but he avoided a suspension.
Burfict's history of dirty plays doesn't excuse the hit he suffered on Monday night. It doesn't make the hit any better. It can't be used as a way to justify that block.
It's worth noting that Smith-Schuster did apologize on Twitter after the game, saying he "didn't mean to hurt" Burfict.
I don’t have any intentions to hurt anyone when I play football. I didn’t mean to hurt Vontez Burfict, I just wanted to throw a block for my teammate. I apologize for standing over him and that isn’t me. Praying he gets better.
— JuJu Smith-Schuster (@TeamJuJu) December 5, 2017
