Accountability: do we really seek it?

Accountability. A trait we universally view as positive. A trait we desire to see in others. A trait we routinely fall short of when attempting to display in ourselves. In sports, and in particular the Steelers, we desire accountability of the coaches, players, general manager, and owner. We want them to atone for their “sins,” - dropped passes, missed blocks, interceptions, losses, bad draft picks, defensive breakdowns, etc. We seek this level of accountability with a fervor and rapidity that is usually unrivaled; however, should it be rivaled? Why do we in the fanbase and more importantly, those in the national, local, and pseudo-media completely ignore accountability in ourselves? Now that the season is over and we all do the post mortem of the 2023 Pittsburgh Steelers, why is there not enough scrutiny on the falsehoods, the wrongs, and the mistakes made by those that are considered “experts” on the Steelers? Over the past two weeks the important press conferences have occurred. Mike Tomlin had his end of year pressor, the captains and numerous players had theirs, and most recently Art Rooney II had his meeting with the media. It now becomes clear that most, if not all of the hot takes and major “stories” of the latter half of this season were…wrong. They were all wrong. Mike Tomlin said, from his own mouth that he is NOT tired of coaching, he is NOT and was NEVER contemplating taking time off, he wants to be coaching the Steelers and is as excited as ever to attack this offseason. Art Rooney II said, from his own mouth that they still believe in Mike T and his ability to win and hold the locker room. What happened to the daily and weekly reports from the local and national media stating “Mike Tomlin could take some time off?” Where did this come from and who started the thread? Where did the report of Mike Tomlin’s seat being “hot” come from? Who started that thread? Either way, why will there be ZERO accountability for the beat writers, bloggers, “NFL Insiders” who made these claims? Will any of these “journalists” be held accountable in any way for their blatant falsehoods? Mike Tomlin, Kenny Pickett, and actual Steelers insiders dismissed the ridiculous claims of Mark Madden regarding the Quarterback situation in Seattle. Will he be held to account for his falsehoods? Will his credibility be questioned next season? Will anyone on ESPN or the NFL network be held to account for their perpetuation of these false stories? Will we as a fanbase seek the high level of accountability with these people the same way we seek it in our players and coaches? This, more than most other years, demonstrates the diminishing of our culture, writing, priorities, and public square. Words do not “mean” anything anymore. They only have an effect. The effect is exposure, clicks, and outrage. The effect is harmful to players reputations. Should we stand for this as fans of this team? Should we allow garbage cans parading as humans such as Mark Madden continue to just make stories up? Should we stand for NBC, ESPN, NFL network showing ridiculous graphics and headlines of our coach considering stepping away when it is unarguably false? Where is the accountability? Unfortunately, there probably won’t be any. There will continue to be an insatiable desire to hold the players, coaches, and GM accountable for on the field failures; but never a drop of outrage over those in the media and on social media being wrong/failing at their jobs.

Go Steelers. And Mark Madden sucks.