First off, can you let us know about the restaurant and what else you’ve been up to since football?
A group of friends and me opened up The Pit BBQ Grille here in Columbus together. One of my friends was my college roommate at Ohio State – Chimdi Chekwa – who was drafted by the Raiders and played for five or so years in the NFL. My other two friends – Mike Johnson and D’Andre Martin are also business partners.
We wanted to bring our Cleveland style of barbecue to Columbus. The recipes are from our family members and made from scratch – we even use our family members’ names on our menu.
Was the transition from football to this new work tough?
I’d say once you finish football it’s a tough stretch. The energy around the game is what you miss – you enjoy all those moments when you played. So there’s always a transition period.
My friends – Mike and D’Andre when I was done with football – they helped me get re-acclimated to the world. They put their arms around me and got me into some men’s groups for spiritual purposes and that helped. They were good friends and we started brainstorming on the restaurant idea then.
How did you end up in Pittsburgh as a Cleveland guy?
I was a free agent and was picked up by the St. Louis Rams after the draft. They released me though after 10 days, then the Panthers picked me up. I was there for a year – I was on the active roster for a time when I got hurt. The second season I was placed on the practice squad then was cut.
A week later the Browns signed me to their practice squad, then I was with the Giants in the offseason before getting added to Buffalo’s practice squad. The last quarter of the season they released me. I was working out in Tampa Bay – they were looking at signing me when the Steelers called me and said they wanted to sign me without a workout. So I went there and was on the practice squad for a year but dislocated my shoulder and was cut.
Anyone take you under their wing when you were in Pittsburgh?
Pouncey, Ramon, Gilbert – Adams – he was my little brother at Ohio State – it was a great room – a great situation. There were a lot of great guys there – DeCastro too – he was an ironman there. I gelled with guys right away. It was a loose but serious bunch of guys.
I watched Pouncey practice. He played fast and quick and he practiced that same way. He did everything at game speed in practice and that was very impressive to me. He brought his best to every rep.
What helped you to make that adjustment and make the practice squad?
I was a student of the game. I was on a lot of teams for short times and had to learn the terminology, plays and expectations of the coaches on techniques. So learning quickly was a strength of mine and being able to transfer what I learned to the field. They knew I could come in and pick things up quickly and help them.
What helped you to deal with the stress of all of that team movement?
I think my first year in the NFL, after being cut by the Rams, I told myself if I do this I needed to do it because I enjoyed football. I put a lot of pressure on myself at first after being cut. But I told myself I needed to really enjoy football if I was going to go through this. Everything else is out of my control. There was a slim chance I would make a ton of money in football. That helped me to relax and just enjoy playing football, like I was in college or high school again. If I continued playing, I’d try to be my best self and not worry about the rest, and that clicked for me. I didn’t stress so much then – and that stress is definitely not good for you!
I started looking at the best ways to maximize my time and to protect myself. I stayed in Air BnBs – no long-term rentals. I learned what I could and enjoyed my teammates and coaches while I was there.
Any of those guys you lined up against in Pittsburgh stand out most to you?
I played with Cam Heyward in college – we both graduated together. Of course he was a first rounder and I was a free agent. I had a chance to play against him in college literally every day.
How did you fare against him?
I think I did pretty good against him seeing as how he was a first rounder!
Back then for his first couple of years he just bull-rushed guys every play. I used to call him Ironhead, like his dad, because no one did it like Cam did there. He’d put his head into you and hit you as hard as he could. It wasn’t until maybe his third season when he started developing moves off of the bullrush. Before then he’d just bullrush every play – you had to take that every week from him. Then he started developing swim and rip moves that he could rely on.
It was a pleasure to see him grow. Defensive linemen with the Steelers – they are two-gap linemen. Watching him learn how to use his hands better to create space between he and linemen…it’s special to see him able to do that so well now.
What do you remember most from your time in Pittsburgh?
Being from Cleveland, I still cheer for the Browns every week and got to play for them, so that was great. But that was the year they just sold the team and it was in turmoil. No one knew whether they would be there next season, so it was a weird time to be there.
After coming to the Steelers, I can better understand why they are who they are. They are competitive every year. If you don’t beat them early they come back because their culture is so strong. They do a really good job of keeping past players around the program that show off that tough mindset of the team. That’s why they find ways to win – their tough mindset comes out because of that influence. Because of who they are, they believe they will win the game. Tomlin does a great job of challenging players to perform too. He doesn’t care if you’re a starter or play three snaps. He challenges everyone to be tougher than their opponent to win the game.
Lastly, as a Cleveland fan and native, was it strange playing for the Steelers?
I was happy to hear the phone ring no matter what team called me! The Steelers like Ohio State guys too. We’re confident guys who find ways to win tough games too. I think the Steelers like that about Ohio State guys.
When I got the call from the Steelers I literally flew right from Tampa to Pittsburgh. I was happy to play there. I appreciate my time there and the way Tomlin speaks to and respects players and challenges them. I can see why he is so successful.
When people ask me what the best team was that I played for, I have to grit my teeth and say the Steelers.
Read more by former Steelers via the book Steelers Takeaways: Player Memories Through the Decades. To order, just click on the book:
