Insider believes NFL, Steelers aimed to minimize incident in Ireland

The Pittsburgh Steelers went over to Dublin, Ireland, for a historic matchup for the organization. The late ambassador Dan Rooney served as the U.S. ambassador to Ireland from 2009 to 2012, and his legacy left a lasting impact on the team. Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin spoke extensively about how much this game meant to him personally, tying the occasion to Rooney’s influence and the deep connection between the Steelers and Ireland. The game itself lived up to the hype, with the Steelers edging out the Minnesota Vikings, 24-21, in a hard-fought victory.

However, before the game kicked off, troubling news emerged. Backup quarterback Skylar Thompson was reportedly jumped and robbed the night before the matchup. While the incident was reported by several media outlets, it was never formally filed with the Irish police as an official complaint.

On Wednesday, NFL insider Mike Florio joined 93.7 The Fan and shared his perspective on the situation. Florio believes that the NFL attempted to minimize the incident to avoid overshadowing the historic game in Dublin. According to him, the league likely wanted to preserve the celebratory atmosphere and not distract from the significance of the matchup, leaving fans and the media to piece together the story in the aftermath.

"Well, I think our shared cynical nature would be that neither the NFL or the Steelers wanted to create an international incident over this," Florio said on 93.7 The Fan. "If he wasn’t badly injured and whatever he lost wasn’t all that significant, then let’s just exercise discretion here and not file a formal complaint."

The Irish media reported that several people were involved in an assault on Thompson around the Temple Bar area. It was also revealed that his phone was stolen. 

The Steelers released a statement, but it didn’t provide much new information. Florio believes this was an attempt by the NFL to save face during what was otherwise a very positive day for the league.

"I don’t think he’s gonna fly back to Ireland and file one now," Florio said. "I think it was all about, hey, we don’t want anything to ruin all the positivity that comes out of playing this game in Ireland and expanding the global footprint. I think it’s that simple. Somebody suggested to him that the prudent thing to do would be to just say I am OK… We don’t want any dark clouds. We want all silver linings coming out of the excursion to the land of leprechauns and pots of gold."

Florio is as connected as anyone when it comes to the NFL, and it’s interesting to hear him suggest that the league may have tried to minimize this situation.

Steelers fans eager to hear from Skylar Thompson

The first part of this is that Steelers fans are concerned and hopeful that Thompson is OK. Thompson was already on injured reserve, and he clearly suffered injuries that required medical attention. Steelers fans are eager to hear from Thompson about the incident and remain hopeful that he is doing well.