Pittsburgh Steelers WR Calvin Austin III calls out Stephen A. Smith for the viral take on his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee

"Please just ignore dude, Disney [ESPN owner] said he needed some more engagements cause ratings were looking (upset face emoji)," Calvin Austin III wrote over a quote tweet of Stephen A Smith's comments about Memphis. 

A response to why the Grizzlies, Memphis' basketball team, can't lure free agents, Stephen A. Smith used crime as his reasoning...

"It's moving in the right direction, but it's still recognized as one of the worst cities in America, said Stephen A. To the point where the head of the FBI has called it 'the murder capital of this country' per capita. That's on the record . . . 

" . . . The citizens in Memphis, I think a lot better can be done for them. I apologize if anybody was offended by it. But facts are facts."

A Memphis native and a player who came to stardom at the University of Memphis, Calvin Austin III took issue with the stance, as have many across the sports media landscape. 

Smaller markets, of which Pittsburgh is typically considered, tend to get less coverage and favoritism when compared to the Dallas' New York's, Los Angeles' and Miami's of the world. 

The difference is, Pittsburgh is home to the Steelers, which is one of the biggest brands in all of sports, not only in the U.S., but in the world. 

Maybe that's why they get the attention of First Take on ESPN.