There have been many takes, some of them scorching hot, about James Harrison jumping from Pittsburgh to New England ahead of the NFL playoffs. Speaking about his recently departed former teammate, Cam Heyward made an interesting comparison fans of pro wrestling will remember.
“It was definitely a heel turn move,” Heyward said on NFL Network’s Good Morning Football. “It’s almost like Hulk Hogan when he went to the NWO, nobody’s happy about that. But it’s his decision. It just means he won’t be in the ring with us.”
For what it’s worth, it’s not like Harrison abandoned the Steelers this year. In fact, per his own account of this year in Pittsburgh, Harrison claims the Steelers didn’t live up to their promise regarding playing time, which is why he ended up asking for his release three times before it finally happened.
And it’s also worth pointing out that, once a team lets a player go, there’s nothing wrong with said player going to another franchise that has a shot at a ring. Especially when you’re a veteran with not much time left to play the game you love.
Still, we totally get how Steelers fans and some players might feel like Harrison betrayed them. Now he’ll be trying to win a ring with the most successful team of the past two decades, and as he was happy to point out the day he signed, Harrison won’t be the oldest player on that team.