Clark Says the Media Coverage of the Steelers is Unfair

Ryan Clark, a prominent spokesman in the locker room, ripped Steelers fans and the media that covers the team.

“You get hate mail from fans, they tell you that you suck and all that. And that’s fine, because there’s a reason they watch the game,” Clark said.

“This year, increasingly, it’s made me realize that you have to play for your organization, you have to play for your teammates, you have to play for yourself, for your family, because the people on the outside don’t understand the frustration you go through.

“They don’t understand the work you put into it every day. A lot of people think we come in here and practice a couple of hours and then go out on Sunday and go play the game. That’s not how it is.”

Clark posted on the bulletin board in the locker room one letter he received from a fan that was critical of the defense. He told the media to go read it, but a Steelers public relations man removed it before anyone saw it.

“I had a bunch, but that was the best one,” Clark said of the letter.

“I’m not upset with the guy. I don’t want to go to his house or fight him. That’s his opinion and that’s how he feels. I don’t know what he does for a living. Whether he’s an accountant … I can’t go talk to him about how he crunches numbers. I can’t go talk to him about how he teaches his class and things like that.”

Clark then turned his ire toward the local media, accusing them of wrongly criticizing individual players for errors they did not make.

“You watch the Eagles, you watch the big plays. You watch things given up. And I started checking other media outlets. You don’t hear the things about them in their media that you hear about us,” Clark said. “So either we’re held to a higher standard or the people that write about us are turds.”