JuJu Smith-Schuster is, for now, still a Steeler. But he’s expecting to hit free agency next month, and he’s letting the Steelers know he thinks they should step up their game in more than just the contract they offer him.
Smith-Schuster was at the Cowboys’ facility to shoot a commercial this week, and he raved about the “amazing” work environment that Cowboys players had, and then said the Steelers have a long way to go before they’re in the same class.
“It’s unbeatable,” Smith-Schuster said of the Cowboys’ facility, via Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News. “The Steelers are still working on trying to get out of the wooden locker rooms. And over here, it’s very prestige. Oh, they’ll definitely hear this. I want them [the Steelers] to hear this.”
The Steelers surely will hear that, and it may lead them to decide not to make a competitive contract offer to keep Smith-Schuster. Steelers coach Mike Tomlin has said he wants players to feel like volunteers, not hostages, and if Smith-Schuster doesn’t like the facilities in Pittsburgh, the Steelers may decide it’s better if he leaves.