Former Steelers LB Vince Williams Answers Whether He Regrets An Antagonistic Tweet Aimed At Vontaze Burfict After A Cowardly Hit

The Pittsburgh Steelers are the organization that practically invented smash-mouth football. Therefore, if a Steelers player is upset about another team's physicality, there is almost always some validity. For players to be able to muster this kind of constructive aggression during a game, they have to be very passionate. However, at times, that passion isn't well contained and spills over to off-the-field bickering. Not much exemplified this more than the Twitter battle between Vince Williams and Vontaze Burfict.  

When you add a self-proclaimed "quirky sense of humor," some frustration regarding your teammate's safety, and the perception the referees getting it wrong, you brew up a recipe for a nasty Twitter war. That is just what happened with the Steelers for linebacker Williams and his arch-nemesis, Cincinnati Bengals' Burfict in 2015. Now, Williams is speaking up about how he feels about that situation given that nearly eight years have passed.   

What Happened Between the Steelers' Vince Williams And the Bengals' Vontaze Burfict?

It was Week 17 of the 2015 season and the Steelers were playing division rivals, the Bengals. This was during the time when Le'Veon Bell was an unstoppable weapon. Games between any teams in the AFC North are always physical, aggressive, black-and-blue type football. However, Burfict brought something else to the table. It is fair to say if you were a fan of the team he was on, you loved the way he was a bully on the field. But the opponents not only didn't love him, many didn't even respect him. 

Burfict tackled Bell on the sideline, contorting his body and causing an MCL tear. Of course, Burfict said he didn't mean to hurt him, and called it a clean hit. Right... if you believe that he also has some oceanfront property to sell you in Kansas. 

Bell definitely felt it was a dirty hit, he has spoken about the game numerous times and believes that Burfict, and in fact, the majority of the Bengals team, were trying to injure him and other players intentionally. 

After the game was over, Williams was angered by the fact that the Bengals players seem to be celebrating after injuring Bell. Williams wasn't the only player that voiced their concerns over the way the game was played. Steelers offensive guard Ramon Foster also said he felt they were targeting Steelers. 

"I am sure they were aiming to take somebody out today and kudos to them, they did the job."

Regardless of whether the hit was clean or dirty, intentional or unintentional, Williams let his emotions get the best of him. He sent out a bit of a menacing tweet that night, which he quickly took down, but not before Burfict responded.