Stephen A. Smith Goes OFF on Art Rooney II For Lack of Investments in Steelers: “No Wonder Mike Tomlin Left”

Pittsburgh Steelers owner Art Rooney II has come under fire for the atrocious facilities and home field conditions at Acrisure Stadium.

Stephen A. Smith Goes OFF on Art Rooney II For Lack of Investments in Steelers: “No Wonder Mike Tomlin Left”

Stephen A. Smith and Art Rooney II (Image via Imago/Steelers CR/X)

In Short
  • Art Rooney II faces criticism for the Pittsburgh Steelers' poor facilities and ranking last in the NFLPA report card.
  • Stephen A. Smith highlights the organization's decline under Rooney II, questioning the lack of investment in team infrastructure.
  • Rooney II commits to resurfacing Acrisure Stadium with new grass ahead of the 2026 season, avoiding artificial turf.

Art Rooney II has suddenly found himself in the line of fire both in a serious manner and in jokes, after his Pittsburgh Steelers ranked last in facilities and their home field.

The 73-year-old is the second poorest owner in the league, with a net worth of just $1.2 billion, most of which comes from the Steelers. But that should not be the reason why players have to manage with what they have at their disposal.

This complaint has not come about in one year. Rather, the sheer lack of toilets and the poor condition of the field are something they have had to deal with for a very long time. When First Take discussed these ‘leaked’ rankings, Stephen A. Smith said this:

No wonder Mike Tomlin left… This organization, under Art Rooney II, I mean, right now, it looks like a disgrace compared to what his family has established for so many years… We expect better from the Rooneys.

Stephen A. Smith said

The lifelong Pittsburgh Steelers fan pivoted to how Art Rooney II’s leadership has seen the franchise struggle to win a playoff game recently. After hiring Mike McCarthy, the ESPN analyst hopes it is the difference Steeler fans want.

At the same time, Smith also pointed out how it was surprising to see the Steelers’ owner get a D-, when the facilities get F or F-. He feels Rooney II should have also gotten the lowest grade, as he is directly responsible for the lack of adequate infrastructure.

Art Rooney II commits to new field at Acrisure Stadium

The NFL tried to do its part to avoid this player’s end-of-season survey from becoming public knowledge. Even though the NFLPA adhered to its directive and did not publish it, it still found its way into ESPN senior writer Kalyn Kahler‘s hands.

Art Rooney II might not have the funds to completely redo the bathrooms at Acrisure Stadium, but in the aftermath of this ‘leaked’ survey, he agreed to fix the atrocious home field.

Steelers president Art Rooney said Thursday that Acrisure Stadium will be resurfaced for the 2026 season with Tahoma 31 Bermuda.

Gerry Dulac wrote

While speaking to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette‘s Gerry Dulac, the Steelers owner mentioned how this variant of grass is what the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles use.

The former received a C in the survey, while the latter received an A. That should be good enough for the Steelers when they take to the field next season.

At least, the likes of Stephen A. Smith should be happy that Art Rooney II did not decide to go for artificial turf. The similarly worst-ranked MetLife Stadium, home of the two New York-based franchises, has come under intense criticism for its alleged injury-prone turf.

Art Rooney II hopes to avoid artificial turf in the future

Despite criticism from players, fans, and members of the media alike, more and more NFL teams have changed to artificial turf, simply because it is easier to maintain and cheaper over the long run. But Art Rooney II hopes to avoid going in that direction.

Art Rooney, Dan Rooney III, and US Ambassador to Ireland Edward Walsh
Art Rooney, Dan Rooney III, and US Ambassador to Ireland Edward Walsh (Image via Steelers Ireland/X)

The only way we would consider [an artificial surface] is if the sod farms can’t produce good grass for us. We’re kind of at their mercy. If something happened with the sod farms not producing enough of the good grass, we would have to consider a change.

Gerry Dulac quoted Art Rooney II

The billionaire hopes that grass sod farms continue to thrive and produce the grass that his Steelers and other teams need. Otherwise, they would be forced to move to the unpopular artificial turf.

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