PITTSBURGH (AP) — Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin doesn't condone the actions that led to wide receiver D.K. Metcalf's two-game suspension by the NFL following an in-game altercation with a fan, but added Metcalf has his full support during the appeals process.
The league punished the two-time Pro Bowler by forcing him to sit out the first-place Steelers' final two games and fining him for taking a swipe at Detroit Lions fan Ryan Kennedy in the second quarter of what became Pittsburgh's 29-24 victory.
Tomlin said Metcalf shared his side of the story with him, but declined to get into specifics.
“I won’t discuss what he and I discussed,” Tomlin said. “I think I’ve been pretty clear there.”
Former NFL wide receiver Chad Johnson said on a podcast late Sunday night that Metcalf told him Kennedy used a racial slur and verbally disparaged Metcalf's mother, an allegation that Kennedy denied through his attorneys on Monday.
Tomlin cited Metcalf's appeal hearing and what he described as “legal ramifications,” though he did not define what those might be. An email to the attorneys representing Kennedy by The Associated Press was not immediately returned.
Metcalf remained in the game and finished with four receptions for 42 yards. Kennedy left his seat to meet with stadium security at Ford Field but was allowed to return.
Asked if the Steelers have any in-game protocols in place to try and mitigate interactions such as the one between Metcalf and Kennedy, Tomlin said, “We certainly may, but I might not be privy to it because my eyes and attention is (on) what’s going on on the field" and made it a point to credit the team's “top notch security group.”
Tomlin would not elaborate on what his reaction was to seeing the video of the confrontation, though he acknowledged what he called the rise in “volatile rhetoric” in sports at all levels.
“Not only (in) our business, (but) college, youth sport parents,” he said. “I think it’s just a component of sport that’s developed and developed in a big way in recent years, and it’s unfortunate.”
There were reports that when Metcalf played for Seattle, he reported Kennedy to team personnel when the Seahawks visited Detroit. Tomlin did not speculate when asked if there's anything more teams can do to protect players in those situations.
“Me speaking on it and speaking on it in detail and particularly expressing my opinion regarding things doesn’t help the circumstance in any way,” he said.
Metcalf's suspension means Pittsburgh (9-6) will be without its top pass catcher as it tries to lock up the AFC North title on Sunday in Cleveland. His absence means Roman Wilson, who has been a healthy scratch the past two weeks as the Steelers have opted to go with experienced veterans Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Adam Thielen, will likely get an opportunity to return to the lineup.
Tomlin did not rule out the return of star outside linebacker T.J. Watt, who has missed each of the past two games while recovering from surgery to repair a partially collapsed lung sustained during a dry needling treatment. Tomlin said Watt has been in the team facility lately and is “hopeful” Watt will be cleared to practice.
The Steelers need to win one of their final two games or have Baltimore lose one of its final two games to win a division title for the first time since 2020. The longtime rivals are scheduled to meet in Pittsburgh in Week 18.
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Pittsburgh Steelers' DK Metcalf, right, plays against Detroit Lions' Rock Ya-Sin during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)
Pittsburgh Steelers' DK Metcalf wipes his face on the bench during the second half of an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Rey Del Rio)
Air traffic controllers lost communication for about 10 minutes with a small Mexican Navy plane carrying a young medical patient and seven others before it crashed off the Texas coast, killing at least five people, Mexico's president said Tuesday.
Authorities initially believed the plane had landed safely at its destination in Galveston, near Houston, before learning it had gone down Monday afternoon, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said. A search-and-rescue operation in waters near Galveston pulled two survivors from the plane's wreckage, while one remained missing, Mexico’s Navy said.
U.S. authorities are investigating the cause, but the National Transportation Safety Board said Tuesday that it could take a week or more to recover the aircraft,
Four Mexican Navy officers and four civilians, including a child, were aboard the plane, according to the country's military. Two of the passengers were affiliated with a nonprofit that helps transport Mexican children with severe burns to a hospital in Galveston.
“My condolences to the families of the sailors who unfortunately died in this accident and to the people who were traveling on board,” Sheinbaum said in her morning press briefing, without elaborating on a possible cause. “What happened is very tragic.”
U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Luke Baker said at least five aboard had died but did not identify which passengers.
The twin turboprop Beech King Air 350i crashed Monday afternoon in a bay near the base of the causeway connecting Galveston Island to the mainland. Emergency responders rushed to the scene near the popular beach destination about 50 miles (80 kilometers) southeast of Houston.
Sky Decker, a professional yacht captain who lives about a mile (1.6 kilometers) from the crash site, said he jumped in his boat to see if he could help. He picked up two police officers who guided him through thick fog to a nearly submerged plane. Decker jumped into the water and found a badly injured woman trapped beneath chairs and other debris.
“I couldn’t believe. She had maybe 3 inches of air gap to breathe in," he said. "And there was jet fuel in there mixed with the water, fumes real bad. She was really fighting for her life.”
He said he also pulled out a man seated in front of her who had already died. Both were wearing civilian clothes.
It’s not immediately clear if weather was a factor. The area was experiencing foggy conditions over the past few days, according to Cameron Batiste, a National Weather Service meteorologist. He said that at about 2:30 p.m. Monday a fog came in that had about a half-mile visibility.
Teams from the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board were at the crash site Monday, the Texas Department of Public Safety said. An NTSB spokesperson said in an email that investigators will gather flight track data, recordings of any air traffic control communications and review maintenance records and weather forecasts, with a preliminary report expected within 30 days.
Mexico's Navy said the plane was helping with a medical mission in coordination with the Michou and Mau Foundation. In a social media post, the foundation offered condolences to the families and said it shared their grief “with respect and compassion.”
The charity was founded after a mother died trying to save her kids from a fire. One child succumbed to his injuries because he didn't receive highly specialized medical care, while another survived after receiving treatment at Shriners Children's Texas in Galveston. Over 23 years, the foundation has helped transfer more than 2,000 patients to that hospital and other medical facilities with burn expertise, according to the charity's website.
The charity's director didn't immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press seeking comment.
Shriners Children’s Texas said in a statement that it learned of the crash with “profound sadness” but wasn't able to provide any information about the child's condition because the child hadn't yet been admitted.
This latest crash comes amid a year of intense scrutiny on aviation safety after a string of high-profile crashes and the flight disruptions during the government shutdown driven by the shortage of air traffic controllers.
The January mid-air collision between an Army helicopter and an airliner near Washington D.C. was followed by the crash of a medical transport plane in Philadelphia. This fall’s fiery UPS plane crash only added to the concerns. Still, the total number of crashes in 2025 was actually down a bit from last year and experts say flying remains safe overall.
Galveston Police officers watch the water on Galveston Bay west of the Galveston causeway, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, near Galveston, Texas, as emergency personnel search for a small airplane that went down in the bay in heavy fog. (Jennifer Reynolds/The Galveston County Daily News via AP)
In this image provided by Sky Decker Jr., authorities and volunteers respond to a Mexican Navy plane crash near Galveston, Texas, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025. (Sky Decker Jr. via AP)
Emergency personnel rush a victim of a small plane crash to an awaiting ambulance, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, near the Galveston causeway, near Galveston, Texas. (Jennifer Reynolds/The Galveston County Daily News via AP)
In this image provided by Sky Decker Jr., authorities and volunteers respond to a Mexican Navy plane crash near Galveston, Texas, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025. (Sky Decker Jr. via AP)null
