Pittsburgh Steelers Special Teams coach suffers torn rotator cuff following hit on sideline

Pittsburgh (WJAC) — Pittsburgh Steelers special teams coach Danny Smith reportedly suffered a torn rotator cuff after taking a hit on the sidelines at the end of Sunday's game against the Green Bay Packers.

Steelers' insider Brooke Pryor reported Thursday that Smith tore his rotator cuff in three places.

"I've been hit a lot, and been hit hard," Smith told reporters. "I got a lot of metal in my body over that. I got to learn to get the hell out of the way.

The 70-year-old special teams coordinator, who is infamously known for always chewing bubblegum on the sidelines, added that he will need to undergo surgery to repair the injury.

At the end of Sunday's 23-19 victory over the Packers, Green Bay offensive lineman Zach Tom delivered a late hit to Steelers' safety Damontae Kazee, which propelled the 174-pound defensive-back into Smith.

The late hit prompted a near benches-clearing scuffle between the two teams on the Steelers' sideline.

Pittsburgh Steelers' backup tight end Rodney Williams told reporters that in the moment, his only thought was to help Smith up off of the ground and out of harm's way.

"I just saw him on the ground, and he couldn't get up and I saw everybody coming over," Williams said. "So, I just picked him up, tried to carry him out, make sure he was all good.

Coach Smith has been a member of the Steelers' organization since 2013.

ncG1vNJzZmivmpawtcKNnKamZ6OlvLPA0miqrZ2VobKzv46rnKmnoql6sbXTraqbraKctW6%2F056cpZ2iqHq0vMScoJqkXamyornSZpqomZOderTBxZ%2Bcq6tdqbyzuoyrpq2ZpKS%2Fbq%2FUn51mnp%2BhubDDyKeeZqCZqXqwuoysoJ2dnJ67pg%3D%3D