Alejandro Villanueva is well-aware of the AFC North rivalry between the Baltimore Ravens and the Steelers as he was on the Pittsburgh side for seven years.
And now, just days into his Ravens tenure after signing a two-year deal as a free agent, it seems Villanueva is sending a shot across the division, and it’s directed at former Steelers teammate JuJu Smith-Schuster.
Smith-Schuster, Pittsburgh’s star receiver, has been widely criticized for his antics on social media, specifically on the app TikTok. The Pittsburgh wideout, you may recall, was going onto opponents’ fields and dancing on their mid-field logo during pregame. Many opponents saw it as a way of taunting, and didn’t take too kindly.
Well, it seems Villanueva wasn’t much of a fan of it either and he depicted just that during a video conference with reporters Wednesday. For the sake of providing a little bit of context, it came when asked how he would enjoy Baltimore’s run-first style of offense.
“… I’m assuming it’s not as fun for the wide receivers because they’re not getting all the catches — they’re making the TikToks and they’re having fun on their social media,” Villanueva said, as transcribed by NFL Network.
You can watch the snippet here.
As for Villanueva, taking a shot at a rival during your first days on the new job? Yeah, that’s one way to warm up to his new Ravens teammates.
