There were several players who joined their former division rivals in free agency this offseason. Among those was former Ravens linebacker Patrick Queen, who decided to sign with the Steelers.
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His former teammate, cornerback Marlon Humphrey, has since shared his reaction of Queen switching sides in one of the NFL’s biggest rivalries.
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“P.Q., I’ll be honest with you. When I saw that, I got mad emotional. I’m just going to be honest with you,” Humphrey said on his “Punch Line Podcast.” “Top linebacker in free agency…I was like, ‘Bro, the Steelers. I can’t believe this.’”
Humphrey has a right to be caught off guard, and many Ravens fans were as well. However, it was Baltimore that decided to let Queen hit the open market.
The Ravens were practically forced to do so, as they were salary cap-strapped to begin the offseason, but if they wanted him to be a part of the team for the foreseeable future, they could have found a way.
Instead, Pittsburgh happily took Queen off their hands as he fills a major hole on its roster. The Steelers have been searching for a sideline-to-sideline inside linebacker since losing Ryan Shazier to a spinal injury in 2017.
Queen becomes the latest star defender to join Pittsburgh’s stout defense, which already includes linebacker T.J. Watt, defensive tackle Cameron Heyward and safety Minkah Fitzpatrick.
That’s the reason why Queen opted to join Baltimore’s AFC North rival.
“I was like, ‘Bro, tell me this was the only option. You have to help me get through this here,’” Humphrey added. “He said it was the best situation and then he told me the other team and then I was like, ‘I hear you. I do hear you.’”
It appears Queen had the choice between two teams. Who the other team was remains to be seen, but the Pro Bowler is certainly set up for success in Pittsburgh and he’s embracing his new villain role.
“I wanna be that villain,” Queen told reporters. “I wanna be that guy, so I’m looking to do some stuff to them.”