The Pittsburgh Steelers have a big game Sunday. They’ll travel to play the division rival Baltimore Ravens, with the winner being in the AFC North driver’s seat. Unfortunately, the Steelers’ last trip to Baltimore didn’t end so well. They got crushed in the first round of the playoffs, 28-14.
Patrick Queen in particular had a rough game, reportedly playing through the flu during that game. However, he revealed in an interview from March that he was actually dealing with food poisoning, and he suspects a Baltimore restaurant gave it to him on purpose.
“Got food poisoning when we played in Baltimore,” Queen said on Logan Parks’ YouTube channel. “Minkah [Fitzpatrick] said his stomach was a little queasy, but it wasn’t bad.
“He ate off of one of my things, so I was like, ‘Probably good that you didn’t eat the whole thing like I did.’ They definitely got me. I can’t just say, ‘Y’all food poisoned me’ because I could’ve got it throughout the whole day. Something you’ve gotta live with.”
While that might seem like a stretch on Queen’s part, it wouldn’t be the first time something like that happened in sports. Michael Jordan once reportedly played through the flu during an NBA Finals game in Utah. However, it was later revealed that he was dealing with food poisoning. Like Queen, he believed a local establishment sabotaged his food on purpose.
Queen revealed that wasn’t the first time he visited that particular restaurant.
“I used to eat [there] every single day when I was in Baltimore,” he said. “Never got sick. Never.”
Queen played with the Ravens for four years, so he had plenty of chances to sample the local cuisine. Still, there’s no telling for sure if his meal was tampered with on purpose. Perhaps the restaurant made a mistake or was having an off day.
The rivalry between the Steelers and Ravens runs deep though. Queen made some big plays in the Steelers’ win over the Ravens earlier that season. That included a crucial forced fumble. Maybe a Ravens fan took it upon themselves to make sure he wouldn’t repeat that in the playoffs.
Queen really struggled that day based on his description of his condition and talked about his it affected him in the Steelers’ playoff loss.
“I go to the bathroom, as soon as I sit down on the toilet, throwing up. I think I was in the shower for three hours. Got like three bags of IV before the game. Shaking, I’m freezing cold,” he said. “I got two before the game and then I got one at halftime. It was the worst experience ever. I remember being in the game and thinking and processing and knowing the play was coming and not being able to do nothing about it.”
Queen posted 10 total tackles and played nearly every snap in that game. That’s a testament to his tenacity. It’s unfortunate that he wasn’t close to being at his best, but he certainly wasn’t the Steelers’ only issue in that game.
Their entire defense got gashed by Derrick Henry, who put up 186 rushing yards and two touchdowns. The Steelers’ offense didn’t have a great day, either. Even if Queen was healthy, it likely wouldn’t have made enough of a difference for the Steelers.
Currently, it’s unclear if he’ll get a chance at revenge this week. Queen left the Steelers’ last game with an injury. While it’s not expected to be a long-term issue, he might not be healthy enough to play Sunday. If he is, hopefully he avoids any of the Baltimore food.
