The 26-year-old was benched by Mike Tomlin in the 20-16 Pittsburgh victory, and explained it was for disciplinary reasons afterwards.

“I am healthy. It was just something I said,” Okorafor told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review’s Chris Adamski. “I kind of had a … just the way the game was going last week, I kind of said stuff that I shouldn’t say. I just, being in Year 6, I can’t like act out the way I was acting out.”

It was certainly a shocking benching; Okorafor had started 55 of the Steelers’ last 56 games at the right tackle position.

“I talked to Coach T, we already had our talk, and he said it was nothing to do with [the quality of] my play on the field,” the former Western Michigan Bronco continued. “It was stuff that happened last week toward the end of the game. I am not sure what is going to happen. We will have to see. Hopefully I can come back and play in another game.”

Mike Tomlin commented on the situation himself in his postgame news conference, explaining why he chose to start Broderick James over Okorafor.

“I just thought we needed a spark. I thought Broderick had worked hard and was deserving of the opportunity, so we gave it to him.”

Okorafor confirmed that the reason he was benched was due to something he said on the field in Week 8’s 20-10 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

“[I was] shocked, yeah. But I couldn’t really do anything else but show Broderick [the ropes]. Brod being able to play left and right tackle helps him and us a lot.”

Despite the benching, Okorafor did see the field, playing a late-game snap as a tackle-eligible tight end on Thursday Night Football. And it seems very likely that the former first-team All-American will be back in the starting lineup in Week 10.

“I hope I am back out there with the guys,” he said as his team prepares to welcome the Green Bay Packers to Acrisure Stadium in nine days time.