Pittsburgh Steelers beat writer Mark Kaboly has been creating some engaging content for social media during the NFL’s annual meetings in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. He has already made headlines for a humorous question he posed to Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin regarding wide receiver DK Metcalf’s candy bar habits, prompting Tomlin to quip, “He wears it a little differently than you.” Now, a potentially even funnier video of Kaboly is circulating.
During Tomlin’s media availability, Kaboly, who was seated next to the coach, appeared distinctly uninterested in Tomlin’s lengthy response about quarterback Mason Rudolph, whom the team re-signed after a season in Tennessee. Observers noted that it seemed as if Kaboly was about to fall asleep while listening. See for yourself:
Mike Tomlin on Mason Rudolph in 2023: “The way he smiled in the face of adversity and delivered for us was significant.” pic.twitter.com/vfo1Y8qwde
— Mike DeFabo (@MikeDeFabo) March 31, 2025
Ironically, the video was captured by fellow Pittsburgh Steelers beat writer Mike DeFabo, who effectively replaced Kaboly at The Athletic last year following a round of layoffs (Kaboly was let go in 2024 after DeFabo joined the team in 2022). Naturally, Kaboly wasn’t going to accept accusations from internet users that he was asleep, so he addressed the situation on his podcast later that day.
“So there’s about a hundred thousand people around, it’s really a tiny area, like, inside one of those makeshift tents,” Kaboly explained. “I get there early, pluck my rear end right next to [Tomlin], ’cause I don’t wanna… There’s cameras all in front of him, and you have to understand, no matter where you sit, somebody’s going to have a camera potentially on you. And it just happened to be DeFabo. Yeah, wink wink nod nod. I was not sleeping; it was just another one of the answers I’ve heard a hundred times. Right before that, I said to someone next to me, ‘I have to be very aware of my facial reactions when I’m this close to him. And there we go.’”
Kaboly ultimately ignored his own advice, becoming a target for internet memes, including a notable post by the legendary ArtButMakeItSports.
Slapende Silenus vastgebonden, by Michel Natalis, 1632-33 https://t.co/aWOoQTD4TY pic.twitter.com/72H68j8S8V
— ArtButMakeItSports (@ArtButSports) March 31, 2025
It’s clear that Mark Kaboly will be more mindful of his facial expressions during future press conferences.
