Pittsburgh Steelers nose tackle Alameda Ta'amu spoke to the media for the first time since his drunk driving incident on Oct. 14. Ta'amu apologized for the incident that led to him being suspended two games without pay:
"It was just a big mistake," said the Steelers rookie nose tackle. "It was the biggest mistake I've ever made in my life. It won't happen again. It was a bad night. I let a lot of people down, my family, fans and especially my teammates. I have to keep moving forward and keep getting better."
Ta'amu still faces felony charges of fleeing the police, aggravated assault while driving drunk and three counts of aggravated assault when he nearly ran down three police officers with his SUV. In addition, he was charged with 10 misdemeanors including resisting arrest, attempting escape, drunken driving and failure to obey traffic laws.
To make room for Ta'amu on the roster, the Steelers released safety Damon Cromartie-Smith. He had been on the practice squad the first seven weeks of the season before playing in last Sunday's 27-12 victory against the Washington Redskins. The Steelers are scheduled to play the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, with kickoff scheduled for 4:25 p.m. The game will be broadcast on CBS.