No Formal Complaint Filed in Dublin Robbery involving Steelers’ Skylar Thompson

Skylar Thompson, the backup quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers, was recently involved in a “situation” at the Irish capital.¹ Neither the team nor the police have confirmed reports that he was robbed.² The Irish police stated that no formal complaint has been filed, and it has not been established that there was an actual robbery.³

The Irish Independent newspaper included that “a number of males were involved in an assault on Thompson near the Temple Bar area,” and a phone was stolen.⁴ However, the police did not discuss the assault reports.⁵ They stated that they became involved when officers on Dame Street “encountered a male who required medical assistance.”⁶ Emergency personnel treated and assessed the male at the scene.⁷

Burt Lauten, the Steelers spokesperson, issued a statement that the team was “aware of the situation involving Skylar Thompson on Friday night in Dublin.”⁸ He further stated, “we will have no further comment at this time as we are working with NFL security to gather more information regarding the incident.”⁹ On Sunday, the NFL declined to comment.¹⁰

The NFLPA also made a statement about the matter: “We are aware of the incident involving Skylar Thompson in Ireland and are relieved to know he is okay. The NFLPA is actively gathering more information and working to understand the full circumstances surrounding what took place. As always, our priority is the health and safety of our player members – especially as we continue to work on player protections and well-being while playing international games – and we will continue to support Skylar in any way he needs.”¹¹

Last September, the NFL faced backlash regarding the Green Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles game in Brazil.¹² The NFL allowed the game to be played even though there were safety concerns.¹³ Before the game, there were concerns about the safety and well-being of the players, and everyone involved in traveling.¹⁴ The players were told to stay in their hotel rooms, and most of the players’ family did not go to Brazil.¹⁵

Last year, attorney Jonathan Schopp said on a podcast that the NFL may be “’opening themselves to a great potential of liability.’”¹⁶ As the NFL seeks to host more games internationally, security will likely become more of an issue. Thus, it is essential for the NFL to continue to work on security measures for players while playing in international games.

1. Associated Press, No complaint filed in Dublin incident involving Steelers’ Thompson, ESPN (Sept. 29, 2025) https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/46420614/no-complaint-filed-dublin-incident-involving-steelers-thompson ↩︎
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11. Yago Antunes, ClutchPoints, NFLPA puts out statement on Steelers QB Skylar Thompson mugging in Dublin, Yahoo Sports (Sept. 28, 2025) https://sports.yahoo.com/article/nflpa-puts-statement-steelers-qb-162106385.html ↩︎
12. Michael Canelo, NFL Could Face Backlash Over Brazil Game, Las Vegas Raiders On SI (Sept. 7, 2024) https://www.si.com/nfl/raiders/news/nfl-could-face-backlash-over-brazil-game ↩︎
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Featured Image: Brian Anthony Hernandez, Quarterback Skylar Thompson Injured After Getting Jumped and Robbed Before a Steelers Game in Ireland, People (Sept. 28, 2025) https://people.com/skylar-thompson-robbed-injured-before-steelers-game-in-ireland-11820167