I think this ad does him more harm than good. I suppose there are some older Steelers fans who remember the original commercial, and may get a chuckle out of the ad. However, most voters under 50 will not get the refence to the classic Mean Joe Greene commercial. Also, there has been a lot of attention focused on the question of Fetterman’s fitness to serve in the senate. A campaign ad showing him hobbling around, apparently in pain, just reinforces those concerns.
What they didn’t show was the first take where he threw the empty bottle at the kid’s head.