On his social media accounts, Melvin Ingram goes by the moniker “King Mel.” And as someone who identifies as a supreme ruler, Ingram wasn’t happy with his role in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ kingdom.

The Steelers relocated Ingram to a new castle, trading him to the Kansas City Chiefs on Nov. 2, doing so knowing they would meet up with their former outside linebacker later in the season.

That reunion will take place Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium. Steelers coach Mike Tomlin didn’t regret the decision to part with the 10-year veteran when the trade took place, and he doubled down on his sentiments Tuesday at his weekly news conference.

“To be quite honest and blunt, Melvin no longer wanted to be here,” Tomlin said.

The Steelers were happy to oblige Ingram’s request for a trade even though it weakened the depth at a position that has featured injuries to starters T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith this season. With Ingram gone, the Steelers have relied on Derrek Tuszka and Taco Charlton, players who didn’t join the organization until after the preseason, to round out the edges.

Ingram, meanwhile, joined a Chiefs team that has won all six games since his arrival and will take a seven-game winning streak and the AFC’s best record (10-4) into the game against the Steelers (7-6-1).

When the Steelers traded Ingram in exchange for a sixth-round draft pick, Tomlin said the Steelers weighed the tangible and intangible elements of the deal. Simply put, Tomlin didn’t want a player unhappy with his playing time on the roster. Ingram reportedly was upset at playing behind Highsmith, the second-round pass rusher who is in his first year as a starter, and his displeasure surfaced after he played just 26% of the defensive snaps in Week 6 against Seattle.

“For us, we prefer volunteers as opposed to hostages,” Tomlin said, using one of his favorite lines. “We believe that is a formula that really allows us to come together that we can’t measure.”

Contributions from the Steelers backup outside linebackers have been few this season but were evident in the second half of the Steelers’ 19-13 victory against Tennessee on Sunday. Although he played only seven snaps, Charlton deflected a pass that linebacker Joe Schobert intercepted. This turnover led to a Chris Boswell field goal that gave the Steelers their first lead, 16-13, with 7 minutes, 20 seconds remaining.

On Tennessee’s final series, with the Titans facing a second-and-7 at the Steelers 16 and less than a minute to play, Tuszka sacked quarterback Ryan Tannehill for an 8-yard loss.

“To do the things we were able to do last week, to smile collectively in the face of adversity and do what is required to get out of stadiums with necessary wins, that is more of a function of us and what we value,” Tomlin said, “and less about Kansas City and what they needed or the prospects of playing them later in the season.”

Seeking a veteran to ease the transition from Bud Dupree to Highsmith at right outside linebacker, the Steelers signed Ingram to a one-year, $4 million deal on the eve of training camp.

Ingram, who has reached double-digit sacks twice in his career, hasn’t put up similar production at either stop this season.

In six games with the Steelers, Ingram made one start and totaled one sack, 10 tackles, two tackles for loss and six quarterback hits.

In six games with the Chiefs, Ingram has started three games but has totaled one sack (getting a half-sack in two games), 10 tackles, one tackle for loss and three quarterback hits. He also has played a lower percentage of defensive snaps with the Chiefs (57) than with the Steelers (62).

Ingram, though, has enabled the Chiefs to use Chris Jones at his more productive inside position on the defensive line. And since his arrival, the Chiefs went through a five-game stretch in which they held opponents to fewer than 10 points on four occasions.

“This is exactly what I expected,” Ingram said earlier this month. “It’s cool. I wouldn’t say they didn’t believe in me. They knew what I was. They had their guys. That situation is over. I just went over to say hi and kept moving. It’s been amazing here since Day One. They’ve embraced me with open arms and just let me come in and be me.”

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