Pittsburgh Steelers player DeShon Elliott tried to be funny with his social media activity ... but it backfired when fans criticized him for sharing an insensitive joke referencing Osama bin Laden and his coach Mike Tomlin ahead of a matchup against the New York Jets.
The meme in question was part of the safety's photo dump on Instagram -- showing Tomlin's face photoshopped on top of bin Laden's head, with the caption "Osama Bin Tomlin."
Naturally, given bin Laden's involvement in the September 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade Center that left nearly 3,000 dead ... many people took issue.
FYI, Elliott was four years old at the time of the attacks.
Elliott's followers had mixed reactions ... with one commenting, "Osama Bin Tomlin during NEW YORK JETS week is criminal behavior."
One predicted Elliott could expect a fine for the joke ... and another said Tomlin would probably punish him with some extra laps at practice.
The Steelers organization has not yet commented on the joke ... and the meme remains on Elliott's IG at the time of this post.
The Steelers -- whose defense leads the AFC with 11 takeaways -- will face a new Jets offense after making a trade for six-time Pro Bowler Davante Adams on Monday, reuniting Aaron Rodgers with his old teammate.
The black and gold may also look different on offense -- Tomlin said Russell Wilson is "in consideration" to be the starting quarterback against the Jets.