The Steelers made a wish come true for a special fan from Texas.


From Teresa Varley, Steelers.com today:

As a wide-eyed James Davila watched Ben Roethlisberger emerge from the Steelers locker room area his smile was wider than the entire state of Texas, a place the 15-year old calls home.

Davila stared silently as Roethlisberger jokingly walked past him and spoke with his younger brother, then his sister and parents, and then, in a playful way Roethlisberger walked over to the Make-A-Wish recipient and asked him, and who are you.

Davila couldn’t stop smiling, couldn’t even speak he was so overcome with excitement. He let out an excited laugh, but that was about all the tongue-tied teen could muster. And how could you blame him, his wish was coming true.

And it got even better when Roethlisberger handed him the cleats he wore in Monday night’s win over the Houston Texans at Heinz Field and then autographed them for him.



“It’s so much fun,” said Roethlisberger. “To be able to have someone where you can see the joy and their face light up is special. To give him that surprise and hand him my cleats was really fun.”

Davila, who recently completed treatment for sarcoma of the liver that required a transplant, had been waiting a year for this wish to come true – to meet Roethlisberger and Troy Polamalu, as well as the rest of the Steelers. And through the relationship between the Steelers and the Make-A-Wish of Western Pennsylvania, it was worth the wait.

“When I first started liking the team I was a lot younger and liked the black and gold,” said Davila. “Then I watched them a lot on television, seeing how they played and I really liked the way they played. I really like Ben and Troy.”

Davila and his family attended practice on Friday, meeting Polamalu, Coach Mike Tomlin and Art Rooney II, as well as the rest of the players, and will be at Sunday’s game against the Indianapolis Colts at Heinz Field.

“This has been so exciting. I used to play football, and I like watching it. I can’t play football anymore, so seeing professional football players, what I wanted to do some day, is really exciting. Seeing them in person and not on the screen … […]

“We do whatever it takes around here!” — Ben.

From Joe Starkey, at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:

Mike Tomlin calls his quarterback “a sick competitor.” The description seemed especially apt Monday night at Heinz Field, where Ben Roethlisberger pretty much lost his mind in the pursuit of victory.

Roethlisberger turns 33 in March. He does not have the security of a new contract. His body has absorbed untold punishment in the form of 406 sacks and countless hits.

Yet there he was in the second quarter, diving head-first into the shins of Houston linebacker Whitney Mercilus in hopes of giving Antonio Brown an extra second to throw. The result was a Brown-to-Lance Moore touchdown that went a long way toward the 99th victory of Roethlisberger’s career.

One question, Ben: Why did you do that?

“It’s my job to secure the edge, and he came upfield pretty quick. So I had to make sure I slowed him down.”

So yes, “sick competitor” fits. “Prolific winner” does, too, even after back-to-back 8-8 seasons (Roethlisberger has never had a losing one).

If the Steelers beat the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, Roethlisberger will improve his record to 100-50 and reach 100 wins faster than all but three quarterbacks in NFL history. And those three quarterbacks (Tom Brady, Joe Montana, Terry Bradshaw) own 11 Super Bowl rings combined.

This isn’t some statistician’s phony milestone. It’s not consecutive games with 15 completions for 150 yards. This is 100 wins.

This is big, even if Roethlisberger downplayed it Wednesday.


You can read more here, including “seven snapshots culled from those 99 wins”.

“He’s got it all. His anticipation, his vision, his awareness, especially when things are breaking down and [he is] finding guys and dumping the ball off and getting to his check-downs. He’s playing really good football.” — Colts coach Chuck Pagano on Ben.

And from Ed Bouchette, at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

Only three quarterbacks in the history of the NFL won their 100th game by their 150th start. Two are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the other is headed there.

They are Terry Bradshaw, Joe Montana and Tom Brady.

Ben Roethlisberger can become the fourth. All he and the Steelers must do is beat the Indianapolis Colts Sunday at Heinz Field. It will be his only chance […]

“Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger shows his caring side when it comes to kids and animals”


From Teresa Varley at Steelers.com today:

Steelers’ fans see Ben Roethlisberger the football player, the guy on Sunday afternoons throwing touchdown passes, eluding defenders and making incredible plays on the football field.

But what they don’t often get to see are those tender moments when Roethlisberger is at his best, making kids smile, bringing happiness to a sick child who through the Make-A-Wish Foundation wants to meet the Steelers and Roethlisberger in particular.

“When a person has a last wish, or one wish to be granted, and they want to hang out with me, or hang out with the Steelers,” started Roethlisberger, pausing for a minute as he realizes the enormity of what it means. “For all of the things they could do and they want to do that …it’s pretty amazing.”

He also has a soft spot in his heart for those that protect and serve the community, in particular the K9 units as his love for animals has grown into a passion for helping law enforcement through the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation.

Each year Roethlisberger provides a grant to a law enforcement agency or fire department in the Pittsburgh area, as well as to one in the cities where the Steelers play. The grant is to be used for the K9 units, bomb sniffing dogs or rescue dogs.

“I don’t think the service people get enough recognition and credit for the things that they do and the tireless efforts that they put in,” said Roethlisberger. “If I can do just a little bit to help them, then I am happy about that.”

The foundation, which started awarding the grants in 2007, has donated in excess of $1.2 million. He was honored by the Amen Corner last year at Senator John Heinz Law Enforcement Awards Luncheon, becoming the first non-law enforcement individual to be honored by the organization, receiving an award for his contribution to K9 units of police and fire departments in the Pittsburgh area and throughout the country (photo above).

Last year the loss of K9 Rocco, who died from injuries in a stabbing attack, struck the Pittsburgh community hard. Roethlisberger knew he had to do something to give back, and the foundation purchased a new dog, Beny, […]

…you missed Ben’s One-on-One sit-down interview with Sally Wiggin last night prior to the game, you missed her look back at Ben’s first One-on-One interview with the rookie quarterback in 2004!

“To be like somebody, somebody like a Joe Montana that won a ton of Super Bowls. That’s obviously the ultimate goal.” — Ben, from that first One-on-One.

From Ms. Wiggin:

10 years ago when the Steelers drafted a young Miami of Ohio quarterback, it had been 24 years since they had taken a quarterback in the first round. Quite frankly, that Ben Roethlisberger was none to happy he was the third quarterback taken in the Draft after Eli Manning and Philip Rivers.

Then, during the season, the starter, Tommy Maddox, went down and was injured, and [Ben] became the first rookie quarterback to go 13-0 in a season. That quarterback said he was motivated by a chip on his shoulder.

Now that it’s a decade later, what advice would the 32-year old Roethlisberger have for the 22-year old rookie?

Ben: Enjoy it. It goes fast. I remember when I got here, I tell the story all the time – Jerome pulled me aside at one point, and said, ‘Enjoy this because it goes really fast’. I remember thinking to myself, ‘right, okay whatever.’ Now, It’s amazing it’s been ten years. I tell the young guys the same thing Jerome told me.


Sally: In that time, there was the glory of winning two Super Bowls, the pain of injury, the humiliation of scandal, and the start of a family. How would you analyze your evolvement?

Ben: I would answer your question with, ‘Yes, people can change, and people can grow up.’ I think it’s to each individual what they want to do. I’m thankful for the freedoms we have in this country, that I’ve got a loving family. You can make smart choices and decisions when it comes to your life.


Sally: That loving family, with wife Ashley, grew in the off-season. Daughter Baylee was born in March, joining her big brother Ben Jr…

Ben: Life is fun, especially when you go home! I tell my son, come here and give me a hug! Can I get a hug? ‘Yep’, he will run […]

Watt a game!!

“I feel like offensively we still left a little bit out there. But we scored enough.” — Ben.

Ben was 23 of 33 for 265 yards, two TDs and no interceptions as the Steelers rallied to beat Houston 30-23 and improve to 4-3. Ben threw his two TD’s while the Steelers were taking advantage of two Texans turnovers to score 21 points over the final 87 seconds of the first half.

Antonio Brown threw for a touchdown during the scoring flurry and had nine catches for 90 yards.


From Will Graves, AP:

One dizzying sequence, and the Pittsburgh Steelers were in complete control against J.J. Watt and the Houston Texans.

Ben Roethlisberger passed for two touchdowns and wide receiver Antonio Brown added another on a gadget play during a decisive surge late in the first half, helping the Steelers rally for a 30-23 win over the mistake-prone Texans on Monday night.

Pittsburgh (4-3) needed just over a minute to turn a 10-point deficit into an 11-point lead as the Texans self-destructed while losing their third straight.

Roethlisberger finished with 265 yards passing. Le’Veon Bell racked up 145 yards of total offense and rookie wide receiver Martavis Bryant caught a momentum-swinging touchdown pass in his first NFL start.

Arian Foster ran for 102 yards for Houston (3-4), but just 29 over the final three quarters.

Ryan Fitzpatrick was 21 of 32 for 262 yards with two touchdowns and an interception but the Texans were undone by three turnovers.

Watt recovered a fumble and picked up his third sack of the season but was neutralized for most of the second half.

By then, the Steelers were on their way to the win.

One frantic stretch turned the tide.

Pittsburgh was listless for the first 25 minutes, letting Foster and Fitzpatrick do whatever they wanted as the Texans raced to a 13-0 lead that seemed larger.

A 44-yard Shaun Suisham field goal with 3:08 left in the half gave the Steelers a minor boost.

A strike from Roethlisberger to Bell provided a much larger one shortly after the 2-minute warning. Roethlisberger hit the versatile back for a 43-yard gain — Pittsburgh’s longest pass play of the season — to move the ball to the Houston 35.

Roethlisberger then hit Bryant, who struggled staying healthy in the preseason and spent the first […]

Ben sat down for an interview today at Steelers HQ with ESPN’s Monday Night Football crew.



The interview will air during the Monday Night Countdown Show, which starts at 6:00 PM (ET).