Robinson: High Praise for Ben
“Ben’s performance was absolutely unbelievable. And the fact they were one play away from tying the game tells you a heck of a lot about his competitiveness and toughness and his ability to make plays. But he’s not lasting the season if they don’t shore up that left tackle spot. It’s that simple.” — Bill Polian, from the article below.
From Alan Robinson, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:
Bill Polian, a six-time NFL executive of the year, recently saw one of the greatest quarterbacking performances he’s witnessed during more than a half-century of football watching.
He called it “phenomenal” and “unbelievable.”
Peyton Manning’s seven touchdown passes on the NFL’s opening night?
No, an under-siege Ben Roethlisberger’s play as he nearly rallied the Steelers from a 17-point deficit in the fourth quarter during their 34-27 loss to the Vikings in London last Sunday.
Polian marveled at how Roethlisberger completed 36 of 51 passes for 383 yards, one touchdown and one interception in London despite being forced to improvise on nearly every play behind an offensive line that could barely protect him.
“Ben Roethlisberger put on the greatest single individual display, south of Peyton Manning and Tom Brady and Drew Brees, that I have seen in a long time — maybe in my entire career,” said Polian, who drafted Manning with the Colts 15 years ago.
Polian, appearing on SiriusXM NFL Radio, wasn’t done praising Roethlisberger, who has operated without running game support or reliable pass protection all season.
“He was just phenomenal,” Polian said. “He avoided or shrugged off at least four sacks. He made plays down the field that were unbelievable, and he was under duress all night from snap 1.
You can read more here.
It’s not too late to enjoy the Fall scene!
In fact, you can find it this weekend at Irons Mill Farmstead, an agritourism farm located in scenic Western Pennsylvania!
You can enjoy it with the Milliron Family, owners of the Farmstead, and support the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation at the same time!
Irons Mill Farmstead has a 10-acre corn maze, gigantic jumping pillow, tire mountain, hay maze, super slides, farm animals, pumpkins, and tons of fun for kids from 2 to 92.
Oh, and this isn’t just any old corn maze! This is STEELERS COUNTRY so we’re talking about a 10-acre STEELERS CORN MAZE!
“This year we decided to make our corn maze design STEELERS! In doing so, we like to choose a relevant organization to work with to offer a fundraising opportunity. We chose the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation as a way to show our appreciation to those men and women in our police and fire depts. who risk their lives to serve and protect us. Our family is thankful for the incredible sacrifices they make each and every day. As a family farm, we know the important role animals play in all of our lives. It is so neat to see how the unique talents of animals can be utilized for such amazing things! We love the fact that we can support the men and women who rely on highly trained animals for support and protection.” — Stacy Milliron
Irons Mill Farmstead is located at 252 Greenfield Road in New Wilmington.
Just click on this link and print out the poster to take advantage of their money-saving coupon while helping benefit Ben’s Foundation:
http://www.givingback.org/documents/roethlisberger3.pdf
You can also visit Irons Mill Farmstead’s website here and “like” their Facebook page here!
*Their “buy one, get one free” admission offer has ended, but the $1 off admission price is for the rest of the Fall season (Sept 27-Oct 27th). They are open Fridays 1pm-dusk, and Saturdays & Sundays 11am-dusk starting September 21st through October 27th.
Thank you so much to Rob & Stacy Milliron!
It’s also not too late to enjoy running through the Fall scene!
You can do so by participating in the […]
Big Ben on the bye week
“Looking back at the film, we have done some good things offensively-speaking and we’ve gotten better every week. We just have to continue to improve and not take any steps back. We feel like we’re close.”
Ben’s weekly interview with the media took place on Tuesday before practice because of the team’s bye week.
Some highlights:
On whether he takes back his post-game comments on Sunday evening about being the “worst team”:
I was talking record-wise. If you look record-wise, we are one of them. That’s coming at a time when you don’t know what happened in the rest of the games of the week. I still don’t know how many teams are winless but if you look at records, which I am always a big believer in wins and losses, not numbers, then I would say we are, record-wise, one of the worst teams in the NFL. I don’t think it’s a far stretch.
On whether he takes the losses personally, “Does it hurt more?”
I take pride in winning football games more than any numbers. That’s what I’ve based my career on so far, wins and losses, so it definitely stings. Coach Hoeppner always said that the quarterback takes too much credit in a win, and too much blame in a loss. It’s painful to lose games, because I’ll put it on myself.
On the injury to his right forefinger, a subluxation or partial dislocation – which occurred Sunday when he followed through on a pass and struck Minnesota Vikings linebacker Chad Greenway:
It’s fine. I told coach today I’d practice today if he’d let me. I don’t know if he’ll let me but I’d go because I want to be out there.
On the non-call (horse-collar) and taking sacks:
What happened on that particular play, I got up. That’s the hard part. Everyone talks about don’t take a sack. Well, when a guy grabs you from behind, you don’t know a sack is coming. It’s not like there was much I could do. He grabbed me and got me down. I got up and looked at the referee, and I kind of motioned for a horse-collar. He told me I was in the pocket and there is no horse-collar. He is correct. That’s been brought up to me in the past, because it has […]
“We’ve just got to keep playing as a team and find a way”
More from Ben after the team’s 34-27 loss to the Minnesota Vikings:
“You know, we stick together. Through thick and thin, we stay together…this team, these coaches. That’s what we do. That’s what we need to do.
“Right now, I’d say we’re the worst team in the league, and that hurts. You know, as a competitor, you don’t like that, and want to do everything you can to win a football game, to turn it around. You just have to walk a fine line of not trying to do too much and hurt the team or hurt yourself. We’ve just got to keep playing as a team and find a way [to win].”
You can listen to Ben’s post-game interview here.
First look
…at Wembley Stadium. — Ben
And one from yesterday’s Steelers Fan Rally:
You can see a few more here!
London: Steelers Fan Rally
Henry Hodgson, of NFL.com and NFL-UK shared this great photo with fans during this afternoon’s Fan Rally on Regent Street:
“A sea of Steelers fans greet the players on Regent Street.” — Mr. Hodgson
You can see more photos from the Rally & the team’s first day in London here.
Swiss fans happy to see Big Ben LIVE at Wembley Stadium tomorrow:
Sisters Silvia & Eveline Lehmann showing their Steelers pride!
“We are really excited to be able to see the Steelers and Ben in Europe. I’m just glad when it gets some attention that there are fans in Switzerland. We will be showing the flag at Wembley on Sunday. We’ve been fans for many years and never thought it possible to see the Steelers live. That’s just great that they play in Europe for us fans over here. We appreciate it very much. Go Steelers!!” — Silvia
You can see more photos shared by fans this weekend here!