“I actually came in and apologized to Todd, apologized to Mike, apologized to Mr. Rooney just because I did let my frustrations jump out after a game. I don‘t usually do that, I usually keep it under control, it was just frustrations on myself. I‘ll be better at that.” — Ben, in reference comments he made after Sunday’s game.

Highlights from his interview:

Did the frustrations come from knowing how good this offense could potentially be?

It can come from just wanting to win, truthfully.

It comes from just wanting to do anything to win football games, knowing the potential we have and the players we have.

It was just a lot of frustration and I shouldn’t have said that. That’s my fault.


On why he felt the need to apologize, and whether it was because he had made his frustrations public:

Yeah, just apologizing for the storm that it created and caused. We do have a lot of talks behind closed doors about things, about plays, play calling, if I’m doing something that’s not right on the field, we have talks about everything. Coach Tomlin and I meet every Monday to talk about the game and what goes on. Just the frustration after a loss and especially feeling like it was my fault, just things blew up.


On how he feels about the offense:

I feel like we’re doing pretty well with a lot of injuries. We have a lot of moving parts. The line has done a great job of filling in. Obviously, we want to be more successful, we want to score more points and we want to win games. In that sense, I feel like we need to be better as a unit.


On his relationship with Coach Haley and seeing “eye to eye”:

There are obviously times that we don’t but we get that ironed out. I’m sure it’s that way with every position player and their coach. There are going to be times when you just don’t see eye-to-eye. There are times when I don’t see eye-to-eye with Coach Tomlin. But that doesn’t mean anything, I don’t think. I’m sure a lot of you don’t see eye-to-eye with your bosses at times. But it’s nothing that is a big deal. You work it out, you talk about it and you get […]

The end of each year brings award season and none handed out in the region are more prestigious than the Dapper Dan Charities Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year Award.

The awards annually go to the male and female athlete, coach or team that bring the most recognition to Western Pennsylvania and is voted on by fans as well as Dapper Dan’s executive committee.

The nominees for the Dapper Dan Sportsman of the Year are Pitt defensive lineman Aaron Donald, Pirates All-Star center fielder Andrew McCutchen, Penguins center Evgeni Malkin, Steelers tight end Heath Miller, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and Penn State coach Bill O’Brien.

The featured winners, along with a number of others, such as retired Steelers great Hines Ward, will honored at the 77th Annual Dapper Dan Dinner & Sports Auction, presented by BNY Mellon Feb. 6 at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.

Tickets for the event can be purchased by visiting www.post-gazette.com/dapperdan or by calling 412-263-3850. Prices are $150 for general seats and $250 for premium seats.


You can read more on the honor and the event from Paul Zeise at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette here.


CAST YOUR VOTES HERE!

*Winners will be announced in late January, 2013.

Final Score: Cowboys 27, Steelers 24

“Absolutely, one hundred percent. It’s on me. I let the team, the fans, everybody down.” — Ben, post-game

From Ed Bouchette, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

Few players have provided more important plays for the Steelers the past few years than Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown, and they were at it again today.

Roethlisberger, their Pro Bowl quarterback, had thrown two touchdown passes, one of them to Brown, who fought through a defender to reach the end zone. He had more than 300 yards passing and he led his team from behind into a fourth-quarter lead against the Dallas Cowboys.

Brown, their MVP last season and Pro Bowl returner, took one punt back 29 yards and led the Steelers with eight receptions.

“Ben has made so many plays for this team, he’s the best player on this team, he’s our leader. I have no problem with it at all. Zero. Those guys leave everything on the field. I don’t have a problem. Those guys fight every single week. We all fight. We’re in this together. We could have made plays the whole game – everybody.” — Mike Wallace

However, both players made critical errors in the fourth quarter and overtime, each blaming themselves for the Steelers 27-24 loss, their fourth in the past five games that dropped them to 7-7, yet somehow still quite alive for a playoff spot.

But Roethlisberger and the Cowboys’ Tony Romo put on passing clinic and good quarterback play after a sluggish first quarter in which the Cowboys led 3-0.

Roethlisberger was 24 of 40 for 339 yards, two touchdowns and that one killer interception…


More from Mr. Bouchette here.

You can watch video of Ben’s post-game interview here.

…because of the ultimate act of kindness by a young fan from Steeler Nation!

“When you strip away titles, team colors, etc. we are all the same…human.” — Nefeterius McPherson

From Nefeterius:

I am a HUGE Dallas Cowboys fan. I’ve been one all of my Texas born/Texas bred life. I’m going to the Steelers v. Cowboys game on Sunday but it’s not just any game. It’s a game where my favorite NFL team will play my 12-year-old organ donor’s favorite NFL team. Taitlyn Hughes was a HUGE Steelers fan. Her sister Darian told me that her favorite player was Ben Roethlisberger. Going to the game on Sunday is going to be so special to me. I will pay tribute to the sweet girl who gave me the gift of life when she donated her organs to 4 people, including me, on November 6, 2011. My body loves my new liver and I will always do what I can to help keep Taitlyn’s memory alive.

Here’s a picture of the handmade sign I’m taking with me to the game:




















On Sunday, November 6, 2011, 12-year-old Taitlyn Shae Hughes died of a brain hemorrhage as a result of an AVM rupture. Her death was very unexpected. At age 11, Taitlyn told her parents that if anything were to happen to her, she wanted to donate her organs and save lives. Upon her death, Taitlyn saved four lives. One person received her pancreas, two people received her kidneys and Nefeterius McPherson received her liver.

Before Taitlyn died, her goal was to change the world. Nefeterius has made it her mission to fulfill Taitlyn’s goal of changing the world by educating people about the importance of organ donation and how it saves lives.

There are currently more than 116,000 people on the national organ transplant waiting list. Each day 18 people die while waiting on a lifesaving transplant. Both numbers can be reduced by people registering to become organ donors. In Pennsylvania, people can register to be an organ donor at http://www.donatelife-pa.org/. Organ, tissue and eye donation saves lives and transcends sports rivalries.


Since tweeting the photo of her sign to the website last week, Nefeterius was interviewed by WFAA-TV, a local station in Dallas-Fort Worth.

You can watch & read […]