Big Ben joins Bradshaw…
“It’s an awesome honor with this franchise’s storied history and tradition here. It’s humbling, and I have to thank all the guys that have caught balls from me. It’s too many to name, I thank them along with the line.” — Ben
From John Dudley, Erie Times News today:
Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger joined Terry Bradshaw Sunday as the only Steelers quarterbacks to throw for 27,000 career yards.
He surpassed the milestone on a 37-yard touchdown pass to Mike Wallace that withstood a replay review and gave the Steelers a 20-10 lead en route to a 27-10 win over the New York Jets at Heinz Field.
Roethlisberger has 27,099 passing yards. Bradshaw threw for 27,989 yards.
Roethlisberger also joins Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Tom Brady, Matt Hasselbeck and Eli Manning as the only active players to reach 27,000 career yards.
More here.
Steelers 27, Jets 10
Post Game wrap-up –
“For me, I don’t ever come into a game thinking, ‘This is payback or redemption’. I just want to win the game!” — Ben
From Tim Bontemps, New York Post:
The Jets managed to shut down the Steelers’ running game yesterday, but they couldn’t stop Ben Roethlisberger.
Despite seeing his rushing attack produce a paltry 66 yards on 28 carries, Roethlisberger masterfully drove the Steelers up and down the field all afternoon. He finished the game 24-fof-31 for 275 yards and two touchdowns to lead Pittsburgh to a 27-10 victory.
Roethlisberger’s 125.1 quarterback rating was the highest the Jets have allowed since Tom Brady had a 148.9 rating in the Patriots’ 45-3 rout on Dec. 6, 2010. Much of Roethlisberger’s damage came on third down: The Steelers finished the game 8-for-15 on third-down conversions, repeatedly extending drives and keeping the Jets’ defense on the field.
That helped the Steelers finish with a massive advantage in time of possession, holding the ball for 36:36.
“You’re not going to beat a quarterback with a 125 rating and over 36 minutes with time of possession,” Jets coach Rex Ryan said. “And that’s exactly what happened.”
You can read more here.
“In the huddle Ben was telling us it was time to suck it up. He looked at everybody and said, ‘We’ll see what we’re made of right now. We’re going to run it down their throat.’ He told the o-line, ‘Get on your blocks and get some push,’ and the o-line got great push in that whole last drive and they were opening up holes.” — Isaac Redman
From Jim Corbett, USA Today:
This was a Roethlisberger game from the start to prevent the seething Steelers from starting 0-2 for the first time since 2002. With Pittsburgh’s two best defensive players, safety Troy Polamalu (calf) and linebacker James Harrison (knee), inactive with injuries and the run game sputtering, Roethlisberger didn’t disappoint.
The ninth-year quarterback fired a pair of touchdowns within a 7 minute, 19-second span to bring the high-flying Jets back to 1-1 and extend Pittsburgh’s streak of home-opening victories to 10 in a row.
“He was but […]
Thursday: Ben on WDVE
Ben called in to DVE’s Morning Show to talk directly to Clairton Police Officer James Kuzak (below) who had also called in to the show to help kick off the WDVE Rocks Children’s Radiothon Fundraiser!
What was the reason for the call? Ben explained:
“For me, you are a hero…I got to meet you at my event, and when I called last week it was to invite you to the game this week against the Jets. I wanted you to come sit in the box with my family and everything, and you said you would and that’s awesome…but there is another small little thing I was hoping I could ask you and see if you would want to do. But obviously, by no means do you have to do this. But like I said, you are a hero to us as a team and me, and to the people of Pittsburgh, and I was wondering if you would help kick off our season by starting the game off with the Terrible Towel twirl on the field?
“We’re glad you’re coming to the game…but you know there’s nothing like getting you on the field right there to kind of get us fired up and get the whole crowd going because I know you’re more than just a hero to us, so it would be an honor to have you out there.”
Did Officer Kuzak agree to kick off the Steelers season on the field this Sunday?
Check out the audio from their on-air phone call to find out!!
Ben also wanted to make a donation to the Fundraiser as well, AND he had an idea for a raffle item that you won’t want to pass up!! So click on the link above and listen to the Radiothon podcast!
Ben and WDVE‘s Randy Baumann pose with Officer Kuzak at Ben’s Fundraiser in July at Jergels Rhythm Grille.
On April 4th 2011, Patrolman James Kuzak and fellow officers of the Clairton Police Department answered a home invasion call in the City of Clairton. Upon arrival, Officer Kuzak was shot five times and critically wounded by two suspects as they fled the scene.
Sustaining gunshot wounds to the chest, arm […]
Wednesday’s chat with the media
Ben talked to the media before practice today about Sunday’s game against the New York Jets…
From Teresa Varley, Steelers.com:
Do you enjoy playing against elite cornerbacks like Revis?
You like a challenge. He’s one of the best to play the game at that position. We faced one last week in Champ Bailey and this is the same way.
How would you evaluate the offense’s performance against Denver?
I thought we did pretty well on offense. We obviously had some negative plays but I thought we had a chance to win the game. We played well enough if I didn’t make a mistake at the end of the game.
Re: Having more freedom calling plays in the no-huddle:
A lot of those runs, even though we were in the no-huddle at the end of the first half and most of the second half, I was calling a lot of those runs. I think people need to realize that just because we’re in the no-huddle and we’re calling the plays doesn’t mean I’m calling all passes. We broke it down between runs and passes and it was pretty balanced. As a quarterback, you just want to call the best play, run or pass.
Re: Why the team ran three receiver sets so many times against Denver:
Our no-huddle is three wide receivers. So, any time you saw three wide receivers, we were probably in no-huddle mentality or formation. That’s probably why that was like that.
Re: The plays you have to choose from in the no-huddle:
Our no-huddle playbook is wide open. Any no-huddle play is available.
Re: Being sacked five times against Denver:
Yes, but on the last three they were pinning their ears and dropping everybody. It’s really two sacks that they got. That’s what I count. Sometimes they hurt. Sometimes they don’t.
Is there a sense of urgency to avoid a 0-2 start?
The Super Bowl was not won or lost last week and probably isn’t won or lost this week. It makes it a little bit harder with every loss but we’re just going to come out, play good football, and keep trying to get better.
Do you think […]
Comfortable with the no-huddle
From Ed Bouchette today at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger’s use of the no-huddle offense in the second quarter and throughout the second half in the opener signaled what might be the advent of a significant change in the way the Steelers play football on offense.
They have used it previously, most famously to win Super Bowl XLIII, but rarely for an entire half in the opening game in a noisy place on the road the way they did Sunday night.
At times, Roethlisberger looked more like Peyton Manning than did Manning, running up and down the line, shouting instructions to his teammates, looking at the play clock. If he can do that in the noise and high altitude, it should only be easier to run before the more friendly atmosphere at Heinz Field.
“I thought we did pretty well in a hostile environment,” Roethlisberger said. “They were loud, we played a lot of no-huddle. We mixed some things in. We hurt ourselves sometimes on penalties and certain things. Overall, I felt we were happy with the line and the way the guys handled it.”
You can read more here.
Steelers vs Broncos – Post game
“There’s no one to blame but myself. I already told my teammates and coaches that it’s my fault. It’s on me. It’s disappointing. I hate to let my team down, my coaches, the fans. That loss is squarely on my shoulders. I’ll take that and get better and learn from it.” — Ben
Final Score: Broncos 31, Steelers 19
From ESPN.com:
Roethlisberger made quite a few vintage Roethlisberger plays by shrugging off pass-rushers and making impromptu plays with his legs and big arm.
He really had to work hard for everything the Steelers offense got. But Pittsburgh took very few shots deep downfield — probably because of protection concerns — even with Mike Wallace now on board.
The Steelers did incorporate Heath Miller more than in recent memory, and Miller could be their best red zone weapon.
He came up big, time and time again. But that wasn’t enough on this night.
More here.
From RotoWorld:
Playing behind an offensive line that lost two starters mid-game, Ben Roethlisberger completed just 22-of-40 passes for 245 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in Pittsburgh’s Week 1 loss to the Broncos. Under siege nearly all evening, Roethlisberger pulled plenty of Houdini-acts in the pocket, but ran out of magic late, tossing a devastating pick-six with just 1:58 remaining before taking three sacks on Pittsburgh’s desperation final drive. The good news is that Big Ben looked 100 percent following his late-2011 ankle woes, and appeared to be on the same page with No. 1 receiver Mike Wallace following his lengthy holdout. Ben found “60 Minutes” for four catches, 37 yards and a score.
More here.
‘‘Roethlisberger was awesome on third down. Wasn’t much fun sitting on the bench there all night. Great job by our defense in the end, getting that turnover.’’ — Peyton Manning
And from Steelers.com:
Through the early stages of the fourth quarter, Ben Roethlisberger was the primary reason the Steelers held a 19-14 lead over the Denver Broncos. To that point, Roethlisberger had completed 20-of-34 for 216 yards and two touchdowns, and on the two touchdown drives, he converted six third-down situations with his passes, including both touchdowns. He finished 22-of-40 for 245 yards, including a late interception that was returned for […]