Score: Steelers 13, Browns 9

“Now is the time to go out and play our best football. If you are a great team, you have to win on the road. We’d like to get it together, starting next week. We have not been able to put it all together yet this year, whether because of injury, weather, a lot of factors.” — Ben, on his play and that of the banged-up offense.

Ben completed 23-of-40 passes for 221 yards (improving to 14-1 in his career against the Browns) while playing the entire game with a “healing” high ankle sprain for the Steelers (12-4), who were the AFC’s No. 5 seed due to Baltimore’s win over Cincinnati this afternoon.

Isaac Redman provided the go-ahead score with a 7-yard scoring run in the third quarter.

Redman replaced the injured Rashard Mendenhall who hurt his right knee on the final play of the first quarter.


You can check out video highlights of the game here.  Photos here.

“I’d give myself a C-minus. So would you call that below average? Or is that average? I don’t know, I wasn’t very good at school.” — Ben.

Congratulations:

To Hines Ward (1,000 career receptions), Heath Miller (passing the great Lynn Swann for #4 all time in receptions), Antonio Brown (first player ever to have 1000+ yards both receiving and returning), and of course Ben (his second career 4,000-yard passing season)!

“Well, we knew that play was coming and I had a bunch of options and it was kind of one option. Just get it to Hines. Unfortunately he had to lose yards, but it’s still such an awesome honor and I feel privileged to play with the guy.” — Ben, on Hines Ward’s 1,000th reception.

Playoff Schedule:

The Steelers head to Denver to face the Broncos next Sunday. The game starts at 4:30 p.m. on CBS. If the Steelers win against the Broncos and the Texans win, the Steelers go to New England to play the Patriots. However, if the Steelers win, and the Bengals win, the Steelers go to Baltimore to face the Ravens. You can keep up here.

Today, Ben announced the eighth grant of the 2011 season from The Ben Roethlisberger Foundation at The Giving Back Fund.

The Foundation will be distributing a grant to the Cleveland Heights Police Department near Cleveland, Ohio where the Steelers will play the Browns on Sunday afternoon.

The Cleveland Heights Police Department’s K-9 division will utilize the grant to provide for the purchase and training of a new canine, as well as a K-9 ballistic vest.

Cleveland Heights Chief of Police Jeffrey Robertson said, “The K-9 will be a great addition to our department, not only on the law enforcement side, but in our continued initiatives in community policing programs. I look forward to seeing our new K-9 in our elementary schools visiting with the kids and allowing our officers to interact with the younger residents of our City.” Chief Robertson added, “On behalf of the Cleveland Heights Police Department, I would like to thank the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation for selecting our department as the recipient of a grant.”

The Ben Roethlisberger Foundation is distributing grants to police and fire departments in Pittsburgh and in the cities and surrounding communities of each regular season away game for the Steelers in the 2011 season. Last summer, Ben invited police and fire departments in the local areas of those nine cities to submit proposals detailing their needs.

This marks the fifth season that the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation has distributed grants to K-9 units.


For more information:

Check out Ben’s Foundation page here and the Giving Back Fund’s website here.



Also Today:

Congratulations to Antonio Brown, Steelers MVP!

“It’s an awesome honor for him. With the high-caliber guys we have in this locker room, there were a handful of guys who probably could have gotten it. It speaks volumes of a young guy to step up and do the things he’s done. Look at what he’s done in the receiving game and look at what he’s done returning punts and kickoffs. With every kickoff and punt return, you think on every single one that he has a chance to take it back all the way or at least get you good field position. It’s so exciting to see him do it.” — Ben

From Steelers.com:

Highlights from Ben’s chat with the media today:


On the possibility of sitting out another game –

“Don’t know if I necessarily need it, but it’d be nice to get an extra week of rest, but I prefer to play.”


On sitting out against the Rams last weekend –

“To just get a rest and not tweak it was good.”


On how long he will play, if he plays, in Sunday’s game against the Browns –

“I don’t know. That’s probably a question for Mike [Tomlin]. We’re going to go out (today) and evaluate how it feels, how I feel, and I’ll let him know.

“If he feels comfortable enough with me being out there then I’ll probably be out there.”


On playing with the high ankle sprain –

“It’s getting better a little each day – no setbacks. We’ll give it a shot today and see how it feels. The pain is always going to be there. I can deal with the pain. I’m not worried about that. I think the biggest thing is not setting myself up to get hurt in other ways or hurt it worse as a sitting duck back there. It’s probably not the smartest thing in the world to do, but if it’s just the pain I’ll deal with that.”


On the biggest issue of playing with the injury –

“Weight-bearing up on my toes. That obviously involves running and throwing. That’s the biggest thing, to strengthen it up on my toes.”


Ben did practice fully today, which was the first time he has done so since playing the 49ers on December 19th.


You can read more on his practice from Ed Bouchette at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.



Playoff Stat of the Day:

Dan Marino, Bernie Kosar, Jim Everett, Todd Marinovich, Shaun King, Ben Roethlisberger, Joe Flacco, Matt Ryan and Mark Sanchez are the only rookie quarterbacks since the NFL-AFL merger to take their teams to the playoffs. Their combined playoff record is 6-9, with a total of 15 touchdown passes and 23 interceptions and an average of 16 points a game. None of the rookies reached the Super Bowl, though four (King, Roethlisberger, Flacco and Sanchez) got their teams as far as the conference championship game. The […]

Ben was selected as the AFC’s #2 quarterback behind the Patriots’ Tom Brady to play in the 2012 Pro Bowl!

“It’s an awesome honor. I hope that I don’t get to play in it, but it is an awesome honor to be picked by both your peers and the fans. It’s a neat thing.” — Ben

The rosters were announced this evening at 7 p.m. on a special NFL Total Access “2012 Pro Bowl Selection Show” on NFL Network.

Ben has passed for 3,856 yards with 21 touchdowns and a quarterback rating of 91.5 rating so far this season!

Phillip Rivers is the #3 quarterback behind Tom Brady and Ben.

This is Ben’s second Pro Bowl selection. In 2008, he was a reserve quarterback along with the Colts’ Peyton Manning behind the Patriots’ Tom Brady, who was the No. 1 vote-getter. Ben became the back-up to Peyton Manning on the field when Tom Brady opted out.

Other Steelers players selected for the 2012 Pro Bowl include Maurkice Pouncey, Mike Wallace, Antonio Brown, and Troy Polamalu. Congratulations!!

The annual contest of the AFC and NFC’s best will take place Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012 at Aloha Stadium in Hawaii.

Thank you fans!!! Your votes put him on that roster!


About Ben’s season, from Steelers.com:

His 3,856 yards entering the final week of the season rank second in team history for single-season passing yards and his 301 completions also rank second on the team’s single-season list. Roethlisberger was twice named AFC Offensive Player of the Week in 2011 and broke the team’s all-time record for completions in Week 14 versus Cincinnati.


You can read more about the Steelers Pro Bowl selections from Mr. Bouchette here.


Take a look back:

Watch highlights from Ben’s 2008 Pro Bowl appearance here.

Watch an interview with Ben in Hawaii during the week of the 2008 Pro Bowl here.

Check out a few photos from that week in Hawaii here.

Post-game from the AP:

Charlie Batch played well enough on two good ankles to keep Ben Roethlisberger from having to play on a bad one.

The veteran backup quarterback played efficiently if not spectacularly in place of the injured Roethlisberger, passing for 208 yards as the Pittsburgh Steelers crushed lifeless St. Louis 27-0 on Saturday.

Rashard Mendenhall ran for 116 yards and a touchdown, and John Clay and Ike Redman also scored for the Steelers (11-4), who kept their hopes of an AFC North title alive even with Roethlisberger’s sprained left ankle forcing him to watch the game from the sideline as the team’s third quarterback.

Pittsburgh hardly needed him. The defense had little trouble dominating the NFL’s lowest-scoring offense.

The Steelers were never in any real danger as Mendenhall found plenty of room to maneuver against the NFL’s worst run defense, while Batch extended a couple of plays with his feet to keep drives alive.

The Steelers can win the AFC North next week with a win over Cleveland and a Cincinnati victory over Baltimore.


You can read more here.

You can watch highlights from the Christmas Eve game here.


Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas!

From Steeler Nation:


“Wishing a very special ‘first’ Christmas to you both! May it be wonderful and excitng and full of Christmas Love! May there be many many more and may each new one be more blessed than the last! May God bless you and your families with love, health and much happiness! So wonderful to share your holiday with us on your website! OH! and Ashley…I hope “SANTA” brings you everything you want!!! Take some special time to relax and enjoy!! A very Merry Christmas to you both and the happiest New Year too!! — Mary Rafail and family from St. George, Utah


“Ben, here’s wishing you , Ashley, your families, & the Steelers a wonderful Merry Christmas & Happy New Year. The scheduling crew MUST have known that Santa had the Steelers on his NICE list this year since you play at home Saturday & everyone can be with their families on Christmas Day. Now rest that ankle because we need you. May God be with y’all and keep you safe. Good luck in the playoffs & bring home #7”— Marilyn McClellan, Silver Spring, Maryland


“Ben – your resilience and perseverance are an inspiration to anyone facing life’s challenges. Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy new year to you and all of your family and friends.” — All the best, Maria in New Jersey


“Merry Christmas to you and the rest of the team.” — Donna Miller

“Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to Ben & Ashley in this, their first holiday season as husband and wife! I wish many blessings for them and their families. Also, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to the Steelers and Steeler Nation! I hope everyone has a happy and safe holiday season.” — Anita Doddroe, Ohio

“Ben and Ashley, praying you have a Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year… May beautiful moments and happy memories surround the both of you with joy this Christmas.” — Love Billie Jo & Greg Yakubik, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania


“Merry Christmas to the best all around Steelers team I’ve […]