NFL.com released the names of the top vote-getters so far for the 2011 Pro Bowl in Hawaii:

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, with 496,658 votes, leads all NFL All-Stars in balloting for the 2011 Pro Bowl.

AFC quarterbacks with the most votes  –

Peyton Manning  (496,658 votes)
Tom Brady (368,469 votes)
Philip Rivers (291,071 votes)

There is one name missing off of that list, let’s put it on there!

In the NFC, the Philadelphia Eagles Michael Vick leads with 405, 292 votes. The Packers’ Aaron Rodgers is next with 343,177 votes, and the Saints’ Drew Brees is third with 296,552 votes.

The 2011 Pro Bowl will be played on Sunday, January 30th, 2011 and televised live on FOX at 7 p.m. ET at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Balloting will conclude on Monday, December 20th following Monday Night Football (Chicago Bears at Minnesota Vikings, ESPN, 8:30 p.m. ET). The teams will be announced at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday, December 28th on a special NFL Total Access 2011 Pro Bowl Selection Show on NFL Network.

The AFC and NFC All-Star squads are based on the consensus votes of fans, players and coaches. Each group’s vote counts one-third toward determining the 43-man rosters that represent the American Football Conference and National Football Conference in the Pro Bowl. NFL players and coaches will cast their votes on Dec. 22-23.

Let’s get voting and send Ben back to Hawaii!

Vote here!

Today, Ben announced the seventh grant of the 2010 season from The Ben Roethlisberger Foundation at The Giving Back Fund. The foundation will be distributing a grant to the City of Buffalo Police Department, in Buffalo, NY where the Steelers will play the Bills on Sunday, November 28th.

The Buffalo Police Department will use the grant to purchase a canine trained in explosives detection. The canine will replace recently retired, Garo, an explosive detection dog who served eight years with the department. The new canine will also be trained to track missing persons and fugitives, locate evidence, apprehend criminals, and also to protect his partner.

Buffalo Mayor Byron W. Brown said, “I am pleased to receive this grant from The Ben Roethlisberger Foundation, which provides funding for a new police dog in the Buffalo Police Department. These funds will enable our police department to purchase the dog, train it and put it to work on our continuing anti-crime efforts across the City of Buffalo.”

The Ben Roethlisberger Foundation seeks to support K-9 units of police and fire departments throughout the United States with a particular emphasis on support for service dogs in Pittsburgh, PA.


For more information, check out Ben’s Foundation page here.

For information on the Giving Back Fund, click here.


You can also contact them directly:

Stephanie Sandler
The Giving Back Fund
310.649.5222
ssandler@givingback.org


Also Today:

Vote for Ben!!

For the NFL’s FedEx Air Player of the Week…

Ben was 18/29 for 279 yards with 3 touchdowns. He also rushed 3 times for 55 yards and another touchdown in the 35-3 win over the Oakland Raiders on Sunday.

A $2,000 donation in the name of the weekly winner will be made to the local Safe Kids affiliate in the winner’s city.

You can see a highlight video and place your vote here.


Ben already shares the win for the The Sports Network‘s “Fantasy Player of the Week”!

Both Ben and the Packers’ Aaron Rodgers won the weekly fantasy player award in the Quarterback division this week.

From their website:

“Big Ben” used both his arm and his feet to post a position-high 35 fantasy points. He tossed three touchdowns […]

“He’s not like most quarterbacks. In fact, very few are that big, that tough, and that willing to lay it all out there to get in the end zone.” — Former NFL quarterback and current CBS color commentator Dan Fouts, during the game.

“Big Ben delivered today. Ben was freestyling a bit which seems to be when he’s at his best.” — Former NFL wide receiver and current NFL Network anchor Tom Waddle, after the game.

Media Notes & Quotes…


From the Sporting News:

Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger is finding a rhythm, trusting his receivers more and gaining confidence. Getting seven men involved the passing game Sunday and then also making a decisive run to the end zone, Roethlisberger played well in the face of a good Oakland pass rush. He has his mojo working just in time for facing the Ravens in a potential Week 13 shootout with Joe Flacco.


You can read the rest here.



From Ed Bouchette, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

The Steelers crushed the Oakland Raiders today in a rough-and-tumble throwback game that looked more like their heated rivalry from the 1970s.

Roethlisberger threw three touchdown passes and ran for one to lead the Steelers to a 7-3 record.


You can read the rest here.



From NFL.com‘s GameCenter:

The Steelers’ James Harrison-led defense drove Raiders quarterback Jason Campbell from the game and caused two turnovers that Ben Roethlisberger turned into touchdown passes as Pittsburgh routed Oakland 35-3 on Sunday.

Roethlisberger threw touchdown passes of 52 yards to Mike Wallace, 22 yards to rookie Emmanuel Sanders and 16 yards to Isaac Redman, and the quarterback also scrambled 16 yards for a score as the Steelers (7-3) bounced back in a big way after being rolled over by the New England Patriots 39-26 at Heinz Field the previous week.


You can read the rest here.



For the Fantasy Football fanatics…

From Rotoworld:

Big Ben channeled his inner Vick on Sunday with a career fantasy performance. He feasted on a Raider secondary missing Pro Bowl CB Nnamdi Asomugha, and connected with eight different wideouts, although his signature play of the day came on a second-quarter 16-yard touchdown scramble that would put […]

“I’m always trying to go out and be the best, and do what I can. I don’t think you have to change that up.” — Ben, from the interview.

Ben spoke to Mike Prisuta on 102.5 DVE today on his definition of being a leader and how he goes about it.

You can listen to the interview here.



Also Today:

From Ed Bouchette’s column in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette:

“I’m sure B.A. probably feels pressure whether it’s from the fans, the media, the coaches — wherever it comes from — to run the ball,” Roethlisberger said of his coordinator, Bruce Arians. “That probably puts him in a little bit of a bind.”

Roethlisberger added that the ratio of runs and passes are right where they want them.

“I don’t know any quarterbacks who want to run the ball all the time. But I’ve always said let’s be balanced. I’ve never been one to say let’s go out and throw the ball 60, 70 percent of the time. Let’s just be balanced, 50-50.”


You can read Mr. Bouchette’s column here.



From an interview with Ben for the Raiders Notebook in the Mercury News:

Six wide receivers went in the first round of the 2009 NFL draft, including Darrius Heyward-Bey to the Raiders at No. 7, the first receiver selected. The Steelers just might have found the best of a receiver-rich draft with Mike Wallace in the third round.

“Whenever you can get a guy like that, it’s special,” Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger said. “You find a guy that wants to be great without all the attitude.

“He’s a guy that, every day you go out it’s never too big for him, he never lets it get to his head. He really is just a great guy. He’s humble and, as a quarterback, you love that. You love a receiver that has a fire and wants to be great but is humble about it.”


You can read the rest of their Raiders Notebook here.



And:

Want to give a “shout out” this weekend to Big Ben fan Gerald Williams of Richmond, Virginia! Gerald, thoughts and prayers go out as you continue to fight and stay strong!

I have added some photos of Ben from Heath Miller’s “Bid for Hope” event which took place on October 18th at Bosa Nova. Also in attendance were teammates Brett Keisel, Hines Ward, James Farrior, Jeff Reed, Keyaron Fox, Matt Spaeth, and Max Starks.

Proceeds from the event benefit the Under Forty Breast Cancer Study.

The photos were taken by photographer Gary Yon, and are courtesy of Diana Napper, founder of the Glimmer of Hope Foundation.

You can see the photos of Ben here.

You can see all the photos here (there is also information on purchasing your favorites).

You can learn more about the Glimmer of Hope Foundation here.

“I think the panic comes from the media and the fans, I mean, we’re 6-3 not 3-6. We put last week behind us and we’re moving on. Our focus is on a very, very good Raiders team.” — Ben, during a locker room chat with the media today (NFL Network).

From Steelers.com:

“Being a leader for me, I have never been a rah-rah guy,” said Roethlisberger. “I will pull a guy aside and talk to him. It’s always been about actions for me. It’s time now maybe, at this point of the season, to transition to being more of a vocal guy than lead by example.”


You can read the rest here.



From an article in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:

Ben Roethlisberger called Hines Ward on Tuesday to see how the concussed wide receiver was doing.

“He actually brought up, ‘Listen, lead us, show us how to do this,'” Roethlisberger said. “I said, ‘Well, listen, it’s us. Let’s do this together. I need you as much as you need me, and we all need this together.’ It was a good talk between us.”


You can read the article here.



From the Oakland Tribune‘s “Inside the Oakland Raiders” blog:

Having watched Raiders film of recent games, Roethlisberger is particularly impressed by the play of defensive tackle Richard Seymour.

“I’ve been playing against him for awhile now and I’ve always thought that he was a marquee kind…one of those great players. But if you ask me, the film that we’ve broken down, he’s playing the best football of his career. I don’t mean that as any disrespect to how he was playing before. But he would be my choice for MVP of at least that defense. He’s wreaking havoc on everybody and everything and he seems to be rejuvenated, playing like he never has before.”


You can read the blog here.



From the Silver & Black Report:

The Oakland Raiders are aware of Roethlisberger’s scrambling ability.

Cornerback Stanford Routt stated, “He’s probably the best pump-faker in the league. He’s so big he can palm the ball in one hand and pump it all the way like, full throwing motion. Whenever you’re going against a quarterback like that, it definitely makes the receivers more effective, because anytime you can get someone to, like Michael Vick with his feet or Ben Roethlisberger with his size and pump-faking ability, anyone who can […]