One day early because of Thursday night’s game….

“He should be recognized more than just…I mean, I don’t know who else is ‘Defensive Player Of The Year’ other than that guy. I’m sure there are other candidates, I just don’t know. But he should absolutely get MVP votes as well because that’s what kind of player he is.” — Ben on TJ Watt.


More from Teresa Varley, Steelers.com:

With just fives games left to play in the season, and the AFC North and the AFC overall so tightly contested, every game for the Steelers now is almost like a playoff game.

“We keep saying when I talk to you all every week, it’s a must win. When you get to the playoffs, it’s a must win. Because of the hole or whatever you want to say that we’ve kind of dug ourselves into, even though we’re not really in the hole because of the way the AFC is, we’re still behind some teams and have to do some work.”

The Steelers are currently third in the AFC North at 6-5-1, but there isn’t much that separates them from the Baltimore Ravens, who lead the North at 8-4, the Cincinnati Bengals who are second at 7-5, or the Cleveland Browns who are in last place at 6-6.

“We can’t let up. Every game is a must win. Every game is a playoff type caliber game. That’s the approach we have to take moving forward the rest of the way.”

The Steelers don’t have much time to prepare this week, playing on Thursday night against the Minnesota Vikings on the road. The key will be familiarity, not trying to put a lot of new stuff in but trusting what has worked for them.

“We’ll have to rely more on stuff we know. If you look at what we’ve installed, it’s not like we don’t have a bunch of new stuff. Stuff added last week, two weeks ago, things that we’ve done so guys can try and play faster.”

The Steelers and Vikings have both found themselves in some tightly contested games this season, and while it hasn’t been ideal, Roethlisberger said it could be a lesson for guys as the seasons tightens even more.

“Obviously we’d love to have the blowout game and not have to worry about it, but I definitely think you can learn something from the game last week. We had to drive down the field, or Chicago a few weeks ago and we’ve got to go down to win the game. There’s something to be said in character that can be built, heart that can be built, from those games.

“I definitely think there is something to be taken from tight games because a lot of times when you get to the postseason, or as you’re starting to get down to the end of the regular season, which is almost considered postseason, games are usually tight. So, if you can look back on it and say ‘Oh, remember this game or remember this moment, remember we needed to drive here or a play here.’ If you’ve already experienced them, sometimes that can benefit you moving forward.”


You can watch video of Ben’s interview here.