Notable quotes from the late game:

“I love this defense. It’s so much fun to watch.” – Ben.

“It’s a blessing, it’s an honor to play here and show the world what the Steelers are made of.” — JuJu Smith-Schuster.

Tweet of the Game:

Dom Rinelli‏ @drinelli
The 97-yard pass from Ben Roethlisberger to JuJu Smith-Schuster is the longest pass play in #Steelers history & ties as longest off. play.


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


You can watch Ben’s pass to JuJu here.


You can read the game-recap here.


And you can see a few game photos here.

From Jeremy Fowler, ESPN.com:

Ask Ben Roethlisberger about Maurkice Pouncey and the ribbing session begins, unprompted.

“We’re not that close. Because he thinks he’s really good. And he’s just OK,” said Roethlisberger from his locker. “Sometimes I wish Mike [Pouncey] was here.”

All this is said for Pouncey to overhear from his locker, which is two stalls down from Roethlisberger’s corner setup.

“Hey, Mike’s gonna love that s—, too,” Pouncey said.

Eight years of huddles, snaps, text messages and dinners make moments like this feel routine for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ quarterback and center.

Or, as Roethlisberger calls it, “being us.”

“We rip each other a little bit, but there’s a lot of love there,” Roethlisberger said.

The Steelers’ colorful offense has the game’s best receiver (Antonio Brown), most disgruntled receiver (Martavis Bryant), most relentless back (Le’Veon Bell) and youngest player (JuJu Smith-Schuster). But at the core are Pouncey and Roethlisberger, two team leaders who are always together and use each other as sounding boards.

The QB-center battery will discuss everything from internet memes to what’s best for the offense.

“If there’s an issue, a lot of times he goes to Maurkice — that’s how the relationship is,” guard Ramon Foster said.

Roethlisberger considers himself an extension of the offensive line, the unit he most needs for success. The receivers, he says, naturally need him because he has the ball. But check most dead moments in practice and Roethlisberger is hanging with Pouncey and the rest of the line.

Roethlisberger took a special liking to Pouncey, who was 21 when the Steelers drafted him in 2010. He felt drawn to him.

“He sees stuff in me that others don’t, I guess,” Pouncey said.

The “stuff” is a fiery persona that carries weight in the locker room. Roethlisberger saw a good player, sure, but also a voice that fuels the Steelers’ intensity throughout the week.

It’s infectious enough that Roethlisberger’s moods run low when Pouncey’s do. Coach Mike Tomlin and former offensive coordinator Bruce Arians used to tell Roethlisberger that his energy, good or bad, affects the rest of the group. And that’s how Roethlisberger feels about Pouncey.

“I told him the other day, something happened, and I said, ‘Pounce, it’s so unusual to see you in a bad mood,'” Roethlisberger said. “When he’s not the same, it kind of brings everybody down. In a way like, […]

Today Ben announced the seventh and eighth grant awards of the 2017 season from the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation at The Giving Back Fund.

Ben’s foundation will be distributing grants to the Macomb County Sheriff’s Office and the Livonia Police Department, both just outside of Detroit where the Steelers will play the Lions on Sunday, October 29th.

The Macomb County Sheriff’s Office will use the grant funds to add a K-9 to their unit, while the Livonia Police Department will use the funds to purchase safety and training equipment.

Throughout the 2017 NFL season, Ben will continue to distribute grants to K-9 units of police and fire departments in the cities and surrounding communities of each regular season away game for the Steelers.

If the team makes the playoffs, Ben will also consider a grant to a non-NFL market city in the United States. And of course at the end of the season, Ben will distribute several grants to the Pittsburgh area.

“We would like to express our gratitude to the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation for choosing our office as a grant recipient. This funding will help to build our K-9 program with the purchase of a new dog. Our K-9 units play an important role in our law enforcement efforts, both in the community and our jail, while strengthening our relationship with our citizens.” — Macomb County Sheriff Anthony Wickersham.

Steelers fans:

You can support future K-9 grants by purchasing candy on Sarris Candies’ website, (www.SarrisCandiesFundraising.com), using a special purchase code (77-7777). Sarris will donate 25 percent of the purchase price to the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation. You can also donate directly right here.


For more information about Ben’s foundation, just check out his foundation page. But you can get even more by contacting Jessica Duffaut at www.givingback.org.