” I told Bruce Arians, ‘Let’s send him.’ All the receivers were supposed to do 15-yard stop routes. I said, ‘Let’s just chuck it deep. If they pick it, it’s a pick way down there, and it’s just as good as a punt. Ed Reed lined up to the left.” — Ben, on the “third-and-19 rainbow pass” to Antonio Brown, from Peter King’s column this morning at SI.com.

More from SI‘s Peter King:

There’s a reason why the Steelers have been so good for so long. The system gets the coaches the players, the players get coached, and the players fit into the roles the old Steelers like Jack Lambert and Terry Bradshaw and Mike Webster defined; and before you know it, James Harrison (three sacks against Baltimore), Roethlisberger (two touchdowns, 101.8 rating, seventh straight win over the hated Ravens) and Maurkice Pouncey (a brute force in the middle of the line, though a rookie) take their place, and play big in big games the way their predecessors did.


You can read all of Mr. King’s column here.

“It’s Ben. You give this guy an opportunity to snap it; he’s capable of producing plays. It’s not always how you draw it up, but he has a no-blink mentality. He is a competitor and a winner. And those guys follow him.” — Coach Tomlin, post-game.

From ESPN’s James Walker, in his AFC North Blog:

There is not much that separates the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens. Both teams have elite defenses, Pro Bowl players, future Hall of Famers and two of the best coaching staffs in the NFL.

But on Pittsburgh’s sideline you have quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. And on Baltimore’s sideline you have Joe Flacco.

Game, set and match in favor of the Steelers.

The game marked Roethlisberger’s seventh consecutive win over Baltimore — Pittsburgh’s biggest rival — and improved his career record to 9-2 against the Ravens. It’s painfully obvious that the Ravens will not climb “Mt. Roethlisberger” until Flacco closes ground on Pittsburgh’s two-time Super Bowl winning quarterback.


You can read the rest of Mr. Walker’s […]

I’ve got confidence in the guys. All I’ve got to do is throw it.” — Ben, after the win.

From the New York Daily News‘ Hank Gola:

Ben Roethlisberger broke the Ravens hearts again.

In a play that will go down as one of the biggest in the rich history of the Steelers, Roethlisberger completed a 58-yard pass to rookie Antonio Brown on third-and-19 from the Steeler 39 to set up Rashard Mendhall’s two-yard TD with 1:39 left. The 31-24 win sent the Steelers to their second AFC Championship Game in three years. They will either visit the Patriots or host the Jets.

It was Roethlisberger’s eighth straight win over the Ravens and his third in the post-season and it came on a day where they sacked him six times. But Roethlisberger, who threw for two third quarter TDs, emerged from the backyard brawl whistling again.


You can read more here.

“Right now I don’t feel anything but joy!” — Ben, when asked about the “beating” he took during the game.

From WLTX-CBS Columbia, SC:

In a game that looked headed to the first application of the NFL’s new overtime rule, Ben Roethlisberger had other plans.

Roethlisberger’s biggest pass of the day set up a 2-yard touchdown run by Rashard Mendenhall with 1:33 left that gave the Pittsburgh Steelers a 31-24 comeback win over the Baltimore Ravens Sunday in the divisional round of the AFC playoffs.

The win sends Pittsburgh into the AFC title game against either the New England Patriots or the New York Jets, who meet Sunday.


You can read more here.

“We’re family. We have been ever since I’ve been here.” — Ben, talking about his team.

From the AP‘s quick game summary:

The Pittsburgh Steelers stood around as the Baltimore Ravens scored an inexplicable first-half touchdown. Then it was the error-prone Ravens who watched helplessly as the team they love to beat most came back to beat them when it mattered most.


You can read more here.



From ESPN‘s James Walker, AFC North Blog:

The Ravens and Steelers staged another classic game in this heated rivalry, as Pittsburgh overcame a 14-point deficit in the second half. An unbelievable, 58-yard pass on third-and-19 to rookie Antonio Brown proved to be the difference.


You can read more here.

“I saw […]

“I might never win the passing title or be the league MVP. But I’m OK with that. I just want to win championships. I’ve got a lot of fingers left for rings and I want to win a lot more championships. When I’m done and they look back on my career, I want them to be able to say he won the big games. That will mean more to me than anything.” — Ben, from Mr. Cook’s column.

From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette‘s Ron Cook this morning:

Roethlisberger will play in another of those big games Saturday when the Steelers meet the Ravens at Heinz Field. With all due respect to the Steelers’ great defense, he’s the No. 1 reason to like the home team. He and Brady are the best big-game quarterbacks of this generation.

“I’ve seen and heard a few of the guys say, ‘In 7 We Trust,’ ” Roethlisberger said. “That’s an unbelievable honor. I don’t take that for granted. But I do take that pressure. I want to be that guy for this team. I want to win for my teammates.”


You can read Mr. Cook’s entire column here.


You can check out photos from practice this week here.

From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette‘s Ed Bouchette this morning:

A quicker release has been cited for Roethlisberger’s career-low five interceptions and his 32 sacks, which, while not necessarily low over 12 games, represents an improvement over his previous four seasons.

Roethlisberger took the month he could not appear at the Steelers’ facility to work with quarterbacks coach George Whitfield Jr., and he tinkered with his delivery.

“Holding the ball higher,” Roethlisberger said, “helps me what [Whitfield] calls ‘keeping it loaded’ rather than keeping it down low where I used to hold it and then you have to wind up … you get it out quicker.”

Whitfield, who runs a private quarterback-training firm in San Diego, suggested the change to Roethlisberger when they began working together in September. He had used the same motion since high school, and no one suggested he change, likely because he had been so successful.

“I had heard of it before but I never did it because I didn’t think it mattered,” Roethlisberger said. “I tried it because I had a bad elbow problem, and it solved that problem, too. I don’t know what it is, but my elbow doesn’t seem to hurt as much.”


You can read more here.

You can see photos of Ben’s workouts with Coach Whitfield here.



Stat Line:

For the regular season, Ben was third in the league in yards-per-attempt and not only leads all active quarterbacks in that category, but is fourth all time.


Quotes of the Day:

“There’s a lot of times when he’s outside the pocket that he’s far more dangerous than when he’s inside the pocket. And that’s not to say he’s not good when he’s in the pocket. But his ability to throw accurately on the run and on the fly and just create stuff is just uncanny.” — Ravens linebacker Jarret Johnson on Ben, from an article in the Baltimore Sun.

“Some quarterbacks will go down when they get people around them, but not him. The play’s never dead with him and that’s something you’ve got to watch out for. It’s tough to play against. You just got to get lots of helmets on him and get him down.” — Ravens nose tackle Kelly Gregg on Ben, from the same […]