From Teresa Varley, Steelers.com:

Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is the Steelers nominee for the eighth annual Art Rooney Sportsmanship Award, presented annually to a player for their on-field sportsmanship, including fair play, respect for the game and opponents, and integrity in competition.

The award was created in 2014 to honor Art Rooney Sr., the founder of the Steelers and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

“Art Rooney is an iconic figure in NFL history,” said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell at the time the award was introduced. “It is appropriate that we honor his legacy in this way and recognize NFL players for one of the important values that Mr. Rooney represented so well.”

Roethilsberger, who has been an offensive team captain 13 times, is nominated for the first time in his career. Roethlisberger is in his 18th season, giving his heart and soul to the game he loves.

One player from every team was nominated for the award, and eight finalists, four in each conference, will be selected by members of the NFL Legends Community, including Warrick Dunn, Curtis Martin, Larry Fitzgerald and Leonard Wheeler.

Current players will have the final say when the eight appear on their Pro Bowl ballot under NFL Sportsmanship Award. The winner is announced during the NFL Honors show the night before the Super Bowl.

The winner was named after Rooney because of the class he brought to the NFL and his approach that always had sportsmanship at the forefront.

“It is gratifying that sportsmanship is the category,” said Steelers President Art Rooney II when the award was first introduced in 2014. “It’s appropriate. I like to think of my grandfather as someone who truly was a good sport, somebody who cared about the respect and the integrity of the game. The fact it’s being voted on by the players, well, the recipient can feel good about it because it’s voted on by his peers.”


You can see all the nominees here.

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 […]