Ben Roethlisberger: “I just want to see that guys are never gonna quit.”

[Steeler Nation]

The Pittsburgh Steelers returned to the practice field on Wednesday in preparation for their Week 15 contest versus the Tennessee Titans. The Steelers are coming off another loss where their late-game heroics came up just short. Although this dropped the Steelers to 6-6-1, they are still in the hunt for, not only the playoffs, but the AFC North division as well. As he does on Wednesdays, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger met with the media to talk about last week and what needs to happen for the Steelers to get on a December run. After getting sacked 5 times and hit 7 times, Roethlisberger looked a bit chipper than what we’d expect. With that said however, this is why teams fully embrace long weekends. Naturally, Roethlisberger was asked first about how he was feeling after last week:

“Okay,” he said with a smile. “It’s been a while since I have felt like that on the days after a game, but it’s football.”

With a .500 record, the Steelers are sitting in the thick of the AFC playoff race and have one of the toughest remaining schedules down the stretch. We’ve heard head coach Mike Tomlin preach about offensive consistency and persistency as being critical components to winning football games. With how the offense has performed this season, that doesn’t seem to resonate until the second half, primarily the fourth quarter. A common denominator of the offense’s late-game success is the no-huddle scheme. With Roethlisberger doing the majority of the play-calling and keeping the opposing defense on the field, the Steelers have been able to put up a game’s worth of points in a single quarter. Roethlisberger was asked if the offense was considering implementing the no-huddle offense earlier in games:

“Sometimes as you progress into a game you start to see what’s going on,” he explained. “You can start to figure things, figure out what calls you should be making and stuff a little better. There’s definitely something to that.” Roethlisberger continued, “Sometimes we’ve come out of games and done first series. It’s hit and miss sometimes early in games. You never know.” In regards to when we could see this in a game, outside of the final quarter, Roethlisberger said, “We’re doing a little bit more of it. And sometimes games just dictate it. When you get down you kind of have to go to it sometimes. I think the goal would be to use it just to change tempo. Not because you’re down or up, just to change the tempo sometimes.”

The Steelers have one of the youngest offenses in the entire league. Made up of two rookie offensive linemen, a rookie running back, a rookie tight end, and a young receiving corps, there is a lot of growth and development happening. After tough fights resulting in losses, it can be difficult for young players to keep a positive mindset week after week, especially if they come from successful collegiate careers. Najee Harris is one of those. Roethlisberger talked about a pep talk he gave Harris last week after halftime:

“I had to talk with Najee maybe halfway through the third before we really kind of started to make our run last week. I told him I know he was frustrated as we all were. I said, ‘Hey, what you do, the rest of this quarter, and the fourth quarter will really determine the kind of the person and the player that you’re going to be moving forward with the city, with the fans, with this team because you’re going to be here for a long time. And you’re going to have every right to kind of back off and not quit but say let’s send another back in or not run hard.’ I said whatever you decide is going to endear yourself to these fans. I think we had a third and short or fourth and short and he ended up bouncing off three guys, running back this way, running the guy over, catching a touchdown, blocking. Some of the things he did in the end of the third and fourth quarter I think spoke volumes of the person, the player, the heart that he has. I think he’ll always endear himself to the fans and to us as a guy that’s going to never quit and never give up.”

Roethlisberger was also asked about the passion the younger players show. With the season not really going how they’d like it, it is easy to lose the drive and will to finish strong and continue their development. Roethlisberger explained:

“I think you have to look at guys sometimes and look in their eyes and see what they have,” he said. “And the crazy thing about this game, this sport, is you can look at guys and you could feel the guys have all the heart in the world and they have all the passion, they want it and they’re going to give you everything they have. And sometimes the other teams just better or the other team makes a play, and you don’t. It doesn’t mean just because you’re losing a football game, or the season maybe isn’t going the way you want it to, doesn’t mean guys don’t have heart and don’t love it and aren’t passionate for it. It doesn’t mean that. I just want to see that guys are never gonna quit.”

The Steelers’ final possession last week against the Minnesota Vikings featured several critical components, both good and bad. Chase Claypool played a large part in the drive. After making an incredible catch for a 38-yard gain, then following that with another grab for 13 yards, Claypool made a big 9-yard catch on 4th down to keep the Steelers alive; only to celebrate the conversion instead of getting reset at the line. This forced the Steelers to have one less play to the endzone, and the game ultimately ended on an incomplete pass to Pat Freiermuth. With this series of events being a big talking point throughout Steeler Nation, Roethlisberger was also asked about this:

“Chase’s locker is couple down from mine, obviously as a receiver we talked after the game. I told him I appreciated his effort. He helped get us back into that game. So Chase and I have had talks, we communicate and talk, and I know Chase is going to come out here today and probably give you everything he has and we need to count on Chase because he is a really great football player, and I think and believe he will give us everything he has this week.” In regards to Freiermuth, Roethlisberger explained, “I did, and still do, feel bad for Pat. But I think the thing about Pat is he’s shown amazing maturity and professionalism and he has moved on. I think it will always sit in the back of his head and his mind and his heart that, ‘what if’, ‘I wish I would’ve’, because that’s what you expect from a professional. You expect a guy that wants to make every play and he wants to do that. But the other side to that coin is you have to move on. And I talked with him, I saw him today, and he was focused on this week and what he can do.”

The Steelers are set to square off against the Titans at 1:00 EST at Heinz Field this upcoming Sunday.



What are you looking for in practice this week? Do you think they need to run a no-huddle offense earlier in the game? Let us know in the comments!

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[Steelworth]

“I had to talk with Najee maybe halfway through the third before we really kind of started to make our run last week. I told him I know he was frustrated as we all were. I said, ‘Hey, what you do, the rest of this quarter, and the fourth quarter will really determine the kind of the person and the player that you’re going to be moving forward with the city, with the fans, with this team because you’re going to be here for a long time. And you’re going to have every right to kind of back off and not quit but say let’s send another back in or not run hard.’ I said whatever you decide is going to endear yourself to these fans. I think we had a third and short or fourth and short and he ended up bouncing off three guys, running back this way, running the guy over, catching a touchdown, blocking. Some of the things he did in the end of the third and fourth quarter I think spoke volumes of the person, the player, the heart that he has. I think he’ll always endear himself to the fans and to us as a guy that’s going to never quit and never give up.”

Love it. It's going to be a sad day when #7 hangs 'em up. Wish he said this to every player.

 

[slashsteel]

“I had to talk with Najee maybe halfway through the third before we really kind of started to make our run last week. I told him I know he was frustrated as we all were. I said, ‘Hey, what you do, the rest of this quarter, and the fourth quarter will really determine the kind of the person and the player that you’re going to be moving forward with the city, with the fans, with this team because you’re going to be here for a long time. And you’re going to have every right to kind of back off and not quit but say let’s send another back in or not run hard.’ I said whatever you decide is going to endear yourself to these fans. I think we had a third and short or fourth and short and he ended up bouncing off three guys, running back this way, running the guy over, catching a touchdown, blocking. Some of the things he did in the end of the third and fourth quarter I think spoke volumes of the person, the player, the heart that he has. I think he’ll always endear himself to the fans and to us as a guy that’s going to never quit and never give up.”

Love it. It's going to be a sad day when #7 hangs 'em up. Wish he said this to every player.

Sure he has said positive messages to plenty of player. Some just have the willpower and drive to follow through with their plan as well as listening to constructive encouragement or criticism.

 

[wig]

Yep. Ben Roethlisberger aint gonna call NOBODY out.

"We all played really hard and I don't think folks realize just how passionate these guys are. They're ******* amazing and sometimes things just don't go your way. But I can tell you this. I need to play better, by golly."

 

[Djfan]

Ben is a once in a generation type guy. Those of us who lived through the 80s remember the pain we had looking for those types of players. The rest will find out soon.

 

[TDX27]

Ben is proving more and more what a true leader he is - something so many don't give him credit for.

 

[wig]

It's been a great ride.

I'm sure in time they'll find another franchise guy and someday, if we live long enough we can argue about who of the 3 H.O.F. QBs was better. (Obviously Ben!)

 

[MB47]

Sad that the team does not realize how rare playing with a HOF QB like Ben is. Instead of learning and excelling with him.they will suffer with crap like Rudolph etc for the next 5 years or so.