Though retired, former Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger still watches every one of their games, including Russell Wilson’s games. Sometimes he even does it live while filming his Footbahlin podcast. In his latest episode, he shared his thoughts on the Steelers’ shootout win against the Bengals. And that included his thoughts on their perseverance, particularly though early adversity.
Specifically, Roethlisberger talked about the Steelers’ early pick-six allowed, when Russell Wilson looked George Pickens’ way. Bengals DB Cam Taylor-Britt pulled down Pickens’ helmet, leading him to stumble to the ground. By that point, Wilson was locked into the throw, and it became a walk-in touchdown.
“I thought [the Bengals] got a cheap seven [points] early”, Roethlisberger said. “People talk about, was it a potential penalty? Was there contact, was there stuff going on? if I’m playing quarterback, I’m screaming at the refs, too. ‘That’s a penalty! We’ve got to call it!’”.
Roethlisberger was never bashful about voicing his thoughts about penalties during his playing days. I think anybody who watched him can easily believe he would have been vocal in that moment. But it wouldn’t have changed anything, the officials deeming the contact, if any, incidental. That is, of course, ridiculous; Pickens would not have stumbled to the ground without help.
“As I’m watching the game, could I the argument of, he was stumbling a little bit?”, Roethlisberger said. “There was definitely contact, but was it enough to make him go to the ground like that? You count on George [Pickens] being a big, physical guy. You shouldn’t be able to get thrown around like that, if you will”.
Since the Steelers ended up winning, I’m not sure we’ll ever know if the league admitted to getting this incorrect. It might be a much different story if they ended up losing, like in the Colts game. Pickens and Wilson both said they believed it should have been a penalty, and Roethlisberger agreed. But Mike Tomlin moves on after wins because you can’t control the officiating.
But the fact that the Steelers quickly overcame that adversity is what was most impressive. Ben Roethlisberger raved about their response, including Wilson and Pickens. Most importantly, they matched touchdowns for touchdowns, rather than field goals.
Roethlisberger even went on to say that he sees the Steelers as Super Bowl contenders. If Russell Wilson and George Pickens can keep the offense on this path, it’s not unreasonable. We will learn a lot more about this team over the course of the next month, though.
After playing the Browns on Sunday, the Steelers have the Philadelphia Eagles and then the Baltimore Ravens. That is on a Saturday, and then they have a short week to prepare for the visiting Kansas City Chiefs. If they pull out a 3-1 record over that stretch, how do you not take them seriously as contenders? Wilson and company have transformed the perception of this team. Not since Roethlisberger played here have the Steelers had this kind of offense, or a receiver like Pickens.
