The Pittsburgh Steelers are one of the most storied franchises in the NFL. As such, they’ve also been involved in several intense rivalries over the years. Teams like the Oakland Raiders, Dallas Cowboys, and Baltimore Ravens are among the Steelers’ greatest rivals. However, there’s an argument to be made that the Cleveland Browns should also be included on that list. Ben Roethlisberger doesn’t agree with that, though, leaving Steelers-Browns out of his list of the NFL’s best rivalries.
“I didn’t put on here Steelers-Browns because it’s not really a rivalry,” Roethlisberger said Tuesday on his podcast, Footbahlin’ with Ben Roethlisberger. “That’s a domination.”
If Roethlisberger were talking about just his time with the Steelers, then he wouldn’t be wrong. When he was the Steelers’ quarterback, Roethlisberger dominated the Browns, posting a regular season record of 26-2-1 against them. Considering that the Browns are a divisional opponent, which the Steelers see twice a year, that does not look like a rivalry.
Roethlisberger has made it clear in the past how much he dislikes the Browns, likely because they passed on drafting him in 2004. That was his hometown team, and they snubbed him. Roethlisberger took that personally and made the Browns regret that decision for the rest of his career.
During that same podcast, Roethlisberger continued taking shots at the Browns, letting them know how little he thinks of them.
“I don’t see it as a rivalry. That’s a win every year. That’s two wins a year.”
While it’s funny to hear Roethlisberger belittle a team he beat up on for almost 20 years, that isn’t necessarily true anymore. The Steelers haven’t swept the Browns since 2021, which, funnily enough, was Roethlisberger’s last year in the NFL. That was also the first time the Steelers had beaten Cleveland twice in one season since 2017. Lately, their matchups have been more competitive.
The Browns did get some revenge on Roethlisberger, though. After the 2020 season, the Browns beat the Steelers in the first round of the playoffs, which was, unfortunately, Maurkice Pouncey’s final NFL game. Pouncey and Roethlisberger were very close, so that loss likely stung quite a bit.
There were days before Roethlisberger that saw the Browns play better than the Steelers. Including the playoffs, the Steelers lead the all-time series 82-64-1. Considering that the Browns have been one of the worst teams in the league for 20 years, that isn’t so bad. The Steelers have dominated them, but that wasn’t always true. It might not be a rivalry right now, but these two teams are certainly bitter enemies.
