On a night in which they were called for seven penalties for 59 yards, four of which were defensive pass interference calls, veteran defensive back Jalen Ramsey took the high road after the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 33-31 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Speaking with reporters after a game in which the Bengals’ passing attack carved up the Steelers’ secondary, Ramsey stated that officials can’t be blamed or be the focus of the Black and Gold’s loss.
Instead, the Steelers — particularly in the secondary — just need to play better.
“Don’t worry about that,” Ramsey said of the officials, according to video via The Athletic’s Mike DeFabo. “We have to play better, starting with myself, when the opportunity presents itself. That’s part of the game. You have receivers that are superstars in the league. You know that they get away with shit like that. It is what it is.
“Next play, you gotta play the game, gotta to execute when you get the opportunity to execute.”
Ramsey’s comments came after young cornerback Joey Porter Jr. expressed his frustration with the officials. Porter, who was called for two penalties on the night, stated to reporters that he wasn’t a fan of the calls. The last time he was in Cincinnati, Porter was flagged six times during the 2024 season in the Steelers’ shootout win.
This time around, it was another rough trip for him, though it was just the two flags this time around. Still, officials didn’t really let the Steelers play physical in coverage, giving a lot of calls to the likes of Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. In an offensive-driven league, that’s not a surprise.
It happens.
But too often a player like Porter can get caught up in the calls going against him. At halftime Thursday night, Porter was captured on the Amazon broadcast talking to an official, being quite demonstrative and expressing frustration with calls going against him.
For Ramsey, who has been in the NFL a long time and was brought in to help mentor a young secondary, it’s all a mindset for cornerbacks in a game where things might not be going their way, especially from a penalty perspective.
Just turn the page, focus on the next play and try to execute. It was a good message from Ramsey, but it’s hard not to think that it was intended for Porter himself — and is a good example of leadership from Ramsey after a tough loss.
