Every Morning Quarterback » Pittsburgh Steelers

Ben Roethlisberger Has Career Day

David Kindervater — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 04:58:41 +0000

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger’s game winning touchdown pass to receiver Mike Wallace in a frantic 37-36 win over the Green Bay Packers this afternoon looked very similar to the one he threw to Santonio Holmes to win Super Bowl XLIII over ten months ago. The stakes weren’t quite as high today, but the throw and catch did keep Pittsburgh’s slim playoff hopes alive as the Steelers broke a five-game losing streak to improve their record to 7-7.

Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers / Image: Zuma Press

Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin was upbeat and optimistic afterward:

“Not dead yet. The guys hung together, fought, made enough plays to win. We haven’t won in a while so it feels good. To keep it in perspective, we’ve got a little pulse here. Good to stay in the fight, good to win one for our fans, we’ve got the greatest fans in the world. Good to perform for them and get them something to be excited about here at Heinz Field. Today, I’m just as excited about that as I am getting that five-week monkey off our back.”

Ben was 29-of-46 passing for 503 yards and three touchdowns. Yes, 503 yards passing—a team record. It would be tiring to throw a football for 503 yards without being chased and harassed. But as long as the Steelers defensive secondary continues to struggle without injured safety Troy Polamalu, Ben will need to carry the team with more performances similar to this one.

Source: Steelers.com

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Ben Roethlisberger Has Career Day

Troy Polamalu Doesn’t Know if He’ll Be Back

David Kindervater — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:04:27 +0000

Maybe Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu sees the handwriting on the wall. Because with the Steelers on the outside looking in at the AFC Wild Card playoff race with a record of 6-6, it’s believed that he has played his last football this season. In fact, Troy couldn’t offer a definitive date for his return when asked today about getting back on the field. And that’s probably because he’s basing his return on the Steelers’ chances of making the playoffs and not what his injured knee feels like.

Troy Polamalu, Pittsburgh Steelers / Image: Zuma Press

Pittsburgh plays at Cleveland on NFL Network’s Thursday Night Football this week. And Troy has already been ruled out for that game. So his next opportunity to participate in a game will be December 20 when the Steelers host the Green Bay Packers. I believe as long as the Steelers still have a reasonable chance of making the playoffs (and that will be equal parts winning and having other teams lose), Troy will be back. But one thing seems certain. If the Steelers drop Thursday night’s game to the Browns, any hope of a Pittsburgh postseason will probably be gone. And any hope of Troy’s return, I’m sure, will disappear with it.

Source: NBC Sports

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Troy Polamalu Doesn’t Know if He’ll Be Back

Dennis Dixon Gets His Opportunity

David Kindervater — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 04:00:42 +0000

As a third-string quarterback in the National Football League, it isn’t likely you’re doing to see any action on Sundays. And other than scout team work, you’re not likely to get any reps in practice, either. That’s what makes Pittsburgh Steelers QB Dennis Dixon’s opportunity so unique. Not only was starter Ben Roethlisberger injured in last Sunday’s loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. So was backup Charlie Batch. Enter D2.

Dennis Dixon, Pittsburgh Steelers / Image: Zuma Press

And it doesn’t matter if he throws three touchdown passes and runs for two more with a perfect QB rating against the Baltimore Ravens tonight—he’s not wrestling the job away from Big Ben. But this is a golden opportunity for Dennis to showcase his skills for another team or to stake his claim for the backup role in Pittsburgh. Because one team’s trash (so to speak) could be another team’s treasure. And if Dennis can come close to the kind of performances that made him a Heisman trophy candidate at Oregon a couple years ago, he might find himself as a worthy prospect for promotion.

Source: Steelers.com

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Dennis Dixon Gets His Opportunity

Ben Roethlisberger Injured, Steelers Lose

David Kindervater — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 23:13:44 +0000

The Pittsburgh Steelers weren’t playing their best football. But they still had an opportunity to put the Kansas City Chiefs away in overtime. That was until quarterback Ben Roethlisberger took a knee to his head, forcing him from the game and forcing the Steelers to limp away with a surprising 27-24 loss. Ben was injured on the Steelers’ fourth play from scrimmage in OT.

Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers / Image: Zuma Press

Head coach Mike Tomlin talked about Ben’s injury after the game:

“He took a blow, needless to say it was a concussion-oriented thing. I doubted that he was going to come back in the football game. I don’t have, of course, a lot of information in terms of where he is or his level of availability. We’ll have more information as we proceed.”

This type of injuey was bound to happen. Big Ben has already been sacked 30 times this season. And I don’t think it’s possible to calculate how many sacks Ben has avoided. He’s one of the best in the National Football League at shedding would-be tacklers. But this offensive deficiency is not the only reason the Steelers have lost four games. Their special teams hasn’t been very special at all, having given up a kick return for a score in eight consecutive games. Until they get a couple of these areas cleaned up, the Steelers will be lucky to make the playoffs.

Source: NFL.com

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Ben Roethlisberger Injured, Steelers Lose

Bengals Take Control of AFC North

David Kindervater — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 15:28:03 +0000

When the Cincinnati Bengals were chosen for HBO’s annual reality series Hard Knocks this past offseason, I kind of laughed it off and figured the show was in trouble if the best team they could come up with were the lowly Bengals. Well, the laugh’s on me now as the Bengals are off to an impressive 7-2 start. And this afternoon, they took control of the AFC North with an 18-12 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Carson Palmer, Cincinnati Bengals / Image: Zuma Press

After the game, quarterback Carson Palmer credited his team’s work in the trenches:

“We kept grinding, and at the end of the day, I think the offensive line won that battle up front and pushed them around and gave us a chance to finish off that last drive with a field goal. We had a couple of nice first downs on some runs, and kept battling. And if you’re winning with field goals, you win. If you’re winning with touchdowns, you win. We’ll take a win any way we can get it.”

Check out these facts. It was the first time since 1998 the Bengals have season-swept the Steelers. And they essentially opened a two-game lead on Pittsburgh because they own the tiebreaker, should it come down to that. Plus, for the first time in the team’s history, the Bengals are 5-0 in the AFC North. Who dey! Who dey! Who dey think gonna beat dem Bengals? In the AFC North, nobody.

Sources: Bengals.com, NFL.com

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Bengals Take Control of AFC North

Troy Polamalu Head & Shoulders Commercial

David Kindervater — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 03:54:22 +0000

Here’s a behind-the-scenes from Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu’s Head & Shoulders commercial. Troy talks about why he partnered with H&S and Operation Once in a Lifetime. And yes, I know firsthand he really is this soft-spoken and nice in-person—having done an interview with him a couple years ago. In fact, Troy’s been spending his down time (recovering from an MCL sprain) handing out food and 20 dollar bills to the homeless under the 9th Street Bridge in downtown Pittsburgh. Actually, he’s been doing this for some time and will probably continue to do so. He plans an October 11 return to the Steelers’ defensive secondary.

Sources: HeadandShoulders.com, Real Talk Xpress

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Troy Polamalu Head & Shoulders Commercial

Jay Cutler Leads Bears Over Steelers

David Kindervater — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 02:31:25 +0000

After last week’s debacle against the Green Bay Packers, I was concerned—well not really concerned, actually I could care less—that maybe the Chicago Bears had made a big mistake in putting their entire franchise on the back of quarterback Jay Cutler. Jay threw four interceptions in a 21-15 loss to the Pack on NFL 2009 Kickoff Weekend. But not so fast. That was only one game.

Jay Cutler, Chicago Bears / Photo: Newscom

This afternoon, Jay redeemed himself with a 27-of-38 passing performance for 236 yards and two touchdowns against the defending Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers. And during the eight-play, game-winning drive in the rain, Jay completed all three of his passes to setup kicker Robbie Gould for the game winner.

Source: NFL.com

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Jay Cutler Leads Bears Over Steelers

Troy Polamalu Out 3-6 Weeks With MCL Injury

David Kindervater — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 22:56:08 +0000

The Pittsburgh Steelers may have beaten the Tennessee Titans to open NFL Kickoff 2009 Weekend last night. But they lost a key member of their defense in the process. At least for a while. Steelers safety Troy Polamalu will be out an estimated 3-6 weeks with a sprained MCL in his left knee. Troy suffered the injury in the first half when he was trying to pick up and run with a fumble. He ended up doing a split when Titans tight end Alge Crumpler dropped all 262 pounds (and that’s being kind) on top of his knee. Ouch. Veteran safety Tyrone Carter will have to pick up the slack in Troy’s absence but those are very big shoes to fill in the Steelers defensive secondary.

Troy Polamalu, Pittsburgh Steelers / Image: Zuma Press

Sources: Steelers.com, NFL.com

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Troy Polamalu Out 3-6 Weeks With MCL Injury

Steelers, Titans Kickoff 2009 NFL Season

David Kindervater — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 14:19:24 +0000

America’s favorite sport is back in action tonight (NBC, 8:30 p.m. ET) in the first game of NFL Kickoff 2009 Weekend. This year, two 2008 division winners are featured as the Super Bowl XLIII champion Pittsburgh Steelers host the Tennessee Titans. The Titans had an NFL-best 13-3 record and were AFC South champions last year. The game is the first meeting between the teams since the Titans defeated the Steelers 31-14 on December 21, 2008. Tennessee was the last team to beat the Steelers before they went on to win Super Bowl XLIII. This will mark only the fifth time in NFL history that the defending champs play the last team that defeated them from the previous season on Kickoff Weekend.

Tonight’s festivities will get started with “NFL Opening Kickoff 2009 Presented by EA Sports,” a free concert open to the public in Pittsburgh’s Point State Park that will feature three-time Grammy Award-winning artists Tim McGraw and The Black Eyed Peas. There will be simulcast coverage of the 30-minute pregame show which will air from 8-8:30 p.m. ET on NBC and NFL Network.

Also, on the eve of the eighth anniversary of 9/11, the NFL and Steelers will pay tribute to the men and women who lost their lives on that tragic day. Members of 40 families who lost loved ones on Flight 93, which crashed in nearby western Pennsylvania, will be on the field for the tribute. They will wear number 93 Steelers jerseys with the name of their loved ones on the back. In addition, the Steelers will salute their Super Bowl XLIII team with a special on-field moment. Steelers great and recent Hall of Fame inductee Rod Woodson will participate in the coin toss ceremony. And Harry Connick Jr. will sing the national anthem from Heinz Field.

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Steelers, Titans Kickoff 2009 NFL Season

Ben Roethlisberger Responds

David Kindervater — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 22:06:17 +0000

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger held a roughly one minute press conference today to offer his word on the allegations of sexual assault brought against him in a civil case by Las Vegas resident Andrea McNulty.

Source: SportsNetworkChannel

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Ben Roethlisberger Responds