Ben Roethlisberger takes subtle shot at Mason Rudolph, says he ‘didn’t want my help anymore’

Since Mason Rudolph took over at quarterback, the story of his relationship with Ben Roethlisberger has resurfaced.

Since Mason Rudolph took over as the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback, the story of his relationship with Ben Roethlisberger has resurfaced.

Rudolph recently intimated that the quarterbacks room wasn’t such a cohesive group as they are now when Roethlisberger was QB1. “… There’s been other times when it’s been not as cohesive as a group, and people aren’t as forthcoming with ‘Hey, how do we help?’”

Roethlisberger denied he didn’t help Rudolph, instead stating that it was extended but not accepted.

“When Mason played for me, I was trying to help Mason as much as I could,” Roethlisberger shared on his “Footbhalin'” podcast on Dec. 31. “Then he just he never… he didn’t want my help anymore, so I backed off.”

The future Hall of Famer said he never had an issue with Rudolph as a person, only where the Steelers took him.

“I never had an issue with Mason when he got drafted. I’m going to put it out there now. I had more of an issue with the pick.”

The Steelers jumped the Cincinnati Bengals, trading up in the third round for Rudolph in the 2018 NFL draft. This was immediately after snagging wide receiver James Washington, Rudolph’s top target at Oklahoma State. It certainly had the makings of Pittsburgh preparing for its post-Roethlisberger future. But he claims that didn’t bother him (nor did it work out as such).

“We were a really good football team, and he was drafted early. I just felt like we could have maybe picked a player that could have helped us at the moment. We were still a team that was that was competing,” he said. “I was not worried about him taking my job. I know some people probably… I thought that was not an issue for me.”

“I felt that we could have drafted a position — offense or defense — that could have helped us. Not a guy that was going to be a potential backup, sure maybe have the the job in the future. That’s where I was more frustrated. It had nothing to do with Mason personally.”

Five years later, Rudolph is doing his damnest to prove he was worthy of the draft selection. And maybe — just maybe — earn top billing ahead of the 2024 season should he remain in Pittsburgh.

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Ben Roethlisberger says Pittsburgh offense totally lacks ‘Steeler toughness’

We all knew it would happen someday, but it doesn’t make it any less heartbreaking.

We all knew it would happen someday, but it doesn’t make it any less heartbreaking. The current state of the Pittsburgh Steelers is something we’re not entirely used to seeing.

After Ben Roethlisberger retired, things started to shift. That will happen when a tenured future Hall of Famer leaves a team after nearly 20 years. But it’s hurting the team internally and the product on the field. And it doesn’t seem like there’s an answer in sight.

“When I retired, I felt like certain guys aren’t in it for the team, they’re in it for themselves, Roethlisberger said on the Dec. 11 episode of his “Footbahlin” podcast. “Well, now some of the guys on the team are saying the same thing, so maybe I wasn’t too far off when I said that.”

“I know that I’m retired, I’m not in the locker room. I get it. But it just feels like that something’s that’s kind of been lost on this team a little bit. It feels like the Steeler Way is just not … listen, you’ve got some great leaders on defense, don’t get me wrong… T.J. [Watt] and Minkah [Fitzpatrick], but you’ve got two sides of a football.

Pittsburgh sees it’s not as easy as bringing in a veteran to become an instant leader. They’re tried, but it’s not the same as being drafted by the organization and growing with the team into a leadership role. Even then, that step hasn’t happened. Najee Harris isn’t a leader. Diontae Johnson isn’t a leader.

The Steeler Way should be part of your soul from the moment a rookie puts on the Black and Gold. It just hasn’t happened.

“You don’t have it on offense,” Roethlisberger said. “You can bring a veteran football player in, Mason Cole, Isaac [Seumalo], but just because they’re … a veteran football player doesn’t mean that they’re a Steeler, like they know what it is to be a Pittsburgh Steeler.”

Roethlisberger was the last of the true Pittsburgh Steelers on the offensive side of the ball, and no one has stepped up to be that guy.

“When I left, I was kind of the last guard there. [Maurkice] Pouncey left the year before, Dave [DeCastro], like those guys left and it was like I was the last one.”

“There was such an age gap for me and everybody else on offense that there just wasn’t that Steeler tradition passed down. You have it on defense, but you don’t have it on offense right now, and it’s making it really hard. You’re not seeing, in my opinion, the toughness on offense. And I say toughness in the sense of a Steeler toughness, I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with, like, ‘This guy’s soft.’ Like, who’s grabbing someone by the face mask and being like, ‘Uh-uh, that’s not what we do.’

“Yes, you have guys on defense doing, but you need guys on both sides of the ball doing because when you’re in offensive meetings, when you’re in offensive huddles, when you’re doing that, you’re meeting separately, you need someone to stand up in that room on offense and be like, ‘Hey, this isn’t what it means to wear the Black and Gold.’ ”

The Steeler Way can be preached, but unless you live it, it’s not really there. And that’s what’s been missing.

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Aaron Rodgers supports Ben Roethlisberger as new Steelers OC

A statue would be erected in Ben Roethlisberger’s honor.

Pittsburgh Steelers fans clamoring for Ben Roethlisberger to take Matt Canada’s job as offensive coordinator dates back to (at least) his second season. And while it’s not a realistic desire, fellow future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers thinks Roethlisberger could pull it off.

“I think Ben could do it because he understands the game and he could call it in his sleep at the line of scrimmage,” Rodgers said on the October 3 Pat McAfee Show. “But it’s very rare that you see great players who come back and are able to be great coaches. I don’t know if it’s the time commitment or dealing with people that don’t see the game the same way.

There were tons of moments, especially later in his career, where Roethlisberger was fondly dubbed “Backyard Ben” for drawing up plays in the dirt and pulling off incredible comeback wins.

And Rodgers loved it.

“Ben, like me, was one of the few quarterbacks in the league who could just call their own plays. I always loved watching him in those situations,” he said. “They’d be behind by a couple scores maybe or in the two-minute drive knowing he’s calling it. Where everything now, with most teams, comes from the sideline.”

Rodgers also suggests fans chill out. “This is overreaction time… everybody needs to take a couple deep breaths. We’re four games into the season, there’s a lot of football left.”

As a neutral party, McAfee could be more openly critical.

“The Steelers offense has been terrible. 39 straight games of just bad stuff. If Ben Roethlisberger was to come call plays and they would have any offensive success at all, they’d put a statue up by next week. All those old steel mills, they’d open them back up to get enough steel to get a big ass Big Ben right in the middle of that.”

“Hey, Ben, if you see this. You know.”

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On this day in Steelers history: Ben Roethlisberger changed the face of the franchise

In 2004, Ben Roethlisberger took the field with the Pittsburgh Steelers for the first time and forever changed the history of the franchise.

On Sept. 19, 2004, Ben Roethlisberger forever changed the face of the Pittsburgh Steelers franchise.

In Week 2, the Steelers were trailing the rival Baltimore Ravens 20 to zip with five minutes remaining in the third quarter. QB Tommy Maddox sustained an elbow injury that forced Roethlisberger to come off the bench and play in his first pro game. Despite two picks, he showed a veteran’s poise and finished the game with two touchdowns, 176 yards, and an 83 percent passer rating. Pittsburgh lost to Baltimore by a score of 30-13, but it wouldn’t lose again until the conference championship game 15 games later.

Roethlisberger would quickly go from game manager to Super Bowl winner, helping the team to three and winning two.

The six-time Pro Bowler hung up his cleats on January 27, 2022, with 64,008 yards, 438 total touchdowns, 1,373 rushing yards and a quarterback record of 165-81-1 in 249 games (247 starts). His storied career will — without question — earn him a gold jacket, likely with his first shot in 2027.

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The 10 best Cyber Monday deals for the Pittsburgh Steelers fan in your life

The best holiday gift ideas for any Pittsburgh Steelers fan in your life.

Happy holidays, Steelers fans!

Pittsburgh is off to an up-and-down start this season, but Steelers Wire is here to give you a reason to celebrate this holiday season.

Whether you’re all in on the 2022-23 playoff push or just love to reminisce about the days of Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris or Troy Polamalu, we’ve got you covered with our list of best Steelers.

Fanatics is offering 30% off all orders on Cyber Monday, so take at least 30% off the prices in the list below and get the perfect gift for the Steelers fan in your life.

If you need another gift for the football fan in your life, consider a subscription to The Huddle. Win your fantasy football league with The Huddle’s award-winning fantasy football cheat sheets, rankings, sleepers and insider tools. Sign up today.

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How much better would the Steelers be with Ben Roethlisberger?

If Ben Roethlisberger were playing this season, the Steelers are a much better team.

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How many times over the previous three or four seasons did we hear how former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was washed up? Done. A shell of his former self. Holding the team back. You name it, critics said it.

What are those critics saying now? Roethlisberger retired at the end of the 2021 season and now happily does his podcast and waits for his opportunity to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Meanwhile the Steelers are 2-5, almost assured to have its first sub-.500 season since 2003. Rookie Kenny Pickett is showing promise after Mitch Trubisky was benched but the offense is still among the worst in the NFL in most categories.

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The offensive struggles do make one wonder what this team would look like had Roethlisberger come back for 2022. Personally, I’d surmise this team is no worse than 4-3 right now if Big Ben were running the offense. The team beats the Dolphins on Sunday night and the Jets in Week Four as well. Roethlisberger’s specialty was comeback wins so you can’t rule out a comeback win over the Patriots and being 5-2 right now.

Cast your vote and let us know what you think the Steelers schedule would be this season if Roethlisberger were still the starting quarterback.

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When is Ben Roethlisberger eligible for the Hall of Fame?

Now that Big Ben is officially retired, the countdown to Canton is on!

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The biggest non-surprise of the Steelers season happened today — Ben Roethlisberger announced his retirement.

Roethlisberger is a sure-fire first-ballot Hall of Famer with 5,440 pass completions, over 64,000 passing yards, 418 touchdowns, two Super Bowls, and 165 wins in 18 seasons.

To be eligible for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, a player must be retired for at least five seasons. So, Roethlisberger’s first shot at a gold jacket will be 2027.

There’s still time to book a flight and accommodations.

Steelers.com’s Teresa Varley had a chance to talk to Big Ben about his next stop being Canton. He said he tries not to think about it.

“It’s humbling to have people say [next stop is Canton], but I try not to think about it,” Roethlisberger said. “That’s such a special, elite company to be in, elite place. If one day you’re lucky enough, blessed enough for them to call your name or them to come shake your hand and tell you that you’re in, it’s hard to think about it until then. People just talk about it. You just get humbled every time it’s brought up. I would feel incredibly blessed one day to be able to get there.”

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Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger: ‘I think I’ve been here long enough’

Would there ever be a Philip Rivers-Colts situation with Big Ben in Pittsburgh?

You may have heard that the Indianapolis Colts recently tried to lure Philip Rivers out of retirement with Carson Wentz on the Reserve/COVID-19 list.

The Colts had no luck with Rivers, and neither would the Pittsburgh Steelers with Ben Roethlisberger — he doesn’t even think they’d ask.

Before the reporter could even finish the question, “You ever foresee a day where all of a sudden Mike [Tomlin] gives you a call and…”

“No, no, I don’t think they’ll ask me to come back,” Roethlisberger said with a smile. “I think I’ve been here long enough.”

The query came after Roethlisberger finally addressed the elephant in the (media) room regarding retirement. While no official announcement has been made, Roethlisberger said everything except I’m retiring to indicate that he’s on his way out after the 2021 season.

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Ben Roethlisberger on getting game ball: ‘I don’t think I deserve it’

Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger was presented with the game ball after his team defeated the Ravens 20-19 on Sunday.

After ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on Saturday the rumor that the 2021 NFL season would be Ben Roethlisberger’s last, Steelers reporters tried various angles to get an ounce of confirmation out of the quarterback after Sunday’s game.

So, of course, when Roethlisberger was given the game ball after defeating the Baltimore Ravens, he was asked if this particular ball signified anything special (final home game versus Ravens, perhaps?).

In typical Roethlisberger fashion, he played off the question. “It kind of caught me off guard,” he told the media in a press conference. “I don’t think that I deserve it. I think a lot of guys deserve it, and we deserve it as a group. It’s always humbling when you play this team at home and coach recognizes you like that, so it’s kind of cool.”

After a sluggish first three quarters in which the Steelers were lucky just to get in field goal range, Roethlisberger mustered 129 yards passing and two touchdowns. 68 of those yards, and both scores were to Diontae Johnson.

Both Roethlisberger and his longest-tenured teammate Cam Heyward have remained tight-lipped on the rumor of the quarterback’s retirement. “My focus is on Minnesota and what we have to do to get ready,” Roethlisberger said. “I’ll address any of that stuff after the season. I’ve always been a one game at a time and a one season at a time person, and I’m going to stay that way.”

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