The Pittsburgh Steelers have hit a rough patch the past couple of weeks, losing two straight games to a pair of terrible teams to put their playoff hopes in jeopardy.
On top of that, the Steelers seem to be having some locker-room issues, and legendary Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger spoke about it on his podcast this week.
“I said, and one of the leaders at the time kind of got on me for saying some guys on the team aren’t in it for the team, they’re it in for themselves,” he said. “Well, now some of the guys on the team are saying the same thing. I know that I’m retired, I’m not in the locker room, I get it. It just feels like that. It just feels like something that’s been lost on this team a little bit. It just feels like the Steeler Way is just not.”
On Monday, head coach Mike Tomlin took a jab at wide receiver George Pickens, saying that he has not been handling his frustrations in a productive manner.
Earlier in the season, Pickens took to social media to post “Free Me” following a two-catch performance in a win, which had many labeling him as selfish.
Then, this past week, safety Minkah Fitzpatrick called out his team’s effort in its loss to the New England Patriots.
Roethlisberger didn’t specifically mention any names, but it’s easy to discern his overall point.
“Just because they’re a veteran football player doesn’t mean they’re a Steeler,” he added. “Like they know what it means to be a Steeler.”
Roethlisberger spent 18 seasons in the NFL, all of them coming in Pittsburgh. During that time, he led the Steelers to a couple of Super Bowl titles and three Super Bowl appearances. He made six trips to the Pro Bowl and led the league in passing yards twice. He went 165-81-1 during his NFL tenure.
Pittsburgh is currently 7-6 and holds the second Wild Card spot in the AFC playoff picture. It will take on the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday and will then battle the Cincinnati Bengals, Seattle Seahawks and Baltimore Ravens to close out the regular season.
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