PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – Only about 34 plus hours removed from the end of the Monday night game, Ben Roethlisberger asked to reflect back on his final game at Heinz Field Wednesday.
"It was magical what happened on Monday night," Roethlisberger said. "Obviously, we have another game but just speaking of that last home game. It was against Cleveland which is as close to my hometown as you can get. AFC North, a team that we've played so many times and for it to be at Heinz Field."
"I am so thankful for everybody, all my teammates that just poured into it. You can tell it had a little extra something."
Think of what it was like on Twitter, Snapchat, Facebook with all of the mentions about the game. Now think about how many notifications Roethlisberger received between the end of the game and even still to this point.
"All the many, many notes that were written on social media," Roethlisberger said. "The texts, the calls, as I said after the game I wish I could bottle it up and keep it forever."
"I think one of the most special things about the night is that my kids are old enough to remember it. It's something I will cherish forever and I think they will too. I can't say enough thank yous to the people who made that night special."
Ben hit on it too, the family aspect of getting to enjoy it with his three children and his wife.
"For them to know and understand what is going on is pretty cool," Roethlisberger said. "My youngest is five. I don't remember a lot of things from when I was five, but there are probably one or two things we can remember when we are really young. I hope this will be one of the things. For them to understand what dad did, to go fight and compete and win and give it everything I have. I hope it's something that they understand and will get passed down to them as well."
Really not just with his kids, but Pittsburgh kids watching one Steelers quarterback their whole life. He hopes he set a good example for the school-aged football players of how to play the game.
"I try to be tough," Roethlisberger said. "I think that's what embodies a Pittsburgh person, a Yinzer. It's blue-collar, it's tough. That's why I think I fit really well here and why this is home. I think the clutchness (a phrase Cam Heyward used to describe him) comes from being competitive. I'm competitive in everything that I do."
"Hopefully those (HS) football players will see the toughness, see the competitiveness and grow up wanting to do the same thing and be the same way."
