If Monday night marked Ben Roethlisberger's final home game as quarterback of the Pittsburgh Steelers, his teammates and the sold-out Heinz Field crowd provided him with a proper primetime sendoff.
Thanks to a stellar defensive performance and rushing attack, Roethlisberger saluted the hometown fans as a winner, and the Steelers kept their long-shot playoff hopes alive with a 26-14 victory over the Cleveland Browns. Although the 39-year-old signal-caller has yet to announce his retirement following the season, there were farewell scenes throughout the game.
"If you look at Ben's career, his ability to sustain and be in the fourth quarter... I think they won more games in the second half because of Ben's willingness to fight," Steelers legend Rocky Bleier told The DA Show on Tuesday morning. "Much like last night -- even though it wasn't that intense at the end -- it was kind of Ben's game. He stood there, they ran the ball, came up with big plays at the end as well. It was a fitting way to salute Ben on his way out...
"The mark of success is compared by how many rings you've got, titles you bring back to your city. And Ben was able to do that as quarterback. Because of that, he's on that pedestal of champions... What happened last night was a great sendoff for Ben. And watching the game, I could feel the fans, but I also felt the team was there to be able to support Ben. They played aggressively, played with emotion..."
Roethlisberger's on-field performance wasn't exactly memorable -- he threw for just 123 yards with a touchdown and an interception on 46 pass attempts. But the win was his 98th at Heinz Field, and he's now tied with NFL legend Brett Favre for the third-most wins at a single venue, including postseason. Through 15 games this season, Roethlisberger has completed 64.2-percent of his passes for 3,496 yards with 21 touchdowns and nine interceptions.
Pittsburgh (8-7-1), which still remains in the AFC wild-card hunt, will visit the Baltimore Ravens (8-8) in a marquee Week 18 matchup on Sunday afternoon. According to FiveThirtyEight projections, the Steelers have just a 5-percent chance to reach the playoffs.
The entire Steelers conversation between Bleier and DA can be accessed in the audio player above.
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