Steelers Great Ben Roethlisberger Throws Shade At The Cleveland Browns

The Pittsburgh Steelers are riding high after an exciting 18-16 victory over the Baltimore Ravens in Week 11. The AFC North showdown wasn't too fun to watch for offensive-minded fans, but it's what everyone has come to expect in regards to the rivalry between the two teams. Mike Tomlin's team now has a two-game lead in the loss column over the Ravens, which makes a Thursday Night Football contest against the Cleveland Browns critical. A win would put immense pressure on Baltimore to defeat the Los Angeles Chargers. Despite the Browns' record, everything can be thrown out the window in any AFC North matchup.

Many have taken the time to dissect the game between the Steelers and Ravens. One of those individuals is legendary quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. He talked about a ton of games that occurred during Week 11 on his podcast, Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger. It's always good to hear a franchise hero such as the former quarterback talk about the present-day team.

As Roethlisberger and his co-host, Spencer Te'o, discussed the big win, Te'o brought up the fact that the Steelers have owned the Ravens recently and asked Roethlisberger if that is something that is in a player's head during the week of preparation. Unknowingly (or maybe completely on purpose), the two-time Super Bowl champion took a shot at the organization's Week 12 opponent in the Browns.

"No, no, no," Roethlisberger said. "You still have to -- no, no, no -- you still go in, going into it [preparing]. It's not like you're playing Cleveland, right? Did I say that out loud?"

Despite what anyone thinks, Roethlisberger absolutely has the right to take shots at Cleveland. While he lost a playoff game to the Steelers' divisional rival during the 2020 season, he had a career regular season record of 26-2-1 against them. It's safe to say that he always had the Browns' number, which is why it has to make one chuckle when he takes a slight dig at Cleveland.

Roethlisberger backed up his thoughts about having to be locked in every time he and his team played the Ravens. Nearly every time it was extremely close, which led preparation being key. It was always expected that the contest was going to be hard-fought and tough.

"Every time we played [Baltimore], it was a close game, except for the time I threw six touchdowns and we blew them out. That game is always a physical, crazy game."

The future Hall of Fame signal-caller isn't in the locker room getting ready for Thursday Night Football, but Roethlisberger's comments could serve as a little bit of bulletin board material for a Browns team that has just two wins in 2024. Fans in the Steel City know that this game is typically one that ends up with too close of a win, or a loss, in the Tomlin era.

Roethlisberger's tone after he rhetorically asked if he took the jab at the Browns out loud seemed a little sarcastic. It certainly came off as if he knew exactly what he was saying, and that he wanted to take another shot at Cleveland. Fans in Pittsburgh will welcome this kind of talk from the legend, but hope that the comments don't come back to bite the 2004 AP Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Steelers Looking To Continue Dominance Of Browns Since 2005

Roethlisberger retired after the 2021 campaign, but according to Statmuse, Pittsburgh has a a 30-7-1 record against the Browns dating back to the 2005 season. It's one of the reasons why the retired quarterback felt so comfortable giving the Ravens a compliment, but throwing shade at Cleveland in the process. 

Thursday Night Football should be looked at as an easy win, but nothing is ever as it seems in the AFC North and the Steelers still need to come to play; after all, Roethlisberger isn't suiting up.

Do you think that Roethlisberger's comments come at the wrong time with Cleveland next up on the schedule? Let us know in the comments below!

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