National Football League

Big Ben accepts blame, must move on

Published Nov. 19, 2009 10:24 p.m. ET

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He didn't blame the wide receivers for running incorrect pass routes, even if one of them seemed to be singling him out. He didn't blame the special teams for allowing a third costly kickoff return touchdown in four games. He didn't argue with offensive coordinator Bruce Arians' decision to take over the play-calling during a hurry-up situation late in the game, when Ben Roethlisberger often is most effective while calling his own plays. No, Roethlisberger says the Steelers' biggest loss of the season was his fault, and his alone. The Steelers (6-3) are down a game to the Cincinnati Bengals (7-2) in the AFC North after losing to Cincinnati 18-12, and the quarterback said the reason was No. 7. "You know what? I had a bad day. Everyone in here's had a bad day. ... I flat out had a bad day and it's going to happen sometimes," Roethlisberger said Thursday, the first time he's talked to reporters since Sunday. "It's just unfortunate that when the quarterback has a bad game it affects the whole offense. That's why you can't afford to have too many bad games." Roethlisberger hasn't had many of them. He's been in the top three in passing yardage most of the season, though he slipped to No. 7 after going 20 of 40 for 174 yards during a second successive loss to Cincinnati. Instead of breaking down what he did wrong, or figuring out why he couldn't connect consistently with his receivers inside the 20, Roethlisberger said he has long since shifted his focus to Sunday's game in Kansas City. "It's being able to look at it and move on and not dwell on it," Roethlisberger said. "If you dwell on it, I think it can carry over. Just being able to put it behind you, learn from the mistakes and say, 'Listen, don't let this happen again' and hopefully it doesn't." Roethlisberger didn't feel right warming up, but initially believed he could play his way out of it during Pittsburgh's first series. He scrambled for 15 yards and a first down as the Bengals 15, but the drive stalled and the Steelers settled for a field goal. The pattern for the day was set. "I didn't feel great, my arm didn't feel good and that first drive, we connected a few times, went down the field, had to scramble," Roethlisberger said. "I kind of thought, 'OK, shut that funk off.' And then it never quite came around." Roethlisberger owns the NFL's second-best winning percentage among quarterbacks - only Tom Brady is better - but he deferred when Arians decided to call the plays during the Steelers' final series. Late in games, Roethlisberger is usually at his best when calling his own plays out of no-huddle sets. This time, Roethlisberger went 0 for 4 and the Steelers never gained a yard after taking over at their 33 with 1:56 remaining, more than enough time to mount a winning drive. "It's just something where I'll never second-guess Bruce and he'll never second-guess me," Roethlisberger said. "He wanted to call them and I believed in him and the calls and I just had to execute them." Following the Steelers' first loss in their last 11 home games, Roethlisberger said something didn't feel right, mentioning the unseasonably warm weather and a subdued crowd. Wide receiver Santonio Holmes later seized on those remarks, saying if the quarterback felt that way, it's probably explains why the Steelers lost. If Roethlisberger was bothered by Holmes' comment, he's not showing it. However, his 10-minute interview was unusual in that nearly all the questions were about a game played four days before and few were about Kansas City. The Chiefs' 2-7 record may explain that. In Pittsburgh, there seems to be more talk among the fans about whether injured safety Troy Polamalu (knee) will be ready for Baltimore on Nov. 29 than there is about Sunday's game. Still, Roethlisberger called the Chiefs "the biggest game of the season" because they're the next opponent. Polamalu agreed. "If it's Ben or anybody, you can't take for granted the NFL and the challenge each team brings," Polamalu said. "I know there have been times, even my rookie year (2003) when we weren't very good, we felt we could still challenge anybody. I'm sure they feel the same way."

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