Morning Sports Update
“Coincidence? Crazy.”
Ben Roethlisberger rehashed a classic Patriots-Steelers subplot: While the Patriots have successfully turned the page from the Tom Brady-Bill Belichick era into what seems to be an exciting new chapter, some of the old dynasty’s former rivals appear to be stuck in the past.
During a recent episode of his podcast, “Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger,” the now-retired Steelers quarterback was in the middle of discussing Aaron Rodgers’ recent headset problems during Pittsburgh’s dramatic playoff-clinching win over the Ravens when he took a turn down memory lane.
As Roethlisberger explained how he used to deal with issues that quarterbacks periodically have with communication when their headset fails, he seamlessly worked in a dig at New England.
“We always wore a wristband,” Roethlisberger explained, noting it as an effective alternative in case play-calls coming from the headset failed. “Because every time you went to New England, the headsets went down. Coincidence? Crazy.”
“But you always had a bailout. Now I just saw that Aaron doesn’t have that, so then you are in trouble.”
Roethlisberger went on to contrast his approach with Rodgers, noting that he doesn’t think the 42-year-old quarterback “has ever worn a wristband.” Still, that didn’t prevent Rodgers from leading Pittsburgh to a 26-24 win over Baltimore in the regular-season finale on Sunday night.
As for Roethlisberger’s not-so-subtle insinuation that the Patriots may have deliberately disabled headsets, it’s a charge that he’s made before. In 2015, after losing to the Patriots 28-21 in the season-opener, he claimed that the Steelers experienced headset issues that only occurred when Pittsburgh had the football.
“What I was told and what [backup quarterback Bruce Gradkowski] told me when he listened is that when we had the ball on offense, our coach-to-coach communication, so the guys up in the box to the guys on the sideline, were not only hearing themselves but they were hearing the radio broadcast of the game,” Roethlisberger said in 2015. “And from what I was told from coach [Todd] Haley it was only when we had the ball. When the Patriots had the ball there was no radio broadcast.”
This charge was also made by Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin, who claimed that his team had headset issues in New England for “the majority of the first half” in 2015.
Eventually, an NFL spokesperson dismissed the nefarious allegations, saying that the headset problems were “entirely attributable to an electrical issue made worse by the inclement weather; that it involved no manipulation by any individual; and that the Patriots had nothing to do with it.”
Roethlisberger struggled against New England throughout his career. After scoring a regular-season win over the Patriots in 2004 in his first matchup against them — ending New England’s NFL-record 21-game winning streak — the two-time Super Bowl champion went just 3-9 against Brady and Belichick over the rest of his career (including an 0-2 record in the playoffs).
Trivia: In the AFC championship game in Jan. 2005, the Patriots defeated Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers 41-27. New England intercepted Roethlisberger three times. Can you name the two players who accounted for all three picks?
(Answer at the bottom).
Hint: Both safeties, one was drafted by the Chargers in 1994, the other by the Patriots in 2003.
More from Boston.com:
A local thriller: No. 4-ranked UConn faced off against Providence on Wednesday, with the Friars giving the Huskies a run for their money. The game included some dazzling plays, such as this gem from Providence’s leading scorer, Ryan Mela.
But UConn, led by a combined effort which saw four different players cross the 20-point threshold, rallied for a dramatic 103-98 comeback win in overtime:
On this day: In 2001, Rick Pitino made his resignation from the Celtics official. Having arrived amid excitement as a possible Celtics savior, Pitino struggled to turn around a franchise immersed in an extended rebuilding effort. Across four seasons, he totaled a 102-146 record. His replacement, Jim O’Brien, lost his first game in charge to the Trail Blazers, 98-90.
Daily highlight: Brockton native A.J. Dybantsa uncorked a windmill dunk in BYU’s win over Arizona State on Wednesday night.
Trivia answer: Rodney Harrison, Eugene Wilson
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