Ben Roethlisberger Apologizes to Former Steelers Teammate

Ben Roethlisberger clarified a prior statement he made that initially appeared to be somewhat of a shot at his former Pittsburgh Steelers teammate.

Jan 16, 2022; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (7) throws a pass against the Kansas City Chiefs during the second half in an AFC Wild Card playoff football game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images | Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

PITTSBURGH — Former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger caught some heat for a recent comment he made about one of his teammates, but it seems the air has been cleared. The two-time Super Bowl winner was speaking on his podcast, the Footbahlin’ podcast, and mentioned the poor offensive line situation during his final season in Pittsburgh.

The comment from the former Steelers quarterback was seen as a dig on lineman Kendrick Green, who started at center as a rookie during Roethlisberger’s last NFL campaign. After receiving some blowback for the statement, including Green making light of the comments on social media, Roethlisberger shared a positive update on a recent episode of his show. He said he had spoken to Kendrick and apologized, but clarified that he had never intended to insult his former teammate with his words.

”That was by no way, shape, form, means a knock at Kendrick,” he stated. ”I imagine that came across that way, and I heard that he took it that way. And I’m saying it on this show ’cause I want everyone to hear it too. I have already reached out to him, and he and I have talked. I apologized to him if it came across that way.”

Dec 9, 2021; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (7) and center Kendrick Green (53) in action against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

Clarifying What He Meant

Roethlisberger went on to clarify what he was trying to say in a previous episode. Speaking to his co-host, he discussed how the position the Steelers put Green in was unfair, and that played a huge part in his struggles as a rookie.

“What happened to Kendrick was unfair,” he said. “What they did to him was unfair in the sense that they brought a guy that was a very good college offensive linemen and asked him to play a position in the NFL that is probably the second-hardest position after quarterback in the game.”

Freely Speaking

Listening to post-retirement Ben Roethlisberger is like going to a stand-up comedy show. After years in the media spotlight as the starting QB in Pittsburgh, this version of him is like an open book, freely speaking his mind on whatever Steelers' subjects he touches on. It's a much different side of Roethlisberger.

Earlier this season, he was vocal on his podcast about the poor field conditions at Acrisure Stadium, even going so far as to (perhaps correctly) point out that the University of Pittsburgh sharing the field is a continuing problem.

At least this time around, there's no bad blood between Roethlisberger and Green, and we can count on the former Steelers QB giving us more enjoyable clips in the near future.

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