Roethlisberger Pissed

[Lofaw]

According to NFL 32 and Chris Mortenson they said Ben Roethlisberger is pissed that Bruce Arians was fired and will be going to talk to Rooney about why Arians was fired. Mortenson said he got his information for the Pittsburgh Post Gazzette. Ben said he thought the offense was moving the ball good this past year. What Ben didn't bring up was any of the problems they had running the ball or scoring TDs once they got in the Red zone. Also I can't believe how the talk around the sports community is that they were all surprised Arians was fired with how good Ben looked passing the ball this season. What they fail to talk much about is that they were 20th in scoring.

Ben better man up and deal with having a new OC. Otherwise it could be a long season offensively. With it being so late now and with all the new Head coaching changes it might be best to just keep it in house and Hire Fichtner. This way it will keep Tomlin & Ben happy and Fichtner will bring a fresh new offense. I'm not sure Rooney wants a spread offense that Fichtner would likely run, but I was reading he ran that offense at Memphis and DeAngelo Williams ended up a 1st round pick. So it's not like they wouldn't run the ball.

[Superbelt]

Whoever it it, it has to be someone who will whip Ben's ass. Not someone who will "Let Ben be Ben".

[StillSwinging]

Arians was an enabler that had to go.

[westcoast]

I'm sure Rooney will meet and talk with Ben if the reports are true but I hope Rooney let's Ben know who the boss is and Art is not answerable to any player but they are answerable to him. Ben's two years removed from an ugly scandal, the FO could have possibly revoked his contract due to a conduct clause. I realize that keeping Ben had beneficial consequences for the Steelers' organization but I'm wondering how many teams would have offered a 100 million contract to him after that incident. Most fans and the organization gave him the benefit of the doubt and have supported him through that incident, the Tahoe incident, riding a motorcycle without a helmet after warned not to and so on.

Shut the f*&k up Ben, move on. Can yo go over two seasons without that prima donna persona taking over.

[Muddler]

Hey, most of us have worked in jobs where a good friend has been fired or been transferred or somehow "moved on". It happens. You may be The Franchise but you're still an employee cashing the owners checks so it's The Man's call on who works for him not yours. Of course, if you're The Franchise you can request a meeting with The Man to air your grievances but in the end I assume he will continue to bank the Rooney's money and be professional and get over it. It would be interesting to be a fly on the wall in that meeting however.

[BPow0407]

http://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/?podc...dcid=CBS.PITTS

Full interview.

Sounds alot less dramatic and troublesome than the articles and fan reaction concerning the comments.

[Viz-Burgh]

Bottom line -- the guy got a $ 100 mill. contract. He's making more than all his coaches combined. They've put themselves at the mercy of Ben in some ways & we need to accept that he'll have a say in this offense that he commands. It's not the offense I want, but maybe the new OC can convince Ben that balance is the key to success in the league. But some of the assertions that I've heard lately of Rooney preaching a ball control return to the power run just aren't feasible with our personnel. Hopefully that changes with this year's draft (on the O-Line), but until then we're a sandlot run and shoot offense & the new OC best understand that as our strength.

[ThinMan]

But some of the assertions that I've heard lately of Rooney preaching a ball control return to the power run just aren't feasible with our personnel.

That's all those are though: Assertations. A lot of media types are attributing that opinion to him, but Rooney hasn't said anything like that in anything I've read, or the two interviews he did a few weeks back with Labriola(which is what most media folks/peripheral Steeler fans are referring to when they bring up "Rooney just said he wants to go back to 1976!!" stuff) since, like, 2009. And even in '09 he didn't say "we need to return to a a ball control, power run-based offense." He basically said "We need to run more efficiently."

In those Labriola interviews, and the subsequent stuff he's said to the papers, Rooney basically said this:

1. Ben needs to take less sacks
2. Ben needs to take less hits
3. We need to score more points.
4. Whatever we can do to facilitate those things, we need to implement.

That was pretty much it. As a matter of fact, in a portion of the interivew when he and Labriola were discussing the proliferation of the passing game and some of the elite QBs, Rooney flat out said something along the lines of "The rules in the NFL cater to it now, so that's what we want our QB to be able to do, to be able to keep up with the production of those guys." To me, that doesn't sound much like a guy who wants to wheel Franco Harris out of mothballs for 30 carries a game.

Rooney is not a stooge. He realizes what sort of personnel the Steelers have and I'm sure he realizes that this is a passing league now. I think when he said "Our offense needs to run more efficiently" most people took that as "Our offense needs to run more", but those two statements aren't the same.

I think Art would like the offense to get a bit more balanced in an effort to extend the life of his QB and put more points on the board, but doubt that he has any desire at all to return to the dinosaur that is "Cowher Era" football, considering the new rules in the NFL that completely reward QB-centric teams. I think he, like a lot of Steelers fans, was probably just as perplexed with the fact that there's too much offensive talent on this team to be settling for so few points. Difference is he could actually do something about other than b@#$tch.

[BPow0407]

That's all those are though: Assertations. A lot of media types are attributing that opinion to him, but Rooney hasn't said anything like that in anything I've read, or the two interviews he did a few weeks back with Labriola(which is what most media folks/peripheral Steeler fans are referring to when they bring up "Rooney just said he wants to go back to 1976!!" stuff) since, like, 2009. And even in '09 he didn't say "we need to return to a a ball control, power run-based offense." He basically said "We need to run more efficiently."

In those Labriola interviews, and the subsequent stuff he's said to the papers, Rooney basically said this:

1. Ben needs to take less sacks
2. Ben needs to take less hits
3. We need to score more points.
4. Whatever we can do to facilitate those things, we need to implement.

That was pretty much it. As a matter of fact, in a portion of the interivew when he and Labriola were discussing the proliferation of the passing game and some of the elite QBs Rooney flat out said something along the lines of "The rules in the NFL cater to it now, so that's what we want our QB to be able to do, to be able to keep up with the production of those guys." To me, that doesn't sound much like a guy who wants to wheel Franco Harris out of mothballs for 30 carries a game.

Rooney is not a stooge. He realizes what sort of personnel they Steelers have and I'm sure he realizes that this is a passing league now. I think when he said "Our offense needs to run more efficiently" most people took that as "Our offense needs to run more", but those two statements aren't the same.

I think Art would like the offense to get a bit more balanced in an effort to extend the life of his QB and put more points on the board, but doubt that he has any desire at all to return to the dinosaur that is "Cowher Era" football, considering the new rules in the NFL that completely reward QB-centric teams. I think he, like a lot of Steelers fans, was probably just as perplexed with the fact that there's too much offensive talent on this team to be settling for so few points. Difference is he could actually do something about other than b@#$tch.

Best post I've read on this topic! Well said.

[Diamondeye]

One definitely has to look at it from the perspective of ownership.

When your $100 million QB is throwing less TDs than the likes of Mark Sanchez, you're going to be compelled to make some changes.

Roethlisberger and Arians had way too cozy of a relationship, and I do not get that sense that Arians was exerting discipline on Roethlisberger's play and pushing him to improve on his weak areas.

The Rooney's sensed complacency, and that combined with a 21st league ranking in points scored, prompted the long overdue dismissal of Arians.

[AZSTEELER]

Labriola? Unfortunate.

Joe Greene said in an article today what most have saying on here; we were predictable and needed to run more effectively. He also said besides a good TOP, we couldn't run the clock when needed. Agree on the great post, thinny. I think there might be a pretty strong culture change coming, i.e. trade/cut Mendy.

[BPow0407]

Labriola? Unfortunate.

Joe Greene said in an article today what most have saying on here; we were predictable and needed to run more effectively. He also said besides a good TOP, we couldn't run the clock when needed. Agree on the great post, thinny. I think there might be a pretty strong culture change coming, i.e. trade/cut Mendy.

I'm fine with cutting or trading Mendy, but trading him when he was just injured isn't likely.

And the problem with Mendy isn't that he isn't good... its that we don't use him in the ways that maximize his abilities. Maybe a new OC will.

[ThinMan]

And the problem with Mendy isn't that he isn't good... its that we don't use him in the ways that maximize his abilities. Maybe a new OC will.

This.

If Mendenhall were just utilized more as a pass receiver he'd be much more of an asset.

[StillSwinging]

One definitely has to look at it from the perspective of ownership.

When your $100 million QB is throwing less TDs than the likes of Mark Sanchez, you're going to be compelled to make some changes.

Roethlisberger and Arians had way too cozy of a relationship, and I do not get that sense that Arians was exerting discipline on Roethlisberger's play and pushing him to improve on his weak areas.

The Rooney's sensed complacency, and that combined with a 21st league ranking in points scored, prompted the long overdue dismissal of Arians.

The TD pass thing all comes back to red zone playcalling and opportunity.

When I say opportunity, I don't even just mean pass attempts, but throwing the kind of passes that will actually produce touchdowns. You throw some bubble screen on 3rd and goal from the 7, you're probably not getting a TD. The Steelers just do not do a good job in the red zone under Arians. Part of the problem is they can't pound out tough yards, and then their pass plays are not good enough.