Ben Roethlisberger says he still views Antonio Brown as a good friend

Steely McBeam

Well-known member
Mar 20, 2019
2,135
0
gettyimages-632618488-e1558400439515.jpg

Getty Images

The full KDKA-TV interview of Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, coincidentally (or not) timed to land one night before Roethsliberger is due to face reporters for the first time this offseason, has landed. Among other things, Roethlisberger contends that he still considers a former teammate who has criticized Roethlisberger mercilessly in recent months to be a friend.

Roethlisberger explained to Bob Pompeani of KDKA-TV that the quarterback has tried on multiple occasions to contact Antonio Brown.

“Haven’t heard back,” Roethlisberger said. “I’m sure he’s getting busy with his season, and getting ready as I am with the guys we have here. I really am looking forward to reconnecting with him, talking. Because like I said he’s a good friend of mine. I still call him a good friend. I hope that we can reconnect and I hope that our friendship can continue to grow.”

The friendship has done anything but grow in 2019; Brown has systematically obliterated it. And the tipping point apparently came when Roethlisberger called Brown out on a weekly radio show after Pittsburgh’s loss to the Broncos.

“It’s a fine line to walk sometimes of giving information out, giving kind of some cool things for the fans to be a part of, and maybe saying too much,” Roethlisberger said of his in-season appearances on 93.7 The Fan. “And I know that I took some heat and deservedly so for some of the comments that I’ve made on that show, especially towards him. And I genuinely feel bad about that and I’m sorry. Did I go too far after that Denver game? Probably.”

Roethlisberger arguably went a little too far in trying to explain away his past criticism of Brown, whom Roethlisberger said in late November should have “flattened” his route on a play that resulted in a game-deciding end-zone interception.

“I can see where that comment was perceived to be negative towards A.B. but it wasn’t meant that way,” Roethlisberger said. “It was more — just like everything during the season, it’s a compliment to A.B. because he’s doubled every single play. . . . . It’s still so amazing, is that he was able to do it through all the adversity of double- and triple-teams. And so it was more meant that I should have gone to JuJu [Smith-Schuster] because he was single covered.”

Roethlisberger also was asked about the personal impact of widespread criticism, provoked by his good friend, of the quarterback’s leadership skills.

“They were hurtful,” Roethlisberger said of the critical remarks, “and it was hurtful to myself. It was hurtful to my family. I always want to get better. I always strive to be the best that I can be. And last year we weren’t good enough. We lost six games, we didn’t make the playoffs. So I need to, as a leader of that football team, because leadership is ultimately about winning football games, and I didn’t a good enough job of being a leader because we didn’t make the playoffs.”

A little more leadership may be needed this year, from Roethlisberger and others. That “two face” tweet posted by Brown after excerpts from the Roethlisberger interview emerged on Monday afternoon was “liked” by Steelers safety Terrell Edmunds, who has since “un-liked” Brown’s tweet but also has “liked” tweets criticizing Edmunds for “liking” Brown’s tweet.
 
Top