CINCINNATI — There are many reasons Ben Roethlisberger gets a special kick out of tormenting the Bengals here. Paul Brown Stadium is 40 miles southeast on U.S. 27 from Oxford, Ohio, where he played his college ball at Miami of Ohio. It is 160 miles south on I-75 from Findlay, Ohio, his hometown. The game often means a lot in the AFC North Division race. First place tends to be at stake.
But there’s another reason Roethlisberger loves beating the Bengals.
Don’t underestimate the sight of No. 55 in the Bengals jersey.
Vontaze Burfict.
That, as much as anything, has motivated Roethlisberger to a 15-2 record here -- including playoffs – with the latest win coming Sunday, 28-21, when he led the winning touchdown drive in the final 1:12.
Roethlisberger’s dislike for Burfict came through loud and clear when he told of the aftermath of Burfict temporarily knocking Antonio Brown out of the game with an elbow to the head early in the third quarter. Burfict wasn’t penalized for the hit but still could be fined by the NFL office.
“He hits A.B., then, literally, as I am under center for the next play, he points at JuJu and says, ‘You’re next,’ ” Roethlisberger said. “How do you allow that stuff?”
Wouldn’t you know that Brown caught the winning 31-yard touchdown pass with :10 left and Smith-Schuster had catches of 8, 10 and 23 (over Burfict) yards on the winning drive, plus a catch for the 2-point conversion?
“I don’t know what it is about this place,” Roethlisberger said. “It’s awesome.”
Roethlisberger talked of his conversation with Burfict early in the game.
“After I did the quarterback sneak that they called back, he got in my face. I said, ‘Hey, listen, it’s good to have you back out here [after Burfict’s four-game suspension to start the season].’ He got all feisty and wanted to fight.”
Roethlisberger instigated a similar reaction from Burfict after Burfict hit him late during a game in December, 2016 – a Steelers win, of course – and bumped heads with him.
“I told him that my wife was praying for him,” Roethlisberger said. “He didn’t like that, either. He doesn’t like anything.”
It’s fair to think one of Roethlisberger’s favorite plays of the game came when Vance McDonald ran over Burfict late in the second quarter after catching a pass that went for 26 yards. Burfict sat out the rest of the half with a shoulder injury but returned for the second half.
All of the Steelers are going to love watching that McDonald play on tape Monday.
“Burfict is a really good football player and I think everybody in this locker room has respect for what he can do on the field,” Al Villanueva said. “That hit on A.B, it’s unnecessary. It’s bad for the game. It’s hurting the National Football League. It’s hurting fans that are deciding if they want to let their kids play football. It’s injuring players in the NFL that are going to have consequences after football. I think there’s no place for that behavior. For him to come out and continue to talk and continue to make this game something more than a football game, it’s very unfortunate.”
Smith-Schuster said Burfict threatened him with “major threats” during the game. When the teams played here in December – yes, another Steelers win -- Smith-Schuster dropped Burfict with a vicious block and knocked him out of the game with a concussion. Smith-Schuster drew two penalties – one for standing over Burfict and taunting him – and was suspended by the league for one game.
“They were all making threats on me,” Smith-Schuster said. “Burfict was out there lying, saying I spit on him, which I didn’t …
“This was the most physical game I’ve been in. Their defense was coming after all of us. You could just see it with the talking, the pushing and shoving, the tackling, the extra stuff.”
Smith-Schuster thought he had the perfect response for Burfict and the Bengals.
“Marching down the middle of the field, making plays, going down and winning the game.”
That’s the way Roethlisberger looked at it. That’s why he was so eager to get back on the field after the Bengals took a 21-20 lead with 1:18 left.
“It was one of those things on the sideline before I went out, I told the guys, ‘This is what legacies are made of for all of us. Let’s take care of business.’
“That’s what makes it fun.”
Fun for the Steelers.
Fun for all of their fans.
Well, all but one of their fans.
“My best friend from school, Jamie Cooper, lives in Cincinnati and was the best man in my wedding,” Roethlisberger said. “He’s getting married himself. He told me, ‘I guess I can’t have the wedding in Cincinnati. Everybody hates you here.’ ”
You should have seen Roethlisberger grin. No word if he told Cooper that a destination wedding is always nice.
Ron Cook: rcook@post-gazette.com and Twitter@RonCookPG. Ron Cook can be heard on the “Cook and Joe” show weekdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on 93.7 The Fan.
First Published: October 15, 2018, 12:09 a.m.
