The Pittsburgh Steelers have lost three games in a row, and Ben Roethlisberger is concerned the recent skid could be due to a lack of effort from his teammates.
Aditi Kinkhabwala of NFL.com reported on Sunday that Roethlisberger recently had a “lengthy heart-to-heart” with Steelers coach Mike Tomlin over the lack of urgency from some of the team’s younger players.
Ben Roethlisberger has been wanting more urgency, exactness from teammates for weeks now. He asked Mike Tomlin this week to help demand it.
— Aditi Kinkhabwala (@AKinkhabwala) November 13, 2016
As told to me, Ben Roethlisberger had lengthy heart-to-heart w/ Mike Tomlin. QB wants greater seriousness of purpose from younger Steelers.
— Aditi Kinkhabwala (@AKinkhabwala) November 13, 2016
Roethlisberger’s injury certainly didn’t help the team, and he appeared to be playing at less than 100 percent health in last week’s loss to the Baltimore Ravens. It’s unclear which teammates Roethlisberger has been unhappy with or if there are specific instances where a lack of focus was shown.
The Steelers are currently just a half-game behind the Ravens for first place in the AFC North, so they’re in good shape heading down the stretch. That said, Roethislberger may feel differently in private than his recent public comments indicated he is feeling about the season.
