Ben Roethlisberger wears jersey No. 7 for the Pittsburgh Steelers, but he donned No. 78 during practice Sunday. He wore the jersey in honor of ex-teammate Max Starks, who was cut last week by the Steelers. Roethlisberger explained why he wore the jersey.
“We were the last two of our draft class (2004), and Max’s locker was next to mine for seven-eight years now. So I saw (his jersey), I grabbed it and wore it in honor of Max.
“First and foremost, he was a very good friend,” said Roethlisberger. “Like I said, our lockers were next to each other. So we spent a lot of time together, everything from hearing him snore (during naps) to us complaining about things to just all the things we’ve gone through.”
That’s a pretty nice move by a guy considered to be a bad teammate. I won’t go overboard gushing with praise for the gesture, but it is somewhat meaningful and it shows how tight Big Ben is with some of his buddies. Still, I don’t think this will do anything to change James Harrison’s opinion of his quarterback. Only a season that ends with a Super Bowl win will do that.
As for Starks, he’s coming off neck surgery and was due over $5 million. He’s reportedly reached out to the Cardinals to see about reuniting with his former line coach, Russ Grimm.
Helmet knock to Shutdown Corner for the story
