Steelers Great Ben Roethlisberger Calls Out Team For Recent Performance: "There Needs To Be Accountability"

The Pittsburgh Steelers had a very concerning preseason game against the Carolina Panthers before preparing for the regular season. Pittsburgh had 13 penalties for 104 yards in the game, which is not a good look at all, even if the contest itself does not have much meaning to it. After that game concluded, the Steelers had about two weeks to clean everything up before the regular season. We will see if those issues are still there in Week 1, or if they've all been worked out, which is the point of preseason. 

While hosting his show Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger, former quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was asked about how those penalty issues should be taken, as it was just a preseason game. He responded by calling out the team and saying that the coaches should do the same.

"You can't take it lightly, because what it does is bleed into the regular season," Roethlisberger said. "I feel like that's kind of been a bugaboo -- and I'm not trying to say anything about Coach [Mike] Tomlin and him being ok with stuff, but sometimes, there needs to be accountability... if the guy flat beats you, that's it, but pre-snap penalties and things where it's like you don't know the snap count -- [Bruce Arians] used to say, 'If you jump offsides on a hard count, you might as well go work down the street, because we don't want you anymore.' You can't be okay with some of the dumb penalties."

Nothing frustrates a coach more than when a player keeps messing up the very basics, especially when that negates a huge play. It doesn't matter if there is a 20-yard run if the offense gets called for an illegal formation for example. Even if it was just a preseason game where some of the penalties were made by players that have already been cut, it's still not the best idea to let it go like nothing ever happened. 

Roethlisberger has experienced some of this first-hand, as the 2010s Steelers had one of the most talented offenses ever. However, that team had many more sluggish starts than they care to admit. A lot of times, it was the lack of fundamentals that caused that, which sometimes included poor penalties. That's how one of the greatest units ever ends up being down 17-7 at halftime to the 2017 Chicago Bears before losing the game. 

Of course, the Steelers signed Aaron Rodgers to be their quarterback in 2025, and he also does not take kindly to basic mistakes being made. This was revealed when his former receiver Mike Williams was traded in the first place: because he supposedly made a mistake on his route, and Rodgers wanted nothing to do with him anymore while the two both played in New York.

The Steelers have been accused of lacking accountability and leadership for years. That was part of the reason why the Steelers signed Rodgers initially, and that kind of leadership may be tested quickly, especially since a handful of starters did not get any preseason action, including the veteran quarterback. It could be a very bumpy start for Pittsburgh in the 2025 regular season.

Steelers Have Very Little Room For Error

The Steelers are going all in for the 2025 NFL season, and that includes making the locker room a little more volatile to bring in more talent. Players like Rodgers are absolutely in that equation. If things go sour, we will likely see if the 41-year-old is past the days of throwing everyone under the bus or not. If not, 2025 could be a very problematic for Pittsburgh.

With Week 1 and the regular season just a few short weeks away, the first month of the new campaign will be very telling.

What do you think about the Steelers needing accountability for their penalty issues? Let us know in the comments or on X at @Steelers_ChrisB.

#SteelerNation