Steelers' Ben Roethlisberger Questions Mike McCarthy's Risky Clock Management Against Rookie QB

The Pittsburgh Steelers were three yards from making Sunday's fourth-quarter comeback a lot less stressful. An interception had put them on the doorstep, their opponent was playing a rookie quarterback, and there was barely enough time left for another meaningful possession. Pittsburgh had just about every advantage it could request. Somehow, the final two minutes still turned into a lesson in why owning the clock can be every bit as valuable as owning the football.

Former Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger believes Mike McCarthy should have been more deliberate after Pittsburgh's late interception against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. During a recent episode of Footbahlin, Roethlisberger questioned a goal-line sequence that produced the lead, but left the Buccaneers enough time to force overtime.

“Run it, run it, run it, and then throw it on, like, whatever, but make them use their timeouts. I think that’s a bigger deal,” Roethlisberger said.

The arithmetic is difficult to dispute. Jamel Dean intercepted Tampa Bay quarterback Jalon Daniels and returned the ball to the 3-yard line with 1:38 remaining and the score tied at 16. The Buccaneers still had all three timeouts. Pittsburgh was close enough to kick a short field goal without another yard. At that point, every second was its own asset.

The Steelers opened with a play-action rollout pass toward Darnell Washington, which fell incomplete. Jaylen Warren ran to the 2-yard line on second down, prompting a Tampa Bay timeout at 1:26. On third down, Aaron Rodgers went toward DK Metcalf in the end zone. Another incompletion brought out Chris Boswell for a 20-yard field goal.

The kick gave Pittsburgh a 19-16 lead with 1:21 left. Two pass attempts had stopped the clock, and Tampa Bay still owned two timeouts. The possession burned only 17 seconds while doing almost nothing to limit the Buccaneers' options. Three points were useful, but the remaining time was an invitation.

Roethlisberger's second point was even simpler. Pittsburgh had already taken the lead away from a quarterback making his third consecutive start in place of the injured Baker Mayfield. Forcing him to attempt a rescue without timeouts should have been part of the plan.

“So if nothing else, give a rookie quarterback a deficit and no timeouts,” Roethlisberger said.

Running three times might not have produced a touchdown, and negative plays are always possible near the goal line. But Tampa Bay would have needed to choose between spending its timeouts on those runs and allowing precious seconds to disappear. Even if Daniels still received more than a minute, he could have been operating without a single timeout. Pittsburgh had an opportunity to make his next possession harder.

Instead, the rookie took over at his own 35 with 1:21 left. He connected on a 22-yard pass, absorbed a sack from Nick Herbig, and still moved Tampa Bay far enough for a tying attempt. Chase McLaughlin converted from 53 yards with eight seconds remaining. Pittsburgh had given a quarterback who threw two fourth-quarter interceptions room to erase its lead.

The Buccaneers were not trying to assemble a touchdown drive. A field goal was enough, and their kicker did not require them to reach the red zone. Daniels only had to find the edge of McLaughlin's range. That is a manageable challenge when the opposing offense hands back more than a minute and nearly all your timeouts.

McCarthy defended the calls afterward as legitimate scoring opportunities, and Rodgers explained that his third-down throw came from a run-pass option he chose to pass. The criticism is not that Pittsburgh drew up nonsensical plays. A touchdown would have meant a seven-point advantage. But two unsuccessful passes left the Steelers with a three-point lead and almost all the time Tampa Bay needed. That fallback deserved more consideration.

Roethlisberger's complaint deserves more weight than a generic demand to run the football. He wasn't advocating for predictable play-calling all afternoon. The situation had changed Pittsburgh's objective. With the ball inside the five and a reliable kicker available, the clock was an additional weapon. McCarthy had the chance to force Tampa Bay into a much smaller window, and the pass attempts surrendered much of that leverage.

Sunday's finish also puts the earlier offensive struggle in perspective. The Steelers trailed 16-3 entering the fourth before Rodgers found his rhythm and Boswell delivered several important kicks. Dean's interception should have been the moment the comeback stopped requiring more drama. Instead, the defense had another possession to survive, and eventually everyone had to play overtime.

McCarthy's separate late-game timeout explanation had already raised questions after he attributed a delay near Tampa Bay's tying field goal to miscommunication with an official. Roethlisberger was criticizing an earlier choice: the plays Pittsburgh called when it had the best opportunity to dictate how much time its opponent would receive.

Steelers Cannot Afford To Waste Another Closing Opportunity

Pittsburgh eventually survived, with rookie Germie Bernard catching the overtime touchdown and Jalen Ramsey closing the 26-19 victory with a fourth-down sack. The result improved the Steelers to 4-2 and preserved a remarkable comeback. It should not turn that final regulation possession into smart clock management.

Roethlisberger is right about the larger principle. Sometimes the best offensive play forces an opponent to make an uncomfortable decision before the ball is even snapped. Pittsburgh had the luxury of a chip-shot field goal and a rookie quarterback waiting across the field. Making him operate with as little time and flexibility as possible was worth more than another rushed attempt at six points.

Rodgers eventually bailed the Steelers out in overtime. Against an inexperienced passer, Pittsburgh had a chance to make that extra period unnecessary. The next opponent might not be nearly as generous.

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