PITTSBURGH — Ben Roethlisberger spoke the truth and nothing but the truth in his Zoom call with reporters Wednesday.
"I think every player should approach this playoff game like it could be their last playoff game ever," Roethlisberger said. "We use examples of players, coaches who have been in this league for a long time and have never been to the postseason, never been to the Super Bowl. I think it's prudent for every player to take that mindset and that approach.
"I know I am."
The Steelers haven't participated in a playoff game since 2017 (it didn't go particularly well) and have won only three of them since the Tim Tebow Incident of 2012. And they're part of the successful crowd.
Look around the league. Look at the Detroit Lions, who haven't won a playoff game since 1991 (so of course they just interviewed Marvin Lewis — 0-7 playoff record with the Bengals — for their coaching job). Or Cincinnati, which hasn't won one since 1990.
Look at the New York Jets, who are known more for a fanny fumble than anything else they've done lately. They haven't made the playoffs since 2010.
Now look at some of the matchups this weekend.
The Buffalo Bills haven't won a playoff game since 1995. I'm guessing Jim Kelly & Co. didn't think they would never win another one after crushing Miami in the wild-card round. They beat Dan Marino that day. I'm sure Marino figured he had all kinds of chances to get back to a Super Bowl after reaching one in 1984, his second season in the league.
He never did. In fact, he would never win more than one playoff game in any season thereafter.
Philip Rivers will be on the opposite sideline Saturday in Buffalo. He lugs a 5-6 postseason record into this one and, unlike draft classmates Eli Manning and Roethlisberger, has never won a Super Bowl (or even played in one). This might be his last chance.
Drew Brees turns 42 on Jan. 15. This probably will be his last chance. Tom Brady is 43. Might be his, too, although he should be OK with those six rings.
Washington Football Team quarterback Alex Smith underwent 17 leg operations over the past few years after his horrific injury. Do you think he values this opportunity?
Smith, 36, hasn't played in a postseason game since 2017 and has won only two of them.
So yes, opportunities can be scarce. The Cleveland Browns waited 18 years between playoff games, and now that they're finally back, their coach and multiple players won't get to participate Sunday because of COVID-19.
I was chatting with former Steelers defensive coordinator Tim Lewis the other day. He could only laugh about the fact that he lost his job here in 2003, two years before the Steelers won the Super Bowl, and then lost his job with the New York Giants in 2006 — a year before they upset the 18-0 Patriots in the Super Bowl.
We spoke about former Steelers linebacker Kendrell Bell, who was great playing on one leg in that 2002 playoff comeback against the Browns. Bell was 24 at the time. He never started in another playoff game. Out of the league before age 30.
Time is short, or could be, for everybody in this sport. NFL means Not For Long, right?
Roethlisberger knows. He spoke to it later in the call, too, recounting a conversation with fourth-year receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and saying he was surprised to learn JuJu had played in only one postseason game (the one where Blake Bortles came to Heinz Field).
"There's a lot of guys who don't understand what it's about," Roethlisberger said. "And I get it, because when I was a young guy and people would try to explain it to me, 'Take advantage of this,' I'm thinking, 'Oh, I'm young, I'll get back.' But it's not guaranteed. Really, I think all the veteran guys, as we're winding down our careers, understand that we don't know what's next, or if there's gonna be a 'next.'
"So we want to make the most of this opportunity."
