LLT
09-08-2012, 05:21 AM
By Alan Robinson
Saturday, September 8, 2012
In the lobby of the Steelers’ South Side practice complex, a TV is replaying coach Mike Tomlin’s comments that Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning is a “ridiculous competitor.”
Just down a hallway, a competitor some Steelers believe hates to lose as badly as Manning does – and never bothers to hide it – is getting ready for practice. Except it’s not a normal practice.
To fellow Steelers quarterback Byron Leftwich, there is never a normal practice for Ben Roethlisberger, who always finds a way to compete. Maybe it’s the number of passes he can flip successfully into a garbage can or how many throws he can complete in a row.
Table tennis in the locker room? Hates to lose. The miniature basketball hoop that was located close to Roethlisberger’s locker? He will play as many shooting games as possible – best-of-3, best-of-7, best-of-211 – in order to win.
Ridiculous competitor? Yes, the Steelers know one.
“Oh man, I’m playing with the guy right now,” said wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery, who was floored by Roethlisberger’s competitiveness when he joined the Steelers last season. “I haven’t seen anything like this dude.”
Cotchery includes Brett Favre, his former Jets teammate, in that statement.
“Brett Favre was a very competitive guy. Chad Pennington, oh, man, he was fierce,” Cotchery said. “This guy here? I don’t know where he comes from. Before I came here, I’ve seen images of him breaking his nose and sticking something up it and getting back on the field. It’s crazy. He’s just anxious to get back out there and get his team to a victory. This guy is extremely into it.”
Cotchery was referring to the Dec. 5, 2010, game against the Ravens in which Roethlisberger’s nose was broken on a hit by Haloti Ngata, but he stayed in the game and helped rally the Steelers to a pivotal 13-10 win that helped pushed them to the Super Bowl
Read more: http://triblive.com/sports/steelers/2556681-85/steelers-roethlisberger-manning-quarterback-lose-win-practice-peyton-competitor-cotchery#ixzz25s8mPMZk
Follow us: @triblive on Twitter | triblive on Facebook
Saturday, September 8, 2012
In the lobby of the Steelers’ South Side practice complex, a TV is replaying coach Mike Tomlin’s comments that Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning is a “ridiculous competitor.”
Just down a hallway, a competitor some Steelers believe hates to lose as badly as Manning does – and never bothers to hide it – is getting ready for practice. Except it’s not a normal practice.
To fellow Steelers quarterback Byron Leftwich, there is never a normal practice for Ben Roethlisberger, who always finds a way to compete. Maybe it’s the number of passes he can flip successfully into a garbage can or how many throws he can complete in a row.
Table tennis in the locker room? Hates to lose. The miniature basketball hoop that was located close to Roethlisberger’s locker? He will play as many shooting games as possible – best-of-3, best-of-7, best-of-211 – in order to win.
Ridiculous competitor? Yes, the Steelers know one.
“Oh man, I’m playing with the guy right now,” said wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery, who was floored by Roethlisberger’s competitiveness when he joined the Steelers last season. “I haven’t seen anything like this dude.”
Cotchery includes Brett Favre, his former Jets teammate, in that statement.
“Brett Favre was a very competitive guy. Chad Pennington, oh, man, he was fierce,” Cotchery said. “This guy here? I don’t know where he comes from. Before I came here, I’ve seen images of him breaking his nose and sticking something up it and getting back on the field. It’s crazy. He’s just anxious to get back out there and get his team to a victory. This guy is extremely into it.”
Cotchery was referring to the Dec. 5, 2010, game against the Ravens in which Roethlisberger’s nose was broken on a hit by Haloti Ngata, but he stayed in the game and helped rally the Steelers to a pivotal 13-10 win that helped pushed them to the Super Bowl
Read more: http://triblive.com/sports/steelers/2556681-85/steelers-roethlisberger-manning-quarterback-lose-win-practice-peyton-competitor-cotchery#ixzz25s8mPMZk
Follow us: @triblive on Twitter | triblive on Facebook