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Terry Bradshaw Calls Roethlisberger a Great Leader After Antonio Brown Criticism
March 28, 2019
Hall of Fame quarterback Terry Bradshaw, who led the Pittsburgh Steelers to four Super Bowl titles, defended current Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger after criticism from former teammates Le'Veon Bell and Antonio Brown about his leadership style.
"I don't understand it," Bradshaw told TMZ Sports. "… He's a great leader. He is. He's solid."
The 70-year-old Louisiana native, who currently works as an NFL analyst for Fox Sports, said he understands the situation, jokingly saying Franco Harris and Lynn Swann weren't fans of his leadership during their time together in Pittsburgh.
Bradshaw noted while he's not concerned about Big Ben's ability to lead, the numerous departures, led by Brown's trade to the Oakland Raiders and Bell's exit via free agency to sign with the New York Jets, leaves him concerned about the Steelers' short-term outlook.
"I'm worried about our team," he told TMZ.
In February, Brown posted a message on Twitter explaining his issue with Roethlisberger:
Bell added to the conversation last week by telling Sports Illustrated's Jenny Vrentas the quarterback's presence was a factor in his decision to leave Pittsburgh.
"The organization wants to win. Tomlin wants to win. Ben wants to win—but Ben wants to win his way, and that's tough to play with," Bell said. "Ben won a Super Bowl, but he won when he was younger. Now he's at this stage where he tries to control everything, and [the team] let him get there."
Meanwhile, Roethlisberger will move forward with James Conner and JuJu Smith-Schuster as his new sidekicks in Pittsburgh's retooled Big Three and hope to prove the offense can remain as dangerous as ever with two of the league's top playmakers having moved on.