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7/21/09
Ben Roethlisberger Being Protected By ESPN In Sexual Assault Case
Why Is ESPN Not Reporting Anything About Big Ben's Sexual Assault Case?
READ MORE:
NFL, Ben Roethlisberger
by Pat more posts by author
90
I have said for a long time now that major sports media generally overrates Ben Roethlisberger. I honestly have no idea what it is about him that makes them feel the need to treat him like he's an elite NFL quarterback, when all signs point to the opposite.

Now, however, the biggest sports media network in America is committing a disservice far worse than simply overrating an average quarterback.

Andrea McNulty has accused the Steelers QB of some pretty serious allegations, including one civil count of assault, one civil count of sexual assault and battery, one civil count of false imprisonment, one civil count of false pretenses, one civil count of fraud, and one civil count of intentonal infliction of emotional distress, according to PFT.

So why isn't ESPN reporting this story AT ALL? According to ESPN TV personality and columnist Jemele Hill (via Twitter), it is simply because they don't report on civil cases that don't have criminal charges attached to them. They also said basically the same thing, in a statement to Pro Football Talk.

The funny thing is, however, that ESPN just reported about a civil case levied against the Los Angeles County Sherrif's Department by former NFL kicker Tony Zendejas.

Perhaps ESPN reported this because it was filed BY a athlete, and not AGAINST one. But wait, they certainly didn't waste any time reporting on the civil charges brought up against Isiah Thomas a few years back, did they? Bruce Allen started a list of such cases on his Twitter account, and came up with several, including cases involving Randy Moss, Roberto Alomar, Reggie Bush, Pacman Jones and Marvin Harrison.

I am almost always the last person to play the race card, but does anyone notice anything funny about all of this? I'll give you a hint... Roethlisberger is the only one who's white. Take that however you want to.

Honestly, I think that there's a very good chance that Roethlisberger is innocent of these charges. He has denied all charges, and said that there was intercourse with consent. Also, there have been some reports that the alleged victim is a bit on the loony side, which wouldn't surprise me at all. There's a great chance that this is just a sad attempt to get some cash by defaming a popular NFL player.

Still, it's interesting to see the lengths that they'll go to protect a player, for no apparent reason. I'm not sure what it is about Ben Roethlisberger that has caused ESPN to develop this love affair with him, to the point that they regularly annoint him one of the elite QB's in football, despite the fact that he has only thrown more than 18 TD's once and has never led the league in a significant statistical category other than INT's (2006), sack yards lost (2007) and fumbles (2008).

But honestly, the overrated aspect is merely cosmetic. It's a bit disconcerting, but that's just what ESPN does. Their blatant disregard for something that is clearly one of the biggest sports stories in America right now, however, is simply despicable. They can use any excuse they want, but the bottom line is that it's their job to report the stories, and they're doing everyone a disservice when they attempt to cover up for someone just because they like them. It's a disgrace to all legitimate news sources out there... something ESPN used to be.

I'm not asking them to bash him, or imply that he might be guilty. But at least acknowledge that the story exists.
READ MORE: NFL, Ben Roethlisberger
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7/21/09
15
Maybe they're just bored with talking about Rothles  Rotheles  Rothulesb  Big Ben.

7/21/09
7
This is the best article I have ever read on faniq. I completely agree. I saw a weird stat before the game that Arisona had a high powered offence but weak defence, and the Steelers were the other way around. And, had the Steelers not caught that 104 yard touchdown pass, the Cardinals would've won.

7/21/09
8
(Edited by radiowave000)
Innocent or not..it's a major news story.  When he crashed his cycle, ESPN was quick to report it.
Every time anyone accuses a Cowboy of anything from assault to jaywalking it leads on ESPN.

7/21/09
8
They are ignoring beacuse ESPN is a family watch show, ESPN is sports, not Judge Judy,  for the Super Bowl all parents where shouting about Janet Jackson breast, but then you have Moms fighting to Breast feed in public

7/21/09
7
ESPN is the World Wide leader in what they want to tell you about, and what they show you.
Reporting about sports, showing highlites, covering important topics in sports has become secondary to...sucking up to athletes, a.k.a. LeBron, Kobe, and the ridiculous Brett favre fiasco for a year and a half.

I miss the ESPN of SportsCenter actually meaning something.

7/21/09
10
 Wow...if its not true why show it and risk destroying rothlesbergers (spelling?) reputation?

7/21/09
10
The only thing I can think of is that this is a fairly new story and ESPN would like to get the facts straight before they start blasting it all over the station..... for once.

I think that the "race card" aspect of this is completely ridiculous and borderline irresponsible, but you're going to see whatever you want to see when it comes to most things involving race.

7/21/09
4
This story is very very important....when Brandon Marshall had his incident with his history with women ESPN nd America's Most Wanted was all over it...yes he has two RINGS...doesnt mean he is above the law! Get at me if u think OTHERWISE!!

7/21/09
3
Not trying to defend ESPN, but I first heard about this story today on ESPN radio during the Doug Gottelib show. So they are talking about it, I guess just not on the TV network.

7/21/09
3
BluDevil wrote:
Not trying to defend ESPN, but I first heard about this story today on ESPN radio during the Doug Gottelib show. So they are talking about it, I guess just not on the TV network.
There is zero mention of it whatsoever on their website. None.

7/21/09
5
they (ESPN) were all over Koby....

7/21/09
15
Maybe they're just bored with talking about Rothles  Rotheles  Rothulesb  Big Ben.

7/21/09
4
Steelers can do no wrong. They too CLASSY an organization.

7/21/09
7
I don't understand your qualms with Big Ben as a player.  Yeah, his stats are nothing to get excited about, but he does lead the all-time Steelers lists in quite a few categories and is second in a lot of others.  I guess it's his two Super Bowl rings and his 59-22 W-L record in the regular season and playoffs.  I'm not a Steeler fan, I'm just stating facts.  I know he's got a strong defense to fall back on, but he's nothing like Rex Grossman or other quarterbacks who did just enough to not lose games.  Big Ben can win games if he needs to, just like he did on the final drive in the Super Bowl this year.  He's a pretty important quarterback in the league, even if he doesn't have the flashy statistics and you just plain don't like him for whatever reason. 
As to ESPN not reporting on this, it is really hypocritical of them, considering the ways that they cover other civil suits as other commenters have mentioned.  They're shooting themselves in the foot though, because they're missing website hits and people will look for the news elsewhere now.

7/21/09
6
beerstudk wrote:
The only thing I can think of is that this is a fairly new story and ESPN would like to get the facts straight before they start blasting it all over the station..... for once.

I think that the "race card" aspect of this is completely ridiculous and borderline irresponsible, but you're going to see whatever you want to see when it comes to most things involving race.
NOT! ESPN has reported many stories and gone back and done retractions. The obvious is obvious. This was a GREAT and factual article. Anyone take it how you want it. I'm not going to argue though....

7/21/09
6
aerockyulhim wrote:
I don't understand your qualms with Big Ben as a player.  Yeah, his stats are nothing to get excited about, but he does lead the all-time Steelers lists in quite a few categories and is second in a lot of others.  I guess it's his two Super Bowl rings and his 59-22 W-L record in the regular season and playoffs.  I'm not a Steeler fan, I'm just stating facts.  I know he's got a strong defense to fall back on, but he's nothing like Rex Grossman or other quarterbacks who did just enough to not lose games.  Big Ben can win games if he needs to, just like he did on the final drive in the Super Bowl this year.  He's a pretty important quarterback in the league, even if he doesn't have the flashy statistics and you just plain don't like him for whatever reason. 
As to ESPN not reporting on this, it is really hypocritical of them, considering the ways that they cover other civil suits as other commenters have mentioned.  They're shooting themselves in the foot though, because they're missing website hits and people will look for the news elsewhere now.
But the Steelers have never really had great QB's. Even Bradshaw was pretty mediocre, but was just surrounded by a pile of Hall of Famers. I'm just stating facts as well... Roethlisberger has only had 1 impressive season, and neither of his Super Bowl performances were all that great. One was the worst ever for a QB on the winning team. ESPN would love to pretend that he's the 3rd best in the league, behind Brady/Manning, but the fact is that he's not even close. Top 10? Sure. Top 3? Not a chance.

7/21/09
5
Maybe they are waiting for the facts to in come

7/21/09
7
Two things to consider....

1. The NFL is ESPN's marquee property.  Before they picked up the NFL starting with Sunday night games, ESPN was essentially Sportscenter on some cable sports network.  The NBA and MLB soon followed.  The point is, when you're dancing with the king, you don't tell the world he has BO.  Given that Big Ben is a marquee star, ESPN likely won't give it too much play to keep that NFL apple shiny.

2. As had been said elsewhere, it's a civil suit, not a criminal suit, which smells to me, and likely to the editors at ESPN as well, like a money grab (especially since the incident took place over a year ago).  That also means, it's essentially he said/she said.  Featuring it on Sportscenter only makes other NFL QBs a target, which could, again, give the NFL a black eye.  It's a different story if it's a criminal trial with evidence and the police involved...

7/21/09
13

I'm not convinced this Civil Case against Big Ben is real either, but now we know that ESPN refuses to pull any of its 138 reporters off the Brett Favre story.  In breaking news, Favre plans to have breakfast in the morning. 

7/21/09
3
I found out about this via Ron Artest on Twitter ... which is sad cause I heard nothing during the 3 hours of on and off again ESPN, ESPNEWS, and NFL network.

At least sports writers are finally acting like News reporters... as in.. they are not doing their job. (not a good thing)

7/21/09
1
Pat wrote:
But the Steelers have never really had great QB's. Even Bradshaw was pretty mediocre, but was just surrounded by a pile of Hall of Famers. I'm just stating facts as well... Roethlisberger has only had 1 impressive season, and neither of his Super Bowl performances were all that great. One was the worst ever for a QB on the winning team. ESPN would love to pretend that he's the 3rd best in the league, behind Brady/Manning, but the fact is that he's not even close. Top 10? Sure. Top 3? Not a chance.
I grant you that he's not in the same category as Manning/Brady.  But the NFL is about results and Big Ben does give the Steelers results.  I'll definitely agree he's top 10.  Anyway, like I said, I'm not a Steeler fan, but I really wouldn't mind if he was playing for any of my teams.  It's kind of the opposite argument people have about Jay Cutler, who DOES put up flashy numbers, but his W-L record sucks and he doesn't deliver in big games.  Big Ben has the mediocre stats but he gets the job done and the team can rely on him if they need him.  I'd take Big Ben over Cutler any day, and I'm a Bronco fan, because of the results that surround Ben.  I put less stock in flashy stats.  He's got one more ring than either Manning, as well.  
I can go along with people's dislike of putting Big Ben in the same sentence as Brady or Manning, but what other quarterbacks have the results these three do (in this decade, I mean)?

7/21/09
5
DAmn Pat, I have a whole new respect for you I have to admit. 

I too, am not nearly convinced anything other than consensual sex happened, there would be criminal charges otherwise, but to ignore it is certainly irresponsible on part of ESPN, not at all surprising in my opinion, but still irresponsible.

7/21/09
3
aerockyulhim wrote:
I grant you that he's not in the same category as Manning/Brady.  But the NFL is about results and Big Ben does give the Steelers results.  I'll definitely agree he's top 10.  Anyway, like I said, I'm not a Steeler fan, but I really wouldn't mind if he was playing for any of my teams.  It's kind of the opposite argument people have about Jay Cutler, who DOES put up flashy numbers, but his W-L record sucks and he doesn't deliver in big games.  Big Ben has the mediocre stats but he gets the job done and the team can rely on him if they need him.  I'd take Big Ben over Cutler any day, and I'm a Bronco fan, because of the results that surround Ben.  I put less stock in flashy stats.  He's got one more ring than either Manning, as well.  
I can go along with people's dislike of putting Big Ben in the same sentence as Brady or Manning, but what other quarterbacks have the results these three do (in this decade, I mean)?
There are at least a dozen other QB's who have done just as well as Roethlisberger. Remember, as you're praising him for his big-game performance, that his rating in his first Super Bowl was 23.9, and he was also outplayed by Kurt Warner in the 2nd one, despite the fact that AZ's pass defense was pretty bad all year. Ben Roethlisberger is nothing more than a place-holder on a very good team.

7/21/09
2
Alright, statistically I agree, as I said.  Throughout his career he has won a lot of games, and I'm not gonna say that the defense carried him to every one of his 59 career wins.  Even in the two games you're deriding him for, he provided pivotal plays (one that should have been overturned, granted, but it WASN'T) that were very important to the outcomes of the games, this year's Super Bowl even more so.   Warner outplayed him but Warner didn't win (though I wanted him to).  Results, results, results.  I'm not a fantasy guy, so I don't care about the stats.  That's my rationale for defending him.  I won't argue with you about his mediocre stats.  
Please provide the names of the dozen QBs who have the same resume as Big Ben outside of Brady/Manning/and maybe Warner (for playoff performances, at least).  Maybe we can agree, though, that of all the place-holder-type QBs, of which there are a plethora of in the league now, Big Ben would be at the very top of that list. 

7/21/09
1
Sorry, I meant the dozen QBs in the last decade.  Yeah, Big Ben wouldn't measure up in history very well unless he wins at least one more ring.

7/22/09
2
No one is really that great on their offense. But they don't win because of their offense.

Note: Tom Brady won 3 Super Bowls and 2 SB MVP's without Moss and Welker, and then had the greatest season ever for a QB when they showed up, so that might be a bad example. For most of his career, Roethlisberger had better WR's than Brady.

And I can name 10-12 other QB's who could have won with the Steelers. Fact.

7/22/09
1
(Edited by aerockyulhim)
You keep throwing out these dozen QBs in your argument, and now you've got a new set, which is a totally different story.  First it was the dozen QBs who are greater than Big Ben this decade.  Now it's a baker's dozen to a dozen that could win with the Steelers regardless of Ben.  And I asked if you could actually name these dozen QBs.  Please do so to prove your point.  I personally couldn't give you that many QBs as important to their teams as Ben is (not necessarily statistically, as I've repeated several times), and I even threw in Warner to the ring of Manning and Brady.  So I'm interested in seeing what you actually come up with.  If you're just throwing out this 10-12 number, you should be able to back that up.  Then we could have a constructive argument instead of going around in circles about how good or not good he is when compared to other QBs and their results.

7/22/09
1
I think my last post isn't showing up the way I wanted it to.  Anyway, if you can name these QBs we can have a more constructive argument about his value as a QB in the NFL.

7/22/09
4
Once again let me shed some realness on this "subject" ESPN is run by men!!  We came from cave men and we pretty much still enjoy the same basic caveman sh**!!   None of us believe for a hot second that Big Ben sexually assualted that> Mr. Bentley from The Jeffersons lookin' bi***!! im not trying to be mean at all because if he did go crazy and decide to just "take"  the goodies it'll come out. But for right now nobody is gonna start another soap opera about something we dont know have enough info on for even a decent sound bite!!  (as for the race thing...let it go because when The Mamba caught his case he was and still is the baddest mofo with the rock on the planet (shout out to The King!)  not only that but he Said he and the lil' skank got it on consensually!! (good thing she screwed more people than Maddof and didn't bother to change her nasty panties!)  Ben is a good QB on a team with a great defense who wins championships, the story just isn't that big or relavent!! 

7/22/09
3
(Edited by sprode)
The race card?  Absurd.

I'd rather have ESPN report it correctly than promote guilt assumption and name smearing.  Let's face it, this thing just popped up out of the blue and nobody knows what the hell's going on.  And quite frankly it's hard to believe, especially to those of us who always err on the side of caution in such instances.  Without criminal chargers, along with the rest of the circumstances...

But hey, at least they aren't reporting with filler on how overrated they think Big Ben...

7/22/09
3
Hey Pat, next time you write an article don't fill it with irrelevant self-promoting insights on how overrated a player is.  kthnx.

7/22/09
1
Pat wrote:
No one is really that great on their offense. But they don't win because of their offense.

Note: Tom Brady won 3 Super Bowls and 2 SB MVP's without Moss and Welker, and then had the greatest season ever for a QB when they showed up, so that might be a bad example. For most of his career, Roethlisberger had better WR's than Brady.

And I can name 10-12 other QB's who could have won with the Steelers. Fact.
Let's hear those 10-12 other QB's.  That's completely ridiculous.  Ben is a good QB, not great, but good.  As for the sexual assault, I'm not really surprised.  I went to college with the guy and he thought he could do whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted.  This guy is one of the all-time greats when it comes to dealing with the media because that is not the guy he really is.  He's a first class d-bag if you actually meet him. 

7/22/09
2
Pat wrote:
But the Steelers have never really had great QB's. Even Bradshaw was pretty mediocre, but was just surrounded by a pile of Hall of Famers. I'm just stating facts as well... Roethlisberger has only had 1 impressive season, and neither of his Super Bowl performances were all that great. One was the worst ever for a QB on the winning team. ESPN would love to pretend that he's the 3rd best in the league, behind Brady/Manning, but the fact is that he's not even close. Top 10? Sure. Top 3? Not a chance.
I thought you were concerned about the sexual allegations...

7/22/09
0
 HORSE FACE

7/22/09
1
islanderbehle wrote:
 HORSE FACE
clever

7/22/09
4

screw this rothlesberger news, i need my favre news fix


7/22/09
1
No more Campbells soup.

7/22/09
0
(Edited by xtra_ill)
Suuuuuuuurrrrrrrrrreeeeee he is. 

7/22/09
0
islanderbehle wrote:
 HORSE FACE
 Beaver teeth.

7/22/09
2
It's because ESPN is all about money and politics.  They don't want Steelers fans to change the channel during Sportscenter.  ESPN spins as much as MSNBC or FOX News these days.

7/22/09
4
Bashfulblue wrote:
Maybe they are waiting for the facts to in come
Since when???

7/22/09
5
This just goes to show that ALL media is biased. Whether political, or whatever. Case in point; they reported that Steve McNair was over the legal limit when he was murdered. WHAT DID THAT HAVE TO DO WITH ANYTHING!!! He was asleep!! Hadn't realized there was a law against "Sleeping while intoxicated! All ESPN had to do was mention it, that's it. Don't say anything more without the full facts.

7/22/09
2
You know if this would have been Anquan Boldin, Larry Johnson, Plax, TO, etc or pretty much anyone other than Brady or Big Ben the NFL would have a reporter staked outside their house and be checking in with Roger Cossack -the ESPN legal expert. But since he's the NFL's 2nd favorite player, Big Ben gets a free pass. Innocent until proven guilty is one thing, but they don't want their golden boy's image to suffer so they are refusing to acknowledge this, which is ridiculous..even if the story is false and Ben is innocent, it deserves attention.

7/22/09
2
Pat wrote:
There are at least a dozen other QB's who have done just as well as Roethlisberger. Remember, as you're praising him for his big-game performance, that his rating in his first Super Bowl was 23.9, and he was also outplayed by Kurt Warner in the 2nd one, despite the fact that AZ's pass defense was pretty bad all year. Ben Roethlisberger is nothing more than a place-holder on a very good team.
sad you think that ben not great but how many qbs can say they have to superbowl rings

7/22/09
0
aerockyulhim wrote:
I think my last post isn't showing up the way I wanted it to.  Anyway, if you can name these QBs we can have a more constructive argument about his value as a QB in the NFL.
Brady, P.Manning, Drew Brees, Kurt Warner, Philip Rivers, Jay Cutler, David Garrard, Cassel, Rodgers, Favre, Pennington, Collins. Possibly Romo, but his clutch track record is obviously suspect. But I think he'd be fine with the Steelers. And before you sit there and try to debate it, remember that the Steelers base about 3% of their offense around the passing game, so it really doesn't matter who's under center.

7/22/09
3
They cover all sorts of gossip, and unconfirmed stories every day. Whther they mean it or not, it looks really suspicious, especially since every other US media outlet IS covering it.

7/22/09
1
Take a look at this 3rd and 4th quarter numbers, and also look at his W vs. L. He is a top three QB, if the Steelers ever get a line that can protect him than the rest of the stats will follow, and his QB rating is in the top 5, at least since he joined the league.

7/22/09
2
Pat wrote:
Brady, P.Manning, Drew Brees, Kurt Warner, Philip Rivers, Jay Cutler, David Garrard, Cassel, Rodgers, Favre, Pennington, Collins. Possibly Romo, but his clutch track record is obviously suspect. But I think he'd be fine with the Steelers. And before you sit there and try to debate it, remember that the Steelers base about 3% of their offense around the passing game, so it really doesn't matter who's under center.

3 out of his 5 years he's been in the top 5 in QB rating in the league.  He had the 2nd highest QB rating in last year's post season.  You can throw out 12 names, 8 of which are mediocre QB's at best, and try to convince yourself that you are making an intelligent argument but you are killing any argument you may have that he's not in the top 3.  I'll give you Brady, Manning, Brees, Warner, and Cutler.  The others are just laughable.  You can hate on Ben but make a decent argument if you are going to do that.

7/22/09
1
You could not be more wrong.  This isn't a story because there is no evidence that any of the claims can be substantiated.  ESPN reports on stories that have some merit.

7/22/09
1
What other news outlets are covering it???  FanIQ?

7/22/09
1
Since always.  ESPN never reports on stories for which they have no sources other than some second rate newspaper.  Believe it or not, ESPN, among those who understand how reporting works, has a very good reputation for reporting stories that can be substantiated.

7/22/09
4
Redhawks1809 wrote:
What other news outlets are covering it???  FanIQ?
Washington Post
Chicago Tribune
New York Times
Associated Press
USA Today
Boston Globe
Cleveland Plain Dealer
Kansas City Star
Wall Street Journal

Don't worry about reading for yourself, though. Just say whatever you want, to protect your beloved fellow Redhawk. Don't worry about the facts, big guy. Those aren't important.

7/22/09
1
The more Roethlisberger passes in any given game, the lower the Steelers' chances of winning are. That is a proven fact, which I can back up with concrete proof. Roethlisberger is a "top 5 QB in rating" because the Steelers don't depend on him to win. They win with running and defense. He has only thrown for more than 18 TD's in a year once. That should make it obvious to you that he's not the most important thing about their offense.

7/22/09
1
EVEN IN THE GAMEW WINNING DRIVE WHEN HE COMPLETED 2 CATCHES TO HOLMES FOR 27 YARDS,11 YARD RECEPTION TO WASHINGTON,40 YARD PASS TO HOLMES AND A TOUCHDOWN TO HOLMES. TOM(LOW LIFE WHO CHEATS ON WOMEN WHEN THEY ARE PREGNANT AND CHEATS TO WIN SUPERBOWLS)BRADY ALWAYS STALLED IN THE END AND A KICKER HAD TO WIN IT FOR THEM

7/22/09
2

I am not a professional shrink, that's for sure.  However if you don't like ESPN or think they are overrated, quit watching them!  Maybe you can watch Court TV or some channel like that for your Big Ben coverage. 

7/22/09
1
i think if you look at that compiled list, in many cases the civil suit was on a case in which criminal charges had been filed....honestly, I think ESPN has failed in this one as well, but any coverage should be balanced and acknowledge that he denies there was a rape and no criminal charges were ever filed in the case...Personally, I think it is tragic that athletes take advantage of a situation, but in this case I think maybe he truly had a consensual tryst and now she is trying to make something of it for whatever reason one year after the fact

7/22/09
1
What, Is ESPN sitting around picking their noses and focusing more attention on Brett Farve than Big Ben?

7/22/09
2
If Ben was black, I'm sure they would have made a different decision...

7/22/09
1
Pat wrote:
Washington Post
Chicago Tribune
New York Times
Associated Press
USA Today
Boston Globe
Cleveland Plain Dealer
Kansas City Star
Wall Street Journal

Don't worry about reading for yourself, though. Just say whatever you want, to protect your beloved fellow Redhawk. Don't worry about the facts, big guy. Those aren't important.
That reply is what I call an a$$ whoopin.

7/22/09
1
MIKELIN8 wrote:
If Ben was black, I'm sure they would have made a different decision...
What exactly is that supposed to mean?

7/22/09
1
because he didnt do anything maybe

7/22/09
0
Pat wrote:
Brady, P.Manning, Drew Brees, Kurt Warner, Philip Rivers, Jay Cutler, David Garrard, Cassel, Rodgers, Favre, Pennington, Collins. Possibly Romo, but his clutch track record is obviously suspect. But I think he'd be fine with the Steelers. And before you sit there and try to debate it, remember that the Steelers base about 3% of their offense around the passing game, so it really doesn't matter who's under center.
So you're still going on stats, which I already said I agree with you.  I'm talking about results.  Brees, Rivers, Cutler, Garrard, Cassel, Rodgers, Favre, Pennington, Collins, and Romo haven't won any rings in the last decade.  Brady, Manning and Warner I already gave you.  Then there are Dilfer (who is the only counterargument you could throw at me), Johnson. Of all those guys you didn't even mention McNabb, who doesn' t have the ultimate results but does have a pretty impressive playoff history up to the NFC Championship games.  
Anyway, I'm done arguing with you.  You will never allow that Big Ben is more valuable than all but three or four of these guys.  And you must keep reading over the parts where I say I'm not talking statistics.  Are you basing everything on fantasy points?  Those aren't the results I'm talking about either.

7/22/09
1
aerockyulhim wrote:
So you're still going on stats, which I already said I agree with you.  I'm talking about results.  Brees, Rivers, Cutler, Garrard, Cassel, Rodgers, Favre, Pennington, Collins, and Romo haven't won any rings in the last decade.  Brady, Manning and Warner I already gave you.  Then there are Dilfer (who is the only counterargument you could throw at me), Johnson. Of all those guys you didn't even mention McNabb, who doesn' t have the ultimate results but does have a pretty impressive playoff history up to the NFC Championship games.  
Anyway, I'm done arguing with you.  You will never allow that Big Ben is more valuable than all but three or four of these guys.  And you must keep reading over the parts where I say I'm not talking statistics.  Are you basing everything on fantasy points?  Those aren't the results I'm talking about either.
And you're completely disregarding the fact that Ben Roethlisberger has MUCH better teammates than all of those guys who don't have rings. Championships are not an individual stat. Sorry for forgetting McNabb, he (and Hasselbeck, when healthy) are also better than Ben.

If you put ANY of those guys on the Steelers, they also would have won the Super Bowl. You can't base your entire argument for a player on a TEAM achievement. That's just ignorant.

7/22/09
2
Pat wrote:
But the Steelers have never really had great QB's. Even Bradshaw was pretty mediocre, but was just surrounded by a pile of Hall of Famers. I'm just stating facts as well... Roethlisberger has only had 1 impressive season, and neither of his Super Bowl performances were all that great. One was the worst ever for a QB on the winning team. ESPN would love to pretend that he's the 3rd best in the league, behind Brady/Manning, but the fact is that he's not even close. Top 10? Sure. Top 3? Not a chance.
I guess the fact that he's better than Kordell Stewart or Tommy Maddox makes him the bomb.

I miss those guys...

7/22/09
1
(Edited by ChristiSunshine)
ESPN obviosly has Ben's d**k in thier mouth right now. Usually it's Brett Favre's,Romo's or, Brady's.... used to be Montana's for years. There nothing more then a "good ol boys" network. Pay them enough, and they will keep quiet anything you want. Ask Koby.

7/22/09
1
Pat wrote:
And you're completely disregarding the fact that Ben Roethlisberger has MUCH better teammates than all of those guys who don't have rings. Championships are not an individual stat. Sorry for forgetting McNabb, he (and Hasselbeck, when healthy) are also better than Ben.

If you put ANY of those guys on the Steelers, they also would have won the Super Bowl. You can't base your entire argument for a player on a TEAM achievement. That's just ignorant.
I already mentioned in one of my above posts that Ben has a great defense to fall back on.  I never said that Ben is the reason that they won the two Super Bowls, though he provided a few big-time plays to help out, something I wouldn't count on from the majority of the QBs you've stated.  I agree championships are team-accomplishments, but you do need a lot of great individual moments to help the team.  I totally agree with you that if you plugged in some of those other QBs to the Steelers in this decade the results would be about the same.  I just don't buy your argument that Big Ben is overrated.  Let's stop going in circles now, though, and just agree to disagree.  You maintain other QBs could do what Big Ben does, I believe he brings more to the team than you give him credit for.  NOW I'm done

7/23/09
1
Pat wrote:
Washington Post
Chicago Tribune
New York Times
Associated Press
USA Today
Boston Globe
Cleveland Plain Dealer
Kansas City Star
Wall Street Journal

Don't worry about reading for yourself, though. Just say whatever you want, to protect your beloved fellow Redhawk. Don't worry about the facts, big guy. Those aren't important.
Hmm well that would be seem to be a nice little "comeback" but you are proving my point for me.  The argument has been why didn't ESPN report on this story earlier when it came out in a few lesser known media outlets.  Most of these articles are from today, the same day ESPN aired the story.  A few from yesterday, several days after the initial reports.  Once the legitimate media outlets were able to corroborate the story, they wrote about it/aired it on tv, like ESPN.  Nice try though.

7/23/09
3
It's pretty obvious that Ben Roethlisberger is ESPN's poster boy QB. There are way too many damn Steelers fans for the network to alienate them.

Watch for the full ESPN story when it's revealed that this girl ends up being a looney and just looking for a handout. Big Ben will likely just throw it at her just to not worry about it. It's these kinds of women who plague our society.

7/23/09
1
Redhawks1809 wrote:
Hmm well that would be seem to be a nice little "comeback" but you are proving my point for me.  The argument has been why didn't ESPN report on this story earlier when it came out in a few lesser known media outlets.  Most of these articles are from today, the same day ESPN aired the story.  A few from yesterday, several days after the initial reports.  Once the legitimate media outlets were able to corroborate the story, they wrote about it/aired it on tv, like ESPN.  Nice try though.
I'm not proving your point for you at all. If you had done ANY research at all, you would have known that it was reported almost everywhere. Trust me, it's my job to do that, so I had already seen it almost everywhere. Since the articles were almost 24 hours old, there were already follow-up articles being posted in most places, and ESPN STILL took another half-day to even acknowledge that the situation was happening.

Obviously, they had no interest in corroborating the story. It would have taken only a simple phone call to Vegas, and they could have confirmed the story in minutes.

I find it hilarious that you're trying to defend ESPN, as if they have a standing policy of not reporting rumors. We both know they've jumped the gun on MANY things in the past, and will continue to do so in the future. They obviously have a reason that they wanted to protect Big Ben, and it just makes them look pathetic.

7/23/09
1
hello,
this is what i heard this morning on the dan patrick show.He talked to John Walsh-higher up in espn management.Big ben is gonna be on abc-espn tie in-in a reality show(this fall)....and the Stillers are a HUGE marquee NFL team(HUGE National team-America's team).Mr walsh tried to sweep this under the rug when dan brought it up.He avoided the implication that it's in ESPNS best interests($$$$) to have this disappear....that because of twitter and other new technology that this case has No legs...B.S.....that this is a civil case without merit...i wonder how mr walsh would feel if this was his daughter that was making these charges...?Think about that.
           The Rooneys and the Stillers are a SACRED COW....and its all about power, presige and most important the almight BIG bucks the stillers generate for ESPN(Book it dano)...Why is it that the victim(woman in this case)-is always portrayed as a bimbo, gold digger or loony tunes,nut job?).Her civil suit DESERVES its day in a court of law.Big ben and other jocks have given a free pass on things since their pop warner days....even the casino where she works they don;t take her claims seriously.Everyone(good old boy network) protecting Ben.... a dear lady friend of mine is sick of pro athletes(murder,rape charges, dwi,drug charges, assault and battery, infedilities,non payment of child support,spousal abuse-its more Rampant than EVER before my friends).I'm sick of it also...I don;t go to hardly ANY pro games anymore-im sick of it and letting my dollars NOT hardly support the pro leagues-tired of reading the daily rap sheet of athletes

7/24/09
2
raiders1steve wrote:
hello,
this is what i heard this morning on the dan patrick show.He talked to John Walsh-higher up in espn management.Big ben is gonna be on abc-espn tie in-in a reality show(this fall)....and the Stillers are a HUGE marquee NFL team(HUGE National team-America's team).Mr walsh tried to sweep this under the rug when dan brought it up.He avoided the implication that it's in ESPNS best interests($$$$) to have this disappear....that because of twitter and other new technology that this case has No legs...B.S.....that this is a civil case without merit...i wonder how mr walsh would feel if this was his daughter that was making these charges...?Think about that.
           The Rooneys and the Stillers are a SACRED COW....and its all about power, presige and most important the almight BIG bucks the stillers generate for ESPN(Book it dano)...Why is it that the victim(woman in this case)-is always portrayed as a bimbo, gold digger or loony tunes,nut job?).Her civil suit DESERVES its day in a court of law.Big ben and other jocks have given a free pass on things since their pop warner days....even the casino where she works they don;t take her claims seriously.Everyone(good old boy network) protecting Ben.... a dear lady friend of mine is sick of pro athletes(murder,rape charges, dwi,drug charges, assault and battery, infedilities,non payment of child support,spousal abuse-its more Rampant than EVER before my friends).I'm sick of it also...I don;t go to hardly ANY pro games anymore-im sick of it and letting my dollars NOT hardly support the pro leagues-tired of reading the daily rap sheet of athletes
But what if he is innocent?


And I'm not saying he is, but it sure sounds like you think he is guilty.
Why don't we all just reserve judgement until we find out more information.



If Ben turns out to be guilty its no real loss for the Steelers since he's an "average" QB anyway.

7/24/09
1
Pat wrote:
I'm not proving your point for you at all. If you had done ANY research at all, you would have known that it was reported almost everywhere. Trust me, it's my job to do that, so I had already seen it almost everywhere. Since the articles were almost 24 hours old, there were already follow-up articles being posted in most places, and ESPN STILL took another half-day to even acknowledge that the situation was happening.

Obviously, they had no interest in corroborating the story. It would have taken only a simple phone call to Vegas, and they could have confirmed the story in minutes.

I find it hilarious that you're trying to defend ESPN, as if they have a standing policy of not reporting rumors. We both know they've jumped the gun on MANY things in the past, and will continue to do so in the future. They obviously have a reason that they wanted to protect Big Ben, and it just makes them look pathetic.
Ok, they reported it a half day after some other major news sources.  What do they gain by "protecting" Big Ben?  What are all these stories on which they have jumped the gun?  Nearly all of their big stories start with, "According to such and such" because they don't just air something that could be a rumor, they check it out first.  Typically it's an internet article making some claim.  They rarely are the first to break a news story, especially when it comes to stories like this.

7/24/09
1
Pat wrote:
I'm not proving your point for you at all. If you had done ANY research at all, you would have known that it was reported almost everywhere. Trust me, it's my job to do that, so I had already seen it almost everywhere. Since the articles were almost 24 hours old, there were already follow-up articles being posted in most places, and ESPN STILL took another half-day to even acknowledge that the situation was happening.

Obviously, they had no interest in corroborating the story. It would have taken only a simple phone call to Vegas, and they could have confirmed the story in minutes.

I find it hilarious that you're trying to defend ESPN, as if they have a standing policy of not reporting rumors. We both know they've jumped the gun on MANY things in the past, and will continue to do so in the future. They obviously have a reason that they wanted to protect Big Ben, and it just makes them look pathetic.
Ok, they reported it a half day after some other major news sources.  What do they gain by "protecting" Big Ben?  What are all these stories on which they have jumped the gun?  Nearly all of their big stories start with, "According to such and such" because they don't just air something that could be a rumor, they check it out first.  Typically it's an internet article making some claim.  They rarely are the first to break a news story, especially when it comes to stories like this.

7/24/09
1
Redhawks1809 wrote:
Ok, they reported it a half day after some other major news sources.  What do they gain by "protecting" Big Ben?  What are all these stories on which they have jumped the gun?  Nearly all of their big stories start with, "According to such and such" because they don't just air something that could be a rumor, they check it out first.  Typically it's an internet article making some claim.  They rarely are the first to break a news story, especially when it comes to stories like this.
Actually, they TRY to be the first to break most stories. And this wasn't something that was difficult to confirm. A simple phone call to Tahoe would have done the trick.

And honestly, I don't know what they stand to gain by protecting Roethlisberger. I think that's one of the questions that everyone is asking.

7/25/09
1
BluDevil wrote:
What exactly is that supposed to mean?
I'm sorry, did I stutter? "Civil cases" involving black athletes have been reported on ESPN.

7/28/09
1
MIKELIN8 wrote:
I'm sorry, did I stutter? "Civil cases" involving black athletes have been reported on ESPN.
I still don't get it. I guess I'm just dense. Sorry.

 
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