The Pittsburgh Steelers wore a special alternate jersey against the Green Bay Packers last week as a tribute to the 1933 Pittsburgh Pirates, the team that originated the franchise. However, the public reception has been mixed and leaned mostly negative. And surprisingly, one of the critics was former Steelers legend Ben Roethlisberger.
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Even though some fans loved the vintage nod, most trolled the design, pointing out that the lines on the jersey looked a lot like traffic symbols on a road. Others thought they looked way too yellow. The matte yellow helmets, though, received plenty of praise for their fresh look.
Roethlisberger, meanwhile, felt that the jersey was bad enough to qualify as a Halloween costume.
“The Steelers dressed up bad enough this week in their uniforms to be enough of a Halloween costume for everybody,” Roethlisberger began on his podcast, Footbahlin.
It was quite the roast coming from one of the best players to ever play for the franchise. To top it off, the Steelers got roasted on the field as well. They ended up losing 35-25 to the Packers after being outscored 28-9 in the second half. It was a disastrous finish that saw the AFC team head to the locker room in a bad mood, still donning their alternate jerseys.
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After the loss, Roethlisberger bet that his former team won’t wear the jerseys ever again. “They were unique, and I bet you we won’t see them again,” he said. “I do not [believe they will] after that loss.”
The former Super Bowl champion went on to say that players and coaches are superstitious, and that’s why the 1933 jerseys won’t be worn again. Roethlisberger went on to mention that he enjoyed wearing alternate jerseys like the “Bumblebee” unis from time to time.
But all in all, it sounds like Roethlisberger and the entire Steelers fanbase weren’t too satisfied this past week. They didn’t like how their team looked literally and figuratively. As Deion Sanders says, “Look good, feel good, play good.” Pittsburgh did none of those things on Sunday night.
