STEELERS QB BEN ROETHLISBERGER

Sunday, February 1

STEELERS QB BEN ROETHLISBERGER

(on the game-winning touchdown pass) “I was going to throw the ball in the flat. They covered it up so I went to Hines (Ward). He was covered, getting held. But all of a sudden, I saw him go to the corner. I threw it and thought it was going to be picked. He made a heck of a catch.”


(on capping the season with a Super Bowl win) “I’ll tell you what, I’m so proud of this group of guy. We hung through some tough times, some adversity. They talk a lot about this offense, and you know what, I’m so proud of the way we responded that last drive. I hope we silenced some critics.”


(on being nervous in his first Super Bowl, compared to now) “I felt a lot better. I didn’t have the jitters. I actually didn’t feel really nervous, but when the planes flew over, that’s when I was the most nervous. I’m just excited for everybody that we got this win.”


(on getting WR Santonio Holmes more into the offense with WR Hines Ward not 100 percent) “Not really, I mean ‘Tone’s (Santonio Holmes) an integral part of our offense as it is. We just saw some things. I saw some stuff with him that I knew he was going to get open. If you get the ball to ‘Tone he’s going to make plays and he did it tonight.”


(on what the winning touchdown play was called) “Drop back, scramble right, scramble left, find someone open.”


(on the defense closing out the game) “We were just hoping that our defense could hold. We had all the confidence that they could do it. They’ve done it all year.”


(on his impressions of Kurt Warner) “I mean, Kurt Warner is Kurt Warner. He is a phenomenal football player. He threw the ball, I don’t know his numbers but I know they had to be good. He is a heck of a competitor and I told him it was an honor for me to play in this game against him because his autobiography was the first one I ever read, so it was really an honor to play against him.”


(on his last touchdown pass to Santonio Holmes) “The first read was the running back in the flat but he wasn’t open. Then I was going to try to bang it to Hines (Ward) real quick, but someone was closing on it and I was a little nervous about it. It wouldn’t have been a touchdown. I looked back, scrambled right a little bit and saw ‘Ton in the corner. I tried to throw it high so he was going to catch it, or no one was, and luckily he made a heck of a play.”


(on going back to his receivers despite their dropped passes) “I’m just letting them know I have confidence in them. He walked by me and said, ‘my bad’ and I said, ‘it doesn’t matter,’ because that’s the type of player he is, that’s the type of confidence I have in him and he came back and made a play.”


(on this Super Bowl compared to last Super Bowl) “I played a little better than I did last time so it feels a lot better, to be able to come back on that last drive, probably a drive that will be remembered for a long time, at least in Steelers history. So, it feels really good, really special.”


(on the game-winning drive and touchdown throw to WR Santonio Holmes)
“I’m really proud of the way these guys played. That was a heck of a drive. We got backed up early on the drive with the penalties and we had to work the ball all the way down the field. On the scoring play that put us ahead the first read wasn’t open, the second read wasn’t open and I kind of felt (Santonio Holmes) at the last minute, so I let it go and thought the corner dropped off but (Holmes) went out and just made a heck of a grab.”


(on how his emotions differed in this Super Bowl compared to the first one he appeared in)
“I felt better. I really wasn’t that nervous. I felt more nervous when the planes flew over.”


(on what he said to his offensive teammates late in the 4th quarter and with the Steelers trailing)
“I just said to guys, ‘It’s now or never guys. You’ll be remembered forever if you do this. All the film study, all the hard work, all the stuff that people talked bad about us, it will be for nothing. We have to go out and do this.’ It was a rotten start on the first play, but we pulled through and found a way.”


(on what the win means to him)
“It’s the Super Bowl (laughing). It’s the ultimate high right now.”


(on the difference between his performance in this Super Bowl as opposed to his earlier experience)
“Winning the Super Bowl is all that matters. That’s what makes me the most happy, and I think I played a little bit better this time.”


(on the roller coaster of emotions he experienced in the fourth quarter and with the Cardinals in possession of the football)
“I thought to myself I might go from the ultimate high to the ultimate low here in a matter of seconds. Our defense came through, just like they have done all year and I am really proud of the way they played. I am really proud of this offense, too, because a lot of people have talked bad about us, but starting with the offensive line, we did something special tonight.”


(on his emotions)
“We’re so happy to be able to do this for the Rooneys. This is also for the fans. We love winning this for the fans and we know right now in Pittsburgh they’re going crazy. There are people in the streets and I am sure there is snow on the ground, but it’s really special to win one for the Rooney’s. They’re very special.”


(on MVP WR Santonio Holmes)
“I just told him to not let it go to his head. He has potential and the sky is the limit for that guy. He can go where no receiver has gone and this will be a big confidence booster for him.”


(on the interception return for a TD by LB James Harrison at the end of the first half)
“We couldn’t see the ball because it was behind the line. But then all of a sudden James (Harrison) started running out and all we were thinking was that he had to score because if he gets tackled, it’s nothing. Those are the types of plays he has been making all year, that’s the reason he was the Defensive Player of the Year.”


(on the significance of the football he was holding onto at the podium)
“That’s the ball I took the knee with at the end of the game and held on to. I gave the ball in the last game to Jerome (Bettis).”


(on the play of opposing QB Kurt Warner)
“Kurt Warner is Kurt Warner. I think he’s a fantastic football player. I don’t know his numbers, but he is a heck of a competitor and I told him it was an honor for me to play in the game against him because his autobiography was one of the first one I ever read, so it was really an honor to play against him.”


(on what happened on his game-winning TD throw to WR Santonio Holmes)
“The first read was the running back in the flat, but he wasn’t open. Then I was going to try to bang it to WR Hines (Ward) real quick, but someone was closing on him and I was a little nervous about it, it wouldn’t have been a touchdown. So I just kind of looked left and scrambled right a little bit and saw (Santonio Holmes) in the corner and decided to just throw it high, because either he was going to catch it or no one was going to catch it, and luckily he made a heck of a play.”