If you've listened to Ben Roethlisberger talk about his days with the Pittsburgh Steelers, you probably know that he's not a fan of turning his back to the defense. This is something he was vocal about, and late in his career, he rarely operated passing plays under center. Now we know why.
On Wednesday, former Steelers offensive coordinator Todd Haley joined ESPN's This is Football with Kevin Clark to discuss his coaching days in Pittsburgh. Haley talked about the play call he would take back and why he owed Big Ben an apology.
"The one I would take back, and this will tie back to [Bill] Parcells, we were playing a game in Pittsburgh, and you know, us coaches think we have all of these great ideas," Haley explained. "So I'm gonna run a little fake jet sweep in a short-yardage situation, and Ben [Roethlisberger]'s gonna fake the jet sweep, and we're then going to throw a play-action for a big play to Heath Miller. Well, Ben faked the jet sweep, turned his back to the defense—which he had to because of my dumb idea—and threw it to the defense."
Haley knew he'd messed up. But he wasn't expecting a call from his old Dallas Cowboys coaching partner, Bill Parcells, telling him what he needs to do next.
"I get to the coach's locker room right after the game, there's a message from Parcells. He says, 'Call me. We need to talk'," Haley continued. "So I called him later that night, and he said, 'You never turn your quarterback's back to the defense in that situation. I want you to go in there tomorrow and tell Ben and the entire offense that you put them in a bad position.' So I had to go in there and do it."
Todd Haley has Pittsburgh Steelers fans reminiscing about the good old days with Ben Roethlisberger
Todd Haley and Ben Roethlisberger butted heads at times; this was no secret. But Pittsburgh Steelers fans would give anything to have these two back in the primes of their careers after what this team has suffered through for over half a decade.
Even on their worst days together, Haley knew how to run an effective NFL offense, and Big Ben could sling the ball around the field as well as anyone. Following the 2017 season, Haley was let go by the Steelers despite an offense that ranked 3rd in yards and 8th in points. Little did fans know how much they would miss him in the coming years.
Back when he was coaching, it was easy to critique Haley's play-calling (such is the life of an NFL coordinator), but the story about Haley's apology to Ben Roethlisberger will resonate well with the fanbase. And after putting up with a combination of Randy Fichtner, Matt Canada, and Arthur Smith over the past seven seasons, many probably wish they had him back right now.
Obviously, Big Ben is missed more than Haley, and the Pittsburgh Steelers are set to have their fifth different starting quarterback over the past five years. Stories like these make it hard not to think about the good old days when this team had a threatening offense. That seems like ages ago.
