Steelers Daily Links: Ben Congratulates Suggs; Rams Passing Problems

Former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger congratulated his longtime foe Terrell Suggs on his induction into the Baltimore Ravens Ring of Honor. Suggs will be honored at halftime of Sunday’s Ravens-Lions at M&T Bank Stadium, watching his name join the Ring of Honor with legends like such as Ray Lewis, Ed Reed and Jonathan Ogden.

“Tell Suggs I said congratulations,” Roethlisberger told the Ravens website. “I loved playing against him because of the competitors we both are, the battles that we would have, the mutual respect that we had for each other. And I absolutely hated it because he was either intercepting a pass, knocking passes down, sacking me – something that just made my day miserable.

“When we were going to play Baltimore, I had to know where he was. I had to try and mentally beat him and that was hard. People talk about his physicality and what kind of physical freak he was. But he was a smart football player. You could outsmart a lot of guys, but not him. When I had to go up against him, I had to stress my brain. Only he can answer if I raised his game, but I know he always raised mine. He was a special player.”

Roethlisberger and Suggs were fierce competitors on the field, but they both had a ton of respect for each other. That was the overall theme of the Steelers-Ravens rivalry in the 2000s.

“It went hand-in-hand, especially with guys like Hines Ward and James Harrison. We didn’t like them. It wasn’t a hate, like if we saw them on the street we weren’t going to get in a brawl. Nah, it wasn’t that kind of hate. It was a football rivalry. Their flag vs. our flag kind of thing,” Suggs recently told GQ Sports.

? According to ESPN, Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford has struggled against pressure this year. He ranks 29th in QBR (6.6), 31st in completion percentage (31%) and 28th in yards per attempt (3.7) when facing pressure. The Steelers have the sixth-highest pressure rate in the NFL at 33%.

? NFL Network Brian Baldinger broke down the Rams’ passing attack against the Steelers’ defensive front for Sunday’s matchup.

? Former NFL defensive back Jason McCourty thinks the Steelers need more than just a win against the Rams on Sunday. They need to figure out their offensive struggles.

? Happy 36th birthday to former Steelers linebacker Thaddeus Gibson, born on Oct. 21, 1987 in Euclid, Ohio. Gibson was a fourth-round pick of the Steelers in 2010 but never played a game for the team.

? Pro Football Journal posted an All-22 clip of Lynn Swann getting knocked out of the game in Super Bowl XIV.

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