JuJu Smith-Schuster sends message to Ben Roethlisberger ahead of final home game
In the latest era of Pittsburgh Steelers football, the connection on the offensive side of the ball has been quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster. While the latter has been out for most of the year with an injury, the two have had success over the previous four seasons.
Now, Roethlisberger is playing in his potentially last game at Heinz Field on Monday Night Football against the Cleveland Browns. Before kickoff. Smith-Schuster penned a letter to his quarterback, thanking him for the help throughout his career.
“If tonight is the last ride at home, I have to say thank you to one of the best QBs in NFL History for welcoming me into this league, helping me grow, and being there for me in every step of my career,” Smith-Schuster said via Twitter on Monday. “It’s been an honor to catch passes and take the field with you. Thank you, 7!”
Smith-Schuster has been in the NFL for five seasons, with Roethlisberger throwing him balls for a majority of them. He has 323 catches throughout his career for 3,855 yards and 26 touchdowns.
When the wide receiver went down this season, Roethlisberger was upset he would not have his top target.
“It’s awful,” Roethlisberger said back in October. “And I’ll speak selfishly, I’m hurt because I miss that guy. I mean, what he brings to this team — his energy, his excitement, the leadership. It sucks, it really does. And I’m not even the one hurt. I spoke to him on Sunday night, I felt his pain through the phone, speaking to his mom as well. It’s just sometimes things aren’t fair and we don’t know why they happen, and a guy that has given so much and a guy that means so much to this team and to me specifically, it’s not fair.”
Pittsburgh Steelers inactives against Cleveland
The Pittsburgh Steelers have a massive Monday Night Football game ahead against an in-division rival, the Cleveland Browns. Just before kickoff, the team released their inactive list, with four Pittsburgh players not playing.
Rookie linebacker Buddy Johnson is the first name mentioned as he is dealing with a foot injury. Pressley Harvin will miss his second consecutive matchup against Cleveland due to personal reasons. Pittsburgh signed Corliss Waitman to replace Harvin.
Quarterback Dwayne Haskins and defensive end Isaiah Buggs will be out as well, with the latter just coming off the COVID-19 list. Tegray Scales was signed of the Cincinnati Bengals practice squad to fill up on depth at the outside linebacker position.
One of the biggest players to return for the Steelers is rookie tight end Pat Freiermuth. The former Penn State player missed last week’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs after being in concussion protocol. Freiermuth returned to practice on Thursday and will play.