PITTSBURGH, PA - JANUARY 08: Ben Roethlisberger #7 of the Pittsburgh Steelers heads out onto the field int he first half during the Wild Card Playoff game against the Miami Dolphins at Heinz Field on January 8, 2017 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
The Pittsburgh Steelers ran away with a Wild Card victory over the Miami Dolphins fairly early in the game, jumping out to a 21-3 lead in the second quarter. They never looked back, rolling to a 30-12 win, but they didn't come away unscathed.
Ben Roethlisberger was in a walking boot after the win, saying he got injured late in the game. He appeared to have injured his foot on a third-down play with the Steelers up 18 points and still surprisingly throwing the ball. Mike Tomlin was questioned for keeping his stars in the game for so long despite the wide margin, and on Tuesday, he took the blame for it.
He said he, not offensive coordinator Todd Haley, called the pass on third down when Roethlisberger was injured.
"I take responsibility for throwing it on third down," Tomlin said, via Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "I made the call, so don't ask Todd about that call."
Tomlin added that he "got a little too over-aggressive there."
He did offer a slight explanation for keeping Ben in so late in the game, despite being up by 18 points.
Fortunately, Roethlisberger was out of the boot on Monday and appeared to be fine, saying the injury "shouldn't be an issue" going forward. Let this be a lesson to Tomlin and every other NFL coach out there on how not to manage your stars in a blowout, because injuries can happen. Just ask the Raiders about that.
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