Aqib Talib And Others Think Big Ben Was Faking His Shoulder Injury

Aqib Talib just said Roethlisberger was faking the arm injury. Can't make this stuff up.

— Adam Crowley (@adamcrowleySNR) January 18, 2016

Aqib Talib: Ben was healthy as hell. He didn’t fool anybody

— Gregg Rosenthal (@greggrosenthal) January 18, 2016

YardBarker- The Denver Broncos cornerback wasn’t shy about letting people know he thought Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was faking the shoulder injury he sustained against the Cincinnati Bengals during Wild Card Weekend.

Roethlisberger reportedly played through a sprained AC joint and possibly some torn ligaments in his right throwing shoulder in Sunday’s 23-16 AFC Divisional Playoff loss to the Broncos.

For what it’s worth, there’s a groundswell of support for Talib’s opinion. Former Baltimore Ravens coach Brian Billick agreed with Talib, calling Roethlisberger a “drama queen” last week.

Teammate Von Miller agreed.

“No, he didn’t (look hurt),” the Broncos linebacker said, via ESPN. “But like I said, like I said, I read through the bluff … I read through the bluff.”

Broncos coach Gary Kubiak alluded to the same thing, telling reporters “We had kind of talked about it and probably said, knowing Ben … you knew he’d be ready to go."



Something tells me that Aqib Talib doesn't pay too much attention to cinematic award shows. However, if he just so happens to be one of the people upset that more African Americans weren't nominated for the Oscars then he damn well better be upset that Ben Roethlisberger wasn't either. If Big Ben was "faking" the injury he incurred against the Cincinnati Bengals then his dedication to his role, even in the most tumultuous of circumstances, was second to none. I mean, the guy came out of an NFL playoff game against a rival in the 4th quarter when his team was losing. Then when he came back in he proceeded to throw not a single pass that was longer than 5 yards. I wasn't next to the trainer's table so I can't say I know the true status of Ben Roethlisberger's shoulder, but if it was 100% healthy then his ability to act like it wasn't was award winning.

People really don't have much faith in the Pittsburgh Steelers injury reports, huh? First, Pacman Jones thought Antonio Brown was faking his concussion after his head almost got knocked clean off his body, and now multiple sources think that Ben Roethlisberger was playing up his pain when he was basically dragging a lifeless arm around the field just a week prior? Why are people flocking to acting schools in Los Angeles when the real theatrics are being taught in the Steel City? With the trouble Mike Tomlin occasionally has managing in-game situations, he might be missing his real calling as an acting coach.

Do I think there was a little bit of gamesmanship surrounding the uncertainty of Big Ben's availability this past weekend? Of course. There was never a doubt in mind he was going to play, but that's because he damn near always plays. You'd be hard pressed to find a quarterback whose playing style has led to him taking more bone chilling hits, but you'd also be hard pressed to find a guy that's harder to knock out of the game for an extended period of time. Saying that Ben Roethlisberger faked his shoulder injury is basically like saying he's incapable of getting injured. Of course he didn't go from unable to throw during the week to being able to toss 50 yard bombs on Sunday, but that doesn't mean that his sprained joint and torn ligaments were a complete fabrication. Since he's not opposing Leo's role in 'The Revenant' I think it's fair to say that there is some pretty clear visual evidence to the contrary.