Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has been the subject

of critical comments from a variety of former teammates since the end of the 2018 season and several current teammates have spoken up to refute those barbs Sean Davis Jersey , but the quarterback has not offered a direct response to any of it over the last few months.That didn’t change when he provided a few quotes to the team’s website about the start of the offseason program. Roethlisberger said that it has been “fun to be out there throwing with the guys” for the first time since Week 17 of the 2018 season.Roethlisberger was also asked about having all of the core veterans on the team on hand for the voluntary sessions and his answer included what could be taken as a comment about some of the people who aren’t in Pittsburgh any longer.“I expect nothing else,” Roethlisberger said. “We want to show we are here, dedicated to this team, dedicated to having a great season. We are all about each other.”Running back Le'Veon Bell and wide receiver Antonio Brown were the biggest departures from the Steelers. Bell wasn’t with the team at all last season while Brown’s final days with the team did little to live up to the idea of full dedication to the team. That may not have been the impetus for Roethlisberger’s comments on Tuesday, but the choice of words doesn’t feel totally coincidental given the words some others have chosen to use about Roethlisberger of late. It remains to be seen whether the NFL will take any type of discipline against the Steelers for embellishing the injury report regarding the Week 17 status of receiver Antonio Brown. It’s clear Ramon Foster Jersey , based on coach Mike Tomlin’s comments from Wednesday, that the league could impose sanctions against the Steelers, if it chooses to.First, and most obviously, Tomlin admitted that Vince Williams Jersey , when he didn’t hear from Brown on Saturday, he decided that Brown wouldn’t play on Sunday. At that point, Brown should have been downgraded from questionable to out.Second, Brown’s no show on Thursday, which Tomlin seemed to confirm based on the manner in which he explained the situation (and which per a league source definitely occurred) Zach Gentry Pittsburgh Steelers Jersey , shouldn’t have simply been addressed by an explanation tin the injury report hat Brown didn’t practice due to a knee injury. Brown didn’t practice due to a failure to show up for work, and that’s how it should have been disclosed.It’s also possible that Brown wasn’t injured at all, and that the Steelers hid behind that excuse in order to keep the situation from becoming a disruption and distraction before a must-win game. Sure, Brown may have claimed to have a knee injury, but it appears that the Steelers simply took his word for it in lieu of sparking a showdown.A showdown is now looming between Brown and the Steelers. A separate showdown could be looming between the Steelers and the league Zach Gentry Pittsburgh Steelers Jersey , if a decision is made to investigate the matter aggressively and to hold the team accountable, if justified by the facts.