Acrisure Stadium hosted another embarrassing showing on Sunday. Chris Boswell slipped during a field goal attempt. Miles Killebrew suffered a likely season-ending knee injury. Aaron Rodgers called the surface “borderline unplayable.”
Ben Roethlisberger Says Pittsburgh Panthers Need Their Own Stadium After Acrisure Field Conditions
Ben Roethlisberger Says Pittsburgh Panthers Need Their Own Stadium After Acrisure Field Conditions (Screenshot Via X/@Channel Seven)
Now the greatest quarterback in Pittsburgh Steelers history has a solution that won’t make Panthers fans happy.
Ben Roethlisberger Says Pittsburgh Panthers Need Their Own Stadium After Acrisure Field Conditions
Ben Roethlisberger spent 18 seasons playing at what’s now called Acrisure Stadium. He earned the right to speak his mind about the field that hosted his entire Hall of Fame career.
On his Footbahlin podcast, he didn’t hold back about Sunday’s conditions during the Steelers’ 23-9 win over Cleveland.
“You can’t have a professional football team, not just the Steelers but the opponents, play on a surface like that,” Roethlisbergersaid. He argued the NFL pays players too much money to risk injuries on such a poor surface.
Big Ben on the field conditions at Acrisure:
“I don’t think Pitt should play there anymore. I firmly believe Pitt should put a 35,000 person stadium in Oakland.”#steelers
🎥 Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger pic.twitter.com/94Kkk3r14O
— Matthew Luciow (@matthewluciow92) October 14, 2025
Special teams captain Cam Heyward was even more blunt, calling the field “shit” after Killebrew’s injury.
The problem is simple math. The Steelers play ten home games including preseason. The Panthers play six to seven home games.
High school championship games use the field during NFL season. The grounds crew resods multiple times per year but it’s not enough.
Roethlisberger offered his fix. “I don’t think Pitt should play there anymore,” he said. “I firmly believe that Pitt should put like a 35,000-person stadium up [in] Oakland.”
He pointed out that the Panthers only draw half the crowd the Steelers do at Acrisure Stadium. A smaller venue in Oakland, where the University of Pittsburgh campus sits, would make it easier for students and better for everyone involved.
The stadium was built in 2001 with both teams sharing costs and usage rights. Pitt invested heavily to make it happen.
The Panthers helped fund the $281 million project that replaced Three Rivers Stadium. After 24 years, the arrangement is showing its limits.
Fans Divided Over Ben Roethlisberger’s Call For Pitt To Leave Acrisure Stadium
The reaction split along predictable lines. Some fans want Pitt gone, while others remember that the stadium wouldn’t exist without the Panthers’ investment.
One fanwrote, “They call that turf? My grandma’s carpet has more bounce.” The field conditions are undeniable at this point.
Anotheradded, “Well Pitt’s average attendance is 50k sooooooool,” pointing out the Panthers don’t fill the 68,400-seat stadium.
But not everyone agreed with Roethlisberger’s solution. A thirdpointed out, “There was no Heinz field without Pitt’s investment. Not sure why people dont understand the Steelers needed Pitt to get this deal done not the opposite.” History matters here.
A fourthchimed in, “Everyone wants Pitt to have their own stadium but it’s not going to happen. Heinz Field/Acrisure only exists because of Pitt. Do the Eagles & Temple have a problem with their field?”
The comparison to Philadelphia’s shared arrangement raises valid questions about whether this is just a Pittsburgh problem or a league-wide maintenance issue.
The Steelers are replacing the sod this week. Pitt hosts a game on October 25, and the Steelers host the Packers on October 26. That’s two games in two days on brand new grass. Good luck with that.
Roethlisberger’s proposal makes sense from a football perspective. Whether it makes financial or political sense in Pittsburgh is another story entirely.
The Panthers aren’t leaving a stadium they helped build anytime soon, which means this conversation will continue every time someone slips on that field.