Some of former Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger’s teammates took issue with remarks made by Joey Porter Sr. on a podcast. After appearing on Cam Heyward’s Not Just Football accusing Roethlisberger of being a bad teammate and person, many chose to weigh in, some more extensively than others. While some seemed to echo Porter’s sentiments, others defended the retired quarterback.
None more so, thus far, than former Steelers T Zach Banner. He wrote a post on X defending Roethlisberger against Porter’s attacks and promised a more robust response in the future. The two shared a locker room for four years between 2018 and 2021. Having just won a starting job, he suffered a torn ACL in Week 1 in 2022. The injury sidetracked his career, yet he continued to pursue his dream of playing professional football.
Banner insists Roethlisberger was there for him, disputing Porter’s characterization of a bad teammate. “Ben [Roethlisberger] aka 7 is one of the best big bros in football I’ve ever had”, he wrote, in part. “[W]hen you attack someone’s character and question them as a person, and not the football player. Then you better be perfect in all cylinders of life. And you’re not. The same thing goes for Coach Tomlin as a coach. And I’m not speaking cryptic today. Peezy and James Harrison are wrong”.
And watch how many of you soft JAGs, who thought my comment earlier was gonna bandwagon with the rest of those guys, and had the nerve to think I would ever turn my back on someone who literally held me during the most traumatic event in my life so far, go back and delete or… pic.twitter.com/awPTB2ygTk
— Zach Banner (@ZBNFL) February 12, 2026
Another of Roethlisberger’s former teammates, Devlin “Duck” Hodges, also appeared to defend him against Porter’s accusations. He simply posted three yawning emojis captioning a picture of himself and Roethlisberger. The veteran quarterback, who suffered a season-ending elbow injury Hodges’ one year in Pittsburgh, is shown using his non-dominant left hand with a big grin on his face to give the rookie college free agent quarterback a high five. He is also wearing a headset, with Hodges in uniform, possibly suggesting Roethlisberger had a line to his ear in-game.
While many current and former Steelers seemed to support Joey Porter Sr.’s comments, it’s less clear which of them echoed his comments specifically about Ben Roethlisberger. The former quarterback came under fire, along with another former Steeler, James Harrison, for comments made about former HC Mike Tomlin. Essentially, Porter accused them of breaking the “brotherhood” for their comments, adding they were among the last ones who should speak up.
Porter, of course, took it to about the fullest extent one could by calling Roethlisberger a bad person. Earlier in his career, Roethlisberger faced multiple allegations of sexual misconduct. One incident resulted in him serving a four-game suspension, a reduction from six games. Porter did not specify whether he was referring to these public allegations among other things.
Roethlisberger has his own podcast, so time will tell as to whether he responds to Porter’s harsh words. The two were teammates for three years at the start of Roethlisberger’s career. Later on, Porter also returned to the Steelers as a coach. Roethlisberger has owned up to being a bad teammate early in his career, but improved as he grew older.
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