PITTSBURGH, Pa. -- The Steelers are no strangers to illegal hits, just as the Baltimore Ravens are no strangers to dealing them out. Sunday night’s game, which found Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger with a broken nose to complement his broken foot, was a stunning example of poor officiating. Stevie Johnson rushing to his defense and blaming God for the poor call was even more baffling.

According to Roethlisberger, "A hand came through my facemask and, the next thing I knew, blood was running down my face. I said to [referee Terry McAulay], ‘He hit me in the head.’ He said, ‘He was just trying to tackle you.' " The opposing player in question was Raven’s defensive tackle Haloti Ngata.


Despite fines levied against two Ravens players and the Steelers’ ultimate victory, Roethlisberger feels cheated. “I know all about illegal hits. Like, when you beat up a woman who won’t give you sexual favors, there’s a flag on the play. You know? You get penalized. You pay a big fine, take a suspension, and then get your head right. But these referees are just letting the Dirty Birds get away with it. Makes you wonder if they’d stand back and let some football player molest their daughters. I guess if they’re from Baltimore, why not?”

Unlikely support for Roethlisberger came from Buffalo Bills wide receiver Stevie Johnson. On his Twitter page today, Johnson posted the following, slightly blasphemous post with his take on the incident:

@StevieJohnson13
BIG BEN PRAISES YOU 24/7. THIS IS WHAT HE GETS? BROKEN NOSE? BROKEN FOOT? BROKEN SEX LIFE? HOW MUCH THE RAVENS PAYING YOU, GOD?