Roethlisberger: Stage may have been too big for Steelers' young players

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger couldn't quite put his finger on why his team succumbed to a 36-17 thrashing at the hands of the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game.

Presented with a chance to reach the Super Bowl, the Steelers whiffed on too many scoring opportunities to stay competitive in the game.

After the game, Roethlisberger was asked if the team's inability to score from the 1-yard line to close the first half was the turning point.

"I don't know if that was the one thing, but you've got to score when you're down there. There were other missed opportunities whether we didn't execute well enough, whether plays weren't made by me or other guys. It just at times almost felt like it was almost too big for some of the young guys," Roethlisberger said.

Many of his teammates, particularly on the offensive side of the ball, were playing in their first AFC title game. Those youngsters, including Le'Veon Bell, Antonio Brown, Sammie Coates, Cobi Hamilton, and Jesse James, were counted on to make big plays on Sunday.

Roethlisberger praised his teammates for their play in the game, even stating, "I like the guys we have," but he stressed that even the young players must capitalize on such opportunities.

"Hopefully this is a learning game for guys to understand that this isn't promised to anybody," the veteran of 13 seasons said. "Tomorrow's not promised to any of us and just to make the playoffs isn't enough to get to this championship game. A lot of guys have been in this league for a long time and haven't been to any of these or have been to very few, so I hope that they understand the importance and relish the opportunity if it comes again."

Roethlisberger was then asked if his teammates understood that going into the game.

"I don't know. That's a good question. That's probably a question for other guys, but I know I did," he said.