Ben Roethlisberger: 'It hurt' when former teammate Sanders called Manning a better leader

Former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders, now with the Denver Broncos, called his new quarterback a better leader than his old one earlier this offseason. Then, this week, he doubled down on the comment.

Now, his old quarterback wants it known that he feels slighted by Sanders' words.

Asked by Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette how he feels about Sanders' claim that Peyton Manning is superior to him, Ben Roethlisberger opened up and admitted it was painful to hear those words.

“Whether he meant it or not, it hurt in a sense that I tried so hard to keep him here last year and was always supporting him. When he was down in practice, I always talked to him. When he had a baby, I was trying to help him,” Roethlisberger said.

Roethlisberger went on to say he's disappointed that Sanders hasn't contacted him to discuss the comments man-to-man.

"I wish he would have reached out to me and just say that and I would have been fine with it,” Roethlisberger added.