On a day when Aaron Rodgers became the highest-profile NFL player to test positive for covid-19 this season, Ben Roethlisberger was asked about the precautions he takes against contracting the virus.

Roethlisberger spent five days on the reserve/covid-19 list last season because he was in close contact with a team member who had tested positive, but he returned in time to lead the Steelers to a 36-10 victory against Cincinnati on Nov. 15.

Rodgers’ positive test will prevent him from playing this weekend at Kansas City.

“Some of the vaccinated in my family, I think, have had it,” Roethlisberger said. “It’s just, you can’t live in a bubble. I felt like we lived in a bubble last year and we can’t keep doing that. Now, I’m not going to go to a big, crowded place and just see what happens. I’m not going to take that chance.

“I just try to live a normal life, and I don’t do much anyway. I’m kind of home all the time.”

The Steelers had one of the highest vaccination rates heading into the season, and the organization hasn’t had a player or staff member test positive this season.

Ready for some football

The Steelers will hit a milestone against the Bears. The game will mark the franchise’s 75th appearance on “Monday Night Football” since the prime-time weekday game made its debut in 1970.

At Heinz Field, the Steelers have won 18 in a row on Monday night. They were upset in their most recent appearance, a 27-17 loss at Cincinnati last December in Cincinnati.

Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is 16-6 on the Monday night stage, and even at 39 years old, he still gets excited about the matchup.

“It’s still pretty cool,” he said. “I remember as a kid, there weren’t all these games. ‘Monday Night Football’ was all you had. If I was nice and didn’t ask too many times, my dad might let me watch the first quarters. Most times I had to go to bed.

“Now, I get to be on the field and there is some kid somewhere begging to watch the game. That makes it pretty cool.”

Green sees yellow

It’s not lost on rookie center Kendrick Green that he has been called for six penalties this season, second most on the team. Right tackle Chuks Okorafor has been penalized seven times.

Green was called for holding in the second quarter against Cleveland, but it was offset by an unnecessary roughness penalty. The second infraction was a holding call that negated Roethlisberger’s 2-point conversion in the third quarter. The Steelers missed the ensuing attempt from the 12.

“That’s two too many,” Green said. “I’m sure I’ll hear about it in meetings. It’s something that needs to be harped on my game.”

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