Steelers Now
A Week 5 bye week is not ideal, but Pittsburgh Steelers president Art Rooney II is OK with it. He also confirmed that the Steelers did not request the early bye week from the NFL due to their Week 4 game against the Minnesota Vikings taking place in Ireland.
“Let’s say this, we didn’t ask for the bye after the Ireland game,” Rooney said, via the team’s official website. “The league has in the past, kind of tended to try to give teams their bye following an International Game. I don’t think that’s the rule anymore, but you know it’s not a bad way to do it. It is a long trip, and so it doesn’t hurt to have the bye coming after that.
“We had a little bit of input, not a lot in terms of the date and our opponent in Ireland, but we’re happy with how the game fell (on the schedule) and where it falls on the calendar. And the great thing is that the ticket demand is already through the roof. We’re going to have a great Steelers crowd in Dublin.”
The Steelers-Vikings game on Sept. 28 will be the first NFL regular season game ever played in Ireland. It will be a historic event on many fronts.
It will be the first time a game between two teams has been playing in three different countries. The last time the Steelers played an international game was, coincidentally, against the Vikings on Sept. 29, 2013 in London.
Rooney said the Steelers will likely have a similar approach to the Ireland game that they had in 2013 against Minnesota in London — leaving Pittsburgh Thursday, practicing in Ireland Friday.
The Vikings will play in Dublin against the Steelers in Week 4, before returning to London to face the Cleveland Browns on Oct. 5. They’ll be the first team to play in two different countries outside the United States in back-to-back weeks. It will be their fifth trip to London, and third in four years. The Vikings are 4-0 in international regular season games.
Rooney is excited to host a regular season game in Ireland this season. It’s something that the Rooney family has been pushing for over the last several years.
“The opportunity for the Pittsburgh Steelers to play in Ireland is truly special, not only because of the Rooney family history there but because it allows us to connect with Irish fans while also giving fans who travel from Pittsburgh and beyond a unique football experience,” Rooney said in a press release. “We are thrilled to be part of this historic event and to represent Pittsburgh on a global stage.”
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Rooney: ‘Let’s Say This, We Didn’t Ask for Bye After the Ireland Game’
