Not everyone felt the holiday spirit ahead of the NFL’s Christmas Day doubleheader on Netflix. Former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger called the schedule — which features three games in 11 days for the participating teams — “miserable.”

The Steelers face the Kansas City Chiefs in the first game Wednesday, followed by a game between the Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans. The Christmas Day slate marked just the third time since 1948 that the NFL scheduled games on a Wednesday.

“It’s miserable,” the retired quarterback said on his “Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger” podcast. “It’s a shame that the league does this. It just shows that it’s all about money … because it’s not fair for the players.”

The four teams playing on Christmas played last Saturday, meaning they lost rest and preparation time in consecutive weeks.

“You wanna talk about injuries and making the game safer, changing the kickoff rule and preventing guys on hip-drop tackles, and concussions, and this that and the other, and you’re going to make guys play the most violent game in the world, arguably, three games in 11 days,” Roethlisberger said. “There’s no time for your body to get healthy and rest.”

Players involved in the grueling holiday run have expressed similar concerns in the lead-up to Wednesday’s games, which will air on Netflix.

“When it came out, I thought it was horrible,” Chiefs safety Justin Reid told the Kansas City Star. “And I still think it’s horrible. But it is what it is.”

• Liam Griffin can be reached at lgriffin@washingtontimes.com.