Ben Roethlisberger is back for his 18th season with the Steelers. It’s fair to wonder if this is his last, but Big Ben says he’s taking things one step at a time, like always. 
“I’m going to approach this like I do every season: like it’s my last,” Roethlisberger said (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Aditi Kinkhabwala). “I think that’s the approach you have to take, and you don’t approach it that way because it could be your last, but you approach it because every single play in the game of football could be your last…That just means I’m going out to give it everything I have. I’ve never looked toward the future. I’ve always looked toward the right here and now. That’s what’s important for me for this season is giving everything I have right here and right now for this group of guys.”
After being limited to just two games in 2019, Roethlisberger struggled throughout 2020. After the season, he agreed to slash his salary by $5MM. Many believed that the Steelers would have gone in another direction otherwise. But, according to Big Ben, he volunteered to do it.
“(The pay cut) was my idea,” he said. “I told them I wanted to help the team out however we can, and so I went to them and told them I would do whatever I could to help the team sign the guys that are going to help us win football games….I wanted to come back to be a part of what I think is a special football team that everyone’s overlooking. In order to do that, to help get guys here, I felt that it was necessary to do that.”
Whether it was the Steelers’ idea or Big Ben’s idea, the speculation can be put in the rear view mirror. Roethlisberger is set to lead the way once again in 2020 and, thanks to JuJu Smith-Schuster‘s own home team discount, he’ll have his top target along for the ride.
The guy is done!
Threw for 33 touchdowns last season and only 10 picks. He’s hardly done.
5 of them were in one game
Actually, per Pro Football Reference, he topped out at four TD’s in one game, against the Bengals. So he had 29 TD’s in his remaining 14 games played, which would have been 34 TD’s over a full 16 games.
I don’t like the guy, but they obviously found a way to work around his diminishing arm strength last year that was mostly effective.
In only 15 games
I don’t think he’s done… but $5Million restructure was almost slap in the face. And I have a feeling with as many questions marks on the Pittsburgh line mainly tackles and how center will hold up, he’ll probably be wishing he took more of a cut for a better team.
He’ll be starting for the Jets next year. LOL.
Jets are happy with the kid they just drafted but the Pirates could use some pitching help.
9-7 wild card, eliminated first week of playoffs
Retires afterwards. Good career, first ballot HOF.
Seems legit in a 17 game season.
Ok….9-8….forgot the extra game….like that really changes the point
Sure he went to them and ask for a pay cut. Just like he ask the gal he assaulted. Pure SCUM BAG who has nothing left. He reminds me of the Cool Guy after graduation who goes back and tries to hang with all the SR’s the following year. Just go away already. 7-10
What a dumb comment
Nobody believes he went to them and offered to take a pay cut. And if he did, he saw the writing on the wall.
(Also, enough with the assault comments. I am by no means condoning any such action, and if indeed factual, then yes he is a scumbag. However, it was a LONG time ago and the man has found himself spiritually and hasade a positive impact on the community. Focus on the good for a change.)
Someone that thinks they know football or from the sounds of it what it’s like to be an athlete. Probably got beat up in high school and flexes his fingers on sites like this
That’s exactly who this Yep it is guy is… what a bum
I’ll ride with Big Ben until he’s ready to go. He’s done so much for the Steelers and some Steelers fans want to hand it over to mason rudolph still. 18 years with one team. He’s no young Ben anymore but that doesn’t mean the Steelers can’t win it all. Get some youth on that o-line. Let Najee run. And that opens up the pass game. Losing bush was huge last year. The defense is healthy and they’ll do just fine. Randy land is gone too which is a blessing. Send Ben off like the Bus
Yes sir! But let’s do it without any scares like that Colts ending. I don’t think Ben can still make that tackle nowadays.
Haha! For sure man. Don’t think I could take that nowadays either. That was the craziest wave of emotions in a game. From the Troy interception turned over, to the Manning sack, to the bettis fumble, to bens tackle, to the missed field goal. What a fun year though
Ben struggled last year? Well, if by “struggled”, one means that the lack of offensive versatility forced him to literally BE the entire offense, then yes, I could agree.
By midseason when Conner returned from his brief injury, it was pretty obvious that the line was a shell of its former self, the backs were average across the board, and the wideouts could not break physical coverage (except Claypool, who mostly played well but still was subject to rookie mistakes). Ben took more and more responsibility for the offense, and by the seventh or eighth game he was reading the defense, making the call at the LoS, and throwing the ball immediately after the snap. That’s why the Steelers couldn’t go deep-though I do not doubt that Ben’s arm is weaker than it has been, we didn’t get to see much of what his actual capability is today because the line could not block long enough to set it up and the wideouts could not get separation downfield if the blocking was there.
This year, I’m not sure how much better the Steelers’ chances are because they still haven’t answered the biggest questions along the line, which has no guaranteed rock to build around. They have a few rookies or returners from injury who should help, but we just don’t know. The defense has lost a few pieces. Unless the receivers suddenly leap ahead in ability, the Steelers will have no choice but to pound Harris as a rookie to keep pressure off Ben. I actually believe him when he says that he went to management first-the cap situation hamstrung the team’s ability to address these holes except through the draft.