What had been expected for months has now become official: Ben Roethlisberger has called it a career. The 39-year-old tweeted a video making the announcement. 
“I don’t know how to put into words what the game of football has meant to me, and what a blessing it has been. While I know with confidence I have given my all to the game, I am overwhelmed with gratitude for all it has given me… The journey has been exhilarating, defined by relationships and fuelled by a spirit of competition… I retire from football a truly grateful man” he said.
“To the Rooney family, the Tull family, Coach [Mike] Tomlin, Coach [Bill] Cowher, the incredible people on every level that make the Pittsburgh Steelers a special organization, thank you for believing in me… To all my teammates and the friendships I have gained, I appreciate you… Putting that jersey on every Sunday with my brothers will always be one of the greatest joys of my life. To Steeler Nation, the best fans in all of sport, thank you for accepting and supporting me as you quarterback over the years”.
Roethlisberger’s 18 years – all with the Steelers – will be remembered most for his two Super Bowl titles (XL and XLIII). The 2004 Offensive Rookie of the Year and six-time Pro Bowler retires in fifth place on the All-Time Passing Yards list (64,088).
It had been assumed since December that the 2021 season would be Roethlisberger’s last in the NFL. Against the odds, the regular season finale against the Ravens didn’t turn out as his final game, as the overtime victory, along with some outside help, got the Steelers into the postseason one final time and continued a career-long streak of never having a losing season.
Going forward, the team will have Mason Rudolph and, in all likelihood, Dwayne Haskins on the roster at the quarterback position. The Steelers will undoubtedly be one of the suitors for an offseason QB acquisition, but whomever the next starter will be, they will face the tall task of carrying on the standard set by a future Hall of Famer and franchise icon.
That’s my QB. So grateful to have grown up with Big Ben. Watched almost every snap of his career. There’s something special about being a kid with a hall of fame qb as your qb. I was at his last game and it felt like the end of my childhood. Thanks for the memories Ben. I’ll always be proud to wear 7. See you in canton.
My childhood ended when Unitas was the NFL’s star QB. Thanks for making me feel ancient…lol.
Which Hall in Canton will he be in for? The Football HOF or the Womanizer, Rape, get out of jail because I am an athlete but scumbag first Hall of Fame? . Maybe he will be in the Greyhound Hall of Fame as many of his teammates he rolled over thru the years.
Yep it is: I know that you’re the most (self) righteous person that you know. We all fall short,make mistakes, make bad choices & decisions EVERY SINGLE DAY. What Ben did or didn’t do can be speculated & debated. What he has been proven to have done is totally different than the speculation. He was immature at times. Then again how many early 20 something’s aren’t? I, for one admit that I did some things in my younger life that I’m not proud of. I should’ve been either in jail,prison or dead if it wasn’t for God’s grace, mercy & forgiveness. As a Steelers fan I’m glad to have grown up having watched Bradshaw in my childhood years & Big Ben in my 30’s & 40’s.
Setting aside Ben the person, as a QB, he was simultaneously the toughest QB of his era and yet still a drama queen but fun to watch. Extending the plays, moving around (when younger) finding a guy who broke free before taking the big hit.
Lucky for him, Canton doesn’t have Cooperstown’s rule, so he’ll be a first ballot HOFer.
Lucky for PGH, the Browns took Kellen Winslow. All time ooops.
Do you say setting aside Kobe the person?
Not sure this is the defense of Ben you think it is.
No I just want to see what type of person you are.
…as a way of distracting from the type of person Ben is?
I hope so. Both were/are scum.
A PG columnist listed all the quarterbacks the Steelers went through between Bradshaw’s retirement and Roethlisberger being drafted. It wasn’t pretty
With this front office, it may be decades before this team is again a serious contender
Pro & Con to ownership having high standards and trying to put the best team on the field year in and year out — not a single Top 5 draft pick during that span. Highest draft picks were 10th (HOF Rod Woodson), 8th (Plaxico), and 9th (Rienstra (G) in a very weak QB draft).
Lot of stop gaps. Sometimes letting yourself just stink for a year is healthy…
Yep, you’re right of course. Poorly written comment that failed to note my point was that good quarterbacks aren’t easy to find and develop, and the Steelers have had a history of misfiring on both counts
This “new era” that is comprised of talented, younger quarterbacks leading their teams would tend to make you think that unless they make a big signing or trade, it’s going to be a while before they’re back, that’s all
You’re taking a lot of heat for what I think is a fair statement.
This FO does everything possible to compete for the SB every single year. That yields mid to late 1st round picks. Which means they miss on high pedigree QBs, since they also have no history of trading into the Top 5.
So…yeah. With this FO it could be a while before they find another Ben in the 10-15 range of the draft. Perfectly reasonable comment.
Where did they misfire? On 3rd round investments? If that’s the case then the Steelers and every other team in the league have had a lot of misfires.
The fact they have tried to find guys in late rounds and FA instead of the 1st round of the draft is a bit of a misfire in itself, in my opinion.
Again, if you realistically don’t think you have a chance to put together a championship team in a given year (cough cough this year cough cough)…it’s ok to “let yourself” be bad for a year. Especially when one of the biggest things holding you back is a QB.
I think that like the Packers, Steelers brass sought not to offend their star QB two or three years ago. With Bush, they proved they’ll move up in draft order. With Minkah, they illustrated they’ll make the trade to upgrade.
I liked the selection of Rudolph coming out of OSU The kid had a big arm but I doubt anyone would have thought of him as any more of a possible franchise QB as they would Dobbs. He was a safe selection in terms of challenging the incumbent QB
Not sure if there are any teams that have the foresight to know their star QB won’t last forever and draft as such. Maybe the Chargers are the only ones who come to mind
Maybe they’ll surprise us with a signing or trade. Maybe they’ll opt for Pickett and he’ll be the star quickly
Thanks. Don’t mind the heat. It’s just talk
What is wrong with this front office? It’s so bad that 2 of its members have been interviewed for open GM spots on other teams?
“Stupid front office that kept them in contention for a decade and a half.”
Colbert was an idiot for not replacing Terry Bradshaw, I guess?
It’s not…. the players on the field for the most part just weren’t very good.
I bet there would be a lot of teams out there who would love to have a lousy front office that acquires such bad talent that they go 18 seasons and counting without a losing record ♂️
Horrible organization with 6 rings and a laundry list of hall of famers.
Don’t know where I called them a horrible organization. And LC and Hines should be in the HoF to boot
Been a fan since Noll came on board. Don’t expect them to contend every year. But that doesn’t exempt them from critique. The QB position is one thing. A poor o-line, a d-line with huge holes (will Tuitt and Alualu even be back), poor inside linebacking and a shaky secondary—- given your views, I should pull out some Pom poms and just sing a few choruses of Her We Go. Sheesh
I have the utmost respect for the Steelers franchise. I respect Ben the QB for his play on the field. Ben the person I can not stand for several reasons … the arrogance of him and Aaron Rodgers is annoying. Glad he’s gone. … he played 2 years longer than he should have.
Some fans just don’t know how good they have what they have. I’m a long suffering Detroit Lions fan and I’d love to have to deal with how “poorly” the Pittsburgh Steelers FO has always put such a “bad” team on the field. Talk about perspective, you have to be kidding????
Long overdue
Thank you, 7. Forever grateful that I got to grow up watching you. Enjoy retirement with your family. Go Steelers
Loved Ben in his prime but he needed to retire 3 years ago. He and the offense have been AWFUL.
Thank you Ben for all the great seasons, but also, thank you for finally letting the Steelers move on!
Steelers will be sniffing around Jimmy Girapallo if and when Niners offer him up next year…..he would be a good fit for the Steeler offense….
The Steelers will be exploring the third tier market this offseason, as the two zeroes currently on the squad as backups would need to get lucky to even win 8 games.