Big Ben building resume worthy of the best
Think about the great quarterbacks in NFL history, and these names immediately come to mind: Joe Montana, Johnny Unitas, John Elway, Dan Marino, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Terry Bradshaw, Troy Aikman. All NFL title-game winners, with the exception of Marino. All of them either in the Hall of Fame or on their way.
Does he belong in that group of NFL greats, with two Super Bowl championships on his resume and perhaps another on the way Sunday when the Steelers face the Packers in Super Bowl XLV?
The feeling here is that Roethlisberger someday will take his place among the game's greats. He's only 28 years old, and there's still plenty of football ahead of him.
Yet it's still an open question just where his place in NFL history will be. If he wins Sunday, he'll become only the fifth quarterback to win at least three Super Bowl titles, joining Bradshaw (four), Montana (four), Aikman (three) and Brady (three).
The numbers for Roethlisberger certainly aren't overwhelming. He has only one 4,000-yard passing season and has only one season of more than 30 touchdown passes. He was not a major factor in his first Super Bowl win, when the Steelers had to overcome a spotty performance by Roethlisberger to beat the Seahawks in the Super Bowl after his second NFL season in 2005.
He had an exceptional performance in the Steelers' Super Bowl win over the Cardinals after the 2008 season, but it was wide receiver Santonio Holmes who was named Super Bowl MVP that year with a nine-catch, 131-yard performance that included that incredible winning catch in which he got both tiptoes on the ground before going out of bounds.
No, the raw numbers haven't been what you'd call overwhelming. But that isn't really what Roethlisberger is all about.
"My definition of an elite quarterback is one that wins football games," he said. "Obviously, you put up numbers, and I'm not saying you have to throw for 350 yards a game or whatever."
If it's all about the "W," Roethlisberger is absolutely in the discussion of the best ever. After seven seasons as the Steelers' starter, he's 69-29 in the regular season and 10-2 in the playoffs, with three Super Bowl appearances.
"We all believe in Ben Roethlisberger," receiver Hines Ward said. "Ben always finds a way to get it done. When the play breaks down and he's getting hit, he'll find a way to get out of trouble and buy some time and find his receivers."
That's the thing with Roethlisberger. He isn't a classic dropback passer who throws the kind of timing patterns that Manning and Brady are known for. He often allows a play to break down so he can buy time for his receivers. But he doesn't do it on purpose.
"Believe me, I try to just drop back and throw it, and I'd like to do it that way," he said. "But sometimes the play just isn't there, and then I'll have to start improvising. It's not like I'm intentionally trying to let a play break down."
Another reason Roethlisberger might not automatically come to mind when discussing the best in NFL history: He plays in a run-intensive system. It's no secret the Steelers like to pound the ball on the ground between the tackles, a more conservative style that doesn't always lend itself to putting up gaudy quarterback numbers. Throw in the fact that the Steelers have had one of the best defenses throughout Roethlisberger's career, and there's even more reason for pause.
It was that way, too, for Bradshaw, who might have played with the greatest defenses of all time during his heyday. But at the end of the day, you couldn't argue with Bradshaw's Super Bowl titles, just as you can't debate Roethlisberger's penchant for winning.
Yes, there are those who will hold Roethlisberger's off-field problems against him, and that's their right. He was suspended the first four games of the 2010 season in the wake of an alleged sexual assault last March.
But Roethlisberger has vowed to change his life, and there have been no problems since. It doesn't mean there won't be more issues down the road, but Roethlisberger hopes the rest of his career will be all about football.
And if that's the case, the evidence seems clear: Roethlisberger is deserving of a special place in NFL history. He hopes to cement that legacy in Super Bowl XLV.
