Things aren’t getting any better right now for Pittsburgh Steelers’ quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who is coming off one of his worst performances of the season in a lackluster showing against the Cincinnati Bengals.
His performance reflects his plummet in the weekly QB Index put together by NFL.com analyst Gregg Rosenthal.
One week after ranking 23rd in the Index, Roethlisberger plummeted six spots — the largest drop in the index this week — to No. 29 overall, sitting behind the likes of Houston’s Tyrod Taylor, Detroit’s Jared Goff, a even Carolina’s Cam Newton.
That’s not a great group to be sitting behind, but that summarizes Roethlisberger’s ebbs and flows this season.
Rosenthal simply isn’t seeing it with Roethlisberger, and rightfully so.
“On two of Roethlisberger’s three turnovers Sunday, it was his reaction time, not his legs, that looked slow,” Rosenthal writes. “He didn’t move off his spot as his left tackle was pushed into his lap on one interception. He also held the ball too long before making a decision on a fumble. To survive like Drew Brees or even Peyton Manning did at the end of their respective careers, Roethlisberger needs to be one step ahead of the defense mentally, and I’m not seeing it.”
That about summarizes Roethlisberger to a T at this point.
Roethlisberger still believes he can extend plays at times, still believes he can throw off balance without proper mechanics, and still stares down some throws.
All of that happened on Sunday inside Paul Brown Stadium, which led to the disastrous performance by the Steelers’ offense. His two interceptions gifted the Bengals 10 points overall, which is a losing recipe.
In previous weeks I’ve been rather surprised at Roethlisbeger’s slide in the QB Index, but not his week. His fall to No. 29 is rather warranted as he looked about as bad as it gets in Week 12 against an AFC North rival in a state that he typically dominates.
Fortunately, Roethlisberger has a chance to bounce back in Week 13 against a Baltimore Ravens’ passing attack that has struggled all season, allowing the fourth-most passing yards this season, just ahead of the Miami Dolphins, Dallas Cowboys, and Tennessee Titans.
