Earlier this week, former Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger recapped the team’s most recent game against the New England Patriots, highlighting the notable issues the players had not only on the field last Thursday but also with their demeanor and as representatives of the Black and Gold. Roethlisberger stated on his podcast that he feels like the Steeler Way has been missing in Pittsburgh as of late, lacking that fire and culture that the team had with himself as well as other prominent names like S Troy Polamalu and OLB James Harrison on the team.
This clip was shown on a segment of First Take on ESPN on Wednesday morning, leading Stephen A. Smith to go on a tirade. Smith said that Roethlisberger shouldn’t be criticizing Pittsburgh’s lack of culture as someone who should share the blame for the current state of the offense in the Steel City.
“Your hands ain’t clean in all of this!” Smith said on First Take. “Aren’t you somewhat responsible for the transitioning as it pertains to culture? Particularly when Mike Tomlin was there? And you’re there… you stayed too long. Last three years in the league, Ben Roethlisberger should have been gone. He was a statue.
“I’m just saying, if you’re Big Ben Roethlisberger, I thought you stayed a couple of years too long and I thought you sort of curtailed or stymied the transition so the era would continue offensively I’m talking about. I don’t think he did enough. I thought he stayed around too long, and I didn’t think that he was a person that should have been around.”
For the last few seasons of Roethilsberger’s career, the offense did appear to be taking a step backward. After missing most of the 2019 season after undergoing elbow surgery, Roethlisberger came back with a vengeance in 2020. He led Pittsburgh to a 12-4 mark as the team’s starting quarterback that season while throwing for 3,803 yards and 33 touchdowns to 10 interceptions. Still, Pittsburgh’s offense slowed down and the team lost four of its last five games, falling short against the Cleveland Browns in the Wild Card round of the AFC playoffs after a promising start to the year.
The 2021 season proved to be a difficult one for both Roethlisberger and the Steelers offensively as his play noticeably dropped off. Despite posting 3,740 passing yards, Roethlisberger’s yardage totals were driven by a huge number of attempts (605) like the season before (608). He posted only 22 passing touchdowns while throwing 10 interceptions, seeing his adjusted net yards per passing attempt fall to 5.43.
Smith is correct in saying that the offense began to take a step backward with Roethlisberger still at the helm. The scheme was devised to account for his lack of mobility in the pocket as well as his limitations as a passer, the Steelers opting to dink and dunk their way down the field rather than running a more traditional offense. Roethlisberger is also remembered for his relationship with backup QB Mason Rudolph and his lack of willingness to work hand-in-hand with his potential successor at the time.
Still, Roethlisberger did manage to have a positive impact on some of the players on offense who are still around, including RB Najee Harris and TE Pat Freiermuth. He developed good relationships with them in their rookie seasons as well as WR Diontae Johnson during his in 2019.
Roethlisberger may have stuck around a season too long in Pittsburgh as we saw his play deteriorate, but plenty of Steeler Nation would be begging for 2021 Ben over what the Steelers have had at quarterback this season. He may be a sitting duck in the pocket, but Roethlisberger could still make the reads and stretch the field, being able to complete possession-down passes and execute in the red zone where both Kenny Pickett and Mitch Trubisky have struggled the last two years.
Could have Roethlisberger retired sooner and done a better job establishing the legacy after him? Sure, but that would have meant the Pittsburgh likely would have targeted a quarterback in the 2021 NFL Draft to replace him, and that quarterback still would have had Matt Canada as his offensive coordinator. Smith has a point that instead of criticizing Pittsburgh’s lack of culture on offense, Roethlisberger could look to help out like other alumni have done in the past, being a resource for Pickett as well as other members on the team.
Still, calling Roethlisberger the reason for Pittsburgh’s downward spiral on offense is laughable. The combination of Canada and the offensive scheme as well as the quarterback play and the lack of execution by the unit as a whole are really to blame. Someone on that side of the ball needs to take the reins and be that vocal leader the offense so desperately needs.
