When Ben Roethlisberger retired after the 2021 season, he was done with zero intentions of playing again. But that didn’t prevent teams from calling. The San Francisco 49ers reached out in 2022 to gauge Roethlisberger’s interest. They might not have been the only one. After New York Jets’ QB Aaron Rodgers went down with a season-ending Achilles tear four plays into 2023, Roethlisberger’s agent asked if there was any interest going to the Big Apple.
Appearing on comedian Nate Bargazte’s podcast in an episode that aired earlier this week, Roethlisberger confirmed the call. And confirmed he had no desire to get return to the field two years removed from the game.
“When guys go down, your agent will get a call,” Roethlisberger said on Bargazte’s The Nateland Podcast. “When Aaron got hurt in New York with his Achilles, my agent would be like, ‘hey, any interest?’ I’m like, ‘zero.'”
Rodgers big move from Green Bay to New York ended nearly as soon as it started. One of the most anticipated debuts in recent memory, he tore his Achilles one pass in and missed the 2023 season.
Roethlisberger’s initial response made it seem like the Jets actively reached out to see if he’d unretire. On the surface, it would make some sense. One veteran future Hall of Famer to replace another. But his follow-up implied agent Ryan Tollner was just getting ahead of any potential calls.
“We were watching the game…[Rodgers] went down and I was like, uh oh. And then sure enough, I get a text like, ‘Hey, before I get these calls, any interest?’ I’m like, Nope. I’m golfing. I’m good.”
Additional reporting at the time indicated New York wasn’t interested in Roethlisberger or any other vet. The Jets spent the rest of the season rolling through an unimpressive list of options. Former first-round pick Zach Wilson couldn’t take advantage of the moment. Trevor Siemian and Tim Boyle fared no better. Combined, the trio threw more interceptions (15) than touchdowns (11). Even after two years on the couch, Roethlisberger’s could’ve done better.
That’s not the way Roethlisberger wanted to end his career, explaining why the offers and inquiries weren’t tempting.
“I had a chance to [play elsewhere] potentially towards the end,” he said. “I could have maybe explored some different things. But at the end of the day, I’m like, I get to play 18 years for one team. That was special to me. That franchise, the fan base are the best in the world. And so I I could just say that that was it from start to finish. Never went anywhere else. Never put another jersey on. A lot of great quarterbacks went and did that. And to say I didn’t have to do that was special.”
Rodgers himself was unable to spend his career with just one team and now might be working on his third. Tom Brady didn’t do it. Nor did Peyton Manning, Joe Montana, Johnny Unitas, and several others. Of modern-era quarterbacks enshrined in Canton, only eight played for just one team: John Elway (drafted by the Baltimore Colts but never played), Dan Marino, Roger Staubach, Dan Fouts, Bob Griese, Troy Aikman, Jim Kelly, and Pittsburgh’s own Terry Bradshaw.
It’s an exclusive club inside an already elite one, ranks Roethlisberger will join when inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2027.
