One prominent NFL analyst believes Steelers Ben Roethlisberger could be the worst quarterback in the AFC North as soon as this year. Here’s why that won’t be true.
Steelers fans don’t need a constant reminder of how old quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is. If you’ve been following along all offseason, we know that he’s a 38-year-old passer and that he’s played just a game-and-a-half since the 2018 season.
But despite the cause for concern that his play may drop off this year, the recent comments by a prominent NFL analyst are almost inexcusable.
On Monday, ESPN’s Mike Tannenbaum made an outrageously bold statement in which he stated the ‘Steelers may have the fourth-best quarterback this year in the AFC North’. Here’s some of what Tannenbaum had to say, according to Get Up on ESPN:
"“He’s 38 years old. He’s payed two meaningful games in two years. That is a lifetime in pro football. Let’s go back to the 2004 draft. Eli Manning is retired. Philip Rivers is haning on by a thread, and I think at somepoint this season there will be a consequential play that Ben Roethlisberger is going to need to make… I’d rather see the ball in the hands of Lamar Jackson, Baker Mayfield, or even Joe Burrow… If I had to take the Ben Roethlisberger at 38 who’s played two games in two years, I’ll take my chances with Burrow and Mayfield, and Pittsburgh may have the fourth-best quarterback this year in the AFC North.”"
This statement is outrageously bold. Yes, it’s true that at some point Roethlisberger will be forced to hang up his cleats and younger players like Baker Mayfield and Joe Burrow will continue playing football. However, to think that the Steelers will have the worst quarterback play in their division this year is bordering on insane.
While Lamar Jackson is admittedly one of the league’s best quarterbacks after his MVP season in 2019, the same cannot be said for Mayfield or Burrow. Mayfield is coming off a season in which he took a massive step backward in 2019 – throwing for just 22 touchdowns and 21 interceptions while completing less than 60 percent of his balls, according to Pro Football Reference. Despite the talented skill players put around him, he was one of the league’s least efficient quarterbacks just a season ago.
When it comes to Joe Burrow, he’s admittedly one of the best quarterback prospects to come out in quite some time, thanks to his dominant season at LSU last year. However, it’s hardly fair to assume that a rookie quarterback (on the Cincinnati Bengals, of all teams) will be better in his first year than Super Bowl-winning quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger.
Even with Ben’s surgically repaired elbow and his extended time away from football, we know the player he will be if he’s healthy. While it’s fair to say that he could digress in his 17th NFL season, saying that he will be the worst quarterback in the AFC North this season will prove to be an inaccurate statement.
I wouldn’t put a lot of stock in what Mike Tannenbaum has to say about the Steelers quarterback this year. The fact of the matter is that Pittsburgh will be a competitive football team if Ben stays healthy. At some point, Roethlisberger will be surpassed by younger quarterbacks in the AFC North, but it won’t happen this season.