This may be Ben Roethlisberger’s final chance at another ring
Ben Roethlisberger is not the same player he once was. He just returned from major elbow surgery last season and at the same time is 38 years old. Ben has been beloved by all of Pittsburgh for the last 17 seasons, but eventually, it may be time to let go and move on.
Big Ben is due for a $41 million dollar cap hit next season, according to Over the Cap, and this is already costly for the Steelers as, going into the 2021-2022 season, Pittsburgh will have -$21.7M cap space. This now puts up the question of cutting Ben Roethlisberger, asking for a pay cut, or letting him retire to help the Steelers cap room. This does not necessarily need to be the end for Ben.
I am willing to bet that out of all three options, he would be more than willing to take a pay cut and stick around if needed to help the next quarterback transition into Pittsburgh. Steelers fans should expect Ben to return, depending on the results of this game. Still, if the Steelers cannot find a way to get it done in the playoffs, we may not see Ben have another opportunity at a ring as conflicting cap room and age will all be among concerns moving forward.