Prolonging finding the next franchise quarterback
The way things are starting to shape up this offseason, it looks like the Steelers could very well miss out on the top five quarterbacks in the 2021 NFL Draft (assuming they had any interest in going that direction). But that doesn’t mean that they couldn’t make some type of move to start preparing for the position after Ben is gone (whether that is by trading up in the draft or trading for a quarterback on a different team).
Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be any chance of doing this while Roethlisberger is around. I know the Steelers far too well, and their mentality will be ‘let’s give Ben everything we can for one final push’ – even if this is at the expense of seeking a future signal-caller.
Assuming Ben Roethlisberger wasn’t returning, Pittsburgh could potentially trade for a young player like Sam Darnold or start making moves to compile more draft capital for next season so they can move up and get a franchise quarterback. Mason Rudolph is not the answer, and the Steelers probably should have been looking for Ben’s replacement over the past few years. Don’t expect them to do it this offseason if he returns though; which means they will likely head into the 2022 season with no future passer in place.