Power ranking the QBs of the AFC North: Steelers starting to fall behind

4. Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger

You can defend Ben Roethlisberger to the death and come up with plenty of excuses for his performance this year, but the fact of the matter is that the Steelers have had bottom-tier quarterback play in 2021.

I’ll be the first to admit that Pittsburgh’s offensive line and running game has been unspectacular, but over the past three weeks, the Steelers have really started to improve in these areas. Still, the struggles for Roethlisberger remain.

Through his first 6 games, Big Ben has 7 touchdowns and 4 interceptions, but his dismal 6.4 yards per attempt and a poor average depth of target have equated to just an 86.0 passer rating for more than a quarter of the season. As a result, the Steelers have scored just 19.5 points per game so far this year.

Roethlisberger will look to prove doubters wrong following the bye, but it’s clear that his arm has diminished and the ability to extend the play — which is what made him great early in his career — is essentially gone. It’s not impossible for Ben to leapfrog Mayfield in these AFC North power rankings, but it might not come easy.

The Steelers will still have a chance to get back into the playoff picture, but it’s going to take an improved performance from their quarterback moving forward. It will be interesting to see if Ben Roethlisberger has anything left in the tank down the stretch.