Pittsburgh Steelers All-Time Starting Offense
By Zach Hiney
The Pittsburgh Steelers are one of the most storied franchises in NFL history, having six Super Bowls and 29 Hall of Famers to their credit. Because of that storied history, Steelers fans have had the honor of watching a number of elite players on both sides of the ball take the field in the black and gold. But which players are the elite of the elite?
In this article, I'm going to assemble an all-time Steelers starting offense. Any player who played for the Steelers is eligible for this team and I'm only taking their Steelers tenure into consideration. I'll be choosing eleven starters for the team and also a flex position. Without any further ado, let's jump into the all-time Steelers starting offense.
QB: Ben Roethlisberger
Stats with Steelers: 249 GP, 64,088 passing yards, 64.4 completion percentage 438 total touchdowns
Ben Roethlisberger is the best quarterback in Steelers history.
Big Ben is fifth all-time in passing yards and eighth all-time in passing touchdowns. He played eighteen years in the NFL, all of them with the Steelers, and made three Super Bowls, winning two of them. Roethlisberger won over Steelers fans with his never-say-die playstyle and his ability to escape pressure and find open receivers. He was also one of the most clutch quarterbacks in the league.
He ranks third in NFL history in game-winning drives with 53, tied with Drew Brees and only behind Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. His most famous one won the Steelers Super Bowl 43 when Roethlisberger found Santonio Holmes for the winning touchdown with 35 seconds remaining. The only other Steelers quarterback with an argument is Terry Bradshaw, who quarterbacked the Steelers to four Super Bowls in the '70s. However, a quick check of the numbers ends that dispute.
Roethlisberger had a 418-211 touchdown to interception ratio in his career, while Bradshaw had a 212-210 ratio. While Bradshaw won more Super Bowls and Super Bowl MVPs, he was the beneficiary of playing on one of the NFL's greatest dynasties ever. This is not meant to discredit Bradshaw or his accomplishments with the team. While I think Bradshaw is the better winner, I also believe Roethlisberger is the better player and should be the quarterback of the all-time offense.