Big Ben ready to shoulder the pressure.
It’s no wonder Ben Roethlisberger will be — how did he put it so candidly the other day? — “shaking like a leaf” at kickoff Monday night for the game against the New York Giants.
You would be quivering, too, if you were carrying the heavy expectations of teammates and coaches, the entire city of Pittsburgh, all of Western Pennsylvania and Steelers fans around the world.
How often have you said it? The Steelers will go only as far as Ben takes them.
Or:
Ben has to be Ben for the Steelers to have any chance of catching the Ravens in the AFC North.
Or:
If Ben plays great, the Steelers are Super Bowl contenders. If not, forget it.
I can’t think of any Pittsburgh star athlete who has been under more pressure. Not Barry Bonds. Not Andrew McCutchen. Not even Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.
“There’s pressure, but I put more pressure on myself,” Roethlisberger said earlier this summer. “As much as the fans and my teammates want me out there, I want to be out there even more.”
The pregame nerves are normal, Roethlisberger said. Don’t worry about ’ em. They aren’t
because he’s afraid the moment will be too big, even though he knows all eyeballs will be on him from the second the ESPN “Monday Night Football” cameras turn on.
Roethlisberger is as competitive as any Pittsburgh athlete has been. He always wants the ball in his hands when the game is on the line. That’s the way it was when he made that sublime pass to Santonio Holmes to win Super Bowl XLIII after the 2010 season. That’s also the way it was when he threw a killer interception to a nose tackle — really, a nose tackle — in a crushing late- season loss at Denver in 2018.
Roethlisberger isn’t always successful, but he’s never afraid to take his best shot. A lot of athletes want to be the hero but are too afraid of failing to try to make the big play. Roethlisberger always is willing, and he’s always willing to live with the consequences. That is one of his best qualities as a quarterback. It is one of the best qualities any athlete can have.
The game against the Giants will be Roethlisberger’s first in 364 days, his first since leaving the second game last season at halftime with serious elbow pain. That injury led to seasonending surgery and way too much Mason Rudolph and Duck Hodges for the Steelers. A lot of football people wondered if Roethlisberger was finished. He was 37 at the time and turned 38 on March 2, long past the expiration date for most NFL players. But he said he had “no doubts” he was going to be able to come back and play well. That thought drove him through his months of rehab.
“I want to go out on my own terms,” Roethlisberger said. “No one wants to leave on an injury they can’t control.”
Teammates and coaches raved about Roethlisberger in training camp, saying he is better than ever. The media that were allowed to watch the practices said the same thing. National prognosticators have made Roethlisberger the favorite to be the NFL’s comeback player of the year. Many are predicting the Steelers will be right there with the Ravens on top of the division now that he’s back to complement one of the best defenses in the league.
No, there’s no pressure on Roethlisberger.
None whatsoever. Right.
Monday night is the first step for Roethlisberger. Monday night will be our first look at him.
The game can’t get here soon enough for all of us.
Especially Roethlisberger.