John Steigerwald: Ben on his way to greatness

John Steigerwald
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
SteelersLIVE 'Xtra
Tuesday, January 17, 2006

It’s only a matter of time.

He may not lay claim to it next year or even the year after, but some time soon Ben Roethlisberger will have the title of "Best Quarterback in the AFC". Best in the NFL won’t be far behind.

Sunday night on KDKA-TV’s Sunday Sports Showdown, I boldly stated that I thought Roethlisberger was as good as any quarterback in the AFC right now and asked who’s better. The name Tom Brady came back at me quickly and loudly.

I asked what makes him better and the response I got was “Three Super Bowls.”

OK, so Brady is more accomplished. He’s 10-1 as a starter in the playoffs. He’s been an MVP.
Nobody is denying he’s a great quarterback. I still don’t think he does anything better than Roethlisberger. Because it’s only Roethlisberger's second year, the tendency is to be careful about not getting carried away when we make comparisons or projections.

What were they saying about Dan Marino in 1984? He was in his second year and he threw 48 touchdown passes. Was there anybody doubting his greatness?

Roethlisberger will never throw 48 touchdown passes in a season as long as he’s playing for Bill Cowher, but he’s the first quarterback ever to start in two conference championship games in his first two seasons.

There isn’t a throw he can’t make. Did you see the touch he put on the 36-yard pass to Heath Miller on the Steelers’ first possession in Indianapolis?

Do you remember the touchdown throw he made to Hines Ward on the quick slant in Cincinnati?

He also makes throws that other quarterbacks can’t make.

Do you think Peyton Manning or Brady can throw left while rolling right as well as Roethlisberger? Neither of them comes close to throwing as well on the run as Roethlisberger does.

Has Brady or Manning ever played better under playoff pressure than Roehtlisberger did in Cincinnati or Indianapolis?

I know it’s only two seasons and we still have to see how he does in his second AFC Championship game and I know that both Brady and Manning are widely if not universally considered better than Roethlisberger.

I also know that the Steelers wouldn’t trade Roethlisberger for either of them. Nor should they.
Roethlisberger may never play in a Super Bowl, much less win one, but that’s about accomplishment not talent. The talent around him and his coaching will have as much to do with how many Super Bowls he plays in as his performance.

I’ll say it again. There is not a more talented quarterback in the NFL than Ben Roethlisberger.

***

I dislike the NFL’s replay system more every week. The Troy Polamalu non-interception was one more reason not to like it. Not because the replay overturned what the league now says should have been an interception, but because ,without replay, we wouldn’t have to deal with phrases like, “performing an act common to the game”. That’s what the referee, Pete Morelli, decided Polamalu didn’t do when he overturned the interception call Sunday in Indianapolis.
Without the ability to slow the play down to 1/50th of regular speed and watch it 47 times, there is no way that play could be called anything but an interception and a fumble.

Remember the famous tuck rule play? That was back in 2001 when Tom Brady and the Patriots maintained possession of the ball after the replay—slowed down to 1/50th speed and viewed 47 times, allowed the referee to invoke the tuck rule. That’s the stupid rule that says a quarterback didn’t really fumble if he fumbles when he’s trying to tuck the ball away so that he won’t fumble.

It was a fumble. The Patriots didn’t deserve to get the ball back—rule or no rule. The Raiders did everything right on the play. The defensive end blew by his man and hit the quarterback and the ball popped out. It was a bad play by the Patriots and they should have paid the price. In the real world it was nothing but a turnover. In the 1/50th world of replay it was an opportunity to invoke a rule that would never survive at regular speed.

On Sunday, Polamalu made a great play. Manning made a bad play. Manning didn’t deserve to be saved by a replay. Even if it had been called correctly.

John is a longtime sports reporter at KDKA-TV. He can be reached at jsteigerwald@comcast.net.