Roethlisberger Highlighted His Recovery from Surgery in 3rd Episode of ‘Bigger than Ben’

Ben Roethlisberger’s beard was a cultural phenomenon this year, with the Steelers’ quarterback’s unkempt look drawing comparisons to Yukon Cornelius.

During a pandemic when many men decided to forgo the razor, Roethlisberger had a significant head start, as he decided to stop trimming his beard after his elbow surgery last fall.

What that beard really represented then, was the length of time it took him to recover from the surgery that reattached three tendons in his throwing arm. As Roethlisberger said in the third episode of his “Bigger than Ben” docuseries, which was released on Wednesday, that rehab held his career in the balance. At age 38, if his surgically repaired elbow fails again, that probably means the end of the road for the Steelers’ grizzled vet.