All 90 is a Pittsburgh Steelers Now series profiling each of the 90 members of the Steelers 2021 offseason roster.
7 • Ben Roethlisberger, 18th-year quarterback
6-foot-5, 240 pounds
Acquired: Drafted by the Steelers with the No. 11 overall pick in the first round of the 2004 NFL Draft.
Last season: Roethlisberger started the first 15 games of the season for the Steelers after returning from the flexor tendon surgery that cost him almost all of the 2019 season.
Roethlisberger completed 65.5% of his passes for 3,803 yards, 33 touchdowns and 10 interceptions, nearly all of which were down from his last full season in 2018.
His 6.3 yards per attempt were the lowest of his career for a full season, as the Steelers offense trended heavily toward a short passing game under offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner.
Career: Roethlisberger is the most decorated quarterback in Steelers history. In addition to his two Super Bowl titles, he’s been a seven-time Pro Bowler, most recently in 2017, and led the NFL in passing yards in 2014 and 2017.
Roethlisberger holds the Steelers career records for seasons and games played, and nearly every relevant passing statistic.
College: A three-year starter at Miami University in Ohio, Roethlisberger racked up over 10,000 passing yards with the RedHawks. As a redshirt junior in 2003, he led Miami to an unbeaten MAC record, a No. 10 ranking in the Associated Press Top 25, was named the MAC Offensive Players of the Year and set Miami records for completions, passing yards and touchdowns.
His No. 7 jersey was retired by Miami on Oct. 13, 2007, the first Miami uniform retired in 34 years.
Camp outlook: Roethlisberger will have a substantively new offensive scheme around him for the first time in a long time, as Matt Canada will take over as the team’s offensive coordinator and Fichtner will not be on the staff for the first time since 2007.
Canada was quarterbacks coach for the team in 2020, so it won’t be a totally new scheme to Roethlisberger, but the team is expected to attempt to run a more-balanced offense that it did in 2020, when nearly the entirety of the offensive production came from Roethlisberger’s then-38-year-old arm and the offense faltered down the stretch as the Steelers lost five of their final six games.
Future: Roethlisberger re-worked his contract this offseason, signing a multi-year contract that will automatically void after the 2021 season, meaning that Roethlisberger will be playing out the final season of his contract for the first time in his career.
The rest of the 90:
