Steelers' Roethlisberger finally considered 'elite'
After 11 seasons in the league, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has finally made it to the 'elite' category.
Roethlisberger was graded fourth overall in a survey of league personnel and evaluators by ESPN.com. All 32 projected starting quarterbacks were categorized into five tiers. Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, and Andrew Luck were listed ahead of Roethllisberger on the first tier. They were joined by Peyton Manning and Drew Brees listed fifth and sixth overall, respectively.
Roetlisberger has always been kept out of the conversation when it comes to "elite" quarterbacks, and he was ranked seventh last year in the same polling. Guiding the Steelers' high-powered offense last season with 4,952 passing yards and 32 touchdowns apparently did the trick this time around.
Roethlisberger ascended into the top tier after ranking with Philip Rivers atop the second tier one year ago. His ability to carry the Steelers without support from a strong defense raised Big Ben's profile for some. A head coach said he thought Roethlisberger would have belonged in the top tier for most of his career if the Steelers had run a more wide-open offense earlier in his career.
"He throws to win games by himself and he can do it every week," an offensive coach said. "He could throw for 350 every week. I did not give him his due until I really saw this past year, with the average defense and only one top receiver, getting it done every week and keeping his interceptions down."
An evaluator with coaching experience who saw Roethlisberger play live twice last season moved him into the top tier on his ballot.
"He is back to standing there, shrugging off the blitz, sliding over, making the pass, over and over," this evaluator said. "He threw for over 600 yards with six touchdowns against Baltimore. When you can do that against what has been a good defense historically, that is a 1, and I don't want to play him."
Roethlisberger has topped 630 drop-backs in each of the past two regular seasons, while averaging 37.3 pass attempts per game, up from 29.6 per game previously in his career. Roethlisberger also has the playing strength and arm to carry the offense in poor weather.
"Ben can beat you in any part of the country," a head coach said. "Who was in a more productive offense last year? The productivity is unbelievable. He is clearly a 1 to me."
A defensive coordinator placed Roethlisberger among the 2s because he thought consistency over time was an issue.
"I could see why people would say he is a 1," this coordinator said. "On some days, I could see it. I would see him spending more time in the 2 category, and that is why I put him there."