The Pittsburgh Steelers are hoping Ben Roethlisberger is better than ever in 2020. After season-ending elbow surgery last year, it appears Big Ben is on track.
On Monday, Roethlisberger got onto the practice field with some of his receivers. He famously also rid himself of his mountain man beard in celebration of the event.
Now we’re getting some positive reports from the players who caught passes from Roethlisberger.
Ben Roethlisberger ‘threw everything’ and ‘let it rip’
Steelers receiver Ryan Switzer was one of the guys who practiced with Roethlisberger on Monday. In an interview with Mark Kaboly of The Athletic, he gushed over his quarterback’s arm.
“Man, he let it rip,” Switzer said. “There was no restraint, no hesitancy, he was just out there. He has been throwing like that for a while and, in my opinion at least, getting out there on that field for the first time and throwing full-speed routes was refreshing. The control factor was taken out of it. He was out there and he was throwing. Did some off-schedule stuff. No restraints. He threw everything — across his body. Everything.”
Per Kaboly, Roethlisberger threw at least one pass that went 50-plus yards while rolling out. He also had a ton of zip on his passes.
“You know, like when the ball cuts through the air and you can hear that ‘pfft-pfft-pfft’ sound?” Switzer said. “That’s what JuJu said it sounded like. I didn’t hear it but, man, I have been trying to catch with no gloves for a couple of months to build up these callouses, but ask my hands how they feel catching his throws.”
Switzer also praised Roethlisberger’s work ethic to get back to this point in his recovery. It’s an interesting juxtaposition after the negative report about Roethlisberger’s training habits that circulated lately.
If the Steelers get a fully healthy and motivated Roethlisberger back in 2020, they’ll be dangerous. So far, so good.