At 1-1 on the season, Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers are slated to host the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.
Pittsburgh just put up a stinker of a performance at home in a loss to the Las Vegas Raiders last week. Days removed from said loss, head coach Mike Tomlin noted that Big Ben is dealing with a pectoral injury.
Now comes this note from Pittsburgh on Wednesday indicating that the two-time Super Bowl champion did not practice due to said injury.
While Roethlisberger generally sits out of practice on Wednesday, he was listed as an injury absence in the Steelers’ official practice report. That’s not great by any standard.
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Ben Roethlisberger injury impact
“I don’t know how it happened, I just know it happened early in the game,” the 39-year-old quarterback told reporters.
Meanwhile, Big Ben doesn’t seem too concerned right now.
“Today is only Wednesday,” he said, “so we have a lot of time to get ready to go.”
A better indication of whether Roethlisberger will be ready come Sunday is whether he practices on Friday. Generally, players who sit out that day to not suit up on game day.
As for Roethlisberger and his injury history, this is just the latest example of the veteran quarterback struggling to remain healthy as he finishes up what has been a stellar career.
The six-time Pro Bowler missed all but two games of the 2019 season due to an elbow injury. It’s the only time during his now 18-year career that the former first-round pick has missed extensive action. Pittsburgh went on to post an 8-8 record, missing the playoffs for just the sixth time since Big Ben joined the organization.
If Ben Roethlisberger were to miss Sunday’s game against Cincinnati, Mason Rudolph would get the start for Pittsburgh. The former mid-round pick views himself as the eventual heir-apparent to Big Ben, who might retire following this season.
Big Ben’s absence would also likely mean that former Washington Football Team first-round pick Dwayne Haskins would find himself active for the first time as a member of the Steelers.