For the few who want Ben gone......

Ryan Leaf was just released from prison! We could get rid of a proven, SB winning QB and pick up Leaf cheap and get Tebow to back hin up!!!

 

Sure we could, or perhaps we can think of all our options instead of straw man arguments.

What will it cost to resign Ben and for how long?
How will this affect other areas of the team?
Can we be a SB contender with Ben as the QB 3, 4, 5 years from now with his huge salary?
Is trading Ben before his contract expires feasible, and if so, what could we get in return?
What about franchising him for 1 or 2 years and then letting him walk, what are the pros and cons?

Hopefully our GM is considering all the above options instead of having tunnel vision like you appear to have. A good GM needs to look at all options, even those outside the box. No player is bigger then the franchise and no player is immune to being traded or cut. I have no doubt that Belichek would cut or trade Brady if he thought it would improve the team. We need to have that same mentality with Ben.

 

Hard to imagine but I can remember analyst saying you couldn't go wrong with either Manning or Leaf in that draft. Talk about night and day difference.

 

So what, he had 2 monster games, what about all the other games? 2 monster games and 4 mediocre games doesn't help us get into the playoffs. We shouldn't be paying someone because they just set an NFL record, nor because they got us to 3 SB's in the past. Those days are done and now it's time to consider whether he can get us back there or not. So far, it doesn't appear he can. We have so many weapons on offence and we still struggle to score points.

 

I think your post title has it right, at this time, there are few who want Ben gone. But, like myself, there are many who get frustrated with him. Personnaly, and based on his own repeated admissions, he has not done the mental work to truly be an elite QB. All the years he has been here and he still can't read a blitz well or check down receivers. He does it "back yard football", which sometimes is great and sometimes diasaterous. I just keep wondering how great he could have been if he had put in the study time of Manning or Brady.

With that said, I am very glad we have him. But I'm not sure how many good years he has left and I am leary in tying up too much money in a long term contract. Purely from a financial standpoint, our best bet is to let him play out his contract, see where he is each year and franchise tag him for 1 or 2 years. That may be all he has left in him. Now, this would work well for a used pick up truck. Not sure it is a good approach for a human.

 

We might have to trade Ben to be able to field a winning Team. Ben can't read his progressions , he refuses to hit the check down, he has problems throwing the deep ball..Not that he is a bad QB , but we could replace him with a QB who can do those things better than Ben and fix a lot of the holes Colbert has left on this Team .

We might have to move Archer and Wheaton as well to help rebuild this Team . If we miss the post season again this year it is time to just blow this thing up and start over.

We could go the way of Game manager at QB and start investing hard and heavy in the Defense and let Brown and Bell carry the offense.

I would trade Ben for a couple of 2nd. rounder's and trade Archer and Wheaton for a 2nd. rounder .This would give us a 1st . round and 4 second round picks as well as clear a bunch of cash in the future.

 

Don't you know sarcasm when you see it? Good Grief!

 

I totally agree here, with out him this team is awful, and down right pitiful. As bad as he plays sometimes he is still better than any other option out there right now, we need to be ready to find a heir to the thrown soon not this draft but might have to start thinking of it in 16-17 especially if you can try to find a late round gem. But if not then a first rounder in 17-18 if he's there. Cant afford to use a high pick on a QB that wont play for 3 yrs right now.

 

I am already sorry that we have Babbling Mikey as a coach and are 8-8 every year even with Ben. What's the difference. As a fan, the games are already painful to watch. You know they will always find new and creative ways to lose. And like someone posted on here, it is funny how every team has a player that has their career first against us.

 

I think we're much better off with Ben than we are without him. Having said that, we can keep Ben for three more years without breaking the bank for him. What's Ben going to be like in four years? The team
Would be better served focusing almost exclusively on rebuilding the defense over the next few years as opposed to funneling all of their financial resources into a four year older Ben.

 

depends how much he wants ..

 

Bruce Arians will talk the Cardinals organization into breaking the bank wide open for Ben.

I really don't have a crystal ball but when I think of the future for Ben I really believe he ends up in Pittsburgh West.

I hope I'm wrong but I don't think it's that far fetched either.

 

I support Ben with and without frustrations. But the team is really in this position (not just because of him) because of the extreme huge contracts of him and some other players. It's inevitable, if you get highly successful, highly paid players..... you're going to get scrubs at other positions in order to stay under the salary cap. Love to see him play longer in Black and Gold, but the Woodley, Timmons, Ike, Troy and Ben contracts put such a big financial strap down on other positions, I'm not sure how they can make it work successfully (hence the sole reason why I'm not in the front office of the steelers..... )

 

hard to say. he's aging and he doesn't have the defense to bail him out like in those SB years. look no further than eli. he's a SB winning qb too. do you think he's enough to make the difference in NY since the defense isn't what it used to be there? if the rest of the team was up to snuff ben would be a great choice, but it's hard to tie up that much of the salary cap in him and still try to build other parts as well. if ben were enough to carry us then by all means yes, but when it burdens other units strengths then something has to give.

ben with all his records has shown just him is not enough. same as eli in NY isn't enough. or brady in NE. or peyton in Denver. it's still a team game. it takes every phase for it to be a success. we really can't keep relying on ben to be that much of a difference maker for the entire team. he just can't do it.

with our run game out of bell and AB as arguably the best wr in the business, heath as a very good TE, maybe we could get by with a game manager type qb, but you don't want to hang your hat on that guy week in and week out having to do it all.

a solid defense has to be built to take some pressure off the offense, and you can't tie up all your eggs in the basket of a guy that can't do it himself. again, a tough call.

you also can't save money and continue to sign sub par players to extensions. that's where I find fault with Colbert. if we saved money from ben, would Colbert put it in the right places to help this team, or would he blow it on guys like gilbert, allen and signings like cam Thomas and mike Mitchell?

it's upsetting having a good qb like ben and these weapons around him and still can't score TD's in the red zone and then watch the defense give it back 5 plays later. is that a good use of the money? is giving more to ben for a longer time going to change what he brings to us team wide? will it help us down the road?

I'd love nothing more than to see ben say, I'm going to take less money and finish here with a strong team and allow us to bring in better players. he's still making a butt load of money either way. what's more important for the Pittsburgh steelers? to make ben the highest paid guy or build a complete team around him while still paying him a good wage?

like it or not ben will start to drop off the more he ages. these injuries will take there toll on the human body. while more money will be great for ben, will it be the best for the team? will Colbert put any savings into the right spots if it comes down to a savings? tough call.

 

Love Ben, he is just inconsistent. He can be an elite qb or terrible from game to game. Overall above average. Depends on how much he wants.

 

It is going to be very interesting to see how Ben is handled and how Ben reacts. I think the Steelers could have Ben for at least three more years, right? He is under contract for next year, they could tag him for two years as well I think. I remember the Saints came very close to franchising Brees before a deal was struck.

Seeing the colossal mistakes made with the cap, the Steelers might be gun shy about breaking the bank for a 33 year old QB. Then again, Ben by choosing a bigger contract outside of Pittsburgh may very well not do it just for money but because he may very well view the organization as unable to put together a quality product to back him up on the field. Or maybe he would view a SB run or two as a legit possibility and sign something that is good for him and the Steelers.

Also, I have made this comment before, but when Ben got his big contract the Steelers made the big mistake of trying to do it with a lot of their players. Flacco got a huge contract and the Ravens immediately started jettisoning players and finding new talent. Look at their willing-ness to use young guys like Mosley who have fit right in. So I guess what I am saying is just cause you pay a QB big money, doesn't mean you have to pay everybody else....i.e. if you commit to a QB it means you have to be ready to truly manage the rest of the positions on the field....something the Patriots, Packers, and Ravens have done far better than the Steelers for the last 5 years.

 

Ben is not going anywhere and probably has 6+ years left. You all talk like the Steelers are bottom feeders and the facts are they have the 4th best record in the Afc and only 2 games behind New England. My god the pressure to play in Pittsburgh must be suicidle

 

That is a very crowded spot.

 

Thank you. I am really sick of reading his stupid, sarcastic comments all the time.

 

I think Ben is a top flite, franchise quarterback but isn't elite. That's especially evident when he goes up against the truly elite quarterbacks of the league like Brady, Manning, Rodgers and Brees. Sunday was a case in point. Neither defense scares anybody but Brees had his way with the Steelers' D throwing 5 TD passes on his way to being named NFC offensive POW while Ben stunk up the joint and padded his stats in garbage time!