Big Ben’s Career Almost Had a Different Beginning

I read this earlier as well. Interesting for sure. My guess is they would have started Maddox, and brought NO in after he went down.

The Steelers would have still made the playoffs and still would have fell short of the Super Bowl.

Where it would have set us back is 05'. Ben would have taken the reigns with no on game experience. I doubt the Steelers win the Super Bowl in 05' without Ben's game experience from 04'.

 

So Neil O'donnell almost screwed us out of another super bowl...?

 

You might be right. I think we may have been able to win the 2005 SB either way, perhaps even without Ben. He obviously wasn't any good in the SB, which we won anyway. He also wasn't very good against Indy. He was good vs Denver and Cinci, but we smashed both those teams, so we may have been able to beat them anyway. Who knows though, nothing but speculation.

Hell, even in 2008 he was nothing special. He made that amazing drive at the end of the game in the SB to win it, but up to that point he hadn't done much.

 

Or....they ( Maddox & O'Donnell) both get hurt like Batch, and Maddox did...and things are the same. Destiny and all