For those that think Roethlisberger is washed up after 2 losses

https://steelerswire.usatoday.com/2...roethlisberger-drops-diontae-johnson-nfl/amp/

37 drops leading the league and it's not even close. I'd love to see a stat on how many of these came on crucial 3rd down plays. I can remember distinctly a handful that would have moved the chains.

So out of 3 wrs drafted in the 2nd round, a wr drafted in the 3rd, and a TE drafted in the 1st by another team, this is the production we see.

I've said it before. Washington and I'll add Vance Mcdonald (the dude hasn't suddenly forgot how to catch a football) should be getting more opportunities.

I'll admit it'd be nice to see Ben complete more mid-range throws and he's been off on his deep accuracy this year, but many of these balls dropped have been placed perfectly but simply dropped.

This is with this team with 2 losses. It seems to me the issue is obvious, and it's not Ben.

I'll also add this offense needs to be less predictable. Some of the onus for this does fall on Ben when he gets into the hurry up. Predictability is what caused the pick 6. The DB practically ran the route for the WR. He knew exactly what we were running.

As for all other WRs/TEs there should be a focus on catching drills.

 

People have been posting doom and gloom here about Ben being done for years now. While he's obviously getting closer to the end of his career, possibly in the next couple of years, IMO he's still one of the best things going for the Steelers right now.

 

Ben is clearly a shell of his former self..... that said, he's still light years ahead of what we have on the bench...…… people seem to have selective memory here... maybe they were overseas and didn't see the debacle that we had last yr when ben was injured and we went 8-8...
No, Ben is not playing well, but we are nowhere near 11-2 without him

 

I honestly don't think Ben will be here beyond next year. I have a feeling he will simply retire after a big two year payout and being near 40. Could be wrong

 

Vance definitely needs to see the field more, but lets not forget that he has had his share of issues with dropped passes as well

 

If you look at his QB rating, only the past 4 games have been in the 80s with all these drops. Before that he was in the 100s which is pretty darn good.

Ben is starting to look like Tin Man from the wizard of ozz out there with his age. He's not what he was, but still a pretty good QB that has had 4 rough games of late with not a lot of help from his receiving corps imo

 

Not washed up but growing old. And close to 40 after getting knocked to hell and back over the years is old.

Someone said this to me (not a Steeler fan) and I can see it being a possibility. Ben wins MNF and it will be the last win of his career. Loses next 3 and retires. Can't tell you how I would love sticking a playoff win in his face.

 

Certainly true about the drops, nobody can blame him for that and if the WR’s had held on to a few more of those the team is probably 12-1 now. Careless drops on third down in particular are just demoralising for the team, DJ and Ebron being the biggest culprits.

I do think there is a legitimate question around Bens deep and intermediate passing game. Since the second Balt game teams are crowding the LOS and taking away the short passing and running attack. This has completely stifled the Sterlers. Can Ben and the team adjust? I think they can. We will see

 

Ben isn't washed up. Ben is banged up. I think he has been playing through a lot of pain in recent weeks.

 

I hope he comes back, simply because he is the best option and with all the restructuring if he does retire the cost against the Cap would be a killer. If he wants to come back, and really do the team a favor (and himself), sign a 2 year extension with cap friendly Brady like numbers. Worked out right that cap hit could be extended over 3 years and much more manageable, giving relief next year to possibly keep and sign some FA help.

 

In terms of predictability, I'm tired of Ben just hanging out in Shot Gun all game.

 

washed up?...no aged?....of course. He's the engine that drives this machine. WR's dropping balls, TEs dropping balls, one guy can only do so much. O-line that gives swiss cheese a run for its money... One cannot be engineer and installer. It really just confirms how much of a team sport FB is.

 

Me too lol. Life ain’t fair but it is what it is

 

I’m actually thinking Roethlisberger will be better next year than this year. Age will knock him down another bit. A full year of strength training and throwing may over come that. But that’s probably about it.

 

Ben is a Steelers legend but he is PART of the problem.

He can't throw well at a super high rate. Teams didn't believe it for a bit, and they got some great stuff working schematically but it's all they can do. So they did it often enough teams could stop it and they can't do anything else.

The Steelers need to find a new QB and let Ben grooms him but I’m guessing it doesn’t happen yet.

also, drops... just catch the damn ball.

 

Nailed it. We know something is very, very off. Right now Ben will not win us any games against quality opponents. What we don't know is if it's fixable. The elbow injury could very well have caused permanent issues, at least as far as an NFL QB go. Perhaps it's the knee and it will heal. Perhaps his body is starting to fail him and he's never again going to be able to stay healthy over the course of a season.

If you don't think Ben is a problem right now, then you're not watching the games. We just don't know if this Ben is here to stay. If this is all he has left, we're in serious trouble because he has hung on too long.

 

I think a large part of it is the offensive design. The constant ShotGun and 3 yard passes can only do so much. Now maybe that is the scheme and what Ben wants to do or maybe they are doing it to avoid him getting hit because he is hurt. I tend to lean towards the prior only because that seems to have been the scheme from day 1 although it has certainly been exaggerated as of late.

 

He’s not reliable anymore, and his play is not worth the money he’s making. Throws rookie level picks, can’t throw deep. So yeah he’s faded badly.

 

It’s not because of 2 losses. It’s how he’s looked all season.

 

Ben the first half of the year was a legit MVP candidate on a top scoring offense.

 

Ben isn't under center because he doesn't want to be. We don't run PA because Ben doesn't want to. That's been the case for a very long time. That's not a RF thing, it's a Ben thing. Part of the problem with the offence is Ben doesn't want to do certain things that are effective and he doesn't have a coach that will make him do those things. The other problem is he appears to have no arm strength right now, like none. He had Washington open but underthrew him by like 20 yards. That's not a slight miss, that's a massive underthrow.

There's something wrong with him physically, and it could be something that isn't going to get better. He's not getting any younger

 

If he is throwing short because he cannot throw downfield anymore than both him and the Steelers are done. Only good thing that could come from that is in 2/3 years from now we have a new HC and hope in the future. Something that has been gone for a long time. Only masked by periods of overachievement and elite talent offensively.

 

With Ben not practicing (NIR) I am going to start blaming the drops on Ben. The WRs need some time with Ben or they are not going to get better.

 

So it's Ben's fault when the ball hits them in the hands or goes through their hands hits them in the chest and they drop it...