How Does Ben Roethlisberger Stack Up Against AFC North QBs in Latest Rankings?
PITTSBURGH -- Pittsburgh Steelers captain Ben Roethlisberger doesn't get the praise he once did from national media, but within a tough division of quarterbacks, Big Ben isn't done yet.
Roethlisberger threw for 3,803 yards and 33 touchdowns to 10 interceptions last season as the Steelers finished 12-4 in the regular season.
Despite Pittsburgh's early success and Roethlisberger's stat line, he currently ranks third in the AFC North. Big Ben (16th) sits behind Lamar Jackson (8th) and Baker Mayfield (10th) in Pro Football Focus' quarterback rankings. Second-year QB Joe Burrow ranks 18th.
"Ben Roethlisberger proved his toughness by coming back at 38 years old after elbow surgery and helping the Steelers to an 11-0 start," PFF wrote. "But something just didn't seem right during that hot streak, and Pittsburgh finished the year 1-5 in its last six games.
"New offensive coordinator Matt Canada has a tall task in trying to figure out what will make this offense tick. Roethlisberger ranked last out of 36 qualifying quarterbacks on play-action attempts last season. He subsequently led the league in shotgun pass attempts (640) and pass attempts under 10 yards. He did a decent job of getting the ball out of his hand quickly, but it didn't translate into many explosive plays, as the Steelers ranked 26th in explosive pass-play percentage (11.7%)."
From what rookies Najee Harris and Pat Freiermuth have told us, Canada's offense is "simple but complex."
"What they're doing in their offense really resembles a lot of what we did in terms of putting the players in the best position to make a play and not doing too much thinking --just fast playing," Harris said, comparing the Steelers and Alabama's playbooks. "It seems like they're trying to make everything as easy as possible so players can just play fast and use the best of their abilities."
Roethlisberger will be at the front of this offensive attack that hopes to find better success than they did a year ago. Under the assumption this is the quarterback's last season, this team will be pushing to prove any critics - PFF included - wrong.
Noah Strackbein is a Publisher with AllSteelers. Follow Noah on Twitter @NoahStrack, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.
