Roethlisberger Spent Day off Improving Footwork: 'He Wants to Win and That's the Bottom Line'
PITTSBURGH -- Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger told media during his Wednesday morning Zoom call that he planned to use his off day from practice to work on footwork.
"I do feel that I got a little lazy with my feet, which then, in term, translated to a lazy arm," Roethlisberger said on his Week 2 performance. "There were some throws where I dropped my elbow. It became more of a three-quarter release instead of an over-the-top when I didn't need to. There are times when you have to change your release point. There were too many throws where I felt, looking back, where I have to get my feet working better and that'll translate to the rest of the body. Then, I won't be guiding some of the throws."
So, that's what he did. Wednesday as the rest of the team worked their regular practice schedule - a day Roethlisberger is scheduled to miss - their quarterback worked on footwork with quarterbacks coach Matt Canada.
"He walked in, and he asked for it," offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner said. "He said, 'Hey, I want to get a little bit of footwork done. I'm not going to throw.' Any time that he's working footwork and any time that he's working on base fundamentals, we challenge the whole group week-to-week, the first thing we have to do individually is improve. That's collectively as a player and a coach. You learn, and you move forward. That's real positive that he was in that position and wanted to and felt good to do that."
Fichtner said he has to hold Roethlisberger back from time to time as the quarterback tries to push his limitations the team sets on his weekly availability. Coming off elbow surgery, playing in his 17th season at 38-years-old, it's important for the Steelers to keep his arm healthy throughout the season, according to Fichtner.
"[Roethlisberger's] not the old dog that can't learn new tricks," Fichtner said. "He wants to win and that's just the bottom line. To be the leader that he wants to be, if we're talking about everybody improving early in the season, much like you would if you had a preseason, that means everybody and he takes that as personal as anybody because he wants to win."
And watching his veteran QB work on his game during his day off was another reason Fichtner has been thrilled to have Roethlisberger back on the field.
"I love his attitude about it," Fichtner said. "I know that he wants to be perfect. I know we're not all perfect, we're not going to be, but he strives to be. That's part of the reason he's a great leader."
Noah Strackbein is a Publisher with AllSteelers. Follow Noah on Twitter @NoahStrack, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.
