After ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on Saturday the rumor that the 2021 NFL season would be Ben Roethlisberger’s last, Steelers reporters tried various angles to get an ounce of confirmation out of the quarterback after Sunday’s game.
So, of course, when Roethlisberger was given the game ball after defeating the Baltimore Ravens, he was asked if this particular ball signified anything special (final home game versus Ravens, perhaps?).
In typical Roethlisberger fashion, he played off the question. “It kind of caught me off guard,” he told the media in a press conference. “I don’t think that I deserve it. I think a lot of guys deserve it, and we deserve it as a group. It’s always humbling when you play this team at home and coach recognizes you like that, so it’s kind of cool.”
After a sluggish first three quarters in which the Steelers were lucky just to get in field goal range, Roethlisberger mustered 129 yards passing and two touchdowns. 68 of those yards, and both scores were to Diontae Johnson.
Both Roethlisberger and his longest-tenured teammate Cam Heyward have remained tight-lipped on the rumor of the quarterback’s retirement. “My focus is on Minnesota and what we have to do to get ready,” Roethlisberger said. “I’ll address any of that stuff after the season. I’ve always been a one game at a time and a one season at a time person, and I’m going to stay that way.”
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