Pittsburgh QB ranks among best
PITTSBURGH – Indianapolis Colts head coach Chuck Pagano said last week that Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is a future first-ballot Hall-of-Fame player.
Often times, such statements are lip service. Many coaches, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin included, spend plenty of time praising their opponents as if they were some kind of unbeatable juggernaut, when, in truth, they couldn’t beat an egg with a fork.
But in this case, Pagano was being completely serious.
After Roethlisberger’s performance in the Steelers’ 51-34 victory over the Colts, nobody should doubt his status among the game’s elite.
Roethlisberger completed 40 of 49 passes for 522 yards and six touchdowns in the Steelers’ victory. The completions, yards and touchdowns were all team records.
He also became the first quarterback in NFL history to have two 500-yard passing games. And, more importantly, Roethlisberger joined Terry Bradshaw, Joe Montana and Tom Brady as the only quarterbacks in history with 100 career victories in 150 starts.
Any time you can join a group that includes Bradshaw, Montana and Brady – two Hall of Fame players and another certain one – you must be doing something right.
“I’ve been blessed to play on some great football teams here and be part of a great franchise,” Roethlisberger said. “To have my name with the other guys that are up there, it’s a humbling honor.”
It also goes to show just how effective Roethlisberger has been throughout his career.
He’s not going to consistently put up the big numbers of some other quarterbacks who are talked about nationally, but when it comes to the No. 1 statistic by which a quarterback should be measured – wins – he’s as good as anyone.
“I think every week he wants to prove that he should get a lot more credit than he gets. Maybe after today, he’ll start getting it,” said tight end Heath Miller, who also passed a milestone, joining Hines Ward and John Stallworth as the only players in Steelers history with 500 career receptions.
More important than the records was a much-needed win for Pittsburgh.
At 5-3, the Steelers are in the thick of the race in the AFC North, something that seemed a pipe dream following a loss at Cleveland a few weeks ago. Roethlisberger didn’t play well in that loss, or the week before in a 17-9 win at Jacksonville, and people began calling for offensive coordinator Todd Haley’s head.
But back-to-back wins in which the Steelers have scored 81 combined points should quell the criticism of Haley and Roethlisberger.
This was the recipe most felt the Steelers needed at the beginning of the season if they hoped to end a two-year streak of missing the postseason.
The offense had to play well and the defense had to come up with some stops.
That was especially true working opposite the Colts’ Andrew Luck, who is considered the next great one among young quarterbacks.
Playing against one of the best offenses in the league, the Steelers and Roethlisberger showed the old dog, now 32, still has some game left in him.
“He’s unbelievable,” Pagano said. “He’s unbelievably accurate. He’s big. He’s strong. He makes all the throws. You have to play extremely well (against him). You have to get him on the ground. You have to get off the field on third down. You can’t give up big plays.”
The Colts did none of those things against Roethlisberger. And he made them pay, time and again.
“He was in the zone,” said offensive lineman Ramon Foster. “He was just in the zone.”
F. Dale Lolley can be reached at dlolley@observer-reporter.com.