Steelers Insider Thinks 2023 Version Of Ben Roethlisberger Would Be Better Than Mitch Trubisky 'Maybe Better Than Kenny'

The Pittsburgh Steelers' quarterback situation is an absolute mess. Kenny Pickett does not turn the ball over, but does not throw downfield very often. Mitch Trubisky lost to the New England Patriots by putting the game hopelessly out of reach early and doing just enough for fans to complain about an egregious call on Christian Kuntz. It is so bad, fans are calling for Mason Rudolph.

Steeler Nation has a growing segment of Rudolph stans, and it is a bizarre phenomenon. It is not entirely foreign, however. Fans constantly called for the backup quarterback between Ben Roethlisberger's and Terry Bradshaw's tenures. Virtually every quarterback who played from 1984 to 2003 was benched at one time or another during their tenure as Steelers quarterback. Chuck Noll and Bill Cowher were unafraid to move on or return to quarterback.

Mike Tomlin has not had much experience with a quarterback carousel, and it shows. The Cook & Joe Show on 93.7 The Fan suggested an out-of-the-box solution based on the success of Joe Flacco, who is coming off his couch in Cleveland. Joe Starkey observed that the Steelers might be better off coaxing another AFC North legend out of retirement to save the 2023 season.

"Ben could come in here and as long as he had some physical attributes, what if his arm was totally rested and ready to go? He can certainly beat you mentally," expressed Starkey.

Roethlisberger took tremendous heat during his final two seasons after elbow surgery. At the time, the national media had a field day with the assumption that his physical tools rapidly declined. After three years of watching Matt Canada's offense, the obvious question is, what if Roethlisberger was not washed up? The route trees are flawed. The aging future Hall of Fame quarterback and the Canada offense were not an ideal pair to show off whatever remaining arm strength he had left. 

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Starkey's point about Roethlisberger being able to beat teams with his football IQ is valid. Assuming that the former Steelers signal-caller has even average physical ability for an NFL quarterback, it is highly likely that he would deliver the ball to George Pickens, Pat Freiermuth, and Diontae Johnson in ways that they could maximize run-after-catch opportunities. Roethlisberger did make noises about a potential comeback last season. 

"I honestly believe, no joking, that if you gave Ben a couple of weeks, he would give you a better chance to win a football game than Mitch and, frighteningly, maybe better than Kenny," Starkey continued.

Roethlisberger engineered seven come-from-behind victories in his final season, including the season finale against the Baltimore Ravens that put the Steelers in the playoffs. The two-time Super Bowl champion found ways to win close games, but he didn't look good doing it. Looking back, 22 touchdowns in 16 games seems unreachable for any other quarterback on the roster in the current offense. Starkey may not be wandering in left field. He may be squarely in the basepath. 

"I didn't say he'd give you a better chance than Patrick Mahomes right now or even Brock Purdy or even Lamar Jackson," Starkey clarified. "I said he'd give you a better chance than Mitch Trubisky and maybe Kenny Pickett."

The recent success of Joe Flacco for the Cleveland Browns has opened eyes around the NFL. The Browns were given up for dead when they lost Deshaun Watson a few weeks ago. Dorian Thompson-Robinson beat the Steelers, and when Robinson and PJ Walker struggled with injuries, they turned to Flacco. He has played well in two starts for Cleveland. It also makes the idea of turning to a retired quarterback feasible. Roethlisberger probably could not play an entire season, but the Steelers would not be asking him to do that. 

It should at least make for an interesting segment on the Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger podcast. The Steelers' all-time leading passer has steadfastly resisted calls for him to be the offensive coordinator. He has emphatically denied any interest in that job or any other coaching job that does not involve his son Benjamin's initial foray into tackle football. 

The simple truth is that there is no question Tomlin was done with his franchise quarterback, and the organization was not shy about encouraging him to retire. The Steelers dramatically cut his salary in his final season in 2021. Art Rooney II allegedly made it clear that Roethlisberger's future hopes of playing quarterback professionally would involve him wearing a different uniform. Forcing him out was one of the biggest mistakes the Steelers ever made. 

Even on fumes, Roethlisberger was better than Trubisky and would have been the perfect mentor to Pickett. Does anyone seriously think Johnson would have had the stones to challenge Roethlisberger at halftime of the New York Jets game last season? The better question is, would he have felt he needed to do that? Pickett would have benefitted tremendously from one season with Roethlisberger in the quarterback room as an alternate voice to Canada and Mike Sullivan. 

It would have also been a significantly different transition from Roethlisberger to Pickett that might have set the former Pitt Panther up for sustained professional success. It might be a pipe dream to coax Roethlisberger out of retirement for four games and maybe one last playoff run. Starkey accurately surmises the best available Steelers quarterback for 2023 is watching games in his basement.