With receiving corps depleted, Roethlisberger shows his greatness
We might be seeing Ben Roethlisberger taking the step from being a good quarterback to a great one.
The Steelers went into their 21-0 win Sunday over the Seattle Seahawks at Heinz Field knowing they would be without wide receiver Hines Ward. Then, minutes before the opening kickoff, Santonio Holmes, Pittsburgh's other starting receiver, was lost after suffering a strained hamstring in warmups.
With just three healthy wide receivers, the Steelers needed a big game from their rushing attack.
Instead, they got an efficient and controlled game from Roethlisberger, who carried the offense when Seattle loaded up to stop the running game. Roethlisberger completed 18 of 22 passes - including his final 13 - for 206 yards and one touchdown. He threw passes to the likes of Nate Washington, Cedrick Wilson and Willie Reid. Nobody is going to confuse those players for Randy Moss.
But on this day, the quarterback made the receivers look good.
"You've got to give the line a lot of credit," said Roethlisberger. "They gave me a lot of time. And the receivers got open. Guys stepped up. There were a lot of questions with Hines being down and Santonio right before the game. Who was going to step up? There was not a doubt in my mind that those receivers would step up. They did a great job of getting open and catching the ball."
Roethlisberger is being a bit too modest.
In many cases, a great receiver or receivers can make a quarterback look better than he is.
In this case, the quarterback made a group of receivers, who would be considered pedestrian on their best day, look like viable options.
How good was Roethlisberger?
Consider that he did not have a single incompletion in the second half, completing all nine of his attempts for 118 yards and a touchdown as the Steelers held the ball for nearly 25 minutes.
On several occasions, it was Roethlisberger's scrambling ability that kept plays alive and allowed those receivers to get open.
Roethlisberger's performance was far different than the one he had against Seattle in Super Bowl XL, when the Steelers won not so much because of Roethlisberger, but in spite of him. In that game, Roethlisberger completed only nine of 21 passes for 123 yards and two interceptions with no touchdowns.
This time, the Steelers won because of Roethlisberger.
Then again, you could say the same thing about his performance this season.
Roethlisberger wanted to prove to his critics that those 23 interceptions he threw last season were the exception, not the norm.
Along the way, Roethlisberger is moving close to achieving superstar status.
Is he at the same level as Tom Brady or Peyton Manning? Certainly not - yet. But he's getting closer each time out.
He's giving the Steelers an opportunity to win each time he steps on the field, something this team hasn't had in a quarterback since Terry Bradshaw.