Skip to main content

Steelers should play it safe with Roethlisberger

I don't believe for a minute that Ben Roethlisberger is healthy enough to play against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.

Could he hobble around and throw the ball? Yep.

Is it worth the risk? Nope.

The Steelers should know around kickoff if their game against the Browns has any meaning. If the Cincinnati Bengals beat the Baltimore Ravens, then a Steelers' win gives them the AFC North title. If the Ravens win -- and I think they will -- then the Steelers' game is meaningless.

Roethlisberger should sit either way.

The Steelers shouldn't risk further injury to Big Ben.

I understand his desire to play.

But the Steelers need to understand the need to keep him healthy. Do you think the Browns would like a shot at injuring him as payback for Colt McCoy's concussion? I do.

Any playoff run needs Roethlisberger to be as close to 100 percent as possible.

I don't see how letting him play gets him closer to that goal.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Didn't Antonio Brown just get paid?

Didn't Antonio Brown just get paid? That was the first question that popped into my mind when I heard he wanted a new deal from the Steelers. I remember the details: Mike Wallace wanted more money than the Steelers wanted to offer, so the Steelers turned around and signed Brown to a $43 million deal over six years. That was 2012. Today, we learned that Brown will skip offseason workouts in the hope of getting a new deal. Honor your contract. It's that simple. Brown signed a deal that caused some people to scratch their heads at the time. It looked like a great deal for Brown. And after two seasons, it looked like the Steelers made a terrific call with the long-term deal. Brown had almost 1,700 yards receiving last year to go with 13 TD catches. That's a heck of a season. However, in exchange for long-term security, Brown looks like a bargain today. That's how it works. Or, at least that's how it's supposed to work. Now Brown wanted paid e...

Wild-card round in NFL playoffs should be wild

The NFL playoffs finally are here, and, if you're like me, you can't get enough of the stuff. It looks like we should be headed for some high-scoring games, defensive struggles and some close calls this weekend. Here's how I see the weekend unfolding: Bengals at Texans: The Bengals are lucky to be in the postseason, while the Texans are lucky to have a quarterback after going through about 16 during the regular season. Arian Foster should get plenty of carries for the Texans, along with Ben Tate. The big question is whether quarterback T.J. Yates will be able to find Andre Johnson. If he can, it would go a long way for the Texans to win. However, something tells me rookie QB Andy Dalton finds some way to win against a tough Texans defense. Maybe he hooks up with A.J. Green on a big play. Maybe the Bengals defense pressures Yates into a big mistake. Bengals 20, Texans 17. Lions at Saints: This game should be fun to watch. The Saints, powered by record-set...