Lost in Thursday night's debacle against the Ravens was the fact that Ben Roethlisberger was permitted to be on the sideline.
Roethlisberger had said earlier in the week that head coach Mike Tomlin had a rule that nobody on crutches is permitted on the sideline.
Roethlisberger was not on crutches and was on the sideline against the Ravens.
Having seen Roethlisberger earlier in the week, it was surprising. He was in obvious pain moving around the team's practice facility on Tuesday and needed the crutches to get around.
That was not the case Thursday.
While the MCL sprain is obviously a problem, there were some in the organization who felt the bone bruise might the thing that kept Roethlisberger out for more than four weeks - the typical healing time for an MCL sprain.
The fact that Roethlisberger was able to capably - and apparently painlessly - on the sideline Thursday night shows the bone bruise might not have been as bad as previously thought.
Roethlisberger could, in fact, be back in three more weeks.
That's good news Dale. This offense with Ben is a thing of beauty to watch. I'd like to see as much of it as possible! Not to mention they are really going to need him for the Bengals game. Hope he can make it back by then without having to rush himself. Like you said no one wants to see him gimp around half the season like he did a few years back. That was painful to watch and I think we all know Ben will do it if the coaches allow him.
ReplyDeleteWhy not though a gimped up Ben is probably still a top 5 QB in the NFL.
Dale, here's hoping that the team err on the side of caution with Ben. He has a history of not playing well coming off injuries so they might need to save Ben from himself this time around. You kept 3 QBs for a reason, so if the other two can't hold down the fort until he is 100 percent healthy, then it's just a lost year to injuries. I'm for him taking as much time is needed for him to be able to protect himself, play well and feel comfortable on that leg. He's still a $100M asset whose window with the Steelers is closing.
ReplyDeleteAlso, do you really think Dri Archer is better able to help this team win games this year than Toddman? If Bell or Williams goes down, you will still need a backup RB and Archer just isn't that. I think TE Jesse James could be in the mix to get cut as well. With Spaeth being injured and the team essentially going with 1 TE in Miller and a FB/TE hybrid in Will Johnson, then this shows me that the coaching doesn't believe James can help them win games this year. If that's the case, isn't the best spot for him is on the practice squad?
i don't think jesse james would make it through waivers for the steelers to put him on the practice squad.
ReplyDeletei hope #7 comes back asap. he doesn't need to be 100% to be an improvement over the backup QB's. with the running game they have, they wouldn't need to put it all on his shoulders anyways and they can ease him back into it.
also hoping shazier makes it back this week. steelers need all the help they can get.
I also thought Ben looked pretty pain free walking around. He'll be back after 4 weeks.
ReplyDeleteKeep up the good reporting Dale.
If anyone was watching mnf, refs screwed the players once again. Nfl refs are the worst in the business, imo.
ReplyDeleteHim being crutchless on the sidelines seemed like a dog and pony show to be honest. BR obviously wanted to prove to a national audience that he's healthy, doesn't need crutches, and will be playing soon. But I'd rather not see him injure himself further rushing back like he usually does. Other teams are gonna know exactly how he's hurt and will be looking to knock him out of the game, it's asking for trouble rushing back to the point that you can't defend yrself on the field.
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