Does Ben Carry The Steelers?

Does he drive, or is he just a passenger?

I’ve always thought that Ben Roethlisberger is a very good quarterback. Not as good as the top tier quarterbacks like Brady, P. Manning, Rodgers and Brees, but in a second tier right behind the top guys. Ben is one tough dude and his ability to extend plays and eventually find an open receiver is second to none. But does he carry the Pittsburgh Steelers?

The Steelers’ defensive and offensive rankings since he was drafted are as follows.

Season	Record	Defensive Ranking		Offensive Ranking
		Total Defense	Scoring Defense	Total Offense	Scoring Offense
2008	Super Bowl (win)	1	1	22	20
2005	Super Bowl (win)	4	3	15	9
2010	Super Bowl (loss)	2	1	14	12
2004	AFC Championship Game	1	1	16	11
2011	Wild-Card round	1	1	12	21
2007	Wild-Card round	1	2	17	9
2013	Did not make playoffs	13	14	20	16
2012	Did not make playoffs	1	6	21	22
2009	Did not make playoffs	5	12	7	12
2006	Did not make playoffs	9	11	7	12

 

Since Ben Roethlisberger was drafted, the Steelers have never made the playoffs with a defense ranked worse than #3 in scoring. The average scoring defense ranking when making the playoffs is 1.5 while the corresponding average scoring offense ranking is 13.7. Ben’s career average offensive scoring ranking is 14.4 while the defenses he’s played with have averaged 5.2.

So does Ben carry the Steelers? The answer is no. He plays a crucial role on the team, and without his playmaking, they don’t win as much as they’ve won. But Ben and the offense have never been able to make up for a less-than-stellar defense. Whenever the defense has an “off” year (by their standards), the Steelers drop out of contention. Dick LeBeau and his defense are the ones that have been carrying the Pittsburgh Steelers over the last 10 years. I rarely see them get enough credit for that.

 

Guest Author: Thomas_Gothenburg