Ben Roethlisberger (born March 2, 1982, in Lima, Ohio[1]), nicknamed Big Ben, is an American football quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Steelers 11th overall in the 2004 NFL Draft. He played college football at Miami (Ohio) University. Roethlisberger earned the AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2005. He became the youngest Super Bowl-winning quarterback in NFL history, helping to lead the Steelers to a 21-10 victory over the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XL at the age of 23. He was named to his first Pro Bowl in 2007. Contents [hide] 1 Early years 2 College career 3 Professional career 3.1 2004-2005 season 3.2 2005-2006 season 3.3 2006-2007 Season 3.4 2007-2008 Season 3.5 Career statistics 3.5.1 Regular season 3.5.2 Playoffs 4 Motorcycle accident 5 Records 5.1 Miami RedHawks Records 5.2 NFL Records 5.3 Pittsburgh Steeler Franchise Records 6 Trivia 7 References 8 References 9 External links [edit] Early years At Findlay High School, , in Findlay, Ohio, Roethlisberger was captain of the football, basketball, and baseball teams. In baseball he batted .300. Roethlisberger did not play quarterback until his senior year, giving way to the coach's son, Ryan Hite. Instead, Roethlisberger played wide receiver because coach Cliff Hite explained to the Toledo Blade, "My son throwing to Ben was a better combination." [2] Roethlisberger threw for 4,041 yards, 54 touchdowns and seven interceptions in his one season as quarterback at Findlay. The younger Hite threw for 1,732 yards, 14 touchdowns and 13 interceptions in the year preceding Roethlisberger's quarterbacking debut. Hite told the Toledo Blade regarding the decision to start his son at quarterback over Roethlisberger: "I'm a nationally known knucklehead." [2] As for Roethlisberger, he has remained magnanimous. He told a reporter for the Findlay Courier at the NFL combine just prior to starting his NFL career, "I'm up here now. So no, there's not too many regrets." [3] [edit] College career In a twist of irony, Roethslisberger played college quarterback at Division I Miami (Ohio) University in Oxford, Ohio while Ryan Hite played college wide receiver at Division III Denison. At Miami, Roethlisberger got a chance to start as a redshirt freshman and started three years of Division I college football after starting just one year as a high school quarterback. [3] Roethlisberger holds every major passing record at the school and a number of passing records in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) despite playing just three years before joining the NFL. According to the Findlay Courier, in 2001, as a redshirt freshman, Roethlisberger threw for over 3,100 yards. In 2002, he threw over 3,200 yards, and in 2003, he threw for over 4,400 yards. In 2003, Roethlisberger led the Miami RedHawks to an unbeaten record in the MAC, a No. 10 ranking in the Associated Press poll and a 49-28victory over Louisville in the 2003 GMAC Bowl. [3] [edit] Professional career Roethlisberger takes a snap against the BengalsRoethlisberger was taken 11th overall in the 2004 NFL Draft. On August 4, 2004 Roethlisberger signed a six-year contract worth $22.26 million in salaries and bonuses, with an additional $17.73 million available via incentives. He was touted by former Steelers coach Bill Cowher in a press conference as a franchise quarterback. On March 3, 2008, the Pittsburgh Steelers and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger agreed to an eight-year, $102 million contract. [4] Roethlisberger had two years left on the deal he signed with the team as the 11th overall pick in the 2004 NFL draft. He has stated that he wants to retire as a Steeler. [edit] 2004-2005 season Roethlisberger did not immediately step in as the starting quarterback, for the Steelers. He was the #3 QB behind Tommy Maddox and Charlie Batch. Though when Batch was injured in preseason, Ben moved up to #2. Maddox started the season opener against the Raiders and the next week against the division-rival Ravens. But after an ineffective outing and third quarter injury, Roethlisberger stepped in for his first NFL action. This injury to Maddox changed the Steelers original plan for Roethlisberger, which was for him to sit on the bench or play very sparingly during the first season or two in order to learn the team's system. Instead he was starting the third game of the season. As a rookie, he went 13-0 in the regular season (14-1 including playoffs) as a starting quarterback, helping the Steelers become the first AFC team to have 15 wins in a single season, surpassing former Steeler Mike Kruczek for the record for the best start by a rookie (6-0), and exceeding the mark for total wins as a rookie set by Chris Chandler and Joe Ferguson. On January 5, 2005 Roethlisberger was unanimously selected as the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year by the Associated Press, the first quarterback in 34 years to be so honored. One of Roethlisberger's biggest games was when he led the Steelers to a 34-20 victory over the defending Super Bowl champion and previously undefeated New England Patriots, ending their NFL-record 21-game winning streak. He completed 18 of his 24 pass attempts for 196 yards, 2 TDs and no turnovers. The week after that game the Steelers defeated the also previously undefeated Philadelphia Eagles 27-3. Roethlisberger was 11 of 18 for 183 yards, 2 TDs, 1 interception. In his first nationally televised game on Sunday Night Football, he led the Steelers to a 17-16 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars. He was near perfect on the night, completing 14 of 17 passes for 226 yards and 2 TDs. A spike to stop the clock on the game-winning field goal drive he led was the only thing preventing him from a 158.3 rating on the night. Jeff Reed's 37 yard FG in the final minute gave the Steelers and Roethlisberger their 10th straight win. Two weeks later Roethlisberger faced off against the New York Giants and the #1 overall pick of the 2004 draft, Eli Manning. Roethlisberger outshined the QB that went 10 spots ahead of him in the draft, posting his first career 300 yard passing game. He completed 18 of 28 passes for 316 yards and a TD. He led his 5th game-winning drive of the season, capping a drive with a Jerome Bettis TD run for a 33-30 victory. An Eli Manning interception sealed the game for Pittsburgh. In the divisional playoffs against the New York Jets, Roethlisberger threw two interceptions. One interception was returned for a touchdown, and the other was thrown with 2:03 left in the fourth quarter, which set up a potential game-winning field goal by Jets kicker Doug Brien. Brien missed the kick as time expired (his second missed kick in the last 2 minutes of the game), and forced the game into overtime. In overtime, Roethlisberger led the Steelers down the field and put them in position for the game-winning field goal, a 33-yard attempt that was made by Jeff Reed, sending the Steelers into the AFC Championship for the 4th time in 10 years. On January 23, 2005 in the AFC Championship Game in Pittsburgh, Roethlisberger completed 14 of 24 pass attempts for 226 yards and 2 TDs, but he also threw 3 costly interceptions, one which was returned for a touchdown by Rodney Harrison. The Steelers lost the game to the eventual Super Bowl champions, the New England Patriots by a score of 41-27. [edit] 2005-2006 season Roethlisberger signs autographs at Super Bowl XL media day.In 2005, Roethlisberger led the Steelers on an improbable run, winning 3 straight playoff games on the road to put Pittsburgh in Super Bowl XL. What made the run remarkable was that the Steelers began the post season as the sixth seed in the AFC. Since the NFL's current playoff format began, no sixth seed had even made it to a conference championship game, let alone the Super Bowl. In the 2005 regular season, the Steelers finished 11-5 and secured an AFC wild card spot, en route to victory in the Super Bowl, where the Steelers pulled off upsets at Indianapolis and Denver in the AFC playoffs in addition to wins over higher-seeds Cincinnati and Seattle. During the course of the regular season, Roethlisberger generally played well when healthy, but missed four games due to various knee injuries. During the regular season, the Steelers were 9-3 with Roethlisberger at quarterback, and 2-2 without him. He led the league in Yards Per Attempt with an 8.90, and finished 3rd in passer rating behind Peyton Manning and Carson Palmer with a 98.6.[5] The Super Bowl run began on Sunday, January 8, 2006 as Roethlisberger helped lead the Steelers to a playoff win over the Cincinnati Bengals -- an AFC North rival that had beaten the Steelers by 7 points in the regular season, to win the division championship. The rematch featured two teams with identical records, having split their regular season series with each team winning on the road. Early in the game on Carson Palmer's first throw, a tackle by former Steeler Kimo von Oelhoffen resulted in Palmer's anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) being completely torn. The Bengals backup quarterback, Jon Kitna came in and led the Bengals to leads of 10-0 and 17-7. However, the 17-7 lead midway through the second quarter would be the last time in the 2005 postseason that the Steelers would trail an opponent by more than 3 points. After Kitna failed to produce the Steelers took advantage by taking the next 24 straight points, and the win in a 31-17 victory in Cincinnati. Their second road win came on Sunday, January 15, 2006. Roethlisberger led the 6th-seeded Steelers against the Indianapolis Colts, the NFL's top team throughout the season and a heavy favorite to represent the AFC in Super Bowl XL. Roethlisberger threw for 197 yards and recorded a game-saving tackle on Colts' defensive back Nick Harper, who had just recovered a Jerome Bettis fumble with under two minutes to play in the game. The tackle saved the season for the Steelers. Pittsburgh led early, but had to survive a Colts comeback to win 21-18, after an errant call that the NFL later admitted was a mistake [6] overturned a Troy Polamalu interception that would have secured the game for the Steelers. Roethlisberger's tackle on Harper, dubbed by many as The Tackle II or The Immaculate Redemption, was compared by many to "The Immaculate Reception" back in 1972 when Franco Harris made a miraculous reception and scored the game-winning touchdown against the Oakland Raiders. The victory marked the first time a sixth-seeded NFL playoff team defeated the top-seeded team in playoff history. On January 22, 2006, the Steelers defeated the Broncos 34-17 in Denver to advance to Super Bowl XL. Roethlisberger completed 21 of 29 passes for 275 yards, and threw two touchdown passes as well as scoring one himself on a four yard play-action bootleg. His run was the last touchdown of the game, and sealed the win for the Steelers. After losing the 2005 AFC Championship Game, Roethlisberger convinced veteran running back Jerome Bettis to delay retirement, after a tearful promise to him that he would get Bettis to his first Super Bowl. He lived up to his promise. The Pittsburgh Steelers won Super Bowl XL 21-10 over the Seattle Seahawks in Detroit on February 5, 2006. Roethlisberger had one of the worst passing games of his career, completing just 9 of 21 passes for 123 yards and two interceptions; his passer rating of 22.6 was the lowest in Super Bowl history by a winning quarterback. Though he did convert eight different third down situations in the game to help the Steelers win, none of them bigger than his 37 yard pass to Super Bowl XL MVP Hines Ward on a 3rd and 28 that set up the Steelers' first TD (a 1 yd QB sneak by Ben on 3rd & goal). With the victory, Roethlisberger, at 23 years of age, became the youngest quarterback to win the Super Bowl, a record previously held by Tom Brady of the New England Patriots. [edit] 2006-2007 Season Roethlisberger drops back to pass in a game against the Kansas City Chiefs in 2006.After a very serious off season motorcycle crash in which he was almost killed, Roethlisberger missed the 2006 kick-off game (the first game of the '06 season) after having an emergency appendectomy on September 3, 2006. Charlie Batch, the team's backup, started and lead the Steelers to a victory over Miami. Roethlisberger played in the following game against Jacksonville on Monday Night Football. However, he played sub-par that night, throwing two interceptions with no touchdowns (though neither the Steelers nor Jacksonville made a touchdown, then a record for Monday Night Football). The Steelers lost the game with a final score of 9-0. In week three, Roethlisberger completed less than half of his passes for three interceptions and no touchdowns in a 28-20 loss to the Bengals. The final interception came in the final seconds of the game, in the end zone, ending Pittsburgh's comeback attempt. In a week 5 game against the San Diego Chargers on Sunday Night Football, Ben Roethlisberger looked sharp throughout the first half, leading 3 scoring drives. However, he began to unravel in the 2nd half and threw two interceptions, both of which shifted momentum away from the Steelers and lead to the Chargers 23-13 win. In week 6 against the Kansas City Chiefs, Roethlisberger had his best game of the season so far. He completed 16 of 19 passes for 238 yards with two touchdowns (his first of the year) and no interceptions during a 45-7 rout of the Trent Green-less Chiefs. In week 7, Roethlisberger had another great game, going 16 of 22 for 238 yards, 3 touchdowns, despite a costly fumble. But during the third quarter, Roethlisberger was helped off the field after suffering a concussion following a controversial hit by Falcon's defensive end Patrick Kerney. Roethlisberger was replaced by Charlie Batch. Batch went on to throw two touchdowns and helped send the game into overtime, following a crucial false start call on Nate Washington that resulted in a 10-second clock penalty and ended regulation. The Falcons got the ball first in OT and drove down the field. 46-year old kicker Morten Andersen booted a 34-yard field goal to win the game for the Falcons. On October 29 against the Oakland Raiders, Roethlisberger threw 4 interceptions in an upsetting 20-13 loss. The loss was his fifth of the season--two more than he had in his first two seasons combined as a starter, and gave him a total of 11 INTs, versus just 6 TDs, on the season. In a Week 9 rematch of the 2005 AFC championship game, Roethlisberger threw for a career high 433 yards and 1 TD, but had 3 more INTs as the Steelers fell short, 31-20 to Denver. Roethlisberger and the Steelers got back on a winning track in a home game a week later against the New Orleans Saints. Roethlisberger threw for 264 yards on 17 of 28 passing and 3 touchdowns to help the Steelers beat the Saints, 38-31. In Week 11, Roethlisberger overcame 3 first half interceptions by throwing for 224 4th-Quarter yards and two touchdowns as the Steelers scored 21 points in the final quarter to come back to beat the Cleveland Browns, 24-20. Roethlisberger finished 25 of 44 for 272 yards to go along with the 2 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. The following week, Roethlisberger and the Steelers were held scoreless in 27-0 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Roethlisberger finished 21 of 41 for 214 yards and two interceptions. Roethlisberger bounced back the following game going 12 of 25 for 198 yards with 2 touchdowns and an interception in a 20-3 victory over Tampa Bay. Pittsburgh kept their playoff hopes alive in a week 14 27-7 victory against the Browns. Roethlisberger went 11 of 21 for 225 with one touchdown and added another on the ground. In week 15, Roethlisberger went 11 of 18 for 140 yards and a touchdown in a 37-3 rout of the Carolina Panthers. The following week, Roethlisberger threw 2 interceptions and had a sub-500 completion percentage as Pittsburgh lost to the Baltimore Ravens 31-7. The loss ended Pittsburgh's playoff hopes. Roethlisberger ended the season on a good note by defeating the Cincinnati Bengals 23-17 in overtime. He was 19 for 29 passing with 280 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception. Roethlisberger's one touchdown came in overtime on a slant pass to Santonio Holmes who proceeded to take the ball 67 yards for the game clinching touchdown. The win knocked the Bengals out of the playoffs, much to the joy of the Steelers team. [edit] 2007-2008 Season Due to his subpar '06-'07 season, there were many questions surrounding Roethlisberger entering the season. In the first game of the season, Big Ben reached a personal milestone: his first career 4-touchdown game in a 34-7 rout of the Cleveland Browns. The 4 touchdowns went to Hines Ward, Santonio Holmes (a 40-yard strike), Heath Miller, and rookie TE Matt Spaeth. He followed that up with another solid performance against the Buffalo Bills. He was 21 of 34 passing for 242 yards and a 1-yard touchdown pass to rookie TE Matt Spaeth. He continued his solid season with a decent performance against the 49ers. He was 13 of 20 passing for 160 yards and another touchdown pass to the 3rd TE Jerame Tuman. In week five he had a good performance despite two top wide receivers Hines Ward and Santonio Holmes out due to injury completing 18 of 22 passes for 206 yards and touchdown pass to Heath Miller in the 1st quarter. Roethlisberger wearing a Steelers throwback jersey during their 500th franchise winIn Week 9 against the Baltimore Ravens, Roethlisberger threw for a career-high five touchdowns, which tied a team record held by Terry Bradshaw and Mark Malone in a 38-7 rout of the Ravens on Monday Night Football. All five touchdowns were thrown in the first half, making Roethlisberger one of two quarterbacks in the 2007 season (the other being Tom Brady) and only the fifth quarterback since the 1970 merger to accomplish such a feat. He also posted a perfect 158.3 passer rating in that game. The following Sunday, Roethlisberger continued to shine when he erased a 15 point deficit against the Browns. With the Steelers trailing 21-16 in the 4th quarter and facing a 3rd & 10 from the Cleveland 30, Roethlisberger scrambled up the middle of the field for a 30 yard TD run (the longest run of his career at that point). He then completed a 2-pt conversion pass to Hines Ward. After the Browns returned the ensuing kickoff for a TD, Roethlisberger again had to drive the offense with a 4 point deficit. This time he made three crucial plays on 3rd down: an 18 yd pass to Santonio Holmes on a 3rd & 6, a 20 yd pass to Heath Miller on 3rd & 18, and a 10 yd scramble on 3rd & 9. Roethlisberger capped off the drive with a short TD pass to Heath Miller that proved to be the game winner. In Week 12, Roethlisberger set a Steelers record, completing 85.7% of his passes (18 of 21) as the Steelers beat the Miami Dolphins 3-0, a feat made all the more remarkable given the weather conditions. Pittsburgh was hit with a torrential storm, delaying the game 30 minutes due to lightning, while turning the new sod on the field, laid earlier that week, into a quagmire. In many parts of the field, players sunk several inches with each step. During the Week 15 game versus the Jacksonville Jaguars, Roethlisberger threw his 29th TD pass of the season, to Nate Washington, breaking the team single season TD pass record previously held by Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw. During Week 16 in St. Louis against the Rams, Roethlisberger posted his 2nd perfect passer rating (158.3) of the season. He was 16 of 20 for 261 yards and 3 touchdowns and no interceptions. It was his third career 158.3 rating game, tying Peyton Manning for the most such regular-season games in NFL history. He also became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw two perfect games in a single season. To cap his comeback season, Roethlisberger was named to his first Pro Bowl, joining five other Steelers teammates on the AFC squad. Roethlisberger's 32 touchdown passes ranked 3rd in the NFL behind Tony Romo and Tom Brady, while his 104.1 passer rating was second only to Brady. On five different occasions during the season, Roethlisberger led the team back from a double-digit deficit to a lead or tie in the 4th quarter. However, the Steelers would lose four of those five games as the defense in the end could not hold off Denver, New York and Jacksonville twice. Roethlisberger also set a new Steelers single-season record with 32 touchdown passes in the 2007 season. The Steelers hosted the Jaguars in the AFC Wild Card game on January 5, 2008. It was a rematch of the Week 15 contest. With the injury to Willie Parker, the Steelers could never mount a rushing attack and Roethlisberger struggled a great deal in the first half, throwing three interceptions (one being returned for a TD by Rashean Mathis) as the Steelers trailed at the half by a score of 21-7. He pulled himself together and went 17 of 23 for 263 yards and 2 TDs in the second half alone. The Steelers were trailing 28-10 as the 4th quarter began, when facing a 4th and 12 at the Jaguar 37, Ben threw a quick pass against the blitz to Santonio Holmes, who broke one tackle and scored a TD to pull within 11. The Steelers scored two TDs on their next two possessions to take a 29-28 lead, but failed on 2-pt conversions on each TD. That would be costly as David Garrard would later scramble 32 yards on a 4th & 2 to set up the winning field goal. Jacksonville finally won the game 31-29 after Roethlisberger was sacked for a 6th time on the night and fumbled with a drive that started under the 0:30 mark. Having been sacked 47 times (2nd most in NFL), it must be speculated that his performances could have been even better given improved protection. He often showed great skill outside of the pocket, as well as being amongst the top rushing quarterbacks. While the team did not go as far as they would have liked, it was a successful comeback season for Ben. Roethlisberger finished 3rd in Comeback Player of the Year voting behind Patriots' Randy Moss and Dallas Cowboys' Greg Ellis, who won the award. In his first Pro Bowl, Roethlisberger played three series in the 2nd quarter, going 5 of 9 for 42 yards, a TD, and led the AFC team in rushing with an 18 yard scramble. The NFC won the game 42-30.