Emotional Ben Roethlisberger Addresses Retirement Talk After Steelers Loss

Have we seen the last of Ben Roethlisberger in the NFL?

Retirement speculation has surrounded the Steelers quarterback for the last few years, and talk of the 38-year-old hanging up his cleats surely will ramp up following Pittsburgh’s Sunday night playoff loss to the Cleveland Browns. Roethlisberger threw for 501 yards and four touchdowns in the 48-37 defeat, but also threw four interceptions while showcasing the iffy decision-making the marred the last month-plus of the Steelers’ once-promising 2020 campaign.

Roethlisberger clearly has something left in the tank, but he simultaneously has looked like a player near the end of the proverbial string. His emotions in the closing moments of Sunday night’s game might have forecast his intentions for 2021.

Check out this video featuring Roethlisberger and Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey here.

Roethlisberger was non-committal after the Wild Card loss.

“It will start between me and God,” he said of his looming retirement decision, via The Pittsburgh-Post Gazette’s Ray Fittipaldo. “A lot of praying. I still have a year left on my contract. I hope the Steelers want me back if that’s the way we decide to go.”

Roethlisberger’s NFL career has been up-and-down one, both on the field and off. The 11th overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft nevertheless has built a Hall of Fame-worthy career that saw he and the Steelers win two Super Bowl titles.

Whenever Roethlisberger decides to retire, he likely will go down as the greatest quarterback in Steelers history — yes, even better than Terry Bradshaw.