Pittsburgh Steelers: Ben Roethlisberger
With two Super Bowl titles (XL & XLIII) to his name already, Big Ben’s career resume is glittering, but his reputation is tarnished due to off-field issues ranging from drunken, inappropriate behaviour, alleged sexual misdemeanours and traffic incidents. Personally, I don’t think the gossip surrounding Ben’s behaviour has much foundation – he seems like too nice a guy and I reckon he’s only been fined for bringing the league into disrepute – something totally out of his control if the vicious rumours handed to the press by money-hungry girls prove to be false or exaggerated.
He’s a big time football star: that doesn’t give him the right to misbehave, but it does make him vulnerable in all sorts of ways. Temptations are manifold for a young man of physical and occupational stature, and those he declines are as real as the press need them to be as soon as they find a mouthpiece with which they can accuse. So the question people may ask, given the tumultuous season Roethlisberger has endured (serving a four game suspension as the curtain raised) is whether he has the mettle to stand tall in his third Super Bowl appearance?
I think he does.
Big Ben has, since he exploded onto the scene when Tommy Maddox went down, leading the Steelers to a league-best 15-1 record and the AFC Championship game, been a solid, driving force of this team; the heartbeat of the offence, he is the reason they have two Super Bowls and a league-leading 6 in total.
He is the reason this team plays tough, smash mouth football: it’s his style; his personality. When that kind of toughness and aggression comes from a QB, other teams better watch out. Roethlisberger will be calm, cool and collected in this game. He will make things happen. He will not be the reason his team loses and, if they win, it could very well be thanks to the hands of the man who has made Super Bowl MVPs 2 receivers.
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