Former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger began the retirement rumors all the way back in 2016. He teased people for awhile on the notion that he may be wrapping up his career sometime soon. That scared the front office, as general manager, Kevin Colbert immediately took a quarterback in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL Draft in the form of Joshua Dobbs.
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Unfortunately for Dobbs, he would never get a true shot in Pittsburgh. Roethlisberger would play another five years in the league after the selection of Dobbs, forcing him to find a chance elsewhere. It's not the only QB that didn't get a fair chance with the Steelers due to the prolonged back-end of Roethlisberger's career. The other would be Mason Rudolph, who just finished his fourth season with the team and will likely sign elsewhere in free agency.
Recently, Dobbs appeared on the podcast "Bussin' With The Boys," which features Tennessee Titans lineman, Taylor Lewan and former NFL linebacker, Will Compton. On the episode, he was asked about his time in Pittsburgh and more specifically, the command and intelligence that Roethlisberger had on offense:
"That was definitely the thought [of starting at some point]. It didn't shake out the way that I foresaw it, but it was so cool working with Ben and just seeing how he plays the game. We have a cool relationship now," Dobbs said to Lewan and Compton. "So much of the offense was on him. Freelance at the line of scrimmage, pick his plays. A lot of times, there would be no play, Ben's calling the game on the field."
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Often times, fans speculated on Roethlisberger's command in the offense. He did have a ton of success in the league, making six Pro Bowls and winning two Super Bowls. With inexperienced, unproven offensive coordinators like Randy Fichtner and Matt Canada in his last few seasons, it was obvious that Roethlisberger had more command.
In fact, often times, the offense did better when it was up-tempo, no-huddle. That held particularly true in 2021, Roethlisberger's last season and Canada's first as the OC. Dobbs spent some time in Pittsburgh in 2021, his second tenure with the team. He specifically referenced training camp, where the Steelers quarterbacks weren't given any plays. Instead, the quarterbacks had to come up with them on the fly. It helped prepare Roethlisberger for in-game moments, particularly when the team needed a touchdown.
With Mitch Trubisky possibly being a cut candidate this off-season, the black and gold may be in search of another quarterback to sit behind Kenny Pickett. Dobbs has been a name thrown around by several fans, as he would be a solid backup and is familiar with the organization. First though, the five-year quarterback will likely try to find a spot in which he can compete for a starting job. In his two starts with the Titans, he proved that he can play at the professional level.
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Do you think Dobbs should have gotten more of a shot in Pittsburgh? Should GM Omar Khan pursue Dobbs this off-season to be Pickett's backup? Does it surprise you that Roethlisberger called his own plays a lot of the time? Share your thoughts in the comment section below!
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