Steelers Legend Ben Roethlisberger Detailed How He And Kenny Pickett Share 1 Surprising Trait

On Tuesday, Pittsburgh Steelers legend, former quarterback and future Hall of Famer, Ben Roethlisberger, appeared on 105.9 The X on the Mark Madden Show.

Madden asked Roethlisberger about the Steelers' newest quarterback, Kenny Pickett. When Roethlisberger retired after the 2021 season the Steelers picked up Mitch Trubisky after he finished a one-year contract with the Buffalo Bills. The organization also drafted Pickett, who played for the University of Pittsburgh prior to being drafted. 

The Pitt-Steelers connection was highligted often. They share a facility and that had allowed head coach, Mike Tomlin and the other staff to become very familiar with Pickett. It also allowed Pickett to get to know the Steelers players and staff. 

When the 2022 season began, the Steelers' plan was to start veteran quarterback, Trubisky and allow Pickett time to develop and learn. After three mediocre games, Trubisky was benched at halftime in Week 4 against the New York Jets. Pickett entered the game and while the Steelers still lost, a new era had begun in the Steel City. The rest of the season saw Pickett struggle initially, but then steadily improve after the bye week.

Roethlisberger Says That The Steelers New Quarterback, Pickett May Have What It Takes To Be Elite

Madden asked Roethlisberger what Pickett has to do to be considered a successful quarterback in this league. How far is he from being considered among names like Peyton Manning, Phillip Rivers, and Roethlisberger himself and what does he have to do to get there? According to Roethlisberger:   

"Winning always cures all those things... I said this on the podcast, he's surprised me. I apologized to him for thinking less. I think he's much better with his feet, his legs and his mobility than I anticipated. Maybe it's just me not watching enough Pitt ball. I thought that he could move and extend plays and not just extend plays behind the line of scrimmage, but get yards down the field. He will be able to use that to take him to the next level when it comes to working at that elite level."

Pickett has big cleats to fill in Pittsburgh. While most fans agreed it was time for Roethlisberger to retire, fans had fear of what the future would hold and that had them concerned. It is easy for fans to make comparisons between Roethlisberger and Pickett, but today, Madden flipped the script. He asked what aspect of Pickett's game would you add to yours back when? Would that be Pickett's ability to run in comparison to Roethlisberger extending plays so masterfuilly? To that, Roethlisberger said:

"There's a difference between extending a play, which I always felt that I can do, and running. And he can run, he extends it when he puts his head down and goes downfield. He's picking up serious yards. He's picking up 10, 15, 20 yards a clip. That's the difference, his actual running ability."

Madden pointed out that Pickett's stats did not look great last season. However, most analysts agree that he passes the "eye test" and showed significant improvement. 

"The eyeball test at the end, you can say what you want, you can play awful football throughout a game and when it comes down to the last drive of a game and you have an opportunity to take your team down the field, in Baltimore, and at home [against the] Raiders, to do that on the last drive, that is big time football, that's throwing stats out the window."

That's where the similarity comes in according to Roethlisberger. Early in the 2022 season, Roethlisberger had been openly critical of Pickett. He felt that he lacked the confidence that is needed to be able to overcome adversity in the NFL. However, after watching Pickett lead the team back from being down during multiple games he issued an apology. Now, Roethlisberger is saying that the two quarterbacks share that ability to never give up. 

"I used to joke with a lot of people. I have a lot of fourth-quarter comebacks because I stunk the first three quarters... three and a half quarters sometimes. I'm not saying he stunk, but to be able to just play the game, and then when it matters most turn it on, lead your team down the field - it wasn't like he was just handing it off. He was making plays, finding guys. I think, right now, he can build on that and I think his confidence is through the roof. We will get him on the podcast and I'll get the eye test up close and personal on that confidence but I think it's gotta be through the roof."

Steeler Nation, let us know what you think about Roethlisberger's comments. Do you agree with his assessment of Pickett? Do you think that ability to be the 'come back kid' is an admirable one or a scary one (why can't Pittsburgh just win by 37 points)? Do you think Pickett has the fundamentals needed to become an elite quarterback? Click to comment below.

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