The Pittsburgh Steelers knew that when the final whistle blew on January 16, 2022 - Ben Roethlisberger's final game in his NFL career, it would mark a massive change for a franchise that had spent 18 years without any questions at the quarterback position. This had unequivocally been Roethlisberger's team, and now he had to watch as the reins were handed to someone else, and that person was Kenny Pickett. It was assumed that the situation was a challenging one for Roethlisberger to handle, but he now has said exactly what was difficult about the change and how his experience through it was.
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Kenny Pickett (8) Scores Against The New York Jets
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On the most recent Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger podcast, the guest being Pickett himself, co-host Spencer Te'o asked Roethlisberger a direct question that practically every Steelers fan has wanted to know the answer to; how did he handle the changing of the guard from him to Pickett? Spencer hit on one spot in particular that has been the subject of some debate, and that is how much Roethlisberger had left to give when his career ended.
"Ben, how did you feel leaving… and watching Kenny take over when it seemed to a lot of us that you still had gas in the tank? Was that tough?”
It isn't new for athletes to be asked questions that touch on the real, human part of football, but it is rare to get anything other than a copy-and-paste answer from them, but this time was different. Roethlisberger took a moment to think it over, and then pivoted from the usual athlete-media playbook and opened up. Roethlisberger admitted that he did indeed feel like he had something left to offer the team, and while it could have been easier for him to shrug, smile and say it didn't really bother him, he was transparent about the difficulty that came with Pickett's time starting in Pittsburgh.
“I’ll be completely honest, and I’ll be super transparent here… I wouldn’t say that I wanted Kenny to necessarily fail, but when someone comes to replace you, you know, I still feel like I had it, I’m like, 'I hope he doesn’t come [and] like ball out, cause then it’s like, Ben who,' right?”
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Pittsburgh Steelers Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger during Super Bowl XL
Steelers' Ben Roethlisberger Grew Through The Situation
Most of those in Pittsburgh had assumed that this was the way Roethlisberger felt, but there was something different about actually hearing it being put out in the open, especially with Pickett sitting to his left. Roethlisberger had all the freedom to remain in that state of mind and root against the rookie as he made his way through his first NFL season, but instead, the future Hall of Famer took the time to watch Pickett's play, and just like the young quarterback out of Pittsburgh had done his entire college career, he won yet another person over.
“But honestly, I think as you started playing and I found myself rooting more and more for you, you know what I’m saying?... I feel bad, and I know I came on this show and… I apologized to you for not knowing how good he was gonna be.”
Roethlisberger followed that up by going more into the kind of player Pickett is, saying that he really didn't know what made Pickett the dynamic winner that he has proven to be. The more Roethlisberger watched, the more he liked about what he was seeing, especially the running aspect, which surprised him.
“I didn’t know that you were the runner that you were. I just didn’t know what was gonna happen.”
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Kenny Pickett speaks to the press following the Steelers win over the Las Vegas Raiders.
Steelers' Playoff Push Helped Win Roethlisberger Over
The start to Pickett's NFL career was a struggle indeed, as the team found themselves floundering at 2-6 with major attitude changes needed since no real changes were going to come from Offensive Coordinator, Matt Canada. It was that grit that had Roethlisberger watching week after week, having gone from a Pickett skeptic, to openly cheering for him to succeed. The end of his own era, difficult as it was to handle at first, became an experience that few get to have as he did his best to will the team during the late-season 7-2 run, even if it ended without a postseason berth.
“Early on, I didn’t want him to succeed, cause he followed me up, I didn’t want it to happen. I think that’s probably the selfishness of me and I feel bad for it, but as it went on – as the season went on – he got to his third game playing, I was rooting for him. I was excited for you, and I wanted you to succeed, I wanted you to win games, I wanted you to get to the playoffs.”
It was a wonderful moment as Roethlisberger went from speaking about the situation in general to speaking directly to Pickett. The Steelers are more than just a franchise, it is a family and to see a rift repaired between two talented, passionate players - one current and one awaiting his bust in Canton - reminds everyone in the Steelers' fan base about just how unique the bonds are that they can supersede even a legend's competitive nature to make way for mutually cheering for the same success.
“I feel bad that I felt that early on, but I’m glad that I transitioned into love and rooting for you."
The podcast continued in the same jovial manner with Roethlisberger saying that he now wears Pickett's jersey every week while watching the games, but then Spencer jumped in to correct him, saying that the jersey is in fact Roethlisberger's (#7) with a '+1' taped onto it. The laughter by all three participants defined the moment, because it had started with a challenge and ended in smiles - just as it should be.
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