Ben Roethlisberger Heavily Criticizes Steelers' Mike Tomlin's Controversial Preseason Decision

The Pittsburgh Steelers are planning to start their fifth different quarterback to begin a season since the 2021 campaign. Since Ben Roethlisberger retired, the franchise has been in search of a long-term solution at the most important position in the NFL. That will continue after 2025, as Aaron Rodgers will be under center in the hopes of having one more chance to capture his second Super Bowl championship. He arrived to the Steel City a little bit later on as he showed up after Organized Team Activities (OTAs), but before mandatory minicamp, in order to sign his one-year contract.

Practice time is critical for an incoming quarterback and his offense, regardless of how much experience the signal-caller has. Rodgers has been with the team for a couple of months now, but no one is quite sure what the final product will look like in Week 1 against the New York Jets. There is a lot of anticipation building amongst the fan base, and rightfully so.

Head Coach Mike Tomlin recently said that he's not so sure that Rodgers needs to participate in any preseason contests. No one wants the quarterback to suffer any kind of injury, but those reps could have been critical in getting the starting unit ready for the season. Starting slow come Week 1 is not an option, but Tomlin seems to trust Rodgers implicitly. Roethlisberger, on the other hand, stated recently on the Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger podcast that he doesn't love the idea.

"Aaron not playing, I'm sure Aaron wants to play a little bit," Roethlisberger said. "I think it'd be smart for him to play a little bit just because new system, new guys, like to get out there and do it. Patrick Mahomes played a quarter. There's a lot of teams — is there anyone more important? If Patrick Mahomes gets hurt on that, that team's done."

The point is a very valid one. While Patrick Mahomes is younger than Rodgers, him being in the lineup helps the Kansas City Chiefs' offense to find a rhythm heading into the regular season. Roethlisberger compared Rodgers not playing to training for a marathon because a lot of preparation is needed.

"If I'm preparing for a marathon, if I'm preparing for the regular season, you can't just go run the marathon. You can't just show up. You can't just run on a treadmill every day like, 'I'm going to run a mile, going to run two miles,' and then go run a marathon," Roethlisberger said. "People will say, 'Well, you're practicing.' Yeah, practicing in football against your own guys, in pads sometimes, sometimes not in pads, that's like going and running on a treadmill."

It has not officially been confirmed that Rodgers will not play in one of the final two preseason contests, but it sure seems like Tomlin is set on that decision, which is a mistake, according to Roethlisberger.

If the Steelers start off slow in Week 1, and maybe even in several games after that, Tomlin will be criticized for not giving Rodgers valuable reps in preseason matchups. Rodgers, however, believes that joint practices are more beneficial for preparation, and that will occur with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday prior to the two franchises facing off on Saturday evening.

Steelers Hoping Rodgers' Veteran Prowess Helps Jumpstart Offense

There are a lot of high expectations for Pittsburgh's offense with Rodgers leading the way. He is getting familiar with the playbook and should have plenty of weapons at his disposal once the organization travels to play the Jets in early September. The hope is that the unit is ready to go without any hiccups, but a lack of true preseason snaps could be why points are hard to find as the season kicks off.

Do you think that the Steelers need to play Rodgers in the preseason? Let us know in the comments below!

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