April 24, 2004 is a day that would forever change the Pittsburgh Steelers. On this day, the Steelers drafted redshirt junior Benjamin Todd Roethlisberger from Miami of Ohio with the 11th pick in the 2004 NFL draft. He would go on in his rookie year to lead the Steelers to a 15-1 record (13-0) as a starter and finishing as the “NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year”. From there he would go on to win 2 Super Bowls for the prestigious franchise and essentially owning all passing records for the Steelers. After an illustrious 18-year career, even though he has not outright said it, it’s anticipated he will be hanging it up as the quarterback for the team. The unknown is upon us but what would have happened to the Steelers if the team did not draft him that spring day in April.
In 2004 the top 3 quarterbacks of the class were Eli Manning from Ole Miss, Philip Rivers from NC State and Ben Roethlisberger. Eli was the consensus #1 rated player in the draft and was projected to be the #1 overall pick in the class. Depending on who you were talking to, the 2nd and 3rd ranked QBs were either Philip or Ben. The San Diego Chargers had the number 1 overall pick this year, but Eli let it be known that he did not want to play for the organization. The Chargers still drafted him 1 overall with the anticipation to trade him. The New York Giants, who were in the market for a QB, saw the opportunity to get the top-rated prospect in the class and decided to play ball with the Chargers. The Chargers saw Philip Rivers as a potential franchise passer and would trade Eli to New York in exchange for Philip. In an alternate universe let’s say Eli did not force his way out of San Diego and decided to play there. New York would then pick between Ben and Philip. According to Ernie Accorsi, former general manager of the New York Giants (1998-2006) “I was holding my breath on Roethlisberger, and we had written Roethlisberger’s name down on the card — ready to hand it in immediately.” This tells you he was close on making Ben the quarterback for the Giants. In this alternate universe let’s say Giants did indeed draft Ben 4th overall. Where does that leave the Steelers at 11? The Steelers were in the market for a QB, they had Tommy Maddox who went 15-16-1 in his 5 years in Pittsburgh including 6-10 in the 2003 NFL season. Head coach Bill Cowher attended River’s workout prior to the draft and did not attend Ben’s which was 3 days later. It seems Pittsburgh would have pulled the trigger on Philip had he lasted until pick 11.
Now we are at a point in this alternate universe where Philip Rivers is the quarterback of the Pittsburgh Steelers. In San Diego, Rivers didnt start a game until his 3rd year but here in Pittsburgh, Tommy Maddox gets injured in the 2nd game of the season against the Baltimore Ravens. Behind a strong rushing game and a dominant defense, Rivers would need to be a game manager. Now I won’t say he would finish 13-0 as a rookie, let’s say in this universe he finishes 10-3 as a starter and Pittsburgh finishes the season 12-4 and 3rd in the AFC. Steelers instead of getting the bye week they play in the wildcard game versus the Denver Broncos. The Steelers win and move on to the Divisional round against the New England Patriots where they end up losing.
With Ken Whisenhunt and Bruce Arians already on the coaching staff, they see that Philip is a true gunslinger and alter their offensive schemes to accentuate his development. Also instead of building a defensive juggernaut they build an elite offense. The likes of Lawrence Timmons, Ziggy Hood and Cam Heyward don’t get drafted. Instead Dwayne Bowe, LeSean McCoy and Anthony Castonzo. This helps Pittsburgh change its identity to being on the upper echelon of offenses. Also instead of Cowher retiring and Mike Tomlin being hired, the team promotes Ken Whisenhunt because of his relationship with Rivers.
Over the years, the Steelers outscored teams averaging an outstanding 30 points a game during Rivers’ career. However, the team continues to struggle to overcome the proverbial hump in the playoffs. In Philips 17-year career with the Steelers, he went 6-6 in the playoffs never making it past the AFC championship. Meanwhile in San Diego, Ben led the Chargers to its lone Superbowl championship in 2007 beating Eli Manning and the New York Giants. Rivers’ regular season accomplishments and stats warrant an argument he is a future Hall of Famer, but people bring up his postseason play as an argument about such induction.
All in all, maybe it was fate that brought Ben to the Steelers. He mentioned it in his postgame interview after losing to the Chiefs in the wildcard game. He said the night of the draft he wore a black blazer and yellow tie, foreshadowing the events that were about to happen that night. Ben fit the Steeler way. He embodied the culture of the city and was able to bring not 1 but 2 championships to the organization. We saw a glimpse of what would happen in a post Big Ben era in 2019 when Ben was lost for the season after 2 games and the team finished 8-8. Dark days may be ahead but with Tomlin leading the charge and players like Cam Heyward, T.J. Watt and Minkah Fitzpatrick as cornerstones for this team, the future does look bright. Maybe the 2022 draft there will be another “Ben Roethlisberger” for the Steelers to draft and add to the legacy of the Pittsburgh Steelers.