It’s official. Ben Roethlisberger announced his retirement from the NFL this morning. The 18 year veteran quarterbacked the Pittsburgh Steelers his whole career and amassed two Super Bowls, six Pro Bowls, and is in the top 10 for career completions, passing yards, and passing touchdowns.

Roethlisberger announced his retirement with this video on Thursday morning:

The Legacy

Roethlisberger leaves behind a legacy of winning football. Roethlisberger was drafted by Pittsburgh with the 11th pick in the 2004 NFL Draft. Since then Pittsburgh has not suffered a losing season, and has only missed the playoffs six times.

Ben made his mark in his rookie season. Coming in of relief for starter Tommy Maddox who was injured in a Week 2 loss to the Baltimore Ravens, “7” came in and never looked back. The Steelers won their next 15 games that season and ultimately fell to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game.

Roethlisberger led Pittsburgh to three Super Bowl appearances and two victories over the next six seasons. In that time and over the rest of his career he dazzled us with amazing play and play.

His Way

Ben never did anything pretty. He was at his best when the play broke down and things got ugly. And he liked it that way. Often referred to as a “Cowboy” or “Gunslinger” Ben seemed to make opportunities appear in impossible circumstances. Whether it was a touchdown-saving tackle in the playoffs, a game-winning touchdown in the Super Bowl, or breaking tackles of the most feared defenders “Big Ben” always made a “Big Play”.

Known for extending the play, Ben’s receivers and linemen had to learn to play “Ben Ball” meaning the play wasn’t over until 7 said it was. Just go on YouTube and check out his career highlights. There’s too many of those to tag.

What’s Next?

With Ben Roethlisberger’s retirement announcement Pittsburgh has a lot of questions to answer. You can check out my thoughts on that here. For Ben he has mentioned he wants to just be with his family and pursue some personal endeavors. So fans, don’t expect to see him on the sidelines anytime soon (or ever).

For today, and heck maybe through the weekend, let’s just focus on celebrating the time we had. Thank you 7 – it was a fun ride.

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