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After 18 seasons, 2 Super Bowl victories, 6 Pro Bowls, and approximately 20 documented injuries, “Big” Ben Roethlisberger retired Thursday, Jan. 27. He announced his decision on Twitter.
A message from Ben:@steelers #NFL #SteelersNation #ThankYou#HereWeGo #LoveAndHonor pic.twitter.com/pUbKGO1nUs
— BigBen7.com (@_BigBen7) January 27, 2022
Shortly after the video was posted, his teammates, former teammates turned enemies before becoming friends again, and peers all showed their support.
https://twitter.com/TeamJuJu/status/1486769960600756228?s=20&t=-oHwHUfKHqbh5rv2h-C5UA
In 2019, Smith-Schuster made the Pro Bowl after catching 111 passes for 1,426 yards and 7 touchdowns from Roethlisberger.
https://twitter.com/AB84/status/1486821640029757444
Roethlisberger and Brown combined for nine years to form arguably the best quarterback-wide receiver duo in NFL history. Brown eventually demanded his way out of Pittsburgh trashing Roethlisberger in the process. He later apologized.
Ben defied the TB12 Method in favor of the “Throw Some Ice On It” method his whole career, and ended up an all-time-great with 6 Pro-Bowls and 2 Super Bowls. There’s more than one way to bake a cake! https://t.co/ue36KXTHnk
— Tom Brady (@TomBrady) January 27, 2022
Even while contemplating his own retirement decision, Tom Brady praised Roethlisberger.
Accomplishments
Big Ben was drafted 11th overall during the 2004 NFL draft. Ahead of him, Eli Manning went 1st and Phillip Rivers went 4th. Now, all three are retired and likely to end up in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
https://twitter.com/SportsCenter/status/1486775150427131908
During his career, as aforementioned, Roethlisberger won 2 Super Bowls and 6 Pro Bowls. He also threw for 64,088 yards, 5th all-time, and 418 touchdowns, 8th all-time.
His 18 years with the Steelers are the longest a quarterback has played while spending his entire career with one team.
The 18 seasons that Ben Roethlisberger spent in Pittsburgh are the longest that any QB has spent for an entire career with one franchise in NFL history. Roethlisberger ends his career with the most seasons and games played in Steelers franchise history. pic.twitter.com/ozhEohgFSk
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 27, 2022
He never had a losing season.
What’s Next
For Big Ben, relaxation. The now former NFL player has nothing left to prove. For the Steelers, finding a new quarterback. Even so, it will be almost impossible to replace what Roethlisberger meant to the team, organization and city.
