PITTSBURGH — The Watt family won’t be the only ones taking pictures at this game. It will be a special one for Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, as well.
Roethlisberger will be appearing in his 221st game as a member of the Steelers. That will break Hall of Fame center Mike Webster’s team record of 220 games in a Steelers uniform.
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“I am so thankful to be in the black and gold 17 years later,” the 38-year-old said. "Almost half my life, I’ve been here giving Steelers fans everything I have. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else; I wouldn’t want to do it for any other team or any other fans. I’ve been blessed to be around a lot of great football players and talent and teammates.
Roethlisberger is now in his 17th season with the team -- also a record -- and his longevity is something of which he is quite proud. Early in his career, when Roethlisberger was at the top of the league rankings in sacks taken every year, it didn’t seem like this kind of record would be attainable.
“I did take a lot of beating early on. A lot of that was my fault. God made me a bigger man than most quarterbacks, so I think I can take it and I’m just enjoying playing this game.”
The Steelers would like to keep him from taking another beating in this game, something that most likely would come at the hands of J.J. Watt if it were to happen. While Roethlisberger did, as he said, “take a beating” early in his career, he’s been one of the hardest quarterbacks in the league to sack for much of the past decade thanks to adjustments he’s made in his play and the Steelers' improved offensive line play.
That line will get a boost in this game from the return of former All-Pro guard David DeCastro, who is expected to make his first start of the 2020 season after sitting out the first two games with a knee injury.
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