Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is getting impatient. Two weeks of watching his team struggle to produce consistently on offense after Roethlisberger went down with an MCL sprain, has apparently been too much for the big signal-caller. Roethlisberger, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, is eyeing a return to Pittsburgh's lineup for their Week 6 matchup against the powerhouse Arizona Cardinals. Of course, Ben will have to return to practice first before he can think about stepping out onto the field for live snaps this weekend.
"Roethlisberger said Wednesday morning from the Steelers' locker room he planned to participate in 7-on-7 work, which would be about 12 to 15 plays max, no contact. He still has hurdles to clear, such as regaining lateral movements, to be fully cleared," Fowler reported about midday Wednesday.
Roethlisberger made it clear he's hopeful of a return this week against Arizona, but it will likely be head coach Mike Tomlin's call as to whether Big Ben actually suits up.
"Just being smart, knowing when I'm able to protect myself, I'll be back out there," Roethlisberger said, via Fowler. "I can walk around just fine and step and throw. It's being able to avoid a pass rush, being able to make subtle movements in the pocket and out of the pocket."
Considering the toughness Roethlisberger has displayed over his career, it really wouldn't be surprising to see him return this quickly despite the severity of the initial injury. But that being said, it's still early and at this point, still seems unlikely that he'd actually be able to pull it off.
While Roethlisberger's replacement, Mike Vick, did manage to the lead the team to victory over the San Diego Chargers on Monday, both of his starts have been fraught with inconsistency and a lack of overall offensive output. Vick has averaged just 163.5 passing yards over the past two weeks, while the Steelers were averaging over 330 yards with Big Ben.
No matter the outcome this week, Roethlisberger's improvement is a positive sign for Steelers fans and a likely indication that he'll back much sooner than expected.
