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Steelers team president Art Rooney II met with Ben Roethlisberger on Tuesday. The meeting went well, according to a later report.
Apparently, the meaning of “the meeting went well” is that both sides have agreed to try again.
Ryan Tollner, the quarterback’s agent, told Aditi Kinkhabwala of the NFL Network that the Steelers “I want ben back and will contact me shortly to address the cap situation. As we’ve shared since the end of the season, we’re happy to creatively adjust their contract to help them form the best team possible. A year ago, Ben was not sure he would be able to launch again, but he struggled to get 12 wins and the eighth division title of his career. They lost strength on the stretch and it didn’t go down well for him, so the fire burns strongly and there’s a lot of gas in the tank. “
Steelers will have to redo Roethlisberger’s contract, which provides for a salary cap of $ 41.25 million for 2021. Roethlisberger has said he is willing to work with the team to make it work, which means some kind of cut in pay.
The Steelers raised doubts about whether they wanted Roethlisberger to return last week. General manager Kevin Colbert was evasive about Roethlisberger playing an 18th season with the team.
Roethlisberger, who turns 39 next month, remains the team’s best option in the position, despite his age and his fall at the end of last season. In the last five games of the regular season he played, Roethlisberger had nine touchdowns and had six turns, while the Steelers had only 2-3.
Roethlisberger then threw four touchdowns and four interceptions in the Browns’ wild-card playoff defeat.
But Roethlisberger’s return prevents the Steelers from hunting for a starting defender this offseason, when they are up against the cap or passing the reins to Mason Rudolph, who is 5-4 in his starting career.