zulater
11-27-2013, 04:09 AM
Ben Roethlisberger has been pretty accurate this season — almost as accurate as he was before the season.
Back in minicamp, Roethlisberger told USA Today that it might be a bit early to canonize last year's rookie quarterback class, which included Robert Griffin III, Andrew Luck and Russell Wilson and might as well have included Colin Kaepernick, a second-year pro who was a first-time starter.
“People ask me all the time about these young quarterbacks,” Roethlisberger said. “Let's wait. One year does not mean a lot in this league. Let's see what happens in two, three years.”
Good call, Ben. Some of us lost our minds. I had RGIII in the Super Bowl this season. ESPN analyst Ron Jaworski had one-read Kaepernick possibly becoming “one of the greatest quarterbacks ever.”
Everybody, it seemed, was ready to rank last year's class with Roethlisberger's Class of 2004 (Eli Manning, Philip Rivers) and the legendary Class of 1983, which featured Jim Kelly, Dan Marino and John Elway.
Now look: Nearly three-quarters of the way through the season, only Wilson is thriving. Luck's numbers are slightly improved, but his rookie numbers weren't great.
Kaepernick and Griffin have regressed, RGIII taking by far the biggest fall. The way his season is going, that kick in the crotch he absorbed against San Francisco would qualify as a high point.
But the plight of all of these guys is why, when you finally get an established franchise quarterback such as Roethlisberger, you do everything in your power to keep him until his arm falls off. The way the Dolphins did with Marino, the Bills with Kelly and the Broncos with Elway.
Roethlisberger has stood the test of time, yet's he's still growing as a quarterback. He's tough, smart and durable.
And plenty accurate.
Read more: http://triblive.com/sports/steelers/5139393-74/season-roethlisberger-kaepernick#ixzz2lq5oBfhV
Follow us: @triblive on Twitter | triblive on Facebook
Back in minicamp, Roethlisberger told USA Today that it might be a bit early to canonize last year's rookie quarterback class, which included Robert Griffin III, Andrew Luck and Russell Wilson and might as well have included Colin Kaepernick, a second-year pro who was a first-time starter.
“People ask me all the time about these young quarterbacks,” Roethlisberger said. “Let's wait. One year does not mean a lot in this league. Let's see what happens in two, three years.”
Good call, Ben. Some of us lost our minds. I had RGIII in the Super Bowl this season. ESPN analyst Ron Jaworski had one-read Kaepernick possibly becoming “one of the greatest quarterbacks ever.”
Everybody, it seemed, was ready to rank last year's class with Roethlisberger's Class of 2004 (Eli Manning, Philip Rivers) and the legendary Class of 1983, which featured Jim Kelly, Dan Marino and John Elway.
Now look: Nearly three-quarters of the way through the season, only Wilson is thriving. Luck's numbers are slightly improved, but his rookie numbers weren't great.
Kaepernick and Griffin have regressed, RGIII taking by far the biggest fall. The way his season is going, that kick in the crotch he absorbed against San Francisco would qualify as a high point.
But the plight of all of these guys is why, when you finally get an established franchise quarterback such as Roethlisberger, you do everything in your power to keep him until his arm falls off. The way the Dolphins did with Marino, the Bills with Kelly and the Broncos with Elway.
Roethlisberger has stood the test of time, yet's he's still growing as a quarterback. He's tough, smart and durable.
And plenty accurate.
Read more: http://triblive.com/sports/steelers/5139393-74/season-roethlisberger-kaepernick#ixzz2lq5oBfhV
Follow us: @triblive on Twitter | triblive on Facebook