There are NFL quarterbacks who give new meaning to the words "prima dona"... and then there is Big Ben. Big Ben who you dare to ask? Pittsburgh Steelers Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. He's the sophomore quarterback who led the Pittsburgh Steelers to a best ever 15-1 record last season and was appropriately named NFL's Rookie of the Year. Ben Roethlisberger balances his small-town Ohio sweetness with just the right amount of suave bling-bling. Roethlisberger subtlety brings to light an unsurpassed charisma, a leadership and an ultra cool, in quite the same way that the Steelers Hall-of-Fame Middle Linebacker Jack Lambert oozed defiance and a bad to the bone toughness. "Look at all the other quarterbacks in the league; They’re not having the same type of success that Ben is," Steelers receiver Hines Ward says proudly. "It's a great story. He's never tried to step on anyone's toes acting like he's a big-shot, thinking he's better than everyone else. He goes out and buys us all donuts in the morning; he takes care of us. As a teammate and a natural leader, he makes you want to go out and work twice as hard for him. He sets a high standard for all of us."

So why has this virtually “unknown” kid from an equally unknown little college in the middle of nowhere, Ohio made such a major splash in the NFL and for that matter a city like Pittsburgh where the collars are blue and the fans don’t take any crap from their sports heroes? Because in a sport where each player is inevitably a “cash cow” and very few “sincere” words are uttered or spoken without a product endorsement contract attached to them— Ben Roethlisberger simply defies all of the “NFL stereo-types” with something that had been all but lost and forgotten amongst the hype and the marketing and “business as usual”. He’s actually “genuine”, the “real deal”, a guy without an agent-based “agenda” or a crude and belligerent attitude to pass along to young kids. Roethlisberger is the “role model” we haven’t seen since Johnny Unitas suited up and took the hits like a five star general leading a battalion of gridiron warriors into battle.

When asked about how he feels things have changed since last year [when he locked up the Rookie of the Year award, helped stake the Pittsburgh Steelers to the best record in the NFL, and hadn't lost a regular season football game he started since September of 2003], the “kid” who smiles warmly as his enthusiasm lights up the room is his usual “modest” self, giving far more credit to his teammates than he does to himself. "You just try to get better altogether as a team— reading the defenses, knowing what's going on with the offense. I personally feel much more comfortable knowing what's going on with the offense this year than I did last year. I think that's a good thing because I am more prepared out there and I can see things a little better and read it and make adjustments. I have to say— I'm so excited about this group of guys. I think we've got great leadership with Hines Ward, Hines and Antwaan. I think we've got a lot of guys who are stepping up big this year. They stepped up big last year and they're going to continue to do that— like Lee Mays. I think we've got some excellent new additions in the young guys with Cedrick [Wilson] coming over. Altogether we've got a bunch of different guys that bring even more things to the table and who are all very talented. I am so blessed to be here with a great team like the Pittsburgh Steelers and have such dedicated guys like this around me."

Big Ben threw for 17 touchdowns last year and only 11 interceptions, which given his passing threats was pretty amazing no matter how you look at it. He found his targets with remarkable accuracy, and when you add rookie TE Heath Miller to the equation and the stepping up of wide receiver Antwan Randall-El, things can only get better [stats-wise] for Big Ben this year. Expect his touchdowns to creep up over 25 and his interceptions to stay at around 10. Roethlisberger played the Patriots in an AFC Championship game as a rookie, and with that experience in his pocket he should be able to handle any situation thrown his way this year.

Roethlisberger, who also began mixing in more deep balls than he threw as a rookie in the Steelers opening game against the Tennessee Titans, improved to 14-0 as an NFL starter, not counting the playoffs. His passer rating was a perfect 158.3; he is the first QB since Kansas City's Trent Green in 2003 to have a perfect rating. "I think this is a quarterback you can win Super Bowls with," said Gil Brandt, who headed the Dallas Cowboys' personnel department in the '70s and '80s and now works as a senior analyst for NFL.com. "I think he has that kind of talent. The guy's got talent, character, he's smart— all the things you need to have to be successful. And you talk about a guy who can move." Bill Parcells, a Hall of Fame finalist as a coach, even compared Roethlisberger to Dan Marino. 

Whenever he has the time, [which isn’t very often given the grueling practices and the tough home/road schedules] Roethlisberger has been “web blogging” to keep his fans informed, albeit sparsely at first. His posts reflect his down-to-earth persona, wandering from the current weather status in Pittsburgh to cleaning his house to house training his dog. But to give all of you some idea as to why all of us here at UPBEAT are so endeared to Big Ben, we decided to include a rather personal excerpt from a recent web blog that can be found on his official web site. Our heartfelt thoughts and prayers go out to both Ben Roethlisberger and his entire family and hope that all of our readers will send along kind words and prayers to them as well. 

The Following Has Been Edited For Space:
From Ben Roethlisberger: June 29^th, 2005
Hello everyone... I am so sorry it has been so long since I have been able to get on here and write to you all I feel so bad about it...but I am back and I want to let you all know a little about what has been going on in my life. As some of you may know the family member that was sick in my family was my grandfather. Well, he passed away on Saturday morning. It is very tough for our family because we are so close. He was a great man and I know he is the reason my father is such a great man, and it is why I strive to be a great man so I can make them all so proud of me.

He was 83 years old and lived a great life he lived through and fought in a world war, made it through a depression, and saw so much else in his life time that most of us will never see or ever want to see. He was married to my grandmother for over 60 years and I have never seen two people so more in love than them. They were still holding hands and kissing at the age of 80. It was tough for me because I am the only grandson in the family and grandpa was a great athlete, so he came to a lot of my games ever since I was a little kid; it hurts a lot because he never got to see a Steelers game live, but I guess at least now he has the best seat in the house for the rest of my career. It was tough for me because the last funeral I went to was my mother’s when I was 8, so I am not used to these kinds of things, but it meant so much to have all the support from friends and family and other players, and all of the prayers.

I am dedicating this season to my grandfather Ken Carl Roethlisberger. I love you. UB

Editor-In-Chief Bridget Petrella has followed the NFL Gridiron Warriors since Broadway Joe Namath started wearing fur coats and sunglasses on the sidelines. She finally got to meet her all-time Superbowl hero, ex-Pittsburgh Steeler Jack Lambert, who lived up to his "bad to the bone" reputation and yet was kind enough to donate several autographed items to the Special Olympics of Western Pennsylvania.

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