Ben Roethlisberger looks forward to building chemistry with new wideouts
Ben Roethlisberger has come to his 16th training camp with the Steelers feeling as good as he ever has, with a throwing arm he said is as strong as when he came into the league as the 11th overall selection in 2004.
He is coming off a season in which he led the NFL in attempts (675), completions (452) and passing yards (5,129) and signed another monster contract that he plans to honor until its completion in 2021.
But, on the first day of practice at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, Roethlisberger acknowledged that things “will be different” without his star receiver, Antonio Brown, who was traded to the Oakland Raiders after a series of incidents of insubordinate and bizarre behavior in the offseason.
In the previous six seasons, Brown was the most productive receiver in any four-, five- or six-year period in league history.
“The things we did together were some things that no one has ever really done, Peyton [Manning] and Marvin [Harrison] maybe,” Roethlisberger said Friday after a morning walk-through practice. “In the last few years, it was pretty special. It’s going to be hard to make up for that.”
Roethlisberger has a phalanx of young receivers, including James Washington and rookie Diontae Johnson, along with veteran newcomer Donte Moncrief, that he thinks can pair with JuJu Smith-Schuster to help compensate for the loss of Brown.
“My game has always been that — spread the ball around, get it to guys who are open,” he said. “I think it will be a combination of a lot of guys. I’m really excited about all the guys.”
Then Roethlisberger added, “To me, I know what they can do. I know they can catch. I know they can play. I want to see who makes the least amount of mistakes, who can get a subtle hand signal, who can interpret even visual signals. That’s the fun part. That’s the part I enjoy.”
Roethlisberger didn’t get a lot of time to work with Johnson in the spring because the third-round draft choice from Toledo missed the first two weeks of OTAs with a hamstring injury. But he saw enough of him in minicamp to pronounce “there’s some excitement there for sure.”
That feeling was solidified when he saw the way Johnson performed in the run test on Thursday.
“Any young guy who comes in needs to work on conditioning,” Roethlisberger said. “No rookie ever comes in and is in great condition. I saw him run his conditioning test and he was barely breathing. I heard he was here a lot in the offseason and you can tell he really took that to heart to get in shape. I’ve seen that. The next thing I want to see is how he plays and reacts with pads on. A lot of us look good with shorts and T-shirts.”
Roethlisberger had never thrown for more than 5,000 yards in any season until last year. And the only time he attempted more than 600 passes and had more than 400 completions in a season was 2014, when he was 408 of 608 for 4,952 yards and 32 touchdowns. He also threw only nine interceptions in 2014, seven fewer than he did in 2018 when he led the NFL.
He was asked if he would like to throw less — or if he intends to throw less — in 2019.
“I’ll do whatever it takes to win,” Roethlisberger said. “I spoke to offense last night about that. I’m the type of guy — the guys on this field who have been around me know me — I’d rather throw for 5 yards and win than throw for 500 yards and lose. I’ll just take a win. Whatever we need to do to win football games, make the playoffs and try to win a Super Bowl, that’s what I’m up for.”
At age 37, Roethlisberger said he feels good enough to play three more years, which is when his new deal will expire. Roethlisberger signed a three-year, $80 million contract that included a $37.5 million signing bonus in April.
“I like to think my arm is just as strong,” Roethlisberger said. “I spent a lot of time working on my shoulders and back and things for throwing. I’d like to think my arm hasn’t dropped off. As you get older, you have to work on mobility. A lot of the type of stuff I’ve been working on is short-area, in-the-pocket type of movement. Physically, I feel as good as I have.”
I think the wideouts will be fine. James Washington is key.
Damn. 
Nigga disappears too much. 
