Getty Ben Roethlisberger #7 of the Pittsburgh Steelers calls a play at the line of scrimmage against the Tennessee Titans during week three of preseason at Nissan Stadium on August 25, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee.
Ben Roethlisberger is not starting the second half for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
As the Steelers began the second half of their Week 2 matchup against the Seattle Seahawks, Roethlisberger was nowhere to be seen. That would be because the veteran quarterback injured his throwing arm during the first half against the Seahawks.
Due to the injury, 24-year-old backup quarterback Mason Rudolph will begin the second half in Roethlisberger’s place.
Adam Schefter of ESPN provided an official update on Roethlisberger, saying that he’s questionable to return.
This is the play where the two-time Super Bowl winner hurt his arm. It didn’t happen on a tackle or any sort of physical play — it merely happened following his throwing motion on a basic pass play.
Ben Roethlisberger hurt his arm/elbow on this play and is out of the game #Steelers
Roethlisberger had temporarily gone to the locker room in the first half to have his right elbow checked up — only to return just a couple of minutes later. However, the Steelers decided to take caution with Roethlisberger during halftime, electing to go with Rudolph with what might be for the remainder of the game.
The 37-year-old quarterback went 8-of-15 for just 75 yards during the first half before his injury.
Ben Roethlisberger Fantasy Football Impact
Roethlisberger is a low-end starting quarterback, high-end backup at this stage of his career. However, if the unproven Rudolph is forced to step in for Roethlisberger for a prolonged period of time, it’s probably not worth it to add the 24-year-old young gun.
The Steelers’ offensive cast isn’t as stacked as it has been in recent seasons — in large part due to Antonio Brown — and Pittsburgh was heavily relying on their 16th-year quarterback to help overcompensate for their lack of experience at the wide receiver and running back positions.
Juju-Smith Schuster is just 22 years old and is in his third year — first as a No. 1 wideout — and James Conner is in his second season as the starting running back.
If Rudolph steps in to lead the Steelers for a couple of games, the results honestly might be disastrous. In fact, the Oklahoma State product didn’t start the game too well. Three plays in, Rudolph threw an interception and the Seahawks capitalized by scoring a touchdown on the following drive after.
It was the first pass attempt of his career.
Ben Roethlisberger Injury Update
Update 5:33 pm ET
According to Dianna Russini of ESPN, there is real “concern” that Roethlisberger’s elbow injury is serious.
Inside the Steelers’ locker room players obviously concerned about the health of Ben Roethlisberger.
One player told me that the team actually was aware that the QB was dealing with some elbow inflammation all week at practice. #Steelers
It’s worth noting that Roethlisberger hasn’t missed a start due to injury since Week 7 of the 2016 season. After this latest report, it’s entirely realistic that Big Ben misses the Steelers’ Week 3 matchup against the Niners.
The 24-year-old Rudolph had yet to throw an NFL pass during his two seasons in the league prior to this game.
We’ll keep you updated regarding the severity of Big Ben’s injury as soon as more information becomes available, but this initial report from Russini isn’t good for Roethlisberger’s fantasy owners or Steelers fans.
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