Getty Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.
It’s been an eventful holiday weekend for Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger, who took to Twitter today to announce seven—that’s right 7—new additions to his family.
As you can see from the tweet below, his dog Dakota just had seven puppies.
Welcome to the 7 (yes, 7) newest members of the Roethlisberger family! 🐕
Roethlisberger’s announcement prompted some compelling responses on Twitter, including one Steelers fan who insisted that “it’s a sign” of good things to come. That is, a seventh Super Bowl title.
@_BigBen7 It’s a sign 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
Another simply conveyed the message: “This is the type of content I like to see.”
And another Twitter user imagined Big Ben’s reaction to the births:
The Ben Roethlisberger Foundation
In 2007, the longtime Steelers quarterback started the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation, which provides grants to help police and fire department K-9 units to purchase dogs and dog safety vests, with an emphasis on providing support for service dogs in Pittsburgh.
In a typical year, the foundation might distribute grants in each of the cities where the Steelers play an away game, including Cleveland, Cincinnati and Baltimore. If history is any guide, grants will also be forthcoming for New York, Nashville, Dallas, Jacksonville, and Buffalo, the other five cities on the Steelers’ 2020 regular season schedule.
In commenting on why establishing a charitable foundation was important to him, Roethlisberger said: “I have been blessed with opportunities throughout my life to pursue my goals and achieve some success, all under the guidance of a loving family and supportive communities. I was raised to appreciate my blessings and always try to help others who may not be as fortunate. I feel honored to be able to do so.”
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Ben Roethlisberger’s Comeback from Elbow Surgery
Of course, Roethlisberger’s return to football is contingent on him being able to recover from the elbow surgery that ended his 2019 season after just a game-and-a-half.
So far, all signs have been positive. In mid-May he was already throwing to teammates JuJu Smith-Schuster, James Conner and Ryan Switzer at full-speed. And more than a few NFL analysts have expressed optimism that Big Ben is poised for a huge season, perhaps even an Comeback Player of the Year-type season. In fact, Roethlisberger remains the favorite to win NFL Comeback Player of the Year, even in the wake of Cam Newton signing a one-year contract with the New England Patriots.
On the other hand, during the same public appearance in which he announced he has battled addictions, he admitted that he’s not ready to play in an NFL game yet, even if he is “ahead of schedule” and “throwing without pain.” And pessimists will recall that Terry Bradshaw’s career came to an end in 1983 because of an elbow injury that required surgery, though sports medicine has come a long way in the almost four decades since.
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