Getty Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger attempts a pass.
Every NFL franchise has turning points that would’ve shifted the direction of a franchise. The San Francisco 49ers and Pittsburgh Steelers are no different.
When it comes to quarterbacks that have led the two teams, few names eclipse the likes of Joe Montana, Terry Bradshaw, Steve Young or Ben Roethlisberger. So, the idea of Roethlisberger, who retired after the conclusion of the 2021 NFL season, swapping Pittsburgh for San Francisco is truly sensational.
But it was on the table. In fact, the Niners were looking to make it happen, according to former 49ers head coach Mike Singletary. After four seasons as the team’s linebackers coach and taking over as the interim HC in 2008, the now 63-year-old coach got his first NFL head coaching job in the 2009 and 2010 seasons.
At the time, Alex Smith was the team’s quarterback, having been taken as the first overall pick in 2005. In an interview with The Athletic, Singletary revealed that he and San Francisco had been given the chance to bring Roethlisberger in as the starter instead.
“49ers owner John York, CEO Jed York,” Dan Pompei’s article reads. “Director of player personnel Trent Baalke and other executives called Singletary to a meeting. They had a trade in place with the Steelers for Ben Roethlisberger, who had recently been accused of sexual assault. Singletary vetoed the deal.”
Before the end of the 2010 season, Singletary was out as San Francisco’s coach as the team went 18-22 under his coaching, and without Roethlisberger.
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Regrets Over Roethlisberger
Roethlisberger’s turmoil played the largest part in San Francisco and Singletary not getting the deal done. The coach explained that he had built a team on character, and he wasn’t going to sacrifice his principles to bring in Roethlisberger.
“I had been telling the team I wanted a team of character,” he says. “I felt I had to be true to that. But if I could do it again, I’d do it differently.”
Hindsight is 20-20, and it’s clear Singletary looks back with the understanding that Roethlisberger could’ve changed his fortunes in San Francisco. While the story and Singletary point out that Smith had gotten a raw deal with four different offensive coordinators as a 49er, the team would’ve been drastically improved if they had added Roethlisberger.
Singletary kept his word to Smith and the rest of the 49ers, but even a slight peak into the numbers of the two players’ careers shows the gap in quality.
Smith vs. Roethlisberger
Interestingly enough, Roethlisberger’s years in 2009 and 2010 weren’t anywhere close to his best as a Steeler. Over those two seasons, the same that Singletary was in charge in San Francisco, he racked up 577 completions on 895 attempts, with 7528 passing yards, 43 touchdowns and 18 interceptions over 27 games.
Meanwhile, Smith played 22 games and completed 429 of 714 pass attempts for 4720 passing yards, 32 touchdowns and 22 interceptions.
So even when Roethlisberger wasn’t at his strongest, he was still a clear step ahead of Smith’s play. It’s honorable of Singletary to stick to his morals, that’s what a leader is supposed to do. But even he admitted that the best decision for the team’s success and his career was bringing “Big Ben” to San Francisco.