Childhood & Early Life
Benjamin Todd Roethlisberger was born on March 2, 1982, in Lima, Ohio, to Ida Jane Foust and Kenneth Todd Roethlisberger, who is a former quarterback. Ben has a younger sister Carlee. His parents divorced when Ben was just two. His father and stepmother, Brenda, raised him as his mother died in a car accident when Ben was eight.
Ben became active in sports at a young age, and played basketball and football. At Findlay High School, Ohio, he was the captain of the football, basketball, and baseball teams. He got the chance to be No. 1 quarterback in 1999, when he was in final high school season.
He played college football as a quarterback at Miami University. He debuted in 2001 against Michigan. In a game against Akron, he broke the school single-game passing record with 399 passing yards. He finished his first year with 3,105 passing yards, 25 touchdowns, and 241 completions.
In 2002, he set the Miami single-season record with 3,238 passing yards and 271 completions. He finished his 2003 season breaking the school single-season records in all categories. His jersey No.7 was retired, which was the first time in 34 years in Miami history.
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Career
On August 4, 2004, Ben Roethlisberger signed his first contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers for six years. He led the Steelers to a 14-1 record, and an appearance in the AFC Championship Game in his first season. He was named the Rookie of the Year.
In his second season, he helped the Steelers to win the 2005 Super Bowl, becoming the youngest quarterback to win a Super Bowl ring. On February 5, 2006, he played his first pre-season NFL game, and earned the elusive ‘One for the Thumb!’
He had his first big game of the season in week 6 against the Kansas City Chiefs. He got 16 of 19 passes for 238 yards. He was also successful in week 7, with 16 of 22 for 237 yards and three touchdowns. In 2006, he had a career high of 3,513 yards.
In 2007, he achieved his first career four-touchdown game after he led the Steelers to defeat Cleveland Browns 34-7. He continued with his brilliant performance against both the Buffalo Bills and San Francisco 49ers.
In week 9, he achieved a career-high five touchdowns against Baltimore Ravens, and all five were thrown in the first half, which made him one of the only two quarterbacks in 2007 to achieve such a feat.
In week 12 against Miami Dolphins, he set a new record as he completed 85.7% of his passes (18-21). In week 15, he broke the team single-season touchdown pass record against Jacksonville Jaguars.
In the 2007 season, his 32 touchdown passes ranked third in NFL, and his 104.1 passer rating was second. He also established a Steelers single-season record with 32 touchdown passes. He also won AFC North Division title for the third time in his five NFL seasons.
At Super Bowl XLIII, Ben led the Steelers to some dramatic victories in Super Bowl’s history against Arizona Cardinals. In two offensive drives, he passed for 122 yards on seven out of eight passing attempts. They achieved 10-0, and went into halftime up 17-7. Overall, he finished 21 of 30 for 256 yards, one touchdown, and one INT. The Steelers won the sixth Lombardi Trophy. He is one of only two active NFL quarterbacks to win multiple Super Bowl titles.
Although he didn’t achieve much in the 2009 playoffs, yet he set his career highs in passing attempts, completion percentage, and passing yards. He broke Steelers’ single season records with 4328 yards, 337 completions and 66% completion percentage.
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He made his 2010 season debut on October 17 against Cleveland Browns. He threw three touchdown passes in a 28-10 win. On December 5, he played against the Ravens, despite his fractured right foot and a broken nose, and gave a nine-yard touchdown pass. The Steelers achieved a 13-10 win and got control of the AFC North Division. In December 2010, he was selected as the ‘Chief Award’ winner.
On January 2, 2011, the Steelers achieved their third division title with 41-9 win over the Cleveland Browns. Ben completed 15 of 22 passes for 280 yards and two touchdowns. He became the AFC Offensive Player of the week.
In 2012, he set a new Steelers record for passing yards with 29,844 yards. He threw for 3,265 yards in 13 games, and the Steelers ended the season with 8-8 record.
In 2013, he threw for 4,261 yards and 28 touchdowns, and the Steelers finished the season with 8-8 record.
In the 2014 season, he passed his career highs in yards with 4,952, completions with 408, attempts with 608, and completion percentage with 67.1%. He also achieved his career high in passing touchdowns with 32. With a 11-5 record, the Steelers finished first in the AFC North.
In March 2015, he extended his contract with the Steelers for five years. In the season, the Steelers finished second in AFC North. Ben was ranked 21st on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2016.
In 2016, he had back-to-back 300-yard passing performances, with nine touchdowns against the Chiefs and Jets. But the next week at Miami, he suffered a knee injury, and had a surgery. He was ranked 22nd on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2017.
