Ben Roethlisberger 12 TD's In 2 Weeks

That is because far too many people judge quarterbacks solely by their team's success.

 

.... and somewhere OOP is whackin off about it .....

 

Did you really just suggest that the Steelers are a "small market" team?
Yes, Pittsburgh is a small market. The Steelers, though, are not some backwater question mark. They probably have the biggest national fan base in the NFL, perhaps in any of the four major sports. The NFL is also a national league, not a regional one like the other sports. People know who Ben Roethlisberger is.

I think the perceived lack of respect comes from the fact that he hasn't been as statistically consistent as the more elite quarterbacks like Brady, Peyton Manning, Brees or Rodgers. When Roethlisberger is on, he obviously has the potential to be great. He doesn't put up the eye-popping numbers on a regular basis, though. This is only the fifth time in 9 1/2 seasons that he's had back-to-back 300-yard games. Since 2004, Brady has done it 10 times, Peyton Manning 14 times, Brees 20 times, and Rodgers (who has only been a starter the equivalent of six full seasons) nine times.
Roethlisberger has also never been higher than seventh in passing yards in any given season, and only finished in the top 10 four times in his first nine seasons. He's second this year.
Compared to the high bar those other guys have set, he's a glorified game manager -- and that's the role the Steelers have often needed him to play. He hasn't killed them with bad plays most of the time and can win a game if he needs to, but for the most part the Steelers teams of the past decade have been built around defense and a competent, not dominating, offense. They've only been in the top 10 in total yards twice in the Roethlisberger era (2006 and 2009) and never higher than seventh.
So, if Roethlisberger isn't regarded as an elite quarterback it's because he hasn't been one except in short bursts.

 

Oh, look. Angry boy is back and as useless as ever.

Me, I'm just concerned by what type of fantasy he comes up with.

 

Your first point is exactly right. Of course, I'm biased because it agrees with the one I already made.

Not sure the second one is fair, though. I guess it depends on your definition of elite. Is it top five? Top 10? Roethlisberger is usually somewhere in that 5-10 range. Clearly behind the four guys you mentioned, but right there with everybody else.

 

Let's just say that a hot tub of Pepto Bismol, a french maid outfit, 3 iguanas and a Dick Lebeau blowup doll are involved.

 

How dare you suggest Zag could love anybody connected with the Steelers!

 

Elite is a tenuous thing. To me, it's the guys who strike fear in you. The ones who, when you see them on the schedule or realize you have to run into them in the playoffs, make you go, "Oh shit." The guys who are capable of beating you single-handedly no matter what they're working with. Guys who can be regarded as the best of their generation, or at least the best in the league for an extended stretch. It's a combination of skill, mystique and consistency. Maybe there's four or five guys on the list, maybe it's six or seven at any given point.
Manning and Brady have permanent spots, of course. Brees and Rodgers are there, although they've been more mortal the last year or two. Andrew Luck is looking like he'll be there before long.

In the case of Roethlisberger, he's flirted with making the leap. He's even vacationed in Eliteville. He just hasn't bought a house there. He's capable of having weeks like the past two, he'll probably win another Super Bowl before it's all said and done, might even make the Hall of Fame. But, like you said, he seems stuck in that 5-10 range. You can certainly do worse than Roethlisberger. I wouldn't be looking for another quarterback if I were the Steelers. Just don't know that he's ever given anyone that sinking feeling in the pit of their stomach like those top four guys I mentioned do.
He's rarely been bad, he just hasn't been among the very best for extended periods of time. Until he does it for at least a full season it'll be hard to ever regard him that way.

 

He's got 37,000 yards and should ended well into 50,000.

 

Then you have Luck who's going to be the best ever. /fanboi

 

Eli Manning, Carson Palmer, Phillip Rivers and Tony Romo are all in the same neighborhood, statistically. Not sure any of them have ever cracked that top five list for any length of time, either.
And FWIW, I'd take Roethlisberger over any of them except maybe Rivers.