Jerome Bettis is optimistic about his former team, the Pittsburgh Steelers. It’s because he believes Ben Roethlisberger has two, three more big years left.
Former Pittsburgh Steelers legendary running back, Pro Football Hall of Famer and Super Bowl XL champion Jerome Bettis understands that it’s been a challenging last two years for his former team. However, he remains upbeat about the NFL team he’s most associated with because he believes starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger will bounce back in a big way in 2020.
“I’m excited for the Steelers next year,” said Bettis to FanSided‘s Mark Carman at Super Bowl LIV down in Miami on behalf of NuVasive. “Obviously, Big Ben coming back is definitely great news. He’s going to be healthy, but really the excitement is on the defensive side.”
“This is a team in the last four or five years, the one thing that’s been holding this team back from being a championship-caliber team was its defense. And now, you see this defense becoming the defenses of old, in terms of in Pittsburgh. Now, they have what you need on defense, coupled with Ben coming back and now some younger guys have to step up.”
When asked by Carman how long Roethlisberger will keep playing in the NFL, Bettis would respond with, “I still think he has about two or three big years left. I understand that he’s starting to wind down age-wise and obviously, this was a significant injury. But I still believe two really, really big years of production and maybe a third year where he can still get it done.”
So with an up-and-coming defense and a healthy Roethlisberger back in the fold, Pittsburgh looks to be a formidable challenger in the AFC North heading into 2020. But as Bettis was saying, Roethlisberger’s career is winding down. It took a long time for the Steelers to find a quarterback as good as Terry Bradshaw. Perhaps the Steelers do capitalize on the last days of Big Ben’s prime?
Jerome Bettis spoke with FanSided on behalf of NuVasive.