Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is expected to play in Sunday’s showdown with the New England Patriots despite sustaining cracked ribs in last week’s loss to the Oakland Raiders, according to a published report.
NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Roethlisberger’s injury during an appearance Sunday on Good Morning Football Weekend.
“(It’s) nothing that should really limit him going forward,” Rapoport said. “Wouldn’t be surprised if he has more, let’s say treatment like he did last week. He took a shot in the locker room and came back and then played. He should be fine going forward. But yes, unlike that X-ray machine, I can actually tell you, they were cracked.”
There was some mystery surrounding Roethlisberger’s whereabouts during the second half of Pittsburgh’s 24-21 setback to the Raiders on Sunday.
The 36-year-old sat out four drives as a result before replacing Josh Dobbs and tossing a touchdown pass for the Steelers (7-5-1).
“Ben sustained an injury at the end of the first half, we went in at halftime; he needed to be evaluated,” coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday. “An X-ray was a part of that. Getting the X-ray executed was not a fluid thing and often times it’s not a fluid thing to be honest with you. New and unfamiliar venues and things of that nature. Ben was accompanied by our medical staff and Kevin Colbert, our general manager. They went through their procedures. Even after getting the X-ray, we didn’t have great clarity, to be honest with you. We weren’t able to read the X-ray to our satisfaction. … So we never really, fully had a complete understanding of specifically what the injury was at the stadium site.”
A two-time Super Bowl champion and six-time Pro Bowl selection, Roethlisberger has completed 366 of 546 passes for 4,227 yards with 28 touchdowns and 13 interceptions this season.
