KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Ben Roethlisberger did a terrific job Sunday night. Unfortunately for him and the Pittsburgh Steelers, his best work came after the 42-21 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs ended his career and the team’s season.
“God has blessed me with an ability to throw a football and blessed me to be able to play in the greatest city with the greatest fans,” Roethlisberger said.
“It’s a blessing to play this game. I try to tell these guys, how lucky are we that we get to play football for a living? We need to count our blessing. We get to entertain millions of fans and throw, catch, run and do what we did as kids. It’s our job now. We need to say our prayers and thank God for that.
“I’ve been here a long time and it’s been a lot of fun. We joke a lot about the Browns and going there, but it was meant to be that I was going to wear black and gold.
“I’m just so thankful. I’m hopeful I’m able to pass on the legacy of what it means to be a Steeler.”
Talk about a classy exit.
Now, on to the game …
An emotional lift provided by JuJu Smith-Schuster’s surprise return couldn’t save Roethlisberger on this chilly winter night. A huge defensive play by Cam Heyward and T.J. Watt couldn’t extend Roethlisberger’s career.
You knew the end was coming for Roethlisberger, but like this?
You wanted to hide your eyes, it was so painful to watch.
The Steelers were no match for the Chiefs for the second time in three weeks. Roethlisberger was no match for Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. Who is these days? It’s just a shame the fight wasn’t called at halftime. Mahomes and the Chiefs kept piling on.
The stats were almost unfathomable after the Chiefs scored touchdowns on five consecutive possessions to take a 35-7 lead with 9:14 to go in the third quarter:
Mahomes had completed 25 of 34 passes for 337 yards and five touchdowns. Roethlisberger had completed 6 of 15 passes for 23 yards.
You can’t make up those numbers.
It turned out the big play by Heyward and Watt was the worst thing that could have happened to the Steelers. Heyward forced a fumble by wide receiver Mecole Hardman and Watt did a scoop-and-return for a 26-yard touchdown to give the Steelers a 7-0 lead with 10:41 left in the second quarter.
The play seemed to wake up Mahomes. Maybe he was angry that Hardman had taken the snap in the wildcat formation. What was Chiefs coach Andy Reid thinking there? He has the best quarterback in football and one of the best ever and he’s fooling around with the wildcat?
If Mahomes was miffed, he took it out on the Steelers. He scrambled for 23 yards to set up the Chiefs’ first touchdown. He hit a 31-yard pass to tight end Travis Kelce to set up the second score. He threw a 48-yard touchdown pass to Kelce on a third-and-20 play with :13 left in the half for a 21-7 lead.
At that point, the Steelers had been outgained, 322-44. Let me do the hideous math for you: The Steelers averaged 1.6 yards on their 27 first-half plays, the Chiefs 7.6 yards on their 40 plays. And, yes, the Steelers failed to score a first-half offensive touchdown for the seventh time in their final eight games.
Roethlisberger wasn’t nearly sharp enough to keep the Steelers in the game. His receivers didn’t help, dropping passes and running the wrong routes. Mike Tomlin was quick to note their shortcomings after the game.
Mahomes had no such problems with his receivers. He didn’t let up in the third quarter. He threw a 23-yard pass to running back Jerick McKinnon on a third-and-12 play to set up a 1-yard touchdown pass to tackle-eligible Nick Allegretti. That’s right, Allegretti always will be able to say he caught a playoff touchdown pass from the great Mahomes. Doing that is a bit more routine for wide receiver Tyreek Hill, who caught a 31-yard touchdown pass from Mahomes for a 35-7 lead.
There was a sixth consecutive touchdown drive for the Chiefs after Roethlisberger’s cosmetic 13-yard touchdown pass to Diontae Johnson cut the deficit to 35-14 late in the third quarter. Kelce lined up in the wildcat and threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Byron Pringle to push the lead to 42-14.
So much for second-guessing Reid, who looks like a decent bet to get the Chiefs to a third consecutive Super Bowl.
The Chiefs fans loved what they were watching. They even mock cheered a scoreboard message after Pringle’s touchdown:
“Due to the Chiefs continually scoring touchdowns, we have ran out of celebratory fireworks.”
That probably will happen again and again with Mahomes, who finished with 404 passing yards and a 138.2 passer rating.
It’s fair to wonder what Roethlisberger was thinking as he watched Mahomes do his magic. He used to be that quarterback. More often than not, he was the quarterback to outplay the other guy, the one who threw five touchdown passes.
Roethlisberger and Mahomes embraced when the game ended. Mahomes surely congratulated Roethlisberger on his Hall of Fame career. Roethlisberger said he wished Mahomes nothing but the best on his Hall of Fame journey.
“Such a good football player,” Roethlisberger said of Mahomes. “It’s fun to watch him. Just a lot of respect there.”
Now, it’s over for Roethlisberger, who said he is looking forward to being “the best father and husband I can be.” He talked of going tubing and sledding with his three children on Monday.
“I’m nervous,” Roethlisberger said about the next chapter of his life. “It’s going to be different.”
Just as the Steelers will be different without Roethlisberger.
For the first time in 18 years, they will be a different team.
It’s just a shame Roethlisberger’s exit couldn’t have gone a little better on the field.
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