Oakland Raiders: Getting Antonio Brown could mean the end for Big Ben

Ben Roethlisberger is the only Killer B left in Pittsburgh, after Antonio Brown was traded to the Oakland Raiders, and Le’Veon Bell signed with the New York Jets.

Ben Roethlisberger just watched Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell walk away from his team in the past five days. The aging quarterback has been contemplating retirement for a few seasons now, but will these players leaving push him into retirement faster?

The Oakland Raiders traded for Antonio Brown, effectively ending the saga of frustration and tour of disposition by Brownon the Steelers. The Pro Bowl wide receiver and previous league-leading pass catcher left the team who drafted him under bitter circumstances due to contract negotiations and lack of cohesion with his Super Bowl winning quarterback. While the Raiders got a steal for him – a 3rd and 5th round pick – one can’t help but feel like Big Ben has to be the one most upset.

The Steelers shipped off 104 receptions, 1,297 yards, and 15 touchdowns off along with him. Not only was Brown the No.1 receiver on Pittsburgh, but he also had the most catches in the previous five seasons than any other receiver in the league. Ben would constantly just throw the ball up and Antonio Brown would somehow just come up with the ball and not to mention, Brown has the best toe-tapping ability in the league.

If that wasn’t enough, Le’Veon Bell was allowed to walk away to the Jets. The Pro Bowl running back, who sat out all last season due to contract negotiations, was one of Ben’s favorite targets, too. Not only did Bell have 1,291 yards in 2017 to go along with nine touchdowns back in 2017, but he also caught 85 catches for 655 yards with 2 touchdowns, averaging 7.7 per catch with 42 yards being the longest.

The tandem was hard to defend because as a defensive coordinator, what do you do? Do you double Brown then leave one safety in the middle leaving Bell singled on a linebacker or their big tight end against a safety?

Or do you put eight or nine in the box leaving single coverage on Brown and risking a big play? The way that team could attack the opposing defense was endless. Now, Ben has a decent offensive line, an average WR in Juju Smith-Schuster, James Connor, and Jesse James.

I predict Ben Rothlesburger will announce retirement within the next 12 months. Either he’ll announce before the draft and the Steelers will trade up to draft a top quarterback, or he’ll call it quits after this season and walk away from the game after 15 years as a Steeler. Either way, this is the beginning of a rebuilding phase for the Steel Curtain.