Nov 15, 2015 4 min read

PITTSBURGH – You can add another chapter to the book of Ben Roethlisberger’s greatest moments.

What he did Sunday was special, even for a quarterback with his accomplishments.

Last Sunday, Roethlisberger had his foot bent at such a severe angle he immediately feared it was broken. On Monday, he was in a walking boot and on crutches.

By Wednesday, he was out of the boot, but still walking with an extreme limp. It wasn’t until Thursday and Friday that he was able to go out to practice and throw a few passes to his teammates.

And that was it, a few practice tosses. Roethlisberger didn’t get any work of substance in the week leading up to Sunday’s 30-9 victory over the Cleveland Browns.

Apparently, he didn’t need any.

The plan for this game was for Roethlisberger to back up Landry Jones because Jones got all of the practice work and game preparation.

That all went out the window on Pittsburgh’s second possession.

Jones suffered a sprained ankle when right tackle Marcus Gilbert stepped on him while pass blocking. It wound up being one of the more fortunate teammate-inflicted injuries in recent memory.

Coming in cold with his sprained left foot in a shoe that looked more appropriate for a lunar landing than it did an NFL game, Roethlisberger not only played, he played well.

His first two passes were incomplete. He went on to complete 22 of his next 31 throws for 379 yards, three touchdowns and an interception. It was the most yards by a quarterback who did not start a game in NFL history.

“That’s the way a backup quarterback is supposed to play,” Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said to no one in particular as he led his team into the locker room following the game.

“I might have to start him the next game.”

Obviously, that will be the case for Roethlisberger, who entered a game as a substitute for just the second time in his career. The first came in the second game of the 2004 regular season at Baltimore, when he replaced the injured Tommy Maddox.

That game didn’t work out as well, as Roethlisberger threw for 176 yards and two scores but also was picked off twice in a Pittsburgh loss.

But that was a much different Roethlisberger.

In this game, despite not taking part in much of the game planning, he largely went out and did his own thing, running mostly in the shotgun out of a no-huddle offense.

“We knew we would have Ben available to us, probably in a limited capacity, from a preparedness standpoint,” said Tomlin. “We operated out of the no-huddle, brought the game to him. It was less game-plan specific and more Football 101.”

Roethlisberger passed the course with flying colors.

“Man, the guy was in a boot and on crutches on Monday,” said wide receiver Antonio Brown. “I can’t speak highly enough about Ben. He’s a tremendous warrior. You never know what he’s capable of doing.”

The Steelers will need more such efforts in their final six games. They now have hit their stated goal of 30 or more points per game in each of the past two weeks as they head into their bye week.

The thought going into this game was that if they could get past the Browns without Roethlisberger, they could get him back for their next game Nov. 29 at Seattle in full health.

Given what we saw yesterday, the Steelers are way ahead of schedule.

“It kind of surprised me and everyone else because I was in a boot,” Roethlisberger said. “On Monday, my foot was basically black and blue. It’s more than just me, it’s the training staff – John Norwig and the doctors and everyone. We were tireless in our rehab and trying to get ready.

“I always want to play, obviously. (Tomlin) felt Landry gave us a shot because Landry practiced all week. I think that’s why he had me coming out of the pen because he felt I was ready enough to do it.”

And do it like nobody else has in NFL history.

He even had a sense of humor about the whole thing.

“He said on the sidelines, ‘Congratulations on your first win as a starter,'” Jones said.

“He’s a great player. When you’re able to overcome stuff like that, it just adds to what he’s done throughout his whole career.

For Roethlisberger, it was his first career “save.” The guess here is there will be more wins and chapters to come.

F. Dale Lolley can be reached at dlolley@observer-reporter.com.