The Pittsburgh Steelers came into Sunday with things looking up, having gotten star running back Le’Veon Bell back from his two-game suspension. They exited Sunday in what had to be a state of concern, having lost quarterback Ben Roethlisberger for at least a month with a knee injury.
Ben Roethlisberger suffers leg injury; out at least 4 weeks for Steelers, fantasy owners
The Steelers will be without their star quarterback for several games at least. We break down the fantasy implications.
Joshua Lindsey-USA TODAY Sports
Roethlisberger completed 20 of his 24 pass attempts Sunday for 192 yards and an interception before being forced from Pittsburgh’s 12-6 win over the St. Louis Rams. He was replaced by backup Michael Vick, who went 5 for 6 for 38 yards. Roethlisberger was carted off after the injury, which is reported to be an MCL sprain and bone bruise.
Fantasy impact: Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reported Roethlisberger avoided the dreaded torn ACL tear, which would have ended his season. However, the fact remains Roethlisberger is likely to be out at least until November, which would be the team’s Week 8 game against Cincinnati.
In the meantime, the Steelers still have a stout top two weapons in Bell and wide receiver Antonio Brown. While Vick struggled with the New York Jets last year, that group of weapons, plus wide receiver Markus Wheaton and tight end Heath Miller, plus the return of wide receiver Martavis Bryant from suspension in Week 5, won’t require Vick to win games himself; he’ll just need to keep from losing them.
It’s still a big loss, but Bell and Brown won’t see their stocks fall significantly. Wheaton and Miller were fringe fantasy contributors to begin with, so this doesn’t affect them dramatically, either. Vick will probably slot as a low-end QB2 during his tenure as the Pittsburgh starter.
