PITTSBURGH — Ben Roethlisberger could he hampered by a hip injury that he said is affecting his throwing mechanics when the Steelers play the Denver Broncos on Sunday. But that isn’t the only thing that is hindering his ability to perform in the manner to which he is accustomed.
Roethlisberger’s freedom to run the Steelers offense is being limited, if not stripped, by coordinator Matt Canada and coach Mike Tomlin. His struggles have resulted in his reputation being hammered both locally and nationally.
He is not allowed to run the no-huddle offense that he has used with much success for his first 17 years with the team. And, in most crucial situations that Tomlin refers to as “weighty moments,” he is restricted from calling audibles at the line of scrimmage — strange treatment for a future Hall of Famer who has won two Super Bowls.
That includes the disastrous fourth-down calls each of the past two weeks — the check-down pass to Najee Harris against the Cincinnati Bengals and the 2-yard pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster that was 3 yards shy of the first-down against the Green Bay Packers.
That is the opinion of two former players who were part of the Steelers offense when the Steelers were winning games and making Super Bowl runs.
“In the past, he was able to call whatever he wanted to call at the line of scrimmage,” said former quarterback Charlie Batch, who served as Roethlisberger’s backup for eight seasons with the Steelers from 2003-2012. “But when I’m watching him this year, based on my experience being around him over the last 18 years, nine of them sitting next to him, there’s no way he’s checking into that play. I’ve watched him too long.”
Batch said it appears Roethlisberger’s is merely calling the plays he is given and is not calling audibles at the line of scrimmage. He took to Twitter to show an overhead photo taken from game film of the ill-fated fourth-and-10 call against the Bengals in which he countered Canada’s explanation that “we had guys in the end zone.” Batch pointed out that none of the receivers were in the end zone at the time Roethlisberger released the ball.
The fourth-down play to Smith-Schuster in Green Bay only convinced him that Roethlisberger “doesn’t have the ability” to call audibles.
“If he did, there’s no way he would run this particular play to JuJu,” Batch said.
Even Tomlin admitted there are certain moments Roethlisberger is not allowed to change a play the line of scrimmage.
“Those moments are so weighty and there’s so much preparation in those moments, oftentimes those decisions are had and thought through and discussed prior to being in them,” Tomlin said “There’s more fluidity in that decision making and more certainty in terms of the play selection.”
Asked on Wednesday if he is being restricted from calling audibles, Roethlisberger said, “Some of the lack of audibling is just understanding there’s only so much you can do in terms of the plays and playbook and how to audible out of stuff if you don’t have a total understanding of everything, the whole playbook. I’m not going to put it on a lack of audibling and being able to do it. We need to execute the plays that are called and I need to do that.”
The Steelers didn’t use the no-huddle against the Packers until they trailed 27-10 in the third quarter. They used it for five plays on two separate series in the quarter, then for 10 plays on two separate series in the fourth quarter. The most extensive use came when Roethlisberger used the no-huddle for six consecutive plays on the final eight-play, 65-yard touchdown drive.
They also used the no-huddle for 10 plays in the 24-10 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, a game in which they struggled to generate offense and trailed the entire game.
“It’s more just hurrying up and calling the two-minute offense,” Roethlisberger said. “You hate to do it because it means you’re playing catchup. We’d all like to be a little better being on pace and keeping the balance. The times we had to do it, we had to go down and score quickly and I think we’ve done that both weeks. But you would like to not have to get to it.”
But it isn’t the amount of times the Steelers use the no-huddle that is in question. It’s the type of attack it hasn’t become in Canada’s offense. Roethlisberger has said on several occasions it is nothing more than a two-minute offense, which no more resembles a no-huddle attack than a punt resembles a field goal.
Former offensive tackle Max Starks, who played nine seasons with Roethlisberger, said the two-minute offense severely restricts the amount of plays and formations Roethlisberger can use. He outlined the drastic difference during Sunday’s pregame show on the Steelers Radio Network.
“A two-minute offense is going to be a menu of about eight to 10 plays with one formation that can either be left or right,” Starks said. “That’s it. A no-huddle package or hurry-up offense gives you four different formations, it gives you just as many runs as it does pass and there’s play action built into it. It’s now code-worded or numbered and you just line up and go and everybody has rehearsed and memorized what those plays are.
“A two-minute is going to be primarily pass, maybe one or two draws, and maybe one screen, but the rest are pass patterns. That’s it. There’s a big difference. The no-huddle you can run out of multiple personnel groupings, whereas you get to the two-minute offense, it’s usually [the same] personnel that’s out there. You just stay there.”
Tomlin, though, said Roethlisberger is not limited “in any way” running this version of the no-huddle — if it can be called that. He indicated, however, that not having a lot of experienced players on offense could be a factor in how much it is used and the way it is being used.
“If there are any alterations to that approach besides the plays themselves — the plays change — it’s always got something to do with who’s available to us, their level of experience, their ability to execute, particularly in those moments when you’re talking no-huddle,” Tomlin said. “Usually, you’re talking about those weighty moments, and so you want execution to be at a certain level and you work in the wheelhouse of the people that are in the huddle.”
